Bible Query - Early
Manuscripts of 2 Peter
Q: In 1 Jn, what are early New Testament manuscripts we have preserved today?
A: Here are many of them.
p9 (=Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 402) 1 John 4:11-12,14-17 third century. The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts p.70 has a picture of this manuscript, and it says the handwriting was not by a trained scribe, it was written carelessly, and some of the spellings are unintelligible.
3rd century - 1968 - The Text of the New Testament
3rd century - 1998 - Aland et al. Fourth Revised Edition
p74 (=Bodmer 17) Acts 1:2-5,7-11,13-15,18-19,22-25; 2:2-4; 2:6-3:26; 4:2-6,8-27; 4:29-27:25; 27:27-28:31; James 1:1-6,8-19,21-23,25,27; 2:1-3,5-15; 18-22, 25-26; 3:1,5-6,10-12,14,17-18; 4:8,11-14; 5:1-3,7-9,12-14,19-20; 1 Peter 1:1-2,7-8,13,19-20,25; 2:6-7,11-12,18,24; 3:4-5; 2 Peter 2:21; 3:4,11,16; 1 John 1:1,6; 2:1-2,7,13-14,18-19,25-26; 3:1-2,8,14,19-20; 4:1,6-7,12,16-17;5:3-4,9-10,17; 2 John 1,6-7,13; 3 John 6,12; Jude 3,7,12,18,24 (7th century)
7th century - 1968 - The Text of the New Testament has James 2:4 and 1 Peter 1:12
7th century - 1975 - Aland et al. Third Edition
6th century - 1998 - Aland et al. Fourth Revised Edition
Vaticanus [B] (325-350 A.D.), Sinaiticus [Si] (340-350 A.D.), and Alexandrinus [A] (c.450 A.D) have all of 1 John.
Bohairic Coptic 3rd/4th century
Sahidic Coptic 3rd/4rth century
Peshitta Syriac [Syr P] 411-435 A.D... Over 350 manuscripts.
Philoxenian Syriac 507/508 A.D. Bishop Philoxenus of Mabug
Harclean Syriac [Syr H] 616.A.D Thomas of Harkel
Ephraemi Rescriptus 5th century
Armenian [Arm] from 5th century
Georgian [Geo] from 5th century
Ethiopic [Eth] from c.500 A.D.
Q: In 1 Jn, what are the manuscript variations with the Textus Receptus, the basis for the KJV?
A: Jay P. Green, Sr. in the Interlinear Bible records variations in approximately 62 words between the Textus Receptus and the majority text. These are in 21 places. 25 of the words are in one place. Green does not record any additional alternates.
Q: In 1 Jn, what are some of the manuscript variations?
A: The book of 1 John has a total of about 2,103 Greek words and a word-for-word accuracy of 98.4%, with 35 words in question. (Since the 1 John 5:7-8 variation of 25 words is almost certainly an addition, that is not counted.) The other variations are in 27 verses (30 places), out of 104 total verses. All of the other variations are single word except for one. Below are the variations with the primary choice and the top alternate choice. Scholars differ on the degree of certainty for many variations.
1 Jn 1:4 "our" vs. "your" (1 letter difference)
1 Jn 1:4 "our" vs. "your" (1 letter difference)
1 Jn 2:4 "the truth" vs. "the truth" (additional word for the)
1 Jn 2:6 "so to walk " vs. "to walk"
1 Jn 2:14 "I wrote" (most manuscripts) vs. "I wrote" (some Byzantine, so not counted in the totals)
1 Jn 2:14 "I worked" vs. "I wrote"
1 Jn 2:17 "lust of it" vs. "lust" (not counted in the totals)
1 Jn 2:18 "that the Antichrist" vs. "that Antichrist"
1 Jn 2:20 "all" (singular vs. plural)
1 Jn 2:25 "us" (Sinaiticus, Alexandrinus, Ephraemi Rescriptus, Byzantine Lectionary, Sahidic Coptic, Bohairic Coptic, Armenian) vs. "you" (plural) (Vaticanus)
1 Jn 3:1 "And that is what we are" vs. (absent) (New Age Bible Versions Refuted p.19 says the Greek evidence for "And such as we are" is overwhelming, and the KJV was incorrect to omit it. A Textual Commentary of the New Testament 2nd edition p.642 points out that this is in both Alexandrian and Western types of text. (2 words but not counted) (homoiteleuton)
1 Jn 3:1 "and we are" vs. (absent) (in the Byzantine Lectionary)
1 Jn 3:5 Add "our" before "sin".
1 Jn 3:13 (absent) "And" as the first word of the verse.
1 Jn 3:14 "because we love" vs. "because we love the brothers"
1 Jn 3:19 "we shall know" vs. "we know" (Byzantine Lectionary)
1 Jn 3:19 "and in this". vs. "and this"
1 Jn 3:21 "our heart" vs. "heart"
1 Jn 3:21 "accuses" vs. "accuses us"
1 Jn 4:1-2 "many false prophets have gone forth into the world. By this know the Spirit of God: every spirit which confesses that Jesus Christ has come in flesh is from God. And every spirit which does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in flesh is not from God; and this is the antichrist" vs. "many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God : Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God; and every spirit which separates Jesus Christ is not of God, but is of antichrist." Vulgate, Irenaeus Against Heresies Book 3 ch.16.8 p.443, Origen, also Socrates 7.32 p.381. Tertullian Against Marcion 5.16 mentions both readings.) (See The Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.1 p.443)
1 Jn 4:3 "which not confesses" (Almost all early manuscripts) vs. "which loosens / denies"
1 Jn 4:3 "the Jesus" (almost all manuscripts and some Christian writers) vs. "Jesus Christ" vs. "the Jesus Christ is come in the flesh" (Philoxenian Syriac, Herclean Syriac, Armenian, Georgian) vs. "Jesus Christ in the flesh (Sinaiticus) vs. "Jesus Christ come in the flesh" (Byzantine, Ethiopic) (See New Age Bible Versions Refuted p.21 for more info.) (5 words) (probably a homoiteleuton)
1 Jn 4:10 "we have loved" vs. "we loved"
1 Jn 4:19 "we love" vs. "we love God" vs. "we love Him"
1 Jn 4:20 "on" vs. "how"
1 Jn 5:1 "loves and" vs. "loves"
1 Jn 5:2 "we do" vs. "we keep"
1 Jn 5:6 water and "blood" vs. "spirit"
1 Jn 5:7-8 "bear witness" vs. "bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness on earth:" (NKJV) (25 words in Greek) The General Introduction to the Bible p.484 says, "In fact, the acceptance of the longer rendering as a genuine part of the text of 1 John violates almost every major canon of textual criticism." (Since I believe there is less than 1% chance these words were in the original, this variation is not counted in the totals.) See the discussion on 1 Jn 5:7-8 for which manuscripts support each variant.
1 Jn 5:10 "himself" vs. "of him"
1 Jn 5:10 "God" vs. "Son" (No important manuscript has "Son" except Alexandrinus (c.450 A.D.)
1 Jn 5:13 "eternal life." (Sinaiticus, Sahidic Coptic, Ethiopic, Armenian, Syriac) vs. "eternal life, and that you may (believe /continue to believe) in the name of the Son of God." (NKJV has the second) (approximately 9 words not counted in the totals)
1 Jn 5:18 "keeps him" vs. "keeps himself"
1 Jn 5:20 "the True [One/God is implied]" vs. "the True God"
1 Jn 5:21 (absent) (Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus) vs. Add "amen" at the end (Byzantine Lectionary and late manuscripts)
Some manuscripts add the postscript, "Of John Letter general First"
Bibliography for this question: The Greek New Testament Third Edition by Kurt Aland et al., The Greek New Testament Fourth Edition by Kurt Aland et al., Interlinear Greek-English New Testament by George Ricker Berry, the Interlinear Bible by Jay P. Green, The Expositor's Bible Commentary volume 8, A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament 2nd edition by Bruce M. Metzger, The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts edited by Philip W. Comfort and David P. Barrett, The Expositor's Greek Testament edited by W. Robertson Nicoll, and footnotes in the NASB, NIV, NKJV, and NRSV Bible translations. Manuscripts of the Greek Bible : An Introduction to Paleography by Bruce M. Metzger also has interesting information on the characteristics and quality of the copying of each manuscript.
