Were the LXX Versions of Proverbs and Job Translated by the Same Person?*

Abstract

This article addresses the question whether Septuagint Proverbs and Job could have had the same translator. Gerleman opted for an affirmative answer, whereas Gammie disagrees. Applicable criteria are formulated—linguistic ones and aspects of the contents of these units. This article focuses on the latter—the way two prominent wisdom passages, Old Greek Job 28 and LXX Prov 8:22–31, are rendered. It deals with the translation technique. Both units are deemed freely translated. They correspond largely, however, they also differ. Whereas LXX Proverbs is an expansive text, Old Greek Job is an abridged text. Old Greek Job 28 has a unique profile with a number of minuses. The following aspects are omitted: earth and bread; stones (sapphires and gold); birds of prey (the falcon); the proud wild animals (the lion); the deep and the sea; wisdom not for gold and silver; nor from gold of Ophir, onyx, or sapphire; gold and glass or jewels of fine gold; coral or crystal; the chrysolite of Ethiopia, pure gold; Abaddon and Death; and a way for the thunderbolt. This composition represents an abridged text, the work of the translator. There is no evidence of differing Vorlagen. The translator of Prov 8:22–31 stresses the fact that God/the Lord was solely responsible for the creation and that wisdom had no independent role to play. In verses 23, 24, 25, and 31, the person or aspect of the verb was changed in order to avoid misunderstanding. The translator places wisdom in perspective. Reduction of the text as is the case with Old Greek Job did not take place in LXX Proverbs 8. This could lead to one conclusion only; two translators, with such divergent attitudes to their parent texts, could not have belonged to the same circle of translators nor be deemed as one and the same translator.

1. Introduction

1.1 The Problem

Research into the Greek version of the Hebrew Bible, including the so-called de novo Septuagint writings, has been gaining momentum of late. There are various reasons for this positive development. The publication program of the LXX is advancing progressively. The impact of the Dead Sea Scrolls on Septuagintal studies is also observed at various levels.¹ Novel theories as to the origin of the LXX have been formulated and international projects have sprung up like mushrooms over the past decade.² It, therefore, now seems the appropriate time to address issues other than strictly text-critical ones.

Applicable issues are the locating of individual books and their provenance and determining who the persons were that translated/composed specific books. As far as the question of the provenance of the Septuagint is concerned, some preliminary work has been done in this regard.³ Whereas there is general consensus that the original Septuagint, the Pentateuch, should be located in Egypt and more specifically in Alexandria, there is a difference of opinion on those books outside of this corpus.⁴ Scholars have argued that LXX Proverbs and Old Greek Job could have been translated in Alexandria⁵ or Palestine.⁶ Until recently there was a consensus that Old Greek Job was translated in Alexandria.⁷ However, the latest suggestion by Reed⁸ is that the additions to Job 42:17b–e originated in Palestine. About the issue as to who could have been responsible for the two units under discussion, the views are also divergent.

Gerleman was probably the first scholar to explicitly express the view that the same translator was responsible for both LXX Proverbs and Old Greek Job.⁹ He concentrated on individual words and expressions he deemed common favorite expressions of both translations. However, he also spoke about “the familiarity with the Hellenistic world and openness to Hellenistic culture which is common to both translations.”¹⁰ In this regard, he does distinguish between the translator of Job whose “mind has turned to myths and fables, a process of association in keeping with the contents of the book” and Proverbs who “has been more suggestive of poetry and philosophy.”¹¹ In the final analysis he comes to a “tentative” conclusion that these translators are identical.¹²

Gammie, on the contrary, reached the opposite conclusion, and in his seminal contribution, he stressed two issues “(i) to draw attention to some previously overlooked poetic and stylistic tendencies in the LXX of Job, and (ii) to reassess the extent to which stylistic, poetic, and other features lend support to Gerleman’s contention that the LXX of Job and Proverbs had a common translator.”¹³

