Septuagint: Micah

By Scriptural Research Institute

The Book of Micah is generally considered one of the older surviving books of the Hebrew Scriptures, with most scholars dating it to before the Torah was compiled, or at least heavily redacted in the time of King Josiah. Most scholars accept that Micah was written by a prophet called Micah between 737 and 969 BC, who was most likely from the town of Moresheth in the Kingdom of Judea or the city-state of Gath, in the modern Palestinian West Bank. His world was very different from the later Kingdom of Judea that emerged in the 2nd-century BC, as the Israelites of his time were still polytheistic, worshiping the Canaanite Elohim, as well as statues of Iaw (Masoretic Yahweh), the God the Jews and Samaritans would later worship.

The Book of Micah is believed to have been translated into Greek around 180 BC with other Twelve Prophets, however, there is a significant difference between the Septuagint's and Masoretic version of the Book of Micah. The Masoretic Version is the Book of Micah which copied by a group of Jewish scribes called the Masorites between 400 and 1000 AD. The major difference between the Books of Micah is the god that Amos was the prophet of. The Masoretic version refers to his god as Iaw (Yahweh) Sabaoth, however, the Septuagint's version of Micah does not mention Iaw Sabaoth, instead, referring to God as Lord God (κύριος ὁ θεὸς), or the Lord Almighty (κύριος ὁ παντοκράτωρ) which in the Septuagint's Book of Job was a translation of Shaddai.

In the Septuagint, Micah's god was repeatedly named as 'Lord God' (κύριος ὁ θεὸς), which translated back into Hebrew would be 'Ba'al El,' and once Lord Almighty (κύριος ὁ παντοκράτωρ), which translated back into Hebrew would be 'Ba'al Shaddai.' The term pantocratôr (παντοκράτωρ) was the translation used in other books of the Septuagint for Shaddai (שדי). For example, the Book of Job, which was translated into Greek between 190 and 180 BC, the names Shaddi shows up 33 times in the Masoretic Texts and is translated as Almighty (παντοκράτωρ) in the Septuagint.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Scriptural Research Institute
• Release date: Jul 25, 2020
• ISBN: 9781989852446

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Copyright

WHILE EVERY PRECAUTION has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.

SEPTUAGINT: MICAH

Digital edition. September 12, 2020.

Copyright © 2002 Scriptural Research Institute.

ISBN: 978-1-989852-44-6

The Septuagint was translated into Greek at the Library of Alexandria between 250 and 132 BC.

This English translation was created by the Scriptural Research Institute in 2020, primarily from the Codex Vaticanus, although the Codex Alexandrinus was also used for reference. Additionally, the Leningrad Codex of the Masoretic Texts, and the Dead Sea Scrolls 8HevXIIgr and MurXII were used for comparative analysis.

The image used for the cover is ‘The Prophet Micah’ by Jan van Eyck, painted in 1432.

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IN THE MID-3RD CENTURY BC, King Ptolemy II Philadelphus of Egypt ordered a translation of the ancient Hebrew scriptures for the Library of Alexandria, which resulted in the creation of the Septuagint. The original version, published circa 250 BC, only included the Torah, or in Greek terms, the Pentateuch. The Torah is the five books traditionally credited to Moses, circa 1500 BC: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. According to Jewish tradition, the original Torah was lost when the Babylonians destroyed the Temple of Solomon and was later rewritten by Ezra the Scribe from memory during the Second Temple period. The life of Ezra the Scribe is estimated to have been between 480 and 440 BC, which is around the time that scholars generally believe the current form of the Torah was written.

The second edition, which added the books of Joshua, Judges, and Ruth, later dubbed the Octateuch, was published circa 225 BC, and carried south into Kush by the ancestors of the Beta Israeli community as they escaped Egypt in the aftermath of the Rebellion in Judea, circa 200 BC, and ultimately became the Orit, central holy book of the Beta Israeli community. The books of Job and the Twelve prophets were added between 200 and 175 BC, and by 132 BC most of the Septuagint had been translated. Some scholars debate whether the entire Prophets Section was in the version published in 132 BC, and suggest it may have not been added until the early 1st-century BC, however, the Twelve ‘minor’ prophets, as Christians call them, appear to have been