Book Review: Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible, Revised and Expanded 4th Ed.

Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible. Revised and Expanded 4th ed. Emanuel Tov (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2022), 524 + xlvii pp. Reviewed by David J. Zucker.

One might well begin, hiney ma tov, uma nayim (Ps. 133:1), which translated literally is “How good [tov] and pleasant,” but in this case, colloquially, “Behold what Tov [has done, it is very] pleasant.” Emanuel Tov, emeritus J. L. Magnes Professor of Biblical Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, has produced a revised and expanded version of his monumental work, Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible. Widely considered the world’s leading authority in the field of Hebrew Bible textual scholarship, in this volume he demonstrates his encyclopedic grasp of his subject. An important point: Textual Criticism does not mean criticizing the Bible. In this context the word “critical” means systematic study, approaching the text without any predetermined perceptions. Tov first published the initial version of this now classic work nearly three decades ago, late in the 20th century.

Early in his work the author explains that “Textual criticism is a discipline applied to the textual traditions of all written sources. Textual critics focus on the various texts of a composition by conducting an analysis of its ancient and medieval manuscripts, as well as its modern printed editions.” This analysis is complex in the case of the Hebrew Bible “because written transmissions of the Bible have taken place for at least 2,500 years, and it is likely longer than that” (p. 1). More specifically, “Textual criticism deals with the details in the manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible and the ancient translations” (p. 3).

In the preface, Tov explains that this fourth edition of Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible “presents a more simplified and practical [emphases in original] handbook than its previous versions,” consisting of a “reduction in the theoretical introductory material in part I. Part II contains theoretical material, but not all readers will feel the need to consult it. The practical aspects of this book are displayed in the increase in the number of tables, the many annotated sample texts from scrolls, the Septuagint … [and other sources placing] more emphasis on the scrolls, the Masoretic Text, text samples, and the available digital material than the previous editions” (p. xxi). He then goes on to write that the book “was written with several audiences in mind, [including] the learned public … and the mature scholar.” He further explains that unlike the previous editions, here he has “chosen to introduce the basic procedures and phenomena in textual criticism through an internal analysis of MT [Masoretic Text] without comparison with other sources” (p. xxii).

This massive volume features two major sections, Hebrew and Translated Scripture: The Texts (chapters 1-9), and Practicing Textual Criticism (chapters 10-17). In the first section, Chapter 1 is an Introduction which has many subsections, including dealing with What is Textual Criticism; Variants; and A Modern Approach to Textual Criticism. Chapter 2 is Printed Editions, Translations, and Digital Editions of the Hebrew Text. In chapter two Tov explains that the traditional approach to textual criticism was engaging with “printed editions, but during the last four decades also digital text editions have been produced. The computer remains an indispensable tool for text-critical study, but it is questionable to what extent these digital editions are a good basis for textual study” (p. 28, emphasis mine). He notes that some freely available digital editions indicate sources, while others do not. He then analyzes some of the problematic aspects of digital text editions (see pp. 29-33). Chapter 3 addresses The (Proto-)Masoretic Text: Introduction and Characterization, and has subsections which include Ancient and Modern Translations based on the (Proto-)Masoretic Text, and Comparing Details in the Masoretic Text to Other Text Traditions. Chapter 5 offers The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Text of the Bible. Other chapters center on the Septuagint, and other Ancient Primary Translations, which deals primarily with the Targumim (Aramaic), the Peshitta (Syriac), and the Vulgate (Latin). Each of these chapters concludes with “Text Editions and Further Reading.”

The second section, Practicing Textual Criticism, is very practical in its approach. Subdivisions include Chapter 10: Copying and Transmitting the Biblical Texts; Chapter 11: Textual and Literary Criticism Combined; Chapter 13: Practicing Textual Criticism; and Chapter 16: Suggestions for Exercises. Tov offers over forty “suggestions for exercises … based on some data and analyses in this book” (p. 443).

A glossary is found in Chapter 17, followed by three indexes: Ancient Sources; Authors; and Subjects. The book closes with over thirty pages of illustrations.

Professor Emanuel Tov is a world-famous Dutch-Israeli biblical scholar and linguist. He has vast expertise in the area of the Dead Sea Scrolls, serving as Editor-in-Chief of the Dead Sea Scrolls Publication Project for over three decades.

To get a sense of how Professor Tov addresses Textual Criticism, although not directly connected to this volume, see: www.thetorah.com/series/textual-criticism-of-the-torah-ten-short-case-studies.