# HIS name is Mercy.



## Tom47

Hello to all. I would like to know the correct way to write (HIS name is Mercy) ...I am referring to the name of Jesus. Thank you.


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## clara mente

"Nomen eius miserecordia est."


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## Tom47

clara mente said:


> "Nomen eius miserecordia est."


May I ask why "eius" instead of suus?


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## clara mente

Tom47 said:


> May I ask why "eius" instead of suus?


 
This usage seems to be very perplexing to most beginning students, so let me try to clarify it in simple terms. Of the possessive pronouns ,meus, tuus and suus ,the latter is the only one in which there can be any ambiguity in that, being 3rd person it can refer to anything or anyone which is mentioned ,as long as it is in grammatical agreement.
The Romans, therefore used "suus" exclusively to only modify the subject of a sentence. Any other 3rd per. reference would be rendered by "eius" (of him/her etc.) Hence the sentence:" Caesar amico dixit matrem suam mortuam esse." i.e. Caesar' mother was dead. Whereas " Caesar amico dixit matrem eius mortuam esse." His friend's mother was dead. 
     So, in the example above, "His name is mercy." Jesus himself is not the subject, but rather "his name" Hope that helps.


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## floridasnowbird

clara mente said:


> This usage seems to be very perplexing to most beginning students, so let me try to clarify it in simple terms. Of the possessive pronouns ,meus, tuus and suus ,the latter is the only one in which there can be any ambiguity in that, being 3rd person it can refer to anything or anyone which is mentioned ,as long as it is in grammatical agreement.
> The Romans, therefore used "suus" exclusively to only modify the subject of a sentence. Any other 3rd per. reference would be rendered by "eius" (of him/her etc.) Hence the sentence:" Caesar amico dixit matrem suam mortuam esse." i.e. Caesar' mother was dead. Whereas " Caesar amico dixit matrem eius mortuam esse." His friend's mother was dead.
> Hope that helps.


 

I totally agree with that. But the question was, without telling us any more context, how to translate *His name is mercy*, referring to the name of Jesus. And in this case, I think, but I may be wrong, of course, either way is possible: nomen eius *and *suus.


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## Whodunit

clara mente said:


> "Nomen eius miserecordia est."


 
I'm sorry, but what does "miserecordia" mean? For "mercy," they use "gratia" or maybe better "clementia."

Nomen Eius clementia est.
Nomen Iesu clementia est.


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## clara mente

Whodunit said:


> I'm sorry, but what does "miserecordia" mean? For "mercy," they use "gratia" or maybe better "clementia."
> 
> Nomen Eius clementia est.
> Nomen Iesu clementia est.


 
The word "misericordia" (spelled with "i"-sorry typo in original post) is commonly used by the Classic authors, Cicero especially, but also by Caesar and Livy. If you have access to a text scanner, perhaps you can determine it's frequency. It is also used widely in Ecclesiasical Latin and , in fact is seen at the very beginning of the Tridentine Mass excerpted from the Vulgate 5th Cent. in the passage "Ostende nobis Domine, misericordiam tuam."


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## Whodunit

clara mente said:


> The word "misericordia" (spelled with "i"-sorry typo in original post) is commonly used by the Classic authors, Cicero especially, but also by Caesar and Livy. If you have access to a text scanner, perhaps you can determine it's frequency. It is also used widely in Ecclesiasical Latin and , in fact is seen at the very beginning of the Tridentine Mass excerpted from the Vulgate 5th Cent. in the passage "Ostende nobis Domine, misericordiam tuam."


 
Hm, does "mercy" mean "compassion/charity" here or rather "grace/leniency" for you? I'm not 100% sure about the English word, so my translation is based on the latter, yours on the first meaning, I guess.

On a second thought, I would change my mind and use "suus" instead of "eius" now. "Eius" would be perfectly understood if Jesus was mentioned in the sentence or passage before, but due to the lack of context, either "suus" or "Iesus" would seem fine and unmistakable to me:

Nomen Suum clemetia/misericordia est.
Nomen Iesu clemetia/misericordia est.

Maybe they capitalized the pronoun for Jesus or God as we do in English.


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## virgilio

Whodunit,
             'Fraid not! Whether or not the previous sentence had as its nominative the person to whom your "suus" would refer, this _separate _sentence could have only "ejus" for "his":

nomen ejus erat misericordia .

Best wishes
Virgilio


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## Whodunit

virgilio said:


> Whodunit,
> 'Fraid not! Whether or not the previous sentence had as its nominative the person to whom your "suus" would refer, this _separate _sentence could have only "ejus" for "his":
> 
> nomen ejus erat misericordia .
> 
> Best wishes
> Virgilio


 
Didn't you write in the other thread that _suus_ could be translated as _his own_ and _eius_ as _of the person mentioned last_? In a separate sentence, there's no reference to a person of the previous clause, sentence, or paragraph, yet you want to use _eius_. Isn't it _his own_ name? I'd use _eius_ in such a context:

_Marcus cum Iesu venit. Nomen eius misericordia erat._

Or did I miss something?


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## virgilio

Whodunit,
           Re: "Didn't you write in the other thread that _suus_ could be translated as _his own_ and _eius_ as _of the person mentioned last_?"
No. That was "cujus" - the correlative of "ejus".
You seem to be 'preaching to the converted', as we say in English. I agree with your "nomen ejus misericordia erat"!

Virgilio


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## Whodunit

virgilio said:


> Whodunit,
> Re: "Didn't you write in the other thread that _suus_ could be translated as _his own_ and _eius_ as _of the person mentioned last_?"
> No. That was "cujus" - the correlative of "ejus".


 
_Cuius_ was what I mentioned later. See your summary:



virgilio said:


> Re the difference between "suus (etc)" and "ejus", the whole thing can be made very simple indeed by assigning meanings to each accurately.
> "suus (etc)" means "his (own), her (own), its (own), their (own), one's (own)"
> "ejus" - if it is genitive singular of the *pronoun* use of "is" "ea" and "id" - means "of that male person", or "of that female person" or "of that thing" according to context.
> Let your native language take the strain!
> Virgilio


 


> I agree with your "nomen ejus misericordia erat"!


 
Thanks. In my opinion, _eius_ needs a previous sentence, but I can't say that for sure. I will ask my Latin teacher tomorrow, if I remember our discussion.


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