Hebrew Texts to 2nd Temple Period

Reviews

1. 

   (verified owner) Benjamin Noonan

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Reviewed on July 10, 2023

   This is an outstanding resource for the study of ancient Hebrew, and only Accordance offers it. This resource includes modules for inscriptional Hebrew, Ben Sira, Hebrew texts from the Judean desert, the Samaritan Pentateuch, and the Mishnah. It helps to situate Biblical Hebrew within its broader context and facilitates comparison between the different stages of the Hebrew language. This resource also makes it easy to compare how various grammatical forms/structures are used in various Hebrew texts because they are grammatically tagged.

2. 

   (verified owner) Accordance Enthusiast

   Rated 1 out of 5

   Reviewed on December 1, 2024

   Regarding the Ben Sira English translation: very disappointing!
   .
   The first verse I checked between the Hebrew and English was Sirach 5:1, and there was a very clear mistake in the translation:
   “ואל תאמר יש לאל ידי” was translated as ‘”nor say, ‘God is responsible for my welfare.’”
   .
   Anyone who knows Hebrew, will know that “לאל ידי” is an expression meaning “in the power of my hand” or “in my own ability.”
   Yet this translation which is supposed to be a quality translation by scholars got it wrong – obviously wrong.
   .
   Just reading the context of the verse makes the mistake painstakingly clear:
   “אל תשען על חילך ואל תאמר יש לאל ידי, אל תשען על כוחך ללכת אחר תאות נפשך׃” – Hebrew
   “Do not rely upon your wealth nor say, “God is responsible for my welfare”. Do not rely upon your strength to follow after that which you long for.” – Official Translation.
   The English translation SHOULD say: “Do not rely upon your wealth nor say, “IT IS IN MY OWN ABILITY”. Do not rely upon your strength to follow after that which you long for.”
   .
   The cross referencing between the Hebrew text and English translation is also inaccurate, e.g.
   (SirA 1v:20) • אל תשען על חילך ואל תאמר יש לאל ידי
   (SirA 1v:21) Do not rely upon your wealth nor say, “God is responsible for my welfare”.
   According to the Hebrew transcript this is line 20 on the manuscript folio, but according to the English translation it is line 21.