Scholar Interviews

LXX Scholar Interview: Dr. James K. Aitken

Today I have the pleasure of posting an interview with my doctoral supervisor, James K. Aitken, as a part of my ongoing series of LXX Scholar Interviews. Jim is lecturer in Hebrew, Old Testament, and Second Temple Studies at the University of Cambridge (and currently taking doctoral students). We have been working together since October 2014 and I have benefited immensely from his supervision, despite the various logistical problems we’ve had in the meantime!

As you will read about below, Jim is also quite active in the Septuagint guild and has contributed several key publications in the last few years. He brings a unique set of interests and expertise to the field and is in the midst of producing work that will certainly generate significant discussion within both Septuagint and Second Temple scholarly circles.

The Interview

1) Can you describe how you first became interested in LXX studies, and your training in the discipline?

My movement to Septuagint is a long and twisting story. I did as a teenager have a copy of the LXX (Brenton’s version only) since I was able to read Greek, but I only dipped into it. My initial training was in the field of Classics, taking a BA in Classics and an MA by thesis on Euripides (both at the University of Durham). As I had taught myself Hebrew out of linguistic interest, Robert Hayward, a College tutor at the time, suggested I take a qualification in Hebrew and so I took the course-work of the MA in Hebrew at the same time as the MA on Euripides.

When looking for a PhD topic the aim was to combine these two specialisations, and therefore the second temple period was suggested as a bridge between Classics and Hebrew studies. I opted for Ben Sira and the plan at that point had been to work on the Greek version of it. However, in the 1990s there was still much focus in LXX on statistical analysis and Ben Wright’s detailed study of Sirach had recently been published. I therefore quickly decided to work on the Hebrew text and had one chapter on the Greek, which was perfunctory and provisional. The thesis placed Ben Sira in his time and in the tradition of Jewish biblical exegesis. After PhD I worked on a Hebrew semantics project, which taught me issues in lexicography and allowed me to further my knowledge of Hebrew. During this time I published some brief papers on Septuagint words and language as I gradually learnt more about the field.

2) How have you participated in the discipline over the course of your teaching and writing career? 

After working on Hebrew semantics I finally returned to Septuagint full-time. My background in Classics, knowledge of second temple Judaism and experience in lexicography made me suited for working on a project at the University of Reading (The Greek Bible in the Graeco-Roman World), under the directorship of Tessa Rajak and Sarah Pearce. This examined the historical contextualisation of the Septuagint, including the use of words that had an import in Graeco-Roman society. Throughout this time I have also learned much from discussions with Jenny Dines (also on the project), John Lee and Trevor Evans, as well as colleagues in the SBL Biblical Lexicography Session.

My focus has been to interpret the LXX based on its text-linguistic character, language being for me a sure means of exegesis and a window into the socio-historical background. I am keen to see a proper analysis of the Greek as a starting point for understanding the translation, as well as a proper contextualisation of the translation in its time – which means sensitive readings of Second Temple Judaism and the Egyptian context.

Most of my publications have been in the form of papers, although some book projects are underway (see below). Recently published books are No Stone Unturned: Greek Inscriptions and Septuagint Vocabulary (Eisenbrauns, 2014) and The T&T Clark Companion to the Septuagint (Bloomsbury, 2015) [available soon on Logos].

3) How have you integrated LXX studies into your work as a professor?

The Septuagint is not a particular feature of my undergraduate teaching. It has a passing mention in courses on Hellenistic Judaism, but is probably too technical for anything more. At the Masters level I give one seminar on the Septuagint, and it is only at PhD that I can begin to introduce it more. In the UK system this is primarily in supervising PhD students, whom I am willing to supervise on topics such as the language and vocabulary of the Septuagint, and the exegesis of particular books. I try to run optional seminars sometimes on Septuagint related topics that Graduate students may attend, or reading classes on Greek texts, including papyri.

I would like to develop more Graduate training in the LXX, since there are many areas to master that a student ought to have competence in before tackling a PhD in the area. These include the manuscript history, text-criticism, both the Greek and Hebrew languages, documentary sources in Greek, history of second temple Judaism, etc.

4) How has the field changed since you’ve been involved and what would you like to see change?

