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Byzantine text-type

In the textual criticism of the New Testament, the Byzantine text-type (also called Majority Text, Traditional Text, Ecclesiastical Text, Constantinopolitan Text, Antiocheian Text, or Syrian Text) is one of the main text types. It is the form found in the largest number of surviving manuscripts of the Greek New Testament. The New Testament text of the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Patriarchal Text, as well as those utilized in the lectionaries, are based on this text-type. Similarly, the Aramaic Peshitta which often conforms to the Byzantine text is used as the standard version in the Syriac tradition, including the Syriac Orthodox Church and the Chaldean church.[1][2][3] Whilst varying in around 1,800 places from printed editions,[4] the Byzantine text-type also underlies the Textus Receptus Greek text used for most Reformation-era (Protestant) translations of the New Testament into vernacular languages.[5] Modern translations (since 1900) mainly use eclectic editions that conform more often to the Alexandrian text-type, which is viewed as the most accurate text-type by most scholars,[6] although some modern translations that use the Byzantine text-type have been created.[7]

Codex Vaticanus 354 S (028), an uncial codex with a Byzantine text, assigned to the Family K1

The Byzantine text is also found in a few modern Eastern Orthodox editions, as the Byzantine textual tradition has continued in the Eastern Orthodox Church into the present time. The text used by the Orthodox Church is supported by late minuscule manuscripts. It is commonly accepted as the standard Byzantine text.[8] There are also some textual critics such as Robinson and Hodges who still favor the Byzantine Text, and have produced Byzantine-majority critical editions of the Greek New Testament.[9] This view was famously defended by John Burgon.[10]

Manuscripts

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Codex Alexandrinus, the oldest Greek witness of the Byzantine text in the Gospels, close to the Family Π (Luke 12:54-13:4)

The earliest clear notable patristic witnesses to the Byzantine text come from early eastern church fathers such as Gregory of Nyssa (335 – c. 395), John Chrysostom (347 – 407), Basil the Great (330 – 379) and Cyril of Jerusalem (313 – 386). [11][12][13]: 130  The fragmentary surviving works of Asterius the Sophist († 341) have also been considered to conform to the Byzantine text.[12]: 358  Although somewhat closer to the Alexandrian text, the quotations of Clement of Alexandria (150 –  215) sometimes contain readings which agree with the later Byzantine text-type. [14]: 229  The incomplete surviving translation of Wulfila (d. 383) into Gothic is often thought to derive from the Byzantine text type or an intermediary between the Byzantine and Western text types.[15] The second or third earliest translation to witness to a Greek base conforming generally to the Byzantine text in the Gospels is the Syriac Peshitta (though it has many Alexandrian and Western readings);[2][3] usually dated to the beginning of the 5th century;[13]: 98  although in respect of several much contested readings, such as Mark 1:2 and John 1:18, the Peshitta rather supports the Alexandrian witnesses. Despite being characterized by mixed readings, significant Byzantine components also exist in the Syro-Palestinian manuscripts, which likely originated from the 5th century.[16]: 155 

 
Evangelist portrait of Mark from Garima 2, likely the earlier of the two Garima Gospels

Dating from the fourth century, and hence possibly earlier than the Peshitta, is the Ethiopic version of the Gospels; best represented by the surviving fifth and sixth century manuscripts of the Garima Gospels and classified by Rochus Zuurmond as "early Byzantine". Zuurmond notes that, especially in the Gospel of John, the form of the early Byzantine text found in the Ethiopic Gospels is quite different from the later Greek Majority Text, and agrees in a number of places with Papyrus 66.[16]: 231–252  In the very early 7th century, Thomas Herakel worked on a revision of the Philoxenian version, thus producing the Harklean version in Syriac. This text very closely resembles the Byzantine text-type and due to its wide distribution, it is preserved in over 120 manuscripts. Many of the extant Georgian and Armenian manuscripts also conform to the Byzantine text-type, although this is due to the manuscripts having gone through revisions to bring them closer to the Byzantine text.[16][2] Additionally, the Byzantine text is the textual basis of the Old Church Slavonic manuscripts of the Bible, although they sometimes contain readings from other textual traditions.[2]

Some debate exists on the manuscript basis of Jerome's Latin Vulgate and if this text was influenced by the Byzantine text. Wordsworth concluded that Jerome mainly used a text-type similar to Codex Siniaticus and Vaticanus, however his conclusions were rejected by H. J. Vogels who instead argued that the Greek manuscripts used by Jerome mostly agreed with the Byzantine text. Vogel's analysis of the Vulgate was criticized by both F. C. Burkitt and Lagrange, Burkitt instead argued that Jerome's Vulgate was influenced by multiple Greek manuscripts from different text-types, some of which were similar to Codex Alexandrinus while others similar to Codex Vaticanus.[2]: 355–356 

Individual readings in agreement with the later Byzantine text have been found in the very early papyri, such as 𝔓46. Some such as Harry Sturz have concluded from this that the Byzantine text-type must have had an early existence, however others have been cautious in making this conclusion. According to Zuntz, although some Byzantine readings may be ancient, the Byzantine tradition as a whole originates from a later period, not as a creation but as a process of choosing between early variants.[12]: 231-232  It has also been questioned if some of the readings found in the early papyri which agree with later Byzantine readings are genetically significant or accidental.[16]

