Cunning or Clever? An Analysis of the Unique Rendering of עָרוּם by φρόνιμος to Denote the Snake in Gen 3:1

De Doncker, Ellen;Beeckman, Bryan
(2024) LXXSA Annual Conference: Stories Through the Ages. Approaching LXX Narratives Afresh — Location: Potchefstroom (South Africa) (15.April.2024)

Files

PPTLXXSA2024.pptx
  • Open Access
  • Microsoft Powerpoint XML
  • 12.12 MB
Download

Details

Authors
Abstract
The figure of the snake in the second creation account of Genesis has sparked the imagination of many throughout (art) history. Mostly, this serpent has been labelled as a cunning and deceitful animal which played an important role in the so-called ‘fall of man.’ This attributive quality has its roots in the Masoretic Text (MT) which introduces the snake as being the most עָרוּם (‘crafty’) of all animals in Gen 3:1. Remarkably, the Septuagint (LXX) translation of Genesis renders this lexeme by φρόνιμος (‘wise’). The fact that this is the only instance in the LXX corpus where עָרוּם is rendered by φρόνιμος is even more surprising. Although multiple scholars have described the translation technique of the LXX translator of Genesis in great detail, none of them has provided an explanation on why the translator opted for this specific rendering to denote the snake in Gen 3:1. Therefore, this study will examine this unique rendering and aims at providing a decisive conclusion to the question why the translator opted to render עָרוּם by φρόνιμος for the snake’s quality in Gen 3:1.
Affiliations

Citations

  • APA
  • Chicago
  • FWB

De Doncker, E., & Beeckman, B. (2024). Cunning or Clever? An Analysis of the Unique Rendering of עָרוּם by φρόνιμος to Denote the Snake in Gen 3:1. LXXSA Annual Conference: Stories Through the Ages. Approaching LXX Narratives Afresh, Potchefstroom (South Africa). https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/213324