The Quadripartite Psalter Manuscripts, Witnesses and New Findings (original) (raw)
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Supposedly Jewish Greek Psalter Versions of the Early Modern Period
Editing the Greek Psalter, 2024
The secondary literature frequently references purported Jewish Greek Psalter adaptations from the early modern period, often citing Codex Vaticanus gr. 343 (dated to 1450) as the earliest example and a printed edition from 1643 as another. However, the latter is commonly misdated to 1543. Both examples, along with others that could be included in a broader list of early modern Psalter versions, are, in fact, Christian revisions of the Greek text and cannot be considered Jewish translations or adaptations. This study examines these texts in detail, beginning with the Vatican Vernacular Psalter, Codex Vaticanus gr. 343 (§ 1). It then explores a seventeenth-century version partly attributed to Maximos Peloponnesios and Athanasios Patellaros (§ 2), and finally, discusses various seventeenth to eighteenth-century versions, including the supposed Jewish print from 1643, which is actually a version by Agapios Landos of Crete, as well as the versions by Georgios Palamedes and Ioannes Litinos (§ 3). Contrary to the assertions of Fernández Marcos and other scholars, none of these Psalter translations originated from Jewish sources; they are all Christian adaptations from the early modern period. From a linguistic perspective, the Vatican Vernacular Psalter and the versions attributed to Maximos Peloponnesios and Athanasios Patellaros provide captivating examples of early modern Greek vernacular, while from a poetic point of view, the version by Georgios Palamedes is particularly interesting.
This study describes several scribal features displayed in early witnesses of Greek Scripture with a view to discovering links with early Jewish scribal traditions, such as those known from the Hebrew scrolls from Qumran. Special attention is paid to the indication of verses and sections, paragraphoi, ekthesis, and the writing of the divine names. The parameters of this investigation are as follows: 1. The coverage of the Greek texts is intentionally vague ('Greek Scripture'), since the dividing line between the so-called Old Greek translation and other early translations and revisions is often unclear, as are the exact limits of what may be considered Scripture. 2. The great majority of the early papyri that could be located have been examined for the present paper, with the exclusion of very fragmentary texts. The table lists, in presumed chronological sequence, all the texts that in their publications, have been given dates up to the fourth century CE, including '4-5 CE'. Most texts examined have been dated to the third and fourth centuries CE. The large codices A, B, S and G are excluded from the analysis. 3. The distinction between Jewish and Christian copies is relevant insofar as the former are more likely to preserve ancient Jewish scribal practices. Although this distinction is often very difficult, all texts pre-dating the middle of the first century CE are Jewish. According to * This paper is dedicated with appreciation to Al Pietersma, who has contributed much to the understanding of the early papyri of Greek Scripture. Another authority in this field, R.A. Kraft, kindly agreed to read a draft of this paper and he is to be thanked for making several critical remarks and providing helpful information. After this paper went to press, another twenty-five papyri were examined (mainly 3-4 CE), but the basic picture presented here has not changed. Note that, throughout this paper, numbers appearing with the designations BCE and CE signify centuries.
The Septuagint Psalter - Translation, Correction, Enculturation
Adamantius , 2020
The aim of this paper is to describe various features of the Septuagint Psalter. First of all, it is a translation of a Hebrew source text. A thorough comparison of the consonantal text preserved in the Masoretic Text and the Septuagint shows that the word order and the syntax of these two versions of the Psalter diverge only slightly. However, the Septuagint Psalter is much more than a mere trans¬lation. At times, the translator does not shrink from correcting the Hebrew Psalter text, e.g. for theological reasons. Moreover, the Egyptian context leaves its traces in the Greek translation. In this paper, I present various examples illustrating not only elements of trans¬lation technique but also the theological and cultural background of the translator.
362.The Aid of the Septuagint in Establishing the Original Text of the Psalter
“The Aid of the Septuagint in Establishing the Original Text of the Psalter,” in Editing the Greek Psalter, ed. Felix Albrecht and Reinhard G. Kratz, DSI 18 (Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2024), 77–93, 2024
This study deals with the relations between the textual witnesses in the book of Psalms. While we cannot exhaust all the material, we will share some insights, based on samples and intuition. The book of Psalms is unique within the Hebrew Bible in that it is composed of 150 small compositions. The default assumption is that each of them was created by a di erent poet and was preceded by an earlier form that scholars o en name "the original text." It is very di cult to separate between the original status of the individual psalms, that of the small collections from which the Psalter was compiled, and the original status of the Psalter as a whole. In this study we deal with the text of the individual psalms and not the collection(s) of psalms or the canon, but sometimes the issues are related. Our major task is to study the relation between the major players in this area, the Masoretic Text (MT) and the Septuagint (LXX). I could add to these two sources the Peshitta, Targum, and Vulgate, but they do not add much to the discussion, since they usually agree with MT. 1 Furthermore, there exists relatively much evidence from Qumran, deviating from MT and the LXX in both small details and in the sequence and canonical structure of the Psalter, but I disregard that evidence for the moment. In my view, almost all the Qumran Psalters are no biblical Psalters but liturgical compositions.
Palaeoslovenisms in the second translation of the Psalter
Old Church Slavonic Heritage in Slavonic and Other Languages, 2021
The paper discusses Old Church Slavonic and Church Slavonic influences on the creation of the first and second translations of the Old Czech Psalter. The main subject of interest is the second translation, which is represented by two preserved text sources: the Clementinum Psalter and the Chapter Psalter. Closer attention is also paid to the Poděbrady Psalter, which is based in part on the second translation. Upon performing a detailed study of both sources, the authors have attempted to add several new examples to the hitherto known examples of palaeoslovenisms contained in the examined manuscripts. They pay special attention, in particular, to the possible relationship between the manuscripts and the Slavonic (Emmaus) Monastery.