Other scholars also dealt with aspects of the relationship between these two translators. Heater¹⁴ studied the LXX of Job and found many examples of intra-textual readings, what he called anaphoric translation technique, in LXX Job taken from other parts of the Septuagint. However, he did not directly address the issue at stake. In his series of articles, Orlinsky¹⁵ also analysed various characteristics of the Greek translation of Job, without explicitly dealing with the relationship between the mentioned translators. Cox, in passing, refers to these translators and states, “It seems likely that they come from the same circle of translators.”¹⁶ As far as Job is concerned, I concluded at the International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies Congress in Cambridge (1995) that in respect of certain aspects it would seem as if Job and Proverbs were not rendered by the same translator.¹⁷ It is therefore possible that they do not come from the same historical milieu.

1.2 Applicable Criteria

It is immediately evident that applicable criteria need to be formulated in order to address this issue. There are two sets of criteria: first, linguistic ones and more specifically on the micro-level, lexically based criteria, as well as, on the macro-level, syntactical and stylistic issues; second, arguments from content analysis. One would naturally expect the same translator to show correspondence on these two levels. In this paper, I will not deal with the first criterion; this has been done by Gammie et al.¹⁸ I will rather concentrate on the second criterion, the larger picture, aspects of the contents of these two books. I will apply a contextually based methodology and analyze the way two prominent wisdom passages are rendered in these two units. In the process, I will ask the question if the same translator (group of translators?) could have been responsible for the way Old Greek Job 28 and LXX Proverbs 8 were translated respectively.

1.3 Textual Basis

Since the Old Greek of LXX Proverbs has not yet been determined systematically, the scholarly edition of Rahlfs¹⁹ must be utilized. Proverbs has been allocated to Peter Gentry to prepare in the Göttingen edition. The research into Job is based on the critical edition by Joseph Ziegler.²⁰ There are a few divergences from this edition, following suggestions made by Pietersma²¹ in his review and by Gentry.²²

1.4 Translation Technique and Interpretation

There is consensus that the Greek versions of Proverbs²³ and Job²⁴ exhibit a rather free translation technique. I have demonstrated that the translator of the Septuagint of Proverbs seems to have had a unique approach towards its parent text.²⁵ This is observed, firstly, on a micro-level but also on a macro-level.²⁶ As far as the first goes, some individual lexical items are rendered consistently, whereas many are varied. This translational approach can be defined as one of diversity and unity.²⁷ This is underscored by the rather large number of hapax legomena and neologisms that occur in LXX Proverbs.²⁸

According to Cox, the usual categories of characterizing a translation are less helpful for assessing Job:

It is not just free or paraphrastic, it is also something of an epitome of the longer and often difficult original. OG Job is one of a kind in the Septuagint corpus. We can typify it as among the least literal, both in its attitude toward abbreviating the parent text and in the way the translator worked with that portion of the text for which we have a translation.²⁹

The same could also be said of the LXX of Proverbs. However, there are interesting differences as well as correspondences between these two translated units. Proverbs, on the one hand, is an expansive text, the characteristic of this unit is the multitude of additions, transpositions, and very significant, the difference of the order of chapters 24–31 in the LXX. Job, on the other hand, is a shortened, abbreviated text. The Old Greek is substantially shorter than the Masoretic Text. According to Cox,³⁰ this abbreviation increases.³¹

1.5 Conclusion

It should be clear that both LXX Proverbs and Job are less faithfully translated units. One pertinent difference between these units is, as stated already, that whereas LXX Proverbs is fundamentally an expansive text, the Old Greek of Job, on the contrary, is a shortened, abbreviated text. However, this does not mean that the former contains no minuses³² at all, or that the Old Greek of Job has no pluses. As a matter of fact, LXX Job contains two important additions, one in Job 2:9a–f, the diatribe on the wife of Job and the second, Job 42:17b–e.

