Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible (review)

Abstract

Hebrew Studies 35 (1994) 232 Reviews topics. In the end, by insisting on the operational priority of the synchronic analysis, Talstra sets himself in opposition to the approach of Richter and his followers (Dietrich, Veijola), who begin with historical criticism in order to determine a more original text as a first stage, thus effectively putting the diachronic cart before the synchronic horse. Richard D. Nelson Lutheran Theological Seminary Gettysburg. PA 15243 TEXTUAL CRITICISM OF THE HEBREW BIBLE. By Emanuel Tov. Pp. xl + 456. Minneapolis: Fortress Press; Assen, the Netherlands: Van Gorcum, 1992. Cloth, $40.00. "[Textual criticism] is an art in the full sense of the word, a faculty which can be developed, guided by intuition based on wide experience" (p. 309). Emanuel Tov's wide experience is the foundation for this seemingly scientific guide to the art of textual criticism. Tov's many contributions to this aspect of biblical study are well known, especially his work on the Septuagint and more recently on the Dead Sea Scrolls. One would be hard pressed to think of a candidate more qualified than Tov to write a work such as this. The work under review is a revised and enlarged English edition of Tov's Biqqoret Nusah ha-Miqra'- Pirqe Mabo' (Jerusalem: Mosad Bialik, 1989), a reworking which the author describes as extensive (p. xxxv). More than simply an expression of Tov's scholarship, this work grows out of his experience teaching textual criticism in the classroom. The book not only balances an objective survey of the state of the art with Tov's personal approach to various issues, it also combines much of interest to specialists in a manner accessible to those using this work as an introductory textbook. The book is laid out in nine chapters of highly variable length (ranging from 4.5 pages [chap. 5] to 133 pages [chap. 2]), preceded by abbreviations and basic bibliography, and followed by a collection of 30 plates as well as indices of ancient sources, authors, and subjects. Each chapter and subsection has its own, often lengthy, bibliography. Tov has obviously thought carefully about the arrangement of this work, and sticks to it with rugged determination. What the book thus gains in clarity, it sometimes loses in extensive cross-references. Hebrew Studies 35 (1994) 233 Reviews Tov begins with an apologia for the task of textual criticism in biblical studies, highlighting various kinds of textual problems to be found in the Tanak. This provides the preparation for the marathon journey undertaken through chap. 2, in which Tov traverses exhaustively the textual witnesses used as evidence by text critics of the Hebrew Bible. This includes matters preserved by the Masoretic tradition itself as well as other textual traditions such as the Samaritan Pentateuch and related texts, the DSS, and the ancient translations, with the Septuagint here receiving pride of place. This lengthy tour reminds one how much of "scholarship" is simply (!) careful description . The variety of witnesses raises the question of the history of the biblical text, treated in chaps. 3 and 4, the former dealing with the history of scholarship and theoretical concerns, the latter describing technical matters of scribal transmission. With chap. 5 Tov embarks on a slightly different task, that of working through the nuts-and-bolts of the job of the text critic. According to Tov, text critics collect and evaluate variant readings or texts, often with a view to determining an "original" fonn of the text. It is not always obvious whether Tov is being prescriptive or merely descriptive, but he leaves no doubt that one must choose what stage of textual transmission is being examined, with Tov's own choice limiting textual evaluation to "readings created during textual transmission. excluding those created in earlier stages, during the literary growth of the book, even though they are included in textual witnesses" (p. 291). The principles guiding the task of evaluation are outlined in chap. 6, which describes varieties of evidence (internal and external) as well as the axioms of text critical practice (e.g., lectio dijJicilior and lectio brevior). He concludes by pointing out the limitation of such rules and stressing the importance of experience and common sense...