The Orthodox Study Bible, Hardcover: Ancient Christianity Speaks to Today's World

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In his book The Orthodox Church [i], Metropolitan Kallistos of Diokleia very simply sets out the position of the Greek Old Testament, the Septuagint: ‘The Orthodox Church has the same New Testament as the rest of Christendom. As its authoritative text for the Old Testament it uses the ancient Greek translation known as the Septuagint. Where this differs from the Hebrew text (which happens quite often), Orthodox believe that the changes in the Septuagint were made under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and are to be accepted as part of God’s continuing revelation.’ Metropolitan Kallistos is perhaps taking rather too simplistic a view of the reason for the authority of the Septuagint, but he is absolutely right to insist on its primacy within the Orthodox Church. New English Translation of the Septuagint. It has been released at San Diego, November 19, 2007 by Oxford University Press. Provisional edition online. This project is being carried out under the aegis of The International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies (IOSCS). An international team of more than thirty scholars is working on the entire corpus of the Greek Jewish Scriptures. It is the first such English version in 160 years. Called the New English Translation of the Septuagint (NETS), the text reflects both the wealth of manuscript evidence that has been brought to light since the 19th century and, of course, current English idiom. (Note however, that this project is using the NRSV(1989) version as its English base of referral). But this Bible is not just for Orthodox Christians. Countless others will find the Orthodox Study Bible an invaluable roadmap for their spiritual journey. Those exploring Christianity for the first time and those Christians waiting to discover their own spiritual roots will see this Bible as a source of inspiration and challenge. Throughout the text are notes at the bottom which explain key points in the verses based upon the consensus of leading Orthodox Bible scholars. These are easy to understand, and, in reading them one can better understand the doctrines and practices of the Orthodox Church --- which I do recommend for anyone interested in learning more about the Orthodox faith.

C. P. Lincoln, " A Critique of the Revised Standard Version," Bibliotheca Sacra, Volume 110 (Jan. 1953) pp. 50-66, Sept. 1, 2006 < http://www.bible-researcher.com/rsv-bibsac.html>. Bruce M Metzger, “ The RSV-Ecumenical Edition,” Theology Today, Vol. 34, No. 3 (Oct. 1977), p. 316, Sept. 1, 2006 < http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/oct1977/v34-3-criticscorner4.htm> It is true that a Greek Orthodox representative was added to the translation committee, but the Jewish scholar was part of the translation when it was actually being done, and the Greek Orthodox representative was added after the real work of the translation was already completed. In the past few years, I've been trying to read through a different translation of the Bible each year. The Orthodox Study Bible is interesting in that it includes the Apocrypha (some neat stuff in there!), and the OT translation is taken from the Septuagint (Greek translation of the Hebrew OT). The NT is, rather disappointingly, the NKJV. I found myself scratching my head a few times, wondering at NKJV's translation of the Greek.The Orthodox Study Bible, Ancient Faith Edition, Leathersoft: Ancient Christianity Speaks to Today’s World Supple Leathersoft material that gives the appearance of a genuine leather look and feel and has the longevity needed for daily Bible engagement Some of the notes overstated the obvious. Others demonstrated an unfortunate but understandable mistrust of the theology of other branches of Christianity. Most of the time this was expressed in a diplomatic way; however, it came out more strongly in the commentary on the Epistle to the Romans. Be that as it may, many of the notes and study aids were helpful and interesting, particularly those which contained quotations of the Church Fathers or indications of how a certain passage is used in the context of worship. Clement of Alexandria. Chapter XXII.—On the Greek Translation of the Old Testament. In: THE STROMATA (MISCELLANIES), BOOK I. Next year I plan to do some “extra-curricular” reading: I’ll read some of the Apocrypha, and I’ve got a collection of gnostic texts that I’ll work my way through as well. I also plan to do a long reading of the Quran at some point.