In core elements the field has not changed. Certainly the number of people working in the field has grown and there seems to be even greater interest in the LXX now than ever. The field is having something of a revival, in a manner similar (as my colleague suggested to me) to targumic studies that saw a spate of activity after the discovery of Neofiti. I am not sure why LXX has become so popular recently (both for those doing it and for those wishing to read about it) but I wonder if the need to find new areas in biblical studies, and its importance for NT and early Christian theology have given rise to the surge. It is now cooler to be a LXX scholar than when I started, although it is still seen as a specialized side avenue of biblical studies.

One inevitable change is that some aspects receive greater emphasis now than others before, but I would not wish to minimize the questions asked by previous generations. Understandably more attention is being given to reception history; to the theological import of books; and to translation theory. At the same time an important recognition is that the LXX is not a secondary text of the bible but at times the prime witness to the literary history of the biblical text (see, for example, the work of K. de Troyer or J. Joosten).

What I would like to see more of is greater attention to the details. That is to say, while there is a greater focus on the intentions of the translator or the place of the translation in its historical context, that very historical context is often presented as a self-evident fact that can be stated. Thus, those who argue for historical contextualization often do it with little attention to the historical sources we have, and therefore derive grand conclusions from nothing or from an understanding of second temple Judaism that is insufficient or outdated. It would be fair to say that if we are to properly contextualize LXX books, as much time needs to be spent on historical analysis as on translation technique. I rarely see that done as yet.

One reason for the poor contextualization is that the evidence of the LXX is slight and tenuous, and it needs to be treated carefully. Those wishing to produce a thesis, often in the course of a limited PhD dissertation, tend to force the evidence towards a large conclusion, tottering on slender foundations. Significant conclusions of a historical or theological kind can only be built up from a large base of evidence, perhaps derived from more years of study than possible in a PhD.

5) For the benefit of graduate students who are potentially interested in LXX studies in doctoral work, what in your opinion are underworked areas and topics in need of further research?

I do not think there is any area that is overworked in LXX studies, so that any aspect of the field is possible. Currently for most books of the LXX, there has been only one or two monographs in the past century – an enviable position in biblical studies! Some books have now received more attention (Isaiah, Psalms, Minor Prophets) but there is still plenty to do even for them. So, a student may pick any book and still have plenty to say.

My overall answer is naturally to do the sorts of things that I do. First, there is still much to say about the language of the LXX, or of individual books. This should be a fundamental for the characterisation of a translation: the idioms used, the translation choices, the register of the vocabulary, the extent of neologisms, the use of Greek of the time, and so on. Attention to the evidence from papyri and inscriptions would help to elucidate some of these questions.

Second, we are still learning to appreciate the subtlety of the translation technique, and studies that examine the evidence carefully while thinking about translation issues and theory (and not just reading G. Toury) could take us much further.

Third, the relations between translations is an important but neglected indicator. Some studies have examined the use of the Pentateuch by later translations and others have considered the issue of intertextuality, but more needs to be done in placing the translations in their streams of tradition. They were not isolated individuals approaching a particular book but part of a tradition both of interpretation of the Hebrew and of the method of translation.

Fourth, as I have already mentioned, placing the translations within the history of Judaism, in their historical and theological contexts, is much needed. Most books on Hellenistic Judaism do not even mention the LXX, and it is the job of LXX scholars to place the translations better within their time period so that historians can learn from the intricacies of the discipline.

6) What current projects in Septuagint are you working on?

I have been working on a monograph for some years, and I hope I am nearing completion, on Greek Ecclesiastes and Jewish Cultural Identity. This examines the question as to why anyone would translate Ecclesiastes in the first place, and shows how we can interpret even a highly ‘literalistic’ translation through attention to the Greek.

My other project is a study of how and why the LXX Pentateuch was written (The Making of the Septuagint), looking at the physicality of the working method and the multilingual context in Egypt in which it was undertaken.

I am also on the editorial Board of the Historical and Theological Lexicon of the Septuagint (ed. E. Bons and J. Joosten) and wish to spend time in the coming years reading the submissions for that.

7) What is the future of Septuagint studies?

More people than ever are involved such that there is a greater market out there for research in the field. It will be important in the future for the results of our research to be integrated into second temple Judaism and even in Classics, as much as they are gradually being integrated into Hebrew Bible studies.

Wrapping Up

My thanks to Jim for his time and willingness to complete this interview. Hopefully the range of scholars I have selected is beginning to paint a more inviting picture for the field of Septuagint, and giving my readers some ideas for their own participation in it. Stay tuned for the next interview with Cameron Boyd-Taylor in due course.