2. The Micro-Level (Lexical Items)

There can be no doubt that the translator(s) of both LXX Proverbs and Job were excellently educated in the Jewish and Greek cultures. They both are, what Cox³³ said about the Old Greek Job, a work of good literary quality. As far as LXX Proverbs is concerned, I identified the following significant pattern. This translator clearly was a creative stylist with an exceptional knowledge of Jewish and Greek culture.³⁴ This is observed on various levels. As far as his creative approach is concerned, as stated above, he made ample use of hapax legomena which he borrowed from the Greek world. There are also a number of neologisms; he moreover, applied a rather large number of lexemes exclusively in Proverbs.³⁵ As to be expected, he interprets extensively in some instances.

As far as Old Greek Job is concerned, I identified a number of hapax legomena in chapters 1, 2, 14, 19, 28, and 42. One example must suffice. appears in only one LXX manuscript in Job 2:9δ and hence is not taken by Ziegler as Old Greek.³⁶ Rahlfs does have it as Old Greek. This noun does not appear in the papyri, but it occurs in Lycophron of Chalcis in Euboea who wrote his comedy Alexandra, circa the fourth to third century B.C.E.

There are also lexemes that can help to determine the provenance of Old Greek Job. Cox³⁷ agrees with Gerleman that the Greek word “tax gatherer” (Job 3:18 and 39:7) is a term that reflects an Alexandrian (Egyptian) context. This word appears only in 2 Esd 4:7 and 18; 5:5; Job 3:18 and 39:7, as well as 1 Macc 3:29.

3. Content Based Considerations

3.1 Job Chapter 28: Wisdom and Creation

3.1.1 Introduction

This chapter is one of the classical wisdom passages in the Hebrew Bible. It has a unique profile in the Greek with a number of minuses.

3.1.2 LXX Versus MT

Job 28:1

³⁸

Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place for gold to be refined.

For silver has a place from which it comes, and gold a place from where it is sifted.

The noun is used five times in Job and eleven times in Proverbs. occurs eight times in Job, of which five examples come from chapter 28. This is surely the result of the mining activity described in this chapter. It appears seven times in Proverbs. The verb is a hapax legomenon and it has (to refine metals) as parent text. By far in most instances, the noun has as parent text in Job. In this verse, two examples of occur, the first example as rendering of . According to Hatch and Redpath, this is the sole example in the Septuagint.

Even though there are no major differences between the Greek and the Hebrew, the translator does translate uniquely. The phrase has no equivalent in the Hebrew. The alliteration in the Greek version is also prominent.

Job 28:2

Iron is taken out of the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.

For whereas iron comes out of the earth, copper is quarried like stone.

The noun is used seven times in Job mostly in connection with . It is found twice only in Proverbs. In most instances, the noun renders in the LXX, this is the case in Job as well. However, in a number of cases, including the verse under discussion, it refers to . occurs twice in Job, the other example being Job 41:19. It is not used in Proverbs. The noun appears twelve times in Job, of which three examples come from chapter 28. It is used ten times in Proverbs. This is the sole example of in Job, it does not appear in Proverbs and is used ten times in the LXX.

Even though the Hebrew and Greek versions do not differ much, the translator indeed nuanced his version. The passive form of is rendered by means of which need not be interpreted as passive. The application of the adverb is an interpretative one.

Syntactically speaking, the Greek reads smoother since the verse is interpreted as a final clause.

Job 28:3

Miners put an end to darkness, and search out to the farthest bound the ore in gloom and deep darkness.

He imposed order on darkness.

is used six times in Job, related to more than one parent reading. In Job 16:3 and 28:3 to ; in 24:5 to ; in 36:28 there is no parent text and in 38:12 to . It occurs once in Proverbs.

is used frequently in Job and three times in Proverbs. This is the first example of the shortened Greek text in this chapter. It is difficult to determine who is the subject of the Greek stich. The New Revised Standard Version takes the miner(s) as subject, whereas one could argue that the Greek translator indeed took it as God. The larger context will have to be taken into account in order to decide the issue.

Job 28:4

They open shafts in a valley away from human habitation; they are forgotten by travelers, they sway suspended, remote from people.

and those of mortals who kept forgetting the righteous way became weak.

