Final Flashcards
Show how the OT was preserved up until post-exilic times or the time of the “Return from exile”
From the time of Manasseh to Josiah, the law was lost because the priests were lazy and reckless. The captivity ensued due to their lack of faithfulness, but Ezekiel and Daniel took copies of the law with them to Babylon. When the Israelites returned from captivity, Ezra read the law to them. From the time of Ezra on, the Old Testament text was so firmly established that even the Jews’ rejection of Christ could not disturb it.
Was the preservation of the Masorites haphazard or detailed? Explain using proof.
Detailed! These scribes’ method of transmission was incredible, from counting the number of letters in a passage from the beginning and the end to the center, ensuring incredible accuracy. They did this with the number of words as well. There is more
that could be mentioned, such as the fact that when the priests would write “YHWH,” they would throw their pen away. They treated the text with sacredness and respect.
What did the Rabbis do with old or worn manuscripts and why did they do it?
They were reverently interred; they were given an honorable burial, so that there could be no risk of improper use or readings.
Was the LXX’s Greek translation good or bad? Explain.
BAD. The origins of this document are debated to this day. The typical story of it’s creation is a legend. Apart from this, the style of this text varies from good Koine
Greek, to indifferent Greek, to sometimes unintelligible translation. It disregards
consistency in religious technical terms, shows impatience with repetitive technical descriptions in Exodus by mistakes, abbreviations, and omissions, and provides mostly medium-quality translations. However, the book of Isaiah is a horrible translation, while Esther, Job, and Proverbs are free paraphrases.
Do we know if the LXX we have has ever been revised?
Absolutely; these revisions include Aquila’s, Symmachus’, Theodotion’s, Origen, Lucian, and Hesychius of Alexandria
Did Jesus and the Apostles quote the LXX? Explain.
No. The only reason why anyone would suggest that is because Jesus seemingly uses a phrase in Luke 4:18-19 that the Septuagint uses but the Masoretic text does not use. It appears that he is quoting Isaiah 61, but in reality, he’s quoting a mixture of
several passages or themes from Isaiah. He wasn’t quoting word for word from any text, leaving the argument that He quoted from the Septuagint powerless.
What did Jesus and the Apostles endorse as the preserved text? Explain.
Jesus said that the Scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat (Matt. 23:2-3), and Paul said that to the Jews the oracles of God were committed (Rom. 3:1-2). Christ also said in Luke 24:44, that the things concerning Himself in the Law, Prophets, and Psalms
must be fulfilled. This was His scope of the Old Testament, which is troubling for the Septuagint since it is always accompanied by the Apocrypha. Furthermore, Jesus\ said in Matt. 5:18, that not one jot or tittle would pass from the law, till all is fulfilled,
clearly showing His endorsement of Hebrew text!
Is the Textus Receptus a 10th century invention? How do you know?
Of course not. There are over 3,000 citations of the Early Church Fathers that agree with the Textus Receptus, as well as many early works that agree. These include the Peshitta, Titain’s Diatessaron, the Italia (Old Latin), the Waldenses Bibles, the first century Magdalen Papyrus, and the three uncial fragments.
What three criterion must you look at to evaluate a translation?
Text stream, translation philosophy, interpretation
What is the best text stream of the bible and how do we know that it has the earliest witness?
Textus Receptus, it is quoted by the early church fathers and several key ancient versions, including the Peshitta, Titain’s Diatessaron, the Italia (Old Latin), the
Waldenses Bibles, the first-century Magdalen Papyrus, and the three uncial fragments.
Codex Vaticanus and Codex Sinaiticus are the oldest and best witness for the new testament? Confirm or refute.
This statement is completely inaccurate. Codex Sinaiticus has nine levels of correction, and its first leaves were found in the trash basket! Codex Vaticanus was rejected by Erasmus, because it has 7,578 differences from the Received Text, and it’s
missing numerous books! Even worse, they both profoundly disagree with each other, with over 3,000 errors in the Gospels alone. Even liberal scholars like Kirsopp Lake agree, asserting that these codexes have descended from one corrupt lost codex. Older is in fact worse, since the greatest age of text corruption was in the first
and second centuries.
In modern translation, what does the notion “forgetting old battles” mean in regards to issues today?
The attack on the Word of God is not a new attack. It’s literally been happening since the Devil’s temptation in the Garden of Eden. If we forget that this attack is real, and we begin to use unapostolic approaches for biblical textual studies, we will lose the ground we have in the surety of the Word of God, causing our doctrines, theology, and faith to crumble. Small changes in the Word of God which come about by liberal textual studies will cause us to open, even if unintentionally, the door to fight previous false doctrines we have fought so hard to stay away from.
Explain where in the verses below there are examples that current translations are giving up battle fields the reformers fought for.
Confess your faults one to another. James 5:16 KJV
Therefore confess your sins to each other. James 5:16 NIV
The NIV allows for the Catholic doctrine of confession of sins to a priest.
Explain where in the verses below there are examples that current translations are giving up battle fields the reformers fought for.
For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. 1 Corinthians 11:29 KJV
For he who eats and drinks eats and drinks judgment on himself if he does not discern the Body. 1 Corinthians 11:29 NEB
For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. 1 Corinthians 11:29 NIV
The NIV and NEB allow for the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation.
Explain where in the verses below there are examples that current translations are giving up battle fields the reformers fought for.
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment. Heb. 9:27 KJV
And in as much as it is appointed unto men once to die, and after this cometh judgment. Hebrews 9:27 RV
And after death comes judgment. Hebrews 9:27 NEB
And after that to face judgment. Hebrews 9:27 NIV
The RV, NEB, and NIV allow for the Catholic doctrine of purgatory by evading the
concept of a ‘final judgment.’
