Lesson 4: What do the Original Writings and Today’s Bible have in Common? Do we have a Reliable Version?
In the previous lessons we have discussed the various manuscripts that make up the OT and NT canon as a whole, what kind of documents are surviving proof, and who wrote the texts we can now read in the Bible. Now is the time to focus in a bit more on the various, readily available translations of the scriptures.
We already know that the NT was written in Greek, and the OT was written mainly in Hebrew, with a few sections, notably in the book of Daniel, written in the Aramaic language. Considering that the original manuscripts were written on organic materials, they eventually deteriorated. For this reason, rigorously trained scribes were given the task of copying the original manuscripts. At some point, with the influx of new languages, it was necessary to translate the OT Manuscripts into different languages. These translated manuscripts are known as OT Versions.
OT Versions
Some of the best-known OT Versions are as follows:
Among the Greek Versions, we number the Septuagint, the Aquila, and the Theodotion.
The Septuagint is the earliest known version of the OT Manuscripts. It was prepared in the city of Alexandria in the third century BC. It was originally necessary to translate the manuscripts, since there was a large Jewish population in Alexandria, many of whom had not learned the original Hebrew and were therefore not able to understand the reading of the scrolls or the prayers. Legend has it that Ptolemy Philadephus, the ruler at the time, ordered Eleazar, a high priest, to send him a copy of the Torah and 72 translators. It is said that these 72 translators completed their work within 72 days. The Greek Jews then used the translation, and it spread further among the exiled Jews. It is interesting to note that the Apostles quoted from the Septuagint, when writing their NT manuscripts. The Aquila was a translation made by a resident of Sinope, in Pontus, named Aquila, who converted to Judaism. His translation of the OT manuscripts dates to about 117 AD. The Theodotion is named after its writer, an Ephesian who lived in the second century AD.
The Latin Version of the OT is named the Vulgate. Drafted around 400 AD, it became the basis of the commonly used bibles in the western world. The translation is attributed to one Jerome of Dalmatia. (1) Originally, he was commissioned by Pope Damascus to revise a Latin translation of the NT manuscripts, which led him to take up the study of Hebrew. Not long after that, Jerome set out to translate the OT manuscripts directly from the Hebrew, not from the available Greek versions.
The Syriac Version of the OT manuscripts was made from the original, Hebrew, language. Interestingly, this translation was made especially for the use of Christians, and quite possibly penned by Christians.
The Chaldee Version of the OT manuscripts is an Aramaic translation.
