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4. The Text of the Bible

4. The Text of the Old Testament. 3.1 Proto-Masoretic

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4. The Text of the Bible

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    1. 4. The Text of the Bible BIB586 Biblical Introduction

    2. 4. The Text of the Old Testament 3.1 Proto-Masoretic & Masoretic Texts 3.2 Pre-Samaritan & Samaritan Pentateuch 3.3 Septuagint 3.4 Targumim 3.5 Peshitta 3.5 Vulgate

    3. 3.0 Introduction R. Ishmael: "My son, be careful, because your work is the work of heaven; should you omit (even) one letter or add (even) one letter, the whole world would be destroyed" [b. Sot. 20a]

    4. 3.0 Introduction There are many witnesses to the Old Testament (First Testament). The Hebrew is the easiest to deal with, while the translations are dealt with in a secondary manner, due to the problem of retroversion. Until the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, however the earliest Hebrew witness to the Scriptures were the Nash Papyri (1st-2nd century CE).

    5. 3.0 Introduction "Interest in the text of the Bible began in the first centuries of the common era when learned church fathers compared the text of the Hebrew Bible and different Greek versions. In the third century Origen prepared a six-column edition (hence its name: Hexapla) of the Hebrew Bible, which contained the Hebrew text, its transliteration into Greek characters, and four different Greek versions. Likewise, Jerome included in his commentaries various notes comparing words in the Hebrew text and their renderings in Greek and Latin translations." [Tov, Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible, 16]

    6. 3.1 Proto-Masoretic & Masoretic Texts "The name Masoretic Text refers to a group of manuscripts and other sources all of which are close to each other. Many of the elements of these manuscripts and even their final form were determined in the early Middle Ages, but they continue a much earlier tradition. The name Masoretic Text was given to this group because of the apparatus of the Masorah attached to it. This apparatus, which was added to the consonantal base, developed from earlier traditions in the seventh to the eleventh centuries – the main developments occurring in the beginning of the tenth century with the activity of the Ben Asher family in Tiberias. [Tov, Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible, 16]

    7. 3.1 Proto-Masoretic & Masoretic Texts "The received consonantal text preceded the one that includes the vocalization and accents. Both of these circulated in many slightly deviating forms, and were finally stabilized only with the advent of the printed Rabbinic Bible toward the end of the 15th century. However, earlier forms of the MT come close to such a stabilization. The earliest attestations of the consonantal framework of the MT-found in many, but not all, Qumran texts - date to around 250 BC. Their resemblance (especially 1QIsab) to the medieval form of the MT is striking, showing how accurate the transmission of the MT was through the ages. These earliest attestations are called “proto-Masoretic” since their consonantal framework formed the basis for the later Masoretic mss. [Tov, "Text Criticism (OT), ABD]

    8. 3.1 Proto-Masoretic & Masoretic Texts The Masoretic Text (MT) Contains: The consonantal text found in the proto-Masoretic texts of the Second Temple era and the Masorah which developed later The vocalization developed by the Masoretes Para-textual elements Accentuation The apparatus of the Masorah

    9. 3.1.1 The Consonantal Text The MT probably developed from the Pharisees (?), with possible Temple ties. The History of the Consonantal Text of the MT: 1. The period of internal differences in the textual transmission. This period comes to an end at the time of destruction of the Second Temple. N.B. the Qumran material contains not only proto-Masoretic texts, but also pre-Samaritan, Hebrew source for the LXX, Qumran original, and a "non-aligned"

    10. 3.1.1 The Consonantal Text The differences in the proto-Masoretic group and the later MT tended to be limited to single words and phrases. "Talmudic and later rabbinic literature have preserved other early variants. Still other early variants are found in the Masoretic madinh9a)e4 and ma(arba)e4 readings and in the Masoretic handbook Minh9at Shay." [Tov]

    11. 3.1.1 The Consonantal Text 2. The Period of relatively high degree of textual consistency. From the destruction of the Second Temple until the 8th century CE. Documents from the Judean Desert (Wa=d|4 Murabba(at and Nah9al H9ever ) written before the Bar-Kochba rebellion (132-135 CE) . . . Cairo Genizah material. "Non-Hebrew sources from this period include the Greek translations by Kaige-Theodotion, Aquila, and Symmachus, the Aramaic Targums, and the Vulgate." [Tov]

    12. 3.1.1 The Consonantal Text "All textual evidence preserved from the second period reflects MT, but this fact does not necessarily imply the superiority of that textual tradition. The communities which fostered other textual traditions either ceased to exist (the Qumran) or dissociated themselves from Judaism (the Samaritans and Christians)." [Tov]

    13. 3.1.1 The Consonantal Text 3. The Period of almost complete textual unity. From the 8th century until the end of the Middle Ages. "The earliest dated Masoretic mss proper are from the 9th century, and are characterized by the introduction of vocalization, cantillation signs, and the Masorah. The consonantal texts of the individual codices are virtually identical." [Tov]

    14. 3.1.2 Vocalization "Vocalization and accents were added to the consonantal text of MT at a relatively late stage. This additional layer of information is known only from the MT, but is similar to the tradition of reading the Sam. Pent. During the Middle Ages the Samaritans developed a system of vocalization, but the mss of the Sam. Pent. remain without systematic vocalization." Qumran used vowel letters – matres lectionis "The purpose of vocalization was to solidify the reading of the text in a fixed written form on the basis of the oral tradition which had been stable in antiquity. As with all other

    15. 3.1.2 Vocalization forms of reading (vocalization), the Masoretic system reflects the exegesis of the Masoretes, although the greater part of it is based on earlier traditions." [Tov] Three Systems of Vocalization: Tiberian (North-Palestinian) Palestinian (South-Palestinian) – vowel signs are placed above the consonants Babylonian – subdivided into simple and compound – vowel signs are placed above the consonants.

    16. 3.1.2 Vocalization "In the circles that occupied themselves with the vocalization of the biblical text from the 8th to the 10th century AD in Tiberias, the most prominent families were those of Ben-Asher and Ben-Naphtali. The Ben-Asher system was later accepted universally, while that of Ben-Naphtali came into disuse. It is not known whether any of the transmitted mss offer a purely Ben-Naphtali tradition; hence not all details about this system of vocalization are known, even though one learns much from the “variants” between it and Ben-Asher." [Tov]

    17. 3.1.2 Vocalization N.B. Moshe Goshen-Gottstein's discussion of the Ben Asher witness: Second Rabbinic Bible – eclectic text (BH1-2) codex Leningrad B 19a (AD 1009) (BH3-BHS) But, the Aleppo Codex is considered the best (Hebrew University Library Project)

    18. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements "Once it became unacceptable to make any more changes to the biblical text, the earliest generations of the so=pe6r|=m directed their activities toward accurately recording all the peculiarities in their mss." [Tov] 1. Paragraph Divisions: "With painstaking care the Masoretes transmitted the division of the text into paragraphs (Heb pa4ra4s]a=, pl. pa4ra4s]iyyo=t), which resembled the system now also attested in most Qumran texts. They distinguished between small textual units separated from each other by open spaces between verses within the line (pa4ra4s]a= se6tu=ma=, “closed section,” indicated with the letter samek), and

    19. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements larger textual units separated from each other by spaces that leave the whole remaining line blank (pa4ra4s]a= pe6tu=h9a=, “open section,” indicated with the letter pe). The Masoretes also indirectly indicated versification (with the silluq accent), following an ancient tradition indicated (by spaces) in a few Qumran texts (1QLev, 4QDan a, c) and in several Greek texts such as 8H9evXll." [Tov] 2. Inverted Nun: Num 10.35-36 and Ps 107.23-28, 40 (x7?) Thus it is stated in Sifre on Numbers (section 84) "the section wrah [snb yhyw is naqud (dotted) before it and after it because this is not its place.

    20. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements The opinion of Rabbi is that it forms a book itself." [Israel Yeivin, Introduction to the Tiberian Masorah, 46] "That the Inverted Nun indicate here a dislocation of the text is also attested by the Septuagint. In the recension form which this Version was made, verses 35, 36 preceded verse 34, so that the order of the verses in question is Numb X. 35, 36, 34 and this seems to be the proper place for the two verses." [C. D. Ginsburg, Introduction to the Massoretico-Critical Edition of the Hebrew Bible, 343]

    21. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements 3. Extraordinary Points (Puncta Extraordinaria): "Supralinear (occasionally in combination with infralinear) points are found in fifteen places in the OT (e.g., Gen 33:4; Ps 27:13). While these points originated from scribal notations indicating that the elements thus highlighted should be deleted (a convention used in many Qumran texts), within the Masoretic corpus these symbols were reappropriated to indicate doubtful letters ." [Tov]

    22. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements 'Abot R. Nat.: "The words "unto us and to our children" (Deut 29.28) are dotted. Why is that? . . . This is what Ezra said: If Elijah comes and says to me, "Why did you write in this fashion?" And if he says to me, "You have written well," I shall remove the dots from them. De Lagarde used these dots as the bases to argue that all MT manuscripts were copied from a single source.

    23. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements 4. Suspended Letters (Litterae Suspensae): "In the mss some letters are intentionally placed higher than those around them (i.e., “superscripted” between surrounding letters). A good example is the suspended nun in Judg 18:30, where the text with the nun is read mns]h (Manasseh) or without the nun as ms]h (Moses). As in the Qumran texts, the suspended letters indicate later additions, which nevertheless were transmitted as such in the MT ." [Tov]

    24. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements 5. Special Letters: "The special form of some letters directs the reader’s attention to details that were important for the Masoretes, such as the middle letter or word in a book. For a littera minuscule see Gen 2:4; for a littera majuscule, see Lev 13:33. In other instances imperfectly written letters are indicated especially. " [Tov]

    25. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements 6. Ketib-Qere: "In a large number of instances – ranging from 848 to 1566 according to the different traditions – the Masorah parva (smaller Masorah) notes that one should disregard the written text (Aramaic – ketib, "what is written") and read instead a different word or words (Aramaic – qere=, "what is read")." [Tov] "Opinions vary about whether the Qere represents a Masoretic “correction,” a textual variant, or something else."

    26. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements "Opinions vary about whether the Qere represents a Masoretic “correction,” a textual variant, or something else." [Tov] "Initially, the Qere was intended as a correction, particularly to discourage blasphemy, such as the Qere perpetuum (the constant Qere) of the written Tetragrammaton (YHWH) to be read as )a6do4na4y. Subsequently, the already existing system of incorporating corrections as marginal notes was also used to preserve for posterity deviant/variant readings. Still later, all these marginal notes came to be (mis)understood as corrections. Recently, Barr (1981) suggested that the Qere words originated in the “reading tradition” because there is never more than one Qere word." [Tov]

    27. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements "The second group of notations associated with the Masorah parva is indicated by the notation se6b|=r|=n, followed by an almost identical word (e.g., mmnw/mmnh in Judg 11:34). The se6b|=r|=n notations closely resemble those of the Qere; indeed, various words indicated as Qere in some mss are indicated as se6b|=r|=n in others. The term is an abbreviation of se6b|=r|=n we6ma(t[|=n, i.e., “one might think” (sbr) that x should be read instead of y, but that is a “wrong assumption” (ma(t[|=n)." [Tov]

    28. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements "Third, the Masorah parva mentions some 250 consonantal variants between Palestinian (ma(arba4)e=, or “western”) and Babylonian (ma4d|=nh9a4)e=, or “eastern”) readings." [Tov]

    29. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements 7. Corrections of the Scribes (Tiqqu=ne= so=pe6r|=m) "The term refers to words (18 or 11 depending on the sources; the oldest source is the Mekilta on Exod 15:7) that tradition says were changed by the so=pe6r|=m; e.g., “my wickedness” (Num 11:15 MT) replaced an original reading “your wickedness.” All supposed emendations concern minor changes in words that the so=pe6r|=m deemed inappropriate for God or (in one instance) Moses (Num 12:12). In some sources these corrections are called kinnu=ye= so=pe6r|=m (“euphemisms of the scribes”), implying

    30. 3.1.3 Para-Textual Elements that the so=pe6r|=m had a different understanding of these words without, however, changing the text itself. Many details in the list of tiqqu=n|=m are dubious. Nevertheless, it is considered likely that theological alterations have been made in the text, even though the specific tiqqu=ne6 so=pe6r|=m which have been transmitted may not give the best examples of this process" [Tov]

    31. 3.1.4 Accentuation "The accents, also named cantillation signs, which add an exegetical layer and musical dimension to the consonants and vowels, have three different functions: 1. To direct the biblical reading in the synagogue with musical guidelines; 2. To denote the stress in the word; 3. To denote the syntactical relation between the words as either disjunctive or conjunctive" [Tov]

    32. 3.1.5 The Apparatus of the Masorah "The Masorah in the narrow and technical sense of the word refers to an apparatus of instructions for the writing of the biblical text and its reading. This apparatus was prepared by generations of Masoretes and was written around the text. The purpose of this apparatus was to ensure that special care would be exercised in the transmission of the text." [Tov]

    33. 3.1.5 The Apparatus of the Masorah Two main parts to the Masorah: 1. Masorah parva – Mp – written as Aramaic notes in the side margins of the text. Includes: The number of specific occurrences of spellings or vocalizations. The Qere, Sebirin, and all para-textual notations. Special details like shortest verse or the middle verse in the Torah, etc.

    34. 3.1.5 The Apparatus of the Masorah 2. Masorah magna – Mm – written as Aramaic notes in the upper or lower margins of the text. "This apparatus is closely connected with the Mp as its function is to list in detail the particulars mentioned by way of allusion in the Mp, especially the verses referred to by the apparatus." [Tov]

    35. 3.1.5 The Apparatus of the Masorah Some Editions of the Masorah: C. D. Ginsburg, The Massorah Compiled from Manuscripts, Alphabetically and Lexically Arranged, vols. I-IV (London/Vienna, 1880-1905; repr. Jerusalem 1971) G. E. Weil, Massorah Gedolah manuscrit B.19a de Leningrad, vol. I (Rome, 1971). D. S. Loewinger, Massorah Magna of the Aleppo Codex (Jerusalem, 1977).

    36. 3.1.6 MT Manuscripts Qumran, Murabba'at, Masada Nash Papyrus (Exod 20.2-17, partly Deut 5.6-21) Geniza fragments Ben Asher Manuscripts: Codex Cairensis (Former & Latter Prophets, 895 CE) Aleppo Codex (Shelomo ben Buya'a wrote the consonants, while Aaron Ben Asher vocalized and accentuated the codex, 925 CE) – lost = Gen 1.1-Deut 28.26; SoS 3.12-the end, i.e., Qoheleth, Lamentation, Esther, Daniel, and Ezra.

    37. 3.1.6 MT Manuscripts Ben Asher Manuscripts: A Tenth-century codex from the Karaite synagogue in Cairo containing the Pentateuch. Codex Leningrad B 19A – (from 1009) Codex B.M. Or. 4445, indicated as B (significant sections of the Torah; from the first half of the tenth century) Codex Sassoon 507 of the Torah (tenth century) Codex Sassoon 1053 of the Bible (tenth century)

    38. 3.1.6 MT Manuscripts Printed Editions: "Earliest editions included portions (all with Rabbinic commentary and to some extent with Targum), e.g. Psalms, 1477 (Bologna?), Prophets, 1485/86 (Soncino), Writings, 1486/87 (Naples), Pentateuch, 1491 (Lisbon), etc.; and complete Bibles, e.g., Soncino, 1488, Naples, 1491/93, Brescia, 1494. The first Rabbinic Bible was edited by Felix Pratensis and was also published by Daniel Bomberg in 1516/17, a considerable critical achievement with in large measure served as a basis for the second Rabbinic

    39. 3.1.6 MT Manuscripts Printed Editions: Bible of Jacob ben Chayyim." [Würthwein, The Text of the Old Testament, 37] The Second Rabbinic Bible of Jacob ben Chayyim (published by Daniel Bomberg in Venice, 1524/25) Hebrew texts; Targum; comments by Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Kimchi, etc. 925 leaves in four folio volumes + index However this was an eclectic text, therefore not the best ben Asher representation.

    40. 3.1.6 MT Manuscripts Printed Editions: "Particularly important for the advance in biblical research have been the so-called polyglots, multilingual editions that give the text of the Bible in parallel columns in Hebrew (MT and Sam. Pent.), Greek, Aramaic, Syriac, Latin, and Arabic, accompanied by Latin translations and introduced by grammars and lexicons. The first is the Complutensian Polyglot (1514-17), prepared by Cardinal Ximenes in Alcala (Latin: Complutum). The second was published in Antwerp (1569-72), the third in Paris (1629-45), and the fourth, the most extensive, in London (1654-57), edited by B. Walton and E. Castell." [Tov]

    41. 3.1.6 MT Manuscripts Printed Editions: Johann Heinrich Michaelis (1720) Benjamin Kennicott: Vetus Testamentum Hebraicum cum variis lectionibus, 2 vol. (Oxford, 1776-1780) – 600 mss, 52 editions of the Hebrew text and 16 mss of the Samaritan. J. B. de Rossi – collected variants – 1,475 manuscripts and editions. S. Baer & Franz Delitzsch (1869ff.) – not completed

    42. 3.1.6 MT Manuscripts Printed Editions: C. D. Ginsburg (British & Foreign Bible Society, 1908ff.; 1926) – Jacob ben Chayyim text. Norman H. Snaith (British & Foreign Bible Society, 1958) – Ms. Or. 2626-2628. BH1-2 – used the Jacob ben Chayyim text. BH3 and BHS have used the Codex Leningrad B 19A Hebrew University Bible (HUB) using the Aleppo text.

    43. The First Edition of the Psalter, 1477 – Bologna, with David Kimhi

    44. Complutensian Polyglot (1514-17)

    45. Codex Cairensis: 827CE, Moshe ben Asher

    46. Aleppo Codex: Shelomo ben Buya(a, 930CE

    47. Aleppo Codex: Shelomo ben Buya(a, 930CE

    48. Codex 17, Firkowitsch Collection: 930CE

    49. Codex Leningrad B19A: 1008-9CE

    50. Codex Leningrad B19A: 1008-9CE

    51. Benjamin Kennicott: Vetus Testamentum Hebraicum cum variis lectionibus, 2 vol. (Oxford, 1776-1780)

    52. Kennicott

    53. Benjamin Kennicott: Vetus Testamentum Hebraicum cum variis lectionibus, 2 vol. (Oxford, 1776-1780)

    54. Benjamin Kennicott: Vetus Testamentum Hebraicum cum variis lectionibus, 2 vol. (Oxford, 1776-1780)

    55. 3.2 Pre-Samaritan & Samaritan Pentateuch "The Samaritan Pentateuch contains the text of the Torah, written in a special version of the "early" Hebrew script as preserved for centuries by the Samaritan community. This text is permeated with ideological elements which, however, form only a thin layer added to the text. Scholars are divided in their opinion on the date of this version, but it was probably based on an early, pre-Samaritan, text, similar to those found in Qumran." [Tov]

