The Word Made More Sure!

2 Peter 1:19“And we have the word of the prophets made

more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it…”

Recap: support of Biblical Reliability• Week 1 - Archeological support

– (Moabite Stone, Black Obelisk, etc.)

• Week 2 – Manuscripts – Old Testament – Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint– New Testament – without equal

• 5,735 Greek manuscripts, 19,000 early translations• No other ancient writing comes close

• Week 3 – New Testament – Transmission and Textual Criticism

• Week 4 - Translations

Definitions: FragmentaryThe papyrus scraps of Magdalen Papyrus (P64). Using new tools such as a scanning laser microscope along with more conventional handwriting analysis, the fragments have been dated to sometime between 30 and 70 A.D. Matthew 26

The Rylands Papyrus (P52). This papyrus is about 2.5 inches wide and 3.5 inches long, contains John 18:31-33 and 37-38, and has been dated at about 125 A.D.

Front Back

Review Definitions: Codex – a bookThis is p66 of the Bodmer papyri in the Bodmer Library near Geneva. P66 is perhaps the most important item in this collection. It is a papyrus codex of the Gospel According to John, in which the first fourteen chapters are practically complete, while the rest is in a fragmentary condition. It is dated no later than about A.D. 200. Some date this particular manuscript to the early 100s to 150 AD. The leaves (pages) are 6.4 inches tall and 5.6 inches wide. The written pages are numbered consecutively from 1 to 34, 35-38 are missing, then from 39 to page 108. The number of lines of text per page varies from 14 to 25. The number of letters in a line of text runs from 18 to 28. This first page contains John 1:1-14.

Review DefinitionsUncial – Luke 11:2From Codex Sinaiticus 350 AD

Minuscule – Matthew 1From Minuscule 54413th Century

Typical Scribal Errors –Unintentional changes

• Faulty Eyesight, smudges, candlelight– Similar looking letters:

• Faulty Hearing (Dictation)• Errors of the Mind• Errors of Judgment

Typical Scribal Errors –Intentional changes

• “Corrections”• Harmonization• Natural Compliments• Difficulties• Conflation• Agenda

Text Types

• Western• Caesarean• Alexandrian• Byzantine

The Sinai Book

Want More?

• The Text of the New Testament by Metzger and Ehrman

• The Text of the New Testament by Aland and Aland

• http://codexsinaiticus.org/en/

• http://www.biblefacts.org/history/oldtext.html

Resources: