Reference: New Testament
Easton
(Lu 22:20), rather "New Covenant," in contrast to the old covenant of works, which is superseded. "The covenant of grace is called new; it succeeds to the old broken covenant of works. It is ever fresh, flourishing, and excellent; and under the gospel it is dispensed in a more clear, spiritual, extensive, and powerful manner than of old" (Brown of Haddington). Hence is derived the name given to the latter portion of the Bible. (See Testament.)
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And in like manner he took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is about to be shed for you.
Fausets
(See BIBLE; CANON; INSPIRATION.) hee kainee diatheekee. See Heb 9:15-17; 8:6-13. The Greek term diateeeekee combines the two ideas "covenant" and "testament," which the KJV gives separately, though the Greek is the same for both. "Covenant" expresses its obligatory character, God having bound Himself by promise (Ga 3:15-18; Heb 6:17-18). "Testament" expresses that, unlike other covenants, it is not a matter of bargaining, but all of God's grace, just as a testator has absolute power to do what he will with his own. Jesus' death brings the will of God in our favor into force. The night before His death He said "I appoint unto you by testamentary disposition (diatitheemi) a kingdom" (Lu 22:29). There was really only one Testament - latent in the Old Testament, patent in the New Testament. The disciples were witnesses of the New Testament, and the Lord's Supper was its seal. The Old and New Testament Scriptures are the written documents containing the terms of the will.
TEXT. The "Received Text" (i.e. the "Textus Receptus" or TR) is that of Robert Stephens' edition. Bentley (Letter to Wake in 1716 A.D.) said truly, "after the Complutenses and Erasmus, who had very ordinary manuscripts, the New Testament became the property of booksellers. R. Stephens' edition, regulated by himself alone, has now become as if an apostle were its compositor. I find that by taking 2,000 errors out of the Pope's Vulgate (i.e. correcting by older Latin manuscripts the edition of Jerome's Vulgate put forth by Sixtus V, A.D. 1590, with anathemas against any who should alter it 'in minima particula,' and afterwards altered by Clement VIII (1592) in 2,000 places in spite of Sixtus' anathema) and as many out of the Protestant pope Stephens' edition, I can set out an edition of each (Latin, Vulgate, and Greek text) in columns, without using any book under 900 years old, that shall so exactly agree word for word, and order for order, that no two tallies can agree better. ... These will prove each other to a demonstration, for I alter not a word of my own head."
The first printed edition of the Greek Testament was that in the Complutensian Polyglot, January, 10, 1514 A.D. Scripture was known in western Europe for many ages previously only through the Latin Vulgate of Jerome. F. Ximenes de Cisneros, of Toledo, undertook the work, to celebrate the birth of Charles V. Complutum (Alcala) gave the name. Lopez de Stunica was chief of its New Testament editors. The whole Polyglot was completed the same year that Luther affixed his 95 theses against indulgences to the door of the church at Wittenberg. Leo X lent the manuscripts used for it from the Vatican. It follows modern Greek manuscripts in all cases where these differ from the ancient manuscripts and from the oldest Greek fathers. The Old Testament Vulgate (the translation which is authorized by Rome) is in the central column, between the Greek Septuagint and the Hebrew (the original); and the editors compare the first to Christ crucified between the impenitent (the Hebrew) and the penitent (the Greek) thief!
Though there is no Greek authority for 1Jo 5:7, they supplied it and told Erasmus that the Latin Vulgate's authority outweighs the original Greek! They did not know that the oldest copies of Jerome's Vulgate omit it; the manuscript of Wizanburg of the eighth century being the oldest that contains it. Owing to the Complutensian Greek New Testament not being published, though printed, until the Polyglot was complete, Erasmus' Greek New Testament was the first published, namely, by Froben a printer of Basle, March 1516, six years before the Complutensian. The providence of God at the dawn of the Reformation thus furnished earnest students with Holy Scripture in the original language sanctioned by the Holy Spirit. Erasmus completed his edition in haste, and did not have the scruples to supply, by translating into Greek front the Vulgate, both actual hiatuses in his Greek manuscripts and what he supposed to be so, especially in the Apocalypse, for which he had only one mutilated manuscript.