    56. 3.2 Pre-Samaritan & Samaritan Pentateuch 3.2.1 Origin & Background: "The Samaritans themselves believe that the origin of their community goes back to the time of Eli (11th century BC), when the “Jews” withdrew from Shechem to establish a new cult in Shiloh, which was later brought to Jerusalem. According to this conception, the Jews split off from the Samaritans, not the other way around. A different view is reflected in 2 Kgs 17:24-34, according to which the Samaritans were not originally Jews, but pagans brought to Samaria by the Assyrians after the fall of Samaria in the 8th century BC. In accordance with this tradition, in the Talmud the Samaritans were indeed named Kythians (cf. 2 Kgs 17:24). " [Tov]

    57. 3.2 Pre-Samaritan & Samaritan Pentateuch 3.2.2 Character of the Samaritan Pentateuch: ". . . it differs from MT in some six thousand instances. While it is true that a great number of these variant are merely orthographic, and many others are trivial and do not affect the meaning of the text, yet it is significant that in about 1,900 instances SP agrees with LXX against MT." [Würthwein, 42-43]

    58. 3.2 Pre-Samaritan & Samaritan Pentateuch 1. Harmonizing Alterations: "The Sam. Pent. contains various kinds of harmonizing alterations, especially additions (to one passage on the basis of another one) that, by definition, are secondary. These alterations appear inconsistently (i.e., features which have been harmonized in one place have been left in others). The Sam. Pent. was not sensitive to differences between parallel laws within the Pentateuch, which, as a rule, have remained intact, while differences between parallel narrative accounts, especially in the speeches in the first chapters of Deuteronomy and their “sources,” were closely scrutinized." [Tov]

    59. 3.2 Pre-Samaritan & Samaritan Pentateuch "Thus, in the MT the Fourth Commandment in Exod 20:8 begins with za4ko=r (“remember”) and in Deut 5:12 with s]a4mo=r (“observe”), but the Sam. Pent. reads s]a4mo=r in both verses. " [Tov] ". . . parallel verses from Deut 1:9-18 are added in Exodus (after 18:24 and within v 25), resulting in a double account of the story of Moses’ appointing of the judges." Addition of details

    60. 3.2 Pre-Samaritan & Samaritan Pentateuch 2. Linguistic Corrections: this is found in both the Pre-Samaritan and SP in general. 3. Sectarian Changes in the Samaritan Pentateuch: "This concerns the most important doctrinal difference between the Jews and the Samaritans: the central place of worship (Jerusalem for the Jews, Mount Gerizim for the Samaritans)." [Tov] ". . . the Samaritans added a commandment to the Decalog (after Exod 20:14 and Deut 5:18) that secured the centrality of Mount Gerizim in the cult. This commandment is

    61. 3.2 Pre-Samaritan & Samaritan Pentateuch composed of a series of biblical pericopes that mention such a central cult in Shechem (Deut 11:29a; 27:2b, 3a, 4-7; 11:30 [in this sequence]). The addition of this material as the Tenth Commandment was made possible by changing the First Commandment into an introductory clause." [Tov] ". . . various alterations in Deuteronomy where the characteristic expression “the place which the Lord your God will choose” is changed to “the place which the Lord your God has chosen” (e.g., Deut 12:10, 11).

    62. 3.2 Pre-Samaritan & Samaritan Pentateuch From the Samaritan perspective, Shechem was already the chosen place in the time of Abraham, whereas from the historical perspective of Deuteronomy, the choice of God’s place (Jerusalem) yet lay in the future, after the conquest of the land and the election of David." [Tov] 4. Orthography in the SP: The use of matres lectionis 5. Pre-Samaritan Texts: "There are large harmonizing additions from Deuteronomy in Exodus and Numbers

    63. 3.2 Pre-Samaritan & Samaritan Pentateuch (and in one case, vice versa), well attested in 4QpaleoExm, 4Q158, 4Q364 (both biblical “paraphrases”), 4QNumb, 4QDeutn, and 4Q175 (Test)." [Tov] 6. Modern Editions of the SP: A. F. von Gall, Der hebräische Pentateuch der Samaritaner, (Giessen, 1914-18; repr. Berlin, 1966). A & R. Sadaqa, Jewish and Samaritan Version of the Pentateuch - With Particular Stress on the Differences between Both Texts, (Tel Aviv, 1961-65).

    64. Samaritan Pentateuch: 1215/6 - Num 34.26-35.8

    65. A. F. von Gall, Der hebräische Pentateuch der Samaritaner, (Giessen, 1914-18; repr. Berlin, 1966)

    66. 3.3 Septuagint "LXX is a Jewish translation which was made mainly in Alexandria. Its Hebrew source differed greatly from the other textual witnesses (MT, T, S, V and many of the Qumran texts), and this accounts for its great significance in biblical studies. Moreover, LXX is important as a source for early exegesis, and this translation also forms the basis for many elements in the NT." [Tov]

    67. 3.3 Septuagint Date: "According to the generally accepted explanation of the testimony of the Epistle of Aristeas, the translation of the Torah was carried out in Egypt in the third century BCE. This assumption is compatible with the early date of several papyrus and leather fragments of the Torah from Qumran and Egypt, some of which have been ascribed to the middle or end of the second century BCE (4QLXXLeva, 4QLXXNum, Pap. Pouad 266, Pap. Pylands Gk. 458)." [Tov]

    68. 3.3 Septuagint Witnesses: 1. Early texts written on papyrus and leather including both scrolls and codices. 2nd Century BCE onward, many fragments in Palestine & Egypt. Chester Beatty / Scheide Collection (Egypt, 1931) – contained most of the books, even Daniel. Also – Qumran 4QLXXLeva 2. Uncial (uncialis) or majuscule (majusculus) manuscripts from the fourth century onwards, written with "capital" letters. 3. Minuscule (minusculus) or cursive manuscripts, written with small letters, from medieval times.

    69. 3.3 Septuagint Witnesses: 2. Uncial (uncialis) or majuscule (majusculus) manuscripts from the fourth century onwards, written with "capital" letters. B – Vaticanus, dates from the 4th century and is considered the best complete manuscript of the LXX. Relatively free of corruption and influences of the revisions of LXX. S or a – Sinaiticus, dates from the 4th century and usually agrees with B, when the two reflect the Old Greek translation, but S

    70. 3.3 Septuagint Witnesses: is influenced by the later revisions of the LXX. A – Alexandrinus – dates from the 5th century and is greatly influenced by the Hexaplaric tradtion and in several books represents it faithfully. 3. Minuscule (minusculus) or cursive manuscripts, written with small letters, from medieval times.

