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Analytical-Literal Translation of the Old Testament

(Septuagint)

Volume Two: The Historical Books

Translated by Gary F. Zeolla, the Director of Darkness to Light

 

Israel’s History Uncensored—The Septuagint Version the Early Church Trusted

This second volume delivers Joshua through Esther in rigorous, word-for-word Greek Septuagint (LXX) precision—exposing key differences from later Hebrew texts.

Why This Translation Matters:

Key Features:

Full analytical-literal translation—every Greek word accounted for.

Bracketed additions for clarity—nothing injected unchecked.

Cross-references to New Testament quotations of these books.

Side-by-side comparisons where LXX and Hebrew diverge.

"Most ‘history’ Bibles filter Scripture through modern bias. This one strips away 2,000 years of distortion."

For:

Available in hardcover, paperback, and eBook formats.

    The Analytical-Literal Translation  of the Old Testament (ALT: OT) is available in four volumes. This Old Testament is based on the Greek Septuagint (LXX). The LXX is a third century B.C. Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. This ALT: OT will enable the reader to come as close to the Greek text as possible without having to be proficient in Greek.

    This second volume contains the Historical Books (Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1Samuel, 2Samuel, 1Kings, 2Kings, 1Chronicles, 2Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther). These books present the LORD's providence in the history of the ancient Israelite nation.


Available Formats

Amazon:

Kindle Reading Device eBook: $3.25. Order and download from Amazon.

Paperback: 224 pages (8-1/2”x11”). $11.50. Order from the publisher via their website: Amazon.

Hardback: 224 pages (8-1/2”x11”). $19.25. Order from the publisher via their website: Amazon.

 

Lulu Publishing:

PDF (Acrobat Reader) eBook: 383 pages (6”x9”). 3,497 KB. $3.50. Order and download from the publisher via their website: Lulu Publishing.

ePUB (for iPad, Nook, etc.) eBook: $3.50. Order and download from the publisher via their website: Lulu Publishing.

Paperback: 224 pages (8-1/2”x11”). $12.50. Order from the publisher via their website: Lulu Publishing.

Hardback: 224 pages (8-1/2”x11”). $20.75. Order from the publisher via their website: Lulu Publishing.


Personal Size Version

The “Regular” paperback and hardback versions of the ALT: OT listed above are printed on 8-1/2”x11” pages in double columns using Times New Roman 10-point font. However, there is also available a Personal Size Version. It is printed on 6” x 9” pages in single columns using the same font size, Times 10. Many requested this smaller page size, so I am making it available. However, due to the smaller page size, the number of pages and thus the cost of the book is greater.

 

Amazon:

Paperback: 410 pages. $13.25. Order from the publisher via their website: Amazon.

Hardback: 410 pages. $20.95. Order from the publisher via their website: Amazon.

 

Lulu Publishing:

Paperback: 410 pages. $13.95. Order from the publisher via their website: Lulu Publishing.

Hardback: 410 pages. $21.95. Order from the publisher via their website: Lulu Publishing.

 

Notes:

Different formats and publishers might have different covers, but the content is the same in all of them. The newest version of the ALT: OT published in 2023 is a corrected text not a full new edition. Only minor corrections have been made, plus the appendixes and covers have been updated. Look for 2023 in the copyright notices on pages 2 and 4 for the latest version.

The Kindle versions of the ALT listed on both Amazon pages are identical. It has just been duplicated on each page.

Also, I've been asked about reducing the number of volumes of the ALT by combining some of the volumes. That would not be possible due to page limitations with my current method of publishing my books and technical difficulties of working with what would be very large files.

The links to Amazon are advertising links, for which I receive a commission in addition to my royalty if a product is purchased after following the link.


Readers

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Preface

Note: The paperback and hardback versions of the ALT are in double columns. But it is not possible to reproduce that format here.

        The Analytical-Literal Translation of the Holy Bible (ALT) is translated by Gary F. Zeolla (www.Zeolla.org). The ALT consists of seven volumes. They are.

