Septuagint: Prayer of Manasseh

Scriptural Research Institute

2020年2月 · Septuagint 第 27 冊 · Scriptural Research Institute

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The Prayer of Manasseh was found in some copies of the Septuagint, but not all. It is believed to have been added in the 2nd-century BC, which is why it is not found in all copies. The 5th-century Codex Alexandrinus includes the Prayer of Manasseh as one of the 14 Odes, appearing directly after Psalms, however, it often appears at different positions within Bibles, and is treated as a separate work by many Christian denominations. The Prayer of Manasseh is unusual in that it is written by one of the 'evil' kings of Judea, who restored Baalism, and restored the statue of Ba'al to King Solomon's Temple. It is a prayer dedicated to 'the Lord' which is a direct translation of the title Ba'al, and may, therefore, be seen as a Baalist prayer. This is something that has concerned Jews and Christians throughout history, which is why it is not universally considered canon by either Jews or Christians.

The author of the Septuagint's 2nd Paralipomenon (Masoretic Diḇrê Hayyāmîm) attempted to resolve the question of Manasseh's prayer by adding a story of his repentance and return to worshiping the Lord (Masoretic Yahweh) after being imprisoned by the King of Assyria, however, that story is not viewed as possible by many, as it would have meant that Judea was conquered by the Assyrians, who then incarcerated the Judean King in Nineveh. There are no records of this, however, Manasseh is mentioned as the King of Judea in the Assyrian records, and the two nations appear to have had cordial relations. The fact that the author of 2nd Paralipomenon felt he needed to explain the existence of the Prayer of Manasseh, proves it was in use by Jews at the time, although, it may not be the Prayer that ended up in the Septuagint. Fragments of a Hebrew Prayer of Manasseh have been found among the Dead Sea Scrolls, however, not enough of them survives to determine how much the two Prayers originally deviated.