    71. Codex Vaticanus: LXX, - B – Cod. Vat. Gr. 1209

    72. 3.3 Septuagint Witnesses: 3. Minuscule (minusculus) or cursive manuscripts, written with small letters, from medieval times. Many minuscule manuscripts from the ninth to the sixteenth centuries are known. N.B. Göttingen and Cambridge editions.

    73. 3.3 Septuagint Critical Editions: 1. A. E. Brooke, N. McLean and H. St. J. Thackeray, The Old Testament in Greek according to the Text of Codex Vaticannus (Cambridge, 1906-1940) – known as "The Cambridge Septuagint". Gen-Neh, Esther, Judith, Tobit according to B, and where that manuscript is lacking, ti has been supplemented by A or S.

    74. "The Cambridge Septuagint"

    75. 3.3 Septuagint Critical Editions: 2. Ziegler, ed., Göttingen Septuaginta, Vetus Testamentum Graecum auctoritate Societatis Litterarum Göttingensis editum. This is the most precise and thorough critical edition of the LXX.

    76. Göttingen Septuaginta

    77. 3.3 Septuagint Importance of LXX for Biblical Studies: Gen: genealogies, chronological data Exod: the second account of the building of the Tabernacle in chapters 35-40 Num: sequence differences, pluses and minuses of verses Josh: significant transpositions, pluses, and minuses Sam-Kgs: many major and minor differences, including pluses, minuses, and transpositions, involving different chronological and editorial structures

    78. 3.3 Septuagint Jer: differences in sequence, much shorter text Eze: slightly shorter text Pro: differences in sequence, different text Dan & Est: completely different text, including the addition of large sections, treated as "apocryphal." Chr: "synoptic" variants, that is, readings in the Greek translation of Chronicles agreeing with MT in the parallel texts.

    79. 3.3.1 Revisions of the Septuagint General: LXX and the revisions share a common textual basis. The revision corrects the LXX in a certain direction. Kaige-Theodotion: The Greek scroll of the Minor Prophets found in Nahal Hever was identified as an early kaige revision of the LXX by Barthelemy (1952). Also in – 6th column of the Hexapla and in the Quinta (fifth) column of the Hexapla . . . .

    80. 3.3.1 Revisions of the Septuagint Kaige-Theodotion: Supplanted the current Greek version of the Book of Daniel . . . ." [Jellicoe, The Septuagint and Modern Study, 84] Corrected the LXX with a Hebrew text. Aquila: Aquila prepared his revision in approximately 125 CE. Some biblical books have two different editions. Student of R. Akiba "Aquila . . . Made an attempt to represent accurately every word, particle, and even

    81. 3.3.1 Revisions of the Septuagint Aquila: morpheme. For example, he translated the nota accusativi ta separately with su,n, "with," apparently on the basis of the other meaning of ta, namely "with"." [Tov] The Aquila – Onqelos theory. Symmacus: 2nd or 3rd century CE; either an Samaritan who had become a proselyte or and Jewish-Christian Ebionite. "Two diametrically opposed tendencies are

    82. 3.3.1 Revisions of the Septuagint Symmacus: visible in Symmachus's revision. On the one hand he was very precise, while on the other hand, he very often translated ad sensum rather representing the Hebrew words with stereotyped renderings." [Tov] Hexapla: Origen in the mid-3rd century CE. Six columns Obelos (?) – elements in Greek, but not in Hebrew

    83. 3.3.1 Revisions of the Septuagint Hexapla: Asteriskos (?) – extant in Hebrew, but not in Greek, which were added in the fifth column from one of the other columns. Post-Hexaplaric Revisions: Lucian (d. 312 CE). (b, o, c2, e2 in the Cambridge Septuagint). Known from both Greek and Latin sources, now in Hebrew (4QSama).

    84. 3.4 Peshitta Peshitta means "the simple [translation] or plain" "Peshitta is of Christian or Jewish-Christian origin. "The quality of the Peshitta (Syriac translation) varies from book to book, ranging from fairly accurate to paraphrastic. The Heb Vorlage of the Peshitta was more or less identical with MT. The Peshitta offers fewer variants than the LXX, but more than the Targums and the Vulgate." [Tov]

    85. 3.5 Targumim Targum means explanation, commentary or translation. Both Jewish and Samaritan Targumim exist. However the Jewish Targumim had a higher status within their own community. Jewish Targumim exist for all the books of the Hebrew Bible except Ezra, Nehemiah and Daniel. The Targumim reflect a Hebrew text that is very close to the MT, except for the Job Targum from Qumran.

    86. 3.5 Targumim Targum Onqelos (Torah): Translated by Onqelos the proselyte, "under the guidance of R. Eliezer and R. Joshua" Date: first, third or fifth century CE? As a rule Onqelos follows the plain sense of Scripture, but in the poetical sections it contains many exegetical elements. Sperber argues that there are 650 minor variants in the Targum Onqelos.

    87. 3.5 Targumim Palestinian Targumim (Torah): Jerusalem Targum I = Targum Pseudo-Johnathan. Jerusalem Targum II, III = The Fragment(ary) Targum(im) Targumim from the Cairo Genizah Vatican Neophyti 1 = discovered in 1956 in a manuscript dating 1504 – 1st/2nd century CE but others 4th/5th century CE.

    88. 3.5 Targumim Targum to the Prophets: Targum Jonathan to the Prophets varies from book to book. Targum to the Hagiographa:

    89. 3.5 Targumim "The quality of the translation of the Aramaic Targums varies from Targum to Targum and from book to book (see especially Komlosh 1973). As a rule, the Targums from Palestine are more paraphrastic in character than the Babylonian ones. The more literal translations of 11QtgJob and 4QtgLev, though found in Palestine, are an exception to this rule." [Tov]

    90. 3.5 Targumim "The Targums usually reflect the MT; deviations from it are based mainly on exegetical traditions, not on deviating texts. An exception must be made for 11QtgJob, which contains interesting variants and which possibly lacks some verses of the MT (42:12-17), a fact which would be significant for the literary criticism of the book. It may perhaps be assumed that other Targums in an earlier stage of their development also contained more variants than in their present form. Targum Onqelos as a rule contains more variants than the Palestinian Targums." [Tov]

