Lies about the Septuagint
I used to believe the Masoretic Text was a perfect copy of the original Old Testament. I used to believe that the Masoretic Text was how God divinely preserved the Hebrew Scriptures throughout the ages.
I was wrong. Further research proves that the Septuagint could be extremely useful, especially where the Masoretic Text is vague or at time even tampered with.
The Septuagint
The origin of the Septuagint started when seventy-two Jewish scholars were asked by the Greek King of Egypt Ptolemy II Philadelphus to translate the Torah from Biblical Hebrew into Greek, for inclusion in the Library of Alexandria.
Beginning of the Letter of Aristeas to Philocrates. Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, 11th century.
This narrative is found in the pseudepigraphic Letter of Aristeas to his brother Philocrates, and is repeated by Philo of Alexandria, Josephus and by various later sources, including St. Augustine. The story is also found in the Tractate Megillah of the Babylonian Talmud:
King Ptolemy once gathered 72 Elders. He placed them in 72 chambers, each of them in a separate one, without revealing to them why they were summoned. He entered each one’s room and said: “Write for me the Torah of Moshe, your teacher”. God put it in the heart of each one to translate identically as all the others did.
Philo of Alexandria, who relied extensively on the Septuagint, says that the number of scholars was chosen by selecting six scholars from each of the twelve tribes of Israel.
The Masoretic Text
The oldest copies of the Masoretic Text only date back to the 10th century, nearly 1000 years after the time of Christ. And these texts differ from the originals in many specific ways. The Masoretic text is named after the Masoretes, who were scribes and Torah scholars who worked between the 7th and 11th centuries. The texts they received and the edits they provided ensured that the modern Jewish texts would manifest a notable departure from the original Hebrew Scriptures.
Historical research reveals five significant ways in which the Masoretic Text is different from the original Old Testament:
- The Masoretes admitted that they received corrupted texts to begin with.
- The Masoretic Text is written with a radically different alphabet than the original.
- The Masoretes added vowel points which did not exist in the original.
- The Masoretic Text excluded several books from the Old Testament scriptures.
- The Masoretic Text includes changes to prophecy and doctrine (Isa 7:14; 9:6).
From the Restored Church of God (A Pack of Lies):
David Pack alledges that the law portion of the Greek Septuagint version of Alexandria was translated from the Samaritan Pentateuch:
“The law portion of the Greek Septuagint version of Alexandria was translated from the Samaritan Pentateuch instead of the official Jewish Version. This can be absolutely proven by the 2,000 places where the Septuagint disagrees with the official Jewish Version, but agrees perfectly with the Samaritan Pentateuch.
“The Jews who translated the Septuagint were “Samaritan Jews.”” (From the booklet How We Got the Bible, pg 24).
And when it so happens that LORD God brings you to the land of Caanan, which you are coming to posses, you shall setup there for you great stones and plaster them with plaster and you write on the stones all words of this law. And it becomes for you that across the Jordan you shall raise these stones, which I command you today, in mountain Grizim. And you build there the altar to the LORD God of you. Altar of stones. Not you shall wave on them iron. With whole stones you shall build the altar to LORD God of you. And you bring on it ascend offerings to LORD God of you, and you sacrifice peace offerings, and you eat there and you rejoice before the face of the LORD God of you. The mountain this is across the Jordan behind the way of the rising of the sun, in the land of Caanan who is dwelling in the desert before the Galgal, beside Alvin-Mara, before Sechem. — additional words after Exodus 20:17 by incorporating building of an altar from neighbouring stones on Mount Grizim, not in Jerusalem, in their worship.
The above are 169 additional words in the Samaritan Pentateuch, but not in the Septuagint, so Pack’s allegation is bullshit to say that the Greek Septuagint “agrees perfectly with the Samaritan Pentateuch.”
In Deut 27:4 the Samaritan version altered the word Ebal to Garizim as the mountain upon which the altar should be erected . . .
Masoretic Text Deut 27:4 Therefore it shall be when ye be gone over Jordan, that ye shall set up these stones, which I command you this day, in mount Ebal, and thou shalt plaster them with plaster.
Septuagint Deut 27:4 And it shall be as soon as ye are gone over Jordan, ye shall set up these stones, which I command thee this day,on mount Gaebal, and thou shalt plaster them with plaster.
