The Greek Old Testament LXX
What Is the Septuagint?
The Septuagint (LXX) is the ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures, made by Greek-speaking Jews in Egypt, most likely in Alexandria. The five books of Moses were translated in the 3rd century BC and the other books over roughly the next two centuries. Its name, Latin for “seventy”, comes from the story of the 70 (72) translators.
Say it SEP-tew-ə-jint also called the LXX
Sources Jewish Encyclopedia Wikipedia NETS (2007) Letter of Aristeas
One honest caution: there is no single, uniform “Septuagint”. Each book had its own translator and style, and the old manuscripts do not all hold the same books. NETS Swete, ch. 5
Study the Septuagint here: Greek, English, Hebrew and audio
- 578,352 Greek words with Strong’s numbers, in 28,650 verses Read the Greek Septuagint
- Side by side The Hebrew and the Greek, verse by verse. Only here, as far as we know Compare Isaiah 7 in Hebrew and Greek
- 1,213 chapters narrated in English by a computer voice (AI) Listen to the Septuagint
- 4,044 Strong’s word pages that count Septuagint use: παρθένος “appears 65 times” See παρθένος (G3933)
4 more: Brenton’s English, book pages, the Fathers, New Testament quotations
- 28,236 verses of Brenton’s 1851 English (1 Enoch: R. H. Charles) Genesis in Greek and English
- 52 book pages and 1,144 verse pages See all 51 books
- 31 Fathers’ passages on the Seventy, 29 with audio What the early Christians wrote about the Septuagint
- 22 New Testament quotations, Greek word beside Hebrew word See all 22 New Testament quotations that follow the Septuagint
Every number is counted from our own data. Greek: Rahlfs (1935), from the open eliranwong/LXX-Rahlfs-1935 data (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). Strong’s numbers are matched to each Greek word by computer from open scholarly data; they are a study aid, not a hand-checked edition. About our texts
The Septuagint in 7 facts
Each line stands on its own and names its source.
- Its name means “seventy”. Latin septuaginta, short for “the translation of the seventy men”; LXX is 70 in Roman numerals. Source: Jewish Encyclopedia
- The story says 72 elders did it in 72 days for King Ptolemy II (285–247 BC), six from each tribe of Israel. Source: Letter of Aristeas
- The Law came first, the rest later. The five books of Moses were translated in the 3rd century BC; the other books by many hands, done by about the 1st century BC. Source: Jobes & Silva (2015)
- It holds more books than the Hebrew Bible: Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, the Maccabees, Psalm 151 and more. Source: Swete, ch. 5
- It differs from the Hebrew text in places. Greek Jeremiah is about one-eighth shorter, and Genesis 5 counts 2,242 years from Creation to the Flood against 1,656 in the Hebrew. Source: NETS, Genesis
- The apostles mostly quoted it. Where Greek and Hebrew disagree, most New Testament quotations side with the Greek. Source: Archer & Chirichigno (1983)
- It is still read in church today as the Old Testament of the Orthodox Church. Source: OrthodoxWiki
What does “Septuagint” mean?
“Septuagint” comes from the Latin septuaginta, “seventy”, short for Interpretatio septuaginta virorum, “the translation of the seventy men”. LXX is simply 70 in Roman numerals.
Why “the Seventy” if there were 72?
The Letter of Aristeas says six elders came from each of the twelve tribes of Israel, 72 in all; seventy is the round number. The Talmud keeps its own story of 72 elders.
Sources: Letter of Aristeas (R. H. Charles tr.); Talmud, Megillah 9a
What the word covers today
Today “the Septuagint” means the whole Greek Old Testament, even though the old story fits only the Law. Wikipedia’s definition is careful: “the earliest extant Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible from the original Biblical Hebrew”. Crossway calls the name “a catchall term that usually refers to the corpus of ancient Greek translations of the Hebrew Bible”.
Sources: Wikipedia, “Septuagint”; Crossway, “7 Questions about the Septuagint”
The Septuagint at a glance 10 key facts
- Meaning
- Latin for “seventy”; LXX is 70 in Roman numerals JE
- What it is
- The Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures, with books kept in Greek
- Language
- Koine Greek Wikipedia
- Made in
- Alexandria, Egypt, under the Ptolemies JE
- Date
- Law: 3rd century BC. Other books: by about the 1st century BC Jobes & Silva
- Translators
- Greek-speaking Jews. Tradition: 72 elders from Jerusalem Aristeas
- Books
- Differs by manuscript; 51 in our edition Swete
- Oldest copies
- Fragments from the 2nd century BC; whole Bibles from the 4th–5th century (Vaticanus, Sinaiticus, Alexandrinus)
- In English
- Brenton (1844; Greek and English 1851); NETS (2007) NETS
- Used today
- The Old Testament of the Orthodox Church OrthodoxWiki
Who translated the Septuagint, and when?
