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The Septuagint with Apocrypha: Greek and English

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This is a great Greek resource for scholars and laypeople alike! Basically this is the whole Septuagint (the Greek Old Testament), in both Greek and English. There are also helpful textual and translational footnotes included when Brenton felt they were necessary. Also represented are the often ignored Apocryphal books, including 1st-4th Maccabees. The book of 2nd Esdras is not included because at the time this was published (and now as well I believe) there was no Greek copy available.

The only drawback would be that this edition was originally published in 1851. Since then new and better manuscripts have been discovered, and we have better knowledge of certain Greek words now as well. But for the price, and all things considered, anyone wishing to own the Old Testament text most of the early Christians used- in both Greek and English- should definitely check this out.

Javan was the forefather of the Greeks, just as Shem is the ancestor of the Semitic peoples, among these the Jews. This work, begun in 275 B.C. by a group of seventy rabbis, represents the union of two cultures that forever changed history. The Work of the Seventy, or THE SEPTUAGINT, is a watershed in Jewish history and critical in the formation of the Christian Church.

The Septuagint allowed those with little or no knowledge of the Hebrew language or Judaic culture to read the prophecies and history that form the foundation of the Christian message, allowing its spread throughout the empire. In addition, much study has shown that the authors of the New Testament either allude to or quote directly from the Septuagint -a survey look at St. Paul's epistles will confirm this. Furthermore, Christian apologists since the Apostolic Fathers have used the Septuagint in defense of the Christian faith, such as Isaiah 7:14 on the Virgin Birth, where the Hebrew word "almah" -which means "maiden" or "virgin"- is translated into greek as "parthenon" which means "virgin" almost exclusively. (In fact, the Old Testament uses both "maiden" and "virgin" interchangeably, not always referring to a woman who has not had relations; this is a subject of continuing debate). As such, the Septuagint has played a critical part in the history and development of the Church and its theology (it is the Bible used by the Orthodox Church to this day).

This edition of the Septuagint is among the best currently available, providing the Greek text alongside the 1851 English translation. This is NOT an interlinear; there is no English under the Greek sentences. The binding is beautiful and strong, capable of withstanding one's constant use (hopefully you'll use it avidly!). This LXX unfortunately sets the Apocrypha apart from the main body of the Scriptures, but this compromise is not a significant problem, as their inclusion allows for personal study among Christians throughout the theological and denominational spectrum.

In regards to the debate over the so-called "exclusion" of the tetragrammaton, this is a blatant demonstration of sectarian propaganda: "KYRIOS" and THEOS were used by the translators of the Septuagint according to the Jewish tradition on the Nomen Sacrum of Yahweh, referred to this day by Jews as Adonai or Elohim- His name is too holy for common use: not in an effort to confound the Father with the Son, but to show proper respect to God. The only confounding is done by anti-Trinitarians, in their efforts to claim a conspiracy of sorts that elevated Christ to Deity. The presence or absence of the Divine Name does not affect the meaning of the texts in the Septuagint as much as sectarian intrigue does; such complaints therefore have no credibility.

All in all, this is a highly recommended book, and a must-have for any Bible reference set. ENJOY!

This is the Septuagint with its Aprocrypha(by the way,it differs slightly from the Latin vulgate apocrypha in that it has 3 and 4 Maccabees which the vulgate doesn't have and that it doesn't have 2 Esdras(which is called 4 Esdras in the Latin Vulgate)).On each page it contains the original Greek text on one side with the English translation on the other. This is a hard book to find.

I originally got this volume as a way to practice my Greek a little bit more. What I found, obviously, was that LXX Greek is very different than GNT Greek. But the other find that I came to was that it was a marvelous translation of the Greek text. I was interested in just how much the Greek LXX different from the Hebrew scriptures. I like the volume a lot for it's translation and for the original text which parallels the English. I use it frequently in a library with the GNT and the Hebrew Scriptures as a handy 3 volume set for desk reference. I would say that you have to be a fairly serious scholar to warrant something like this but if you are then it is well worth the money and looks to be made to last. Definitely a must have for pastors and theologians!

Sir Lancelot Brenton's The Septuagint is a translation of a translation: a rendering into English of the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament plus Apocrypha. The Septuagint (LXX) is the now common name given to a translation which was apparently made in third century BC for Jews living in Alexandria, Egypt, who could read Greek but not Hebrew. Some historians think that Ptolemy II, the Hellenistic ruler in Egypt, needed a copy of the Jewish Bible for his great library, but wanted it in Greek so he could read it.