LXX Scholar Interview: Dr. W. Edward Glenny

It has become one of my favorite tasks for this site to put together a post for my Septuagint Scholar Interview series. It’s always a pleasure to learn more about others who have been active in the field for some time. We are now on the fourth installment, and if you pop over to the interview page using that link up there, you’ll see that I have a few others lined up that should be interesting reading.

Dr. W. Edward Glenny

Dr. W. Edward Glenny

But today we have a great interview with a real, live Septuagint scholar, Dr. W. Edward Glenny. I met Ed several years ago at an IOSCS session at the SBL national meeting, and we have gotten to know each other through that venue ever since. Ed and his wife also spent several months at Tyndale House, Cambridge, where I conduct my research, so he has become a good friend. He is also a fellow member of the steering committee for the brand new Septuagint Studies session at the annual ETS national conference.

For the past four years Ed has been the endowed professor of New Testament Studies and Greek at the University of Northwestern, St. Paul. He is one of those rare breeds that holds not one, but two doctoral degrees, both Th.D. from Dallas Theological Seminary and Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota (as you’ll read about below). As you can see by flipping over to his faculty page, Ed has a long list of academic publications, many of which are related to the Septuagint, especially his focus area, the Twelve.

The Interview

Without further delays, let’s hear from Ed.

1) Can you describe how you first became interested in LXX studies, and your training in the discipline?

My first contact with the LXX was through a class on the LXX with Allen Ross during my doctoral program at Dallas Seminary. I audited the course with Dr. Ross, and it was partly because of that course that I wanted to write a dissertation on the use of the OT in the NT for my doctoral program at Dallas. I began to use the LXX in my dissertation at Dallas on the use of the OT in 1 Peter. After I finished that project I felt like I wanted to learn more and improve my language skills further, so I enrolled in a graduate program in classics at the University of Minnesota. I majored in Greek, and my second ancient language was Hebrew. So, with my emphasis on those two languages the LXX was a natural topic for my dissertation at Minnesota, and I wrote on the translation technique in LXX-Amos. That dissertation was published in Brill’s Supplement to Vetus Testamentum series (Finding Meaning in the Text: Translation Technique and Theology in the Septuagint of Amos), and it was really my entry into LXX studies. I was able to spend time at Tyndale House at Cambridge University while I was researching and writing my dissertation on the LXX, and Robert Gordon and some of his students who were working in the LXX were a great encouragement and help to me in my work.

2) How have you participated in the discipline over the course of your teaching and writing career?

I have presented papers in the IOSCS section at the annual SBL meetings, and I have also presented at the triennial international meetings of the IOSCS. I have also had the privilege to write several book reviews, articles, and books on the LXX. In addition to my dissertation I have published three commentaries in Brill’s Septuagint Commentary series, the commentaries on Hosea, Amos, and Micah. Among other articles, I contributed the article on the Introduction to the Twelve in the LXX in Brill’s forthcoming work The Textual History of the Bible. In the days ahead I am looking forward to writing several other volumes for Brill’s Septuagint Commentary series, as well as a handbook on the LXX of Amos for Baylor University Press.

4) How has the field changed since you’ve been involved?

I think that I can give a general answer to this question. The field is becoming more sophisticated and complex, and scholars continue to build on the work of previous generations and go to greater levels of depth in the study of the LXX text. Continued study has resulted in more comparison of the LXX with other contemporary literature and with more detailed studies of the Septuagint itself.

5) For the benefit of graduate students who are potentially interested in

LXX studies in doctoral work, what in your opinion are underworked areas and topics in need of further research? I think that the area of translation technique is one of the most important areas of research that will continue to provide opportunities for work in the LXX for years to come. This is because the study of translation technique is wide-ranging and complex and can be applied to a LXX text in many different ways.

6) What current projects in Septuagint are you working on?

My main LXX project right now is a review of the T&T Clark Companion to the Septuagint, edited by James K. Aitken. I published a commentary on LXX-Micah in early 2015, and now my main project is a New Testament commentary (1 Peter). But as I mentioned above I am looking forward to working in earnest on the LXX again in a year or so.

7) What is the future of Septuagint studies?

The future of Septuagint studies is very bright! There are many young scholars working in this area, and previous generations of scholars have provided them with some excellent tools to use in their studies and more LXX resources and studies are being published every year. I anticipate that the field will continue to grow and flourish.

