Customer Reviews

Grammar of Septuagint Greek: With Selected Readings, Vocabularies, and Updated Indexes

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This is an attractive and well organized grammar of the Greek of the LXX. The introduction is a 24-page essay on the history of the LXX in which they show the Letter of Aristeas to be the principle evidence for the early dating and standard conception of the origin of the LXX and then they subsequently show the Letter to be a forgery. Aside from this idiocy the book is a flawless presentation of LXX Greek TO THOSE WHO ALREADY KNOW KOINE GREEK. There is a 74-page grammar section in which the syntax of the LXX is covered and the unusual aspects of LXX morphology are given attention. It is not a full grammar for those who do not know the Greek language, so Old Testament scholars-to-be still have to learn to read the New Testament first. I recommend Mounce's Basics of Biblical Greek as a true starter. The remaining 207 pages are basically a graded reader. Several of the more famous OT stories are rendered here with extensive explanatory footnotes at the bottom of every page. The method is really excellent. The syntax section is in a reference format and is not intended to introduce Greek grammar to those who do not know it. If you can already read the New Testament and want some good insight into the quirks of the LXX, then this book is for you.

The initial reviewer of this book stated that this volume can be a great reference for those who know Koine Greek, and he is not incorrect. However, I must add that the user of this book also needs some knowledge of Classical Greek; without such knowledge, this book appears to be rather unhelpful. The grammar section is set up to help readers understand the Septuagint (LXX) by pointing out the instances in which LXX grammar is different from Classical Greek grammar (as the LXX is, in many passages, a blend of Classical & Koine Greek with some Semiticisms thrown in for good measure); again, the only way to understand these differences is to have knowledge of both Classical and Koine Greek. While the volume can still be of some limited benefit to those who only know Koine Greek, using it will most likely be more of an exercise in frustration than an aid to study. Get a copy of Herbert Weir Smyth's "Greek Grammar" if you want to become familiar with Classical Greek, and then return to the present volume. Oh, and don't try Henry Thackeray's "A Grammar of the Old Testament in Greek According to the Septuagint" simply as an alternative to the Conybeare & Stock book; Thackeray's grammar is a good one, too, but it also assumes the reader has some knowledge of Classical Greek.

ADDENDUM: For information on some helpful books and tools for study of the Septuagint, see my review of Rahlfs's "Septuaginta".

I enjoy studying the Septuagint very much, and if you do as well, it would behoove you to acquire this book for reference purposes.

As a text book, it is barely usable, however. The book was first published in 1905 and its text has hardly been touched since. It is amazing to think of all the hard work that went in to compiling the vast amount of information present in the grammar, especially without the aid of a computer.

The downside to this book is that it is a great example of a 19th century grammar (the century within which I presume most of it was researched and written). This is a bad thing because I think students will have a difficult time with it (I know I have), keeping up their interest and actually understanding the material. Given the paucity of teaching resources on the LXX, this is a tragedy. But, in spite of a dire need for major updating, this book is very handy as a reference tool and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in it as such.

Most Theological students learn New Testament (Koine) Greek. Those who major in Old Testament studies learn Hebrew. This book is for those of us who want to go further. The translation of the OT known as the Septuagint uses a Greek somewhat different to that of the New Testament. This book is a manual of this older form of Greek. Like most Grammers it goes through nouns, verbs, syntax, and so on. About half the book is made up of selections from the OT with grammatical notes, and a vocabulary is included. This book presumes some knowledge of the OT and of Greek, so it is not for the beginner. Although a reprint of an older book, this is still a useful reference for scholars.

This grammar is a great resource for anyone who is reading the LXX for the first time. It explains the unusual elements in LXX Greek concisely and insightfully. The introduction is a great way for new readers to become familiar with the Aristaeus tradition and the readings at the end of the grammar represent a solid selection that will help those intimidated by the size and variety of the LXX.

There are really only two downsides to this volume. First, it is rather dated. Few grammars are consistantly used beyond 100 years and this one has passed that benchmark. However, since no grammar has recently been written that matches Conybeare's clarity and concision, this volume's age is only a minor setback. It would be nice to see a newer grammar though, especially since LXX research has grown considerably these last few decades.

The other small downside is that this grammar was really written primarily for readers who are familiar with Classical Greek. Many of the sections will resonate only with those who know something of Classical syntax and grammar. However, New Testament students will still find a great deal of helpful information here (particularly the readings).

Overall, a great work and well worth the cost to any Greek student.

This grammar was published in a day when the authors could still assume that everyone who turned to the Septuagint had an extremely good knowledge of Classical Greek. Thus, their grammar constitutes a listing of deviations from Classical Greek with no explanation of what the presumed Classical form is.

I had the good fortune to use this grammar in a graduate class taught by a professor who is one of the world's leading Biblical Greek scholars. His copy is well marked and he gave us many corrections to Conybeare and Stock's text, as well as explaining the assumed Classical forms, when we did not already know these from NT Greek (of which we all had a good knowledge).

I hope the day is not far off when a knowledgeable scholar will publish a completely new grammar of Septuagint Greek. There are certainly several who would be capable of this. Desirable characteristics would be:

1. Do not assume knowledge of Classical Greek, only NT.
2. Translate LXX examples cited (Conybeare and Stock do not).
3. Provide more thorough explanations of Hebrew structures underlying LXX structures.