15 Textual Harmonizations in the Ancient Texts of Deuteronomy Emanuel Tov Hebrew University, Jerusalem The textual development of the Torah did not differ from the development of the other books of Scripture. It would have been understandable had early scribes been more reverential toward the text of the Torah, but to the best of our knowledge this was not the case. Thus, the same variety of orthographic styles that were in vogue for the books of the Prophets and Hagiographa are evi- denced in the Torah. As a result, the exceedingly plene and very inconsistent spelling practice possibly produced by the “Qumran scribal school” 1 was also employed in several Torah scrolls. 2 Likewise, the range of variation between the textual sources in the Torah does not seem to be any narrower than in the other books of Scripture; thus in Exodus 35–40 the amount of variation between the MT and LXX is much larger than in most other books, on a par with the varia- tion between the MT and LXX in 1 Kings, Esther, and Daniel (including the so-called apocryphal Additions). By the same token, the Samaritan Pentateuch (SP) reflects an editorial stage in the composition of the Torah that differs much from the composition of the MT and was created at a later stage. Against this background, we will take a closer look at one group of relatively small textual differences between the various sources, namely, the harmonizing addi- tions in the manuscripts of the Torah, especially in Deuteronomy. A harmonization consists of the change, addition, or omission of a detail in a manuscript, in accordance with another verse in the same source or with another manuscript of the same composition. 3 This scribal technique was used more for additions than for omissions or changes, and it may even be questioned 1. See my monograph Scribal Practices and Approaches Reflected in the Texts Found in the Judean Desert (STDJ 54; Leiden: Brill, 2004) 261–73. 2. 2QExod a(?), b(?), b , 11QLev b , 4QDeut j, k1, k2, m . 3. For an analysis, see my “Nature and Background of Harmonizations in Biblical MSS,” JSOT 31 (1985) 3–29. 17-Tov-TigayFs Page 15 Monday, October 6, 2008 2:18 PM