FW: [b-greek] Hebrew =/=Aramaic

Ken Penner pennerkm at mcmaster.ca
Wed May 21 22:10:16 EDT 2003



-----Original Message-----
From: Randall Buth [mailto:ButhFam at compuserve.com] 
Sent: May 21, 2003 6:15 PM
To: Ken Penner
Cc: 'Biblical Greek'; 'Randall Buth'
Subject: RE: [b-greek] Hebrew =/=Aramaic


shalom Ken,

>
>Hi Randy and other B-Greekers,
>
>I'm tying up a few loose ends for a talk on the Greek word Hebrais:
Aramaic
>or Hebrew?
>
>Most of the evidence indicates Aramaic was consistently called
>Suristi/Suriakh in this period, and Hebrew was called Hebraisti/Hebrais. 

NAI, hen, ken

>But
>I'm not sure what to make of the LXX's epilogue to Job (42:17b): hOUTOS
>hERMHNEUETAI EK THS SURIAKHS BIBLOU "this was translated from the >Syriac
>book". What do commentators say about this? Was it translated from a
>Targum?
>Or is the translator calling Hebrew Syriac?

He is most likely calling Aramaic, Aramaic (i.e., syriake, in Greek).
The LXX quote fits other references like a glove. Apparently, the LXX
translator/ team knew and used an Aramaic translation in preparing the
Greek. An ancient Aramaic translation of Job makes good sense since Job is
in a unique dialect of Hebrew. Note that there are two copies of Aramaic
Job at Qumran, one from cave 1, one from cave 4. Also, the Gamaliel stories
about deciding to bury the translation of Job that were brought to the
grandfather and grandson, respectively. Thus, there are probably four
ancient references to an Aramaic version of Job, something unique for any
book of the Bible during the second temple period. A paper on this is
currently posted at
www.jerusalemperspective.com (paper is free)

You may forward to bgreek, I am currently unsubscribed.

blessings

Randall Buth
www.biblicalulpan.org

>Ken Penner, M.C.S. (Regent College), M.A. (McMaster)
>Ph.D. (cand.), Religious Studies, 
>Biblical Field (Early Judaism major)
>McMaster University
>Hamilton, Canada
>pennerkm at mcmaster.ca




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