Bible Query - Early
Manuscripts of Philippians
Q: In Php, what are early New Testament manuscripts we have preserved today?
A: Here are many of them.
p16 Php 3:10-17; 4:2-8 (late 3rd century) The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts has a picture of p16 on p.86.
3rd/4th century - 1968 - The Text of the New Testament.
p46 Chester Beatty II 100-150 A.D. has 84 verses of Philippians. Specifically it has Php 1:1,5-15,17-28; 1:30-3:12; 2:14-27; 2:29-3:8; 3:10-21; 4:2-12; 4:14-23 and other parts of Paul's letters and Hebrews. The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts has a photograph of part of p46 on p.192. It also says on p.197-198 that the quality and the stichiometric marks show that a professional scribe wrote this.
First half of 3rd century - 1936 - Frederic G. Kenyon according to The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts.
2nd century, 200 A.D. - 1935 - Ulrich Wilken according to The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts.
200 A.D. - 1968 - The Text of the New Testament.
81-96 A.D. - 1988 - Young Kyu Kim according to The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts.
About 200 A.D. - 1975 - Aland et al. Third edition.
About 200 A.D. - 1998 - Aland et al. Fourth revised edition.
Early to middle 2nd century - 1999 - The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts. This is based in part on the handwriting being very similar to Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 8 (late first or early second century) and Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 2337 (late first century).
p61 Romans 16:23,25-27; 1 Corinthians 1:1-2, 2-6; 5:1-3, 5-6, 9-13; Philippians 3:5-9, 12-16, Colossians 1:3-7, 9-13, 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3; Titus 3:1-5, 8-11, 14-15 Philemon 4-7. c.700 A.D.
c.700 A.D. - 1968 - The Text of the New Testament.
About 700 A.D. - 1975 - Aland et al. Third edition.
About 700 A.D. - 1998 - Aland et al. Fourth revised edition.
Vaticanus [B] 325-350 A.D. All of the New Testament up to Hebrews 9:15. Missing are 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, and Revelation.
Sinaiticus [Si] 340-350 A.D. All of Philippians
Alexandrinus [A] (c.450 A.D.) All of Philippians
Ephraemi Rescriptus [C]
Bohairic Coptic [Boh] 3rd/4th century
Sahidic Coptic [Sah] 3rd/4rth century
Vulgate [Vulg] 4th and 5th centuries
Claromontanus
Armenian [Arm] from 5th century
Georgian [Geo] from 5th century
Peshitta Syriac [Syr P] 400-450 A.D.
Ethiopic [Eth] from c.500 A.D.
Palestinian Syriac [Syr Pal] from c.6th century
Peshitta Syriac [Syr P] 411-435 A.D... Over 350 manuscripts.
Philoxenian Syriac [Syr Ph] 507/508 A.D. Bishop Philoxenus of Mabug
Harclean Syriac [Syr H] 616.A.D Thomas of Harkel
Gothic 493-555 A.D.
Slavonic
Q: In Php, 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 12 words between the Textus Receptus and the majority text. These are in 12 places (Philippians 1:6,7,23; 2:1,21,27,27; 3:3,8,13; 4:3,23). He does not record any additional alternates.
Q: In Php, what are some of the manuscript variations?
A: Paul's Letter to the Philippians has a total of about 1,621 Greek words and a word-for-word accuracy of 97.7%, with only 37 words in question. These are in 22 verses (26 places), out of 104 total verses. Below are the variations with the primary choice and the top alternate choice. Aland, from which this primarily is based, also gives a judgment of the degree of certainty for each variation. Many of the differences are due to the Chester Beatty Papyrii saying one thing and the Byzantine Lectionary and other manuscripts saying another. Some think the Chester Beatty Papyrii was somewhat of a paraphrase.
