B E N B O R N A G A I N . F A I T H

LXX vs MT


 

THE HISTORY

Palestine and most of the middle east was conquered by the Greeks around 330 BC, and the official universal language of commerce and trade became Greek. At this very same time the ancient language of the Hebrew Israelites, the Phoenician language referred to as "paleo-Hebrew" had become functionally extinct. The Jews let it die in favor of the language used in Babylon called Aramaic while they were exiled there between 600-500 BC.

The Jews totally abandoned their paleo-Hebrew (Phoenician) language and script and continued using Aramaic when they were released from captivity. They also adopted the Greek language as did everyone else in the now Greek conquered land of Palestine. 

Around the same time there was a HUGE need for the Hebrew Scriptures to be translated into Greek as most of the diaspora Jews spoke Greek, and nobody was speaking the ancient Phoenician paleo-Hebrew language of Moses. King Ptolemy II of Philidelphus commissioned 70 Hebrew Israelites to translate their scriptures into Greek in 285 BC. 

This Greek Old Testament translation of the Hebrew Scriptures is called the Septuagint LXX (the LXX stands for the number 70, which is the number of the Hebrew Israelite translators.) This Greek translation is the oldest translation of the "Hebrew" scriptures that exists today.

The Greek Septuagint LXX is over 1,000 years older than the Masoretic Text Old Testament, which is written in the new Hebrew 2.0 language, that isn't the original Phoenician paleo-Hebrew language at all, but is actually plagiarized from Aramaic which they adopted while exiled in Babylon. The Masoretic Text (written by non believing Jesus hating Jews) revised and omitted many important prophecies that Jesus fulfilled in the Septuagint.

It is important to understand that the Greek Septuagint was the Old Testament Scriptures that Jesus and the Apostles used. We know this because Jesus quoted from the Greek Septuagint within 90% of his Old-Testament quotations found in the New Testament.

THE MASORETES & THEIR CORRUPTED HEBREW BIBLE 

The Masoretic Text (Hebrew 2.0 language Old Testament Bible) not only revised but REMOVED many scriptures that referenced and pointed to the deity of Christ and the fact that He indeed is the Messiah sent from God. The changes are subtle, and not completely obvious (which is how they have managed to deceive so many) but the changes are there and are MANY.

The reliable New Testament (Texus Receptus) proves to us that the only Old Testament Bible that is reliable, is the Greek Septuagint LXX Old Testament (I use the Brenton English translation.) Any Scriptures which are not in alignment with the Greek New Testament Texus Receptus are to be regarded with suspicion, and these include: 

  • Paganised corruptions of both Old and New Greek Testaments written by Origen of Alexandria who lived between 185 to 254 AD also known as the "Alexandrian Texts"
  • Jewish corruptions of the Old Testament: The Masoretic Text

In fact, if the Greek Septuagint LXX Old Testament from which Jesus and the Apostles had quoted was in error, then the New Testament is itself in error! This is the trap which the deniers of Jesus Christ want to lead us into, and they authored, and are using, the Masoretic text to achieve this.

The Lord has kept His promise of preserving His Word, But that doesn't include the Masoretic Text unfortunately. 

The worst part of the deception is that the majority of ALL English Bible translations (including the King James Version) use the Masoretic Text translation for their Old Testament portion, instead of the much older and more accurate Septuagint!

You can verify this for yourself, that the Old Testament portion of your KJV Bible is changed and corrupted, using your very own KJV Bible to do this! For example, try comparing these New Testament quotes, and see if they match up in the KJV Old Testament:

  • HEB 10:5-6  >>  PSALM 40:6
  • HEB 1:6  >>  DEU 32:43
  • LUKE 4:18  >>  ISAIAH 61:1 

1.) HEBREWS 10:5-6 (which is a quote of Psalm 40:6) “Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, “Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure”. (Hebrews 10:5-6 / KJV) 

However, if we turn to Psalm 40:6 in our KJV Old Testament, we read something different. Something very important has been excluded: “Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; MINE EARS HAS THOU OPENED: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.” (Psalm 40:6 / KJV) “a body hast thou prepared me” has been completed omitted.

The corrupted text denies that the only “sacrifice and drink offering” that would be acceptable to God was the body of Jesus nailed to the cross, and instead substitutes “mine ears”.

2.) Ok, now let's look at: HEBREWS 1:6 (which is a quote of Deuteronomy 32:43) “And again, when he bringeth in the first begotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.” (Hebrews 1:6 / KJV) 

However, if we turn to Deuteronomy 32:43 in our KJV Old Testament, we read something different. Something very important has been excluded: "Rejoice, O ye nations, with his people: for he will avenge the blood of his servants, and will render vengeance to his adversaries, and will be merciful unto his land, and to his people." (Deuteronomy 32:43 / KJV)

“let all the angels of God worship him” is completely omitted from the verse!

