PDF When God Spoke Greek: The Septuagint and the Making of the Christian Bible by Timothy Michael Law in History

Review

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. I really enjoyed this bookBy GAA1I really enjoyed this book. As an orthodox Christian who could read Greek and went to a catholic university I could never understand why "their" bible was different. I always put it down to translation. This book explained the history to me in a way that made sense. The varying early "editions" of the Old Testament make perfect sense in a ancient world with limited travel and interactions between far flung communities. The explosion of knowledge about the Old Testament following the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls has really helped us understand the evolution of the OT. Probably the best chapter is the one discussing the discourses between St Jerome and St Augustine; two giants of the early church. Unfortunately Augustine proved to be prophetic when he accused Jerome ( who was working on a translation of the OT from the Hebrew which wasn't really finalized until long after the Septuagint was written) that his translation would split the church; which is what eventually happened. I do feel that this edition was written for Western Christians as there is almost no mention of Eastern Orthodoxy; the religion of millions of people. While this book can be dry at times it really is a important read for those who really want to understand the OT that Jesus and the Apostles used.5 of 6 people found the following review helpful. A Bit Basic but Useful for a BeginnerBy Stefano NikolaouLet me first say that I absolutely hate the title of this book. I don't know what Timothy Law was thinking. The subtitle 'The Septuagint and the Making of the Christian Bible' is a better; if boring; title.Law doesn't introduce any new information on the Septuagint; or discuss any new sources or develop any new theories. He basically summarises existing scholarship. For this reason I would label Law a 'populariser' than than a scholar. Of course; there is absolutely nothing wrong with popularising information.The Septuagint got at bad rap at the time of the Reformation. The Roman Church had slowly adopted the Vulgate of Jerome; which used the proto-Masoretic Text as its base. The Reformers looked at the Hebrew text for their vernacular translations of the Old Testament (and for determining their canon too). The Septuagint was dismissed as an inaccurate and corrupt translation. When Protestant missionaries went to Eastern Europe and the Middle East in the 19th century (the Ottoman Empire) they even bought fresh translations of the Old Testament from Hebrew into Greek; Arabic; Romanian; Bulgarian and Armenian so the Christians there would get 'real Bibles' rather than translations based on the Septuagint. All this sort of activity basically ignored the pivotal role that the Septuagint played in early Christianity. Finds like the Dead Sea Scrolls; early Septuagint manuscripts and a closer look at the Old Testament quotes in the New Testament have all helped rehabilitate the Septuagint- hence books like this!The account of the translation of the Septuagint (chapter 4) is fairly bland; as is chapter 6 which summarises the 'Apocrypha'. Chapter 8 'The Septuagint behind the New Testament' was a bit too brief but interesting. As is the following chapter 'The Septuagint in the New Testament'. There are tables with the NT quote; the Septuagint and the Hebrew so the reader can easily compare them.There is; of course; a chapter on Origen of Alexandria (chapter 12) with a bit on Constantine thrown in. I found this chapter very unsatisfactory. The Hexapla is barely mentioned and there is no real discussion on how Origen's work impacted (or contaminated) the text of Septuagint. After all; all manuscripts and nearly all papyrus finds of the Septuagint post-date Origen.There is a bit on Jerome and Augustine (chapter 13) which is about Jerome's translation work and Augustine's defence of the Septuagint text (in the form of the Old Latin translation that he knew). There is a weak postscript. The impact of the Septuagint after the 5th century is basically ignored. The role of the Orthodox Church; which still uses the Septuagint; is not mentioned except in a few passing statements.Law offers up a question in his postscript which I would like to repeat 'What would modern Christian theology look like if its theologians returned the Septuagint to the place it occupied at the foundation of the church; or at least began to read it alongside the Hebrew Bible; as a witness to the story of the Bible and in acknowledgment of its role in shaping Christianity?'A good question! As this book has the meritorious aim of alerting the public to the Septuagint I am happy with it. This is a great book for someone with little or no prior knowledge on the subject. There are more of technical or detailed books available but they are more expensive than this one. For those wanting more there is a nice up-to-date bibliography with good groupings under key topics - ie 'The Septuagint in Early Christianity' or 'Key Figures' or 'Bible and Liturgy' etc1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. the Importance of the SeptuagintBy Craig L. AdamsThis is a very interesting and readable introduction to the history of the Greek translation of the Old Testament: called the Septuagint. Timothy Law demonstrates the antiquity and importance of the Septuagint; which has for far too long been relegated to a secondary importance in Christian theology. In fact; the Septuagint witnesses to an earlier form (or forms) of the Old Testament than the commonly used Hebrew Masoretic text. The Septuagint was the Bible of the early Church; and is quoted as Scripture by the New Testament writers. The early Church Fathers also looked upon the Greek Old Testament as Scripture. Law shows the pivotal role Jerome played in shifting the church from the Septuagint to the Hebrew Old Testament. I was aware of some of the facts about the Septuagint that Law mentions; and have long believed that the Septuagint is far more important than usually recognized — however; much of what Law discusses was new to me; and makes the case for the Septuagint far stronger than I had realized. Highly recommended.