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Introduction

Unlock the fascinating world of Old Testament textual variants. This comprehensive guide demystifies the differences between various biblical texts, shedding light on their historical transmission. With a solid grounding in conservative Protestant theology, it asserts the enduring reliability and authority of Scripture, despite the existence of textual variants. An essential read for anyone keen to deepen their understanding of the Bible.

Textual criticism is the scholarly practice of comparing differing copies of a text in order to ascertain the most accurate form. When it comes to the Old Testament, it is important to note that it underwent many transcriptions, translations, and interpretations. Hence, there exists a field of study dedicated to examining its textual variants. Though these differences might appear worrisome, they rarely influence the core doctrinal teachings of the faith. An understanding of these variations can even enhance the depth and richness of the Old Testament’s message.

The Nature of Textual Variants in the Old Testament

The vast majority of textual variants in the Old Testament can be attributed to unintentional human errors. Scribes who copied the texts may have accidentally omitted, added, or changed letters or words. Other common errors included haplography (writing once what should have been written twice), dittography (writing twice what should have been written once), metathesis (switching the order of letters or words), and fission or fusion (wrongly dividing or combining words) (Wegner, 2006).

For instance, consider 1 Samuel 13:1 in the American Standard Version (ASV), which reads, “Saul was… years old when he began to reign; and he reigned… and two years over Israel.” This passage appears ambiguous because the ages are missing from the Hebrew text we have today. Textual scholars suggest that the numbers may have been accidentally omitted by a scribe during transcription (Provan, Long & Longman III, 2003).

Evidence for Old Testament Textual Variants

The primary evidences for Old Testament textual variants come from several sources: the Masoretic Text (MT), the Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS), the Septuagint (LXX), and other ancient translations such as the Samaritan Pentateuch, Targums, and the Latin Vulgate.

An example of a textual variant from the DSS is found in Psalm 145, an acrostic poem wherein each verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. However, the Hebrew MT lacks a verse for the letter “nun.” The DSS, on the other hand, includes an additional verse that fits the “nun” position: “The Lord is faithful in all His words and gracious in all His deeds” (Psalm 145:13b). This suggests that at some point, this verse was lost from the Hebrew text that became the MT (Waltke & O’Connor, 1990).

The Reading Culture of Early Christianity

Understanding the Significance of Textual Variants

The study of textual variants can help refine our understanding of biblical texts. For example, in Exodus 1:5, the ASV records that “all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls.” However, the Septuagint records that there were “seventy-five souls.” By comparing the Masoretic Text, Septuagint, and referencing Acts 7:14 in the English Standard Version (ESV) where Stephen says that there were “seventy-five” descendants, it appears the Septuagint and ESV might provide the more accurate number (McCartney & Clayton, 2011).

Even though these variants exist, they do not alter any foundational Christian doctrine or moral instruction. Indeed, all reliable translations of the Old Testament are consistent in teaching monotheism, God’s covenant promises, and moral commandments, among other key doctrines. Hence, although it is important to be aware of these textual variants and their potential impacts on interpretation, they should not weaken one’s confidence in the integrity and reliability of the biblical text as God’s inspired Word (Poythress, 2012).

The Methodology of Textual Criticism

The practice of textual criticism in Old Testament studies employs an array of methods and techniques to sift through the existing textual variants. This typically involves comparing the diverse witnesses to the Old Testament text: Masoretic Text, Septuagint, Dead Sea Scrolls, Samaritan Pentateuch, and others, to arrive at the most probable original reading.

The main goal of textual criticism is not to dismiss parts of the text as erroneous but to determine what the original authors, inspired by the Holy Spirit, likely wrote. It assumes that the variant readings arose during the transmission process of the text over centuries, rather than being part of the original inspired texts. Importantly, the practice of textual criticism operates under the conviction that the Old Testament is the inspired Word of God and that its core message remains clear despite the existence of minor textual variants (Würthwein & Fischer, 2014).

Case Studies of Textual Variants

Let’s delve into more specific instances of textual variants in the Old Testament:

Variant in Genesis 4:8: The Masoretic Text reads, “And Cain said to Abel his brother… And it happened when they were in the field, Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.” Here, Cain’s words to Abel are missing. However, the Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint, and Latin Vulgate include a possible original dialogue: “Let us go out to the field” (Brotzman & Tully, 2016). Likely Genesis 4:8 originally included two consecutive clauses that end with the expression “in(to) the field” (bassadeh). It is most likely that the scribe’s eye skipped over the earlier expression ending with the expression “into the field” to the same word in the second instance; therefore, accidentally omitting the quotation. Clearly, the LXX, as well as the SP, SYR, and the VG have been useful in identifying this error in the Hebrew text. The odds are increased greatly that “let us go over into the field” was in the original because of it being found in such a wide number of versions, especially with the Septuagint being one of those versions.

