Genesis 31:47
And Laban called it The witness heap: and Jacob, The hillock of testimony: each of them according to the propriety of his language.
Open Genesis 31:47 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- quem vocavit Laban Tumulum testis : et Jacob, Acervum testimonii, uterque juxta proprietatem linguæ suæ.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- καὶ ἐκάλεσεν αὐτὸν Λαβάν Βουνὸς μάρτυς, Ἰακὼβ δὲ ἐκάλεσεν αὐτόν Βουνὸς μαρτυρεῖ.
- Hebrew (WLC)
- וַיִּקְרָא ל֣וֹ לָבָ֔ן יְגַ֖ר שָׂהֲדוּתָ֑א וְיַֽעֲקֹ֔ב קָ֥רָא ל֖וֹ גַּלְעֵֽד
Haydock's commentary
Testimony. Hebrew makes Laban give this etymology, Jegar-saha-dutha; while Galaad means the hill or the witness. The Syrian language had now begun to deviate some little from the Hebrew of Jacob.
Each, &c. This is added by the Vulgate. (Calmet)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Basil De Spiritu Sancto, Statement of the reason why in the writings of Paul the angels are associated with the Father and the Son
30. And not only Paul, but generally all those to whom is committed any ministry of the word, never cease from testifying, but call heaven and earth to witness on the ground that now every deed that is done is done within them, and that in the examination of all the actions of life they will be present with the judged. So it is said, “He shall call to the heavens above and to earth, that he may judge his people.” And so Moses when about to deliver his oracles to the people says, “I call heaven and earth to witness this day;” and again in his song he says, “Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak, and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth;” and Isaiah, “Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth;” and Jeremiah describes astonishment in heaven at the tidings of the unholy deeds of the people: “The heaven was astonished at this, and was horribly afraid, because my people committed two evils.” A …
St Gregory the Great The Book of Pastoral Rule, How the rude in sacred learning, and those who are learned but not humble, are to be admonished
( Admonition 25.) Differently to be admonished are those who do not understand aright the words of the sacred Law, and those who understand them indeed aright, but speak them not humbly. For those who understand not aright the words of sacred Law are to be admonished to consider that they turn for themselves a most wholesome drought of wine into a cup of poison, and with a medicinal knife inflict on themselves a mortal wound, when they destroy in themselves what was sound by that whereby they ought, to their health, to have cut away what was diseased. They are to be admonished to consider that Holy Scripture is set as a kind of lantern for us in the night of the present life, the words whereof when they understand not aright, from light they get darkness. But in truth a perverse bent of mind would not hurry them to understand it wrong, did not pride first puff them up. …