BHS apparatus and textual commentaries

So I had a look at the apparatus in my hard copy of the BHS which is just ridiculously cryptic.

There are no sentences, no words in fact, just a bunch of secret code letters that you need to tediously look up one by one. Good grief. So I look to find the key and find (and this is where I felt like chucking my BHS at the wall) the key is only in Latin!

What is wrong with these people? No body speaks Latin. Latin is a dead language! Seriously, why in the world is the key not in English? And what is so hard about just having footnotes with normal English sentences in the first place instead of this secret code nonsense?

That is after all exactly what Metzger's Textual Commentary on the Greek NT is. Someone please tell me there is an equivalent of Metzger's Commentary out there for the Hebrew OT. I know there are books about understanding the BHS apparatus. I don't want to understand it. I just want notes in normal full English sentences. Surely someone must have written a book like that, right?

What I want most of all is a listing of the scribal errors in the Hebrew MT (there are a lot) and the proposed solutions.

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Comments

Kevin Becker

The BHS is indeed a strange place. It is frustrating to have the key be in Latin. However, given that Latin is the historical language of scholarship it is understandable that in a volume as massive as the BHS it would be difficult to include multiple languages like the NA27 does.

In Logos Wonneberger's Understanding BHS: A Manual for the Users of Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia is probably your best bet for decoding the apparatus (It's in Silver and up). When in Hebrew class I used A Simplified to BHS by William R Scott.

In terms of a textual commentary on the OT, I can't think of one of the top of my head. Hopefully another user will have a suggestion. I suggest reading and introduction to OT textual criticism (if you haven't already) that might make some suggestions on best practices to analyzing the difficulties with the MT.

shark tacos

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140402#Comment_140402

Hey Kevin,

I am aware of both of those books, and unless I am mistaken they are both aides to deciphering the apparatus. What I am looking for is an English textual commentary to use instead of the apparatus (like Metzger's for the NT).

From the little I've been able to dig up, it seems that the apparatus (in addition to being absurdly cryptic) is also quite problematic and there are several newer editions: Oxford Hebrew Bible (OHB), Hebrew University Bible (HUB), and the Biblia Hebraica Quinta (BHQ) all of which have aimed at improving the shortcomings of the apparatus. Edit: (see my next post) All of these however will by the looks of it still provide a cryptic apparatus rather than a textural commentary in English, just a better one.

I read that Nida (Fascinated by Languages, p 104) organized a team to produce a "textual commentary on the Hebrew Bible" but this apparently was only published in French and for some unknown reason did not get translated into English. That's as far as I was able to dig. From what I've read it seems like something that many scholars admit there is clearly an need for.

Rosie Perera

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140627#Comment_140627

Hey Kevin,

I am aware of both of those books, and unless I am mistaken they are both aides to deciphering the apparatus. What I am looking for is an English textual commentary to use instead of the apparatus (like Metzger's for the NT).

This looks like it will be a good one, under development (a few samples available already): http://ohb.berkeley.edu/

EDIT: I just read your message again and I see you were aware of this already. But it does include a textual commentary. See the sample in Genesis and scroll down a bit to get to the commentary part. Also here's the announcement of OHB in Vetus Testamentum (2008): http://ohb.berkeley.edu/Hendel,%20OHB%20VT.pdf. Unfortunately, OHB is not available yet, and there's no telling when it might be finished. Could be years.

shark tacos

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140631#Comment_140631

Correction: taking a closer look it seems that both the OHB and BHQ will have textual commentaries. In addition to the link Rosie posted to the OHB, here is one for the BHQ (samples at the bottom).

The only problem is that the OHB was just started, and the BHQ which is further along will not be done until 2015 at the soonest. That's a long time.

shark tacos

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140636#Comment_140636

Looks like we are both posting at the same time Rosie. LOL.

Rosie Perera

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140636#Comment_140636

The problem is the discovery of the DSS has changed everything when it comes to textual criticism of the Hebrew Bible, and the manuscripts have only been released for scholars to have full access to recently, so it stands to reason that it's going to take some time before new critical editions of the Hebrew text with English textual commentary are available. In the meantime, you could probably learn Latin before 2015 if you really applied yourself to it... [:)]

shark tacos

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140638#Comment_140638

Yeah, think I'm going to hold out for someone to write an English textual commentary on the existing BHS. It will still be good for another 10 years at the rate things are going.

shark tacos

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140654#Comment_140654

Here's the thing: I can see how the DSS being recently available changes the game now. But the BHS has been around since 1977. That is a lifetime for some of us. It is hard to believe that no one has written an English textual commentary for it in more that 30 years. Is that really possible?

MJ. Smith

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140659#Comment_140659

Is that really possible?

When there already is a good textual commentary available, what's the motivation - the interesting work has already been done. No thesis or tenure in it [;)]

Rosie Perera

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140686#Comment_140686

An answer from my OT professor and friend Bruce Waltke whom I asked for a recommendation: "Individual commentaries, such as mine on Proverbs take up all the textual issues in BHS, but I know of no work that presents its apparatus as such in English. BIBAL Press has a work by Scott that provides an English key to the symbols and Latin in BHS."

The book he's referring to is:

A Simplified Guide to BHS (William R. Scott) - not in Logos format, but should be.

Do you have a good commentary set such as NICOT that deals with the BHS text critical issues? That might be something worth saving up for if not.

shark tacos

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140686#Comment_140686

When there already is a good textual commentary available, what's the motivation

But that's just it: it is not available. That's a big motivation behind making all these new versions and the textual commentaries they will contain.

shark tacos

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/140691#Comment_140691

An answer from my OT professor and friend Bruce Waltke whom I asked for a recommendation: "Individual commentaries, such as mine on Proverbs take up all the textual issues in BHS, but I know of no work that presents its apparatus as such in English. BIBAL Press has a work by Scott that provides an English key to the symbols and Latin in BHS."

Wow, I think Waltke is certainly going to be authoritative! That's pretty awesome that you know him.

Yes, I do have access to both NICOT and WBC. I also find the NET quite helpful.