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Septuagint Variation: Isaiah Journal 72

July 9, 2021 6:32 pm / Leave a comment

By Christina M Wilson. Simultaneously published at Septuagint Variation: Isaiah Devotional Journal 72 – justonesmallvoice.com.

Isaiah 32:9-20    Septuagint Modernized   NETS

Before leaving Chapter 32, there is one more Septuagint variation that sheds light on the chapter as a whole.

Recap

The prior Journal entry, Isaiah Devotional Journal 71, shows how Chapter 32 alternates between desolation for the then-existing nation of Israel and blessing for those in the future kingdom of the righteous King. These sections alternate in large chunks, rather than single verses:

  1. The blessings of Messiah: verses 1-4
  2. Contrast between the foolish wicked and the godly wise: verses 5-8
  3. Warning of the desolation to come: verses 9-14
  4. Messianic blessings: verses 15-20

Verse 19 in the Masoretic

Verse 19, in the ESV, protrudes like a thorn in the middle of a wedding bed. Then verse 20 returns to blessing.

ESV Isaiah 32:15 until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, … 16 Then justice … righteousness … fruitful field. 17 … righteousness … peace … righteousness, quietness and trust forever. 18 … peaceful habitation, … secure dwellings, … quiet resting places. 19 And it will hail when the forest falls down, and the city will be utterly laid low. 20 Happy are you who sow beside all waters, who let the feet of the ox and the donkey range free.

A Difficult Text

Deciphering what the biblical text reads for this verse must be difficult, since other translations in the Masoretic tradition vary widely.

  • For example, the Bible of the Jewish Publication Society (JPS) reads, “Isaiah 32:19 And it shall hail, in the downfall of the forest; but the city shall descend into the valley.“
  • NRS “The forest will disappear completely, and the city will be utterly laid low.“
  • KJV “When it shall hail, coming down on the forest; and the city shall be low in a low place.“
  • Amplified Bible “But it [the wrath of the Lord] shall hail, coming down overpoweringly on the forest [the army of the Assyrians], and the capital [2] city shall be utterly humbled and laid prostrate.”
  • NASB “And it will hail when the forest comes down, And the city will be utterly laid low.“

NIV and NET

The NIV, NET, and a few other dynamic translations (paraphrased) come closer to the text in the Septuagint. These translations combine verses 19 and 20. The outcome is a combination of blessing and trial.

  • NIV “19 Though hail flattens the forest and the city is leveled completely, 20 how blessed you will be, sowing your seed by every stream, and letting your cattle and donkeys range free.“
  • NET “19 Even if the forest is destroyed and the city is annihilated, 20 you will be blessed, you who plant seed by all the banks of the streams, you who let your ox and donkey graze.“

The blessing in the texts above is qualified. It appears to be due to a difference in geographic location. The forest and city suffer extreme damage. However, those living by the banks of the streams will be blessed, as they continue to farm and graze their animals.

The Septuagint Text Is Plain and Simple

15 until the Spirit shall come upon you from on high, and Carmel shall be desert, and Carmel shall be counted for a forest. 16 Then judgment shall abide in the wilderness, and righteousness shall dwell in Carmel. 17 And the works of righteousness shall be peace; and righteousness shall ensure rest, and the righteous shall be confident forever. 18 And His people shall inhabit a city of peace, and dwell in it in confidence, and they shall rest with wealth. 19 And if the hail should come down, it shall not come upon you; and they that dwell in the forests shall be in confidence, as those in the plain country. 20 Blessed are they that sow by every water, where the ox and the donkey tread.

Contrasts Between the Septuagint and the Masoretic

1. Verse 19 in the Septuagint brings no contextual contradictions that must be explained. The verse smoothly follows the theme of blessing found throughout the passage.

2. All geographic areas are blessed. There is no distinction among them. The city will be blessed, the forest blessed, the plains blessed, and the waterways blessed.

3. Unlike the Masoretic, verse 18 of the Septuagint specifically states that “His people shall inhabit a city of peace.” Then, verse 19 brings no calamity upon that city. In contrast, verse 18 of the Masoretic makes no mention of a city. However, in verse 19 various calamities fall upon “the city,” depending upon the version.

    • JPS: the city shall descend into the valley
    • NRS: the city will be utterly laid low.
    • KJV: the city shall be low in a low place
    • Amplified: the capital [2] city shall be utterly humbled and laid prostrate.
    • NASB: the city will be utterly laid low.
    • NET: Even if … the city is annihilated,
    • NIV: Though … the city is leveled completely,

4. In both textual traditions, the occurrence of hail appears either certain or likely. But only in the Septuagint does the hail harm no one.

Concrete-Literal or Spiritual-Literal

The Septuagint text of Isaiah 32:19 states, “And if the hail should come down, it shall not come upon you.” When does falling hail not harm objects or people it may hit? The Masoretic translations present a catastrophic hailstorm that flattens forests and cities. But the hail that falls in the Septuagint does not harm the people who inhabit every corner of the righteous King’s kingdom.