Notable manuscripts

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Codex Boreelianus, Byzantine manuscript, member of the Family E
Sign Name Date Content
0176 Uncial 0176 4th-5th Galatians 3:16-25
A (02) Codex Alexandrinus 5th Gospels
C (04) Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus 5th Gospels (mixed Byzantine/Alexandrian)
W (032) Codex Washingtonianus 5th Matt 1-28; Luke 8:13–24:53
Q (026) Codex Guelferbytanus B 5th Luke–John
N (022) Codex Petropolitanus Purpureus 6th Gospels
O (023) Codex Sinopensis 6th Gospels
Σ (042) Codex purpureus Rossanensis 6th Gospels
Φ (043) Codex Beratinus 6th Gospels
0211 Uncial 0211 7th Gospels
0103 Uncial 0103 7th Gospels
Ee (07) Codex Basilensis 8th Gospels
Fe (09) Codex Boreelianus 9th Gospels
Ge (011) Codex Seidelianus I 9th Gospels
He (013) Codex Seidelianus II 9th Gospels
L (020) Codex Angelicus 9th Acts, CE, Pauline Epistles
V (031) Codex Mosquensis II 9th Gospels
Y (034) Codex Macedoniensis 9th Gospels
Θ (038) Codex Koridethi 9th Gospels (except Mark)
S (028) Codex Vaticanus 354 949 Gospels
1241 Minuscule 1241 12th only Acts
1424 Minuscule 1424 9th/10th NT (except Mark)

Other manuscripts

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Papyri

𝔓73

Uncials

Codex Mutinensis (H), Codex Cyprius (K), Codex Mosquensis I (Kap), Campianus (M), Petropolitanus Purp. (N), Sinopensis (O), Guelferbytanus A (P), Guelferbytanus B (Q), Nitriensis (R), Nanianus (U), Monacensis (X), Tischendorfianus IV (Γ), Sangallensis (Δ) (except Mark), Tischendorfianus III (Λ), Petropolitanus (Π), Rossanensis (Σ), Beratinus (Φ), Dionysiou (Ω), Vaticanus 2066 (Uncial 046), Uncial 047, 049, 052, 053, 054, 056, 061, 063, 064, 065, 069 (?), 093 (Acts), 0103, 0104, 0105, 0116, 0120, 0133, 0134, 0135, 0136, 0142, 0151, 0197, 0211, 0246, 0248, 0253, 0255, 0257, 0265, 0269 (mixed), 0272, 0273 (?).