Variant in Deuteronomy 32:43: This verse in the Masoretic Text has three lines of praise, while the Dead Sea Scrolls (specifically, the Great Isaiah Scroll) and Septuagint versions have four and six lines of praise, respectively. This suggests that the additional lines might have been present in an older form of the text, which was lost in the Masoretic tradition (Tov, 2012).

⁴³“Be glad, you nations, with his people;[176]
for he will avenge the blood of his servants,
and he will repay vengeance to his adversaries
and will make atonement for the land of his people.[177]

[176] LXX “Rejoice, you heavens, with him, and let all the angels of God worship him; rejoice you nations, with his people, and let all the sons of God strengthen themselves in him.” Compare Heb 1:6.

[177] SP LXX VG “For the land of his people,” MT “for his land, for his people” SYR “for his land and for his people.”

Variant in 2 Samuel 5:4: The Masoretic Text states that David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. The Lucianic recension of the Septuagint, however, states he reigned for forty-seven years. This discrepancy is likely due to a transcriptional error (Brotzman & Tully, 2016).

These examples illustrate how textual variants in the Old Testament are often attributable to slips of the pen, misreadings, or misunderstandings by scribes copying the text.

Textual Variants and Theology

The variations in the biblical text should not be seen as threatening to faith or detrimental to its theological message. As demonstrated by the examples above, the vast majority of these discrepancies concern minor details and do not impact the fundamental theological teachings of the text.

Indeed, as argued by conservative scholars like D.A. Carson and R.T. France, the scrutiny of textual variants allows for a richer and more nuanced understanding of Scripture. It invites us to engage with the Word of God on a deeper level, acknowledging its human and historical elements while still recognizing its divine inspiration (Carson & France, 2003).

Conservative Protestant Perspective on Textual Variants

From a conservative Protestant perspective, the presence of textual variants in the Old Testament does not compromise the authority or trustworthiness of Scripture. As affirmed in the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy (1978), Scripture is inerrant and infallible in its original autographs, and the variants that exist in our present copies do not substantively alter its teachings.

Moreover, God’s sovereignty ensures that His Word is preserved throughout history despite human failings. So while the presence of variants invites careful study and thoughtful engagement, it should not deter us from trusting in the essential truths that the Old Testament continues to convey (Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, 1978).

Conclusion

Although the Old Testament contains textual variants, these differences do not undermine the overall message or the essential doctrines of the faith. Instead, they provide a deeper understanding of the historical transmission of the text. Despite the presence of these variants, the Old Testament remains an inspired, inerrant Word of God, bearing timeless wisdom, instruction, and revelation for those who seek it. Textual criticism enables us to appreciate the rich history of the Old Testament’s transmission, helping us to navigate its textual variants. Although these variants exist, they do not compromise the Scripture’s inerrancy and infallibility. Rather, they provide avenues for deeper understanding and engagement with the Word of God. Even more so, we can establish 99.99% of the Hebrew Old Testament words.

About the Author

EDWARD D. ANDREWS (AS in Criminal Justice, BS in Religion, MA in Biblical Studies, and MDiv in Theology) is CEO and President of Christian Publishing House. He has authored over 220+ books. In addition, Andrews is the Chief Translator of the Updated American Standard Version (UASV).

References

Andrews, Edward D. INTRODUCTION TO THE TEXT OF THE OLD TESTAMENT: From the Authors and Scribes to the Modern Critical Text. Christian Publishing House, 2023.
McCartney, Dan, and Charles Clayton. Let the Reader Understand: A Guide to Interpreting and Applying the Bible. P & R Publishing, 2011.
Poythress, Vern S. Inerrancy and Worldview: Answering Modern Challenges to the Bible. Crossway, 2012.
Provan, Iain, V. Philips Long, and Tremper Longman III. A Biblical History of Israel. Westminster John Knox Press, 2003.
Waltke, Bruce K., and M. O’Connor. An Introduction to Biblical Hebrew Syntax. Eisenbrauns, 1990.
Wegner, Paul D. A Student’s Guide to Textual Criticism of the Bible: Its History, Methods, and Results. InterVarsity Press, 2006.
Brotzman, Ellis R., and Eric J. Tully. Old Testament Textual Criticism: A Practical Introduction. Baker Academic, 2016.
Carson, D.A., and R.T. France. The New Bible Commentary. IVP Academic, 2003.
Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy. International Council on Biblical Inerrancy, 1978.
Tov, Emanuel. Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible. Fortress Press, 2012.
Würthwein, Ernst, and Alexander Achilles Fischer. The Text of the Old Testament: An Introduction to the Biblia Hebraica. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2014.