Rediscovering the Septuagint (LXX): Isaiah 1:1-9

Here is a direct side-by-side comparison of the Masoretic Text with the LXX. I have concluded that the LXX is much to be preferred over the Masoretic Text, a position from which the Eastern Orthodox Church never deviated. Perhaps, if you take the time to read my comparisons and other articles, you will arrive at the same conclusion.

The Septuagint version I am using is the Lexham English Septuagint 2nd Edition, which is available in print or as part of Logos Bible Software. Occasionally I also use the Brenton translation of the LXX for insight into difficult passages.

If you want to know more, click on the following links.

Masoretic Text	Septuagint	Significance
1 The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. Isaiah 1:1 (NKJV)	1 The vision that Isaiah son of Amoz saw, which he saw against Judea and against Jerusalem during the reign of Uzziah and Jotham and Ahaz and Hezekiah who ruled Judea: Isaiah 1:1 (LES2)	Here we see clearly how the MT routinely deemphasizes God’s judgment against Israel. It uses the word “concerning,” while the LXX says “against.”
2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth! For the LORD has spoken: “I have nourished and brought up children, And they have rebelled against Me; 3 The ox knows its owner And the donkey its master’s crib; But Israel does not know, My people do not consider.” Isaiah 1:2–3 (NKJV)	2 Hear, O heaven, and hearken, O earth, because the Lord has spoken: “I fathered and raised sons, but they have rejected me. 3 An ox knows its owner and a donkey the feeding trough of its master, but Israel has not known me and the people have not understood me.” Isaiah 1:2–3 (LES2)	The MT uses “nourished,” but the LXX uses “fathered.” The MT says “rebelled,” but the LXX says “rejected.” The MT says that Israel “does not know,” but the LXX says, “Israel has not known me.” A case can be made that the nation as a whole never knew God. It was only select people who actively and faithfully served the Lord throughout her history. This group is called the remnant. (Psalm 103:7, Romans 11:1-5)
4 Alas, sinful nation, A people laden with iniquity, A brood of evildoers, Children who are corrupters! They have forsaken the LORD, They have provoked to anger The Holy One of Israel, They have turned away backward. Isaiah 1:4 (NKJV)	4 Woe to you, sinful nation, people full of sin, evil seed, lawless sons! You have forsaken the Lord, and you provoked the Holy One of Israel to anger. Isaiah 1:4 (LES2)	The MT uses the word “alas,” but the LXX uses the more forceful phrase, “Woe to you.” This is the same Greek construct used by Jesus in the woes he pronounced in various places. (Matthew 11 and 23, Luke 6, 10, and 11) The MT says that the children are “corrupters,” but the LXX says they are “lawless.” Otherwise the two versions agree.
5 Why should you be stricken again? You will revolt more and more. The whole head is sick, And the whole heart faints. 6 From the sole of the foot even to the head, There is no soundness in it, But wounds and bruises and putrefying sores; They have not been closed or bound up, Or soothed with ointment. Isaiah 1:5–6 (NKJV)	5 Why should you be smitten still, continuing in lawlessness? Every head is in distress, and every heart is in sorrow. 6 From feet to head, neither a wound nor a bruise nor a purulent blow; there is no emollient to put on or oil or bandages. Isaiah 1:5–6 (LES2)	The MT speaks of Israel as a whole, but the LXX addresses the individuals, saying “every head is in distress and every heart is in sorrow.” Verse 6 in the LXX is difficult. It seems to be saying that the wound is not external or able to be treated easily, but is on the inside and spiritual. The MT says it differently, but arrives at the same conclusion.
7 Your country is desolate, Your cities are burned with fire; Strangers devour your land in your presence; And it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers. 8 So the daughter of Zion is left as a booth in a vineyard, As a hut in a garden of cucumbers, As a besieged city. 9 Unless the LORD of hosts Had left to us a very small remnant, We would have become like Sodom, We would have been made like Gomorrah. Isaiah 1:7–9 (NKJV)	7 Your land is deserted; your cities are burned. As for your territory, foreigners devour it before you, and it has been made desolate, overthrown by a foreign people. 8 The daughter of Zion will be left behind like a tent in a vineyard, and like a garden watcher’s hut in a cucumber bed, like a besieged city. 9 And if the Lord Sabaoth had not left us seed, we would have become like Sodom and we would have been made like Gomorrah. Isaiah 1:7–9 (LES2)	The MT and LXX agree in verses 7 and 8, but diverge significantly in verse 9. The MT obscures the reference to Christ by calling the “seed” a “very small remnant.” The seed points to Christ. (Galatians 3:16) Paul picked up on this when he quoted this verse in Romans, using the LXX. 29 And as Isaiah said before: “Unless the LORD of Sabaoth had left us a seed, We would have become like Sodom, And we would have been made like Gomorrah.” Romans 9:29 (NKJV) Of all the natural descendants of Abraham, only a remnant will be saved – those who are part of the elect, chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. (Romans 9:26, Isaiah 10:22, Ephesians 1:3-4) This remnant is part of the group called the Israel of God or the church, which is composed of both Jew and Gentile who have become “one new man” in Christ. There is no longer any distinction between the two. (Galatians 3:28-29, Ephesians 2:14-16)