Minuscules

More than 80% of minuscules represent the Byzantine text.[17]: 128 

2, 3, 6 (Gospels and Acts), 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, 18, 21, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28 (except Mark), 29, 30, 32, 34, 35, 36, 37, 39, 40, 42, 44, 45, 46, 47, 49, 50, 52, 53, 54, 55, 57, 58, 60, 61 (Gospels and Acts), 63, 65, 66, 68, 69 (except Paul), 70, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 80, 82, 83, 84, 89, 90, 92, 93, 95, 97, 98, 99, 100, 103, 104 (except Paul), 105, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 116, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 132, 133, 134, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 143, 144, 146, 147, 148, 149, 150, 151, 155, 156, 159, 162, 167, 169, 170, 171, 177, 180 (except Acts), 181 (only Rev.), 182, 183, 185, 186, 187, 189, 190, 192, 193, 194, 195, 196, 197, 198, 199, 200, 201, 202, 203, 204, 205 (Epistles), 206 (except Cath.), 207, 208, 209 (except Gospels and Rev.), 210, 212, 214, 215, 217, 218 (except Cath. and Paul), 219, 220, 221, 223, 224, 226, 227, 231, 232, 235, 236, 237, 240, 243, 244, 245, 246, 247, 248, 250, 254 (except Cath.), 256 (except Paul), 259, 260, 261, 262, 263 (except Paul), 264, 266, 267, 268, 269, 270, 272, 275, 276, 277, 278a, 278b, 280, 281, 282, 283, 284, 285, 286, 287, 288, 289, 290, 291, 292, 293, 297, 300, 301, 302, 303, 304, 305, 306, 308, 309, 313, 314, 316, 319, 320, 324, 325, 327, 328, 329, 330 (except Paul), 331, 334, 335, 337, 342, 343, 344, 347, 350, 351, 352, 353, 354, 355, 356, 357, 358, 359, 360, 361, 362, 364, 365 (except Paul), 366, 367, 368, 369, 371, 373, 374, 375, 376, 378 (except Cath.), 379, 380, 381, 384, 385, 386, 387, 388, 390, 392, 393, 394, 395, 396, 398 (except Cath.), 399, 401, 402, 404, 405, 407, 408, 409, 410, 411, 412, 413, 414, 415, 417, 418, 419, 422, 425, 426, 429 (Paul and Rev.), 431 (except Acts and Cath.), 432, 438, 439, 443, 445, 446, 448, 449, 450, 451 (except Paul), 452, 454, 457, 458, 459 (except Paul), 461, 465, 466, 469, 470, 471, 473, 474, 475, 476, 477, 478, 479, 480, 481, 482, 483, 484, 485, 490, 491, 492, 493, 494, 496, 497, 498, 499, 500, 501, 502, 504, 505, 506, 507, 509, 510, 511, 512, 514, 516, 518, 519, 520, 521, 522 (except Acts and Cath.), 523, 524, 525, 526, 527, 528, 529, 530, 531, 532, 533, 534, 535, 538, 540, 541, 546, 547, 548, 549, 550, 551, 553, 554, 556, 558, 559, 560, 564, 568, 570, 571, 573, 574, 575, 577, 578, 580, 583, 584, 585, 586, 587, 588, 592, 593, 863, 596, 597, 600, 601, 602, 603, 604, 605, 607, 610 (in Cath.), 614 (in Cath.), 616, 618, 620, 622, 624, 625, 626, 627, 628, 632, 633, 634, 637, 638, 639, 640, 642 (except Cath.), 644, 645, 648, 649, 650, 651, 655, 656, 657, 660, 662, 663, 664, 666, 668, 669, 672, 673, 674, 677, 680, 684, 685, 686, 688, 689, 690, 691, 692, 694, 696, 698, 699, 705, 707, 708, 711, 714, 715, 717, 718, 721, 724, 725, 727, 729, 730, 731, 734, 736, 737, 739, 741, 745, 746, 748, 750, 754, 755, 756, 757, 758, 759, 760, 761, 762, 763, 764, 765, 768, 769, 770, 773, 774, 775, 777, 778, 779, 781, 782, 783, 784, 785, 786, 787, 789, 790, 793, 794, 797, 798, 799, 801, 802, 806, 808, 809, 811, 818, 819, 820, 824, 825, 830, 831, 833, 834, 835, 836, 839, 840, 841, 843, 844, 845, 846, 848, 852, 853, 857, 858, 860, 861, 862, 864, 866, 867, 868, 870, 877, 880, 884, 886, 887, 889, 890, 893, 894, 896, 897, 898, 900, 901, 902, 904, 905, 906, 910, 911, 912, 914, 916, 917 (Paul), 918 (Paul), 919, 920, 921, 922, 924, 928, 936, 937, 938, 942, 943, 944, 945 (Acts and Cath.), 950, 951, 952, 953, 955, 956, 957, 958, 959, 960, 961, 962, 963, 964, 965, 966, 967, 969, 970, 971, 973, 975, 977, 978, 980, 981, 987, 988, 991, 993, 994, 995, 997, 998, 999, 1000, 1003, 1004, 1006 (Gospels), 1007, 1008, 1010 (?), 1011, 1013, 1014, 1015, 1016, 1017, 1018, 1019, 1020, 1023, 1024, 1025, 1026, 1028, 1030, 1031, 1032, 1033, 1036, 1044, 1045, 1046, 1050, 1052, 1053, 1054, 1055, 1056, 1057, 1059, 1060, 1061, 1062, 1063, 1065, 1067 (except Cath.), 1068, 1069, 1070, 1072, 1073, 1074, 1075, 1076, 1077, 1078, 1080, 1081, 1083, 1085, 1087, 1088, 1089, 1094, 1099, 1100, 1101, 1103, 1104, 1105, 1107, 1110, 1112, 1119, 1121, 1123, 1129, 1148, 1149, 1150, 1161, 1168, 1169, 1171, 1172, 1173, 1174, 1176, 1177, 1185, 1186, 1187, 1188, 1189, 1190, 1191, 1193, 1196, 1197, 1198, 1199, 1200, 1201, 1202, 1203, 1205, 1206, 1207, 1208, 1209, 1211, 1212, 1213, 1214, 1215, 1217, 1218, 1220, 1221, 1222, 1223, 1224, 1225, 1226, 1227, 1231, 1241 (only Acts), 1251 (?), 1252, 1254, 1255, 1260, 1264, 1277, 1283, 1285, 1292 (except Cath.), 1296, 1297, 1298, 1299, 1300, 1301, 1303, 1305, 1309, 1310, 1312, 1313, 1314, 1315, 1316, 1317, 1318, 1319 (except Paul), 1320, 1323, 1324, 1328, 1330, 1331, 1334, 1339, 1340, 1341, 1343, 1345, 1347, 1350a, 1350b, 1351, 1352a, 1354, 1355, 1356, 1357, 1358, 1359 (except Cath.), 1360, 1362, 1364, 1367, 1370, 1373, 1374, 1377, 1384, 1385, 1392, 1395, 1398 (except Paul), 1400, 1409 (Gospels and Paul), 1417, 1437, 1438, 1444, 1445, 1447, 1448 (except Cath.), 1449, 1452, 1470, 1476, 1482, 1483, 1492, 1503, 1504, 1506 (Gospels), 1508, 1513, 1514, 1516, 1517, 1520, 1521, 1523 (Paul), 1539, 1540, 1542b (only Luke), 1543, 1545, 1547, 1548, 1556, 1566, 1570, 1572, 1573 (except Paul?), 1577, 1583, 1863, 1597, 1604, 1605, 1607, 1613, 1614, 1617, 1618, 1619, 1622, 1628, 1636, 1637, 1649, 1656, 1662, 1668, 1672, 1673, 1683, 1693, 1701, 1704 (except Acts), 1714, 1717, 1720, 1723, 1725, 1726, 1727, 1728, 1730, 1731, 1732, 1733, 1734, 1736, 1737, 1738, 1740, 1741, 1742, 1743, 1745, 1746, 1747, 1748, 1749, 1750, 1752, 1754, 1755a, 1755b, 1756, 1757, 1759, 1761, 1762, 1763, 1767, 1768, 1770, 1771, 1772, 1800, 1821, 1826, 1828, 1829, 1835, 1841 (except Rev.), 1846 (only Acts), 1847, 1849, 1851, 1852 (only in Rev.), 1854 (except Rev.), 1855, 1856, 1858, 1859, 1860, 1861, 1862, 1869, 1870, 1872, 1874 (except Paul), 1876, 1877 (except Paul), 1878, 1879, 1880, 1882, 1883, 1888, 1889, 1891 (except Acts), 1897, 1899, 1902, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1911, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1936,1937, 1938, 1941, 1946, 1948, 1951, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1964, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1992, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2013, 2048, 2096, 2098, 2111, 2119, 2125, 2126, 2127 (except Paul), 2132, 2133, 2135, 2138 (only in Rev.), 2139, 2140, 2141, 2142, 2144, 2160, 2172, 2173, 2175, 2176, 2177, 2178, 2181, 2183, 2187, 2189, 2191, 2199, 2218, 2221, 2236, 2261, 2266, 2267, 2273, 2275, 2277, 2281, 2289, 2295, 2300, 2303, 2306, 2307, 2309, 2310, 2311, 2352, 2355, 2356, 2373, 2376, 2378, 2381, 2382, 2386, 2389, 2390, 2406, 2407, 2409, 2414, 2415, 2418, 2420, 2422, 2423, 2424, 2425, 2426, 2430, 2431, 2437, 2441, 2442, 2445, 2447, 2450, 2451, 2452, 2454, 2455, 2457, 2458, 2459, 2466, 2468, 2475, 2479, 2483, 2484, 2490, 2491, 2496, 2497, 2499, 2500, 2501, 2502, 2503, 2507, 2532, 2534, 2536, 2539, 2540, 2545, 2547, 2549, 2550, 2552, 2554, 2555, 2558, 2559, 2562, 2563, 2567, 2571, 2572, 2573, 2578, 2579, 2581, 2584, 2587, 2593, 2600, 2619, 2624, 2626, 2627, 2629, 2631, 2633, 2634, 2635, 2636, 2637, 2639, 2645, 2646, 2649, 2650, 2651, 2653, 2656, 2657, 2658, 2660, 2661, 2665, 2666, 2671, 2673, 2675, 2679, 2690, 2691, 2696, 2698, 2699, 2700, 2704, 2711, 2712, 2716, 2721, 2722, 2723, 2724, 2725, 2727, 2729, 2746, 2760, 2761, 2765, 2767, 2773, 2774, 2775, 2779, 2780, 2781, 2782, 2783, 2784, 2785, 2787, 2790, 2791, 2794, 2815, 2817, 2829.[18][19][17]: 129-140 