Samaritan Deuteronomy 27:4 Therefore it shall be when ye be gone over Jordan, [that] ye shall set up these stones, which I command you this day, in mount Gerizim, and thou shalt plaster them with plaster (The Samaritans stand alone to make Mt Gerizim as the sacred mountain).
Also in Deuteronomy 5:21, the Samaritan Pentateuch added these word:
And when it so happens that Yahuah God brings you to the land of Caanan, which you are coming to posses, you shall setup there for you great stones and plaster them with plaster and you write on the stones all words of this law. And it becomes for you that across the Jordan you shall raise these stones, which I command you today, in mountain Grizim. And you build there the altar to the Yahuah God of you. Altar of stones. Not you shall wave on them iron. With whole stones you shall build the altar to Yahuah God of you. And you bring on it ascend offerings to Yahuah God of you, and you sacrifice peace offerings, and you eat there and you rejoice before the face of the Yahuah God of you. The mountain this is across the Jordan behind the way of the rising of the sun, in the land of Caanan who is dwelling in the desert before the Galgal, beside Alvin-Mara, before Sechem.
Again, the 169 additional words were not in the Septuagint, but added in the Samaritan Pentateuch.
Exodus 20:21
And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God [was].And the Yahuah said to Moses to say: I heard what people have said. All that they have spoken to you, they have spoken wisely. All that they have spoken let them put in their hearts so that they can keep my commandments in all their days, so that it would be good to them and to sons of them forever. Prophet I shall raise up to them from the midsts of their brothers, and I will place words of me into his mouth to speak to them all that I’m commanding them. And it becomes that the man who will not listen to his words that are spoken in my name, I shall require from him. But the prophet who will speak insolently in my name that which I have not instructed him to speak, or if he speaks in the name of other Gods, such prophet shall die. And if you will ask yourself in your heart how you shall know which word God has spoken and which he has not, see if the word spoken comes to pass. And if it shall not come to pass then this is not the word of the Yahuah, in insolence spoken the prophet. Not you shall listen to him. Go now back to your tent and I will speak to you regarding all commandments and ordinances and verdicts that you shall teach them, and what to do in the land that I give them for possession.
The above additional 263 words in the Samaritan Pentateuch, which incorporates Deuteronomy 18:18 and others: I will raise up to them a prophet of their brethren, like thee; and I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them as I shall command him. Samaritans believe this Prophet (the Messiah) was to be from the line of the tribe of Levi, like Moses, not from the line of Judah, which the Jews believe. Hence their rivalries continue today.
Roman 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
13 Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips:
14 Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:
15 Their feet are swift to shed blood:
16 Destruction and misery are in their ways:
17 And the way of peace have they not known:
18 There is no fear of God before their eyes (The Pink portion above (v13-18) is not in the Masoretic but in the Septuagint. Some preachers (like Frank Nelte and others) allege that the Septuagint is a fraud, if so, the New Testament would also be a fraud. A serious misguided charge).
Psalm 14 Septuagint
For the end, Psalm of David.
14:1 The fool has said in his heart, There is no God. They have corrupted themselves, and become abominable in their devices; there is none that does goodness, there is not even so much as one. 2 The Lord looked down from heaven upon the sons of men, to see if there were any that understood, or sought after god. 3 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become good for nothing, there is none that does good, no not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness; their feet are swift to shed blood: destruction and misery are in their ways; and the way of peace they have not known: there is no fear of God before their eyes (The Red portion above is a quote in Roman 3 from the Septuagint but is not found in the JPS 1917 Masoretic. This indicates that Paul used the Septuagint as his guiding Scripture).
Psalm 14 JPS 1917
1 For the Leader. [A Psalm] of David. The fool hath said in his heart: ‘There is no God’; they have dealt corruptly, they have done abominably; there is none that doeth good.
2 The LORD looked forth from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any man of understanding, that did seek after God.
3 They are all corrupt, they are together become impure; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. — there is no mention of “Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues. . . .”
Psalm 14 KJV
1 The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.
2 The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.
3 They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
4 Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people as they eat bread, and call not upon the Lord. — again, there is no mention of “Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues. . . .”
5 There were they in great fear: for God is in the generation of the righteous.
6 Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his refuge.
7 Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! when the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad. (by following the JPS Masoretic, this KJV missed out the extended portion quoted in Roman 3, but only found in the Septuagint).
