The Aramaic Bible: Targums in their Historical Context

426 The Aramaic Bible: Targums in their Historical Context
expositions put forward by the Jewish sages. Thus he translates the
graphic sequence -pa (Isa. 49.17) as structores ('builders'), that is
'your builders make haste...', whereas the Masoretic Text has -p33,
'your sons'. Of course, the reading bonayik is a well known 'al-tiqre
reading which has now been confirmed by the Qumran text. 30 It is
noteworthy, however, that in his commentary Jerome manages to
bring the 'sons' into play: '...look around and see all your sons gather
together' (ut elevet oculos suos in circuitu et videat filios qui ei
fuerant congregati). 31 p'rh (Isa. 10.33), in accordance with the
context, could easily be derived from po'rah, 'branch, bough' (cf.
Rashi), yet Jerome prefers the Masoretic reading as suggested to him
by his Jewish teachers: phura, 'an earthen vessel' (haec iuxta
Hebraeos, ut nobis ab eis traditum est); 32 while Isa. 3.17 he offers,
instead of the Masoretic reading pothen, 'secret parts', crinem earum
nudabit, 'the Lord...will lay bare their hair', i.e. p e 'athen, which preserves
a divergent Jewish tradition (cf. Aquila). 33
The interpretation of unvocalized texts may lead to polemics which
testify, albeit in a negative way, to Jewish traditions. The continuation
of the phrase 1DK3 HDD] -ICBK Di«n p DD"? I'nn, 'Cease from man whose
breath is in his nostrils' (Isa. 2.22) is the consonantal sequence bmh.
According to Jerome this should be read bamah, 'high place'; it
referred to Jesus, and the complete phrase meant 'high and lofty shall
he be considered' (quod autem Christum excelsus vel altissimus) 34
Even the Jews held that this verse spoke of Jesus, Jerome sets forth,
30. The Qumran scroll (4Q Isa) employs scriptio plena for our word (~I']13) as
well as for the following (1'DTinQ) which—against the Masoretic accents—enables
us to restore the original verse: 'Your builders make haste more than your
destroyers.
31. Commentarii in Isaiam, on Isa. 49.18; IV, p. 570.
32. Commentarii in Isaiam, on Isa. 10.33; IV, p. 153-55.
33. There is no reason to doubt Jerome's proficiency in Hebrew; cf. O. Zockler,
Hieronymus (Gotha, 1865), pp. 350-53; J. Barr, 'St. Jerome's Appreciation of
Hebrew', BJRL 49 (1966-67), pp. 281-302; idem, 'St. Jerome and the Sounds of
Hebrew', JSS 12 (1967), pp. 1-36. The apparent translational blunders found in the
Vulgate reflect the accepted philology of his times. The most famous example is
Moses' 'horned face' (cornuta; Exod. 34.29). This translation of the root qrn,
whether correct or not, was intentionally chosen by Jerome: horns are the insignia of
royal power (moris est scripturarum, ut semper cornua pro regnis ponant;
Commentariorum in Abacuc, on Hab. 3.4; VI, p. 639).
34. Commentarii in Isaiam, on Isa. 3.20; IV, pp. 43ff.