Distribution by century

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9th century

461, 1080, 1862, 2142, 2500

9th/10th

399

10th

14, 27, 29, 34, 36e, 63, 82, 92, 100, 135, 144, 151, 221, 237, 262, 278b, 344, 364, 371, 405, 411, 450, 454, 457, 478, 481, 564, 568, 584, 602, 605, 626, 627, 669, 920, 1055, 1076, 1077, 1078, 1203, 1220, 1223, 1225, 1347, 1351, 1357, 1392, 1417, 1452, 1661, 1720, 1756, 1829, 1851, 1880, 1905, 1920, 1927, 1954, 1997, 1998, 2125, 2373, 2414, 2545, 2722, 2790

10th/11th

994, 1073, 1701

11th

7p, 8, 12, 20, 23, 24, 25, 37, 39, 40, 50, 65, 68, 75, 77, 83, 89, 98, 108, 112, 123, 125, 126, 127, 133, 137, 142, 143, 148, 150, 177, 186, 194, 195, 197, 200, 207, 208, 210, 212, 215, 236, 250, 259, 272, 276, 277, 278a, 300, 301, 302, 314, 325, 331, 343, 350, 352, 354, 357, 360, 375, 376, 422, 458, 465, 466, 470, 474, 475, 476, 490, 491, 497, 504, 506, 507, 516, 526, 527, 528, 530, 532, 547, 548, 549, 560, 583, 585, 596, 607, 624, 625, 638, 639, 640, 651, 672, 699, 707, 708, 711, 717, 746, 754, 756, 773, 785, 809, 831, 870, 884, 887, 894, 901, 910, 919, 937, 942, 943, 944, 964, 965, 991, 1014, 1028, 1045, 1054, 1056, 1074, 1110, 1123, 1168, 1174, 1187, 1207, 1209, 1211, 1212, 1214, 1221, 1222, 1244, 1277, 1300, 1312, 1314, 1317, 1320, 1324, 1340, 1343, 1373, 1384, 1438, 1444, 1449, 1470, 1483, 1513, 1514, 1517, 1520, 1521, 1545, 1556, 1570, 1607, 1668, 1672, 1693, 1730, 1734, 1738, 1770, 1828, 1835, 1847, 1849, 1870, 1878, 1879, 1888, 1906, 1907, 1916, 1919, 1921, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1946, 1955, 1980, 1981, 1982, 2001, 2007, 2098, 2132, 2133, 2144, 2172, 2176, 2181, 2183, 2199, 2275, 2277, 2281, 2386, 2295, 2307, 2381, 2386, 2430, 2442, 2447, 2451, 2458, 2468, 2475, 2539, 2547, 2559, 2563, 2567, 2571, 2587, 2637, 2649, 2661, 2723, 2746, 2760, 2782, 2787
2306 (composite of parts from the 11th to the 14th centuries)

