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  • From: "Don Elbourne" <elbourne AT earthlink.net>
  • To: "Biblical Hebrew" <b-hebrew AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Textual Criticism
  • Date: Tue, 19 Oct 1999 13:51:49 -0500



I am on another discussion group where the topic of Textual criticism has
arisen. I was wondering if anyone would like to respond to the posts by one
individual in particular. I will not pass along his name but his post is
below.


<snip>
Dear Brothers and Sisters, as there seems to be a very great interest just
now on Old and New Testament Textual history, may I ask this question:
Do you want me to give you a history of the Old Testament Canon from the
Jewish historians and writers and their point of view?

Many of you seem to feel that the Mesoratic Text is almost the same as the
ancient Hebrew. But, it is not. Also many seem to feel that the Mesoratics
have given us a faithful version of the original Hebrew text, but is that
true? According to the Jewish writers, there are many differences.

Those of you who have been on [list name suppressed] for the past 2 or so
years know that in the past I have made reference to my being raised by a
Jewish stepfather and this caused me to develop a very favorable attitude
toward the ancient Jewish commentators and their views of Textual History
and Old Testament Textual criticism. I will try to give you a history of
the Old Testament from the Jewish point of view if you want me to do so.

However, it will cause you to question your confidence in the Mesoratic
text. You will see that the Mesoratic Text is not as accurate as it should
be concerning a personal Messiah, His promised kingdom, and the conversion
of the Gentiles. You will see that the Mesoratic text is not as supportive
of the Virgin Birth as it should be, but is the foundation for the Revised
Version's denial of the virgin birth.

In addition, when you consider the Old Testament history of textual
criticism from the Jewish and early Christian writers and their points of
view, it will greatly challenge your foundation for supporting extreme
futuristic pre-trib dispensationalism.

However, one additional point which I feel is very important is this, such a
study will acquaint those who may not be familiar with the Old Testament
from the Antiochian textual family and its translations as it was taken into
the Western World. This will show the differences, among other things,
between the Old Testaments which the ancient dissenters in the West used,
those known as the Older Italic or Waldensian texts and then those which are
used by the modern Papal Church modeled upon Jerome's Latin Vulgate.
Jerome's Vulgate is not a faithful text based upon the much older ancient
Italic Texts, but comes from the Alexandrian family of Texts.

Please note, the old Waldnenses and other dissenters did not use any form of
the Hebrew Text, but the ancient Italic text which came from the Antiochian
LXX. This came from the ancient Hebrew Text. The Mesoratic is not from the
ancient Hebrew Text, but is an eclectic text which is about 3 times removed
from the ancient Hebrew Text, that is, if the Jews and their commentators
and historians are correct. I have no doubts as to their accuracy.

I feel is is very important to be aware of the differences between the
Antiochian family of Biblical Texts and the Alexanderian family of Biblical
texts, both the Old Testaments and the New Testaments.

Let me know if you want this info and documentations from the Jewish
sources. </snip>






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