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b-hebrew - Re: Hebrew vs. Greek vs. English versification

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  • From: "Henry Churchyard" <churchh AT usa.net>
  • To: b-hebrew AT franklin.oit.unc.edu
  • Subject: Re: Hebrew vs. Greek vs. English versification
  • Date: Sat, 19 Feb 2000 13:03:43 -0600 (CST)


> Subject: Hebrew vs. Greek vs. English versification
> From: kdlitwak <kdlitwak AT concentric.net>
> Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 20:50:43 -0800

> Can someone help me with an explanations in scholarly literature
> regarding the basis for the differing versification between the
> extant HEbrew text, the LXX and English versification? It not only
> is virtually impossible to predict verse numbers in the Psalms
> across languages, but there seems to be no apparent reason for why
> Joel and Malachi, to name two, are so different in verse numbers,
> while being equal in content.

The thing to remember is that only Old Testament verse divisions
(_not_ verse numberings) are somewhat old -- while Old Testament verse
numberings, chapter divisions, and chapter numberings are
post-Masoretic medieval (ca. the 13th century or so). There was an
attempt to correlate Christian and Jewish numberings (since one of the
early purposes of numbering was to provide convenient
cross-referencing in Jewish-Christian theological debates), but the
text of the Latin vulgate was somewhat freely divisible, while the
division of the Hebrew text had to respect the pre-existing Masoretic
verse boundaries. In the Psalms, one difference is that all words
have to belong to a verse in Hebrew, while in most English
translations the "titles" or "superscriptions" are not included as
part of a numbered verse.

--
Henry Churchyard churchh AT usa.net http://www.crossmyt.com/hc/




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