In polemics of Orthodox theologians with Jews, Protestants and Catholics, the Septuagint has often been regarded as the hallmark of Orthodoxy. The article demonstrates that the picture is much more complicated: throughout the history of the Orthodox tradition violent polemics against allegedly corrupted Hebrew or Latin Bibles existed side by side with quoting the Hebrew readings by the early Byzantine Fathers or correcting the Church Slavonic Bible against the Vulgate. Homiletic reasons were much more important than purely textual matters.

The article compares two interpretations of God’s self-definition in Exodus 3:14, namely (a) the traditional «ontological» interpretation («I am the One Who really is»), which is represented in the Septuagint and patristic exegesis, as well as in the standard Russian (so-called Synodal) translation, and (b) the «apophatic» interpretation («I am what I am»), which is predominant in modern exegesis and modern translations. Analysis of the Hebrew text suggests that the «apophatic» reading reflects the original understanding of Exodus 3:14 in its pre-Hellenistic context.