The Psalter: According to the Seventy

This is a light-blue cloth heavy-duty hardcover with gold stamping, printed on heavy opaque acid-free paper and smyth-sewn for durability. It contains the complete Book of Psalms from the Bible translated into traditional ecclesiastical English from the Septuagint Greek translation made c. 300 B.C. The Septuagint was the OT most used and quoted by the Apostles in the NT and the early Christians writers. It is still the official OT of the Orthodox Church. This edition is intended primarily for liturgical and devotional use by Orthodox Christians. It preserves the traditional division of the Psalter into 20 sections called kathismata, each of which is subdivided into three stases. Thus it corresponds to the daily readings proscribed in the lectionary for vespers and matins/orthros. The chapter numbering follows that of the Septuagint rather the numbering in Protestant Bibles, but a chart is included which enables the two numbering systems to be reconciled. Also included are the nine biblical odes (canticles) from the Septuagint, which are traditionally read or chanted during Matins/Orthros in Great Lent, and which are the basis for the poetical odes of liturgical canons. In addition is the Psalm which David sang after his triumph over Goliath, sometimes called Psalm 151. There extensive scholarly and devotional articles about the Psalms and their use in the Church, and about the translation. This is probably the most widely used English Psalter in Orthodox Churches. Its large clear print and readible layouts make it easy on the eyes for public reading or chanting. Many pages are tastefully adorned with monochrome icons or iconographic line drawings by the renowned Photios Kontoglou. Red ink is employed to distinguish words not read aloud liturgically. First published in 1974. This translation is used for all Psalm quotations in the other fine liturgical books published by HTM, as well as in widely-used Orthodox liturgical books published by others.