To the outcry against hint for omitting the testimony of the three heavenly witnesses he replied, it is not omission but non-addition; even some Latin copies do not have it, and Cyril of Alexandria showed in his Thesaurus he did not know it; on the Codex Montfortianus (originally in possession of a Franciscan, Froy, who possibly wrote it, now in Trinity College, Dublin) being produced with it, Erasmus INSERTED it. So clumsily did the translator of the Vulgate Latin into Greek execute this manuscript that he neglects to put the necessary Greek article before "Father," "Word," and" Spirit." Erasmus' fifth edition is the basis of our "Received Text." In 1546 and 1549 R. Stephens printed two small editions at Paris, and in 1550 a folio edition, following Erasmus' fifth edition almost exclusively, and adding in the margin readings from the Complutensian edition and from 15 manuscripts collected by his son Henry, the first large collection of readings. The fourth edition at Geneva, 1551, was the first divided into modern verses. Beza next edited the Greek New Testament, generally following Stephens' text, with a few changes on manuscript authority.
He possessed the two famous manuscripts, namely, the Gospels and Acts, now by his gift in the university of Cambridge; "Codex Bezae" or "Cantabrigiensis," D; and the epistles of Paul, "Codex Clermontanus" (brought from Clermont), now in the Bibliotheque du Roi at Paris; both are in Greek and Latin. The Elzevirs, printers at Leyden, published two editions, the first in 1624, the second in 1633, on the basis of R. Stephens' third edition, with corrections from Beza's. The unknown editor, without stating his critical principles, gravely declares in the preface: "texture habes ab omnibus receptum, in quo nihil immutatum aut corruptum damus"; stranger still, the public for two centuries has accepted this so-called "Received Text" as if infallible. When textual criticism was scarcely understood, theological convenience accepted it as a compromise between the Roman Catholic Complutensian edition and the Protestant edition of Stephens and Beza. Mill (1707) has established Stephens' as the Received Text in England; on the continent the Elzevir is generally recognized.
Thus, an uncritical Greek text of publishers has been for ages submitted to by Protestants, though abjuring blind assent to tradition, and laughing at the claim to infallibility of the two popes who declared each of two diverse editions of the Vulgate to be exclusively authentic. (The council of Trent, 1545, had pronounced the Latin Vulgate to be the authentic word of God). Frequent handling and transmission soon destroyed the originals. If the autographs of the inspired writers had been preserved, textual criticism would not have been necessary. But the oldest MSS, existing, Codex Sinaiticus ('aleph) Codex Vaticanus (B), Codex Alexandrinus (A), are not older than the fourth century. Parchment was costly (2Ti 4:13). Papyrus paper which the sacred writers used (2Jo 1:12; 3Jo 1:13) was fragile. No superstitious or antiquarian interest was felt in the autographs which copies superseded. The Diocletian persecution (A.D. 303) attacked the Scriptures, and traditores (Augustine, 76, section 2) gave them up.
Constantine ordered 50 manuscripts to be written on fair skins for the use of the church. God has not seen fit (by a perpetual miracle) to preserve the text from transcriptional errors. Having by extraordinary revelation once bestowed the gift, He leaves its preservation to ordinary laws, yet by His secret providence furnishes the church, its guardian and witness, with the means to ensure its accuracy in all essentials (Ro 3:2). Criticism does not make variations, but finds them, and turns them into means of ascertaining approximately the original text. More materials exist for restoring the genuine text of New Testament than for that of any ancient work. Whitby attacked Mill for presenting in his edition 30,000 various readings found in manuscripts. Collins, the infidel, availed himself of Whitby's unsound argument that textual variations render Scripture uncertain.
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But that day and hour knoweth no one, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.
But at midnight there was a cry, Lo! the bridegroom! go out to meet him.
And very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb at the rising of the sun. And they said to one another, Who will roll away for us the stone from the door of the tomb? read more. And looking up they see that the stone had been rolled back; for it was very large. And they entered the tomb, and saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted.
And I appoint to you a kingdom, as my Father appointed to me;
Great, every way. In the first place, because they were entrusted with the oracles of God.
O foolish Galatians, who bewitched you? before whose eyes Jesus Christ was plainly set forth among you crucified.
Brethren, I speak according to what is practised among men; no one sets aside even a human covenant, or makes additions to it, after it has been ratified. But the promises were made to Abraham and "to his offspring." He doth not say, "and to offsprings," as speaking of many, but, as speaking of one, "and to thy offspring," which is Christ. read more. And what I mean is this; that a covenant that was before ratified by God, the Law, which came four hundred and thirty years after, cannot annul, so as to make void the promise; for if the inheritance cometh from the Law, it ceaseth to be the consequence of the promise; but to Abraham God gave it by promise.
The cloak that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest bring with thee, and the books, especially the parchments.