    91. 3.6 Vulgate "Though occasionally reflecting variants, this Latin translation almost always reproduces MT." [Tov]

    92. 3.2 The Text of the Second Testament 3.2.1 The Text of the N.T. 3.2.2 N.T. Text Criticism

    93. 3.2.1.1 Greek Manuscripts: General "Greek mss of the NT, now numbering more than 5,300, customarily have been characterized in three differing ways: (1) by the material upon which they are written (papyrus, parchment, or paper); (2) by their calligraphic type (uncial or minuscule handwriting); and (3) by the function of the document containing the text (continuous-text ms, lectionary, or patristic quotation). The traditional way of listing them, however, cuts across these categories (utilizing one or two from each) and follows the scheme of papyri, uncials, minuscules, lectionaries, and patristic quotations." [Eldon Jay Epp, "Textual Criticism (NT)," ABD]

    94. 3.2.1.1 Greek Manuscripts: General Statistics (as of 1989): Papyri Catalogued (96) Uncial MSS Catalogued (299) Minuscule MSS Catalogued (2,812) Lectionaries Catalogued (2,281) Total (5,488) [Metzger, The Text of the New Testament: Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration, 262]

    95. 3.2.1.2 Transmission 1. What is Required? ". . . knowledge of ancient writing materials, of paleography, of scribes and scribal habits, of scribal errors and transcriptional probabilities, of scriptoria and their procedures, and of the availability and mobility of literary texts in the early Christian world. In a broader context, it also requires knowledge of the nature, development, and spread of early Christianity, including details of the relevant geographical areas, the cultural and ecclesiastical milieu of Christianity in those various areas, and the theological and personal influences that shaped Christian faith. For the earliest times and even for some later periods, our

    96. 3.2.1.2 Transmission understanding of the NT text is inhibited by a lack of detailed knowledge; just as often, perhaps, the neglect of data provided by Church history has prevented advances in the discipline." 2. NT Textual Materials: "As early as 1707, John Mill claimed that the (relatively few) NT mss examined by him contained about 30,000 variant readings; 200 years later B. B. Warfield indicated that some 180,000 or 200,000 various readings had been “counted” in the then existing NT mss, and in more recent times M. M. Parvis reported that examination of only 150 Greek mss of Luke revealed about 30,000 readings there alone, and he suggested that the actual quantity of variant readings among all NT

    97. 3.2.1.2 Transmission manuscripts was likely to be much higher than the 150,000 to 250,000 that had been estimated in modern times. Perhaps 300,000 differing readings is a fair figure for the 20th century." 3. "It is not difficult to imagine how the NT writings were employed in the early decades of Christianity and how they were circulated in that initial period and in the succeeding decades. For instance, an apostolic letter or a portion of a gospel would be read in a worship service; visiting Christians now and again would make or secure copies to take to their own congregations, or the church possessing it might send a copy to another congregation at its own initiative or even at the request of the writer (cf. Col 4:16); and quite rapidly numerous early Christian

    98. 3.2.1.2 Transmission writings-predominantly those that eventually formed the NT-were to be found in church after church throughout the Roman world. Naturally, the quality of each copy depended very much on the circumstances of its production; some copies must have been made in a rather casual manner under far less than ideal scribal conditions, while others, presumably, were made with a measure of ecclesiastical sanction and official solicitude, especially as time passed. Great Church centers, such as Antioch, Alexandria, Ephesus, Rome, Lyon, and Carthage, must have issued copies of the Scriptures, or parts thereof, for their constituent churches, and when the Christian Church gained the official favor of the Roman Empire under

    99. 3.2.1.2 Transmission Constantine, the emperor himself commissioned 50 copies of the Scripture “on fine parchment. . . by professional scribes” for new churches in Constantinople (Eusebius, Vita C. 4.36). This occurred about AD 331, some 280 years after Paul penned the first of his letters and about 260 years after the first gospel, Mark, was written. Codices Sinaiticus and Vaticanus, the two oldest parchment manuscripts of the NT (except for fragments), are elegant copies of the kind that Constantine must have had in mind, and they come from precisely this period-the mid-4th century." [Epp]

    100. 3.2.1.3 Manuscripts 1. According to Types of Material: "Papyrus mss, in codex form, were used by Christians from the earliest times into the 8th century. They constitute only 3% of NT continuous-text mss and less than 2% of all NT mss, though, of course, far less than that in the amount of extant Greek NT text, since most of the papyri are highly fragmentary. Qualitatively, however, they enjoy an importance inversely proportionate to the small amount of text they presently preserve." [Epp]

    101. 3.2.1.3 Manuscripts 1. According to Types of Material: "Parchment codices were standard for copies of the NT text until the very late Middle Ages when paper finally replaced parchment (14th-15th centuries) and when printing replaced hand copying (15th century). Roughly 75% of all Greek NT mss are on parchment (ca. 4,000, including some 2,400 continuous-text mss and some 1,600 lectionaries). Paper mss, therefore, are more common than might be supposed, numbering roughly 1,200 (somewhat evenly divided between the minuscules and lectionaries) and ranging in date from the 12th to the 19th centuries, with most originating in the latter part of this period." [Epp]

    102. 3.2.1.3 Manuscripts 1. According to Types of Material: ". . . around the turn of the 2d/3d century (AD 200), NT mss began to be copied on parchment or vellum. . . . The stability of parchment also permitted its reuse, after scraping and washing the existing writing off the surface; such a ms is called a palimpsest (i.e., “scraped again”). Some 50 NT mss prior to the 11th century are palimpsests, among which the most famous is Codex Ephraemi Syri Rescriptus (C), whose NT text dates to the 5th century. " [Epp]

    103. 3.2.1.3 Manuscripts 2. Calligraphy: "As for calligraphy, until the 9th century Greek ms of the NT (both papyrus and parchment) were written exclusively in uncial script (using large-sized, unconnected capital letters), and uncials continued to be employed in the following century. Minuscule script (using lowercase, cursive or “running” - connected - letters) was used from the 9th century on. The earliest dated NT minuscule (no. 461) was copied in 835. Minuscule script, as its name implies, was smaller, requiring less space, and its connected style permitted more rapid writing. Minuscules, therefore, were easier and quicker to produce and less expensive than uncials, and the legacy of NT textual materials is likely to

    104. 3.2.1.3 Manuscripts 2. Calligraphy: be larger than might have been the case had the uncial hand persisted. About 12% of NT mss are in uncial script (some 650) and 88% in minuscule (some 4,650). NT uncial mss are found on papyrus and parchment, minuscules on parchment and paper." [Epp]

