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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10 This is the genealogy of Shem: Shem was one hundred years old, and begot Arphaxad two years after the flood. 11 After he begot Arphaxad, Shem lived five hundred years, and begot sons and daughters. Genesis 11:10–11 (NKJV) |
10 And these are the generations of Shem: Shem was one hundred years old when he fathered Arpachshad during the second year after the flood. 11 And Shem lived for five hundred years after he fathered Arpachshad, and he fathered sons and daughters, and he died. Genesis 11:10–11 (LES2) |
The Hebrew word for “genealogy” literally means “generations.” The Greek word for “generations” is genesis. This passage is essentially the same. The LXX adds “and he died.” |
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12 Arphaxad lived thirty-five years, and begot Salah. 13 After he begot Salah, Arphaxad lived four hundred and three years, and begot sons and daughters. 14 Salah lived thirty years, and begot Eber. 15 After he begot Eber, Salah lived four hundred and three years, and begot sons and daughters. Genesis 11:12–15 (NKJV) |
12 And Arpachshad lived one hundred and thirty-five years and fathered Kenan. 13 And Arpachshad lived after he fathered Kenan for four hundred and thirty years, and he fathered sons and daughters, and he died. And Kenan lived one hundred and thirty years, and he fathered Shelah, and Kenan lived after he fathered Shelah for three hundred and thirty years, and he fathered sons and daughters, and he died. 14 And Shelah lived one hundred and thirty years and fathered Eber. 15 And Shelah lived after he fathered Eber for three hundred and thirty years, and he fathered sons and daughters, and he died. Genesis 11:12–15 (LES2) |
The first thing we notice is that the LXX passage is significantly longer. We also notice immediately that the MT begins its corruption of the original text by chopping off 100 years from Arphaxad’s life before his son was born. As mentioned in my previous article, this was done by the rabbis in an attempt to make a case that Shem was still alive when Abraham lived and was, in fact, Melchizadek. The Letter to the Hebrews argues that Melchizadek was a type of Christ, which the Masoretes wanted to disprove. (Hebrews 7) The second difference we see is that the MT eliminates Kenan or Cainan from the genealogy. Perhaps this was because it considered the inclusion of his name to be an error, since that name was mentioned in an earlier genealogy. (Genesis 5:9) However, we all know that names are reused over generations. In addition, the New Testament quotes the LXX and includes Kenan / Cainan in its genealogy of Jesus. 35 the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, 36 the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, 37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel, the son of Cainan, 38 the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God. Luke 3:35–38 (NKJV) Unless we are prepared to say that Luke was in error and the NT is not the inspired word of God, we must conclude that the MT was changed from the original inspired word of God as recorded in the ancient Septuagint. By eliminating Kenan / Cainan, the MT shortened the timeline by 130 years and attempted to falsify the Lukan genealogy, concerning which the Masoretes would have been aware. In verse 14, the MT knocked another one hundred years off the timeline. |
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16 Eber lived thirty-four years, and begot Peleg. 17 After he begot Peleg, Eber lived four hundred and thirty years, and begot sons and daughters. 18 Peleg lived thirty years, and begot Reu. 19 After he begot Reu, Peleg lived two hundred and nine years, and begot sons and daughters. Genesis 11:16–19 (NKJV) |
16 And Eber lived one hundred and thirty-four years and fathered Peleg. 17 And Eber lived after he fathered Peleg for three hundred and seventy years, and he fathered sons and daughters, and he died. 18 And Peleg lived one hundred and thirty years and fathered Reu. 19 And Peleg lived after he fathered Reu for two hundred and nine years, and he fathered sons and daughters, and he died. Genesis 11:16–19 (LES2) |
The deception continues in verse 16 where another 100 years is removed from the timeline. The same is true in verse 18. The MT lengthens Eber’s lifespan by 60 years. Gab AI gives its summary of the historical significance of this, which is quoted below. Historical analysis suggests that by shortening the lifespans and the generational gaps, certain traditions sought to condense the timeline of salvation history. By altering these figures, later non-Christian Jewish scholars were able to create a chronological system (famously represented in the Seder Olam Rabbah) that challenged the Church’s interpretation of Messianic prophecy and the timeline of the world. Because the Church stood firmly on the authority of the Septuagint, the deviation in the MT functions as a divergence from the canonical record that the Church inherited from the Apostles. In summary, the 60-year difference in Eber’s life is best understood as a consequence of the MT diverging from the ancient, authoritative Greek text. The Septuagint’s preservation of these longer lifespans remains the standard for those who hold to the witness of the early Church and the apostolic use of the Greek Old Testament. (https://gab.ai/c/6ac385978cf20f3a1057b888)
