But in that atmosphere of myth and marvel the legend continued to
grow, and soon we have it blooming forth yet more gorgeously in the
statement that King Ptolemy ordered each of the seventy-two to make
by himself a full translation of the entire Old Testament, and shut
up each translator in a separate cell on the island of Pharos,
secluding him there until the work was done; that the work of each
was completed in exactly seventy-two days; and that when, at the
end of the seventy-two days, the seventy-two translations were
compared, each was found exactly like all the others. This showed
clearly Jehovah's _approval_.
But out of all this myth and legend there was also evolved an
account of a very different sort. The Jews who remained faithful to
the traditions of their race regarded this Greek version as a
profanation, and therefore there grew up the legend that on the
completion of the work there was darkness over the whole earth
during three days. This showed clearly Jehovah's _disapproval_.
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