The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (/ˈsɛptjuədʒɪnt/,[1] US also /sɛpˈtjuːədʒɪnt/;[2] from the Latin: septuaginta, lit. 'seventy'; often abbreviated 70; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible.
The full title (Ancient Greek: Ἡ μετάφρασις τῶν Ἑβδομήκοντα, lit. 'The Translation of the Seventy') derives from the story recorded in the Letter of Aristeas that the Hebrew Torah was translated into Greek at the request of Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285–247 BCE) by 70 Jewish scholars or, according to later tradition, 72: six scholars from each of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, who independently produced identical[dubious – discuss] translations.[citation needed]
I did not know about this, this is interesting. Regardless it doesn't include the New Testament since it is before Christ.
It's an important part of the Bible. This is why I also provided information on on early English translations. I also have a pre-1964 Jerusalem Bible that provides good insight to reading. The best thing anyone can do is use a lexicon to research the Greek. One must understand that it is the Greek that is oldest oldest and best source. The Neo-Hebrew that was invented in 900 AD is not the written ancient Hebrew of the Israelites. Even the Qumran scrolls (Dead Sea scrolls) agree to the authenticity of the Septuagint and shows the errors of the Masoretic Text.
Thanks, I didn't know that! That is really cool! Here's some more info I found on the Septuagint page. It looks like there are some slight differences in the writing and there are 5 known ancient variants of Hebrew Bible texts. Overall though I did learn something and it is interesting there is an 8th century BC or earlier Hebrew Bible out there.
The Biblical manuscripts found in Qumran, commonly known as the Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS), have prompted comparisons of the texts associated with the Hebrew Bible (including the Septuagint).[62] Emanuel Tov, editor of the translated scrolls,[63] identifies five broad variants of DSS texts:
Proto-Masoretic: A stable text and numerous, distinct agreements with the Masoretic Text. About 60 percent of the Biblical scrolls (including 1QIsa-b) are in this category.
Pre-Septuagint: Manuscripts which have distinctive affinities with the Greek Bible. About five percent of the Biblical scrolls, they include 4QDeut-q, 4QSam-a, 4QJer-b, and 4QJer-d. In addition to these manuscripts, several others share similarities with the Septuagint but do not fall into this category.
The Qumran "Living Bible": Manuscripts which, according to Tov, were copied in accordance with the "Qumran practice": distinctive, long orthography and morphology, frequent errors and corrections, and a free approach to the text. They make up about 20 percent of the Biblical corpus, including the Isaiah Scroll (1QIsa-a).
Pre-Samaritan: DSS manuscripts which reflect the textual form of the Samaritan Pentateuch, although the Samaritan Bible is later and contains information not found in these earlier scrolls, (such as God's holy mountain at Shechem, rather than Jerusalem). These manuscripts, characterized by orthographic corrections and harmonizations with parallel texts elsewhere in the Pentateuch, are about five percent of the Biblical scrolls and include 4QpaleoExod-m.
Non-aligned: No consistent alignment with any of the other four text types. About 10 percent of the Biblical scrolls, they include 4QDeut-b, 4QDeut-c, 4QDeut-h, 4QIsa-c, and 4QDan-a.
The textual sources present a variety of readings; Bastiaan Van Elderen compares three variations of Deuteronomy 32:43, the Song of Moses:[63]
Edwin Yamauchi, "Bastiaan Van Elderen, 1924– 2004", SBL Forum Accessed 26 March 2011.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Septuagint
I did not know about this, this is interesting. Regardless it doesn't include the New Testament since it is before Christ.
It's an important part of the Bible. This is why I also provided information on on early English translations. I also have a pre-1964 Jerusalem Bible that provides good insight to reading. The best thing anyone can do is use a lexicon to research the Greek. One must understand that it is the Greek that is oldest oldest and best source. The Neo-Hebrew that was invented in 900 AD is not the written ancient Hebrew of the Israelites. Even the Qumran scrolls (Dead Sea scrolls) agree to the authenticity of the Septuagint and shows the errors of the Masoretic Text.
Thanks, I didn't know that! That is really cool! Here's some more info I found on the Septuagint page. It looks like there are some slight differences in the writing and there are 5 known ancient variants of Hebrew Bible texts. Overall though I did learn something and it is interesting there is an 8th century BC or earlier Hebrew Bible out there.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Septuagint#Dead_Sea_Scrolls
http://sbl-site.org/Article.aspx?ArticleID=356