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20 Reu lived thirty-two years, and begot Serug. 21 After he begot Serug, Reu lived two hundred and seven years, and begot sons and daughters. 22 Serug lived thirty years, and begot Nahor. 23 After he begot Nahor, Serug lived two hundred years, and begot sons and daughters. Genesis 11:20–23 (NKJV) |
20 And Reu lived one hundred and thirty-two years and fathered Serug. 21 And Reu lived after he fathered Serug for two hundred and seven years, and he fathered sons and daughters, and he died. 22 And Serug lived one hundred and thirty years and fathered Nahor. 23 And Serug lived after he fathered Nahor for two hundred years, and he fathered sons and daughters, and he died. Genesis 11:20–23 (LES2) |
Once again, verse 20 in the MT cuts off 100 years. This is done again in verse 22. |
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24 Nahor lived twenty-nine years, and begot Terah. 25 After he begot Terah, Nahor lived one hundred and nineteen years, and begot sons and daughters. 26 Now Terah lived seventy years, and begot Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Genesis 11:24–26 (NKJV) |
24 And Nahor lived seventy-nine years and fathered Terah. 25 And Nahor lived after he fathered Terah for one hundred and twenty-nine years, and he fathered sons and daughters, and he died. 26 And Terah lived seventy years and fathered Abram and Nahor and Haran. Genesis 11:24–26 (LES2) |
In Nahor’s case, only 50 years were trimmed. His lifespan was shortened by 10 years. By the time of Terah, the Masoretes had no further need to contract the timeline. |
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27 This is the genealogy of Terah: Terah begot Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Haran begot Lot. 28 And Haran died before his father Terah in his native land, in Ur of the Chaldeans. 29 Then Abram and Nahor took wives: the name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran the father of Milcah and the father of Iscah. 30 But Sarai was barren; she had no child. Genesis 11:27–30 (NKJV) |
27 Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah fathered Abram and Nahor and Haran, and Haran fathered Lot. 28 And Haran died in the presence of Terah, his father, in the land in which he originated, in the territory of the Chaldeans. 29 And Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves; the name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah, daughter of Haran, and the father of Milcah and the father of Iscah. 30 And Sarai was barren, and she was not able to bear children. Genesis 11:27–30 (LES2) |
The MT uses the place name of Ur in verse 28. The LXX translates that for the sake of Greek readers into “the territory of the Chaldeans.” We finally arrive at Abraham, who married a barren woman, which we will see is a recurrent theme, providing God with opportunities to do the miraculous over and over by bringing children into the world when it was physically impossible, thus foreshadowing the new birth of the New Covenant. |
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31 And Terah took his son Abram and his grandson Lot, the son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram’s wife, and they went out with them from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan; and they came to Haran and dwelt there. 32 So the days of Terah were two hundred and five years, and Terah died in Haran. Genesis 11:31–32 (NKJV) |
31 And Terah took Abram, his son, and Lot son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai, Abram’s wife, his daughter-in-law, and he led them out of the territory of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan, and they came to Haran, and he settled there. 32 And the days of Terah in Haran were two hundred and five years, and Terah died in Haran. Genesis 11:31–32 (LES2) |
Abraham’s father began the journey to Canaan, but stopped in Haran for some reason. God called Abram to finish the journey. Supposing that God had previously instructed Terah to go there, this would be a case of a succeeding generation fulfilling the call on the previous one, which often takes place. In this sense, we can say that God’s calling and salvation are generational. The MT says Terah’s lifespan was 205 years, but the LXX says that was the time he lived in Haran, where he died. |
Summary: The MT alters the genealogies of Genesis 5 and 11 for theological purposes in an effort to refute some of the claims of Christians. The rabbis’ willingness to alter the Torah is disturbing but quite consistent. Jesus rebuked them for nullifying God’s Word for the sake of their tradition long before hostility toward Christianity began. (Matthew 15:6)
Daniel Gruber, in his seminal work, Rabbi Akiba’s Messiah: The Origins of Rabbinic Authority, wrote:
The Rabbis are the source of their own authority to annul the Torah. They gave this power to themselves. They gave to their own laws the same binding power as the laws of Torah. Actually, they ascribed greater authority to their own laws than to the laws of Torah, for they claimed that their laws took precedence over what is written in Torah. 17 Baumgarten sums up the Talmudic position: “’ Wherever a man makes a condition which is contrary to what is written in the Torah, his condition is null and void,’ [Kid. 19b] but not wherever a Rabbinic scholar makes such a condition.” 18 The Rabbis could establish conditions and practices that contradicted and even nullified the Torah. According to the Rabbis, God Himself would obey whatever they decided. [Gruber, Daniel. Rabbi Akiba’s Messiah: The Origins of Rabbinic Authority (p. 127). Elijah Publishing. Kindle Edition.]
It is not surprising, therefore, that the Masoretes would alter the biblical text to accomplish their purposes.