In the prior post, Isaiah Devotional Journal 71, I presented the argument that in Chapter 32 Isaiah writes using concrete terms for spiritual realities (1). Verse 19 adds evidence to this hermeneutic. Although it speaks to us by means of concrete (physical) language, the realities this verse describes are spiritual. See, for example, John Calvin’s description of this passage.

While Isaiah thus prophesies concerning the reign of Hezekiah, all this is declared by him to relate to the kingdom of Christ as its end and accomplishment; and therefore, when we come to Christ, we must explain all this spiritually, so as to understand that we are renewed as soon as the Lord has sent down the Spirit from heaven, that we who were “wildernesses” may become cultivated and fertile fields. Ere the Spirit of God has breathed into us, we are justly compared to wildernesses or a dry soil; for we produce nothing but “thorns and briers,” and are by nature unfit for yielding fruits. Accordingly, they who were barren and unfruitful, when they have been renewed by the Spirit of God, begin to yield plentiful fruits; and they whose natural dispositions had some appearance of goodness, being renewed by the same Spirit, will afterwards be so fruitful, that they will appear as if they had formerly been a “wilderness;” for all that men possess is but a wild forest, till they have been renewed by Christ. Whenever, therefore, the Church is afflicted, and when her condition appears to be desperate, let us raise our eyes to heaven, and depend fully on these promises. (2)

In the life of the Spirit in a believer’s heart, the “hail” of real-life difficulties and circumstances shall not harm the believer’s faith or persistent peace, security, and well-being in Christ. Is this Isaiah’s intended meaning? Rather one should ask, Is this God’s intended meaning for this text? Within the context of the Septuagint Gospel of Isaiah, yes, I believe that God intends us to find the Spirit of Christ in this passage.

Right or Wrong?

When trying to answer the question, “Which text is right and which text wrong?” there is no exact answer. The truth is that two completely different textual traditions have been handed down to us. A “textual tradition” encompasses many hundreds, or even thousands, of years. The Septuagint began as a translation of Hebrew approximately three centuries before the birth of Christ. Readers should not hold this fact of birth against it (3). Later scholars and religious persons have edited both the Greek and Hebrew texts within their own tradition. The Masoretic Bible we hold today did not reach its final form until centuries after Christ.

One thing is clear, however. Jesus of Nazareth and his followers accessed the Septuagint. Greek was the “lingua franca” of Christ’s day. And, the New Testament writers often quoted from the Septuagint. I am fully satisfied to use the Septuagint translation as my devotional Bible for the book of Isaiah. I like it because there is so much of Christ in it.

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1 “Because the time markers fail to represent accurately the concrete-literal history of Israel, it is good biblical hermeneutics to interpret the language of this chapter spiritually. Using concrete-literal language, Isaiah prophesies the spiritual demise of one kingdom and the arrival of a new King. The new kingdom will be eternal.” Isaiah Devotional Journal 71

2 Calvin, John. “Commentary on Isaiah 32:15”. “Calvin’s Commentary on the Bible”. https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/cal/isaiah-32.html. 1840-57. These files are public domain.

3 For readers who would like to learn more about the Septuagint translation of the Bible, the following post might be a good place to start: Psalm 28: Why the Septuagint? Part 1-Background – justonesmallvoice.com. 

The Gospel Continues: Isaiah 25:6-9

April 27, 2021 11:28 am / Leave a comment

Simultaneously published at The Gospel Continues: Isaiah Devotional Journal 51 – justonesmallvoice.com

By Christina Wilson on 

Isaiah 25    Septuagint Modernized

The Gospel Continues: Isaiah 25:6-9

The modern era gives us the blessing of many biblical translations. The (ICB) (1) provides a straightforward translation of  Isaiah 25:6-9. I call it the Gospel of Isaiah.

6 The Lord of heaven’s armies will give us a feast. It will be on this mountain for all people. It will be a feast with the best food and wine. The meat and wine will be the finest. 7 On this mountain God will destroy the veil that covers all nations. This veil, called “death,” covers all peoples. 8 But God will destroy death forever. The Lord God will wipe away every tear from every face. God will take away the shame of his people from the earth. The Lord has spoken. 9 At that time people will say, “Our God is doing this! We have trusted in him, and he has come to save us. We have been trusting our Lord. So we will rejoice and be happy when he saves us.”

How Is This Gospel?

I. God Is Spirit–Before Christ, People Were Not

Many of the people who followed and spoke to Jesus made the understandable mistake of living in a concrete-only world. That is, most people achieved only a physical understanding of God. They weren’t capable of more, being “dead” (spiritually) in their sins (Ephesians 2:1). They worshipped God in tangible ways only. For example, they sacrificed bleating sheep and flying birds (Luke 2:22-24). They weighed out a certain amount of cumin and other spices (Matthew 23:23). They traveled to specific locations (John 4:20) to worship. A famous teacher such as Nicodemus could only fathom being “born again” as climbing back into his mother’s womb (John 3:3-4). In the Old Testament, God intended his worshipers to express their devotion in concrete, material ways.

