Mikael Agricolan Vanhan testamentin esipuheet

Abstract

Michael Agricola translated the Psalter and parts of the Old Testament prophets in 1551 and 1552. The Vulgate, the Luther Bible, and the Swedish Bible of 1541 served as the source texts. In his translation, Agricola distinguished ""the Holy Spirit's own words,"" i.e., the biblical text, from the prefaces and marginal notes, which were intended only to ""provide a clearer understanding."" The Word of God was far more valuable than the word of man, so the translator was closely bound to the text. A free translation was out of the question, let alone a conscious improvement of the text. He was able to proceed more freely with the prefaces and marginal notes. He mostly translated word for word, but he did not shy away from omissions, additions, and changes when he deemed them appropriate. He wrote prefaces to the Psalter, the prophets Isaiah, Daniel, and the books of the Dodecapropheton. He translated from both Lutheran Bibles, but also had other sources at his disposal. In the rather extensive Psalter prefaces, he used the Psalter commentaries of Augustine and Basil, and in the Dodecaprophets, he also had the commentaries of Jerome and Sebastian Münster at his disposal. In this critical edition, Agricola's prefaces to the Old Testament are printed alongside their sources.