How can one review a Bible? For me it was a way of getting some insight into the way the Eastern Orthodox Church handles exegesis and theology. And for the most part, the experience was positive. The KJV Septuagint - translated from the Septuagint edition published by the Orthodox Church of Greece's Apostoliki Diakonia, using the King James Version as a template. Scheduled to be published by St. Innocent Press in 2013, this will be the only English translation to date using an approved ecclesiastical text of the Septuagint. Prof. Dr. Carsten Peter Thiede. The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Jewish Origins of Christianity. Palgrave Macmillan, 2003. 256 pp. ISBN 9781403961433 ( See discussion of Septuagint)

Ancient Christianity speaks to todays world.

There are multiple internal variations between the LXX and the MT. The texts read differently in many places. Here follow several examples of differences in wording: It was the Septuagint, and not the Hebrew Bible, which explicitly shaped some early Christian theology. For example, the Septuagint version of Isaiah shaped Paul’s Letter to the Romans, the most theologically profound book in the history of Christianity. A few very important examples of this – there are many – are cited by Timothy Michael Law in his book, ‘When God spoke Greek’. In Romans 2 Paul condemns the Jews, calling them sinners and judging them for having but not obeying the law. In the final verse of this passage Paul quotes Isaiah 52:5 from the Septuagint. We find here a great variation from the Hebrew. The Hebrew says: ‘Their rulers howl, says the Lord, and continually, all day long, My name is despised’. The Septuagint says, ‘Because of you, My name is continually despised among the nations’. And Paul follows the Septuagint, saying: ‘For as it is written (i.e. in Isaiah 52) The name of God is continually despised among the gentiles because of you’.Law goes on to say: ‘The Septuagint had intensified the original condemnation into a pointed accusation against Israel: it was their fault they remained in exile. Paul’s use of this verse here in 2:24, placed before his exposition of his gospel, reveals how he intended to place himself in the prophetic tradition of Israel. After this verse in Isaiah, the prophet declares how the return from Israel may happen. Paul does as well, but for the apostle the people of Israel will remain in exile as long as they continue to reject the Christ.’ There are also copious footnotes in the Scriptures. Sadly, most of them are very basic footnotes that don't add a lot to the discussion. I do like the footnotes that tell when specific passages are read during the Church Year. That is definitely a valuable resource, as it helps you put what you're reading in the context of the Church seasons. Also throughout the Bible are various word studies explaining different Biblical terms, which explain Biblical terms and give you references to where you can find out the Biblical basis for those terms. The content of the OSB–including annotations, introductions, and articles–is written at a vocabulary level of a high school graduate to communicate “the treasures of the Orthodox biblical tradition with clergy and laypeople desirous of understanding their Christian beliefs and making them accessible to others” ( Introduction). The notes and commentary emphasize the major themes of the Christian faith, giving special attention to the following:

I have mixed feelings about this Bible, which deeply saddens me. I really wanted to like this Bible. But like others I have spoken to, they too are a bit disappointed with this Bible. The Orthodox Study Bible started out as the New Testament and Psalms, and with massive funding they started a project to publish the Old Testament with the New Testament. So it is nice to have the full Bible in one volume, especially when so many people publish just the New Testament for the price of a full Bible.An “Overview of the Books of the Bible” presents introductory material about the various sections and kinds of biblical literature. “Introducing the Orthodox Church” will be especially helpful to non-Orthodox readers of the OSB. “How to Read the Bible” presents an Orthodox understanding of reading and interpreting the Bible. The Old and New Testaments of the Holy Bible are part of God’s revelation to mankind. The Orthodox Church claims that the author of the Old Testament is truly God Himself, but it recognises that it is equally the work of men in different times and places. It also believes that God can and does reveal Himself, and that men and women come to know Him in His self-revelation only through a deep personal experience found within the Church. Accordance users have always enjoyed the freedom to pair any translation or original language text of the Bible with any set of study Bible notes, and this remains true with the OSB. However, since the Old Testament of the OSB follows the Septuagint (LXX) and not the Hebrew Bible, included with every copy of the OSB is the St. Athanasius Academy Septuagint, a new English version of the LXX created specifically to accompany the Old Testament annotations of the OSB. The SAAS began with the New King James Version as its base, but changes were made at any point where the LXX differed from the Hebrew text. Moreover, brand new translations were created for the additional books (often referred to as Apocrypha or Deuterocanon) not found in the NKJV. The translation of these additional Old Testament books use the NKJV style and vocabulary as a template to maintain a consistent look and feel throughout the OSB. Israel Adam Shamir. Translating the Bible into Hebrew. A Talk at Rhodes Conference, 8-12 October 2009.

