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LXX Psalms

Septuagint

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Psalm 13

1 For the end, a Psalm of David. The fool has said in his heart, There is no God. They have corrupted themselves, and become abominable in their devices; there is none that does goodness, there is not even so much as one. 2 The Lord looked down from heaven upon the sons of men, to see if there were any that understood, or sought after God. 3 They have all gone out of the way, they have together become good for nothing, there is none that does good, no not one.⁠ Their throat is an open tomb; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips:⁠ whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness; their feet are swift to shed blood:⁠ destruction and misery are in their ways; and the way of peace they have not known:⁠ there is no fear of God before their eyes. 4 Will not all the workers of iniquity know, who eat up my people as they would eat bread? they have not called upon the Lord. 5 There were they alarmed with fear, where there was no fear; for God is in the righteous generation. 6 You have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his hope. 7 Who will bring the salvation of Israel out of Zion? when the Lord brings back the captivity of his people, let Jacob exult, and Israel be glad.

Texts in conversation

Compare LXX Psalm 13:3 and Romans 3:13

Septuagint · New Testament

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Summary

The Greek Septuagint translation of Psalm 13, verse 3 is much longer than its Hebrew source, adding a description of throats, tongues, lips, feet and eyes. In Romans, Paul quotes that longer version in his own rhetoric.

Passages

LXX Psalm 13:3

Septuagint
1 For the end, a Psalm of David. The fool has said in his heart, There is no God. They have corrupted themselves, and become abominable in their devices; there is none that does goodness, there is not even so much as one. 2 The Lord looked down from heaven upon the sons of men, to see if there were any that understood, or sought after God. 3 They have all gone out of the way, they have together become good for nothing, there is none that does good, no not one. Their throat is an open tomb; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness; their feet are swift to shed blood: destruction and misery are in their ways; and the way of peace they have not known: there is no fear of God before their eyes.
100–1 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in LXX Psalms

Romans 3:13

New Testament
12 All have turned away; together they have become worthless; there is no one who shows kindness, not even one.” 13 “Their throats are open graves; they deceive with their tongues; the poison of asps is under their lips.” 14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.” 15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood; 16 ruin and misery are in their paths, 17 and the way of peace they have not known.” 18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
55–58 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Romans

References

“... The diatribal exchange is organized in two double sentences matching those in 3:1-8, with a double question by the interlocutor in v. 9a-b and a double answer by Paul in v. 9c-d. The exchange is followed by a carefully constructed catena of scriptural citations in vv. 10-18 that draws together themes from earlier portions of the argument of Romans and makes a compelling case that all persons including the chosen people are under the power of sin. The catena probably originated in a Jewish milieu, and with the exception of the slight redaction of LXX Ps 13:1-2 in vv. 3:10-11, the rest is found verbatim in several manuscript traditions of LXX Ps 13:3. Paul reframes the catena by eliminating references to the “fool” in Ps 13:1 and omitting 13:4-7, which refer to “my people,” “the righteous generation,” and God’s “people” who are to be brought back from captivity. Paul thus eliminates the psalm’s contrast between the righteous and the wicked. ...”
Robert Jewett, Romans: A Commentary (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2007), 254.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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LXX Psalm 13:3 and Romans 3:13

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