Wrapping Up

Thanks to Ed for being willing to answer these questions! As I mentioned, stay tuned for further interviews in the near future. If you have a suggestion for a later interviewee, or a question you’d like to see added, please let me know in the comments.

LXX Scholar Interview: Dr. John Meade

It’s time for another installment in my ongoing “Septuagint Scholar Interview” series. For reference, some of my previous as well as upcoming interviews are located on this page. Today we have the opportunity to hear from one of the younger scholars active in Septuagint studies, John Meade. John is a graduate of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (MDiv, PhD), where he studied with Dr. Peter Gentry.

John has been assistant professor of Old Testament at Phoenix Seminary in Arizona since 2012, teaching a variety of courses. He also maintains involvement in the Hexapla Institute (see here also), which you’ll read more about below. Consequently and most importantly for our purposes here, John is active in Septuagint studies, and to that we now turn our attention:

The Interview

1) Can you describe how you first became interested in LXX studies, and your training in the discipline?

Will, thanks for including me in your series of interviews. I think it’s important to highlight what others are doing in the field of Septuagint studies.

My interest in LXX studies was first ignited during my time at bible college as a biblical languages major. My professors mentioned the LXX as a part of the background to the New Testament, but as scholars of the Hebrew Bible and the Greek New Testament, they did not explain the value of the LXX in its own right nor as a tool for the study of the Old Testament text. However, when I arrived at Southern Seminary, I became acquainted with Peter Gentry and my interest in the LXX and a number of cognate areas deepened as a result. I was instructed to “sell all I have to buy a Septuagint.” It changed my life :).

2) How have you participated in the discipline over the course of your teaching and writing career?

I contributed several articles on the pre-hexaplaric and hexaplaric versions of the Hebrew Bible for the forthcoming Textual History of the Bible edited by Armin Lange for Brill.

I had the opportunity to present a paper on a new catena manuscript of Job at the IOSCS Congress in Munich in 2013. It has been a joy to participate in other society meetings over the years.

3) How have you integrated LXX studies into your work as a professor?

PS Logo-2Very deliberately 🙂. I’ve had the opportunity to teach a Readings in the Septuagint course at my institution and I’m teaching it again currently. My hope is that this course (and hopefully others like it) will inspire Master’s level students to pursue this topic more seriously.

For those students who do not take this course, my Hebrew exegesis courses have a strong text criticism element and students must utilize the LXX among the rest of the versions in order to complete the assignments.

I weave the LXX into my bible survey courses when teaching on the issues of canon and text. Basically, I desire to expose every student, who enrolls in one of my classes, to the LXX to one degree or another. It’s too important a subject to ignore.

4) For the benefit of graduate students who are potentially interested in LXX studies in doctoral work, what in your opinion are underworked areas and topics in need of further research?

The discipline has many desiderata. Fundamental for the discipline is the need for critical editions of the Old Greek. Critical editions of many of the patristic commentaries would aid in the reconstruction of the Old Greek. We need more critical editions of the daughter versions such as the one Claude Cox edited for the Armenian version of Job (Peeters). We need critical editions of the hexaplaric fragments so that scholars can continue to sift Old Greek from later reception. In 1985, Albert Pietersma made a “Plea for a Return to Basic Issues” pertaining to LXX Studies (VT XXXV, 3). I think the discipline would do well to return to these basic issues and to recapture the vision for critical editions. Graduate students could enter into these projects at a number of levels.

5) What current projects in Septuagint are you working on?

I’m currently making the final edits to my critical edition of the hexaplaric fragments of Job 22-42 for the Hexapla Institute (www.hexapla.org). I hope to have a manuscript submitted to the editorial committee and Peeters by early June.

Hexaplaric fragments of Isaiah for the Hexapla Institute.

I’m also engaged in some exciting, cross disciplinary research on the Hexapla with Peter Gentry (Southern Seminary), Michael Graves (Wheaton), and Francesca Schironi (University of Michigan). Hopefully, we will have a monograph out within the next couple of years.

6) What is the future of Septuagint studies?

It’s bright. There are many students and younger scholars engaging in this field. I’m encouraged about the future of the discipline.

I’m happy to have had John for this ongoing series. It’s good to see the face of the younger generation of scholars in this discipline, along with those who have been perpetuating it over that past few decades. If you have suggestions for other scholars you’d like to see interviewed, leave a comment below.