Volume I – The Torah (Genesis to Deuteronomy)
Volume II – The Historical Books (Joshua to Esther)
Volume III – The Poetic Books (Job to Song of Solomon)
Volume IV – The Prophetic Books (Isaiah to Malachi)
Volume V – The Apocryphal/ Deuterocanonical Books

Volume VI – The New Testament
Volume VII – The Apostolic Fathers

         Volumes I to IV contain the Old Testament (OT). All 39 of these books are considered canonical by Jews and all Christian groups. The word “canon” means list of authoritative books, so canonical books are those which are included in this list. They are believed to be inspired by God and reliable for basing doctrine and practice upon. As such, all 39 of these OT books are a trustworthy guide to correct faith and practice and to spiritual enrichment.

        Volume V is the Apocryphal/ Deuterocanonical (A/D) Books. These are the “extra” books found in the OTs of Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Bibles as compared to Jewish Bibles and the OTs of Protestant Bibles. There is much debate over if these books are canonical or not. They were all written in the period between the end of the OT and the beginning of the New Testament (NT). They are thus included in the ALT as, inspired or not, they are worth reading and provide background to the NT.

        Volume VI contains the NT. All 27 of these books are considered canonical by all Christian groups. They are thus the bedrock on which Christian doctrine and practice are built upon and provide much spiritual benefit.

        Volume VII of the ALT contains the Apostolic Fathers (APF).  These are the writings of Church leaders of the late first to mid-second centuries, most of whom were direct disciples of the apostles. Some of these books were seriously considered for inclusion in the canon of the NT. These are marked with an asterisk on the Table of Contents. They were ultimately rejected for the canon, but all of these APF books were popular in the early centuries of the Church. They give insight into the mindset of the early Church shortly after the apostles and provide background to the NT. As such, they are very much worth reading.

    Most Old Testaments are based on the Hebrew text. But this Old Testament (OT) is based on the Greek Septuagint (LXX). The LXX is a third century B.C. Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. The name and abbreviation comes from the tradition that 70 (or 72) Jewish scholars worked on its translation, six from each of the 12 tribes of Israel.

    The importance of the LXX is that it was THE Bible of the early Church. This can be seen when comparing quotations from the OT in the New Testament (NT). When it can be determined, more often than not, the NT writers are quoting from the LXX rather than the Hebrew text.

    Once the Church became predominately composed of Greek-speaking Gentiles rather than Aramaic-speaking Jews, the LXX was used almost exclusively. This can be seen when reading the writings of the early Church Fathers of the second and third centuries. They almost always quote from the LXX when quoting the OT.

    In addition, most translations of the Bible into other languages in the early centuries were done from the LXX rather than the Hebrew text. It was not until the Church became mostly Latin speaking and began using the Latin Vulgate in the fourth century that use of the LXX began to fade.

    The purpose of the ALT is to provide a translation of the Greek Septuagint that will enable the reader to come as close to the Greek text as possible without having to be proficient in Greek.

    This second volume contains the Historical Books (Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1Samuel, 2Samuel, 1Kings, 2Kings, 1Chronicles, 2Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther). These books present the LORD's providence in the history of the ancient Israelite nation.


Sample Passages from the ALT OT: Volume II: The Historical Books


Joshua 1-2

1

And it happened after the death of Moses [Heb., +the servant of the LORD], the LORD spoke to Joshua son of Nun [LXX, Nun], the assistant of Moses, saying, 2“Moses My servant has died; now then having arisen, cross over the Jordan [River], you and all this people, into the land, which I give to them. 3Every place on which you* shall tread with the step of your* feet I will give it to you*, [in] which manner I have spoken to Moses. 4[From] the wilderness and Antilibanus [Heb., Lebanon], as far as the great river, [the] river Euphrates, and as far as the extremity of the sea, from [the] setting of [the] sun [fig., the west], will be your* borders. 5Not a person will stand before [or, resist] you* all [the] days of your life; and just as I was being with Moses, thus will I also be with you, and I will not forsake you, or neglect you.

            6“Be being strong and be acting like a man [fig., be courageous], for you will divide the land to this people, which I swore an oath to your* fathers to give to them. 7Be being strong, therefore, and be acting like a man [fig., be courageous], to be observing and to be doing as Moses My servant commanded you; and you will not turn from them to [the] right or to [the] left, that you shall be wise [Heb., prosper] in all which you shall be performing. 8And the Scroll of this Law shall not depart from your mouth, and you will meditate in it day and night, that you shall understand to be doing all the [things] having been written [in it]; then you will be prospered, and your ways will prosper, and then you will understand. 9Behold, I have commanded you! Be being strong and be acting like a man [fig., be courageous]; you shall not be cowardly nor fearful, for the LORD your God [is] with you in all [places] wherever you shall be going.”

        10And Joshua commanded the scribes of the people, saying, 11“Go into the midst of the camp of the people, and command the people, saying, ‘Be preparing provisions; for yet three days and you* are crossing over this Jordan, having entered in to possess the land which the LORD, the God of your* fathers, is giving to you*.’”

        12And to Reuben [LXX, Ruben], and to Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, Joshua said, 13“Remember the word of the Lord which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, saying, ‘The LORD your* God caused you* to rest, and gave to you* this land. 14Let your* wives and your* children and your* livestock be dwelling in the land, which He gave to you*; but you* will cross over well-armed before your* brothers, all the ones being strong; and you* will be an ally to them [fig., you* shall fight on their side]; 15until the LORD your* God shall give your* brothers rest, just as also you*, and they also shall inherit this land, which the LORD your* God is giving to them. Then you* will depart each [one] into his inheritance, which Moses has given to you* beyond the Jordan from [the] rising of [the] sun [fig., eastward].”

        16And having answered Joshua, they said, “We will do all, as many [things] as you commanded us, and we will go into every place which you shall send us. 17According to all, as many [things] as we heard [fig., obeyed] Moses we will hear [fig., obey] you; only be letting the LORD our God [be] with you, [in] which manner He was with Moses. 18But whichever person shall disobey you, and whoever shall not hear [fig., obey] your words as you shall command him, let him die; but you be being strong and be acting like a man [fig., be courageous]!”

 

2

And Joshua son of Nun sent out of Sattin two young men to spy out [the land], saying, “Go up and view the land and Jericho.” And the two young men having gone, entered into Jericho. And they entered into [the] house of a woman, a prostitute, whose name [was] Rahab [LXX, Raab], and they lodged there. 2And it was reported to the king of Jericho, saying, “Men of the sons of Israel have come in here to spy out the land!”

        3And the king of Jericho sent and spoke to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men having entered into your house [this] night; for they have come to spy out the land.” 4And the woman took the men [and] hid them; and she spoke to them [i.e., the messengers of the king], saying, “The men had come in to me [Heb., +but I did not know where they were from]. 5But when [the] gate was being shut in the darkness, then the men went out. I do not know where they have gone; pursue after them, if you* will overtake them!” 6(But she [had] brought them [i.e., the spies] up upon the housetop, and hid them in the flax-stalk[s] having been piled up by her on the housetop.) 7And the men pursued after them [in the] way to the Jordan to the shallow crossing places of the river; and the gate was shut.

        8And it happened as the ones pursuing after them went out, but before they [i.e., the spies] laid down to sleep, that [lit., and, and elsewhere in book] she came up on the housetop to them. 9And she said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you* the land; for the fear of you* has fallen upon us. 10For we have heard that the LORD God dried up the Red Sea from your* face [fig., before you*] when you* were coming out of [the] land of Egypt, and as many [things] as He did to the two kings of the Amorites, who were beyond the Jordan, to Seon and Og, whom you* utterly destroyed them. 11And having heard, we were amazed in our heart, and there did not stand a spirit yet in none of us from your* face [fig., there was no longer any courage in any of us because of you*], for the LORD your* God [is] God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath.

        12“And now swear an oath to me [by] the LORD God; since I do to you* mercy [fig., dealt mercifully with you*], so do you* also do mercy [fig., deal mercifully] with the house of my father; 13and save alive the house of my father, and my mother, and my brothers, and all my house, and all, as many [things] as are to them [fig., all that they have], and you* will rescue my soul from death.”