The verb is used six times in both Job and Proverbs. occurs frequently in both Job and Proverbs. This applies to as well. The verb appears three times in Job and once in Proverbs. In Job it has three Semitic parent readings, namely in 4:3 and ; in the present verse it relates to . The noun is used exclusively in the book of Job. It appears seventeen times.

The translator seemingly discarded the first stich. The second stich is interpreted religiously. There is no reference to “righteous ways” in the Hebrew! This religionizing is a definite characteristic of the Septuagint version of Proverbs.³⁹ It is perhaps not without significance that this reference to righteousness is found directly following the translation of the previous verse “He imposed order on darkness.”

Job 28:5

As for the earth, out of it comes bread; but underneath it is turned up as by fire.

The Old Greek has no reading.

Job 28:6

Its stones are the place of sapphires, and its dust contains gold.

The Old Greek has no reading.

Job 28:7

That path no bird of prey knows, and the falcon’s eye has not seen it.

The Old Greek has no reading.

Job 28:8

The proud wild animals have not trodden it; the lion has not passed over it.

The Old Greek has no reading.

Job 28:9

They put their hand to the flinty rock, and overturn mountains by the roots.

And he overturned mountains from their roots.

The verb is used eight times in Job and twice in Proverbs. occurs ten times in Job and twice in Proverbs. The noun appears nine times in Job and once in Proverbs.

The translator seems to have discarded the first stich. God is probably the subject of the strophe. This stich connects with 28:4, the previous Old Greek equivalent.

Job 28:10

They cut out channels in the rocks, and their eyes see every precious thing.

and broke whirlpools of rivers— and my eye saw every precious thing.

is used only twice in the LXX, namely in Job 13:11 and here in 28:10. occurs four times in Job and twice in Proverbs. The verb appears nine times in Job and once in Proverbs. is found twice in Job and not at all in Proverbs. The noun is used thirty-three times in Job and twenty-five times in Proverbs.

God is still the subject of the first strophe in the Old Greek (in MT it is probably the miner[s]), whereas Job’s eye, seemingly, is the subject of the second one. The translator seems to have deliberately changed the subject from “his eye” to “my eye.”

Job 28:11

The sources of the rivers they probe; hidden things they bring to light.

.

And he uncovered rivers’ depths and showered his own power to the light.

is used only this one time in Job and has no relationship to a parent text. It occurs once in Proverbs too. The verb appears five times in Job and not at all in Proverbs. In the current verse it has as parent text and in the other instances in Job, The verb occurs in Job 28:11 ( ), 33:23 ( ?), and 34:32 ( ). There is no equivalent in Proverbs. The noun is used eleven times in Job and once in Proverbs. According to Hatch and Redpath, four examples have no relation to a parent text, this includes the present verse, which is an interpretation. The Hebrew lexeme has “secret things” as part of its semantic field. occurs twenty-five times in Job and six times in Proverbs.

The reading (God) “uncovers” ( ) the depth of rivers is seemingly based on , which does not have this nuance in its semantic fields. According to Koehler and Baumgartner, it has the connotations “to bind, saddle” in its semantic fields. Strangely enough the other examples of in Job relate to , which does have the nuance of “reveal, uncover” in their semantic fields! It is possible that the parent text, indeed, contained this verb.

The second strophe is an interpretation as far as is concerned. The preposition is also an interpretation, as is the demonstrative pronoun . The creative hand of the translator is evident. In both stichoi, God is the subject.

Job 28:12

But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?

But wisdom—where was it found? And of what sort is the place of knowledge?

The noun appears twenty-one times in Job and forty-nine times in Proverbs, practically always in relation with . is used thirteen times in Job, in the present verse as well as in four additional instances in connection with the root , but surprisingly enough, it is never used in Proverbs.

There are no major differences between MT and LXX, compare, however, verse 20 below.

Job 28:13

Mortals do not know the way to it, and it is not found in the land of the living.

No mortal knows its way, nor will it ever be discovered among human beings.

for seems to be an interpretation in the light of 13a. It could be intended to focus on humankind.

Job 28:14

The deep says, “It is not in me,” and the sea says, “It is not with me.”

