Hebrew scholars are actively correcting "mistakes" in the Bible!

by wearewatchingyouman 16 Replies latest watchtower bible

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  wearewatchingyouman

  JERUSALEM — A dull-looking chart projected on the wall of a university office in Jerusalem displayed a revelation that would startle many readers of the Old Testament: The sacred text that people revered in the past was not the same one we study today.

  An ancient version of one book has an extra phrase. Another appears to have been revised to retroactively insert a prophecy after the events happened.

  Scholars in this out-of-the-way corner of the Hebrew University campus have been quietly at work for 53 years on one of the most ambitious projects attempted in biblical studies — publishing the authoritative edition of the Old Testament, also known as the Hebrew Bible, and tracking every single evolution of the text over centuries and millennia.

  And it has evolved, despite deeply held beliefs to the contrary.

  For many Jews and Christians, religion dictates that the words of the Bible in the original Hebrew are divine, unaltered and unalterable.

  For Orthodox Jews, the accuracy is considered so inviolable that if a synagogue's Torah scroll is found to have a minute error in a single letter, the entire scroll is unusable.

  But the ongoing work of the academic detectives of the Bible Project, as their undertaking is known, shows that this text at the root of Judaism, Christianity and Islam was somewhat fluid for long periods of its history, and that its transmission through the ages was messier and more human than most of us imagine. (cont....) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44117239/ns/world_news-mideast_n_africa/

  How 'bout them apples! So much for that whole infallible thingy...
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  james_woods

  Did they insert the name Jehovah all through it?
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  wearewatchingyouman

  Most scholars agree that God's name, and the concept of God, changed and evolved in the texts throughout time as the Canaanite's evolved from a polytheistic to a monotheistic tradition....

  The fact that this endeavor is being head up by an Orthodox Jew is awesome!!! The old argument that "it's just those liberal/progressive academic scholars" will be null and void...

  last post for a few hrs... hit my limit...
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  james_woods

  Most scholars agree that God's name, and the concept of God, changed and evolved in the texts throughout time as the Canaanite's evolved from a polytheistic to a monothheistic tradition....

  Most reasonable scholars - who are researching and translating according to evidence, not according to an agenda... It is interesting that this is going to greatly reveal human diversity in the formerly perfect and monolithic old testament.
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  Pistoff

  It is interesting that this is going to greatly reveal human diversity in the formerly perfect and monolithic old testament.

  Not holding my breath. There is so much trustworthy scholarship that derails traditional christianity's view of the Israelites now, but no one seems to listen.

  Burton Mack, Bart Ehrman, John Dominic Crossan, Elaine Pagels; great scholars and writers, but who listens?

  The irony is that the crazy fundie christians that would benefit most from this will NEVER read it or listen to it; they would rather burn the books and the authors.
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  cedars

  This was an interesting article, thanks for highlighting it.

  It's a real shame that they've been going for 53 years already, and at the current rate they won't have finished correcting the Hebrew scriptures for another 200 years! I wonder why they don't recruit a few more scholars to speed things up? Mind you, better to wait for a good job than rush things I suppose.

  It's noteworthy that the current version of Jeremiah is one seventh longer than the original, and certain texts were added retroactively following their fulfilment. I wonder whether this practice was the rule rather the exception?
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  james_woods

  It's a real shame that they've been going for 53 years already, and at the current rate they won't have finished correcting the Hebrew scriptures for another 200 years!

  Well, we have managed for much more than 2,000 years already without this - it is interesting, yes, but not exactly urgent.

  Not holding my breath. There is so much trustworthy scholarship that derails traditional christianity's view of the Israelites now, but no one seems to listen.

  Oh, no - of course no fundy is going to listen. But it is good to have some scholarship shed light on the imperfection of what was thought to be the infallible "word of God".
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  designs

  200 years is good job security...
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  james_woods

  200 years is good job security...

  You might even say better than anyone really needs... Of course, you could say the same about the Catholic priesthood.
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  cedars

  I'm sure it would speed things up considerably if they skipped the "phonebook" part with all the names and tribes, along with the instructions on how to build the tabernacle, and what types of sacrifices to offer for which sin etc. They should focus on the prophetic areas of the bible, publish an expose of that and other curious bits like the first few chapters of Genesis, and then return to the other bits that are less important.