Genesis 9:9

Posted on January 9, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 9:9 Ecce ego statuam pactum meum vobiscum, et cum semine vestro post vos:

“Behold, I will establish my covenant with you, and with your offspring after you:

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Ecce behold INTERJ
2 ego I PRON.NOM.SG
3 statuam I will establish 1SG.FUT.IND.ACT
4 pactum covenant N.ACC.SG.N
5 meum my PRON.POSS.ACC.SG.N
6 vobiscum with you PREP+ABL.PL
7 et and CONJ
8 cum with PREP+ABL
9 semine offspring N.ABL.SG.N
10 vestro your PRON.POSS.ABL.SG.N
11 post after PREP+ACC
12 vos you PRON.ACC.PL

Syntax

Main Clause: Ecce ego statuam pactum meum vobiscum — declarative statement announcing divine initiative: “Behold, I will establish my covenant with you.”
Coordinated Phrase: et cum semine vestro post vos — extends the covenantal relationship to future generations.
Word Order: The fronted Ecce ego introduces emphasis on divine authority and immediacy of speech.

Morphology

  1. Ecce — Lemma: ecce; Part of Speech: Interjection; Form: Invariable; Function: Draws attention; Translation: “Behold”; Notes: Commonly introduces divine revelation or solemn declaration.
  2. ego — Lemma: ego; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Nominative singular; Function: Subject of statuam; Translation: “I”; Notes: Explicit subject emphasizing God as speaker.
  3. statuam — Lemma: statuo; Part of Speech: Verb; Form: Future indicative active 1st person singular; Function: Main verb; Translation: “I will establish”; Notes: Indicates future action of covenant institution.
  4. pactum — Lemma: pactum; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Accusative singular neuter; Function: Direct object of statuam; Translation: “covenant”; Notes: Refers to divine agreement, foundational to biblical theology.
  5. meum — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: Pronoun (possessive adjective); Form: Accusative singular neuter; Function: Modifies pactum; Translation: “my”; Notes: Highlights divine ownership of the covenant.
  6. vobiscum — Lemma: vos + cum; Part of Speech: Preposition + pronoun compound; Form: Ablative plural; Function: Expresses accompaniment; Translation: “with you”; Notes: Indicates the covenant partners (Noah and his sons).
  7. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: Conjunction; Form: Invariable; Function: Connects additional phrase; Translation: “and”; Notes: Joins succeeding covenant recipients.
  8. cum — Lemma: cum; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs ablative; Function: Introduces additional prepositional phrase; Translation: “with”; Notes: Extends covenant fellowship beyond immediate participants.
  9. semine — Lemma: semen; Part of Speech: Noun; Form: Ablative singular neuter; Function: Object of cum; Translation: “offspring”; Notes: Refers to future descendants, perpetuating covenantal lineage.
  10. vestro — Lemma: vester; Part of Speech: Pronoun (possessive adjective); Form: Ablative singular neuter; Function: Modifies semine; Translation: “your”; Notes: Refers to Noah’s collective family line.
  11. post — Lemma: post; Part of Speech: Preposition; Form: Governs accusative; Function: Expresses sequence in time; Translation: “after”; Notes: Temporal preposition denoting continuation of covenant beyond their lifetime.
  12. vos — Lemma: vos; Part of Speech: Pronoun; Form: Accusative plural; Function: Object of post; Translation: “you”; Notes: Indicates succession after the addressed audience.

 

About Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Born around 346 A.D. in Stridon, St. Jerome was a scholar fluent in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew whose ascetic discipline and deep engagement with Scripture prepared him for a monumental task: translating the Bible into Latin. Commissioned by Pope Damasus I around 382 A.D., Jerome began by revising the flawed Old Latin Gospels, then expanded his work to the entire Bible. For the New Testament, he corrected Latin texts using Greek manuscripts; for the Old Testament, he translated most books directly from Hebrew—a controversial but principled choice. His final Psalter, however, followed the Greek Septuagint tradition for liturgical use. This composite translation, later known as the Vulgate (editio vulgata), became the authoritative biblical text of the Western Church, formally endorsed at the Council of Trent in 1546. The Vulgate’s influence extends beyond theology into textual criticism and Latin education. As one of the earliest translations grounded in original-language scholarship, it offers a vital witness to the state of biblical texts in late antiquity. Jerome’s lexical and syntactic decisions are studied to trace manuscript history and assess variant readings. Its elegant Latin, consistent in grammar and rich in vocabulary, became a model for medieval and Renaissance learning, bridging classical and ecclesiastical Latin. More than a translation, the Vulgate helped define Christian doctrine, preserved the Latin language, and laid essential groundwork for the critical study of Scripture—remaining indispensable to students of Latin, theology, and textual history.
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