The Use of the Earliest Greek Scripture Fragments in Text Editions

This article deals with the relation between the early papyri of the LXX and the presumed original text of the translation units. The assumed dates of these units can be compared with the assigned dates of the earliest preserved fragments. Do the oldest known fragments reflect the purest form of the Old Greek or had they been revised to MT? Some modern editions of the LXX tend to disregard the possible guidance of some early fragments, recording them almost always in the apparatus rather than in the reconstructed eclectic text. Due to the recognition of revisional traits in several early fragments, a prejudice developed against them, except for P.967 covering Ezekiel and Daniel. Because of their early date these papyri should have a central place in reconstructing the original text of the LXX in text edition, certainly in the Torah.