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  • From: fred burlingame <tensorpath AT gmail.com>
  • To: George Athas <George.Athas AT moore.edu.au>
  • Cc: B-Hebrew <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] cognate alphabet
  • Date: Sun, 28 Nov 2010 10:25:37 -0600

Hello George:

Thanks for your comments.

You make an excellent point. The septuagint ("LXX") manufacturers did not
enjoy the benefit of masoretic text ("MT") niqqud. Hence, שם could read
either as "name" or "there."

Furthermore, the LXX could conceivably have given the original correct
rendering, (surrounding city with implicit walls), especially since the
final clause of the verse expressly addresses the separate point of city
name changes.

But .... whether LXX or MT represent the original intent and reading, the
issue remains, namely that both renderings cannot be correct. And ... the
repetition of this type of difference across the body of the text, leads to
the creation of two separate content documents.

regards,

fred burlingame

On Sun, Nov 28, 2010 at 6:28 AM, George Athas
<George.Athas AT moore.edu.au>wrote:

> It could be that the LXX understood שׁם are ‘there’ rather than ‘name’,
> making the translator refer back to the cities mentioned. The apparent
> omission, therefore, might not be an accidental omission, but rather an
> intentional one.
>
> Fred, the proto-MT is probably the oldest textual tradition of the Hebrew
> Bible we have. The close similarities (for the most part) between the MT and
> the LXX demonstrate that the proto-MT is older than the LXX. In any case,
> age is not always the most reliable factor in determining a ‘correct’ text
> (if that term is appropriate to use). I highly recommend that you read a
> book or two on the production of the Hebrew Bible and textual criticism. It
> will really illuminate your perspective.
>
>
> GEORGE ATHAS
> Moore Theological College (Sydney, Australia)
> www.moore.edu.au
> (currently in Cairo, Egypt)
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