The Old Greek has no reading.

Job 28:15

It cannot be gotten for gold, and silver cannot be weighed out as its price.

The Old Greek has no reading.

Job 28:16

It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire.

The Old Greek has no reading.

Job 28:17

Gold and glass cannot equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.

The Old Greek has no reading.

Job 28:18

No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal; the price of wisdom is above pearls.

The Old Greek has no reading.

Job 28:19

The chrysolite of Ethiopia cannot compare with it, nor can it be valued in pure gold.

The Old Greek has no reading.

Job 28:20

Where then does wisdom come from? And where is the place of understanding?

But wisdom—where was it found? And of what sort is the place of knowledge?

appears fifteen times in Job and ten times in Proverbs. The Greek verse is identical to verse 12 excepting the noun for . There is also one difference between the Massoretic versions. Whereas in the present verse is used in stich a, in verse 12, the verb is .

Job 28:21

It is hidden from the eyes of all living, and concealed from the birds of the air.

It has escaped notice by any human,

is applied in Job 24:1; 28:21, and 34:21. In the present case it has as parent text, which has “secret, hide, ignore” as part of its semantic field.

The translator seemingly discarded the second stich.

Job 28:22

Abaddon and Death say, “We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.”

.

but we have heard of its renown.

occurs exclusively in Job, namely in 28:22 and 30:8. In the present verse it has as parent text with “message, rumor” in its semantic field. This seems to be an interpretation. The first stich is, moreover, not rendered in the Old Greek. It does contain a reference to Abaddon and Death.

Job 28:23

God understands the way to it, and he knows its place.

God has established well its way, and he himself knows its place,

occurs only this one time in Job and is clearly an interpretation of . It is used twice in Proverbs. for is normal. Both stichoi are rendered in this verse. The adverb has no equivalent in the Hebrew.

Job 28:24

For he looks to the ends of the earth, and sees everything under the heavens.

for he observes all that is under heaven, since he knows all the earth contains, that which he made—

is used in Job 21:16; 22:12; 28:24, and 34:24. It does not appear in Proverbs. is probably based upon .

This verse contains some interesting interpretations. The order of heaven and earth is changed. In Job 1 and 2, one of the tendencies I identified was that the translator added references to heaven in addition to the earth. This is true of the phrase “what lies beneath heaven” in Job 1:7 and 2:2. These are examples of intra-textual renderings. The difference in the present verse is the reverse of the categories earth and heaven. Another difference is the phrase, “that which he made” ( ) which has no equivalent in the Hebrew. This can be deemed an explicative addition, since reference has already been made to the fact that God created everything.

Job 28:25

When he gave to the wind its weight, and apportioned out the waters by measure;

the weight of winds and the measures of water!

The noun appears four times in Job and seven times in Proverbs. is used once in Job and Proverbs respectively. is used three times in Job and once in Proverbs.

The Greek strophe seems to be an interpretation of both stichoi in the Hebrew. The verb is taken from the previous verse and could be seen as an ellipsis.

Job 28:26

when he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the thunderbolt;

When he had done so, he looked and made a count;

Cox⁴⁰ opted for the reading “he looked” instead of , following Grabe and Ausgabe (1709) and Rahlfs which refer to some manuscripts that read . This noun occurs eight times in Job and three times in Proverbs. is used five times in Job and once in Proverbs, namely 8:21, part of the classical creation pericope. The Greek represents an interpretation of the first Hebrew stich. The second stich corresponds to some extent with the Hebrew of the next verse.

Job 28:27

then he saw it and declared it; he established it, and searched it out.

since he prepared them, he kept track of them.

The verb occurs ten times in Job and eleven times in Proverbs. is used six times in Job and not at all in Proverbs. The first stich is apparently discarded. has the nuances “to search, to declare” as part of its semantic fields, and it is rendered by means of in this verse.

Job 28:28

And he said to humankind, “Truly, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.”

