The Syriac Version of the Wisdom of Ben Sira Compared to the Greek and Hebrew Materials

The Syriac Version of the Wisdom of Ben Sira Compared to the Greek and Hebrew MaterialsSyriaca.org: The Syriac Reference PortalThe National Endowment for the HumanitiesThe International Balzan Prize FoundationDavid A. Michelsoncbsc_adminRecord added to Zotero bycbsc_adminSyriaca.org: The Syriac Reference Portalhttp://syriaca.org/cbss/XF8IBZDT/tei

Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.

2024-08-15-04:00

Born digital.

CREATED: This bibl record was autogenerated from a Zotero record.Milward DouglasNelsonThe Syriac Version of the Wisdom of Ben Sira Compared to the Greek and Hebrew Materialshttp://syriaca.org/cbss/XF8IBZDThttps://www.zotero.org/groups/a_comprehensive_bibliography_on_syriac_studies/items/XF8IBZDThttps://www.zotero.org/groups/4861694/items/XF8IBZDT1981The Jewish wisdom book, The Wisdom of Jesus Ben Sira, has been available for a very long time in Greek, Latin, and Syriac versions. However, its original Hebrew form had been lost since the Middle Ages. Since 1896 and following when five Hebrew manuscripts were discovered in Cairo, and 1964 when a very old Hebrew manuscript was found at Masada in Israel, there has been a debate on the origin and authenticity of these manuscripts. This debate has culminated in a general scholarly consensus that the Hebrew materials, both Masada and Cairo (with some corruptions) are faithful copies of the original Wisdom of Jesus Ben Sira in Hebrew. The problem to be solved in this dissertation was that of determining the relationship of the Syriac Version to the Hebrew and Greek materials, and while doing that to characterize the Syriac Version in whatever unique features might appear. The procedure employed in attempting to solve this problem took place in two phases. First, all of the textual material extant in the Masada manuscript was translated and compared to the Cairo manuscripts and Greek versions. The Syriac Version was then studied and a comparative translation was produced for all the texts and versions and comparative charts and tables were drawn up, showing the various relationships between the Syriac Version and the other materials. And second, a thorough re-reading of all secondary materials was done and at this point, final conclusions were formed. The final conclusion of the dissertation is this: The Syriac Version of the Wisdom of Ben Sira was made from a Hebrew original which bore a close relationship to both the Cairo manuscripts and the Masada manuscript. The translation was done before the Hebrew materials had taken the form seen in the Cairo manuscripts. The Syriac translator was dependent upon a Greek version for the meaning of many passages, but he did not translate from Greek originally. By the middle of the fifth century A.D. the Syriac Version had undergone a Christian revision. This was not a complete revision, but by means of some additions, omissions, and alterations, the Syriac Version was made more acceptable to Christian readers. Nelson, Milward Douglas. “The Syriac Version of the Wisdom of Ben Sira Compared to the Greek and Hebrew Materials.” Ph.D. dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles, 1981. Milward Douglas Nelson, The Syriac Version of the Wisdom of Ben Sira Compared to the Greek and Hebrew Materials (Ph.D. dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles, 1981).Ben SiraOT apocryphaOld TestamentPeshitta OT