Bible Society of South Africa

Bible Translations in Antiquity

Bible translations are not a recent phenomenon. The books of the Bible were translated in antiquity as well.

Oldest Translations

Around the beginning of our era there were also Greek translations (Septuagint and Theodotion) and Aramaic translations (Targumim) of most of the books of the Old Testament.

Later Translations

In the first centuries AD these were joined by other Greek translations (Aquila and Symmachus), Syrian translations (Peshitta) and Latin translations (Vetus Latina and Vulgate).
The books of the New Testament were also translated into Syrian and Latin at an early date.

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