The Septuagintal Paideia and the Construction of a Jewish Identity during the Late Hellenistic and Early Roman Period

The systematic rendering of יסר by παιδεύω and παιδεία in the Septuagint allowed a merging of the divine correction as found in Deut 8:5 or Prov 3:12 with the classical meaning of παιδεία, “education” or “culture.” Such merging occurred later than is usually assumed but can be detected in 2 Maccabees, Psalms of Solomon, and Wisdom of Solomon. This phenomenon is the witness to the construction of a specific Jewish identity during the late Hellenistic and early Roman period.