LXX Amos 9:13

Septuagint

11 All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, who say, Calamities shall certainly not draw near, nor come upon us. 12 In that day I will raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and will rebuild the ruins of it, and will set up the parts thereof that have been broken down, and will build it up as in the ancient days: 13 that the remnant of men, and all the Gentiles upon whom my name is called, may earnestly seek me, saith the Lord who does all these things. 14 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when the harvest shall overtake the vintage, and the grapes shall ripen at seedtime; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall be planted. 15 And I will turn the captivity of my people Israel, and they shall rebuild the ruined cities, and shall inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and shall drink the wine from them; and they shall form gardens, and eat the fruit of them.

Acts 15:16

New Testament

14 Simeon has explained how God first concerned himself to select from among the Gentiles a people for his name. 15 The words of the prophets agree with this, as it is written, 16 ‘After this I will return, and I will rebuild the fallen tent of David; I will rebuild its ruins and restore it, 17 so that the rest of humanity may seek the Lord, namely, all the Gentiles I have called to be my own,’ says the Lord, who makes these things 18 known from long ago.

 Notes and References

"... Luke’s citation from Amos continues, “so that the rest of humanity might seek the Lord, and all the nations on whom my name has been invoked, says the Lord who is doing these things.” When we consult the LXX, we discover the words “the Lord” are absent. The LXX has simply, “the rest of humanity might seek.” Luke apparently has supplied the proper object of the seeking. What is even more striking, however, is the LXX’s having “that they might seek” at all. In the Masoretic text of Amos 9:12, there is instead this: “that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations who are called by my name, says the Lord who does this” ... It appears that the LXX translators read the Hebrew [of Amos 9:12] before them as yîrsu (from yaras´, “possess”) as yidre˘rshû (from daras, “seek”), and they read ’edom (Edom) as ’adam (humanity). The Masoretic text of Amos envisaged a restored Davidic dynasty in an expansionist mode. The LXX changed it to a restored people that attracts humanity to itself. It is this sense, rooted entirely in the LXX but impossible in the Hebrew, that Luke has James exploit as a text that prefigures the attraction of the Gentiles into the “restored people of God” that is the Christian movement ..."

Johnson, Luke Timothy Septuagintal Midrash in the Speeches of Acts (pp. 17-18) Marquette University Press, 2002

 User Comments

Do you have questions or comments about these texts? Please submit them here.