These are the examples of where the New Testament agrees with the Septuagint (in fact 93 percent according to one research) but contradicts the Masoretic Text. What is listed below is the New Testament quote from the KJV, followed by its source-text in the Old Testament, first from the Septuagint and then from the Masoretic Text (JPS 1917). Agreements between the New Testament and the Septuagint are in blue text; red text is used to highlight the divergence of the KJV Old Testament:
Hebrews 10:5 cf. Psalm 40:6
Hebrews 10:5 KJV
Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me…
Psalm 40:6 Brenton’s Septuagint
Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not; but a body hast thou prepared me:
Psalm 40:7 JPS Tanakh 1917
Sacrifice and meal-offering Thou hast no delight in
Psalm 40:6 KJV
Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened:
Comment: Psalm 40:6 is regarded by Christians as a prophecy of Christ, and Hebrews 10:5 quotes it as such, but the Masoretic Text omits the key phrase entirely, replacing “but a body hast thou prepared me” with “mine ears hast thou opened.” Note that the KJV New Testament and the Septuagint agree with each other against the reading of the Masoretic Text.
Hebrews 1:6 cf. Deuteronomy 32:43
Hebrews 1:6 (KJV) And again, when he bringeth in the first begotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.
Deuteronomy 32:43 KJV Rejoice, ye heavens, with him, and let all the angels of God worship him… — no mention of the Gentiles rejoicing as in the Septuagint
Deuteronomy 32:43 Septuagint Rejoice, ye heavens, with him, and let all the angels of God worship him; rejoice ye Gentiles, with his people, and let all the sons of God strengthen themselves in him; for he will avenge the blood of his sons, and he will render vengeance, and recompense justice to his enemies, and will reward them that hate him; and the Lord shall purge the land of his people. — the Lord, the Father, was speaking all the while in Chapter 32, so who would you think another being as worthy of worship unless He is the Son of God?
Deuteronomy 32:43 JPS 1917 — “And let all the angels of God worship him,” omitted.
Deuteronomy 32:43 KJV — Following the Tanakh, the phrase above is similarly omitted.
Comment: The Masoretic Text completely omits the phrase “and let all the angels of God worship him” from Deuteronomy 32.43. But why? The Jews don’t believe another Divine Being worthy of worship?
Matthew 12:21 cf. Isaiah 42:4
Isaiah 42:4 is regarded by Christians as a prophecy of Gentile acceptance of, and faith in, the name of the Messiah, and Matthew 12:21 quotes it as such, but the Masoretic Text omits the key phrase entirely, replacing the phrase “and in his name shall the Gentiles trust” with “and the isles shall wait for his law.” Note that the KJV New Testament and the Septuagint agree with each other against the reading of the KJV Old Testament, which was translated from the Masoretic Text:
Matthew 12:21 (KJV)
And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.
Isaiah 42:4 (Brenton’s Septuagint)
He shall shine out, and shall not be discouraged, until he have set judgment on the earth: and in his name shall the Gentiles trust.
Isaiah 42:4 (JPS Tanakh 1917)
He shall not fail nor be crushed,
Till he have set the right in the earth;
And the isles shall wait for his teaching. (Something totally different)
Isaiah 42:4 (KJV)
He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
Acts 7:43 KJV
Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.
Amos 5:26 JPS 1917
So shall ye take up Siccuth your king and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.
Amos 5:26 Septuagint
Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Raephan, the images of them which ye made for yourselves.
Amos 5:26 KJV
But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves. (Luke, writing the book of Acts, like Paul, used the Septuagint to quote Amos 5:26, and not the Masoretic text)
Hebrew 8:8 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:
9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.
Jeremiah 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they broke, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord: KJV (JPS: Lord)
31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Juda:
31:32 not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day when I took hold of their hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; for they abode not in my covenant, and I disregarded them, saith the Lord. LXX
These Contradictions Prove Two Things:
1) It proves that the ancient texts have been altered to suit the agenda of the alterers,
2) It puts a big lie to the claim that the King James Version is a perfect, “divinely-inspired translation.” Obviously, if the New and Old Testaments of the King James Version contradict each other then the King James Version cannot be an inerrant document.
In conclusion, it would seem that the Septuagint (LXX) translation is not only far more ancient than the Masoretic Text . . . the Septuagint is far more accurate as well. It is a more faithful representation of the original Hebrew Scriptures.
On another topic, to check how his mind works, Frank W. Nelte alleges that Exodus 34:25 had been altered:
Exodus 23:18 Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice (h2282) remain until the morning (KJV).
Exodus 34:25 Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven; neither shall the sacrifice of the feast of the passover (h6453) be left unto the morning (KJV). This verse implies that the feast of Passover was also a feast—the feast of unleavened bread. Frank W. Nelte says, “The forger’s intent was to introduce the word “Passover” into this verse.”
But both the Samaritan Pentateuch and the Septuagint, both earlier versions, which the sopherim could not have any influence, also have included this words “feast of the Passover”: Exodus 34:25 Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven; neither shall the sacrifice of the feast of the passover be left unto the morning. (Nelte’s allegation is just BullShit; he is just a liar, a false witness. Did the Scriptures say anything about such false witness to be stoned to death?)
And the Septuagint: Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifices with leaven, neither shall the sacrifices of the feast of the passover remain till the morning. (Rashi: You shall not slaughter…: You shall not slaughter the Passover sacrifice as long as leaven still exists. This is a [specific] warning to the slaughterer, to the one who sprinkles the blood, or to one of the members of the group [bringing this sacrifice]. -[from Pes. 63b])
Exodus 23:1 warns, “Thou shalt not raise a false report. . .” Proverbs 6:16 says “These six things doth the Lord hate, yea, seven are an abomination unto Him: 17 a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18 a heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, 19 a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.”
Historical figures, Aristobulus, and Alexandrian writer quoted by Eusebius; Philo, an Alexandrian Jew, Josephus; and Christian writers, Irenaeus, Clement, all gave testimony to the Septuagint’s authentic origin. Paul and other NT writers, frequently quoted from the Septuagint (93%) compared to the Masoretic (68%). In fact it was the only Scriptures the common people could understand (as the Masoretic text was not in existence until some 700-800 years later).
Here, Frank Nelte, who alleges that the Septuagint is a forgery, shows the lunacy of his own conclusion. Pre-Christian Jews Philo and Josephus considered the Septuagint on equal standing with the Hebrew text, so Nelte must be wiser than these historic sagas. The New Testament writers, when citing the Scriptures, or when quoting Jesus, freely used the Septuagint, implying that Jesus, his apostles and their followers considered it reliable. To Nelte, Even Moses writing, his logic would follow, must also be corrupt!
A Handbook to the Septuagint by Richard Ottley, pg 36-38; a Summary:
Jerusalem and the Temple had fallened, and Christianity had became a force to be faced with, making the conquered Jews dispossessed and embittered. Their only national hope caused them to rise up against the Septuagint which the Christians had been quoting against them (the Jews), treating it as if it was the original. This constant thread and hostile from the Christians paved their way to establish their own official text. As a living version of the Sacred Text, the Septuagint was destined to be superseded by a younger river in its original Text. The days of the supremacy of the Septuagint would be numbered.
The constant quotations against them would give rise to our modern Masoretic text. The quotations would include:
Isaiah 7 Identifies a Sign — a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son
Daniel 9 Proves Who the Messiah Is — and to anoint the Most Holy
Psalm 110 — The LORD said unto my Lord, “Sit Thou at My right hand
Isaiah 11 — He shall come forth a Rod out of Jesse
Isaiah 9 — a Child is born; the Mighty God, the Prince of Peace
Daniel 7 — the Son of Man came with the clouds of heaven
Zechariah 12:10 — they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced
Genesis 18 & 19 — the LORD יְהוָ֗ה Yehovah stood before Abraham
~~~
Another example, using common sense to determine which is more accurate:
1 Samuel 14:41
KJV
Therefore Saul said unto the Lord God of Israel, Give a perfect lot. And Saul and Jonathan were taken: but the people escaped.
Septuagint
And Saul said, O Lord God of Israel, why hast thou not answered thy servant this day? is the iniquity in me, or in Jonathan my son? Lord God of Israel, give clear manifestations; and if the lot should declare this, give, I pray thee, to thy people of Israel, give, I pray, holiness. And Jonathan and Saul are taken, and the people escaped.
ERV (or some other versions, NIV, RSV, ERV)
Then Saul prayed, “Lord, God of Israel, why haven’t you answered me today? Show us who sinned. If it was I or my son Jonathan, give Urim. But if it was your people Israel who sinned, give Thummim.” Saul and Jonathan were shown to be the ones who sinned, and the people went free.
The Mystery of Ephraim 