Wherefore God, wishing more abundantly to show to the heirs of the promise the immutability of his purpose, confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have strong encouragement, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us;
But now he hath obtained a more excellent ministry, in proportion as he is the mediator of a better covenant, which hath been established upon better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, then a place would not have been sought for a second. read more. For finding fault with them, he saith: "Behold, the days are coming, saith the Lord, when I will make with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah a new covenant; not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers, in the day when I took them by the hand, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord: I will put my laws into their mind, and on their hearts will I write them; and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. And they shall not teach every one his fellowcitizen, and every one his brother, saying, Know the Lord; for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities I will remember no more." In that he saith, "a new covenant," he hath made the first old; but that which is becoming old, and worn out with age, is ready to vanish away.
how much more shall the blood of Christ, who by his everlasting spirit offered himself without spot to God, purify your conscience from dead works, for the worship of the living God! And for this cause he is the mediator of a new covenant, that, death having taken place for redemption from the transgressions under the first covenant, they who have been called may receive the everlasting inheritance which was promised. read more. For where there is a testament there must of necessity be implied the death of the testator; for a testament is of force after men are dead, since it is of no force while the testator is living.
For there are three that bear witness,
Having many things to write to you, I would not write with paper and ink; but I hope to come to you, and to speak face to face, that our joy may be full.
Hastings
Morish
For the general contents of the New Testament see BIBLE. See also COVENANT. The chronology of the principal events recorded in the New Testament is given in the following tables, with approximate dates. The dates of the Epistles of Peter, James, John, and Jude are according to the A.V. For the date of the crucifixion see SEVENTY WEEKS: other dates are reckoned from that.
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF THE NEW TESTAMENT.
B.C.
27 Augustus emperor of Rome
6 Census in Judaea. Birth of John the Baptist
5 Birth of Jesus (Four full years before A.D.) Presentation in the temple.
4 Visit of the magi. Flight into Egypt, Massacre of infants. Death of Herod;
Archelaus made ethnarch of Judaea, Samaria and Idumaea
Herod Antipas tetrarch of Peraea and Galilee. Philip tetrarch of Ituraea, Trachonitis. etc.
A.D.
6 Quirinis (Cyrenius) governor of Syria the second time
Archelaus banished, and Judaea made a province of Syria.
7 Enrolment, or taxation, under Cyrenius. Annas made high priest
8 Jesus at Jerusalem. Lu 2:42-46
Lu 2:14 Tiberias emperor of Rome: reigns alone
17 Caiaphas made high priest
26 Pontius Pilate procurator of Judaea
John commences his ministry. (See TIBERIUS.) Mr 1:1-11
Baptism of Jesus. The Temptation
Miracle of the water made wine at Cana. Joh 2:1-11
Jesus visits Capernaum
The first Passover. Jesus cleanses the temple. Joh 2:13-22
John cast into prison. Jesus preaches in Galilee Mr 1:14-15
Jesus at the synagogue at Nazareth: cast out of the city. Lu 4:16-30
Jesus visits the towns of Galilee Mr 1:38-39
Mr 1:27 Jesus visits Jerusalem (probably the second Passover). John 5. 1
The twelve Apostles chosen Mr 3:13-19
Sermon on the Mount. Matt. 5.- 7; Lu 6:17-49
Miracles in the land of the Gadarenes. Mr 5:1-20
The Jews offended at Jesus at Nazareth. Mr 6:1-5
Jesus again visits the villages around. Mr 6:6
Jesus sends forth the twelve. Mr 6:7-13
Death of John the Baptist. Mr 6:17-29
Feeding the five thousand. Mr 6:35-44
Miracles in Gennesaret. Mr 6:53-56
Mr 6:28 Approach of the third Passover Joh 6:4
Feeding the four thousand. Mr 8:1-9
The Transfiguration. Mr 9:2-10
Feast of Tabernacles. John 7.
Journey towards Jerusalem. Lu 9:51
The seventy disciples sent out. Lu 10:1-16
Feast of Dedication (winter). Joh 10:22-39
Jesus goes away beyond Jordan. Joh 10:40-42
The raising of Lazarus at Bethany. Joh 11:1-44
Jesus retires to Ephraim. Joh 11:54
Joh 11:29 Jesus' entry into Jerusalem. Cleanses the temple Mr 11:1-18
The Greeks visit Jesus. Voice from heaven. Joh 12:20-36
The last (fourth) Passover. The Lord's supper Mr 14:1-2
The Crucifixion. Ascension. Pentecost
30-34 The events from Pentecost to Stephen. Acts 2
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The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ; as it is written in Isaiah the prophet: "Lo! I send my messenger before thy face, who shall prepare thy way;" read more. "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths!" John the Baptizer appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. And there went out to him all the country of Judaea, and all they of Jerusalem and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. And John was clothed with camels hair, and with a leathern girdle about his loins, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, There cometh after me one mightier than I, the latchet of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you in the Holy Spirit. And it came to pass that in those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And immediately on coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens parted, and the Spirit descending as a dove upon him. And there was a voice from the heavens, "Thou art my beloved Son; with thee I am well pleased."
