Theodotion Zechariah in the Fourth Gospel

Abstract

This article attempts demonstrate that the only two citations of Zechariah in the Fourth Gospel likely derive from “proto-Theodotion” Zechariah (Zech-θ). We first see that the Greek revision Theodotion was extant and available to the authors of the New Testament. Next, we see that the Fourth Gospel’s citation of Zech 9:9 in John 12:15 derives from Zech-θ and does not necessarily rely on Matthew’s Gospel, which itself uses Zech-θ. The most critical piece of evidence for this conclusion is found in the genitive ὄνου, which neither the Old Greek (OG) nor Matthew’s Gospel preserves, but is found explicitly in Zech-θ. We then examine Zech 12:10 in John 19:37 and conclude that it, too, ultimately derives from Zech-θ. This conclusion is plausible because (1) the Fourth Gospel typically uses the Greek versions when citing the OT, (2) Zech-θ was likely at the author’s disposal when writing the Gospel, and (3) the prepositional phrase εἰς ὃν ἐξεκέντησαν reads verbatim with Zech-θ.