Cunning or Clever? An Analysis of the Unique Rendering of ‘ārûm by phronimos to Characterise the Snake in Genesis 3:1
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 roo...
| Authors: | ; |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2025
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| In: |
Journal of early Christian history
Year: 2025, Volume: 15, Issue: 2, Pages: 57-81 |
| IxTheo Classification: | HA Bible HB Old Testament VA Philosophy |
| Further subjects: | B
Snake
B LXX Genesis B creation narrative B translation technique |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | 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 ‘ārûm (crafty) of all animals in Gen 3:1. Remarkably, the Septuagint (LXX) translation of Genesis renders this lexeme by phronimos (wise). The fact that this is the only instance in the LXX corpus where ‘ārûm is rendered by phronimos is even more surprising. Although several scholars have described the translation technique of the LXX translator of Genesis in great detail, none have provided an explanation for 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 to provide a decisive conclusion to the question of why the translator opted to render ‘ārûm by phronimos to denote the snake’s nature in Gen 3:1. |
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| ISSN: | 2471-4054 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of early Christian history
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/2222582X.2025.2568467 |