But after John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the glad tidings of God, [saying,] The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe the glad tidings.
And they were all amazed, so that they questioned each other, saying, What is this? New teaching with authority; even the unclean spirits doth he command, and they obey him!
And he saith to them, Let us go elsewhere into the neighboring towns, that I may preach there also; for, for this I came forth. And he went, preaching in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and casting out the demons.
And he goeth up into the mountain, and calleth to him whom he would; and they came to him. And he appointed twelve to be with him, and whom he might send forth to preach, read more. and to have authority to cast out demons. And he appointed the twelve, and Simon he surnamed Peter; and James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, that is, Sons of thunder; and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon of Cana, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. And he cometh into the house.
And they came to the other side of the lake, into the country of the Gerasenes. And when he had come out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, read more. who had his dwelling in the tombs; and not even with a chain could any one bind him any longer; because he had often been bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been snapped asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces; and no one could master him; and continually, night and day, in the tombs and in the mountains, he was crying out, and cutting himself, with stones. And seeing Jesus afar off, he ran and bowed down before him, and cried out with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, do not torment me. For he was saying to him, Unclean spirit, come out from the man. And he asked him, What is thy name? And he saith to him, Legion is my name; for we are many. And he besought him much not to send them out of the country. Now there was there, by the mountain, a great herd of swine feeding. And they besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. And he gave them leave. And the unclean spirits coming out, entered into the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep into the lake, about two thousand, and were drowned in the lake. And they that fed them fled, and told the news in the city and in the country. And they came to see what had been done. And they come to Jesus, and see him who had been possessed by demons, sitting, clothed, and in his right mind,him who had had the legion; and they were afraid. And they who saw it told them how it befell him that was possessed by the demons, and concerning the swine. And they began to beseech him to depart from their borders. And when he was going on board the boat, he that had been possessed by the demons besought him that be might be with him. And he did not permit him, but said to him, Go to thy house to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and that he hath had compassion on thee. And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him; and all wondered.
And he went out from thence, and cometh into his own country; and his disciples follow him. And when the sabbath was come, he began to teach in the synagogue. And most people when they heard him were astonished, saying, Whence hath this man these things? And what is the wisdom which is given him? And how is it that such miracles are wrought by his hands? read more. Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James, and Joses, and Judah, and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us? And they took offence at him. And Jesus said to them, A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, and among his own kindred, and in his own house. And he could not do any miracle there, except that he laid his hand upon a few sick persons, and cured them. And he wondered at their want of faith. And he went about the surrounding villages teaching. And he calleth to him the twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two; and gave them power over the unclean spirits; and commanded them that they should take nothing for the way but a staff only; no bread, no bag, no money in their girdle; but to be shod with sandals; and, Do not put on two coats. And he said to them, Wherever ye enter a house, there abide fill ye leave that place. And whatever place shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye go thence, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony to them. And they went out and preached that men should repent; and they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many sick persons, and healed them.
For Herod himself had sent forth and seized John, and bound him in prison, on account of Herodias, his brother Philips wife; for he had married her. For John had said to Herod, It is not lawful for thee to have thy brothers wife. read more. And Herodias was enraged against him, and wished to put him to death, but could not. For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and was regardful of him; and on hearing him, was in much anxiety, and listened to him gladly. And a convenient day having come, when Herod on his birthday made a supper for his nobles and chief captains and the principal men of Galilee, and the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and those at table with him; and the king said to the damsel, Ask of me whatever thou wilt, and I will give it thee. And he swore to her, Whatever thou shalt ask of me, I will give thee, to the half of my kingdom. And she went out and said to her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptizer. And she came in immediately with haste to the king, and asked, saying, I desire that thou wilt give me immediately on a platter the head of John the Baptist. And the king was exceedingly sorry; but on account of his oaths, and of those at table with him, he would not refuse her. And the king immediately sent one of his guards, and ordered his head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in the prison, and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the damsel; and the damsel gave it to her mother.
and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the damsel; and the damsel gave it to her mother. And his disciples, when they heard of it, came and took up his body, and laid it in a tomb.
