What is the Septuagint?
The Septuagint is the traditional name for the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament. It is often abbreviated as LXX. It first arose especially for Jews who did not know Hebrew or who used Greek as their everyday language, and it was later used widely by early…
The Septuagint is the traditional name for the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament. It is often abbreviated as LXX. It first arose especially for Jews who did not know Hebrew or who used Greek as their everyday language, and it was later used widely by early Christians as well.
This translation was not produced all at once as a single unified work. In the traditional account, the Torah was translated first and the other books were rendered into Greek over different periods afterward. The name "Septuagint" comes from an old tradition about seventy or seventy-two translators. The historical details of that story are not certain, but the name has remained. In practice, when we speak of the Septuagint, we mean the ancient Greek textual tradition of the Hebrew Scriptures.
Its importance is great for several reasons. First, it helps show how sacred texts were being read in early Judaism. Second, when New Testament writers quote the Old Testament, in many places they use wording closer to the Septuagint. That indicates that the earliest Christian communities lived within a Greek-speaking scriptural environment. Third, there are places where the Septuagint differs from the Hebrew Masoretic Text, and those differences matter for textual history and interpretation.
Care is needed here: not every difference between the Septuagint and the Masoretic Text means a translation mistake or a theological alteration. Sometimes the issue is the translator's interpretive choice, and sometimes it may reflect a different Hebrew Vorlage. For that reason, specialists study such differences case by case, and sweeping generalizations are not responsible.
The Septuagint holds a particularly strong place in Catholic and Orthodox traditions; in the Orthodox world its liturgical and theological influence can be especially visible. The Protestant tradition usually bases Old Testament translation on the Hebrew text, yet still regards the Septuagint as a highly important historical and interpretive witness. In short, the Septuagint is not merely an old translation, but a crucial bridge for understanding both Jewish and Christian textual history.