Textual Transmission How Did We Get the Bible?

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Textual TransmissionHow Did We Get the Bible?

• Lesson 3

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Over many generation and over many years, several
individuals copied the scriptures by hand. We owe
our having the Bible to these scribes.
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Scribal Care of Old Testament Scripture
Historical scribes were essential in ancient
times to kings, judges and the business world.
Ancient scribes believed that they were copying
the very word of God, so they took great care in
preserving the scriptures.
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The Masoretes
A.D. 500-1000Received their name for the masora,
a complex system of markings they developed to
achieve their purpose
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1. They developed a system of writing vowels. Up
until this time Hebrew contained only consonants
although there were a few consonants that
indicated certain vowels. They wanted to preserve
in writing form the oral traditions that they had
received in earlier generations.
Three Steps to Insure Textual Accuracy
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• 2. Masoretes developed a system of accents for
  the Hebrew text, and they separated the letters
  into individual words.Accents assisted in
  pronunciationShowed relationships to various
  words and phrases in the text

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3. Masoretes developed a system of notes on the
text to provide a means to check accuracy of the
copied text.They made all changes in the margins
because they refused to alter the original text.
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Text Examples
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Scribe - CounterMasoretes counted everything in
the text. They knew The Torah, the first five
books, had 400,945 letters.The middle word was
the Hebrew word translated searched in
Leviticus 1016.
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The Torahs middle letter was in the Hebrew word
belly in Leviticus 1142.While this may not
seem important to us, it was their diligence that
allowed the scripture to be passed on in its
accurate state.
Thanks Masoretes
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Transmission in Original Languages
Most of the original O.T. text was written in
Hebrew with the exception of a few text written
in Aramaic. Both Hebrew and Aramaic are Semitic
languages.
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Three Copies of Old Testament text that have
come down to us are1. Masoretic2. The
Samaritan Pentateuch3. Dead Sea Scrolls
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Masoretic Most reliable Oldest copies date to
somewhat earlier that A.D.1000. Some believe
these copies reflect text to A.D.100.
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Samaritan PentateuchOnly Genesis-DeuteronomySama
ritans came for the intermarriage of Hebrews and
foreigners in the Northern Kingdom after it fell
to Assyria in 722 B.C.
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Oldest text date to A.D.1100. They are believed
to be based on texts for 100-200 B.C.
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Dead Sea Scrolls Accidentally discovered by a
shepherd in a cave in 1947Date to 100-200
B.C.Contain at least parts of every Old
Testament book except Esther.Confirm the
reliability of the Masoretic text.
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(No Transcript)
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Transmission in Other Languages
The Septuagint - A translation of the Old
Testament into Greek Dates to about 200-300
B.C.The Pentateuch portion is more carefully
translated and therefore more reliable than the
rest of the translation.
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How Do We Interpret the Bible?

• Use Grammatical- Historical Method Plain
  Sense meaning using standard grammar rules and
  syntax
• Understanding the Context Find meaning by
  looking at the words surrounding a word
• Determine the Type of Literature

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How Do We Interpret the Bible?

• Historical Narrative
• Prophecy
• Poetry and Parables
• Each type writing or genres must be interpreted
  in a different way.
• ALL scripture can be interpreted by examining
  other scripture.