3.) While there are MANY more examples of corruptions to the Old Testament, I’ll just share one more: LUKE 4:18 (which quotes Isaiah 61:1) “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised” (Luke 4:18 / KJV)

However, if we turn to Isaiah 61:1 in our KJV Old Testament, we read something different. Something very important has been excluded: “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound” (Isaiah 61:1 / KJV)

“recovery of sight to the blind” is omitted!

These revised and changed scriptures in our Old Testaments are very troubling aren’t they! However, Just as God promised, we do have a preserved copy of God’s Word, an Old Testament that does match up with the Old Testament quotations of Jesus and the Apostles, which can be found in the Greek Old Testament Septuagint LXX.

These were the actual scriptures that Jesus and the Apostles read from while they were alive during their ministries. The Septuagint LXX was translated hundreds of years BEFORE Christ was born, in 285 BC. It was translated by 72 Isrealites, 6 from each tribe, at the request of Ptolemy II Philadelphus.

The Septuagint LXX was the scriptures of choice for the majority of the World’s Jewish population, hundreds of years before Christ. Unfortunately, most modern English Bibles use the much newer and corrupted Masoretic Text translation for their Old Testament. And this is because the non believing Jews HATED the fact that the early Christians were successfully using the Septuagint LXX to prove that Jesus was in fact the prophesied Messiah!


But, people may argue:

“…those meticulous Jewish scholars and custodians of the Scriptures would never corrupt the texts; they were most trustworthy, and in total awe of God, they wouldn’t dare to falsify anything! They were unscrupulously honest and accurate, feared God above all, and followed the law devoutly…” 

This is the general perception among “Christians” today… but what do the Scriptures themselves reveal about these “pharisees”?

Mark 7:5-13
Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands? He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.

And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition… Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.
 

The 7th century AD Hebrew ‘traditionalists” from which we have the Masoretic text were called the Masoretes from the word ‘masorah’ – which means ‘tradition’ … the tradition of the elders. 

Jesus Himself testifies that they are not honest, that they feign to honor God, that they actually reject God’s commandments, that they teach their own doctrines… “and many such things do ye.”

These same “meticulously honest and accurate” Jewish leaders did not hesitate to bear false witness, and to bring false witnesses to the trial of Jesus before Pilate (Mat 26:59).

The Masoretic Text also removed HUNDREDS OF years from the Genesis genealogies found in the Septuagint! You can see the differences here in the diagram below.

 

 

 

WHICH LXX IS BEST AND WHERE CAN I FIND ONE?

The 2 most common questions I have received from people after watching my documentary, is which version of the Greek Old Testament Septuagint LXX is best, and where can they get a copy?

Researcher Barry Setterfield has done extensive research in to the 3 main codices used in the translations of the LXX, and provides valuable answers to these questions, which I encourage everyone to read HERE 

Barry Setterfield uses a quick litmus test to verify if the LXX you're reading has been influenced by the Rabbinical corruptions in the Masoretic Text or not. If it passes these 3 qualifications, then your LXX should be considered good to go. Check the graphics directly below, which I created for the 3 litmus test questions: Psalms 40:6, Deuteronomy 32:43, and the Genesis 5+11 chronologies.

This is a link to the exact copy of the LXX that I use and love HERE.  It is the Brenton English translation of the Greek Old Testament Septuagint, which is the source I used for the information, graphs, and charts that I created in my documentary.

This version of the Brenton LXX passes all three check-offs in the litmus test. What's cool about this version is that it has the Greek and English side by side, and you can see for yourself that the mighty name of JESUS ( Ἰησοῦς ) was indeed used for the prophet Joshua. (disclaimer: I have no affiliation or partnership with the sellers of this LXX. I'm just sharing what I use personally.)

Brenton's version of the Greek Old Testament Septuagint LXX does in fact contain the Apocrypha, but please know that these are not the heretical gnostic books of other apocryphas. The Apocrypha contained in this LXX is the same as the Deuterocanonical books that were also included in the 1560 Geneva Bible as well as the original KJV 1611 Bible. For more information on these Apocryphal books please watch this great video of an interview with historian David Bercot HERE.  

I also get asked about the New Testament portions of the Bible. And so I want to make it clear that I am exposing only the Old Testament portion of the Bible to be corrupted from Rabbinical revisions (The Masoretic Text translation to be specific). It is not the New Testament that is corrupted. I believe the New Testament is trustworthy.

However, there are 2 different manuscript lines that we get our New Testaments from, and there are some differences between the two! I recommend getting a Bible from EACH of those lines, so you can compare and read them yourself! For example, I love the Geneva Bible translation (old English grammar style) and that comes from the Antioch line of manuscripts, and I also love reading from the NASB or ESV (modern English grammar style) both of which come from the Alexandrian line of manuscripts.

Here's a great resource page for more information on the New Testament HERE.  I love you my brothers and sisters in Christ. You can email me with other questions you have: benbornagain.faith@gmail.com