    105. 3.2.1.4 Function & Form 1. Continuous-Text MS: ". . . a ms recording the text of at least one NT book (even if no longer fully preserved) in a continuous fashion without additional context (though occasionally an interlinear or separate commentary to the text may be part of the ms). These mss may be written on papyrus, parchment, or paper and may be either in uncial or minuscule hand. Continuous-text NT mss number about 3,125, including about 94 different papyri in uncial script, about 270 different uncial mss on parchment, and around 2,750 minuscules on parchment or paper (of which more than 2,100 are on parchment)." [Epp]

    106. 3.2.1.4 Function & Form 2. Lectionary: "Lectionaries are mss containing portions of biblical text for reading in church services. NT “lessons” from the Gospels and Epistles are arranged not in the order of the NT canon, but in accordance either with the Church year (called the synaxarion) . . . . Lections vary in length from a few verses to a few chapters, with a customary length of about ten verses." [Epp] Carefully copied from an exemplar lectionary. Basically Byzantine text type.

    107. 3.2.1.4 Function & Form 3. Lectionary: "NT lectionary mss in Greek number around 2,200, of which nearly 90% (more than 1,900) are minuscules and the rest uncials (about 270). Two uncial lectionaries date as early as the 4th and 5th centuries, about seven more in the 6th and 7th, with large numbers originating in the 9th and 10th, and with vast numbers of minuscule lectionaries stemming from the 11th and 12th centuries and thereafter. Over all, 75% are on parchment, with the rest on paper (dating from the 12th century on), and the majority of lectionaries consist of gospel readings." [Epp]

    108. 3.2.1.4 Function & Form 4. Helps: "Words and sentences usually were not separated from one another, occasionally leading the reader to divide words in alternate ways with differing meanings; virtually no punctuation occurred until the 6th or 7th centuries; similarly, breathing marks and accents are rare prior to the 7th century, though after this time they occasionally were added by a later hand to NT lectionary mss in Greek number around 2,200, of which nearly 90% (more than 1,900) are minuscules and the rest uncials (about 270)." [Epp]

    109. 3.2.1.4 Function & Form 4. Helps: "To assist in locating parallel passages in the gospels, Eusebius (ca. 263-339) devised a system of ten “canons” or tables (known as the Eusebian Canons) that divided the gospel material into sections and identified those that were found in all four gospels (canon I), those in each combination of three gospels (canons II-IV); those in each combination of two gospels (canons V-IX), and finally those sections in only one of the gospels (canon X). Thus, all the possible combinations were exhausted. Each section in each gospel was then numbered consecutively, and these section numbers, along with their appropriate canons, were placed-in colored ink-in the margin of a ms.

    110. 3.2.1.4 Function & Form 4. Helps: The reader, by looking up the section number in the designated canon, could find the numbers of any parallel sections in other gospels. . . ." [Epp] N.B. Nestle-Aland27, 84*-89*

    111. 3.2.1.5 Papyri 1. "Presently 96 NT papyri have been identified, though two of these are portions of others (P33 = P58; P64 = P67), leaving a total of 94 different papyri. They range in date from the 2d century to the 8th, and all but four are from codices (the four, P12, P13, P18, P22, are from scrolls, though all are exceptional in that they are either written on both sides or are on reused papyrus). These 94 papyri range in extent of coverage from tiny fragments (like P52 of John) to extensive portions (in papyri like P66, P75, and P72)."

    112. 3.2.1.5 Papyri 2. See: Metzger, The Text of the New Testament, 36-42. Kurt Aland & Barbara Aland, The Text of the New Testament, 83-102. 3. "In Studying any New Testament text it is important to know in which papyri (and uncials) it is found. But a great amount of effort is required to find this information in the literature." [Therefore see charts 5 &6 in Aland & Aland]

    113. 3.2.1.5 Uncials 1. "As a classification of NT mss, “uncials” is not used to refer to all NT mss written in uncial characters (about 650), but only to continuous-text mss so written on parchment (about 270). Thus, the papyri and the more than 270 lectionary mss written in uncials are classified under papyri and lectionaries, respectively, and not here." [Epp] 2. "Continuous-text uncials total about 290, but the number of different uncials is closer to 270, due to the continuing process of uniting separated fragments with their original mss. Uncials date from the 2d/3d century through the 10th century. Only 4 predate the early 4th century (0189, 0220, 0162, 0171); 14 stem from the 4th century including the two most famous uncials, Codices Sinaiticus and Vaticanus; but 54

    114. 3.2.1.5 Uncials survive from around AD 400 to 500; and uncials increase as one moves into the later 6th and through the 9th centuries, with the last 19 originating in the 10th century. . . ." [Epp] 3. ". . . in reality only 35 percent of all uncials survive in more than two leaves. To be more precise, only 59 uncials (about 22 percent) contain more than 30 leaves and only 44 uncials (about 16 percent) have more than 100 leaves. Of this latter group, 17 contain 100 to 199 leaves; 16 have 200 to 299; 9 have 300 to 399; and only 2 have more than 400 (Bezae [05] with 415 and Claromontanus [06] with 533 leaves)." [Epp]

    115. 3.2.1.5 Uncials 4. "Codex Sinaiticus (a) is the only uncial presently containing the entire NT (though Alexandrinus still contains portions of every NT book). Sinaiticus also has virtually all of the OT, as well as the Epistle of Barnabas and the Shepherd of Hermas. It dates from the 4th century and its large pages contain four columns each-the only NT ms written in this fashion.

    116. 3.2.1.5 Uncials 5. "Codex Alexandrinus (A) is of somewhat later date-in the 5th century-and lacks only portions of Matthew (up to 25:6), John (6:50-8:52), and 2 Corinthians (4:13-12:6) from its NT, and it contains the OT, as well as 1-2 Clement. It is written in two columns and its text appears to have been copied from different exemplars, for its gospel text is akin to the Byzantine type, while the remainder of the NT has a text like that in Sinaiticus and Vaticanus."

    117. 3.2.1.5 Uncials 6. "Codex Vaticanus (B), 4th century, is written in three columns and contains all of the NT except an extensive portion from Heb 9:14 through Revelation; it also has the OT, though it begins with Gen 46:28 and lacks Ps 105:27137:6. Vaticanus would be regarded by all as the most valuable uncial ms of the NT, and by many as the most important of all NT mss, due to the combination of its early date, its broad coverage of the NT, and the excellent quality of its text, which-for the overlapping portions-is strikingly similar to that in P75."