And late in the day his disciples came to him, and said, This is a desert place, and it is now late; send them away, that they may go into the surrounding fields and villages, and buy themselves something to eat. read more. But he answering said to them, Give ye them to eat. And they say to him, Shall we go and buy two hundred denaries worth of bread, and give them to eat? He saith to them, How many loaves have ye? Go and see. And when they knew, they say, Five, and two fishes. And he ordered them to make all lie down in companies upon the green grass. And they lay down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties. And taking the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven and blessed, and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples to set before them; and the two fishes he divided among them all. And they all ate, and were filled. And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes. And they who ate of the loaves were five thousand men.
And crossing over, they came to land, to Gennesaret; and anchored there. And when they had come out of the boat, the people immediately knowing who he was, read more. ran through all that region, and began to carry about on beds those that were sick to the place where they heard he was. And wherever he entered into villages or cities or the open country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and besought him that they might touch if it were but the fringe of his garment; and as many as touched him were made well.
In those days, there being again a great multitude, and they having nothing to eat, he called the disciples to him, and saith to them, I have compassion on the multitude, because they have remained with me now three days, and they have nothing to eat. read more. And if I send them away fasting to their houses, they will faint on the road; and some of them have come from altar. And his disciples answered him, Whence can ally one satisfy these men with bread here in a wilderness? And he asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven. And he ordered the multitude to lie down on the ground; and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and broke, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude. And they had a few small fishes; and having blessed them, he set them before them. And they ate, and were filled; and they took up of the fragments that remained, seven baskets. And they were about four thousand; and he sent them away.
And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter and James and John, and leadeth them up into a high mountain apart by themselves; and he was transfigured before them. And his garments became glistening, very white, so as no fuller on earth can whiten. read more. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses; and they were talking with Jesus. And Peter answering saith to Jesus, Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tents, one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah. For he knew not what to answer; for they were struck with terror. And there came a cloud overshadowing them; and a voice came out of the cloud, This is my beloved Son; hear him. And suddenly looking round, they no longer saw any one but Jesus alone with themselves. And as they came down from the mountain, he charged them to give no account of what they had seen to any one, till the Son of man should have risen from the dead. And they kept these words in mind, questioning one another what rising from the dead might mean.
And when they were drawing near to Jerusalem and to Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, he sendeth forth two of his disciples, and saith to them, Go to the village over against you; and immediately on entering it ye will find a colt tied, on which no man hath yet sat; loose and bring it. read more. And if any one say to you, Why do ye this? say, The Lord hath need of it, and will immediately send it back hither. And they went, and found the colt tied by the door without, on the street; and they loose it. And some of those who were standing there said to them, What are ye about, loosing the colt? And they said to them as Jesus had commanded; and they let them go. And they bring the colt to Jesus, and put their garments on it; and he sat upon it. And many spread their garments on the road; and others boughs, having cut them from the fields. And they that went before, and they that followed, cried, Hosanna! Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest heavens! And he entered Jerusalem, and the temple; and having looked round on all things, the evening being now come, he went out to Bethany, with the twelve. And on the morrow, when they had come from Bethany, he was hungry; and seeing a figtree afar off having leaves, he went to see whether he might find anything on it; and on coming to it he found nothing but leaves; for the season of figs had not come. And he answering said to it, Let no one eat fruit from thee henceforth for ever. And his disciples heard him. And they come to Jerusalem. And he went into the temple, and began to cast out those who sold and bought in the temple, and overturned the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of those who sold the doves; and he suffered no one to carry any vessel through the temple. And he taught, and said to them, Is it not written, "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations? but ye have made it a den of robbers." And the chief priests and the scribes heard it, and sought how they might destroy him; for they feared him; because all the multitude was astonished at his teaching.
And two days after was the passover, and the feast of unleavened bread; and the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might seize him by craft, and put him to death. For they said, Not at the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men of good will!"
And when he was twelve years old, and they went up, after the custom of the feast, and had completed the days, on their returning, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and his parents did not know it, read more. but, supposing him to be in the company, went a days journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance; and not finding him, they returned to Jerusalem in search of him. And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions.
