Bibliotheca Polyglotta

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After the flood, according to the Hebrew version of the Samaritans

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In the second year after the flood, Shem the son of Noah became the father of Arphaxad, and lived for another 500 years, until the 101st year of Peleg.

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Arphaxad became the father of Shelah when he was 135 years old, and lived for another 303 years, until the 39th year of Peleg.

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Shelah became the father of Eber when he was 130 years old, and lived for another 303 years, until the 39th year of Reu.

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Eber became the father of Peleg when he was 134 years old, and lived for another 270 years, until the 140th year of Reu.

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Peleg became the father of Reu when he was 130 years old, and lived for another 109 years, until the 109th year of Reu.

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Reu became the father of Serug when he was 132 years old, and lived for another 207 years, until the 77th year of Nahor.

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Serug became the father of Nahor when he was 130 years old, and lived for another 100 years, until the 21st year of Terah.

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Nahor became the father of Terah when he was 79 years old, and lived for another 69 years, until the 69th year of Terah.

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Terah became the father of Abraham when he was 70 years old, and lived for another 75 years, until the 75th year of Abraham.

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(93) The first year of Abraham, who was the forefather of the Jewish nation.

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From the flood up until the first year of Abraham, there are 942 years. This is the same total as in the Septuagint translation.

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Therefore, the Hebrew version of the Samaritans agrees with our version in the number of years which it assigns to each of these men, before his son was born; but it differs from the Hebrew version of the Jews by 650 years. For according to the Jewish version, there were 292 years from the flood up until the first year of Abraham.

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It is clear from the oldest version of the Hebrew scriptures, which is preserved by the Samaritans, and which is in agreement with the Septuagint translation, that these men, from the flood down to Abraham, did not have sons until they were over a hundred years old. So who could suppose that their ancestors, who lived for much longer, had fathered children more quickly, rather than after the length of time which is recorded in the Septuagint [translation]? That is what any rational study would suggest; and so we must agree that [the numbers of years in] the Jewish version are incorrect for the whole period from Adam until Abraham, except for the three generations starting with Jared; and the Samaritan version is also incorrect, but only in the period from Adam until the flood, because in the period from the flood until Abraham, it records the same numbers of years as the Septuagint translation.

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Indeed, it is absolutely clear that [the dates in] the Hebrew version of the Jews are incorrect. It even suggests that Noah and Abraham were alive at the same time - which is something that is not mentioned in any history. For if, according to the Jewish scriptures, there were 292 years from the flood until Abraham, and Noah lived for another 350 years after the flood, it is obvious that Noah was alive until the 58th year of Abraham. And it is possible to show that the Jewish version is untrustworthy in another way: because it says that the generations before Abraham were about 30 years old when their sons were born, but the generations after Abraham are said to have been much older when they fathered their children.

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(95) Therefore, because it has been definitely established that the Septuagint version was translated from the original, unadulterated Hebrew scriptures, it is reasonable for us to use that version for this chronicle - especially since it is the only version that is approved by the church of Christ, which has spread throughout the whole world, and it is the version that was handed down to us from the beginning by the apostles and disciples of Christ.

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According to the Septuagint [version], from Adam until the flood, there are 2,242 years. From the flood until the first year of Abraham, 942 years. In total, 3,184 years.

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According to the Hebrew [version] of the Jews, from Adam until the flood, there are 1,656 years. From the flood until the first year of Abraham, 292 years. In total, 1,948 years.

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According to the Hebrew [version] of the Samaritans, from Adam until the flood, there are 1,307 years. From the flood until the first year of Abraham, 942 years. In total, 2,249 years.

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All the versions agree that from Abraham up until Moses and the exodus of the Jews from Egypt, there are 505 years, which are calculated in the following way. In the 75th year of Abraham, God appeared to him and said that he would give the promised land to his offspring. It is written [ Genesis, 12'4-7 ]: “Abraham was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran. He took his wife Sarah, and his nephew Lot.” And a little later, Scripture adds: “The Lord appeared to Abraham, and said, 'To your offspring I give this land.' “ So from the first year of Abraham [until this promise made by God], there are 75 years; and from the 75th year of Abraham until the exodus of the Jews from Egypt, there are 430 years. The Apostle Paul bears witness to this, when he says [ Galatians, 3'17-18 ]: “The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise.” And shortly afterwards, he adds: “God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.” Abraham's son Isaac was born in Abraham's 100th year, 25 years after the promise which God made to him. From then until the exodus from Egypt there are 405 years, so that the total time from the promise until [the exodus] is 430 years.

