Language Studies

Genesis 22 in many English Bibles has the subheading given as “The Sacrifice of Isaac.” This is really a misnomer, because no sacrifice of Isaac takes place. Jewish tradition refers to the chapter as “the Aqedah,” aqedah being the term for “binding”—hence “The…

Until the nineteenth century, most interpreters assumed that the patriarchal ages in Genesis 5 (and 11) could be used for the construction of a chronology from creation. With the rise of old-earth geology in the late-eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, then later with the rise of Darwinian evolution, this assumption…

If the ages of the patriarchs are used to create a chronology from the creation, producing years abbreviated AM (Anno Mundi, the year of the world), the following issues arise from the years given in the different texts. According to the MT, the Flood occurred in the year AM 1656. According to the SP, the Flood occurred in the year AM 1307. According to the LXX, the Flood occurred in the year…

 The table of ages for the patriarchs from Adam through Lamech is repeated here from last week’s column. Patriarch Age at Fathering Additional Years …

The numbers in Genesis 5 differ in the Samaritan Pentateuch from those in the Masoretic (Hebrew) text of the Old Testament. The numbers in the Samaritan Pentateuch are shown in the following chart. Patriarch Age at Fathering …

In Gen 4:15, the Hebrew text reads, “And the Lord said to him, therefore anyone who slays Cain, sevenfold he shall be avenged.” On the other hand, the Syriac, Septuagint, and Vulgate, as well as the later Greek versions Symmachus and Theodotion read, “Not so!” in the place of “therefore.”…

The Hebrew text of Gen 4:8 reads as follows: And Cain said to Abel his brother, and it happened when they were in the field that Cain arose against Abel his brother and he killed him. The difficulty here is that the verb translated “said” normally is followed by what was said, as in vss 9, 10, and 13 of the…

The Hebrew text of Genesis 2:2 reads, “And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done.” The text of the Samaritan Pentateuch, the Septuagint, and the Peshitta read, “And on the sixth day God finished the work that he had done.” None of the major English versions have gone with the…

The Peshitta has little direct influence on modern English versions of the Old Testament. In part, this is due to the primary reliance upon the Hebrew text, as being the original text for the composition of the Old Testament. It is also due to the fact that the Peshitta (as far as the Old Testament is concerned) is considered…

Much as the Vulgate was the standard version of the Bible for the Catholic Church, the Peshitta is the standard version of the Bible for the various Eastern churches that retain the Syriac language. Over the course of the history of Western Europe, Latin ceased to be the common language at a fairly early stage. However,…

As with almost any subject these days, there are several websites devoted to the Peshitta. Some of these are connected with the Peshitta Institute of the University of Leyden. Some are connected in some way with the translation of the Peshitta done by George Lamsa. Others are independent of either. Of the latter two sorts,…