Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Jim West <jwest AT Highland.Net>]

At 08:47 AM 1/20/99 -0500, you wrote:
>this thread may be getting a bit off course, it started on 3-4 maccabees
>
>then jim west said
>> First, the language of the maccabean materials is NOT
>>translation Greek, reflecting an earlier Hebrew Vorlage.  Second, there is
>>not a shred of evidence supporting the idea that these texts were written
>in
>>Hebrew.
>
>which would be true as far as 3-4 maccabees and most of 2 maccabees. that
>was how i interpreted jim's comment until he elaborated on a later
>question.
>
>the following exchange is most surprising:
>
>(Jack kilmon had written)
>>>What about the Hebrew copy of 1 Mac that Jerome knew?  A translation?
> 
>(jim west replied:)
>>yup.
>>Jim
>
>1 maccabees is transparently translation greek. 
>[2-4 maccabees is greek greek] 
>raymond martin's syntax criticism, rough as it is, makes this clear, if you
>want published studies.
>
>more specifically, 1 maccabees is from hebrew, not aramaic (notice the lack
>of narrative tote/edayin).

Yes, of course.  I apologize for my lack of clarity and overgeneralization.
1 Macc. was most LIKELY composed in Hebrew- but 2-4 macc. was not.  

Best,

Jim
+++++++++++++++++++++++++

Jim West, ThD
Quartz Hill School of Theology

jwest AT highland.net
http://web.infoave.net/~jwest