As Chrsitianity spread, the early Christians found the LXX especially helpful in trying to explain how Christ and the Gospel was part of God's long-range plan for creation. Over 300 of the Old Testament citations in the New Testament are said to be taken from the LXX translation. Brenton's English translation of the LXX was first published in 1851.

Brenton is a descendant of an English family which came to America in the 18th century, but remained loyal to the King at the time of the American Revolution. Brenton the translator is said to have earned a degree at Oxford, but became a "non-conformist" minister with the Brethren, and died without any progeny.

His translation of the LXX plus Apocrypha remains a classic. It is almost certain that he used the King James Version as a crutch or guide in developing his translation. A modern English translation of the LXX has been made by Paul Esposito and is titled The Apostles' Bible. It, however, does not include the Apocrypha.

Breton's translation of the LXX is in its eleventh printing by Hendrickson Publishers. The Greek and English lie side-by-side, but the Greek text is printed in clearer and larger type than the English. For those of us who stumble through the Greek, having the English nearby is helpful.

Sir Lancelot Brenton's edition of the LXX is based upon a single source, codex Vaticanus, with some variants from codex Alexandrinus mentioned in the footnotes, but not affecting, I believe, the translation, except in a few cases where the Vaticanus manuscript was mutilated and Alexandrinus provided the next best text (and these cases are enumerated in an appendix).

Likewise, Rahlfs' edition (Septuaginta, ISBN: 3438051214) is also based upon Codex Vaticanus, but textual variants found in codex Alexandrinus and codex Sinaiticus are adopted in preference to those in codex Vaticanus based upon Rahlfs' critical opinion. He is using standard text critical methodology to judge which are more likely representative of the "Old Greek" version used by the majority of Jews...

I have been learning Koine Greek for about two years and this is one of the most valuable editions to my study. I haven't read the whole thing yet (has anybody?) but have already gained valuable insight into the Greek language and the (possible) use of the LXX in the New Testament. I believe pretty strongly that they best way to learn Greek is to read read read Greek. Read as much as possible. This book provides not only thousand upon thousand of stories in Greek, but stories from the actual inspired Bible at that. It shows grammar and syntax that is slightly different then the NT, and that you only read about in books. It also is a great way to do word studies (as many commentators do), giving many examples of how words that are sparse in the NT where used in the Koine Greek language.

As a physical book, it is also of nice quality. Its think (and good looking) binding will stand the test of time, but it does make it hard to open as freely as you might want. The pages are of good quality (while not perfectly smooth). The printing is a little small and you will find various printing errors were words were blurred out. All and all it is good quality. The translation on the side is from 1851 and is slightly archaic. This is hardly consequential though since the purpose is to read the Greek, not the English. I am happy to say that this is not an interlinear, which would defeat the purpose of learning Greek in the first place and just provide you with yet another translation.

Just as a note, I intend on learning Hebrew soon, and hope to first check my Hebrew understanding of passages with the Greek and then the English. Hopefully, in this way I will strengthen my Greek understanding while learning Hebrew. Of course, I also could just be confusing my understanding two degrees instead of one, but hey . . . let's have a little fun.

An incredible resource for all Bible students (schooled or self-curious). The Deuterocanonical books, in addition to those inspired books, truly gives a greater knowledge of the creation of the canonical Bible...and is just plain interesting to read. I've found my understanding and study of Biblical Greek increased by this book. An excellent tool.

The Hebrew scriptures translated into the Greek language was an important milestone in history. Today we benefit by studying the septuagint, which helps us to understand jewish thought better, and this edition is a fine tool in this regard. Often when issues of translation come up, the septuagint can be used to help us appreciate what the Jewish framework was like in Jesus' day. The septuagint helps us to know how to translate certain verses in the Christian Greek scriptures, such as proskyneo. Is it "worship", "to bow", "obeisance" or what? The septuagint helps us appreciate that it can mean all of these and more, depending on the context.

Incidently, translation issues often come up with the discussion of the trinity. If you would like to see a detailed discussion of the evidence both for and against Jesus being God, (and how the septuagint can help resolve some of the issues) see the book "Jesus-God or the Son of God?", available here at Amazon.com.

Having studied Brenton's LXX for the past year, I found it most enlightening. Comparing references in the English New Testament with the Old Testament text, I discovered 45 instances where the NT references correspond perfectly with the LXX, but have little resemblance to the Hebrew text used in our western bibles. The only problems are (1) The small print, and (2) the Apocrypha was removed from the main text, and inserted after Malachi (in accordance with Martin Luther's practice). Hopefully, a new English translation of the LXX will be forthcoming.