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§ 218, d.

THE SAME SUBJECT CONCLUDED.

7. In both the masoretic and Alexandrian text, we find in different places different readings, for the most part easier, or of an explanatory character." Sometimes the Alexandrian readings are older than the masoretic.'

8. In both we find common variants, which arose from the repetition of a word or a letter, and the misconception of the sense, occasioned by that repetition, or from the admission of glosses into the text."

9. In chap. lii., the Seventy follow the text of 2 Kings xxv., which appears to be older than the masoretic text of Jer. lii.

These discrepances between the Hebrew and Greek text of Jeremiah may be traced at an early date. They are mentioned by Origen and Jerome. From the char

a E. g. xxii. 5, the LXX. have лоσηte, as if it were in Hebrew, according to verse 4, instead of 1; xxii. 22, 7777, as in iv. 21; xxi. 7, the LXX. have ὁ οἶκος σου καὶ ὁ λαός σου.

* E. g. ii. 18, Γηῶν, for ' [?]; li. 14, ὤμοσε κύριος κάτα τοῦ βραχίονος αὐτοῦ, instead of 1999; xliii. 13, καὶ συντρίψει τοὺς στύλους 'ΗλιουTóleos, (a mistranslation for temple of the sun,) toùs ¿v "Nv, instead of

. ושבר את מצבות בית שמש אשר בארצ מצרים

There is such a mistake of the LXX. in ii. 2, 3. In xli. 9, 77 3773 773, the letters were accidentally repeated, and the LXX. translated polag μéza tovτó kσny; from a misunderstanding of 13 arose the masoretic

. ביד גדליהו הוא,reading

; מזבחות לבשת is added to מזבחות לקטר לבעל 13 .d In this way, in xi

the LXX. have only Βωμοὺς θυμιᾶν τῇ Βάαλ. Comp. xliv. 3, vii. 24.

e

Origen, Ep. ad Africanum: Πολλὰ δὲ τοιαῦτα καὶ ἐν τῷ ̓Ιερεμία και

acter of the variations above described, and from the literal fidelity of the version, it is plain these discrepances are not to be charged to the transcriber, as Grabe maintains," nor to the translator, as others have thought."

§ 219, a.

DIFFERENT EDITIONS AND COLLECTIONS OF THESE

C

PROPHECIES.

According to Jer. xxxvi., — written in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, - -the previous oracles of the prophet were written down by Baruch, and, when the first copy was burnt, they were written anew, and enlarged. The several parts of this collection are not arranged in chron

τενοήσαμεν, ἐν ᾧ τὴν πολλὴν μετάθεσιν καὶ ἐναλλαγὴν τῆς λέξεως τῶν лgoεtεvouέrow Evoquer. Jerome, Procem. ad Com. in Jer.: Jeremiæ ordinem librariorum errore confusum, multaque quæ desunt, ex Hebraiis fontibus digerere, ordinare, deducere, et complere (censui,) ut novum ex veteri, verumque pro corrupto atque falsato prophetam teneas. Præf. in Jer.: Præterea ordinem visionum, qui apud Græcos et Latinos omnino confusus est, correximus.

a De Vitiis LXX. Interpret. p. 12, sqq.

Spohn, Præf. ad Jerem. p. 7, sqq. De Wette, in the 4th edition of this work. For an example of the fidelity of the LXX., see xlii. 7. According to Movers, the translator has only made omissions from duocorέhevrov, and misunderstanding. He gives no explanat on of the difference between the Hebrew and Greek text in xlvi. 15, (Heb. xxvi. 15,) diari equɣer úлd ooũ ὁ ̓́Απις; ὁ μόσχος ὁ ἐκλεκτός σοῦ οὐκ ἔμεινεν. I should rather ascribe these differences, and some others, to the translator. (See above, § 218, a. p. 403.)

Movers (p. 34, note) thinks in verse 9 we must read fifth year, and not fourth.

& Eichhorn (§ 537) rightly maintains that Jeremiah dictated to Baruch from memory. Bertholdt (p. 1421) erroneously explains (verse 18) by reading from what was written down before. It is contrary to verse 32 to suppose, as Eichhorn does, that Baruch wrote on separate leaves.

ological order, either in the masoretic or Alexandrian text."

The following chapters seem to belong to the first collection: i.-xx.' xxvi. xxxv. xxxvi. xlv. xxv. 1-13. Here, the words "which Jeremiah hath prophesied against all the nations" seem to have made the transition to the oracles against foreign nations, (xxv. 15-38, xlvi.-xlix.,- in the Septuagint xxv. 34-xxxii. 38,)

← TABLE OF THE PROPHECIES, with their Date.