But Jesus inaugurated a new creation in a New Testament. He preached a spiritual gospel. We need to back up in order to understand this. God created humanity in his image. God is Spirit. But when Adam sinned, humanity suffered death and separation from God. God turned them out from his presence. Humanity lost its one link with God–living in his physical presence in the Garden. Separated from God, only material, touchable flesh remained. From that point forward, God taught his people with physical, material items. Abel’s sacrifice of an animal pleased God. Later, through Moses, God commanded that they build him a special tent (the tabernacle) and worship him with sacrificial animals. Only a few prophets heard from God directly.

II. Jesus Brings the Spirit and Life

But then, in God’s perfect timing (Galatians 4:4), Jesus upended the entire system. Jesus came to bring life, and to bring it abundantly (John 10:10). The “life” Jesus brings is his Spirit, God’s Spirit (John 6:63). Why did Paul always ask new believers whether they had received the Spirit when they believed? (Acts 19:2, 6). He asked, because the Spirit is so important. The Spirit is life. There is no other life (John 6:63).

Romans 7:6 But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code. (ESV)

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (ESV)

The word Gospel means in Greek “good news.” Yes, it definitely is good news that in Christ God forgave our sins and cleansed us. But good news gets even better. The best good news is God cleansed us for a reason. He forgave our sins so that he could send his Holy Spirit to live in us and among us. And, because we have the Spirit of God–because his Spirit makes us alive–now we can enter his presence again and have fellowship with him. That is the truly good news the Gospel brings.

1 John 1:3b …our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.
4 And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. (ESV)

John 17:23a I in them and you in me… (ESV)

Hebrews 10:19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. (ESV)

III. How Do I Get the Spirit?

Nicodemus asked the same question. He wanted to know how someone could be born again (John 3:9). Jesus answers elsewhere. His answer is simple: just ask God.

Luke 11:9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (ESV)

IV. Back to Isaiah

Isaiah the Old Testament prophet saw Christ and predicted all these things (Isaiah 6:1; 1 Peter 1:10-12). When we overcome our fear of “spiritualizing” this Old Testament passage, we begin to see what Isaiah saw. He saw the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Seeing with spiritual eyes is a good thing, not a bad thing, as some might teach (John 20:29; 1 Peter 1:8).

IV. The Feast: What Food Does the Lord Provide?

What kind of feast is it (Isaiah 25:6)?

FIRST, God invites everyone. He invites people from all nations.

SECOND, he spreads his feast on a mountain that is large enough for the whole world to see (Proverbs 1:20-21; Matthew 22:9). Jesus himself “spiritualized” the mountain (John 4:20-24). Daniel saw it (Daniel 2:44-45). The mountain is the mountain of the Lord (Psalm 48:1-2; 99:9), the kingdom of Christ (Matthew 16:18).

THIRD, what food will God serve? The food upon which all Christians feast is the Lord Christ himself.

John 6:32 Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.

35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.

47 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.
48 I am the bread of life.

51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me.

63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. (John 6:32-66 ESV)

An evangelistic appeal–

 Hebrews 3:7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness, (ESV)

FOURTH, when will God serve this feast? He serves it right now, already, to all who believe. The message of John the Apostle is that Jesus is the Christ, the long-awaited Messiah (John 20:30-31) and that all who believe in him feast on joyful fellowship with God right now (1 John 1:2-4). There is also a “not yet” aspect to God’s feast, namely the marriage supper of the Lamb. That feast will be served at the moment when God destroys death and dying forever (Isaiah 25:7-8; 1 Corinthians 15:54-55) and wipes away every tear from every face (Isaiah 25:8; Revelation 7:17; 21:4).

FINALLY, what should our response be? Verse 9 tells it all.

Isaiah 25:9 At that time they will say, “Look, here is our God! We waited for him and he delivered us. Here is the LORD! We waited for him. Let’s rejoice and celebrate his deliverance!” (NET)

Conclusion

The Holy Spirit packed Isaiah 25:6-9 with a tremendously powerful message. My prayer is that those who read the good news God presents here will believe, investigate, and share it with others. We want the message of hope in Christ to spread throughout this fallen world. The end of the ages will come. Christ draws near. Let’s help bring as many people as possible to his wonderful wedding feast.

Isaiah 25:1 O Lord God, I will glorify You, I will sing to Your name; for You have done wonderful things, even an ancient and faithful counsel. Amen. (CAB, LXE)

So be it, Lord. Come quickly (Revelation 22:20). Amen (2)

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1 “Scriptures quoted from the International Children’s Bible, New Century Version, copyright © 1986, 1988 by Word Publishing, Dallas, Texas 75039. Used by permission.”

2 Those wishing to read what scholars have written concerning this passage may find the following link quite useful: Studylight.org