Alternative translations for Exodus 6:20 and the relationship between Amram and Jochebed

Question

I am currently working with Biblical chronology, and I am now at the point involving the birth of Moses, as well as his parents. Regarding them, we have the following information in Exodus:

Exodus 6:20 (KJV)

And Amram took him Jochebed his father's sister to wife; and she bare him Aaron and Moses: and the years of the life of Amram were an hundred and thirty and seven years.

Therefore, Jochebed would then be Amram's aunt and Levi's daughter. For the second information, we are again reaffirmed about such in Numbers:

Numbers 26:59 (KJV)

And the name of Amram's wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, whom her mother bare to Levi in Egypt: and she bare unto Amram Aaron and Moses, and Miriam their sister.

However, this apparently causes a chronological problem, as the interval between the death of Levi and the birth of Moses is around 30-50 years (in my chronology it is exactly 53 years, but alternative dating of some facts could provide 35 years). I won't go into detail about the dating method or specific years, as that's not the focus of my question, but basically, it's unlikely that Jochebed was born in the last year of Levi, therefore, if she were indeed Amram's aunt, she would have to have been quite old at the birth of Moses.

However, the Septuagint translation provides an alternative version of Exodus 6:20, placing Jochebed as her "his father's brother's daughter" (that is, cousin of Amram). The Numbers verse is identical to the version already mentioned here, but if Jochebed was in fact Amram's cousin, then the term daughter in this would actually indicate a descendant of Levi, and not a literal daughter.

I know that family terms are not Hebrew's strong suit and that with the exception of the words for father, son, and brother, all other degrees of kinship are cited only on the basis of the previous ones. But in the specific verse of Exodus 6:20, the way it is constructing in the original Hebrew provides us with support to consider that Jochebed is a cousin of Amram, as the LXX understood? Or not are any margin of error for this, the LXX verse is totally wrong, and should we accept that Moses was the result of a miraculous birth along the lines of Sarah, as extra-biblical Jewish tradition states?

Answer 1

The Hebrew for the first part of Gen. 6:20 means: וַיִּקַּ֨ח עַמְרָ֜ם אֶת־יֹוכֶ֤בֶד דֹּֽדָתֹו֙‬ לֹ֣ו לְאִשָּׁ֔ה (BHS)

And Amram took Jochebed his aunt to be his wife

The Septuagint (LXX) has: καὶ ἔλαβεν Αμβραμ τὴν Ιωχαβεδ θυγατέρα τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ ἑαυτῷ εἰς γυναῖκα, (1996, Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft.)

And Amram took Jochebed, daughter of the brother of his father, to him as wife,

Levi is not mentioned. Note that "daughter of Levi" can mean direct female descendent of Levi. They may have used this in the KJV because of how close of relatives they were and didn't want to show this.

The only reference in the BHS critical apparatus for this verse is the LXX reading.

The Latin Vulgate follows the LXX and has his cousin (patruelem): "accepit autem Amram uxorem Iocabed patruelem suam"

Commentary

Ver. 20.His father’s sister—That was before the giving of the law in Lev. 18:12. The LXX. and Vulg. understand the word דּוֹדָה of the daughter of the father’s brother. According to ch. 7:7, Aaron was three years older than Moses; that Miriam was older than either is seen from the history. -- Lange, J. P., Schaff, P., & Mead, C. M. (2008). A commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Exodus (Vol. 2, p. 18). Logos Bible Software.

Lexicons

דּוֹדָה: fem. of דּוֹד; Ph. n.f. Dido < *dōdō < *dōdā (BL 5031): דֹּדָֽתְךָ, דֹּדָֽתוֹ: —1 father’s sister Ex 6:20; —2. wife of father’s brother Lv 18:14 20:20. † -- Koehler, L., Baumgartner, W., Richardson, M. E. J., & Stamm, J. J. (1994–2000). In The Hebrew and Aramaic lexicon of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 216). E.J. Brill.

†[דֹּדָה S1733 TWOT410b GK1860] n.f. aunt—only sf. דֹּדָֽתְךָ Lv 18:14 father’s brother’s wife; דֹּדָתוֹ Lv 20:20 Ex 6:20 father’s sister [cf. Nu 26:59]. -- Brown, F., Driver, S. R., & Briggs, C. A. (1977). In Enhanced Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon (p. 187). Clarendon Press.

Possible textual variation

For the Hebrew text to match the LXX דֹּֽדָתֹו֙‬ would read בת דודתו (his cousin). Thus, it would mean two letters were left out of the test.