This article discusses the central function that translated litterature had in the crystallization of original Hebrew culture. It looks at how translated literature was used to fill some of the missing functions of original literature and how the activity of translation was perceived as a form of literary creation. It analyses the process according to which the attitude towards translational activity changed from a favorite one (regarding it as an essential condition for the creation of a literary center), to a hostile one which saw it as a rival to original literature and Hebrew culture.