THE SUB LOCO NOTES

IN THE LATTER PROPHETS

OF BIBLIA HEBRAICA STUTTGARTENSIA

David Scott DeLauro

Submitted in partial fulfillment

of the requirements for:

The degree of Doctor of Philosophy

in Hebrew Bible and Its Interpretation

The Kekst Graduate School of

The Jewish Theological Seminary

2024

Abstract

Title: The Sub Loco Notes in the Latter Prophets of Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia

Candidate: David DeLauro, M.Div.

Advisor: David Marcus, Ph.D.

The Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (BHS), as the preeminent critical edition of the Hebrew Bible in contemporary scholarship, has established itself as the standard academic resource for studying the Masoretic Text (MT). Though the BHQ project represents the next generation of critical editions with its expanded textual analysis and broader manuscript base, and the Hebrew University Bible Project (HUBP) advances scholarship through its meticulous reconstruction based on the Aleppo Codex, BHS remains the cornerstone text for Hebrew Bible studies. Its accessibility and widespread adoption, particularly in educational contexts, ensure its continued prominence until these comprehensive projects reach completion and become readily available to students and scholars alike. BHS presents a diplomatic rendering of the Leningrad Codex's (M^L) vocalized consonantal text, augmented by comprehensive marginal annotations and critical apparati. Of particular significance are the Aramaic marginal annotations known as masorah parva (Mp) or 'little masorah'—editorial renditions of the original Mp found in M^L. While Gérard E. Weil systematically outlined his editorial methodology for these Mp notes in the BHS prolegomena, his treatment of notes designated as «Mp sub loco» remains notably incomplete. Weil briefly indicates that such designations either correct errors in M^L's Mp or address difficulties arising from absent Masorah Magna (Mm) lists, promising fuller exposition in an unrealized third volume of his Massorah Gedolah. Consequently, hundreds of Mp notes bear the sub loco designation without adequate editorial explanation.

This dissertation extends the analytical framework established by Daniel Mynatt and Christopher Dost in their respective examinations of the Torah and Former Prophets, applying it to 448 sub loco annotations identified within the Latter Prophets. The methodology encompasses systematic collation of primary manuscript evidence, drawing upon the Aleppo, Cairo, and Leningrad Codices, as well as adding Codex Sassoon 1053. Through meticulous categorization of Mp note discrepancies, this investigation elucidates the textual phenomena that likely informed Weil's editorial decisions. The analysis reveals several predominant categories of variance: numerical discrepancies in occurrence tallies, ambiguities in filtering criteria requiring clarification, misaligned circelli placement, and divergent traditions between manuscripts regarding both ketiv/qere readings and defective/plene orthography. This systematic examination not only illuminates Weil's editorial methodology in BHS but also advances scholarly understanding of the Masoretic tradition's transmission in the Latter Prophets. While this investigation focuses specifically on the Latter Prophets, the remaining corpus of sub loco annotations in the Writings presents opportunities for future research.