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(97) But God, who had appeared to Abraham, appeared to him again and said [ Genesis, 15'13 ]: “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and ill-treated for four hundred years.” The word “descendants” is used deliberately; and to show that we should not allocate the [whole] time to Isaac, the period of 430 years is mentioned at the time of the exodus of the children of Israel from the land of the Egyptians. Scripture says [ Exodus, 12'40-41 ]: “Now the length of time which they and their forefathers lived in Egypt and the land of Canaan, was 430 years. At the end of the 430 years, all the Lord's divisions left Egypt by night.” Because the length of time, from when the promise was made by God (in the 75th year of Abraham), is 430 years, it is clear that from the first year of Abraham until Moses and the exodus from Egypt, there are 505 years.

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Some writers calculate the years in detail, as follows:

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Abraham became the father of Isaac, when he was 100 years old

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Isaac became the father of Jacob, when he was 60 years old

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Jacob became the father of Levi, when he was 86 years old

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Levi became the father of Kohath, when he was 46 years old

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Kohath became the father of Amram, when he was 63 years old

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Amram became the father of Moses, when he was 70 years old

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Moses led the people out of Egypt, when he was 80 years old

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So the total length of time, from the first year of Abraham until the exodus from Egypt, is 505 years.

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In total, from Adam until the exodus from Egypt, according to the Septuagint version, there are 3,689 years; according to the Jews, 2,453 years; according to the Samaritans, 2,753 years.

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The period from the death of Moses until Solomon and the building of the temple is described in one way by the book of Judges, with which the holy Apostle agrees in the Acts of the Apostles; but in a different way by the book of Kings and the Hebrew tradition. It will be best to report both accounts, and then to choose the one which is more truthful.

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Firstly, it must be mentioned that Africanus, who compiled a Chronography in five books, seems to me to have been greatly mistaken in these matters. (99) By his reckoning, there were 741 years from the exodus of Moses until Solomon and the building of the temple at Jerusalem, but he provides no evidence for most of this. He is wrong, not only because what he says is contrary to the account of the Holy Scriptures, but also because he audaciously adds a total of 100 years on his own authority. He assigns an additional 30 years to the elders after Joshua; and then after Samson, he places 40 years of anarchy, and another 30 years of peace. By inserting these additional years without any proof, he carelessly produces an inflated total of over 740 years in his calculation of the time between Moses and king Solomon.

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By observing how many generations had elapsed, we can see that his account is improbable. There were 14 generations from Abraham until David, and the ninth generation had already come to an end at the time of Moses, when Nahshon the son of Aminadab was leader of the tribe of Judah. Nahshon died in the desert after leaving Egypt, and he was present when the people were first numbered. It is clear that there were five generations after Nahshon until David: David was the son of Jesse, who was the son of Obed, who was the son of Boaz, who was the son of Salmon, who was the son of Nahshon. So how can it be claimed that these five generations after Moses lasted for a total of more than 700 years? If the years are evenly distributed between the men in each generation, we will find that each of them lived for over 140 years before his son was born; and no-one in their senses would consider that possible. Moses himself died at the age of 120 years, and his successor Joshua died at the age of 110 years. Before their time, Joseph lived in all for 110 years, and earlier still Jacob, who was also called Israel, the patriarch of all the Jews, lived for 147 years.

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(101) So how can it be supposed that in later times, after Moses, anyone could have lived for as long as we have said? Africanus is clearly wrong in this matter. However, Clemens reckoned that there were 674 years from Joshua the successor of Moses until the building of the temple, as can be found in the first book of his Miscellany [ Stromata, 1'21 ]. The holy Apostle Paul, in his speech to the Jews in the Acts of the Apostles, says as follows [ 13'19-22 ]: “Joshua destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, and he divided the land [amongst the Jews] for 450 years, and after that he gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet. Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who reigned for 40 years. After that, God removed Saul and gave them David in his place.”

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That is what the Apostle says. According to him, there were 534 years after Joshua. As well as the 450 years, which he assigns to the judges until Samuel, there must be added 40 years for Saul, another 40 years for David, and the four years of Solomon's reign before the building of the temple, which makes a total of 534 years from Joshua the successor of Moses until Solomon. If you add the 40 years of Moses in the wilderness, and the 27 years of Joshua the son of Nun, then the total for the whole period will be 600 years, according to the Apostle. The book of Judges is in agreement with his account, and assigns 450 years to the judges until Samuel, which are divided up as follows:

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