The Missing Bones of the Septuagint
Charles R. Lightner
Abstract:
There are eighteen instances in the Hebrew Bible in which the word יום, or “day,” is associated with the word עצם, which in its simple singular form means “bone.” This paper examines the text of the Septuagint (LXX) translation of those eighteen instances to determine whether the Greek translation reflects the presence in the Hebrew text of the word עצם. Direct analysis of the parallel Greek suggests that the Hebrew עצם was not in the text from which the LXX was translated. Analysis of the LXX translations of other Hebrew phrases that reference the word יום supports that conclusion as does analysis of the translations of other instances of the Hebrew עצם. Evidence from a computer assisted translation analysis, from Aramaic Targum translations, and from analysis of dictionary entries is also examined. I conclude that the word עצם did not appear in the Hebrew text from which the LXX translations of those eighteen instances were made. Keywords: Bible, Hebrew Bible, Septuagint, Targum, Peshitta, Translation ___________________________________________________________
There are eighteen instances in the Hebrew Bible in which the word יום, or day , is associated with the word עצם. The Hebrew עצם in its simple singular form almost always means bone in the Masoretic Text (MT). In other forms, it is understood differently. Standard dictionaries give the form עצום, for example, meanings of mighty ,powerful , or numerous . In an uncommon verb form it can mean to close the eyes . And in rare cases such as in Exod 24:10, it is understood as substance or essence . Standard dictionaries also allow a tertiary understanding as self , which raises interesting questions that I will discuss below.
In fourteen of our eighteen instances, the phrase found in the Hebrew is בעצם היום הזה where the preposition ב- means “on” or “in” the day being described. In three of the eighteen instances the preposition introducing the phrase is עד, meaning “until.” The phrase in those cases is עד עצם היום הזה. That phrase can be prospective, where עד conveys the idea of a time period extending forward, as in “until” a certain condition occurs. It can also be retrospective, conveying the idea that a certain condition has existed “until” the day of the reference. In one instance, the עצם term of the phrase is preceded by the Hebrew direct object marker את, giving us את עצם היום הזה.
Table 1, below, identifies the eighteen instances in which יום and עצם are associated, provides the LXX translations of the Hebrew phrases, and gives the Strong’s Greek Lexicon number for each of the words in the Septuagint phrase.
Table 1: LXX Translations of Subject עצם Phrases
MT Verse Greek Translation Strong’s Greek Numbers (1)
Where the Hebrew in MT is: בעצם היום הזה
Gen 7:13 εν τη ημερα ταυτη [1722, 3588, 2250 , 3778]
Gen 17:23 εν τω καιρω της ημερας εκεινης [1722, 3588, 2540, 3588,2250 , 1565]
Gen 17:26 εν τω καιρω της ημερας εκεινης [1722, 3588, 2540, 3588,2250 , 1565]
Ex 12:17 εν γαρ τη ημερα ταυτη [1722, 1063, 3588, 2250, 3778]
Ex 12:41 The LXX has no parallel to MT phrase.
Ex 12:51 εν τη ημερα εκεινη [1722, 3588, 2250 , 1565]
Lev 23:21 τατην την ημεραν [3788, 3588, 2250 ]
Lev 23:28 τη ημερα ταυτη [3588, 2250, 3778]
Lev 23:29 τη ημερα ταυτη [3588, 2250 , 3778]
Lev 23:30 τη ημερα ταυτη [3588, 2250 , 3778]
Deut 32:48 εν τη ημερα ταυτη [1722, 3588, 2250 , 3778]
Josh 5:11 εν ταυτη τη ημερα [1722, 3588, 2250 , 3778]
Ezek 24:2 απο της ημερας της σημερον [575, 3588, 2250 , 3588, 4594]
Ezek 40:1 εν τη ημερα εκεινη [ 1722, 3588, 2250 , 1565]
Where the Hebrew in MT is: עד עצם היום הזה
Lev 23:14 εως εις αυτην την ημεραν ταυτην [2193, 1519, 1473, 3588,2250, 3778]
Josh 10:27 εως της σημερον ημερας [2193, 3588, 4594, 2250 ]
Ezek 2:3 εως της σημερον ημερας [2193, 3588, 4594, 2250 ]
Where the Hebrew in MT is: את עצם היום הזה
Ezek 24:2 απο της ημερας ταυτης [575, 3588, 2250, 3778]
Note: The Strong’s number for the Greek ημερα, meaning “day” is 2250. Note: The Strong’s number for the Greek οστεων, meaning “bone,” is 3747.
Three things are immediately evident from Table 1:
  1. In each of the seventeen cases in which the LXX has a phrase parallel to that of the MT, the phrase includes a form of the Greek word ημερα, meaning “day.” [Strong’s 2250]
  2. In none of those seventeen cases does any form of the Greek word for “bone,” or οστεων, [Strong’s 3747] appear, and
  3. The LXX translations, while similar, are not uniform.
We might expect the LXX translations to vary somewhat reflecting differences in context or syntax. We should also not be surprised at translation variations among the books of the MT. As Kim has shown, there were probably five different translators involved in the Pentateuch translation.11Kim, H. Multiple Authorship of the Septuagint Pentateuch . Brill. Leiden. 2020 And, the books of Joshua and Ezekiel were translated by others, probably decades later. But in the case of these specific phrases, there are different Greek translations of the parallel Hebrew phrase even within the same book. That is true in Genesis, in Exodus, in Leviticus, and in Ezekiel. So, not only is the translation approach not consistent from book to book; it is inconsistent within books. And if each book was translated by a single translator, as has been suggested in the case of the Pentateuch, there is inconsistency at the level of the translator.
The fact that the translations of the phrases under study do not appear to reflect the presence of the Hebrew עצם suggests that we examine the translators’ treatment of the word in other locations. The most direct and relevant comparisons seem logically to be to the texts in which our eighteen instances occur, so our initial search is for all instances of עצם forms in the Pentateuch, Joshua, and Ezekiel. Table 2 contains the result of that search.