Q: In 1 Jn, how do the early manuscripts compare with each other?
A: The table below shows each of the places in question, and the number says which variant is in each manuscript.
|
Place |
words |
P74 |
Si |
A |
B |
C |
Sah |
Boh |
Fay |
Ital |
Vg |
Luc |
Eth |
Byz |
Arm |
Geo |
Syr Ph |
Syr P |
SyrH |
|
1 Jn 1:4a |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1/ 2 |
2 |
1/ 2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
|||
|
1 Jn 1:4b |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
2 |
1/2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
|||
|
1 Jn 2:4 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
2 |
||||||||||||
|
1 Jn 2:6 |
1 |
1 |
2A |
2A |
1 |
2A |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2A |
|||||||||
|
1 Jn 2:14 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1/ 2 |
1? |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|||||
|
1 Jn 2:17 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|||||||||||
|
1 Jn 2:18 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
|||||||||
|
1 Jn 2:20 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
||||
|
1 Jn 2:25 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2? |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
||||
|
1 Jn 3:1 |
2 |
||||||||||||||||||
|
1 Jn 3:1 |
1 |
1? |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
(1) |
1 |
||||
|
1 Jn 3:5 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1?/ 2? |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1/2/ 3? |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
|||
|
1 Jn 3:13 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1? |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1/ 2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
||
|
1 Jn 3:14 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1/ 3 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 3 |
2?/3? |
1 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
||
|
1 Jn 3:19a |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1?/2 |
2 |
1/ 2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
(3) |
|||
|
1 Jn 3:19b |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2/ 3 |
1?/2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
||||||||
|
1 Jn 3:21a |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|||
|
1 Jn 3:21b |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
1/ 2 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
|||
|
1 Jn 4:3a |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
- |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
- |
1 |
1 |
|||||
|
1 Jn 4:3b |
5 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
- |
- |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1/ 2? |
1 |
5 |
5 |
3 |
3 |
- |
3 |
3 |
||
|
1 Jn 4:10 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
- |
- |
- |
|||
|
1 Jn 4:19 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
- |
4 |
2/4? |
2/4 |
1/ 2 |
(4) |
3 |
2 |
1 |
- |
2 |
2 |
|||
|
1 Jn 4:20 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
- |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
- |
2 |
- |
|||
|
1 Jn 5:1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
- |
3 |
1/3 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
- |
1 |
1 |
|||
|
1 Jn 5:2 |
1 |
2 |
3? |
1 |
- |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
- |
1 |
1 |
|||
|
1 Jn 5:6 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
1 |
- |
3 |
3 |
1 |
1/ 3/4 |
3 |
1 |
4 |
1 |
- |
1 |
3 |
|||
|
1 Jn 5:7-8 |
25 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
- |
1 |
1 |
1/ 3 |
1/ 2/3 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2? |
1 |
- |
1 |
1 |
|||
|
1 Jn 5:10a |
1 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
||||
|
1 Jn 5:10b |
1 |
1 |
- |
1 |
- |
3 |
1/3? |
1/ 2 |
2 |
(2) |
1 |
3 |
2 |
- |
1 |
1 |
|||
|
1 Jn 5:13 |
9 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
||||||||||||||
|
1 Jn 5:17 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
- |
3 |
3? |
3 |
1/3 |
- |
1 |
3 |
1 |
- |
- |
2 |
|||
|
1 Jn 5:18a |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
- |
- |
3 |
3 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
|||
|
1 Jn 5:18b |
1 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
- |
- |
- |
|||
|
1 Jn 5:20 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
- |
2 |
1/2/3? |
1/3 |
3 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
- |
1 |
1 |
|||
|
1 Jn 5:21 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
- |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
- |
1 |
1 |
|||
|
Place |
words |
p9 |
Si |
A |
B |
C |
Sah |
Boh |
Fay |
Ital |
Vg |
Luc |
Eth |
Byz |
Arm |
Geo |
Syr Ph |
Syr P |
Syr H |
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