What the Septuagint Adds That the Masoretic Text Leaves Out

0:00 – Introduction: Septuagint vs. Masoretic Text Books 0:41 – 1 Esdras 1:23 – Tobit 2:16 – Judith 3:28 – 1 Maccabees 4:47 – 2 Maccabees 6:11 – 3 Maccabees 7:00 – Psalm 151 7:17 – The Prayer of Manasseh 7:47 – Wisdom of Solomon 9:36 – Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 11:06 – Baruch 12:37 – Letter of Jeremiah 13:22 – Psalms of Solomon 13:48 – 4 Maccabees 14:56 – Additions in Genesis (Genesis 1:8) 15:32 – Additions in Esther 16:31 – Additions in Job 17:26 – Additions in Daniel (Susanna, Song of the Three Children, Bel & the Dragon) 19:49 – Differences in the Numbering of Psalms & "Selah" 21:09 – Differences in Jeremiah 21:26 – Saul & David Discrepancy (1 Samuel 17) 22:38 – Ahaziah’s Age Discrepancy (2 Chronicles 22:2) 24:33 – Genesis 5 Genealogies & Methuselah's Death 26:46 – Conclusion The Septuagint (LXX) contains a substantial body of material absent from the later Hebrew Masoretic Text (MT), including entire books, major insertions within canonical books, and systematic differences in chronology and arrangement that shaped how early Christians read the Old Testament. Beyond the MT’s 39 books, the LXX tradition preserves additional writings such as 1 Esdras (which blends Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and extra Zerubbabel material), Tobit, Judith, 1–3 Maccabees, Psalm 151, the Prayer of Manasseh, Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), Baruch (with the Letter of Jeremiah often attached), and the Psalms of Solomon, plus 4 Maccabees in some streams though it is usually treated as non-canonical. Several of these were highly valued by early Christians: Tobit is quoted by Polycarp; Wisdom and Sirach show dense verbal and thematic echoes in the New Testament; 1–2 Maccabees are cited as historical and moral exemplars, especially the martyrdoms in 2 Maccabees 6–7; and Baruch’s second half is treated by some fathers as prophetic or scriptural, with Paul even echoing Baruch 4:7 in 1 Corinthians 10:20. The LXX also expands individual books: Esther includes prayers of Esther and Mordecai and the full text of Haman’s and Mordecai’s decrees while repeatedly naming God (unlike the MT); Job has a substantial epilogue giving genealogical and chronological details; Daniel incorporates Susanna, the Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Holy Children, and Bel and the Dragon; and Genesis 1:8 in the LXX adds “God saw that it was good” for day two, smoothing a pattern missing in the MT. There are also structural and textual divergences: the Psalms are numbered differently across much of the collection; Jeremiah in the LXX is about a tenth shorter and rearranged; and 1 Samuel 17:55–58 (the confusing “Who is this youth?” episode after David has already served Saul) appears in the MT but is absent in the LXX, removing the apparent contradiction. One well-known problem unique to the LXX is its Genesis 5 chronology, which—by generally adding 100 years to each patriarch’s age at the birth of his firstborn and subtracting 100 from the remaining lifespan—produces a much longer pre-flood timeline (2,242 years from Adam to the flood vs. 1,656 in the MT) and results in Methuselah outliving the flood by about 14 years, a difficulty the MT and Samaritan Pentateuch avoid by having him die in the flood year. Overall, the LXX’s “additional books” and expansions are not random; they reflect a Greek-speaking Jewish textual world that early Christians inherited, quoted, and treated as authoritative, even where later Jewish and Protestant canons would exclude some of these works. #michaelheiser #jesus #gospel #christ #michaelheiser #moses #jerusalem #satan All rights to this material belong to their respective owners. Direct links to the original videos will always be provided when possible. This video is presented in combined format for ease of viewing and educational purposes. Link to original: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ottD9bt8t44&t=1s