Php 1:11 "and praise of God" vs. "and praise of Christ" (Claromontanus) vs. "God and our praise" (Chester Beatty 100-150 A.D.) (2 words)
Php 1:14 "speak the word" vs. "the word of the God" (2 words)
Php 1:16,17 Reverse the order of these two verses in some later manuscripts. (However, no major manuscripts have this, so this is not counted in the totals)
Php 2:1 "any" (tis) (masculine-feminine) in almost all manuscripts, (Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus, Claromontanus, Ephraemi Rescriptus) vs. "any" (ti) (neuter) in a few miniscules. The Expositor's Bible Commentary volume 11 p.126 thinks that (ti sp...) might be the original reading, and (tis sp...) was accidentally changed.
Php 2:2 "in you think" is "the same you think"
Php 2:4 singular vs. plural form of the Greek word "each" 2 times (2 words)
Php 2:5 "this" vs. "this for"
Php 2:7 "men" (most manuscripts) vs. "man" (p46, Sahidic Coptic, Bohairic Coptic, Peshitta (P) Syriac, Palestinian (Pa) Syriac) (1 letter not counted in the totals)
Php 2:9 "the/which name which" (Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus) vs. "name which"
Php 2:11 "should confess" (aorist subjunctive) (p46, Sinaiticus, Vaticanus) vs. "shall/will confess" (future indicative) (Alexandrinus, Claromontanus/Claromontanus, Ephraemi Rescriptus)
Php 2:11 "Lord" vs. "Lord Jesus"
Php 2:12 "as in" vs. "in" (Vaticanus, Bohairic Coptic, Sahidic Coptic, Chrysostom)
Php 2:19 "the Lord Jesus" vs. "our Lord Jesus the Messiah" (Syriac Peshitta) *(3 words not counted in the totals)
Php 2:21 "Jesus Christ" (p46, Claromontanus/Claromontanus, Alexandrian family excluding Vaticanus) vs. "Christ Jesus" (Vaticanus)
Php 2:26 "longing for" vs. "longing to see"
Php 2:30 "Christ" vs. "the Christ" vs. "[the] Lord" (2 words)
Php 3:3 "in the Spirit of God" (Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus, Ephraemi Rescriptus, corrected Claromontanus/Claromontanus) vs. "God in Spirit" (2 words)
Php 3:12 "already been perfected" vs. "already been apprehended/received" or "already been perfected". As to whether it should be "been perfected" or "been made perfect", this is an English translation issue. (4 words)
Php 3:12 "Christ Jesus" (p46, p61, Sinaiticus, Alexandrinus, some Bohairic Coptic, Armenian, Georgian, some Chrysostom, some Byzantine Lectionary) vs. "for Christ Jesus" Byzantine Lectionary) vs. "Jesus Christ (Peshitta Syriac, some Bohairic Coptic, Ethiopic, some Chrysostom) vs. "Jesus" (Vaticanus, original Claromontanus, Sahidic Coptic, Clement of Alexandrian, Tertullian) (2 words, but second choice not likely, so 1 word counted in the totals)
Php 3:13 "not my own" vs. "not my own yet"
Php 3:15 "let us think" (p16, p46, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus, Claromontanus, Byzantine Lectionary, Armenian, Georgian, Chrysostom, Pelagius) vs. "**" Sinaiticus, Slavonic, Clement of Alexandrian, Jerome) (2 letters different [omega to "ou", and not counted in the totals)
Php 3:16 changes the case of two words and changes "basic principles" (p16, p46, original Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus, Sahidic, Coptic, Bohairic Coptic, Ethiopic) to "thoughts" (2 words)
Php 3:21 accent marks of the Greek word for "him". A third variant is "himself"
Php 4:3 "and (kai)" (every manuscript) vs. "vai" Textus Receptus so not counted in the totals
Php 4:3 "the rest of the fellow workers of mine" (p46, 2nd corrector Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus Byzantine Lectionary) vs. "the fellow works of mine and the rest" (p16 apparently, original Sinaiticus, Georgian) (4 words)
Php 4:7 "hearts of you and the minds of you" (p46, Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus, Claromontanus, Byzantine Lectionary, Peshitta (P) Syriac, Harclean Syriac, Sahidic Coptic, Bohairic Coptic, Armenian, Ethiopic, Georgian, Chrysostom, Pelagius) vs. "hearts of you" (some Vulgate) vs. "body" (late manuscripts), vs. "minds and the body" (apparently p16, and some Vulgate) (4 words but not counted in the totals)
Php 4:8 "praise" (p46, Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus, most manuscripts) vs. "praise these things consider" (original Claromontanus/Claromontanus)
Php 4:13 "[He] whom empowers/strengthens me" vs. "Christ whom empowers/strengthens me"
Php 4:16 "unto/to the need" vs. "the need"
Php 4:19 "will fill up all" (different conjugation) (plur-omega-sei) vs. (plur-omega-sai)