And he said to humankind, “Look, the worship of God is wisdom, and to stay away from evil is knowledge.”

occurs once in Job, Genesis, Sirach, and Baruch and four times in 4 Maccabees. In this verse, the phrase is rendered by means of . Another related phrase in Job is , which occurs in Job 1:1; 1:8, and 2:3 and is rendered by . The difference between these phrases in the Hebrew is that in the first instance a verbal form appears, whereas in the verse under discussion the construct form ( ) of the noun is used.

3.1.3 Conclusions

This chapter makes sense, albeit different from the Hebrew, when the Old Greek is read on its own. The central role of wisdom is significant. It is mentioned in verse 12 and then two verses further again. The poem is, moreover, ended by the statement that “the worship of God is wisdom.” Hence, wisdom forms the centre of this chapter. It is also clear that wisdom and knowledge have to do with practical things, “worshipping God and staying away from evil.” A tendency to religionize was discovered in verse 4 where “the righteous way” is mentioned. Another characteristic is that God plays a more prominent role in the Old Greek than in the MT. He is the subject of verses 3 through to 11 and then again in verses 23–28. Interestingly enough, the God-names are not varied as in other passages.

In the next outline, the created things that were omitted in the Old Greek are mentioned. These are printed in italics.

Job 28

1. 1. For silver has a place from which it comes, and gold a place from where it is sifted.

2. 2. For whereas iron comes out of the earth, copper is quarried like stone.

3. 3. He imposed order on darkness,

4. 4. and those of mortals who kept forgetting the righteous way became weak.

5. 5. As for the earth—out of it comes bread; but underneath it is turned up as by fire.

6. 6. Its stones are the place of sapphires, and its dust contains gold.

7. 7. That path no bird of prey knows, and the falcon’s eye has not seen it.

8. 8. The proud wild animals have not trodden it; the lion has not passed over it.

9. 9. And he overturned mountains from their roots

10. 10. and broke whirlpools of rivers— and my eye saw every precious thing.

11. 11. And he uncovered rivers’ depths and showed his own power to the light.

12. 12. But wisdom—where was it found? And of what sort is the place of knowledge?

13. 13. No mortal knows its way, nor will it ever be discovered among human beings.

14. 14. The deep says, “It is not in me,” and the sea says, “It is not with me.”

15. 15. It cannot be gotten for gold, and silver cannot be weighed out as its price.

16. 16. It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire.

17. 17. Gold and glass cannot equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.

18. 18. No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal; the price of wisdom is above pearls.

19. 19. The chrysolite of Ethiopia cannot compare with it, nor can it be valued in pure gold.

20. 20. But wisdom—where was it found? And of what sort is the place of knowledge?

21. 21. It has escaped notice by any human,

22. 22. Abaddon and Death say, but we have heard of its renown.

23. 23. God has established well its way, and he himself knows its place,

24. 24. for he observes all that is under heaven, since he knows all the earth contains, that which he made—

25. 25. the weight of winds and the measures of water!

26. 26. When he had done so, he looked and made a count; and a way for the thunderbolt;

27. 27. since he prepared them, he kept track of them.

28. 28. And he said to humankind, “Look, the worship of God is wisdom, and to stay away from evil is knowledge.”

The aspects that are omitted are: earth and bread; stones—sapphires and gold; birds of prey (the falcon); the proud wild animals (the lion); the deep and the sea; wisdom not for gold and silver; nor from gold of Ophir, onyx, or sapphire; nor gold and glass or jewels of fine gold; nor coral or crystal; nor the chrysolite of Ethiopia nor pure gold; Abaddon and Death; and a way for the thunderbolt.

The overwhelming commodity that is omitted, are valuable stones! From this list it would seem that these stones were not important to the translator. This does not mean that stones are not referred to at all. Verses 1 and 2 do have appropriate references in this regard.

Thus this composition represents a fundamentally abridged text compared to the MT. Taking the free translation technique into account, I deem this curtailment the work of the translator.⁴¹ Moreover, as stated above, there is no evidence of existing external Hebrew or other witnesses to this shortened text. This abridgement is totally different from the LXX Proverbs 8:22–31.