11th/12th

665, 657, 660, 1013, 1188, 1191, 1309, 1358, 1340, 1566, 2389, 2415, 2784

12th

2e, 2ap, 3, 9, 11, 15, 21, 32, 44, 46, 49, 57, 73, 76, 78, 80, 84, 95, 97, 105, 110, 111, 116, 119, 120, 122, 129, 132, 134, 138, 139, 140, 146, 156, 159, 162, 183, 187, 193, 196, 199, 202, 203, 217, 224, 226, 231, 240, 244, 245, 247, 261, 264, 267, 268, 269, 270, 275, 280, 281, 282, 297, 304, 306, 319, 320, 329, 334, 337, 347, 351, 353, 355, 356, 366, 374, 387, 392, 395, 396, 401, 407, 408, 419, 438, 439, 443, 452, 471, 485, 499, 502, 505, 509, 510, 514, 518, 520, 524, 529, 531, 535, 538, 550, 551, 556, 570, 571, 580, 587, 618, 620, 622, 637, 650, 662, 673, 674, 688, 692, 721, 736, 748, 750, 760, 765, 768, 770, 774, 777, 778, 779, 782, 787, 793, 799, 808, 843, 857, 860, 862, 877, 893, 896, 902, 911, 916, 922, 924, 936, 950, 967, 971, 973, 975, 980, 987, 993, 998, 1007, 1046, 1081, 1083, 1085, 1112, 1169, 1176, 1186, 1190, 1193, 1197, 1198, 1199, 1200, 1217, 1218, 1224, 1231, 1240, 1301, 1315, 1316, 1318, 1323, 1350a, 1355, 1360, 1364, 1375, 1385, 1437, 1539, 1583, 1673, 1683, 1714, 1737, 1752, 1754, 1755a, 1755b, 1800, 1821, 1826, 1872, 1889, 1914, 1915, 1917, 1926, 1951, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1986, 1988, 2013, 2096, 2126, 2135, 2139, 2173, 2177, 2189, 2191, 2289, 2282, 2426, 2437, 2445, 2459, 2490, 2491, 2507, 2536, 2549, 2550, 2552, 2562, 2639, 2650, 2657, 2671, 2700, 2712, 2725, 2727, 2781, 2785, 2791, 2794
632 and 1227 (composites of parts from the 12th to the 14th centuries)

12th/13th

905, 906, 1310, 1341, 1897, 2311

13th

52, 55, 60, 74, 107, 121, 128, 136, 141, 147, 167, 170, 192, 198, 204, 219, 220, 227, 248, 260, 284, 291, 292, 293, 303, 305, 309, 327, 328, 342, 359, 361, 362, 384, 388, 390, 410, 449, 469, 473, 477, 479, 482, 483, 484, 496, 500, 501, 511, 519, 533, 534, 546, 553, 554, 558, 573, 574, 592, 593, 597, 601, 663, 666, 677, 684, 685, 689, 691, 696, 705, 714, 715, 725, 729, 737, 757, 759, 775, 811, 820, 825, 830, 835, 840, 897, 898, 900, 912, 914, 966, 969, 970, 981, 995, 997, 999, 1000, 1004, 1008, 1011, 1015, 1016, 1031, 1050, 1052, 1053, 1057, 1069, 1070, 1072, 1087, 1089, 1094, 1103, 1107, 1129, 1148, 1149, 1150, 1161, 1177, 1201, 1205, 1206, 1208, 1213, 1215, 1226, 1238, 1255, 1285, 1339, 1352a, 1400, 1863, 1597, 1604, 1622, 1717, 1717, 1728, 1731, 1736, 1740, 1742, 1772, 1855, 1858, 1922, 1938, 1941, 1956, 1972, 1992, 2111, 2119, 2140, 2141, 2236, 2353, 2376, 2380, 2390, 2409, 2420, 2423, 2425, 2457, 2479, 2483, 2502, 2534, 2540, 2558, 2568, 2584, 2600, 2624, 2627, 2631, 2633, 2645, 2646, 2658, 2660, 2665, 2670, 2696, 2699, 2724, 2761

13th/14th

266, 656, 668, 1334, 2499, 2578

14th

18, 45, 53, 54, 66, 109, 155, 171, 182, 185, 190, 201, 214, 223, 232, 235, 243, 246, 290, 308, 316, 324, 358, 367, 369, 381, 386, 393, 394, 402, 404, 409, 412, 413, 414, 415, 417, 425, 426, 480, 492, 494, 498, 512, 521, 523, 540, 577, 578, 586, 588, 863, 600, 603, 604, 628, 633, 634, 644, 645, 648, 649, 680, 686, 690, 698, 718, 727, 730, 731, 734, 741, 758, 761, 762, 763, 764, 769, 781, 783, 784, 786, 789, 790, 794, 797, 798, 802, 806, 818, 819, 824, 833, 834, 836, 839, 845, 846, 848, 858, 864, 866a, 867, 889, 890, 904, 921, 928, 938, 951, 952, 953, 959, 960, 977, 978, 1020, 1023, 1032, 1033, 1036, 1061, 1062, 1075, 1099, 1100, 1119, 1121, 1185, 1189, 1196, 1234, 1235, 1236, 1248, 1249, 1252, 1254, 1283, 1328, 1330, 1331, 1345, 1350b, 1356, 1377, 1395, 1445, 1447, 1476, 1492, 1503, 1504, 1516, 1543, 1547, 1548, 1572, 1577, 1605, 1613, 1614, 1619, 1637, 1723, 1725, 1726, 1732, 1733, 1741, 1746, 1747, 1761, 1762, 1771, 1856, 1859, 1899, 1902, 1918, 1928, 1929, 1952, 1975, 2085, 2160, 2261, 2266, 2273, 2303, 2309, 2310, 2355, 2356, 2406, 2407, 2431, 2441, 2454, 2466, 2484, 2503, 2593, 2626, 2629, 2634, 2651, 2653, 2666, 2668, 2679, 2698, 2716, 2765, 2767, 2773, 2774, 2775, 2780, 2783