Php 4:23 "your spirit" (p46, original Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus, Claromontanus, Sahidic Coptic, Bohairic Coptic, Armenian, Ethiopic) vs. "you all" (Corrected Sinaiticus, most miniscules, Peshitta (P) Syriac, Harclean (H) Syriac, Textus Receptus)
Php 4:23 "amen" at the end is absent (Vaticanus, Sahidic Coptic, Chrysostom), vs. "amen" (p46, Sinaiticus, Alexandrinus, Byzantine Lectionary, many others)
Php 4:23 Some manuscripts have the postscript, "To Philippians written from Rome, by/of/through/via Epaphroditus" (Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, Alexandrinus)
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 Php, 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 |
p16 |
p46 |
Si |
A |
B |
C |
D |
Sah |
Boh |
Fay |
ClemA |
Origen |
Ital |
Vg |
Eth |
Chrys |
Byz |
Arm |
Geo |
Syr Pal |
Syr P |
Syr H |
|
Php 1:11 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
(4) |
(2?) |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
||||||
|
Php 1:14 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
4 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
1/ 3 |
3 |
3 |
1/3 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
|||||
|
Php 2:1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
||||||||||||||||
|
Php 2:2 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1/2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1? |
1 |
1 |
|||||||||
|
Php 2:4 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
2? |
2/ 3 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
||||||||
|
Php 2:5 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
(2) |
2 |
|||||
|
Php 2:7 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
||||||||||||||||||
|
Php 2:9 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1/2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
|||||||||
|
Php 2:11 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1/ 2? |
1 |
1 |
1/2 |
1 |
||||||||||
|
Php 2:11 |
1 |
1? |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1/ 2? |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
||||||
|
Php 2:12 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2? |
2 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
|||||||
|
Php 2:26 |
1 |
3? |
2 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1/ 2 |
2 |
2 |
|||||
|
Php 2:30 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
1 |
5A |
2 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
2/4 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
||||||
|
Php 3:3 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1?/2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
|||||
|
Php 3:12 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
1/3 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
1/3 |
1/2 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
|||||||
|
Php 3:12 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
1/3 |
4 |
3 |
1/2 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
|||||||||
|
Php 3:13 |
1 |
2? |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1/ 2 |
1/ 2? |
2 |
1/2 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
|||||
|
Php 3:15 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
||||||||
|
Php 3:16 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
1/3/4 |
4 |
1 |
5 |
5 |
4 |
4 |
(5) |
5 |
|||||
|
Php 3:21 |
1 |
- |
- |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1? |
1? |
1/ 4 |
4 |
1/4 |
1/4 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
|||||||
|
Php 4:3 |
4 |
2? |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
1 |
||||||
|
Php 4:7 |
1 |
4? |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1/2/4 |
1/ 2? |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|||||
|
Php 4:8 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
||||||
|
Php 4:13 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
||||||
|
Php 4:16 |
1 |
4 |
1 |
4 |
1 |
1/ 2 |
1 |
3 |
2 |
||||||||||||||
|
Php 4:19 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1/2 |
1 |
1 |
||||||||||
|
Php 4:23 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
|||||||||||||
|
Php 4:23 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1/ 2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
|||||
|
postscript |
7 |
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Place |
words |
p16 |
p46 |
Si |
A |
B |
C |
D |
Sah |
Boh |
Fay |
ClemA |
Origen |
Ital |
Vg |
Eth |
Chrys |
Byz |
Arm |
Geo |
Syr Pal |
Syr P |
Syr H |
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