Greek-speaking Jews in Ptolemaic Egypt translated the Law in the 3rd century BC; many hands translated the other books over about two centuries. It was made for the Jews of Egypt, whose “knowledge of Hebrew was rapidly waning”.
Sources: Jewish Encyclopedia; Jobes & Silva, Invitation to the Septuagint (2015)
The story says
The king’s library, 72 elders, 72 days, the island of Pharos
- Demetrius of Phalerum, the king’s librarian, asks King Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285–247 BC) for the Jewish Law for the library at Alexandria. Aristeas
- The high priest sends 72 elders from Jerusalem, six from each tribe, and they finish in 72 days. Aristeas
- Philo adds that they worked on the island of Pharos, all wrote the same words, and a festival was held there every year. Philo, Life of Moses 2.25–44
- Josephus retells the same story. Josephus, Antiquities 12.2
Scholars say
- The story fits only the Law. The five books of Moses were put into Greek first, in the 3rd century BC. Wikipedia JE
- The other books followed, by many translators, over about two centuries. Ben Sira’s grandson (132 BC) already speaks of the “Law, Prophets, and the rest of the books” in Greek. JE Jobes & Silva
- Many styles. Some books are word for word, others free; the Greek Job is about one-sixth shorter than the Hebrew. NETS, Job
The story in their own words
The oldest Christian tellers are in our library, with audio. Press Listen to hear them.
c. AD 155 · Justin Martyr
“When their contents proved to be unintelligible to the Egyptians, Ptolemy again sent a request for men to be assigned to translate them into Greek.”
c. AD 180 · Irenaeus of Lyons
“Ptolemy wanted to test them individually, fearing they might conceal the truth by consulting together, so he separated them and asked each one to write the same translation.”
Four more voices, from Aristeas to Augustine
The Letter of Aristeas, §307
Read the Letter of Aristeas (R. H. Charles)“the work of translation was completed in seventy-two days, just as if this had been arranged of set purpose.”
1st century AD · Philo of Alexandria
Read Philo, Life of Moses 2.37“every one of them employed the self-same nouns and verbs, as if some unseen prompter had suggested all their language to them.”
c. AD 197 · Tertullian
Listen · Apology 18“To this day, at the temple of Serapis, the libraries of Ptolemy can be seen, with the very Hebrew originals in them.”
Early 5th century · Augustine
Read City of God 18.43“For the same Spirit who was in the prophets when they spoke these things was also in the seventy men when they translated them”
Early Christian views on the Letter of Aristeas · What the early Christians wrote about the Septuagint
Which books are in the Septuagint?
Every book of the Hebrew Bible, in Greek, plus books the Hebrew Bible does not have. No early manuscript has one fixed list: Codex Vaticanus has no Maccabees, Sinaiticus has 1 and 4 Maccabees, and Alexandrinus has all four and Psalm 151.
Source: Swete, Introduction to the Old Testament in Greek, ch. 5
Our edition has 51 books: 38 Old Testament books in their Greek form, 12 deuterocanonical books and 1 Enoch. The Prayer of Manasseh is read as 2 Chronicles 37; Susanna and Bel are inside Daniel. The Greek calls Samuel and Kings 1–4 Kingdoms.
1 Enoch is not in the classic Septuagint codices; we include it with the Ethiopian canon. Is the Book of Enoch in the Septuagint?
Which books Protestants, Catholics and Orthodox count · Books of the Bible in order
Read = Greek word by word with Brenton’s English. Listen = narrated in English.
The Law5 booksThe five books of Moses, the first part translated.
History11 booksJoshua to Esther. Samuel and Kings are called 1–4 Kingdoms.
- JoshuaIesous24 ch.ReadListen
- Judges21 ch.ReadListen
- Ruth4 ch.ReadListen
- 1 Kingdoms1 Samuel31 ch.ReadListen
- 2 Kingdoms2 Samuel24 ch.ReadListen
- 3 Kingdoms1 Kings22 ch.ReadListen
- 4 Kingdoms2 Kings25 ch.ReadListen
- 1 Chronicles1 Paralipomenon29 ch.ReadListen
- 2 Chronicles2 Paralipomenon36 ch.ReadListen
- 2 EsdrasEzra and Nehemiah23 ch.ReadListen
- EstherGreek, with the additions10 ch.ReadListen
Deuterocanonical books12 booksRead in the Greek Bible, not in the Hebrew Bible.
