Why Is the Maasur Text of Samuel Unintelligible?

Baldwin: The task which faces translators of the Old Testament in deciding upon a source text for first Samuel requires very specialized knowledge and sound judgment. He says scholars are prone to use Dead Sea scroll material and the Septuagint because it turns out that what's present at Qumran is often in agreement with theSeptuagint. Baldwin: As far as theme, we should say something about theme of the book. Given the size of the book and its place within a larger literary work, there's no consensus among scholars as to whether 1 Samuel has a sense of the single theme unto itself.