3.2 LXX Proverbs 8:20–36: Wisdom and Creation

3.2.1 Introduction

This chapter is one of the classical wisdom creation passages in the Hebrew Bible. In the Hebrew, it has been composed beautifully and has a structure of four sections; verses 1–11; 12–21; 22–31 and a peroration in verses 32–36. The translator has composed this whole chapter stylistically by, inter alia, adding two strophes to verse 21. However, the pericope of Prov 8:20–36 is under discussion. It has likewise been composed intentionally.⁴²

3.2.2 LXX Versus MT

Proverbs 8:20

I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice,

,

I walk in the ways of justice, and along paths of what is right I wander

Proverbs 8:21

endowing with wealth those who love me, and filling their treasuries.

in order that I may apportion possessions to those who love me and fill their treasuries with good things.

^21α

If I report to you the things that happen daily, I will remember to enumerate the things of old.

These two stichs in the LXX have no equivalent in the MT or any other textual witnesses. It has been placed exactly preceding the classical pericope on creation. This addition clearly acts as a bridge between verses 11–21 and verses 22–36.⁴³

In Prov 8:20–36, there are various indications that the translator opted to stress specific nuances in order to avoid misunderstanding.

Proverbs 8:22

The Lord created me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of long ago.

The Lord created me as the beginning of his ways, for the sake of his works.

The translator intentionally opted for the verb . It appears sixty-three times in the LXX, but only this once in Proverbs! The Hebrew lexeme has various connotations in its semantic fields. It is used in Prov 1:5; 4:5, 7; 8:8; 15:32; 16:16; 17:16; 18:15; 19:8; 20:14, and 23:23. According to Lisowski Prov 8:8 is the sole example where the nuance of “to create” obtains. It therefore seems as if the translator intentionally applied , in order to avoid possible misunderstanding.

Proverbs 8:23

Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth.

Before the present age he founded me, in the beginning.

The passive form (Niphal; I was set up) is rendered by means of (he founded me). Even though the Hebrew lexeme can be understood differently, as derived from (pour out); II (install) or (weave), especially when the vowels are discarded, the translator deliberately avoided the passive form in order to make clear that it was God who founded wisdom.

Proverbs 8:24

When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water.

,

Before he made the earth and before he made the depths, before he brought forth the springs of the waters,

This verse contains various endeavours to stress the fact that God is at work and not wisdom. The verbal form is used twice with God as subject, whereas the MT has only one verb . The translator deliberately avoids referring to wisdom which in the Hebrew is represented in .

Proverbs 8:25

Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought forth—

.

before the mountains were established and before all the hills, he begets me.

In this verse, the translator again interprets . He explicitly states ‘he begets me’, to stress that God is the actor.

Proverbs 8:26

when he had not yet made earth and fields, or the world’s first bits of soil.

.

The Lord made countries and uninhabited spaces and the habitable heights of that beneath the sky.

Again the Greek differs from the Hebrew. MT has a temporal clause whereas LXX changed it into a main clause. The specification of the subject as, the Lord, could be another sign of the translator’s intention to stress that God/the Lord is the sole actor in the creation process.

Proverbs 8:27

When he established the heavens, I was there, when he drew a circle on the face of the deep,

.

When he prepared the sky, I was present with him, and when he marked out his own throne on the winds.

Proverbs 8:28

when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains of the deep,

when he made strong the clouds above and when he made secure the springs beneath the sky,

Proverbs 8:27–28 are less ambiguous in the Hebrew and hence the Greek has less adaptations. There, nevertheless, seems to be a tendency to avoid in these verses.

Proverbs 8:29

when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth,

,

when he made strong the foundations of the earth,

Rahlfs refers to manuscripts A and Ss where the equivalent of the first two strophes is found. However, they are also under the asterisk in Origen.

