Observations on the translation of the Vulgate in comparison to the Masoretic text

Abstract

In the last decades collections II–V (Prov 10-29) in the Hebrew Book of Proverbs have again and again turned out to be more than just a mingle-mangle of sayings. At least parts of it can be seen as consciously arranged compositions. The scribes used catchwords and sound-patterns to this effect. In many of its sayings the Book of Proverbs features agents, which are characterized as “wise” or, in the contrary, as “stupid”, “ignorant”, or “foolish”. In the Hebrew text the words used in that context are often used to mark the structure of a composition of several sayings—as catchwords or as part of a sound pattern. The paper looks at the translation of the relevant words (e.g., kesil, 'æwil), asking whether or not the Latin translation shows signs of an awareness of the structures detectable in the Hebrew text.