Hebrew Wordplay and Septuagint Translation Technique in the Fourth Book of the Psalter

"This volume examines numerous Hebrew wordplays not identified and discussed in previous research, and the technique of the Septuagint translators, by offering another criterion of evaluation - essentially, their concern about the style of translating Hebrew into Greek. Elizabeth Backfish's study analyzes seventy-four wordplays employed by the Hebrew poets of Psalms 90-106, and how the Septuagint renders Hebrew wordplay in Greek. Backfish estimates that the Septuagint translators were able to render 31% of the Hebrew semantic and phonetic wordplays (twenty-four total), most of which required some sort of transformation, or change, to the text in order to function in Greek. After providing a thorough summary of research methods on wordplay, definitions and research methodology, Backfish summarizes all examples of wordplay within the Fourth Psalter, and concludes with examples of the wordplay's replication, similar rendition or textual variation in the Septuagint. Emphasising the creativity and ingenuity of the Septuagint translators' work in passages that commentators often too quickly identify as the results of scribal error or a variant Vorlage from the Masoretic text, Backfish shows how the aptitude and flexibility displayed in the translation technique also contributes to conversations in modern translation studies."--Bloomsbury Publishing Cover Title Copyright Dedication Contents List of Tables List of Symbols Acknowledgments Chapter 1 Introduction Research on Wordplay within the Hebrew Bible Research on the Septuagint, Translation Technique, and Its Use of Wordplay Contexts of LXX Psalms Characterizing the Translation Technique of the LXX in General and Psalms in Particular LXX Translation of Rhetorical and Literary Devices The Study of Wordplay in Literary Theory Historical Review The Linguistic Nature of Wordplay in Modern Theory Definitions Defining Wordplay A Typology of Wordplay Research Methodology General Methodological Concerns Methodology for Identifying Wordplay in the MT and the LXX Chapter 2 Writing the Right Words: Wordplay Within Book IV of the Hebrew Psalter Wordplay in Psalm 90 Wordplay in Psalm 91 Wordplay in Psalm 92 Wordplay in Psalm 93 Wordplay in Psalm 94 Wordplay in Psalm 95 Wordplay in Psalm 96 Wordplay in Psalm 97 Wordplay in Psalms 98–100 Wordplay in Psalm 101 Wordplay in Psalm 102 Wordplay in Psalm 103 Wordplay in Psalm 104 Wordplay in Psalm 105 Wordplay in Psalm 106 Summary of Findings Conclusion Chapter 3 LXX Translation of Wordplay in Book IV of the Psalms : Writing the Right Words from Left to Right Analysis of the LXX’s Translation Technique of Hebrew Wordplay Wordplays Represented in the LXX LXX Replicates the Same Wordplay LXX Represents a Similar Wordplay Wordplays Not Represented in the LXX LXX Renders the Sense of the Wordplay Textual Variations in the LXX Translation of Wordplay Conclusions Chapter 4 Conclusion Empirical Findings Contributions of this Study Contribution to Wordplay Studies Contribution to Hebrew Exegesis Contribution to Septuagint Studies Contribution to the Theological Interpretation of Psalms Contribution to Communication Theory Recommendations for Further Study Bibliography Index of References Index of Authors