Did Justinian Actually Promote the Greek Septuagint for Synagogue Reading?

553 CE · Novella 146, Ch. 1

What the ancient record says

Yes, after permitting Greek and other understandable languages, he expresses preference for the translation associated with the Seventy (the Septuagint), praising it strongly as especially trustworthy, repeating the tradition that the translators produced matching work despite being separated, and interpreting it through his own Christian theological framework. Matters because he did not merely say "use any language the people understand", he elevated a Greek textual tradition deeply important inside Christian institutions, even though the underlying writings came from the ancestral textual world of Lashon Qanaʿan (Hebrew).

Did Justinian create the Septuagint? No, the Greek translation tradition existed centuries before him; the issue is a 6th-century emperor explicitly promoting it for use inside Yahudi congregations.

Did he make it the only permitted Greek translation? No, he also permits the Greek translation associated with Aquila; the accurate conclusion: the Septuagint received explicit imperial preference while Aquila was also permitted.