Introduction

Please introduce yourself here, if you haven't already.
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Robert Gray
Posts: 2
Joined: January 30th, 2015, 9:56 pm

Introduction

Post by Robert Gray »

Pax +++
Hello everyone. My wife Amy and I are Wesleyan pastors serving a small church near Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. We are in our 13th year. NT Greek is a passion of mine and I have a deep and abiding love for the Septuagint. Not, of course, that there actually is a Septuagint. There is a Torah, and then a motley collection of documents that follow in the next century or two. Thus we hear: "The first thing to learn about the Septuagint is that there is no Septuagint." But however it got put together, even if by the Seventy after all, I'm glad they did it.
Thomas Dolhanty
Posts: 401
Joined: May 20th, 2014, 10:13 am
Location: west coast of Canada

Re: Introduction

Post by Thomas Dolhanty »

Robert Gray wrote:Pax +++
Hello everyone. My wife Amy and I are Wesleyan pastors serving a small church near Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. We are in our 13th year. NT Greek is a passion of mine and I have a deep and abiding love for the Septuagint. Not, of course, that there actually is a Septuagint. There is a Torah, and then a motley collection of documents that follow in the next century or two. Thus we hear: "The first thing to learn about the Septuagint is that there is no Septuagint." But however it got put together, even if by the Seventy after all, I'm glad they did it.
Greetings, Robert, and welcome to B-Greek. So interesting to hear about your "deep and abiding love for the Septuagint". I have done only a limited amount of reading there, but am beginning to do more. Why such an interest in the Septuagint?
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Robert Gray
Posts: 2
Joined: January 30th, 2015, 9:56 pm

Re: Introduction

Post by Robert Gray »

Moderator's note:

Please, let's not continue down this line of discussion, we don't discuss textual criticism on B-Greek. I'm letting this one slide because it is a direct response to a question, but let's please end the Septuagint vs. Masoretic Text discussion with this post.


Thomas: Thanks for the kind reply. The Septuagint is translated from Hebrew texts upwards of 900 years older than the standard text we use now. Variations are therefore very interesting. Do they bear witness to a different text, or are they changes introduced by translators? (Or, as some charge, has the Septuagint been "tinkered up" by the church?) The way the Septuagint has been translated tells us a lot about Hellenistic Judaism of the time. An example is the rendering of Genesis 2:2: "On the sixth day God finished His work" (I do not, as yet, know how to get a Greek font here). Our manuscripts, of course, all say "On the seventh day." But our friends in Alexandria could hardly say that--it sounds like God had done some work on the Seventh day! So the translator felt at liberty to change "seven" to "six." Can't encourage Sabbath-breaking!

That's just one example. The theology of the translators is evidenced by their renderings.

For a long time, the Septuagint was the Bible of the early Church. It was considered to be an "inspired" translation. Augustine argued (famously) that even if it differed from the Hebrew text, it's inspiration by the Holy Spirit made it revelation, and so both the older Hebrew text and the Newer Septuagint were to be accepted as the word of God.

All this hits me where I live. So I love it. I'm going to shut up now, or I'll never stop, and I've got to preach tomorrow. PAX ++
Thomas Dolhanty
Posts: 401
Joined: May 20th, 2014, 10:13 am
Location: west coast of Canada

Re: Introduction

Post by Thomas Dolhanty »

Robert Gray wrote:All this hits me where I live. So I love it.
Looking forward to your insights and input, Robert, and especially on the Greek of LXX. Check your "private messages".
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