And he came to Nazara, where he had been brought up, and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbathday; and stood up to read. And there was delivered to him the book of the prophet Isaiah; and unrolling the book, he found the place where it was written, read more. "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he anointed me to preach glad tidings to the poor; he hath sent me to proclaim deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty the oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord." And rolling up the book, he gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed upon him. And he began to say to them, Today hath this scripture been fulfilled in your ears. And they all spoke in his praise, and wondered at the words of grace which proceeded from his mouth; and they said, Is not this Josephs son? And he said to them, Ye will doubtless say to me this proverb, "Physician, heal thyself;" whatever things we have heard of as having been done in Capernaum, do here too in thy own country. And he said, Truly do I say to you, No prophet is acceptable in his own country. But I tell you in truth, that there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; and yet to none of them was Elijah sent, but to Sarepta in Sidonia, to a woman that was a widow. And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian. And all in the synagogue, when they heard this, were filled with wrath. And they rose up, and forced him out of the city and took him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, to cast him down headlong; but he, passing through the midst of them, went away.
And he came down with them, and stood on a level place with a great multitude of his disciples, and a great crowd of the people from all Judaea and Jerusalem and the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases. And they that were harassed with unclean spirits were cured. read more. And the whole multitude sought to touch him, because power went out of him and healed all. And raising his eyes toward his disciples, he said, Blessed are ye poor; for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are ye that hunger now; for ye will be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now; for ye will laugh. Blessed are ye when men hate you, and when they exclude you, and revile and cast out your name as evil, on account of the Son of man. Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy; for lo! your reward is great in heaven; for thus their fathers did to the prophets. But woe to you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation. Woe to you that are full now! for ye will hunger. Woe to you that laugh now! for ye will mourn and weep. Woe, when all men speak well of you! for so did their fathers of the false prophets. But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you; bless those who curse you; pray for those who are spiteful to you. To him that smiteth thee on one cheek, offer also the other; and him that taketh away thy cloak, forbid not to take thy coat also. Give to every one that asketh of thee; and from him that taketh away thy goods, demand them not again. And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also in like manner to them. And if ye love those who love you, what thanks do ye deserve? for sinners also love those who love them. For if ye do good to those who do good to you, what thanks do ye deserve? even sinners do the same. And if ye lend to those from whom ye expect to receive, what thanks do ye deserve? even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much in return. But love your enemies, and do good and lend, despairing of no one; and your reward will be great, and ye will be sons of the Most High; for he is kind to the unthankful and wicked. Be merciful, as your Father is merciful. And judge not, and ye will not be judged; and condemn not, and ye will not be condemned; forgive, and ye will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will men give into your bosom; for with what measure ye mete, it will be measured to you in return. And he spoke also a parable to them: Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a ditch? A disciple is not above his teacher; but every one when fully instructed will be as his teacher. And why dost thou look at the mote in thy brothers eye, and not perceive the beam that is in thine own eye? How canst thou say to thy brother, Brother, let me take out the mote that is in thine eye, when thou thyself perceivest not the beam in thine own eye? Hypocrite! first cast the beam out of thine own eye, and then thou wilt see clearly to take out the mote that is in thy brothers eye. For there is no good tree that beareth bad fruit; and again, there is no bad tree that beareth good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit; for from thorns men do not gather figs, nor from a bramblebush do they gather grapes. The good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth that which is evil; for out of the abundance of his heart his mouth speaketh. But why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Every one that cometh to me and heareth my sayings and doeth them, I will show you whom he is like. He is like a man building a house, who dug deep, and laid its foundation on a rock; and when a flood arose, the stream dashed against that house, and could not shake it; because it was well built. But he that heareth and doeth not, is like a man that built a house upon the earth without a foundation; against which the stream dashed, and it fell at once, and the ruin of that house was great.
And it came to pass, when the time was near for his being received up, that he himself steadily set his face to go to Jerusalem.
After these things, the Lord appointed also seventy others, and sent them two and two before him into every city and place where he himself was about to come. And he said to them, The harvest is great, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers for his harvest. read more. Go forth; lo! I send you as lambs into the midst of wolves. Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; salute no one by the way. And into whatever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house. And if a son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it; if not, it shall return to you. And abide in the same house, eating and drinking such things as they give; for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not go from house to house. And into whatever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat what is set before you, and heal the sick that are therein, and say to them, The kingdom of God hath come near to you. But into whatever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go out into its streets and say, Even the dust of your city that cleaveth to our feet we wipe off to you; but know this, that the kingdom of God hath come near. And I tell you, that it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city. Woe to thee, Chorazin! woe to thee, Bethsaida! for if the miracles that were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would long ago have repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernaum! shalt thou be exalted to heaven? thou shalt be brought down to the underworld. He that hearkeneth to you, hearkeneth to me; and he that rejecteth you, rejecteth me; but he that rejecteth me, rejecteth him that sent me.
