Five Periods
I. Prior to 400 B.C.

I. Prior to 400 B.C.

 *Prior to 400 B.C., No extant Hebrew manuscripts
I. Prior to 400 B.C.

 *Prior to 400 B.C., No extant Hebrew manuscripts
 Excurses: Did the written Word of God exist before this
time? Answer: YES!!!!!!!!!!!
*Job, Deuteronomy, etc. Just because manuscripts do not
exist from before that time, does not mean they never did,
simply that they have not survived in original form.
However, the words have. Psalm 12:6-7 The words of the
LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth,
purified seven times. 7 Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou
shalt preserve them from this generation for ever. (1020 B.C.
appr.)
I. Prior to 400 B.C.

 *Prior to 400 B.C., No extant Hebrew manuscripts
1. Textual Features
A. Change from early script to square script.
Example: In the beginning, God created the heaven
and the earth.—archaic
In the beginning, God created the heaven and the
earth—square.
I. Prior to 400 B.C.

 *Prior to 400 B.C., No extant Hebrew manuscripts
1. Textual Features
A. Change from early script to square script.
Example: In the beginning, God created the heaven
and the earth.—archaic
In the beginning, God created the heaven and the
earth—square.
B. Form of text—individual scrolls not codex
I. Prior to 400 B.C.

 *Prior to 400 B.C., No extant Hebrew manuscripts
1. Textual Features
A. Change from early script to square script.
Example: In the beginning, God created the heaven and
the earth.—archaic
In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth—
square.
B. Form of text—individual scrolls not codex
C. Style of writing/text—predominantly consonantal
I. Prior to 400 B.C.

 *Prior to 400 B.C., No extant Hebrew manuscripts
1. Textual Features
A. Change from early script to square script.
Example: In the beginning, God created the heaven and
the earth.—archaic
In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth—
square.
B. Form of text—individual scrolls not codex
C. Style of writing/text—predominantly consonantal
D. Development of Hebrew Language/grammar
II. 400 B.C. to AD 135

 First manuscript evidence for Hebrew text
II. 400 B.C. to AD 135

 First manuscript evidence for Hebrew text
*1947 discover of Old Sea Scrolls changed viewpoint.
II. 400 B.C. to AD 135

 First manuscript evidence for Hebrew text
*1947 discover of Old Sea Scrolls changed viewpoint.
Question? Did the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls
support the Masoretic text tradition or undermine its
accuracy and authority?
II. 400 B.C. to AD 135

 First manuscript evidence for Hebrew text
*1947 discover of Old Sea Scrolls changed viewpoint.
Question? Did the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls
support the Masoretic text tradition or undermine its
accuracy and authority?
Answer? At first, it seemed to only agree 30% with MT,
LXX, and Samaritan Pentateuch.
Excurses: the scholarship did not report the truth about
what was discovered.
II. 400 B.C. to AD 135

 First manuscript evidence for Hebrew text
*1947 discovery of Old Sea Scrolls changed viewpoint.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Value of Dead Sea Scrolls
The majority of Qumran MSS agree with the Masoretic
Text tradition.
Evidence of scribal activity.
Evidence of the Old Testament Canon (all but Esther
found)
Evidence of majority of Masoretic text tradition. --closely
parallel
Small % of LXX found
II. 400 B.C. to AD 135

Masada
II. 400 B.C. to AD 135

Masada
Hebrew manuscripts found at Masada (occupied by
zealots and their families A.D. 66-73) Rome came to
crush rebellion.
In 1963-1965-fragments of Genesis, Leviticus,
Deuteronomy, Ezekiel, Psalms, plus a few apocryphal
texts in Hebrew, Ecclesiasticus and fragment of book of
Jubilees.
*Agreed with Masoretic Text type
II. 400 B.C. to AD 135

Wai Murabba
Hebrew manuscripts were discovered in 1952 from the
time of the rebellion of Barkichba @ 135 A.D.
Fragments of Pentateuch, Isaiah, Minor Prophets Scroll.
*Agree with Masoretic Text type.
II. 400 B.C. to AD 135

Other sites
Nahal Hever and Nahal Seelim
(during this time of transition, consonantal text remains
unaltered.
III. AD 135-1000

Talmudic/Masoretic Period
III. AD 135-1000

Talmudic/Masoretic Period
Question: Did the soferim (counters) and Masoretes
alter the consonantal text they received from previous
generations?
III. AD 135-1000