        14And the men said to her, “Our life for yours* [even] to death.” And she said, “When the LORD shall deliver the city to you*, you* will do mercy and truth to me [fig., deal mercifully and truly with me].” 15And she let them down through the window [Heb., +for her house was on the city wall; she dwelt on the wall]. 16And she said to them, “Depart into the hill-country, lest the ones pursuing meet with you*, and you* will be hidden there three days until the ones pursuing turn back from after you*, and after this, you* will depart into your* way.”

        17And the men said to her, “We are [or, will be] innocent of this your oath. 18Behold, we [will] enter into a part of the city, and you will set the sign; you will bind this scarlet cord in the window, by which you let us down by it, and you will gather in to yourself, into your house, your father, and your mother, and your brothers, and all the household of your father. 19And it will be [that] all, whoever shall go outside the door of your house, guilt will be upon him, but we [will be] innocent of this your oath; and as many as shall be with you in your house we will be guilty [or, responsible]. 20But if anyone should injure us, or betray these our matters, we will be innocent of this your oath.” 21And she said to them, “Let it be according to your word.” And she sent them out, and they departed. [Heb., +And she bound the scarlet cord in the window.]

        22And they came to the hill-country, and remained there three days; and the ones pursuing searched all the roads, and did not find [them]. 23And the two young men returned, and came down out of the mountain; and they went over to Joshua son of Nun, and told him all the [things] having happened to them. 24And they said to Joshua, “The LORD has delivered all the land into our hand, and all the ones inhabiting of that land have cowered because of us.”

 

1Samuel 3-4

 

3

And the child Samuel was ministering to the LORD before Eli the priest. And [the] word of the LORD was precious [or, rare] in those days, there was no distinct vision. 2And it happened at that time that Eli slept in his place; and his eyes began to be weighed down [or, failing], and he was not being able to be seeing. 3And before the lamp of God was trimmed, and Samuel slept in the temple [or, tabernacle], where the ark of God [was]. 4And the LORD called, “Samuel, Samuel!” And he said, “Behold, I [am here]!” 5And he ran to Eli, and said, “Behold, I [am here], for you have called me.”
But he said, “I have not called you; return, be going to sleep.” And he returned and went to sleep.

        6Then the LORD called again, “Samuel, Samuel!” And he went to Eli the second [time], and said, “Behold, I [am here], for you have called me.” And he said, “I have not called you; return, be going to sleep.” 7(Now [this was] before Samuel knew GOD, and [before the] word of the LORD was revealed to him.) 8And the LORD called Samuel again for [the] third [time]. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, “Behold, I [am here], for you have called me.” Then Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child. 9And he said, “Return, child, be going to sleep; and it will be if He calls you, then you will say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and slept in his place.

        10And the LORD came, and stood, and called him as once and once [fig., as before]. And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.” 11And the LORD said to Samuel, “Behold, I execute My words in Israel, so that all hearing them, both his ears will tingle. 12In that day I will raise up against Eli all, as many [things] as I spoke against his house; I will begin, and I will make an end. 13And I have announced to him that I [will] avenge his house until [the] age [fig., perpetually] for [the] iniquities of his sons, because his sons spoke evil against God, and he did not admonish them, and not even thus [fig., and it will not continue]. 14I swore an oath to the house of Eli, [the] iniquity of [the] house of Eli shall not be atoned for with incense or with sacrifices until [the] age [fig., forever].”

        15And Samuel slept until morning, and rose early in the morning, and opened the doors of [the] house of the LORD; and Samuel feared to tell the vision to Eli. 16But Eli said to Samuel, “Samuel, [my] child.” And he said, “Behold, I [am here].” 17And he said, “What [was] the word having been spoken to you? Indeed, do not conceal [it] from me. May God do these [things] to you, and more also, if you conceal from me a word out of all the words having been spoken to you in your ears.” 18So Samuel reported all the words, and did not conceal [them] from him. And Eli said, “He [is] the LORD; He will do the good [or, what is good] in His sight.”

        19And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and there did not fall from all his words upon the ground. 20And all Israel knew from Dan even to Beersheba [fig., Bersabee], that Samuel [was] faithful as a prophet to the LORD. 21And the LORD manifested Himself again in Shiloh, for the LORD revealed Himself to Samuel; and Samuel was believed to be a prophet to the LORD to all Israel, from [one] end of the land and as far as [the other] end. And Eli [was] very old, and his sons advancing, were advancing [or, kept advancing] [in wickedness], and their way [was] evil before the LORD.

