Language Studies

Aramaic Thoughts

The Peshitta of the Old Testament - Part 4

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 difference between the two readings implies the folowing difference in Hebrew. “Therefore” is laken. “Not so” would be lo’ ken. Between the two readings there are two differences. The second reading differs from the first in having an additional letter (the aleph at the end of lo’) and in having two words, rather than one. The modern versions have come to a split decision on which reading is to be preferred. The NRSV, ESV, and CEV go with “not so,” while the Holman CSB has preferred “therefore,” though rendering it as “in that case.” The HCSB has a footnote regarding the alternate reading, as do the NRSV and the CEV. The ESV does not have a note as to the alternate rendering.

Wenham in his commentary prefers the reading “therefore,” though he admits that the other reading is “an emendation widely adopted.” Skinner in his commentary rejects “not so” on the basis that if that were the correct reading, there is another required grammatical element then missing from the sentence. The older commentary of Keil & Delitzsch also rejects the “not so,” with the following reason given: “laken not in the sense of lo’ ken but because it was the case, and there was reason for his complaint.” Obviously the newer translations have not followed the older commentaries, and have apparently considered that the number of witnesses in favor of lo’ ken indicates that that is to be the preferred reading. Whether it reads lo’ ken or laken, the difference in meaning is really insignificant.

In chapter 5 of Genesis, however, there are a great many variant readings that are not at all reflected in the modern English versions. Those differences have to do with the great many numbers in that chapter (that is, the various numbers regarding the ages of the patriarchs. For each of these antediluvian (pre-flood) patriarchs, three numbers are given. The first is the age at which he fathered the particular son mentioned. The second number is the number of year he lived after fathering that particular son. The last number is the total age of the patriarch. So, in the Hebrew text, the numbers are as follows:

Patriarch | Age at Fathering | Additional Years | Total Age

Adam | 130 | 800 | 930

Seth | 105 | 807 | 912

Enosh | 90 | 815 | 905

Kenan | 70 | 840 | 910

Mahalalel | 65 | 830 | 895

Jared | 162 | 800 | 962

Enoch | 65 | 300 | 365

Methuselah | 187 | 782 | 969

Lamech | 182 | 595 | 777

These numbers, however, differ in the ancient versions, and we will begins looking into the problem next week.

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