And on the third day there was a marriagefeast in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there. And both Jesus and his disciples were invited to the feast. read more. And they had no wine, because the wine of the feast had failed. Then the mother of Jesus saith to him, There is no wine. Jesus saith to her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? My hour is not yet come. His mother saith to the servants, Whatever he saith to you, do it. Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, in conformity with the Jews custom of purifying, containing two or three firkins apiece. Jesus saith to them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. And he saith to them, Draw out now, and bear it to the master of the feast. And they bore it. But when the master of the feast tasted the water that had been made wine, not knowing whence it was, but the servants who drew the water knew, he called the bridegroom and said to him, Every man setteth on the good wine first, and when men have drunk freely, that which is worse. Thou hast kept the good wine until now. This beginning of the signs Jesus made in Cana of Galilee, and manifested his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
And the passover of the Jews was near; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And he found in the temple those who sold oxen, and sheep, and doves, and the moneychangers sitting. read more. And having made a scourge of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and poured out the money of the exchangers, and overthrew the tables; and said to those who sold the doves, Take these things hence; make not my Fathers house a house of merchandise. His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for thy house will consume me." The Jews therefore answered and said to him, What sign dost thou show us, seeing thou doest these things? Jesus answered and said to them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, Fortysix years was this temple in building; and wilt thou raise it up in three days? But he spoke of the temple of his body. When therefore he had risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they believed the Scripture, and the word which Jesus had spoken.
And the passover, the feast of the Jews, was near.
And the feast of the dedication came at Jerusalem. It was winter; and Jesus was walking in the temple, in Solomons porch. read more. Then came the Jews around him, and said to him, How long dost thou hold our minds in suspense? If thou art the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I have told you, and ye do not believe. The works that I do in my Fathers name, these bear witness of me. But ye do not believe, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; and I give them everlasting life; and they shall never perish, nor shall any one tear them out of my hand. That which my Father hath given me is greater than all; and no one is able to tear [them] out of the Fathers hand. I and the Father are one. The Jews again took up stones to stone him. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shown you from the Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? The Jews answered him, Not for a good work do we stone thee, but for blasphemy, and because thou, who art a man, makest thyself God. Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your Law, "I said, ye are gods"? If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came, and the Scripture cannot be made void, say ye of him whom the Father sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest, because I said, I am the Son of God? If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. But if I do them, though ye believe not me, believe the works; that ye may learn and know that the Father is in me, and I in the Father. They sought therefore to seize him; and he went forth out of their hands. And he went away again beyond the Jordan, to the place where John was at first baptizing; and there he abode. And many came to him, and said, John indeed wrought no sign; but everything that John said of this man was true. And many believed in him there.
But there was a certain man sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. It was the Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. read more. The sisters therefore sent to him, saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick. And Jesus hearing this said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it. Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. When therefore he heard that he was sick, he remained in the place where he was two days. Then after this he saith to the disciples, Let us go into Judaea again. The disciples say to him, Rabbi, the Jews but just now were seeking to stone thee, and goest thou thither again? Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If a man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world; but if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth; because the light is not in him. This he spoke, and afterwards said to them, Our friend Lazarus hath fallen asleep; but I go that I may awake him out of sleep. The disciples therefore said to him, Lord, if he hath fallen asleep, he will recover. But Jesus had spoken of his death; but they thought that he spoke of the taking of rest in sleep. Then therefore Jesus said to them plainly: Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there; that ye may believe; but let us go to him. Then said Thomas, who was called Didymus, to his fellowdisciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him. Having come, therefore, Jesus found that he had been four days in the tomb. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs off; and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother. Martha therefore, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went to meet him; but Mary continued sitting in the house. Then said Martha to Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died; and even now I know that whatever thou shalt ask of God, God will give it thee. Jesus saith to her, Thy brother will rise again. Martha saith to him, I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life: he that believeth in me, though he have died, will live; and whoever liveth and believeth in me will never die. Believest thou this? She saith to him, Yea, Lord; I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, he who was to come into the world. And having said this, she went away, and called Mary her sister secretly, saying, The Teacher is here and calleth for thee. She, when she heard this, riseth quickly and cometh to him.
She, when she heard this, riseth quickly and cometh to him. Now Jesus had not yet come into the town, but was still in the place where Martha met him. read more. The Jews then who were with her in the house and comforting her, when they saw that Mary rose up hastily and went out, followed her, thinking that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Then Mary, when she came where Jesus was, as soon as she saw him fell down at his feet, saying to him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. Jesus therefore when he saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping who came with her, was greatly moved in his spirit, and much troubled, and said, Where have ye laid him? They say to him, Lord, come and see. Jesus wept. The Jews therefore said, See, how he loved him! But some of them said, Could not he, who opened the eyes of the blind man, have also caused that this man should not have died? Jesus therefore, again greatly moved within himself, cometh to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus saith, Take away the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith to him, Lord, by this time the body is offensive; for he hath been dead four days. Jesus saith to her, Did I not tell thee, that if thou wouldst believe, thou shouldst see the glory of God? They therefore took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father! I thank thee that thou hast heard me. Yet I knew that thou hearest me always; but for the sake of the multitude standing around I said it, that they might believe that thou didst send me. And having thus spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth! He that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes; and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith to them, Loose him, and let him go.
