I hope you will journey with me in rediscovering the beauty of God’s Word in the Septuagint (LXX). In 285 BC, the LXX was translated from paleo-Hebrew by 70 Jewish translators into Greek, the language of most of the civilized world at that time. Due to its pre-Christ and pre-fall of Jerusalem date, the LXX cannot be accused of being influenced by any underlying animosity toward Christ or Christianity or desire to elevate Judaism’s claim to God’s blessings or the promised land. Most Christians believe the Masoretic Text (MT), upon which our English Old Testament is based, is written in the original Hebrew, but it too is a translation from the ancient and by then dead paleo-Hebrew Phoenician pictograph script into the modern Hebrew block script derived from Aramaic. The Masoretes completed it between 600 t0 1000 AD, by which time the Jews had become hostile to the Christian message, which shows up in various omissions, changes, and obfuscations of verses and passages that clearly point to Christ in the LXX.
Jesus taught us that all scripture points to him (John 5:39). As a rule, the Septuagint more clearly points to Jesus than does the MT.
In the West, Christians have not questioned the MT since Jerome chose it as the basis for his Latin Vulgate Old Testament. The Eastern Orthodox Church, to their credit, never deviated from the Septuagint, preserving it for later generations to rediscover. Because of the power of tradition, it is quite difficult for many of us in the West to think of the LXX as being more trustworthy than the MT, but I have found that a side-by-side comparison indicates otherwise.
In this series of articles, I have undertaken to illustrate the similarities and differences between the MT and LXX by examining various passages. Below is another example. The Septuagint version I am using is the Lexham English Septuagint 2nd Edition. It is available in print or digitally through Logos Bible Software. Occasionally I reference Brenton’s translation, which is a good one, but the English is somewhat dated.
| Masoretic Text | Septuagint | Significance |
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10 Hear the word of the LORD, You rulers of Sodom; Give ear to the law of our God, You people of Gomorrah: 11 “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?” Says the LORD. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams And the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, Or of lambs or goats. 12 “When you come to appear before Me, Who has required this from your hand, To trample My courts? 13 Bring no more futile sacrifices; Incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies— I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting. 14 Your New Moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; They are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them. 15 When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; Even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood. Isaiah 1:10–15 (NKJV) |
10 Hear the word of the Lord, rulers of Sodom! Pay attention to the law of God, people of Gomorrah! 11 “What is the multitude of your sacrifices to me?” says the Lord. “I am full of burnt offerings of rams, and I do not wish for the fat of lambs and the blood of bulls and he-goats, 12 not even if you come to appear before me. For who sought these things from your hands? Trampling my court, 13 you shall not continue! If you bring fine flour, it is pointless. Incense is an abomination to me; I do not tolerate your new moon festivals and Sabbaths and great day. Fasting and rest, 14 and your new moons and your festivals, my soul hates. You have become excess to me; I will no longer forgive your sins. 15 When you stretch out your hands, I will turn back my eyes away from you; and if you increase your petition, I will not listen to you, for your hands are full of blood. Isaiah 1:10–15 (LES2) |
Here the prophet and God continue the them begun in the previous verse and identify Jerusalem spiritually as Sodom and Gomorrah. This identification is repeated in Jeremiah 23:14, Ezekiel 16:46, and Revelation 11:8. The verse in Revelation identifies the city as being where Jesus was crucified, thus making it certain that it is a reference to Jerusalem. The remainder of this passage lists Israel’s sins and God’s disgust. God says Israel’s sacrifices have become an abomination to him and will not continue. (Verse 13 in LXX) This presages the destruction of the temple. God will turn his back on Israel and Jerusalem. |
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16 “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil, 17 Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow. 18 “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the LORD, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land; 20 But if you refuse and rebel, You shall be devoured by the sword”; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken. Isaiah 1:16–20 (NKJV) |
16 Wash yourselves; become clean! Remove the vices from your selves; desist from your vices before my eyes! 17 Learn to do good; seek out fair judgment; rescue one who has been wronged; give a fair judgment to the orphan and vindicate the widow. 18 And come let us dispute,” says the Lord, “and if your sins are like red, I will whiten them like snow; and if they are like scarlet, I will whiten them like wool. 19 And if you are willing and listen to me, you will eat the good things of the land. 20 But if you are not willing and do not listen to me, a sword will devour you!” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken these things. Isaiah 1:16–20 (LES2) |
The Greek word that is translated as “vice” in the LXX can also mean “depravity.” There is not much difference between the MT and LXX in this passage. The LXX makes God the one who whitens Israel’s scarlet sins instead of it’s simply happening. We know that only through Christ’s blood can we be forgiven and the stain of our sin removed. (Ephesians 1:7) Even though the immediate fulfillment of a sword devouring Jerusalem will be at the hands of Babylon, when viewed through the lens of the New Covenant, Israel will be devoured by the sword after they refuse to receive and instead murder their Messiah, which happened in the Great Revolt of 70 AD and later in the aftermath of the Bar Kokhba rebellion. |