Proverbs 8:30

then I was beside him, like a master worker; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always,

,

I was beside him, fitting together; it is I who was the one in whom he took delight. And each day I was glad in his presence at every moment,

This verse represents the locus classicus of arguments concerning the so-called Stoic colouring of LXX Proverbs. The verb has been taken by Gerleman⁴⁴ to have the connotations of “to join, to accommodate, bring into harmony” which is then taken as in line with Stoic views on nature. This Greek verb occurs only ten times in the LXX; in 2 Kgs 6:5 (*) and 14 ( ?); Ps 151:2 (–); Prov 8:30 ( ); 17:7 ( ); 19:14 ( ?); 25:11 ( ); Nah 3:8 ( ?); 2 Macc 14:22 and 3 Macc 1:19. It is thus used to render different lexemes in Proverbs. In Prov 17:7, the Hebrew contains a contrast between the speech of a fool and of a king. Within the context of the Greek translation, the nuance of “fitting” clearly prevails. In Prov 19:14, the nuance of “betroth” is dominant. Another important passage is Nah 3:8. The nuance of “harmonizing” suggested by Gerleman is not imperative in any of these passages. The point is that describes the relationship of wisdom with the creator and not the relationship with creation!⁴⁵ Hence I translate it as “fitting together” and not “harmonizing.” It has nothing to do with Stoicism.

Proverbs 8:31

rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the human race.

when he rejoiced after he had completed the world and rejoiced among the sons of men.

There are significant differences between MT and LXX. Syntactically this verse is interpreted as a final clause, whereas the MT simply places verses 32 and 33 paratactically next to one another. The prominent change, however, is the Piel participle femine form, , that is adapted to a third person singular masculine form . The same obtains as far as for (participle as noun plural with suffix first singular “my delight”) is concerned. The verbal form also seems to be intentionally used in order to stress that God is the sole subject of creational activity.

Proverbs 8:32

And now, my children, listen to me: happy are those who keep my ways.

Now then my son, listen to me.

Proverbs 8:33

Hear instruction and be wise, and do not neglect it.

The Old Greek has no reading.

Rahlfs refers to the equivalent of these strophes. However, they are also under the asterisk in Origen.

Proverbs 8:34

Happy is the one who will listen to me, watching daily at my gate

Happy is the man who will listen to me and the person who will guard my ways, keeping watch at my doors daily, protecting the posts of my entrances.

Proverbs 8:35

For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the Lord;

For my egressions are the egressions of life, and the incentive is prepared by the Lord.

Proverbs 8:36

but those who miss me injure themselves; all who hate me love death.”

But those who sin against me treat their own souls with impiety, and those who hate me love death.

4. Conclusion

The translator of Prov 8:20–36 clearly went out of his way to stress the fact that God/the Lord was solely responsible for the creation and that wisdom had no independent role to play in the creational process. In no fewer than four passages (verses 23, 24, 25, and 31), the person or aspect of the verb was changed in order to avoid possible misunderstanding. The translation of Prov 8:22 is instructive in this regard. The Greek translation places wisdom in the correct perspective. Surely she had a privileged position beside God. She also had an important role to play and therefore was created by God for the sake of his works. This privileged position is not clearly demarcated in the Hebrew version (MT), at least as far as the translator is concerned; therefore, he deliberately adapted the Greek in order to avoid any misunderstanding as to the omnipotency of God.

Compared to the Old Greek of Job, this approach is significantly different. The translator of LXX Proverbs had the freedom to adapt his parent text. However, this is done mostly by interpreting on a smaller level—the adaptation of subjects, etc. In a few instances in this chapter as a whole, the translator actually added some strophes, see for example, the plus in Prov 8:21α. However, hardly ever did he in fact reduce his subject matter. Two examples could be cases in point. In Prov 8:29, the equivalent of two stichoi is missing, and in verse 33, there seems to be no Old Greek text. However, these omissions could be the result of the complicated textual history of LXX Proverbs. The point to make is that reduction of the text as is the case with Old Greek Job did not take place in LXX Proverbs 8. To me this could only lead to one conclusion. I find it difficult to accept that two translators who exhibit such divergent attitudes to their parent texts, could have belonged to the same circle of translators, nor could be deemed as one and the same translator.