 

4

And it happened in those days that [the] Philistines [lit., foreigners, and elsewhere in book] gathered themselves together for war against Israel; and Israel went out to a meeting with them for war and encamped at Ebenezer [LXX, Abenezer], and the Philistines encamped in Aphek. 2And the Philistines prepare for war against Israel, and the war was turned [against them]; and a man [fig., the men] of Israel fell before [the] Philistines, and there were struck in the battle in a field four thousand men. 3And the people came to the camp, and the elders of Israel said, “Why has the LORD caused us to stumble this day before [the] Philistines? Let us take the ark of our God out of Shiloh, and let it proceed in the midst of us, and it will deliver us from [the] hand of our enemies.”

        4And the people sent to Shiloh, and they took from there the ark of the LORD, sitting [between the] cherubs; and both the sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, [were] with the ark. 5And it happened when the ark of the LORD entered into the camp, that all Israel cried out with a loud voice, and the earth resounded. 6And the Philistines heard the cry, and the Philistines said, “What [is] this great cry in [the] camp of the Hebrews?” And they understood that [the] ark of the LORD [had] come into the camp.

        7And the Philistines feared, and said, “These [are] the gods [that] have come to them into the camp! 8How horrible to us! O lord, deliver us today for such [a thing] has not happened yesterday and [the] third [day] [fig., before]. How horrible to us! Who will deliver us out of [the] hand of these mighty gods? These [are] the gods, the ones having struck Egypt with every plague, and in the wilderness. 9Strengthen yourselves and become into [fig., conduct yourselves like] men, O Philistines, lest you* serve the Hebrews as they [have] served us, but you* will be as men and fight them!”

        10And they fought with them; and the men of Israel stumble, and they fled each [man] to his tent; and there was a very great slaughter; and there fell from Israel thirty thousand fighting men. 11And [the] ark of God was taken, and both [the] sons of Eli, Hophni, and Phinehas, died. 12Then a man of Benjamin ran out of the battle, and he came to Shiloh on that day; and his clothes having torn, and dirt [was] upon his head. 13And he came, and behold, Eli was waiting upon the seat by the gate looking along the way, for his heart was greatly alarmed for the ark of God. And the man entered into the city to report [it]; and the city cried out.

        14And Eli heard the sound of the cry, and said, “What [does] the outcry of this sound [mean]?” And the man having hurried, went in, and reported to Eli. 15Now Eli [was] a son of ninety years [fig., was ninety years old], and his eyes rose up, so he was not seeing [fig., he was blind]. And Eli said to the men having stood around him, “What [is] the sound of this noise?” 16And the man having hurried, came to Eli, and said to him, “I am the one having come out of the camp, and I have fled from the battle today.” And he [i.e., Eli] said, “What [is] the thing having happened, [my] child?” 17And the young man answered and said, “[The] man [or, men] of Israel fled from [the] face of [the] Philistines, and there was a great slaughter among the people, and both your sons have died, and the ark of God is taken!” 18And it happened, when he mentioned the ark of God, that he [i.e., Eli] fell from the seat backward near the gate, and his back was broken, and he died, for [he was] an old man and heavy. And he judged Israel twenty years.

                19And his daughter-in-law, [the] wife of Phinehas, having conceived, [was about] to give birth; and she heard the news, that the ark of God was taken, and that her father-in-law and her husband have died; and she wept and gave birth, for her birth-pains came upon her. 20And in her time she [was] dying; and the women having stood by her, said to her, “Stop fearing, for you have given birth to a son!” But she did not answer, and her heart did not consider [it]. 21And she called the child Ichabod [“no glory” – LXX, Uaebarchaboth], because of the ark of God, and because of her father-in-law, and because of her husband. 22And they said, “[The] glory of Israel is departed, [for] the ark of the LORD is taken.”

Scripture taken from the Analytical-Literal Translation of the Old Testament: Volume II: The Historical Books. Copyright © 2013, 2023 by Gary F. Zeolla (www.Zeolla.org).


The above book preview was posted on this website in 2013.
It was last updated June 19, 2025.

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