Tobit: The Book of Tobit in Codex Sinaiticus. By ROBERT J. LITTMAN.

Abstract

This volume offers a very useful commentary, mostly solid but not ground-breaking, on a once neglected Septuagintal book. After a list of more than 30 major manuscripts (Greek, Latin, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Syriac), plus a map of the Assyrian empire in the eight century bce, the volume begins with a 30-page introduction, covering topics such as textual witnesses, canonicity, original language (probably Aramaic), date of origin (third or second century bce), place of composition (uncertain), plot, historical setting, themes (e.g. kinship), Ancient Near Eastern parallels (the Assyrian story of Ahiqar and the Egyptian tale of Khons), Greek dialect, and modern commentaries. Thereafter the volume provides the Greek text of Tobit from Codex Sinaiticus with an English translation on each facing page. The main part of the volume (the next 120 pages) consists of commentary on the Sinaiticus text, dealing with both linguistic and theological matters. Near the end of the volume Littman presents the shorter Greek text of Tobit from Codex Vaticanus, again with an English translation on each facing page, but without a separate commentary. The volume ends with a bibliography, plus indexes of topics and biblical references.