13
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Is there an "official" Septuagint; that is, one that is univesally recognized as such?
Like other ancient books, we only have copies (of copies of copies) of the Septuagint. So, at a basic level, no, there is no official Septuagint. Scholars attempt to reconstruct a text based on an ...
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12
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How did “Sirens” arise in the Septuagint translation of Isaiah 13:21?
Subsequent to the publication of Greek Myths and Christian Mystery, referenced by another answer, Manolis Papoutsakis made an ingenious hypothesis that may finally solve the mystery as to how the odd ...
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11
votes
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What are the oldest copies we have of LXX
As alluded to in the question, the primary (mostly) complete witnesses to the text of the Septuagint are codices bound up with the Christian New Testament. Pride of place goes to Vaticanus in which we ...
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11
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Does the postfixed χ in Jewish Greek transliterations simply denote the aleph, i.e. vs. other vowels?
For OP's question:
Is the chi (χ) used to indicate the kind of a vowel in the original Hebrew (namley the aleph א), a transliteration as it is from Hebrew in already Hebraic Greek?
The short ...
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11
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Why did St. Jerome use "virago" in Gen. 2:23?
In the Hebrew text, there is a play on words, as “man” is אִישׁ (ish), and “woman” is אִשָּׁה (isha). Jerome explains why he chose to use virago rather than the common word to refer to a woman, mulier....
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10
votes
Does Isaiah 7:14 refer to a virgin?
The Sign of Immanuel in Isaiah 7:14 is the single most debated text in scripture. Dozens—literally dozens—of PhD dissertations have been written on it. There are three main questions inherent in the ...
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Is it corruption of the LXX for adding Deut 32:43 or of the Masoretic for lacking it as quoted in Hebrews 1:6?
As the OP correctly notes, Hebrews 1:6:
ὅταν δὲ πάλιν εἰσαγάγῃ τὸν πρωτότοκον εἰς τὴν οἰκουμένην, λέγει Καὶ προσκυνησάτωσαν αὐτῷ πάντες ἄγγελοι θεοῦ. (Westcott and Hort)
And again, when he ...
- 4,212
9
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How can we trust the Hebrew Bible to be accurate when the oldest MSS go back only to about the tenth century C.E.?
39+ different answers
The Old Testament is not a single book, but a collection of 39 books (or 46, depending on who you ask).
Some of these books are well-attested in Hebrew before the 10th century, ...
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8
votes
What did Jesus likely say in John 8:58?
Professor of Religious Studies , Jason David BeDuhn of Northern Arizona University in his book "TRUTH IN TRANSLATION Accuracy and Bias of the New Testament" compares ten major English ...
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8
votes
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The religious identity of those who translated Psalms 24:1 into the LXX
Although my initial reaction to this question was (not unlike the response in another answer here) that obviously this day-of-the-week superscription (DWS) reflects the Jewish liturgical background of ...
- 26.2k
8
votes
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In Psalm 82:1 who are in the "congregation" and who are the "gods"?
Background
In their commentary Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler have this to say about Psalm 82:
A vision of a heavenly court where God condemns those who judge unfairly. The psalm plays on the ...
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8
votes
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Why does the LXX translate דֹּדֶ֖יךָ as μαστοί in Song of Songs 1:2?
The consonantal text, דדיך, can be read דַּדַּיִך, from דַּד "nipple" (Ezekiel 23:3,8,21). This was the reading used in translating דדיך as μαστοί σου.
The meaning "beloved" is consistently spelled ...
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8
votes
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Son of theos vs son of kyrios
We can translate John 11:27 from Greek to English.
John 11:27 (Greek New Testament)
λέγει αὐτῷ· ναὶ κύριε, ἐγὼ πεπίστευκα ὅτι σὺ εἶ ὁ χριστὸς ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ
θεοῦ ὁ εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἐρχόμενος.
She said to ...
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7
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How did “Sirens” arise in the Septuagint translation of Isaiah 13:21?
This is a fantastic question, but one that appears to have no clear answer at this time. I've done some digging around and though I could not find an exact answer, I found some illuminating ...
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7
votes
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Are nous and pneuma synonymous?
No, they are not synonymous.
In way of background, we note that the Hebrew rûaḥ is commonly rendered by the Greek pneuma, both commonly rendered by the English spirit. The OP is wondering why, in ...
- 26.2k
6
votes
Why is there a difference of 100 (or 50) years in the age of the patriarchs at their first sons' dates of birth between the LXX, SP and MT?
Both textual traditions (along with the Samaritan Pentateuch, which has similarities with each) predate Christianity by centuries. Basically, texts, whether religious, or otherwise, present a rainbow-...
6
votes
Were NT authors aware of differences between MT and LXX
The Masoretic Text (MT) did not come into existence until some 700 years after the New Testament was written. As such, there is no possible way the New Testament writers could have anticipated ...
- 12.1k
6
votes
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Is Romans 3:10 a quote from the Septuagint?
For Psalms 14 & 53 as a whole, mostly "yes"
A few opening thoughts:
Yes, it does seem like he is using or borrowing from the Septuagint in particular.
Yes, it seems to be a kind of quote/...
- 1,815
6
votes
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MT "will strike" & LXX "will watch carefully" (Gen 3:15)?
The hebrew root שׁוף means 'to bruise, to strike or to crush'.
The greek word τηρέω is able to translate as 'to watch carefully', but the indicative future like in Gen 3,15, it means 'to lie in ...
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6
votes
Leviticus 18:21 in LXX different?
MT reads:
וּמִֽזַּרְעֲךָ֥ לֹא־תִתֵּ֖ן לְהַעֲבִ֣יר לַמֹּ֑לֶךְ
and you shall not give your seed as an offering to m-l-ch
I think this is one of those situations where the three letter root m - l - ch (...
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5
votes
What scripture is the author of 1 Tim 5:18 referencing?
The comment of the Apostle Paul that “The worker deserves his pay” appears to have been the prevailing interpretation of this verse according to the oral traditions of the Jews during the First ...
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5
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Why does the Septuagint omit Isaiah 2:22 when it's in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Leningrad Codex?
The basic answer to your question:
Why does the Septuagint omit Isaiah 2:22 when it's in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Leningrad Codex?
is of course: because the Septuagint was not translated from the ...
- 26.2k
5
votes
The LXX and Masoretic differ in Is 30:15. Do the DSS help here?
According to the KJV, the Masoretic Text reads:
For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; In quietness and in confidence shall be your ...
- 12.1k
5
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Why does the apostle Peter misquote Isaiah 28:16 in [1 Peter 2:6]?
Isaiah 28:16ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ἐμβαλῶ εἰς τὰ θεμέλια Σιὼν λίθον πολυτελῆ ἐκλεκτὸν ἀκρογωνιαῖον, ἔντιμον,εἰς τὰ θεμέλια αὐτῆς,καὶ ὁ πιστεύων ἐπ’ αὐτῷ οὐ μὴ καταισχυνθῇ.
1 Peter 2:6Ἰδοὺ τίθημι ἐν Σιὼν λίθον ...
4
votes
Why is there a difference of 100 (or 50) years in the age of the patriarchs at their first sons' dates of birth between the LXX, SP and MT?
The Alexandrine Septuagint is the most reliable. It gives the birth of Adam as 5404 BC. The Flood is 3142 BC. The birth of Abraham in Urfa is 2142 BC. Exodus is 1453 BC. The Temple is started in 973 ...
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