- 1 EsdrasEsdras A9 ch.ReadListen
- Tobit14 ch.ReadListen
- Judith16 ch.ReadListen
- 1 Maccabees16 ch.ReadListen
- 2 Maccabees15 ch.ReadListen
- 3 Maccabees7 ch.ReadListen
- 4 Maccabees18 ch.ReadListen
- Wisdom of Solomon19 ch.ReadListen
- SirachEcclesiasticus51 ch.ReadListen
- Baruch5 ch.ReadListen
- Letter of JeremiahBaruch 6 in some Bibles1 ch.ReadListen
- Prayer of Manassehread as 2 Chronicles 3715 versesRead & listen
Poetry and Wisdom5 booksPsalms (Greek numbering) to the Song of Songs.
The Twelve Prophets12 booksIn the Greek order: Hosea, Amos, Micah, Joel …
- HoseaOsee14 ch.ReadListen
- Amos9 ch.ReadListen
- MicahMichaias7 ch.ReadListen
- Joel4 ch.ReadListen
- ObadiahAbdias1 ch.ReadListen
- JonahJonas4 ch.ReadListen
- NahumNaum3 ch.ReadListen
- HabakkukAmbakum3 ch.ReadListen
- ZephaniahSophonias3 ch.ReadListen
- HaggaiAggaeus2 ch.ReadListen
- ZechariahZacharias14 ch.ReadListen
- MalachiMalachias4 ch.ReadListen
Isaiah to Daniel5 booksThe longer prophets, with the Greek parts of Daniel.
How does the Septuagint differ from the Hebrew (Masoretic) text?
The Septuagint was translated from Hebrew copies that sometimes read differently from the Hebrew text printed in most Bibles today. So some verses read differently, some books are longer or shorter, and the Psalms are numbered differently.
Sources: Jewish Encyclopedia; Jobes & Silva (2015)
What is the Masoretic text?
It is the standard Hebrew text behind most English Old Testaments. Jewish scribes called Masoretes, working from about the 7th to the 10th century AD, added vowels, accents and notes to a much older text of consonants. Jewish Encyclopedia, “Masorah” What is the Masoretic Text?
Three reasons the texts differ
- A different Hebrew original. Some Dead Sea Scrolls agree with the Greek against the later Hebrew: a short Jeremiah (4QJerb), Samuel (4QSama) and Deuteronomy 32 (4QDeutj).
- The translators’ choices. Some books are word for word, others free; the Greek strays furthest from the Hebrew in Job and keeps closest in the Law. Jewish Encyclopedia
- Centuries of copying in both lines, and later Greek revisions by Aquila, Symmachus and Theodotion. Jewish Encyclopedia
Neither is simply “the original”: in some books the Greek keeps an older Hebrew reading, in others the Masoretic text does. Jobes & Silva
All eight differences in one table
| Verse | Greek Septuagint (Brenton) | Hebrew Masoretic (KJV) | Who followed the Greek |
|---|---|---|---|
| Isaiah 61:1 | “recovery of sight to the blind” (τυφλοῖς ἀνάβλεψιν) | “the opening of the prison” | Jesus, Luke 4:18 |
| Isaiah 7:14 | “a virgin” (ἡ παρθένος) | ‘almah, “young woman” (the KJV says “a virgin”) | Matthew 1:23 |
| Exodus 1:5 | “seventy-five” souls | “seventy souls” | Stephen, Acts 7:14 |
| Amos 9:12 | “the remnant of men … may earnestly seek me” | “possess the remnant of Edom” | James, Acts 15:17 |
| Deuteronomy 32:8 | “the angels of God” | “the children of Israel” (a scroll: “sons of God”) | Justin, Trypho 131 |
| Genesis 5:3 | Adam “two hundred and thirty years” | “an hundred and thirty years” | Creation to Flood: 2,242 vs 1,656 years |
| Jeremiah 31:31 | Chapter 38 in Greek; the book is about one-eighth shorter | Chapter 31 | Hebrews 8:8 (same words) |
| Psalm 22:16 | “They pierced” (Greek Psalm 21:17) | ka’ari, “like a lion”, as printed (the KJV says “pierced”) | Debated; not quoted in the New Testament |
See the difference: eight verses in Greek, Hebrew and the New Testament
Most English Bibles translate the Hebrew (Masoretic) text; the Greek sometimes reads differently. Each card marks the same words in every column.
