Written in the scholarly Latin of his day, Lagarde considers in this brief study the questions Jerome raises on the Hebrew of the book of Genesis. In an abridged commentary form, Lagarde follows the questions in the order in which the book of Genesis presents the material. Beginning with the creation, Lagarde skips along to the phrases of Jerome’s text that raise questions and provides his insights about them. Presuming that the reader of the Vulgate will understand the Latin of the original, the comments on the material are likewise written in Latin. In such a brief treatment, naturally the entire book of Genesis cannot be explicated, but a sufficient amount of material is addressed to reward the effort of the exegete who works through Lagarde’s observations. As useful now as when it was initially published, Lagarde’s understanding of the Latin of Genesis is worth the exploration.

Paul Anton de Lagarde (1827-1891) was a biblical scholar and student of ancient languages. Having studied at Berlin, Halle, London, and Paris, he had a wide exposure to international thought. He eventually taught at Göttingen. Despite his participation in the anti-Semitism of his day, he was a gifted student of Semitic languages. His voluminous linguistic works are still recognized for their insights into oriental languages. He made important contributions to the study of Syriac, Aramaic, Arabic, Hebrew, and Coptic, as well as Greek and Latin.