Biblical Greek

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

This course provides students with the basic skills needed to engage with Biblical literature in the Koiné Greek of the Hellenistic Age and Early Roman Empire. We will consider linguistic differences from Classical Greek, such as morphological simplification and influence from Hebrew and Aramaic. Beginning with selections from the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, we will focus on the conceptual world of ancient Israel and its reflection in the Late Second Temple Period. In light of this context, we will proceed to selections from the New Testament, paying particular attention to the chronology of its constituent texts in relation to the historical development of Early Christianity.