1
Isaiah 61:1 → Luke 4:18
“Opening of the prison” or “recovery of sight”?
The Hebrew promises “the opening of the prison”; the Greek promises “recovery of sight to the blind”, the line Jesus reads in Nazareth.
From the Greek · Isaiah 61:1
πνεῦμα κυρίου ἐπ᾿ ἐμέ οὗ εἵνεκεν ἔχρισέν με εὐαγγελίσασθαι πτωχοῖς ἀπέσταλκέν με ἰάσασθαι τοὺς συντετριμμένους τῇ καρδίᾳ κηρύξαι αἰχμαλώτοις ἄφεσιν καὶ τυφλοῖς ἀνάβλεψιν
Brenton: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me; he has sent me to preach glad tidings to the poor, to heal the broken in heart, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind;”
From the Hebrew · Isaiah 61:1
פְּקַח־קוֹחַ
peqach-qoach · “opening (of a prison)”
KJV: “…to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;”
New Testament · Luke 4:18
“…to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,”
Why it matters: the Greek word ἀνάβλεψις appears once in the Septuagint and once in the New Testament: here. Source: Texts in Conversation.
2
Isaiah 7:14 → Matthew 1:23
“Virgin” or “young woman”?
The Hebrew word ‘almah means “young woman”; the Greek translators chose parthenos, “virgin”, and Matthew quotes the Greek.
From the Greek · Isaiah 7:14
διὰ τοῦτο δώσει κύριος αὐτὸς ὑμῖν σημεῖον ἰδοὺ ἡ παρθένος ἐν γαστρὶ ἕξει καὶ τέξεται υἱόν καὶ καλέσεις τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Εμμανουηλ
Brenton: “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; behold, a virgin shall conceive in the womb, and shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Immanuel.”
From the Hebrew · Isaiah 7:14
הָעַלְמָ֗ה
ha-‘almah · “the young woman”
KJV: “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”
Note: here the KJV translates the Hebrew word with the Greek’s meaning, “virgin”.
New Testament · Matthew 1:23
“Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.”
The other side, in the 2nd century: Trypho the Jew tells Justin, “The Scripture doesn’t say, ‘Behold, the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son,’ but rather, ‘Behold, the young woman shall conceive, and bear a son,’” (Justin, Dialogue with Trypho 67, read and listen). Sources: Biblical Archaeology Society; Menken, Novum Testamentum 43.2 (2001).
3
Exodus 1:5 → Acts 7:14
Seventy souls, or seventy-five?
The Hebrew counts 70 of Jacob’s family going down to Egypt; the Greek counts 75, and so does Stephen in Acts.
From the Greek · Exodus 1:5
Ιωσηφ δὲ ἦν ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ ἦσαν δὲ πᾶσαι ψυχαὶ ἐξ Ιακωβ πέντε καὶ ἑβδομήκοντα
Brenton: “But Joseph was in Egypt. And all the souls born of Jacob were seventy-five.”
From the Hebrew · Exodus 1:5
שִׁבְעִ֣ים
shiv‘im · “seventy”
KJV: “And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already.”
New Testament · Acts 7:14
“Then sent Joseph, and called his father Jacob to him, and all his kindred, threescore and fifteen souls.”
Disputed: whether a Dead Sea Scroll of Exodus also reads 75 is debated, so we rest nothing on it. Source for Stephen’s number: Reformation Study Bible note on Acts 7:14.
4
Amos 9:11–12 → Acts 15:16–17
Edom, or all mankind?
The Hebrew says Israel will “possess the remnant of Edom”; the Greek says “the remnant of men” will seek the Lord, the reading James quotes at the council in Jerusalem.
From the Greek · Amos 9:12
ὅπως ἐκζητήσωσιν οἱ κατάλοιποι τῶν ἀνθρώπων καὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ἐφ᾿ οὓς ἐπικέκληται τὸ ὄνομά μου ἐπ᾿ αὐτούς λέγει κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὁ ποιῶν ταῦτα
Brenton: “that the remnant of men, and all the Gentiles upon whom my name is called, may earnestly seek me, saith the Lord who does all these things.”
From the Hebrew · Amos 9:12
יִֽירְשׁ֜וּ … אֱדוֹם֙
yirshu … Edom · “they may possess … Edom”
KJV: “That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the LORD that doeth this.”
