Revisiting the inerrant Bible, a fresh perspective
From a Karaite/Tanakh-only perspective, the Septuagint (LXX)—the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures—is often viewed as the "first step" in the corruption of the pure Word of God. While it was originally a tool for Greek-speaking Jews, it later became the primary text used by the New Testament writers to justify deviations from the Sinai Covenant.
Here are 20 ways the Septuagint has been viewed as a corruption or a "twisting" of the original Hebrew (Masoretic) text:
1. The "Virgin" birth (Isaiah 7:14)
The Hebrew uses Almah (young woman), but the LXX used Parthenos (virgin). This change laid the linguistic foundation for the NT to claim a biological miracle where the Hebrew text only spoke of a young woman in King Ahaz’s time.
2. The "Pierced" hands (Psalm 22:16)
The Hebrew text reads Ka’ari ("Like a lion" my hands and feet). The LXX changed this to Oryxan ("They dug/pierced"), creating a crucifixion prophecy out of a metaphor about a man surrounded by predators.
3. Chronology of the Patriarchs (Genesis 5 & 11)
The LXX adds roughly 1,300 years to the biblical timeline by adding 100 years to the age of various patriarchs when they fathered their sons. This alters the entire Seder Olam (Order of the World).
4. Inclusion of the Apocrypha
The LXX included books never found in the Hebrew Canon (Tobit, Judith, Maccabees). This blurred the line between the "Word of YHWH" and human historical fiction.
5. The "Angel" substitution (Psalm 8:5)
The Hebrew says man was made a little lower than Elohim (God/Divine beings). The LXX translated this as "angels," softening the radical status God gave to humanity and changing the hierarchy of the Sinai order.
6. The 70 vs. 75 Souls (Genesis 46:27 / Exodus 1:5)
The Hebrew text says 70 members of Jacob’s house went to Egypt. The LXX changed it to 75. This discrepancy was later used in the NT (Acts 7:14) to contradict the Torah’s count.
7. The Deletion of "God’s Work" (Genesis 2:2)
The Hebrew says God finished His work on the Seventh day. The LXX changed it to the Sixth day to avoid the "logical problem" of God working on the Sabbath.
8. Introduction of "Hades" (Psalm 16:10)
The Hebrew uses Sheol (the grave). The LXX uses Hades, importing Greek mythological concepts of a "shadowy underworld" into the clean, dust-to-dust theology of the Tanakh.
9. Modification of God’s Name
The LXX replaced the Tetragrammaton (YHWH) with Kyrios (Lord). This led to the "Lord" title being applied to men later in history, obscuring the unique, unshareable Name of the Creator.
10. The "Stone of Stumbling" (Isaiah 8:14)
The LXX softens the Hebrew text, which describes YHWH Himself as the "stumbling stone." By altering the syntax, the Greek text made it easier for later writers to apply this "stone" title to a human figure.
11. Changing "The Law" to "Instruction"
The Hebrew Torah has the force of Law/Constitution. The Greek Nomos can be interpreted more loosely, which eventually allowed theologians to argue that the "Law" was a temporary burden rather than an eternal Covenant.
12. The Cainan Interpolation (Genesis 11:12)
The LXX adds a person named "Cainan" into the genealogy between Arphaxad and Shelah. He does not exist in the Hebrew text, yet he appears in NT genealogies (Luke 3:36) because they relied on the flawed Greek text.
13. Softening the "Chosen" status (Deuteronomy 32:8)
The Hebrew says nations were divided according to the "Number of the Children of Israel." The LXX changes this to "Angels of God," shifting the focus away from the physical nation of Israel.
14. The "Coming One" (Habakkuk 2:3)
The Hebrew says the vision will "surely come." The LXX changes it to "He [a person] will surely come," turning a promise of a prophetic event into a promise of a specific man’s arrival.
15. The "Curse" of the Tree (Deuteronomy 21:23)
The Hebrew says a hanged man is a "curse of God." The LXX subtly shifts the grammar, which allowed Paul in Galatians 3:13 to claim Jesus became a curse for us, a concept foreign to the Hebrew sacrificial system.
16. The Command to "Worship Him" (Deuteronomy 32:43)
The LXX adds a long phrase: "Let all the angels of God worship him." This is not in the Hebrew text. It was added to the Greek to justify the worship of a secondary figure.
17. The "Broken Heart" (Psalm 34:18)
The LXX adds words to the Hebrew to make the "broken heart" sound more like a requirement for a "New Birth" ritual rather than the simple humility the Psalmist intended.
18. The "Desire of Nations" (Haggai 2:7)
The Hebrew refers to the "treasures" (plural) of the nations coming to the Temple. The LXX makes it singular—the "Desire"—to point toward a single individual messiah.
19. Circumcision of the "Foreskin" (Genesis 17:14)
The LXX adds "on the eighth day" to the warning of being cut off, which is not in the original Hebrew verse 14. This adds human-made conditions to the divine threat.
20. The "Translation" of the Sabbath
In various places, the LXX translates "Sabbaths" (plural) in ways that allowed for the later "Lord’s Day" (Sunday) argument to take root, moving away from the specific, fixed 7th-day sign of the Sinai Covenant.
Conclusion
For a Karaite, the Septuagint is a prime example of why Deuteronomy 4:2 is so important. By adding to or taking away from the Hebrew words, the LXX "Gentilized" the Tanakh, creating the cracks that the Church later used to dismantle the Torah.
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