[…] Θεν και οὐθέν (Gn I, 2 Teodozione): sopra un monstrum linguistico greco-giudaico e il contributo di Giovanni Filopono

Abstract

The essay focuses on the singular translation of Gn I, 2 by Theodotion (one of the three Greek translators reported in Origen’s Hexapla), with particular regard to the monstrum θὲν καὶ οὐθέν. Through the synopsis of the Hebrew original and of the Greek translations (the LXX and the other two hexaplary authors, Aquila and Symmachus), the origin and reasons of the unicum θέν – unexplained till now – will be discussed. The contribution made by John Philoponus’ De opificio mundi (VI century AD) is a privileged point of view: the Alexandrian exegete is noteworthy because not only does he report each translation, but also he explicitly comments on them, showing how in Late Antiquity this strange lesson was intended.