New Testament · Acts 15:17
“That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things.”
How it happened: in Hebrew, Edom and adam (“mankind”) are written with the same consonants. Sources: Ashland Theological Journal 21 (1989); Texts in Conversation.
5
Deuteronomy 32:8 → Justin Martyr
Angels of God, or sons of Israel?
The printed Hebrew sets the nations by “the number of the children of Israel”; a Dead Sea Scroll reads “sons of God”; the Greek reads “angels of God”.
From the Greek · Deuteronomy 32:8
ὅτε διεμέριζεν ὁ ὕψιστος ἔθνη ὡς διέσπειρεν υἱοὺς Αδαμ ἔστησεν ὅρια ἐθνῶν κατὰ ἀριθμὸν ἀγγέλων θεοῦ
Brenton: “When the Most High divided the nations, When he separated the sons of Adam, He set the bounds of the nations According to the number of the angels of God.”
From the Hebrew · Deuteronomy 32:8
לְמִסְפַּ֖ר בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל
le-mispar bene Yisrael · “by the number of the sons of Israel”
KJV: “…he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.”
Early church · Justin, Dialogue with Trypho 131
“The Seventy have translated it as, “He set the boundaries of the nations according to the number of the angels of God.””
Why scholars care: the scroll (4QDeutj) shows the Greek followed a real Hebrew reading. Sources: Biblical Archaeology Society; Heiser, Bibliotheca Sacra 158 (2001).
6
Genesis 5:3 · the ages before the Flood
How old was Adam when Seth was born?
The Greek makes Adam 230, not 130, and repeats the pattern down the family line, so the world before the Flood is centuries older.
From the Greek · Genesis 5:3
ἔζησεν δὲ Αδαμ διακόσια καὶ τριάκοντα ἔτη καὶ ἐγέννησεν κατὰ τὴν ἰδέαν αὐτοῦ καὶ κατὰ τὴν εἰκόνα αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐπωνόμασεν τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Σηθ
Brenton: “And Adam lived two hundred and thirty years, and begot a son after his own form, and after his own image, and he called his name Seth.”
From the Hebrew · Genesis 5:3
שְׁלֹשִׁ֤ים וּמְאַת֙
sheloshim u-me’at · “thirty and a hundred”
KJV: “And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, and after his image; and called his name Seth:”
The total · Creation to the Flood
2,242 years in the Greek
1,656 years in the Hebrew
Adam still dies at 930 in both: the Greek moves 100 years from after Seth to before. Augustine wrestled with these numbers in City of God 15.
Sources: NETS, Genesis; Texts in Conversation.
7
Jeremiah 31:31 (Greek 38:31) → Hebrews 8:8
The same verse, in a different chapter
The Greek Jeremiah is about one-eighth shorter (estimates run to one-sixth) and in a different order: the “new covenant” is chapter 38 in Greek, chapter 31 in Hebrew.
From the Greek · Jeremiah 38:31
ἰδοὺ ἡμέραι ἔρχονται φησὶν κύριος καὶ διαθήσομαι τῷ οἴκῳ Ισραηλ καὶ τῷ οἴκῳ Ιουδα διαθήκην καινήν
Brenton: “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:”
From the Hebrew · Jeremiah 31:31
KJV: “Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:”
A Dead Sea Scroll of Jeremiah (4QJerb) shows that a short Hebrew Jeremiah, like the Greek, already existed.
New Testament · Hebrews 8:8
“…Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:”
Sources: Emanuel Tov, Biblical Archaeology Society; Heater, Bibliotheca Sacra 174.
8
Psalm 22:16 (Greek 21:17) · debated
“They pierced my hands and my feet”, or “like a lion”?
The printed Hebrew reads ka’ari, “like a lion”; the Greek reads “they dug”, that is, pierced. Scholars still disagree, so both views are shown.
From the Greek · Psalm 21:17
ὅτι ἐκύκλωσάν με κύνες πολλοί συναγωγὴ πονηρευομένων περιέσχον με ὤρυξαν χεῖράς μου καὶ πόδας
Brenton: “For many dogs have compassed me: The assembly of the wicked doers has beset me round: They pierced my hands and my feet.”
From the Hebrew · Psalm 22:16
כָּ֝אֲרִ֗י
ka’ari · read by its vowels as “like a lion”
KJV: “For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.”
Note: here the KJV follows the Greek sense, “pierced”, not the printed Hebrew.
