  | Book Details Title: The Lexham English Septuagint: A New Translation |
Book DescriptionReview Familiarity with the Septuagint is vital for any interaction with both the New Testament authors and the Ancient Church, for by and large this was their Old Testament. There is then a need to have a good translation of the Septuagint, and this one, the second edition of the Lexham English Septuagint, fits the bill to a T. It is by far the best on the market in terms of both its reliable textual basis and its faithful,consistent, readable translation. I am thrilled to see this new edition out and honored to endorse it. ―Michael A.G. Haykin, FRHistS, Chair and professor of Church History The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, KentuckyIn the field of Septuagint studies that has been blossoming over the past decade or so, Lexham makes a very important contribution: an up-to-date and methodologically-sound English translation of the Greek Old Testament (and Apocrypha). The LES makes significant steps forward in translation philosophy, accuracy, and readability. Its layout is visually attractive, and it helpfully provides variant readings from the major critical editions of the Greek text without becoming cumbersome. It will prove tremendously valuable to those studying both Old and New Testaments (and the relationship between them), particularly by providing a clearer window on the specific wording of the Septuagint. (―Gregory R. Lanier, Associate Professor of New Testament, RTS-Orlando, Co-editor, Septuaginta: A Reader’s Edition (2 vols; Hendrickson, 2018))St. Jerome did not reject or disdain the Hebrew text of the Old Testament, and we should not either. Nonetheless, for students of Christian tradition who want to know what the Fathers read when they read their Old Testament, access to the Septuagint is essential. Orthodox Christians, for whom the Fathers occupy a special and authoritative role in their approach to the Scriptures, must be especially interested in the Septuagint. Fortunately for us all, Lexham Press has published a scholarly and readable English version of the Greek Septuagint. This is an indispensable tool for a broader and historical interpretation of the Old Testament Scriptures. ―Archpriest Lawrence Farley, Pastor, St. Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church (OCA), Langley B.C., CanadaThis is a very welcome addition to the translations of the Septuagint. It is sure to be an indispensable resource for scholars and general readers alike. (―Fr. John Behr, Dean of St Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary and Professor of Patristics and Metropolitan Kallistos Chair in Orthodox Theology at Vrije Universiteit) Read more Customers Review: I first heard about the Lexham Bible in a class at my church where we were discussing translations and were given a chart of the most common English versions. At the far end of the “most literal” spectrum was the Lexham Bible which was not yet in print form. That same day I pre-ordered my copy of the Septuagint and over time I forgot about it. So when I finally received the package today, it was a great surprise!Ignoring the age-old adage, I did initially judge this book by it’s cover – the gilt designs and lettering, which includes the spine, had a place in my heart immediately. It’s obvious a lot of time and love went into this translation.Opening it up, I read through the introduction which gives an excellent and captivating history about this book as well as some of the translation difficulties that had to be worked through. This introduction only peaked my curiosity more.I began reading with Genesis and… wow. Some of the verses are phrased in a way which makes so much more sense to me than any English translation I’ve read. Even though it may seem a little oddly worded at times, you really get the feeling you are reading the verses in the truest sense of the original Hebrew. For example, the description of the Spirit “rushing” over the deep gives me such a different picture than my normal thought of the Spirit just suspended in space for no apparent reason. It gets my imagination going as I try to picture what that would have looked like and what the Spirit “rushing” has to do with His nature. I was taken off-guard when Adam named who we expect to be Eve, “Zoe”. It does revert back to Eve in the following verses. The introduction explains the difficulty in translating names – whether to go with the Greek translation or the closest English equivalent to the original Hebrew. Overall, I think this will be a valuable study tool and a resource for devotional times.Cons: Though I really like this book, I do have some minor concerns. One is the lack of a space between “cherubim” and “and” early on in Genesis. Though it isn’t a huge deal, a spell-checker should pick up on that and it makes me wonder what else may have been mistyped and never corrected… Also, despite all the scholarly research done to make this translation possible, part of me still wonders if the ancient Greek translation didn’t tweak the original Hebrew more than it should have sometimes, making this English translation also partially inaccurate. For example, when Adam names the animals it reads: “whatever Adam named it as a living soul, this was its name”. Whereas a translation such as the MEV uses the phrase “every living creature” in this verse. I don’t personally think the Scriptures support the belief that animals have souls, so the wording of the LEB seems potentially misleading. Then again, I don’t know Greek or Hebrew so perhaps that translation actually is closest to the original meaning? Just one other thing that made me pause and wonder…In summary, the Lexham translation is captivating and thought provoking. I look forward to a complete Bible translation in print form sometime in the future. If you enjoy studying the Scriptures this is a valuable resource to add to your collection.
| |
34 reviews