New Greek Septuagint Manuscript Transcription and Translation

New Greek Septuagint Manuscript Transcription and Translation

The latest volume of the Oxyrhynchus Papyri (Volume 88, released May 2025) has two new manuscripts containing portions of the Greek Septuagint translation of Genesis 24:21-27, 31-36, and Exodus 20:12–20, 24–6; 21:1–4 published.

As with all recent volumes of the Oxyrhynchus Papyri, digital images of the manuscripts are published online. This makes it easy for anyone to look over the manuscripts, and perform their own research.

As such TWTY has now published a new transcription and translation of P. Oxy. 88 5632, also known as Rahlfs 5013 (Rahlf’s is a list of all Greek Septuagint Manuscripts). Especially helpful for those who would like to see how this manuscript copy of the Greek Septuagint compares against the Hebrew.

Graphical Style

This manuscript would seem to be of the Severe Style Upright variety. This is a type of Greek handwriting used in the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE. The editor for the Oxyrhynchus volume has dated the manuscript to be from the 3rd century CE.

The earliest dateable manuscript of the Severe Style Upright is known as PSI 11 1188, which is written on the back of a register of barley payments dating to 175 CE, hence giving what’s known as a Terminus post quem (date after which a document could have been copied). As such P. Oxy. 5632 could also be placed before the end of the 2nd century, but not earlier than 175 CE.

Our latest dateable manuscript is P. Oxy 52 3673, which was written before the end of the 3rd century CE, thus giving us a Terminus ante quem (date before which a document could have been copied). Therefore P. Oxy. 5632 fits between the dates of 180 CE- 299 CE, so the editor’s placement in the 3rd century CE is sufficient, though we cannot rule out a copying date before the end of the 2nd century CE either.

Nomina Sacra

Another interesting facet within this manuscript is the use of the Nomina Sacra, of which an extant example is on the verso, line 22. This would therefore likely indicate that the copyist was working for an Ecclesiastic congregation as opposed to a Jewish one.

The PDF file of the transcription and translation of P. Oxy. 88 5562 is available from the Downloads Page.

Update! New Section, and More!

For the year of 2018, TWTY will be endeavouring to be giving a few more updates than has been occurring the past year or so, so it gives me great pleasure to announce a new section for TWTY: Septuagint/LXX Manuscript Transcriptions.

This is a ‘sister’ section to the Ancient Papyrus one (which concentrates on Renewed Covenant manuscripts), and is already a collaborative one, with Dr. Th.A.W. van der Louw of the Protestant Theological University (Netherlands), and SIL International Member, kindly providing a transcription of one of the oldest Septuagint Manuscripts (P. Ryl. 458). With his permission I have turned the transcription into TWTY format, which can be downloaded from here.

Another release is provided by TWTY reader Galen, who has created two Bibleworks Databases that contain the TC Editions of the DSS text! Due to the limitations of the Bibleworks Software, both Greek and Hebrew portions are in separate files. Despite this, it is still readable and searchable, giving greater capabilities for those with the Bibleworks Software.

Give the modules a download from here.

Here’s to more updates like this in the future!