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21 How the faithful city has become a harlot! It was full of justice; Righteousness lodged in it, But now murderers. 22 Your silver has become dross, Your wine mixed with water. 23 Your princes are rebellious, And companions of thieves; Everyone loves bribes, And follows after rewards. They do not defend the fatherless, Nor does the cause of the widow come before them. 24 Therefore the Lord says, The LORD of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel, “Ah, I will rid Myself of My adversaries, And take vengeance on My enemies. 25 I will turn My hand against you, And thoroughly purge away your dross, And take away all your alloy. 26 I will restore your judges as at the first, And your counselors as at the beginning. Afterward you shall be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city.” Isaiah 1:21–26 (NKJV) |
21 How did a faithful city, Zion, full of justice, become a prostitute, she in whom justice slept in her, but now murderers do? 22 Your silver is not genuine; your innkeepers mix the wine with water. 23 Your rulers resist—companions of thieves, lovers of gifts, pursuers of rewards, not judging the fatherless, and disregarding the case of widows. 24 On account of this, this is what the Lord, the master, Sabaoth says: “Woe to you who have power over Israel, for my wrath will not cease among the opponents, and I will execute fair judgment from my enemies. 25 And I will bring my hand upon you and burn you into something clean; and I will destroy those who resist, and I will take all lawbreakers away from you. 26 And I will establish your judges as in earlier times, and your counselors as from the beginning; and after these things it will be called City of Righteousness, Faithful Metropolis Zion. Isaiah 1:21–26 (LES2) |
The MT and LXX agree in verses 21-23, where Isaiah lays out some of the details of Jerusalem’s sin. In verse 21, Jerusalem is identified as a harlot. Her idolatry and rebellion against God is regarded as betrayal of a marriage vow. Revelation 17:16-18 also mentions a harlot that will be judged near the end. The identify of this harlot is a mystery, but perhaps it is related to this reference in Isaiah. In verse 24, we see where the MT lessens the impact of the judgment written in the LXX. The MT says, “Ah, I will rid myself of my adversaries and take vengeance on my enemies,” leaving us to guess who they might be. The LXX, however, pronounces a “woe” over the leaders of Israel, literally “you strong men of Israel” who had become God’s opponents. Verse 25 shows that this is the correct way to interpret verse 24 because God tells Jerusalem he will turn his hand against her and “burn you into something clean.” He promises to destroy those who resist, which is a reference to her rulers, according to verse 23. The promise of Jerusalem’s becoming a righteous city will be fulfilled at the Second Coming when the New Jerusalem will descend from heaven. (Revelation 21:10) |
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27 Zion shall be redeemed with justice, And her penitents with righteousness. 28 The destruction of transgressors and of sinners shall be together, And those who forsake the LORD shall be consumed. 29 For they shall be ashamed of the terebinth trees Which you have desired; And you shall be embarrassed because of the gardens Which you have chosen. 30 For you shall be as a terebinth whose leaf fades, And as a garden that has no water. 31 The strong shall be as tinder, And the work of it as a spark; Both will burn together, And no one shall quench them. Isaiah 1:27–31 (NKJV) |
27 For her captivity will escape with justice and with mercy. 28 And the lawbreakers and the sinful will be shattered together, and those who forsake the Lord will be brought to an end, 29 since they will be ashamed because of their idols, which they preferred, and are ashamed at the gardens, which they desired. 30 For they will be like a terebinth tree that has cast off its leaves, and like an orchard that does not have water. 31 And their strength will be like a stalk of flax, and their workings like a spark, and the lawbreakers and the sinful will be burned up together, and there will be no quencher.” Isaiah 1:27–31 (LES2) |
The LXX makes it very clear that God’s judgment is upon Jerusalem for her idolatry. The language is straightforward. In summary, Isaiah Chapter One lays out God”s judgment against Jerusalem for her blatant sins. She is compared to Sodom and Gomorrah, from which God saved a remnant in the persons of Lot and his two daughters. God promises to preserve a “seed” out of Zion, which is the Lord Jesus. (Galatians 3:16) Israel is also called out for her spiritual harlotry which is revealed through her continual worship of idols. God offers a solution through repentance and a washing away or whitening of her sins, which points to the atoning sacrifice and blood of our Lord Jesus. The Lord promises that eventually Jerusalem will become a righteous city, which refers to the New Jerusalem consisting of New Covenant born-again children of God. Paul made it clear that the earthly city of Jerusalem is irredeemable. (Galatians 4:21-26) Flesh and blood cannot enter the kingdom of God, only that which is recreated by the Spirit. (1 Corinthians 15:50) |
Conclusion
If you want to know more about why Christians should prefer the Septuagint to the MT, click on this link. In another article, I share some of the things I have so far learned by making this comparison. As for me, I now prefer the LXX. It was Paul’s and the other apostles’ standard for Old Covenant truth, was used by synagogues in Jesus’s day, and is most often quoted in the New Testament. That makes it good enough for me.