15th

30, 47, 58, 70, 149, 285, 286, 287, 288, 313, 368, 373, 379, 380, 385, 418, 432, 446, 448, 493, 525, 541, 575, 616, 664, 694, 739, 801, 841, 844, 853, 880, 955, 958, 961, 962, 1003, 1017, 1018, 1024, 1026, 1059, 1060, 1105, 1202, 1232, 1233, 1247, 1250, 1260, 1264, 1482, 1508, 1617, 1626, 1628, 1636, 1649, 1656, 1745, 1750, 1757, 1763, 1767, 1876, 1882, 1948, 1957, 1958, 1964, 1978, 2003, 2175, 2178, 2221, 2352, 2418, 2452, 2455, 2554, 2673, 2675, 2691, 2704, 2729

15th/16th

99, 1367

16th

90, 335, 445, 724, 745, 755, 867, 957, 1019, 1030, 1065, 1068, 1088, 1239, 1362, 1370, 1374, 1618, 1749, 1768, 1861, 1883, 1911, 1930, 1931, 1936, 1937, 1979, 2009, 2218, 2378, 2422, 2496, 2501, 2532, 2555, 2572, 2573, 2579, 2635, 2636, 2690, 2711, 2721, 2779

16th/17th

1371

17th and later

289, 868, 956, 963, 988, 1044, 1063, 1101, 1104, 1303, 1748, 1869, 2267, 2450, 2497, 2581, 2619, 2656.[20]

Characteristics

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See also: Textual variants in the New Testament

Compared to Alexandrian text-type manuscripts, the distinct Byzantine readings tend to show a greater tendency toward smooth and well-formed Greek, they display fewer instances of textual variation between parallel Synoptic Gospel passages, and they are less likely to present contradictory or "difficult" issues of exegesis.[21]

Textus Receptus

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Erasmus (1466 – 12 July 1536) compiled the Textus Receptus.

The first printed edition of the Greek New Testament was completed by Erasmus and published by Johann Froben of Basel on March 1, 1516 (Novum Instrumentum omne).[13]: 143  Due to the pressure of his publisher to bring their edition to market before the competing Complutensian Polyglot, Erasmus based his work on around a half-dozen manuscripts, all of which dated from the twelfth century or later; and all but one were of the Byzantine text-type.[13]: 143–146  Six verses that were not witnessed in any of these sources, he back-translated from the Latin Vulgate, and Erasmus also introduced some readings from the Caesarean text-type, Vulgate and Church Fathers.[13]: 143–146 [22] This text came to be known as the Textus Receptus or received text after being thus termed by Bonaventura Elzevir, an enterprising publisher from the Netherlands, in his 1633 edition of Erasmus' text.[13]: 152  The New Testament of the King James Version of the Bible was translated from editions of what was to become the Textus Receptus.[13]: 152  The different Byzantine "Majority Text" of Hodges & Farstad as well as Robinson & Pierpont is called "Majority" because it is considered to be the Greek text established on the basis of the reading found in the vast majority of the Greek manuscripts. Although the Textus Receptus may be considered a late Byzantine text, it still differs from the Majority Text of Robinson and Pierpont in 1,838 Greek readings, of which 1,005 represent "translatable" differences. Most of these variants are minor, however the Byzantine text excludes the Comma Johannium and Acts 8:37, which are present in the Textus Receptus. Despite these differences, the RP Byzantine text agrees far more closely with the Textus Receptus than with the critical text, as the Majority Text disagrees with the critical text 6,577 times in contrast to the 1800 times it disagrees with the Textus Receptus. Additionally, many of the agreements between the Textus Receptus and the Byzantine text are considered very significant, such as the reading "God" in 1 Timothy 3:16 and the inclusion of the Story of the Adulteress.[23][24][13]: 145 

Modern critical texts

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Textual critic and biblical scholar Karl Lachmann was the first scholar to produce an edition that broke with the Textus Receptus, ignoring previous printings and basing his text on ancient sources, therefore discounting the mass of late Byzantine manuscripts and the Textus Receptus.[25]: 21  The critical Greek New Testament texts of today (represented by UBS/NA Greek New Testaments) are considered to be predominantly representative of the Alexandrian text-type in nature,[26] but there are some critics such as Robinson and Hodges who still favor the Byzantine Text, and have produced Byzantine-Majority critical editions of the Greek New Testament.[9] Around 6,500 readings differ between the Majority text and the modern critical text (represented by UBS/NA Greek New Testaments), although the two still agree 98% of the time.[27]

A critical edition of the Family 35 subgroup of Byzantine manuscripts has also been created by Wilbur N. Pickering, who believes that Family 35 contains the original text of the New Testament.[28]

The Byzantine type is also found in modern Greek Orthodox editions. A new scholarly edition of the Byzantine Text of John's gospel, (funded by the United Bible Societies in response to a request from Eastern Orthodox Scholars), was begun in Birmingham, UK. and in 2007, as a result of these efforts, The Gospel According to John in the Byzantine Tradition was published.[8]

Textual critic Herman von Soden divided manuscripts of the Byzantine text into five groups:

  • Kx: no uncials, hundreds of minuscules, among them codex 2, 3, 8, 14, 45, 47, 49, 51, 54, 56, 58, 59, 60, 61, 73, 75, 76, 78, etc.
  • Kr: no uncials, no early minuscules, hundreds of minuscules: 18, 35, 55, 66, 83, 128, 141, 147, 155, 167, 170, 189, 201
  • K1 (subfamily of Kx): S V Ω 461
  • Ki (Family E): E F G H
  • I>k (also Ka), now Family Π: (A) K Y Π; this subgroup is the oldest, but only 5% of manuscripts belong to it. The majority of them have text mixed with other Byzantine subfamilies.[29]

Since the discovery of 𝔓45, 𝔓46, and 𝔓66, these have demonstrated early manuscript witnesses to a small selection of Byzantine text readings.[30]: 55–61 [31]: 38  Examples:

Luke 10:39

Ιησου: 𝔓45 𝔓75 A W Byz b
κυριου: א‎ B D L Ξ 579 892 copbo syrc[32]: 229 

Luke 10:42

ενος δε εστιν χρεια: 𝔓45 𝔓75 A C W Byz
ολιγων δε χρεια εστιν η ενος: B
ολιγων δε εστιν η ενος: א‎
ολιγων δε εστιν χρεια: 38 syp[33][32]: 229 

Luke 11:33

φέγγος: 𝔓45 33 Byz[32]: 233 
φῶς: א‎ B F Θ ƒ1 ƒ13

John 10:29

ὃ ... μεῖζον: B it
ὃς ... μείζων: 𝔓66 ƒ1 ƒ13 Byz[32]: 334 

John 11:32

πρός: א‎ B C* D L X
εἰς: 𝔓66 Θ Byz[32]: 338 

John 13:26

βάψας: א‎ B C L X 33
καὶ ἐμβάψας: 𝔓66c A Θ[32]: 349 

Acts 17:13

ταράσσοντες:
omitted: 𝔓45 E Byz[32]: 441 

1 Corinthians 9:7

τὸν καρπόν: א‎* A B D* G P
ἐκ τοῦ καρποῦ: 𝔓46 Byz[32]: 534 

Ephesians 5:9

φωτός: א‎* A B D* G P
πνεύματος: 𝔓46 Byz[32]: 598 

Philippians 1:14

του θεου: א‎ A B (D*) P Ψ 33 81 104 326 365 629 1175 1241 2464
omitted: 𝔓46 D2 Byz[32]: 604 

Other examples of Byzantine readings were found in 𝔓66 in John 1:32; 3:24; 4:14, 51; 5:8; 6:10, 57; 7:3, 39; 8:41, 51, 55; 9:23; 10:38; 12:36; and 14:17.[31]: 38 fn. 2  Many of these readings have substantial support from other text-types and they are not distinctively Byzantine. Daniel Wallace found only two agreements distinctively between papyrus and Byzantine readings.[4]: 303  These readings support the views of scholars such as Harry Sturz (1984) and Maurice Robinson (2005) that the roots of the Byzantine text may go back to a very early date,[30]: 62–65  which some authors have interpreted as a rehabilitation of the Textus Receptus.[34] However in 1963 Bruce Metzger had argued that early support for Byzantine readings could not be taken to demonstrate that they were in the original text.[31]: 38 

Modern translations

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The Byzantine majority text of Robinson and Pierpont is the basis of the World English Bible.[35] And an interlinear translation of the Hodges-Farstad text has been made by Thomas Nelson.[36] The Holman Christian Standard Bible was initially planned to become an English translation of the Byzantine majority text, although because Arthur Farstad died just few months into the project, it shifted to the Critical Text. However, the HCSB bible was still made to contain the Byzantine majority readings within its footnotes. Similarly, the New King James version contains the Byzantine majority readings within the footnotes, although it is a translation of the Textus Receptus.[37] There also exists multiple translations of the Aramaic Peshitta into English, translations have been made by John W. Etheridge, James Murdock and George M. Lamsa.[38][39][40] The Peshitta has also been translated into Spanish[41] and into Malayam.[42]

An English translation of the Family 35 subgroup of Byzantine manuscripts has also been created by Wilbur N. Pickering, called "The Sovereign Creator Has Spoken".[43]

See also

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Families of the Byzantine text-type

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Families associated with the Byzantine text

