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.
- Why Christians Should Prefer the Septuagint over the Masoretic Text.
- Some Insights Gained through Comparing the Masoretic Text to the Septuagint
- More side by side comparisons of the Masoretic Text (MT) to the Septuagint (LXX).
| Masoretic Text | Septuagint | Significance |
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1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah |
1 The word that came to Jeremiah against all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, 2 which he spoke to all the people of Judah and to those who dwell in Jerusalem, saying, 3 “In the thirteenth year of Josiah, the son of Amos, king of Judah, and until this day for twenty-three years, I spoke to you, rising early and speaking. 4 And I sent you my servants, the prophets, sending them at dawn, and you did not listen or pay attention with your ears, 5 saying, ‘Turn back, each of you, from his evil way and from your evil pursuits, and you will dwell upon the land that I gave you and your fathers from eternity to eternity. 6 Don’t go after foreign gods to serve them and worship them, so that you do not provoke me by the works of your hands so as to mistreat you.’ 7 And you did not hear me.” Jeremiah 25:1–7 (LES2) |
The tampering of the LXX text by the Masoretes is quite apparent in this chapter of Jeremiah. Editorial insertions are made, and, starting here, the arrangement of the rest of Jeremiah’s prophecies has been severely altered by the MT. I struck through the text that the MT inserts to make it readily apparent. Regarding the rest of this passage, although there are some minor variations of words and meanings, it is very close.
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8 “Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘Because you have not heard My words, 9 behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,’ |
8 Therefore, thus says the Lord: “Since you have not trusted my words, 9 look, I am sending and will take a family from the north, and I will bring them against this land and against those who dwell in it and against all the nations surrounding it. And I will desolate them and give them up to destruction and hissing and an eternal reproach. 10 And I will destroy the sound of joy and the sound of merriment from them, the sound of the bridegroom and the sound of the bride, the scent of perfume and the light of the lamp. 11 And all the land will be a ruin, and they will be slaves among the nations for seventy years. Jeremiah 25:8–11 (LES2) |
That first difference I will mention in this passage is that the MT says in verse 8, “Because you have not heard my words,” but the LXX says “not believed my words.” The second difference is in verse 9, where the MT says “all the families (or clans) of the north,” but the LXX says “a family.” The MT also inserts some text here. The wording regarding God’s judgment is different, too. The MT says, “astonishment, hissings, and perpetual desolations.” The LXX says, “destruction, hissing, and eternal reproach.” In verse 10, the MT uses “the sound of the millstone,” but the LXX says, “the scent of perfume.” In verse 11, the MT adds “and an astonishment.” The MT also changes the text to read, “and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.” The LXX simply says, “they will be slaves among the nations for seventy years.” |
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12 And when seventy years have been completed, I will avenge that nation, and I will make them an eternal destruction. 13 And I will bring against that land all my words that I have spoken against it, all that is written in this document.” Jeremiah 25:12–13 (LES2) |
Here is another example of editorial insertions. |
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34 |
14 What Jeremiah prophesied against the nations of Elam. 15 Thus says the Lord: “Let the bow of Elam be broken, the power of their sovereignty. 16 And I will bring the four winds from the four edges of the sky against Elam, and I will scatter them among all these winds, and there will be no nation to which those who were thrust out of Elam will not come. 17 And I will terrify them before their enemies who seek their life. And I will bring bad things upon them, according to the wrath of my anger, and I will send my sword after them until they are consumed. 18 And I will set my throne in Elam, and from there I will send a king and nobles. 19 And this will happen in the end of days: I will also return the captivity of Elam,” says the Lord. Jeremiah 25:14–19 (LES2) |
Here is where the great reorganization of the Jeremiah’s prophecies begins. Notice that the rest of chapter 25 in the LXX is found in chapter 49 of the MT. Verse 15 of chapter 25 in the MT is found in chapter 32 of the LXX. Elam corresponds to modern SW Iran today. Notice that the MT says, “against Elam,” but the LXX says, “against the nations of Elam.” The MT says God will break “the foremost of their might,” but the LXX literally says, “Let…the rule of their dynasty” be broken. In verse 18 there is a big difference. The MT says, “I will destroy there the king and the princes,” which no doubt the current war with Iran is attempting to do. The LXX, however, says, “from there I will send a king and nobles.” I am not sure what that means, but it contrasts with the MT significantly. Since this will happen in the “end of days,” the eschaton in Greek, perhaps it is not the return from the Babylonian captivity during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah. |
| Summary: This chapter in Jeremiah shows how the MT inserts text, changes words and meanings, and alters the arrangement of the LXX. By changing the text in verse 38 of chapter 49 of Jeremiah in the MT, it could now be used to justify the current US-Israeli war against Iran.
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