Adam Nicolson, God’s Secretaries: The Making of the King James Bible, (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2003) p. 73. See also: History of the King James Version, Sept 4, 2006, < http://www.bible-researcher.com/kjvhist.html>. Dr. Natalio Fernández Marcos. The Septuagint in Context: Introduction to the Greek Versions of the Bible. Transl. 2nd revised and expanded Spanish edition, by W. G. E. Watson. Leiden: BRILL, 2000. 394 pp. ISBN 9789004115743 KYRIOS, LORD, is consistently used throughout the Septuagint proper (i.e. the Pentateuch) without the definite article as a proper noun for the Divine Name Yahweh. Following its use in the Pentateuch, it was used thus throughout the other books of the Greek Old Testament. There is still some debate about whether Kyrios was the original Septuagint rendering of the Divine Name. The two Church Fathers Origen and Blessed Jerome were adamant that it was not, and that the Tetragrammaton (i.e. the four consonants YHWH of the Divine Name) was used in some form or other. This appears to be proven by the fairly recent discovery among the Dead Sea Scrolls of fragmentary remains of the Septuagint, which clearly have the Tetragrammaton in the ancient Hebrew script. Photographs of these may be seen on the Internet. However, other Jewish writings from this period show that Greek-speaking Jews did in fact use Kyrios for Yahweh, and it seems likely that this was how the Septuagint rendered it. When sayings about Yahweh Kyrios could be transferred to Kyrios Jesus, it was because the Septuagint had originally rendered Yahweh by Kyrios. Thus, when the Apostles quote the Jewish Scripture in their own writings, the overwhelmingly dominant source for their wording comes directly from the Septuagint (LXX). Given that the spread of the Gospel was most successful among the Gentiles and Hellenistic Jews, it made sense that the LXX would be the Bible for the early Church. Following in the footsteps of those first generations of Christians, the Orthodox Church continues to regard the LXX as its only canonical text of the Old Testament. There are a number of differences between the canon of the LXX and that of Roman Catholic Church and Protestant Christians, based on differences in translation tradition or doctrine. What value does the Septuagint possess as a translation of the Hebrew Old Testament, and what can be learned from it? Any translation of the Bible is much more than a mirror copy: think of how English translations, made from the same Hebrew or Greek original, differ from each other. In many places in the Septuagint one is indeed reading word for word the same text found in the Hebrew. In other places, however, the Septuagint translation yields different theological emphases from those that are to be found in the Hebrew Bible. The translation has created new meanings.The earliest writer who gives an account of the Septuagint version is Aristobulus, a Jewish author who lived at the commencement of the second century B.C. In his Letter of Aristeas, he explains that the version of "the Law into Greek" was completed under the reign of Ptolemy Philadelphus, and that Demetrius Phalerus had been employed about it. Since it is documented that Demetrius Phalerus died at the beginning of the reign of Ptolemy Philadelphus, it has been reasonably inferred that Aristobulus was a witness that the work of translation had been commenced under Ptolemy Soter. God the Father spoke to His Word and Only-begotten Son, through whom He made the light (AthanG). Since the Son, too, is Lord, He is coequal with the Father, and is His Coworker in making heaven and earth.