When did the word lose the local (political) and gain this liual technical (religious) sense? Its meaning in the LXX is somewhat disputed. Geiger (Ursrhrift, p. 35311.) maintains that it is there strictly eiiuivalent to gCr in its original sense, while \V. C. Allen (Expositor, 1894, .\. 267- 275) argues that the LXX uses tlie word con- sistently in the final sense ol proscbjte. This wide divergence of view is possible because the Hebrew word yir itself becomes almost eijuivalent to prose- lyte in P. J The ideal of Judaism is that there shall be no vincircumcised alien in the Uoly Land. But it cannot be proved that Trpoir^Xuros connects itself consistently with these OT approaches of ger to its liiial (Mishnic) sense. It is true that «-dpono! stands for giir in several passages where the sense ' proselj'te ' would be especially inappro- priate, as where Israel, or an Israelite, is called a gCr in a foreign land (tJn 15", l)t 23', Gn 23*, Ex 2^ W), or in God's land (Ps 39'» 119", 1 Ch 29'"), where God is Himself a gir (.Jer 14*), or where the law for the gUr difl'ers from that for the home-bom (Dt U^ contra Lv 17'°). Cut on the other hand no very obvious reason for the render- ing exists in 2 S 1'" ; and — what is more important — ^Israelites are elsewhere called vpoaiiXvroi. in Egypt (Ex 22-' 23», Lv 19«, Dt 10"), or In God's land (Lv 25-') ; the word is closely parallel to irdpootos (Lv 2.J'''- ") ; circumcision is specially re- quired of a 7r/)oiTi)\iTos before he can eat the Pass- over (Ex 12'"); and in two passages where a proselyte pro[ior is meant, the Aramaic word •yf.w/»s is used (Ex 12"', Is 14').§
It is certain tliat the LXX 7rpo<ni\i/roi, even if he is often a circumcised convert, remains always a foreign resident in Palestine. Of an apjilication of the word to a convert to Judaism who still resides in a foreign land there is no trace.H Tliis distin- guishes tlie L.\X use from that of the NT. In an interesting mistranslation of Is 54" LXX reads, ' Behold, proselytes will come to thee through me, and will sojourn with tliee, and will llee to thee for refuge.' H The religious sense blen<ls witli the local, but does not dis|daee it. It is therefore impossible to make the word simply equivalent to 'convert.' The tendency of the L.\X to translate gir by irpoo-iiXin-os is stronger than its sense of this
oever translates any other root, but Ifl found Mrithout Hebrew e<^uivak'nt in Lv 17^, l)t 10'^** I'.il'*; la 541* (fives au interesting miHtranilation. 'IvrrAiiref occurB only in Job 20'^.
• • Tf^g'Xirrt is diatin^iiiahed on the one side from the native iBmclite (o flttiTej;^*™, i ly^ufiiM, 6i i/j#i *I^/)(Er,A), arifl on the other from tiie forci^rncr (e ayjMpict, i »xx^i*xt), Tho diutinction from i rxp^iiut is leas clear, and does oot perfectly correspond to that between g^ and tAshub.
i So Theodoret : v^^JUJrei/f hi ijUtXcw rouf M rSy idfiSt wp*r- litreit xatJ ryf toujxnv woXiTliett etffWet^ou4Mt/( ', and 8ui(lajl ; »i l£ iStvt vperl>.f:>.u9eTt! K^i Kecric tcuof T»^>ir«»rlf ^ohftClftiaJ.
t See, r.g., Lv 17-19 (H), Nu 15 (P). The prindple ia, one law lor home-born and nfrim. Ex Vi"), Nu 9'* 15i»- 18- »■ ">.
J So .Schurer, OVn iii. Vi:>l.; Hcrtholet, Die SMluiu) der Itrofliten u. d. Juden ru rfcn Fremden, 1890, p. 269 ft. The word yiiitpxt la used by Jvmtin {/>i«^. e. Trttph. a 122 \yriOfiett]) and .luliiis Afri. (ad ArUtidein) of proaelyt^'H ; but Fhilo read it In Ex 2** (L.\X rap«iK«r)of .Moees in MidianCt/f Cin\/iLg. Ling. 17), hence It also cannot have been a reco^rnir-ed technical title. Does Josephus mistnke It for the name of ft town? (« [rtu] Tnup» 2<u«n, lU u. xix. 2. etc.).
n i. rn yn iu^, Lv lOKi. Nu 91* I6>«, ■• iJjut Ex 12« etc
^ ih4v wfitr.XuTU wp^rU^utttrau rM, etc
later technical meaning. No difference of nsago appears between early and late parts of the LXX. Ihe word occurs in the Aiiocry|)haI books only in To li* N (from Dt 14-'=' 20'-). The absence of a common technical use of the word seems to be indicated by the fact that it is not used of un- misUikable proselytes, from Ruth to Acliior (Jth 14'"), or in the frequent expressions of hope for the conversion of the heathen.
Philo * understands the LXX irpomiXtToi in the sense of 'convert.' Those who have changed to the better order Moses calls 7rpoff7)Xi/roi, because they have come to a new and God-pleasing consti- tution (djrd Tov irpoff€\T]\vOii'ai Katc^ Kal ^iXoO^ip To\iTel(f, de Monarch, i. 7). But he prefers the word tirriXvt {eirriXimft, e'TnyXirrot), often, as in this passage, substituting it for the other in the course of his discussion (so also in de Vict. Ojf. 10, Qtims. in Ex 22-", de Cher. 31. 33. 34), more often still using it throughout {de Septcnario 14, de Creat. Prin. 6, de Caritate 12, de Pienit. 2, de Exccrat. 6). Bertholet (p. 2SS) is surely mistaken in sajing that fTTTjXus has a wider meaning than rpocriiXvros, for the distinction in Quicst. in Ex 22-" between iTn)\vd(s of place {xupo.^), and those of laws and customs (vop.liJ.uii Kal iduiv), is made solely in order to explain the two uses of the word Trpo<T-/i\i/Tos in E.'c 22'-"l^'i, and the argument would be wholly without force if the two words were not synonymous. Philo allows the possibility of the local mean- ing of TTpoiniXiTos (lirjjXus) in order to explain its apjilication, liguratively, to Israel in Egypt. The literal word in this connexion was p.4toihos or f^vot (de Vita Mos. i. 7, de Carit. 13. 14). Compare his interpretation of Lv25^ {de C/ter. 31-34) : the wise man is but an ^injXus and irdpotKos in the world ; God is the only citizen, and on the contrary the foolish man is altogether a fugitive.