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  • From: <david.kimbrough AT charter.net>
  • To: <phil-eng AT ighmail.com>, "'Reinier de Blois'" <r.de.blois AT solcon.nl>, <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Cc:
  • Subject: [b-hebrew] One Original OT Text?
  • Date: Thu, 24 Jun 2004 3:51:55 +0000

Phillip,

According to tradtion, the LXX (the first Greek translation
of the OT but not the last) was translated by 70 scholars,
each of whom brought their own set of scrolls. Without
taking that number too literally, the point is that these
scholars brought together many different scrolls so they
could compare them because there were many different
versions of the OT in circulation. So by the 2nd Century
BC there was no single OT text. The differences between
the MT, DSS, LXX, and other Greek translations attest to
this.

Most people assume that a some earlier point in history
there was a single unified OT. So I guess my point is that
you have to decide which original OT you want to recreate.



> From: "Philip Engmann" <phil-eng AT ighmail.com>
> Date: 2004/06/24 Thu AM 12:34:04 GMT
> To: "'Reinier de Blois'" <r.de.blois AT solcon.nl>, <b-
hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
> Subject: [b-hebrew] Original OT Text?
>
> "Earlier translations, such as RSV, NEB, and TEV are
based on a text
> that
> has been emended in many places. This was done with the
purpose of
> reconstructing the "original" text and to get rid of
"obvious textual
> errors". These days many scholars are of the opinion that
that is a goal
> that is extremely difficult and to attain and somewhat
unrealistic. You
> don't get there by comparing the MT and the LXX."
> >
> >
> Hmmm. I have just spent the last 3+ years of my life
doing exactly that.
> I have been working on my MPhil Thesis entitled:
>
> AN EXAMINATION OF THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SELECTED TEXTS
OF THE OLD
> GREEK TEXT AND THE MASORETIC TEXT.
>
> This is in an attempt to reconstruct selected original
texts by
> comparing the Old Greek Text to the Masoretic Text.
>
> I am therefore extremely interested in this viewpoint,
and particularly
> interested to know any alternative means to arrive at
this original
> text. (Of course this original text concept is a bit
unrealistic and
> difficult to obtain, but at least to obtain a text that
is as close as
> possible to this ideal original text).
>
> Thanks,
>
> Philip Engmann
>
>
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David Kimbrough
San Gabriel





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