Talmudic/Masoretic Period
Question: Did the soferim (counters) and Masoretes alter the consonantal text they
received from previous generations?
A.
Talmudic Period (soferim or Jewish Rabbis) 135-500
1. Preservation devices were passed on orally (oral
masorah. Qere—read. Rabbi Akiba with the saying
“The “masorah” is the fence around the law.” (Buhl,
Canon and text of the Old testament, 96-97, 197)
2. Reading of the words of Scripture in certain places differed from
the written text.
3. Significant features of the soferim’s transmission of the text
*Rules and mnemonic devices developed to ensure accurate transmission.
III. AD 135-1000

Talmudic/Masoretic Period
Question: Did the soferim (counters) and Masoretes alter the consonantal text they received from previous generations?
A.
Talmudic Period (soferim or Jewish Rabbis) 135-500
1. Preservation devices were passed on orally (oral
masorah. Qere—read. Rabbi Akiba with the saying
“The
“masorah” is the fence around the law.” (Buhl,
Canon and text of the Old
testament, 96-97, 197)
2. Reading of the words of Scripture in certain places differed from
the written text.
3. Significant features of the soferim’s transmission of the text
*Rules and mnemonic devices developed to ensure accurate transmission.
*Divisions of text
a.
Divisions into verses (not numbering) “Wurthwein, The Text of the Old Testament, 21”
b.
Division of the Old Testament into chapters, not of Jewish origin, but Christian @1330 time of
rabbi Solomon ben Ishmael.
c.
Division of text into paragraphs.
d.
Division of the text into liturgical divisiions
*other textual indicators and annotations
III. AD 135-1000

Talmudic/Masoretic Period
Question: Did the soferim (counters) and Masoretes
alter the consonantal text they received from previous
generations?
B. Masoretic Period (500-1000)
III. AD 135-1000

Talmudic/Masoretic Period
Question: Did the soferim (counters) and Masoretes alter the consonantal text they
received from previous generations?
B.
Masoretic Period (500-1000)
1. Three competing masoretic schools. (Tiberian
elevated, East Babylon
(remnant from exile), West
South Palestine and Tiberian (Jerusalem)
2. Thre elements of Masoretic textual activity.
Created the system of writing in the margins to ensure accurat understanding and
correct transmission.
*The Consonantal text remained unaltered.
IV. 1000-1524-1525

 Printed Hebrew Bibles
IV. 1000-1524-1525

 Printed Hebrew Bibles
 A. Early printed Bibles before 2nd Rabbinic Bible
1. First—1477 edition of Psalms (only through
Psalm 5)
2. Bologna Pentateuch (solved problem of
vowel points and accents and paved the way)
3. First complete printed Bible with vowel
points and accents. Soncino Bible—1488
4. First complete printed Bible in Spain.
Complutensian Polyglot (6 columns) 1514-1417
(Masoretic Text, Vulgate, Aramaic Targum,
and (LXX with Latin translation)
IV. 1000-1524-1525

 Printed Hebrew Bibles
 B. Rabbinic Bibles
 First Rabbinic Bible-1516-1517 Samuel and Kings divided
like the Vulgate for first time. Much like the Soncino Bible.
 Second Rabbinic Bible—1524-25
Became the “Received Edition” Was Ben Asher Text type.
*By 16th century A.D. Printed editions replaced manuscripts in
Europe. The Refomers based their work on the Bomber or
“Received Edition
IV. 1000-1524-1525

 Printed Hebrew Bibles
 C. Early Hebrew editions (pre-1900’s)
 1. 1720 edition of J.H. Michaelis
 2. 1776-1780 Benjamin Kennicott, (oxford scholar) and
1794-1788 G.B. de Rossi (catholic scholar)
 3. Letteris Bible of Meyer Levi Letteris—based on 2nd
Rabbinic Bible. 1866 edition reprinted and still used.
IV. 1000-1524-1525

 Printed Hebrew Bibles
 D. 20th Century Hebrew Bibles
 1. 1894 & 1911-1926—Ginsburg (British Bible Society)
followed 2nd Rabbinic Bible.
2. Kittel editions
* 1905 and 1912 BH
* 1936/37 BHK (Kahle)—based on Leningrad
codex, (claimed to be accurate and true Ben Asher codex)
<The Bibles are not be changed, just printed instead of copied>
* 1967-1978 (BHS)—single critical apparatus
3. Norman Snaith—1958—British and foreign society—
forgery
IV. 1000-1524-1525

 Printed Hebrew Bibles
 E. Present Day Hebrew Text Projects
 1. Biblia Quinta (BHQ) Leningrad Codex
 2. Hebrew University Bible—Aleppo Codex
*Consonantal Text remains unaltered. –There is a call for
an ecclectic text, but none have yet emerged. However,
most English translations are ecclectic, in that they
consult variations to be open-minded.