Other text-types

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Critical text

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Notes

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  1. ^ Introduction To Bibliology: What Every Christian Should Know About the Origins, Composition, Inspiration, Interpretation, Canonicity, and Transmission of the Bible
  2. ^ a b c d e Metzger, Bruce Manning (1977). The Early Versions of the New Testament: Their Origin, Transmission and Limitations. New York; Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 61. ISBN 0-19-826170-5.
  3. ^ a b Pickering, Wilbur N. (2012). Identity of the New Testament Text III. Wipf & Stock Publishers. ISBN 978-1-4982-6349-8.
  4. ^ a b Wallace, Daniel B. (1994). "The Majority Text Theory: History, Methods, and Critique". Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society. 37 (2): 194 fn. 59.
  5. ^ "The Majority Text and the Original Text: Are They Identical? | Bible.org". bible.org. Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  6. ^ Andrews, Edward D. (2019-02-02). INTRODUCTION TO THE TEXT OF THE NEW TESTAMENT: From The Authors and Scribe to the Modern Critical Text. Christian Publishing House. ISBN 978-1-949586-78-7.
  7. ^ "Translations". ByzantineText.com. Retrieved 2024-01-07.
  8. ^ a b Mullen, Roderic L.; Crisp, Simon; Parker, David C., eds. (2008). The Gospel According to John in The Byzantine Tradition. Stuttgart: Hendrickson Publishers. ISBN 978-1598563078.
  9. ^ a b Robinson, Maurice A. (2002). "New Testament Textual Criticism: The Case for Byzantine Priority". In Black, David Alan (ed.). Rethinking New Testament Textual Criticism. Grand Rapids: Baker Publishing Group. p. 139. ISBN 978-0801022807.
  10. ^ Heuer, Mark (1995). "AN EVALUATION OF JOHN W. BURGON'S USE OF PATRISTIC EVIDENCE" (PDF). The Evangelical Theological Society.
  11. ^ Racine, Jean-François (2004). The Text of Matthew in the Writings of Basil of Caesarea. Leiden: Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-13076-0.
  12. ^ a b c Fee, Gordon D. (1993). "The Use of Greek Patristic Citations in New Testament Textual Criticism: The State of the Question". In Epp, Eldon J.; Fee, Gordon D. (eds.). Studies in the Theory and Method of New Testament Textual Criticism. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans. pp. 344–359. ISBN 9780802827739.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h Metzger, Bruce Manning; Ehrman, Bart D. (2005). The Text of the New Testament: Its Transmission, Corruption and Restoration (4th ed.). New York; Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-516122-9.
  14. ^ Cosaert, Carl P. (2008-11-13), The text of the Gospels in Clement of Alexandria, Brill, ISBN 978-90-04-16913-5, retrieved 2024-01-11
  15. ^ Bennett, William, 1980, An Introduction to the Gothic Language, pp. 24-25.
  16. ^ a b c d Ehrman, Bart D.; Holmes, Michael W., eds. (2012). The Text of the New Testament in Contemporary Research: Essays on the Status Quaestionis (2 ed.). Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-23604-2.
  17. ^ a b Aland, Kurt; M. Welte; B. Köster; K. Junack (1994). Kurzgefasste Liste der griechischen Handschriften des Neues Testaments. Berlin, New York: Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 3-11-011986-2.
  18. ^ Aland, Kurt (1996). Synopsis Quattuor Evangeliorum. Locis parallelis evangeliorum apocryphorum et patrum adhibitis edidit. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft. p. XXXII.
  19. ^ Aland, Kurt; Aland, Barbara; Karavidopoulos, J.; Martini, C. M.; Metzger, Bruce Manning (2001). Novum Testamentum Graece (27 ed.). Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft. p. 714. (NA27)
  20. ^ Aland, Kurt; Aland, Barbara (1995). The Text of the New Testament: An Introduction to the Critical Editions and to the Theory and Practice of Modern Textual Criticism. Erroll F. Rhodes (trans.). Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. pp. 140–142.
  21. ^ "The Syrian text has all the appearance of being a careful attempt to supersede the chaos of rival texts by a judicious selection from them all." Brooke Foss Westcott, Fenton John Anthony Hort. The New Testament In The Original Greek, 1925. p. 551
  22. ^ Scrivener, Frederick Henry Ambrose (1894). A Plain Introduction to the Criticism of the New Testament. Vol. 2. London: George Bell & Sons. pp. 183–4.
  23. ^ Michael D. Marlowe states:[1] yet it differs from the Received Text in about a thousand places, most of them being trivial. while biblical scholar Daniel B. Wallace [2] Archived 2007-08-05 at the Wayback Machine has counted 1,838 differences between it and the Textus Receptus.
  24. ^ "What about the Majority Text?". www.bible-researcher.com. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
  25. ^ Colwell, Earnest Cadman (1952). What is the Best New Testament?. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
  26. ^ Robinson, Maurice A.; Pierpont, William G. (2018). The New Testament in the Original Greek: Byzantine Textform. Nurnberg: VTR Publications. pp. v fn. 2. ISBN 978-3-95776-100-2.
  27. ^ Wallace, Daniel (1991). "The Majority Text and the Original Text: Are They Identical?". Bibliotheca Sacra. 148: 158.
  28. ^ Pickering, Wilbur N. (2015). The Greek New Testament According to Family 35. WNP. ISBN 978-0-9898273-7-9.
  29. ^ Appendix III: Von Soden's Textual System at the Encyclopedia of New Testament Textual Criticism.
  30. ^ a b Sturz, Harry A (1984). The Byzantine Text-Type & New Testament Textual Criticism. New York; Nashville; Camden: Thomas Nelson. ISBN 0-8407-4958-9.
  31. ^ a b c Metzger, Bruce Manning (1963). Chapters in the History of New Testament Textual Criticism. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.
  32. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Aland, Barbara; Aland, Kurt; Karavidopoulos, Johannes; Martini, Carlo M.; Metzger, Bruce Manning, eds. (2012). Novum Testamentum Graece (28 ed.). Germany: The German Bible Society. ISBN 978-3-438-05156-1.
  33. ^ Gordon D. Fee, P75, P66, and Origen: The Myth of Early Textual Recension in Alexandria, p. 253.
  34. ^ Edward F. Hills, Dean Burgon in the Light of Recent Research; D. A. Waite, Defending the King James Bible, Bible For Today, Collingswood, New Jersey 2004.
  35. ^ "World English Bible (WEB) - Version Information - BibleGateway.com". www.biblegateway.com. Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  36. ^ Nelson, Thomas (1994). The Majority Text Greek New Testament Interlinear.
  37. ^ "A Review of the Christian Standard Bible". The Gospel Coalition. Retrieved 2023-12-24.
  38. ^ Murdock, James (1915). The Syriac New Testament. Boston: H. L. Hastings.
  39. ^ Etheridge, John W. John W. Etheridge Translation Of The Four Gospels And A History Of The Syrian Church.
  40. ^ Lamsa, George M. (1985). The Holy Bible from the Ancient Eastern Text : George M. Lamsa's translations from the Aramaic of the Peshitta. San Francisco: Harper & Row. ISBN 978-0-06-064923-4.
  41. ^ Staff, B&H Español Editorial (2017-04-01). Biblia Peshitta (in Spanish). B&H Publishing Group. ISBN 978-1-4627-5111-2.
  42. ^ Online, Jacobite. "97th Birthday of Malankara Malpan Korooso Desroro Very Rev Dr. Kurien Cor Episcopa Kaniamparambil on 27 February 2010 – Jacobite Online". Retrieved 2024-02-23.
  43. ^ "Translations". ByzantineText.com. Retrieved 2024-01-07.

Further reading

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