Both views
- For a verb, like the Greek: a Hebrew scroll from Nahal Hever has a spelling that may be a verb. Summary of the debate
- For “like a lion”: Jewish teachers defend the printed Hebrew as the original. A Jewish counter-view
The New Testament does not quote this line directly. The Greek numbers this psalm 21, one behind the Hebrew.
Compare Isaiah 7 in Hebrew and Greek Coming: Septuagint vs Masoretic text, the full comparison
How big are the differences?
- ⅛Jeremiah is about one-eighth shorter in Greek (estimates run to one-sixth), and its chapters are in a different order. Heater
- ⅙Job is about one-sixth shorter in Greek. NETS, Job
- +586Genesis 5: 2,242 years from Creation to the Flood in Greek, 1,656 in Hebrew. NETS, Genesis
- +Extra in the Greek: Psalm 151, Greek Esther, Susanna, Bel and the Dragon and the deuterocanonical books. Swete, ch. 5
Which is older?
The Leningrad Codex (1008/1009) is the oldest complete Hebrew Bible; the older Aleppo Codex (c. 930) lost almost 200 pages after 1947. The great Greek codices, Vaticanus and Sinaiticus (4th century), are some six centuries older. But the Dead Sea Scrolls (c. 250 BC–AD 68) show that both kinds of Hebrew text were being copied before Christ, so neither is simply “the original”: it depends on the book.
Sources: Biblical Archaeology Society, “What Is the Oldest Hebrew Bible?”; Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Library
Two lines of witnesses, century by century
| When | Greek line | Hebrew line |
|---|---|---|
| 3rd c. BC | The Law is translated in Egypt | Earliest Dead Sea Scrolls (from c. 250 BC) |
| 2nd c. BC | Papyrus Rylands 458; Ben Sira’s grandson (132 BC) knows the Prophets in Greek | Scrolls with both kinds of text, e.g. 4QJerb |
| 1st c. AD | The New Testament quotes it | Last Dead Sea Scrolls (to AD 68) |
| 2nd c. AD | Justin and Irenaeus defend “the Seventy”; Aquila and Theodotion make new Greek versions | — |
| 4th–5th c. | Codex Vaticanus, Sinaiticus, Alexandrinus | — |
| 7th–10th c. | — | The Masoretes add vowels and notes |
| 930–1009 | — | Aleppo Codex (c. 930, now partly lost); Leningrad Codex (1008/1009) |
Sources: Jewish Encyclopedia; Jewish Encyclopedia, “Masorah”; Biblical Archaeology Society; Swete, ch. 5.
Why are the Psalm numbers different? Show the table
The Greek joins and splits some psalms, so for most of the book its numbers run one behind the Hebrew. Psalm 23, “The LORD is my shepherd”, is Psalm 22 in the Greek. Our Septuagint pages use the Greek numbers. NETS, Psalms
| Hebrew and English Bibles | Greek Septuagint |
|---|---|
| 1–8 | 1–8 |
| 9–10 | 9 |
| 11–113 | 10–112 |
| 114–115 | 113 |
| 116 | 114–115 |
| 117–146 | 116–145 |
| 147 | 146–147 |
| 148–150 | 148–150 |
| none | 151 |
Did Jesus and the apostles use the Septuagint?
Most New Testament quotations of the Old Testament agree with the Septuagint. Scholars’ counts run from about two-thirds (in parts of the Gospels) to about 90%, depending on how they count.
Sources: Archer & Chirichigno (1983), as cited by Catholic Answers; Atkinson (1947)
One survey lists 340 places where the New Testament cites the Septuagint, and only 33 where it follows the Hebrew (Masoretic) text instead. An older study counts over 1,020 quotations and allusions, at least six in seven from the Septuagint.
Four of the cards above show it: Isaiah 61:1 in Luke 4:18, Isaiah 7:14 in Matthew 1:23, Exodus 1:5 in Acts 7:14 and Amos 9 in Acts 15.
See all 22 New Testament quotations that follow the Septuagint
Why is the Septuagint important?
It was the Bible of the early church, it explains wording in the New Testament that you cannot find in a Hebrew-based Old Testament, it is a witness to Hebrew texts older than the Masoretic copies, and it is still the Old Testament of the Orthodox Church.
Sources: Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.21; Jobes & Silva (2015); OrthodoxWiki
It was the Bible of the early church
Listen · Trypho 137“My friends, I now refer to the Scriptures as the Seventy have interpreted them.”
Listen · Against Heresies 3.21“For the apostles, being older than all these heretics, agree with this mentioned translation; and the translation aligns with the tradition of the apostles.”
The Fathers saw God’s hand in it
Listen · Stromata 1.22“It was not contrary to the inspiration of God, who gave the prophecy, also to bring about the translation and make it, so to speak, a Greek prophecy.”
Later the West split. Augustine defended the Seventy (City of God 18.42–44), while Jerome went back to the Hebrew for his Latin Vulgate (Jerome, Letter 57; Augustine, Letter 71).
The church compared Greek and Hebrew early
Listen · Letter to Africanus“I marked with an asterisk those passages in our copies that are not found in the Hebrew.”
Origen set the texts side by side in columns: Origen’s Hexapla. Chrysostom’s sermons on our site quote the Greek Old Testament 131 times, each one marked; see Homilies on Matthew 5.
It is the Orthodox Old Testament today
“the Orthodox Church continues to regard the LXX as its only canonical text of the Old Testament.”
Jewish readers: Rabbinic Judaism reads the Hebrew text, and the Talmud keeps its own story of the 72 elders (Megillah 9a).
In English: Lancelot Brenton published an English Septuagint in 1844, and the Greek with English and the Apocrypha in 1851 (Wikipedia). A modern one, NETS, came out in 2007 (NETS).
Questions people ask about the Septuagint
What is the Septuagint in simple terms?
It is the Old Testament in Greek: the Hebrew Scriptures translated by Jews in Egypt, starting with the Law in the 3rd century BC, plus some books kept in Greek.
What does LXX stand for?
LXX is 70 in Roman numerals. It stands for the “seventy” translators of the old story; septuaginta is Latin for seventy.
Why is it called “the Seventy” if there were 72 translators?
The Letter of Aristeas says six elders came from each of the twelve tribes, 72 in all. Seventy is the round number.
Who translated the Septuagint, and when?
Greek-speaking Jews in Egypt. The Law was done in the 3rd century BC, under Ptolemy II (285–247 BC) according to tradition; the other books by many translators, by about the 1st century BC.
Why was the Septuagint written?
For the Jews of Egypt, who spoke Greek and needed the Scriptures in their own language. The Letter of Aristeas adds that the king wanted the Jewish Law for his library at Alexandria.
How many books are in the Septuagint?
It depends on the manuscript: no early codex has one fixed list. Vaticanus has no Maccabees; Alexandrinus has four and Psalm 151. Our edition has 51 books.
Is the Septuagint the same as the Apocrypha?
No. The Septuagint is the whole Greek Old Testament; it also contains the deuterocanonical books that Protestants call the Apocrypha.
Why do most Protestant Bibles leave out some Septuagint books?
After the Reformation, most Protestant Bibles followed the books of the Hebrew Bible and set the other Septuagint books apart as the Apocrypha. Catholic and Orthodox Bibles keep most of them.
What is the difference between the Septuagint and the Masoretic text?
The Septuagint is a Greek translation made before Christ; the Masoretic text is the standard Hebrew text, finished with vowels and notes by Jewish scribes in the 7th–10th centuries AD. They sometimes come from different Hebrew copies, so some verses, book lengths and psalm numbers differ.
Which is older, the Septuagint or the Masoretic text?
The oldest complete Greek Bibles (4th century) are centuries older than the oldest complete Hebrew Bible, the Leningrad Codex (1008/1009). But the Dead Sea Scrolls show both kinds of text existed before Christ, so it depends on the book.
Did Jesus quote the Septuagint?
The Gospels give His words in Greek, and they often follow the Septuagint. At Nazareth He reads “recovering of sight to the blind” (Luke 4:18), the Greek wording of Isaiah 61:1.
Does the Septuagint include the New Testament?
No. The Septuagint is the Old Testament only. The great codices bind it together with the New Testament, but the name means only the Greek Old Testament.
Which churches use the Septuagint today?
The Orthodox Church reads it as its Old Testament.
Is there an English translation of the Septuagint?
Yes. Sir Lancelot Brenton’s (1844; Greek and English 1851), which we use, and the New English Translation of the Septuagint (NETS, 2007).
And the Book of Enoch? 1 Enoch is not in the classic Septuagint codices; we include it with the Ethiopian canon. Is the Book of Enoch in the Septuagint?
Which books Protestants, Catholics and Orthodox count · See all 22 New Testament quotations that follow the Septuagint · All 51 books
Where to start reading and listening
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New to it?
Hear Genesis 1
Brenton’s English, read aloud by a computer voice, each word lit as it is read.
