Bible Question: Are you familiar with the Massorah? And do you think there's a need for it? I feel it's VERY important. The Massorah is what it's called a fencing of the original manuscripts so as to man not changing or interpreting the word differently than what was originally written. Serenetime |
Bible Answer: Greetings Serenetime! The Massorah is an interesting feature. It appears to have been one of the earliest and first critical apparatus. However, it's value is limited for several reasons. 1) It is a relatively late addition. Most believe that the Massorah wasn't begun until almost the first century. So, it was not original to the text. 2) It is limited in effectiveness. For instance, the middle word could be the same while words around it could be changed. 3) No one text contains the entire Massorah. So, it has been pieced together from various texts. 4) It is not inspired. 5) It was only used in one text type, so it only "preserved" one possible reading. But, it is very interesting. Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |