Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Peter Kirk <peterkirk AT qaya.org>]

On 22/12/2004 13:44, Yigal Levin wrote:

> All very intersting, but my question was, why the translators took such a
> general term as "cow" and translated it as the more narrow "heifer". Did
> they have any reason to think that this particular cow was special in any
> way, besides its color?
>
>  
I would guess that the translators linked Numbers 21:2 with Genesis 15:9 
where a three-year-old animal is specified, and with Deuteronomy 21:3 
where the animal has never been worked, and so is presumably young. LXX 
has DAMALIS in each case, although not everywhere for PARAH e.g. not in 
1 Samuel 6:7. So this was the interpretation of the LXX translators, 
which in this case might give an indication of ancient practice.

--
Peter Kirk
peter AT qaya.org (personal)
peterkirk AT qaya.org (work)
http://www.qaya.org/