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. The Septuagint rendering of the Hebrew text is often regarded as influenced by Greek philosophy, but it may well be explained as a translator's attempt to deal with the difficult text, namely The study was carried out with the financial support of the Russian State Scientific Foundation (RGNF)."Reinterpretation of religious concepts of the Hebrew Bible in the Greek translation (Septuagint)", project N 14 - 01 - 00448). I would like to express my gratitude to the Katholischer Akademischer Auslander-Dienst (KAAD) and the University of Regensburg for providing me with the opportunity to get acquainted with modern biblical literature in the libraries of Regensburg. page 162to retain the parallelism between two halves of verse Exodus 3:14 without violating the norms of the Greek grammar. If this is the case, the LXX translators did not invent the "ontological" understanding of this verse, but rather involuntarily prepared the way for it. Keywords: Hebrew Bible, Greek Bible, Septuagint, Masoretic text, biblical translation, theology. The SELF-DETERMINATION of God in Exodus 3: 14 (Heb. ekhye asher ekhye1; in the Russian Synodal translation "I am Who I Am"; in the New Revised Standard Version "I am who I am") is a cornerstone for the theological systems of the Jewish and Christian traditions. However, the two translations of this verse that we have just quoted perfectly illustrate two completely opposite direct ... Read more