The manual copying of any document opens the possibility of inadvertent copyist errors. This is also true therefore of all ancient hand written copies of both our Old and New Testament scriptures in their original languages.

However, a comparison of quotations from the Old Testament in our New Testament exposes a more serious issue. This problem has often been written off as simply the New Testament writers quoting from the pre-Christian Septuagint Greek translation of the Old Testament rather than from the ('more accurate', implied) original Hebrew language, the common standard of which is the Jewish Masoretic version dating from some nine hundred years after Jesus.

This is possible for the Christian church writings outside of Palestine, as the Jewish synagogues in the Diaspora (dispersion), from which many Christian congregations developed, used the Septuagint more than the Hebrew manuscripts of the scriptures. But this is an inadequate explanation for Old Testament quotations in our New Testament by Palestinian Jewish Christians. More seriously however, this Septuagint-error explanation attacks the New Testament's view of itself as holy scripture, textually inspired of God no less than our original Old Testament text.

Old Testament quotes in the New which do not conform to the Masoretic text but are close to the Septuagint text more logically indicate a common Hebrew source. This is supported by Dead Sea manuscript copies of Old Testament scriptures pre-dating the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70AD which point to a far older Hebrew text than the Masoretic and one significantly closer to the Septuagint than the Medieval Masoretic text upon which our modern Old Testament translations are principally based. This becomes very significant when the nature of these differences is compared.

Three typical causes for corruptions of the original text in the hands of copying scribes should be noted:

For instance, a comparison of the Dead Sea scroll of Isaiah dating from about 200 years before Christ to the oldest manuscript of the Masoretic text (about a 1000 years later) shows that, apart from other considerations, the scribes of the Masoretic tradition have sometimes abbreviated the phraseology of the older manuscripts.

Language use changes in any society, and what was correct idiom or grammar in one generation may be perceived as wrong or inferior speech in a subsequent generation. However, as understandable a view as this may be, it gives no copying scribe any authority to be untrue to the original text.

"Are You not from everlasting, O LORD my God, my Holy One? We[?] shall not die."

Two modern translations, the 1965 'Bible in Basic English' and Messianic Judaism's 1998 'The Scriptures', have tried to recapture the original sense by translating 'We shall not die' as "for you there is no death" and "You do not die!" respectively.

While the sincerity of the Jewish scribes is not in question in wanting to prohibit even the very thought of God dying from having a place in the holy text, this did not entitle them to change or 'correct' what they perceived as a theological error in the text they were copying. Again, as understandable as this may be, it remains a falsification of the text.

After Judaism's full rejection of Christianity by the end of the first century AD, Hebrew Scripture texts which appeared to favour Christian understanding of the prophets or which were being used by Christian evangelists among the Jews were 'fiddled' to prevent such interpretations. The second century AD Aquila Greek translation of the Hebrew is a classic example of this sentiment among the rabbis and scribes of the Jewish community.

It is therefore of value to note the textual differences which appear to be closer to the original Hebrew text reflected in the Septuagint and our New Testament than in the later Hebrew Masoretic version which underlies much of our present day Old Testament translations.

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"hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not." (Isa 6:9, Jewish Publication Society translation – JPS).

"seeing they might not see, and hearing, they might not understand." (New Testament quote in Lk.8:10, Literal Translation Version – LITV).

God commands the act (seeing, hearing) but simply describes its negative result.

In other words, the scribes have made Israel's lack of response (understand not, perceive not) a command of God instead of God's description of Israel's hard-hearted response: a shift of responsibility.

"and the isles shall wait for his teaching." (Isa 42:4 Jewish Publication Society).

"And the nations [Gentiles] will hope in His name." (New Testament quote in Mat.12:21 Literal Translation Version).

Gentiles as favourable followers of a Jewish Messiah was not part of the scribes world-view.

"...because of you [Israel] My name is continually blasphemed among the Gentiles" (Isa.52:5 Jewish Septuagint translation, confirmed by Rom.2:24).

"Look ye among the nations, and behold, and wonder marvellously; for, behold, a work shall be wrought in your days, which ye will not believe though it be told you." (Hab 1:5 Jewish Publication Society).

"Behold, you despisers, and marvel, and perish, because I work a work in your days, a work which you would in no way believe if anyone declares it to you." (New Testament quote in Act.13:41 Literal Translation Version).

God's rebuke of Israel is changed by the biased scribes to become a rebuke of the Gentiles.