G3625 οἰκουμένη oikouménē: The Rosetta Stone for H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl.
Flat earthers still do not understand the meaning of H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl despite the fact I provided 4 Hebrew lexicons to prove the definition. This kind of denial is fine with me because it reduces the FE doctrine down to an opinionated movement (which it is). In the beginning of the movement FE tried very hard to use Hebrew lexicons to make their case, causing a sensation on social media. They also claimed that globe earth interpretations of the Bible were all based on interpreting the Bible to fit modern science, that such interpretations only go back 500 years.
The Septuagint is a translation of the Hebrew Scriptures into Koine Greek, the same form of Greek used in the New Testament of the Bible. The Septuagint was translated by 72 Jewish elders, who, of course, were masters in their own language. They translated the Hebrew word têbêl to the Greek equivalent oikouménē which is also used in the New Testament. The best example for this translating of têbêl to oikouménē is found in Psalm 19:4 which is quoted by the Apostle Paul in Romans 10:18.
The context in which H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl is applied follows Psalm 19:1,
"The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork."
The rest of the context is about the message of Christ' salvation which goes throughout the whole world, which our Lord Jesus said in Matt.24:14,
"And this good news of the kingdom shall be proclaimed in the whole habitable globe for a witness to all nations: and then shall the end come" (1876 Julia Smith Bible).
The Greek word used in this verse is oikouménē which was a word well understood by the Greeks to mean the whole habitable globe. Our modern English translations only use the word "world" which does not capture the Greek meaning in the English language. The Greeks of the 1st century did not question the round shape of the earth but believed in habitable parts of the globe which included antipodes. Had the 72 Jewish elders who translated the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek wanted to chose a different word they could have. But they chose the best Hebrew word that best represented the meaning of têbêl.
Psalm 19:4,
The best English translation that captures the meaning of têbêl is the 1876 Julia Smith Bible.
English:
"Their line went forth into all the earth, and their words into the ends of the habitable globe. In them he set a tent for the sun" (H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl - 1876 Julia E. Smith Bible).
This would also translate into the 4th century Latin Vulgate as,
"et apparuerunt fontes aquarum et revelata sunt fundamenta orbis terrarum ab increpatione tua Domine ab inspiratione spiritus irae tuae"
Phrase: orbis terrarum, from H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl & H776 אֶרֶץ ʼerets
Latin Definition of Orbis
https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/t...FbDm4WT6QC_vdJeCS-YckAWpVYmChEqGNbMMJ9-w-eCyQ
Latin Definition of orbis terrae
https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/t...mXy38Ng8pyhsmiXC06sWq0olzXkUYpOANEUQVlb-3l6y4
The Latin definition of orbis terrarum
https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/t...UuXx-mEbDDbx4_4ieusVZOC8Ui6V8Yykcn_bRIltExvWQ
How to say "world globe" in Latin
https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/t...SMAq-YfeTWFTHSzBVXISy-kStHO85NLgqB9Ew-SJnISqg
Romans.10:18 quotes from Isaiah 40:21 and Psalm 19:4,
English:
"But I say, Have they not heard? Surely, in all the earth went out their sound, and their words to the end of the habitable globe" (1876 Julia Smith Bible).
The first clause: "But I say, Have they not heard?" alludes to Isaiah 40:21,
"Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth?"
The second clause follows the first clause of Isaiah 40:21 but quotes from Psalm 19:4 instead of Isaiah 40:22.
There are two Greek words in Romans 10:18 which are translated from the Hebrew H776 אֶרֶץ ʼerets & H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl. The words are G1093 γῆ gē, & G3625 οἰκουμένη oikouménē, used as Greek equivalents to H776 אֶרֶץ ʼerets & H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl.
Greek: "αλλα λεγω μη ουκ ηκουσαν μενουνγε εις πασαν την γην εξηλθεν ο φθογγος αυτων και εις τα περατα της οικουμενης τα ρηματα αυτων"
Latin Vulgate: "sed dico numquid non audierunt et quidem in omnem terram exiit sonus eorum et in fines orbis terrae verba eorum"
Phrase: orbis terrarum, from G3625 οἰκουμένη oikouménē and G1093 γῆ gē
Latin Definition of orbis terrae
https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/t...mXy38Ng8pyhsmiXC06sWq0olzXkUYpOANEUQVlb-3l6y4
The Latin definition of orbis terrarum
https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/t...UuXx-mEbDDbx4_4ieusVZOC8Ui6V8Yykcn_bRIltExvWQ
How to say "world globe" in Latin
https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/t...SMAq-YfeTWFTHSzBVXISy-kStHO85NLgqB9Ew-SJnISqg
So the oldest and most reliable ancient Bibles agree the earth is round.
Hebrew: H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl
Greek: G3625 οἰκουμένη oikouménē
Latin: orbis terrae/ orbis terrarum
Remember, The Greek Septuagint was translated by 72 Jewish elders.
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Hebrew Lexicons for H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl,
The New Strong's Exhaustive Expanded Concordance of the Bible. H8398
"8398. têbêl, tay-bale'; from H2986; the earth (as moist and therefore inhabited); by extension, the globe; by implication, its inhabitants; specifically, a particular land, as Babylonia, Palestine:—world [35x] habitable part, [1x].
The word signified, first, the solid material on which man dwells, and that was formed, founded, established, and disposed by God; and secondly, the inhabitants thereof. See TWOT 835h; BDB--385c, 1061d."
Gesenius' Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon
Genesis 1:1 (KJV)
Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament.
"TWOT 835h תֵּבֵל têbêl, tay-bale'; world.
This noun is used in three basic situations. First, the noun is employed to represent the global mass called earth, including the atmosphere or heavens (cf. Ps.89:12; II Sam 22:16; et al.). têbêl is often in parallelism or apposition with 'eres (I Sam 2:8; Isa.26:9; 34:1; et al.) when 'eres is used in its broadest sense of "the world." The "world" was created by God, not false gods (Jer.10:12; Ps.93:1) and it belongs solely to him (Ps.24:1). God's eternality is illustrated by his existence before the creation of "world" (Ps.90:2) and his wisdom (perhaps a personification of Christ) was present prior to the world's creation (Prov. 8:26, 31). Creation itself gives a "worldwide" witness to God's glory (Ps.19:4 [H 5]) which should result in Yahweh's praise (Ps.98:2). Yahweh will judge this "world," making it empty (Isa.24:4), though in the millennium God will cause Israel to blossom and fill the whole world with her fruit (Isa.27:6).
Second, têbêl is sometime limited to "countries" or "the inhabitable world." This meaning is more closely related to the root meaning. It refers to the world where crops are raised. This is observed in the judgment message against the king of Babylon (not Satan) for violently shaking the "world" or "inhabitable world" (Isa.13:11; 14:17). Lightning is said to enlighten the "world"---undoubtedly referring to a limited land area (Ps.77:18 [H 19]; 97:4).
Third, têbêl may also refer to the inhabitants living upon the whole earth. This is demonstrated by the parallelism of têbêl with I' umim (Ps.9:8 [H 9]) and 'ammim (Ps.96:13; 98:9). The context of these references is Yahweh's judgment upon the world's inhabitants---a judgment both executed in righteousness and instructive of Yahweh's righteousness (Isa.26:9; 34:1).
In several passages the sense of têbêl as the globular earth in combination with its inhabitants is clearly observed. Everything belongs to Yahweh as his creation (Ps.50:12). Yahweh alone controls this world (Job 34:13; Nah 1:5) and his power is over all the earth which always responds to his presence (Job 37:12; Ps.97:4)".
New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology & Exegesis, Volume 4:
"9315. têbêl תֵּבֵל Nom. fem., world (#9315).
OT Found 36x exclusively in poetic texts, the word conveys the cosmic or global sense in which 'eres is also sometimes used; i.e., the whole earth or world considered as a single entity. It sometimes occurs in parallelism with 'eres (Jer.10:12; Lam.4:12). Twice it is used together with 'eres, either to express "the whole earth" (Job 37:12), or perhaps in the sense of the inhabited earth (Prov.8:31). It is used frequently in contexts that associate it with Yahweh's creative act and that, as a result, express the stability or durability of the earth (1 Sam.2:8; Ps.89:11 [12]; 93:1; 96:10). It is used when the whole population of the world is referred to (Ps.24:1; 33:8; 98:7; Isa. 18:3; 26:9; Nah.1:5). Isaiah uses têbêl more than any other prophet, mostly in the context of universal judgment (Isaiah 13:11; 24:4; 34:1; cf. Ps.96:13; 98:9).
Land, earth: --> damd (ground, piece of land, soil, realm of the earth, #141); --> 'eres (earth, land, #824); --> têbêl (world, #9315)."
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Breakdown of Hebrew Lexicons for H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl,
Strong's: "; by extension, the globe;"
Gesenius': ",the habitable globe,"
TWOT: "First, the noun is employed to represent the global mass called earth" <--AND-->
"In several passages the sense of têbêl as the globular earth in combination with its inhabitants is clearly observed."
New International: "the word conveys the cosmic or global sense in which 'eres is also sometimes used; i.e., the whole earth or world considered as a single entity."
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Greek Lexicons for G1093 γῆ gē, G3625 οἰκουμένη oikouménē
The New Strong's Exhaustive Expanded Concordance of the Bible, G1093 γῆ gē,
"γῆ gē, ghay; contracted from a primary word; soil; by extension a region, or the solid part or the whole of the terrene globe (including the occupants in each application):—country, earth(-ly), ground, land, world."
G1093 γῆ gē is the Greek equivalent to the Hebrew H776 אֶרֶץ ʼerets.
The New Strong's Exhaustive Expanded Concordance of the Bible, G3625 οἰκουμένη oikouménē
"οἰκουμένη oikouménē, oy-kou-men'-ay; feminine participle present passive of G3611 (as noun, by implication, of G1093); land, i.e. the (terrene part of the) globe; specially, the Roman empire:—earth, world."
The terrene part of the globe is the land occupied by its inhabitants. Sometimes oikouménē only refers to a region, like the Roman Empire. Matthew 24:14 and Romans 10:18 are in context with the whole earth and its inhabitants. G3625 οἰκουμένη oikouménē is the Greek equivalent to the Hebrew H8398 תֵּבֵל têbêl.
An interesting article to read about the history of the Greek word oikouménē is on the link below which explains how the Greeks understood the word as it relates to the globe.
Oikuomene