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According to Movers, (Bonner Zeit. vol. xii. p. 98, sqq.) chap. i.—ix. belong in the time of Josiah; x. 17-xx. in that of the Egyptian invasion. Maurer places ii. 1—iii. 5, vii.—ix. x. 17—25, xi. 1—17, xvi. 1–xvii. 18, xviii., in Jehoiakim's time; xiii., in Jehoiachin's; and xix. 1-13, in Zedekiah's time. See Knobel, vol. ii. p. 270, sqq.

с

According to Movers, Isa. xxiii. belongs to Jeremiah, and to this date.

which likewise were uttered before that time-the fourth year of Jehoiakim." The position of these prophecies against foreign nations in the book, is given more correctly in the Septuagint, but the arrangement in the masoretic text is the best; for, as the Egyptians are mentioned first, (xxv. 19,) and Elam last, (verse 25,) so the oracle upon Ægypt should come first, (chap. xlvi.,) and that on Elam last. (chap. xlix.) The Alexandrian text places the oracle on Elam first, because that was of the greater interest when that version was made.

Chap. xxii.-xxiv. were written at the beginning of Zedekiah's reign, (xxiv. 1,) and published;' for Ezekiel was acquainted with chap. xxiii., and had reference to it in his similar prophecy, (chap. xxxiv.,)-though this may be questioned,-which was written after the destruction of the city. He was acquainted with Baruch's collection, as Movers concludes from the numerous parallels between that and Ezekiel."

Chap. xxvii.-xxix. were written at the beginning of Zedekiah's reign; and, since they have passed through the hands of the redactor, it appears they were published separately.

Chap. xxx. xxxi. xxxiii. (according to xxx. 2) and 1. li. (according to li. 60) form, likewise, separate books.

But if we remove the spurious additions from chap. xxv., (see above, § 218, c,) and leave verse 13, 28, remaining, then, according to his hypothesis, the logical connection would be lost; for these words would relate to chap. 1. li., which do not belong to this collection, for they are of later origin, and belong to the 4th year of Zedekiah.

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But xxii. 1-19, must have been written in Jehoiakim's time, and xxii. 20-30, in Jehoiachin's. See Maurer, Knobel, and Hitzig, in locc.

The most certain are Ezek. v. 12, vi. 11, 12, vii. 15, xii. 16, xiv. 21, (comp. Jer. xiv. 12, et al.,) xiii. 10, 16, (comp. Jer. vi. 14,) xvi. 51, (comp. Jer. iii. 11,) xxiii. 11, (comp. Jer. iii. 7,) xxxiii. 4, (comp. Jer. vi. 17.)

Chap. xxi. xxxiv. xxxvii. xxxii. xxxviii.-xliv. were written before and after the destruction of Jerusalem, and published by Jeremiah in Ægypt.

It appears, then, that originally the Jeremianic prophecies were in six books."

§ 219, b.

THE SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED.

According to Movers, these six different books of prophecies previously extant-with the exception of xxvii.—xxix. xxxi. xxxiii., which were unknown to Zechariah-were first collected into one book, soon after the exile, by the same author who compiled the books of Kings. This author wrote 2 Kings xxv. at the end of Jer. lii. Since the Talmud' declares that "Jeremiah wrote his book, the book of Kings,—that is, an ancient book of Kings, the source of our present books of Kings -and his Lamentations, and since there is a certain affinity between Kings and Jeremiah, therefore it is probable that the same author compiled the Prophecies and Lamentations of Jeremiah, as well as the books of Kings; that he originally placed the latter between the Prophecies and the Lamentations of Jeremiah; that afterwards the passages mentioned in Baba Bathra' were, for the first time, put between Jeremiah and Kings, and, when the others were separated from the Prophecies, 2

a

[1. Chap. i.-xx. xxvi. xxxv. xxxvi. xlv. xxv. 1—13. 2. Chap. xxv. 15 -38, xlvi.-xlix. 3. Chap. xxii.-xxiv. 4. Chap. xxvii.-xxix. 5. Chap. xxx. xxxi. xxxiii. 1. li. 6. Chap. xxi. xxxiv. xxxvii. xxxii. xxxviii.—xliv.] Baba Bathra, fol. 14, c. 1, vol. i. p. 31. See above, § 186, p. 251, sqq.

י. ספר מלכים d « Fragmenta

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Fol. 14, c. 2, vol. i. p. 31.

[De Wette says, "between Samuel and Jeremiah;" but this appears to

be a misprint for Kings.]

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