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Read it word by word
The whole Greek Old Testament
Every Greek word with its Strong’s number, beside Brenton’s English.
Read the Greek Septuagint -
See the difference
Hebrew beside Greek
Isaiah 7, word by word, with the Hebrew and the Greek side by side.
Compare Isaiah 7 in Hebrew and Greek -
Study a word
παρθένος, “virgin”
Every use in the Septuagint and the New Testament, with its Strong’s number.
Study παρθένος
More to read, hear and watch
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Coming to this site Septuagint vs Masoretic text Septuagint chronology: Genesis 5 and 11 Psalm numbering, Greek and Hebrew
About our texts
Our Greek is Rahlfs’ 1935 edition, from the open data of eliranwong/LXX-Rahlfs-1935 (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). Our English is Brenton’s (1851), which follows mainly Codex Vaticanus, so the two sometimes disagree: at Psalm 39:7 (Psalm 40:6 in English Bibles) Brenton and Hebrews 10:5 read “a body”, while Rahlfs prints ὠτία, “ears”. 1 Enoch is in R. H. Charles’s English.
Strong’s numbers are matched to each Greek word by computer from open scholarly data; they are a study aid, not a hand-checked edition. The audio is Brenton’s English (1 Enoch: Charles) narrated by The Historic Faith with an AI voice.
Sources for this page 29 named sources
- Wikipedia, “Septuagint”: en.wikipedia.org
- Jewish Encyclopedia (1906), “Bible Translations”: jewishencyclopedia.com
- Jewish Encyclopedia, “Masorah”: jewishencyclopedia.com
- A New English Translation of the Septuagint (NETS, 2007): front matter, Genesis, Psalms, Job, edition home
- Letter of Aristeas, tr. R. H. Charles: ccel.org
- Philo, Life of Moses 2.25–44 (Yonge): earlychristianwritings.com
- Josephus, Antiquities 12.2: penelope.uchicago.edu
- Babylonian Talmud, Megillah 9a: sefaria.org
- Karen H. Jobes and Moisés Silva, Invitation to the Septuagint, 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 2015): bakerpublishinggroup.com
- H. B. Swete, An Introduction to the Old Testament in Greek, ch. 5: biblehub.com
- Crossway, “7 Questions about the Septuagint”: crossway.org
- Biblical Archaeology Society, “What Is the Oldest Hebrew Bible?”: biblicalarchaeology.org
- Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library: 4QJerb (4Q71), 4QSama (4Q51), 4QDeutj (4Q37)
- Homer Heater, “Jeremiah”, Bibliotheca Sacra 174 (2017): galaxie.com
- Emanuel Tov, “The Book of Jeremiah: A Work in Progress”, Biblical Archaeology Society: library.biblicalarchaeology.org
- Michael S. Heiser, “Deuteronomy 32:8 and the Sons of God”, Bibliotheca Sacra 158 (2001): galaxie.com; Biblical Archaeology Society sidebar: Deuteronomy 32:8
- Biblical Archaeology Society, “Does the Gospel of Matthew Proclaim Mary’s Virginity?”: library.biblicalarchaeology.org; M. J. J. Menken, Novum Testamentum 43.2 (2001)
- Texts in Conversation: Isaiah 61:1 / Luke 4:18, Amos 9, Genesis 5
- Reformation Study Bible, note on Acts 7:14: biblegateway.com
- On Amos 9:11–12 in Acts 15, Ashland Theological Journal 21 (1989): gospelstudies.org.uk (PDF)
- Wikipedia, “They have pierced my hands and my feet”: en.wikipedia.org; the Jewish view: Jews for Judaism
- G. L. Archer and G. C. Chirichigno, Old Testament Quotations in the New Testament (Moody, 1983), pp. 25–32, as cited by Catholic Answers
- B. F. C. Atkinson, Journal of the Transactions of the Victoria Institute (1947): gospelstudies.org.uk (PDF)
- Our library, with audio: Justin, First Apology 31 · Trypho 67 · Trypho 131 · Trypho 137 · Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.21 · Clement, Stromata 1.22 · Tertullian, Apology 18 · Origen, Letter to Africanus
- Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.21: newadvent.org
- Augustine, City of God 15 and 18; Letter 71. Jerome, Letter 57
- OrthodoxWiki, “Septuagint”: orthodoxwiki.org
- Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton: Wikipedia
- Greek text data: eliranwong/LXX-Rahlfs-1935 (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). Bible English: Brenton (1851) and the King James Version, from our own pages.