    118. 3.2.1.5 Uncials 7. "Codex Bezae Cantabrigiemis (D) contains, on Greek and Latin facing pages, the four gospels (in the order Matthew, John, Luke, Mark), Acts nearly complete, and a small portion of 3 John. Its date is 5th century, or possibly late 4th. It is written in one column, but in sense lines rather than in the usual fashion of simply filling the lines. Bezae, with many striking additions to the text (and some omissions), is the major Greek representative of the so-called Western type of text, which some have considered the earliest form of the NT text, but which others have viewed as a later, derivative development."

    119. 3.2.1.5 Uncials 8. "Codex Washingtonianus (W), also known as the Freer Gospels, has the four gospels virtually complete (though in the order of Matthew, John, Luke, and Mark) and dates from the early 5th century. Its text is of mixed character, with various sections of varying length representing rather different textual types: Byzantine in Matthew and most of Luke; Alexandrian in the rest of Luke and most of John; and so-called Western in Mark 1:1-5:30, but like the text of P45 in 5:31-16:20. It may be best known for the material it inserts into the

    120. 3.2.1.5 Uncials already longer ending to Mark (16:9-20) that it shares with other witnesses: it adds at 16:14 a paragraph that includes an excuse by the disciples in response to the risen Christ’s chiding of them for unbelief." 8. See also: Metzger, 42-61. Aland & Aland, 103-128.

    121. 3.2.1.5 Minuscules 1. "Some 80 percent of the minuscules are solid representatives of the Majority text and to that extent at least they will contribute little to the establishment of the original text, for the Byzantine or Koine text (to use two other terms for the Majority text) is a text type that developed from the early 4th century on and became the well-established and official ecclesiastical text of the Byzantine Church." [Epp]

    122. 3.2.1.5 Minuscules 2. ". . . approximately 10 percent of them offer a valuable early text which can compete with even the best of the uncials." [Aland & Aland, 128] 3. See: Metzger, 61-66 Aland & Aland, 128-158.

    123. 3.2.1.5 Lectionaries 1. "Though the lectionary mss of the NT number 2,200 or more, they are not often cited in the critical apparatus of Greek NT texts because they overwhelmingly preserve a Byzantine text and are not critical in establishing the original NT text. Greek lectionaries do not include the Apocalypse, for there were no readings from this book in the Church year; the same applies to some passages of Acts and the Epistles." [Epp] 2. See: Aland & Aland, 163-170.

    124. 3.2.1.5 Patristics 1. "Passages of the NT quoted by writers in the early Church constitute an important body of data for textual criticism, for they provide narrowly dated and geographically located textual readings. That is, from them we have an indication of the form that a text took at certain places at certain times-at least the terminus ad quem for such a reading, though not normally, of course, the terminus a quo. By comparing these patristic readings with similar variants in continuous-text mss, we have some sense as to the age and, though less clearly, the possible provenance of the mss

    125. 3.2.1.5 Patristics containing them. In general, the more striking or distinctive the readings, the more definite are the conclusions about their date and place of use and perhaps origin. Patristic quotations, therefore, assume very great significance in the effort to establish text types " [Epp] 2. Problems: citation/adaptation/allusion; long quotations copied; reconstruction of the father's text; 3. See: Aland & Aland, 171-184. Metzger, 86-92.

    126. 3.2.1.6 Versions "The early versions . . . Started from about A.D. 180." [Aland & Aland, 185] "The earliest versions of the New Testament were prepared by missionaries to assist in the propagation of the Christian faith among peoples whose native tongue was Syriac, Latin, or Coptic. . . . Not only were some of the translations prepared by person who had an imperfect command of Greek, but certain features of Greek syntax and vocabulary cannot be conveyed in a translation. . . . [further] complicated by the circumstances that various persons made various translations from various Greek manuscripts." [Metzger, 67-68]

    127. 3.2.1.6 Versions 1. Syriac: "Scholars have distinguished five different Syriac versions of all or part of the New Testament. They are the Old Syriac, the Peshitta (or common version), the Philoxenian, the Harclean, and the Palestinian Syriac version." [Metzger, 68] "Peculiarly among the versions, the first stage of the tradition was not a translation of the four canonical Gospels, but Tatian's Diastessaron. This harmony came into use toward the end of the second century as the "Gospel" of the "orthodox" of Edessa, and succeeded in maintaining its position into the fifth century against increasing opposition." [Aland & Aland, 192]

    128. 3.2.1.6 Versions 2. Latin: "The translation of the NT into Latin developed into the most extensive tradition of any NT version, for it existed both in North Africa and in Europe in an “Old Latin” form from the earliest period and then expanded in its “Vulgate” form into a widespread, long-standing, and highly influential ecclesiastical textual tradition." [Epp] ". . . Tertullian of Carthage in North Africa (ca. 160-220) provides the earliest NT texts in Latin, and Cyprian (ca. 200-58), also of Carthage, evidences the first use of Latin NT mss, though the earliest extant Latin NT mss found anywhere stem from the 4th century. The best judgment, therefore, is that the NT

    129. 3.2.1.6 Versions 2. Latin: took its first Latin form in North Africa, perhaps in the late 2d century." "Old Latin mss, exceeding 50 in number, are designated by lowercase Latin letters in italic (a, b, c, etc), which are used for the gospels, then reused for each subsequent section of the NT: Acts, Pauline Epistles, Catholic Epistles, and the Apocalypse." "Old Latin mss date from the 4th century until the 13th, indicating the version’s longevity and persistence. Vulgate mss exceed 8,000 in number and as many as 10,000 may exist-approaching twice the number of all Greek mss of the NT-and the most important among them are designated by uppercase

    130. 3.2.1.6 Versions 2. Latin: Latin and Greek letters. They date from the 5th century on."

    131. 3.2.1.6 Versions 3. Coptic: "The NT in several Coptic dialects is found in various geographical areas of Egypt. Sahidic was the language of Upper (southern) Egypt from Thebes to the south, and the NT in Sahidic (copsa) dates from the early 3d century. Bohairic was used in the delta region of Lower (northern) Egypt, and NT portions (copbo) were translated perhaps later in the 3d century. Between these areas, lesser dialects and accompanying translations were to be found, mainly the Achmimic (copach), sub-Achmimic (copach2), Middle Egyptian (copmae), and Fayyumic (copfay)."

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