Jesus therefore no longer walked openly among the Jews, but departed thence to the country near the wilderness, to a city called Ephraim, and there abode with the disciples.
Now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast. These came therefore to Philip, who was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, Sir, we wish to see Jesus. read more. Philip goeth and telleth Andrew; Andrew and Philip go and tell Jesus. But Jesus answereth them, saying, The hour hath come that the Son of man should be glorified. Truly, truly do I say to you, Unless a grain of wheat fall into the ground and die, itself abideth alone; but if it die, it beareth much fruit. He that loveth his life loseth it; and he that hateth his life in this world will keep it unto everlasting life. If any one be a servant to me, let him follow me; and where I am, there also will my servant be; if any one serve me, the Father will honor him. Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour! But for this cause I came to this hour. Father, glorify thy name! Then came there a voice from heaven: Yea, I have glorified it, and will glorify it again. The multitude therefore that stood by, hearing this, said that it thundered. Others said, An angel hath spoken to him. Jesus answered and said, This voice hath come not for my sake, but for yours. Now is the judgment of this world; now will the prince of this world be cast out; and I, if I be lifted up from the earth, shall draw all men to me. This he said, signifying what kind of death he was to die. The multitude therefore answered him, We have heard out of the Law that the Christ abideth for ever; how then dost thou say that the Son of man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of man? Jesus therefore said to them, Yet a little while is the light among you. Walk while ye have the light, that darkness may not overtake you; and he that walketh in the darkness knoweth not whither he goeth. While ye have the light, believe in the light, that ye may become sons of light. These things spoke Jesus, and went away, and hid himself from them.
and having cast him out of the city, they stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul; and they stoned Stephen, making supplication, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. read more. And kneeling down he cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And saying this, he fell asleep.
And Saul was consenting to his death. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and all were scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles. And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him. read more. But Saul ravaged the church, entering house after house, and dragging both men and women, committed them to prison. Now those that had been scattered abroad went through the country preaching the word.
And as they went along the road, they came to a certain water; and the eunuch saith, See, here is water; what is there to hinder my being baptized?
And when he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join himself to the disciples; and they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple.
And when he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join himself to the disciples; and they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and related to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that he had spoken to him, and hew he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus.
But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and related to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that he had spoken to him, and hew he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. And he was with them going in and out at Jerusalem,
And he was with them going in and out at Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. And he often spoke and disputed with the Hellenists; but they were endeavoring to slay him. read more. But the brethren obtaining knowledge of it, brought him down to Caesarea, and sent him forth to Tarsus.
But Peter put them all forth, and kneeled down and prayed; and turning to the body he said, Tabitha, arise. And she opened her eyes; and seeing Peter, she sat up.
But some of them were men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who, when they had come to Antioch, spoke to the Greeks, publishing the glad tidings of the Lord Jesus.
and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. And it came to pass, that for a whole year they came together in the church, and taught a great multitude; and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.
which also they did, sending it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.
And he slew James, the brother of John, with the sword. And seeing that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to apprehend Peter also; (then were the days of unleavened bread;) read more. and he seized him and put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after the passover to bring him forth to the people. Peter therefore was kept guarded in prison; but earnest prayer was made by the church to God in his behalf. And when Herod was about to bring him forth, on that night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and keepers before the door were guarding the prison. And lo! an angel of the Lord came to him, and a light shone in the room; and he smote Peter on the side, and roused him, saying, Rise up quickly. And his chains fell from his hands. And the angel said to him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals; and he did so. And he saith to him, Throw thy garment round thee, and follow me. And he went out, and followed; and he knew not that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he saw a vision. And when they had passed the first, and the second guard, they came to the iron gate that leadeth to the city, which opened to them of itself; and they went out and passed on through one street, and the angel immediately departed from him. And when Peter had come to himself, he said, Now I know certainly, that the Lord hath sent forth his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews. And when he understood the matter, he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, surnamed Mark, where many were gathered together, and praying. And as he knocked at the door of the gate, a maidservant came to listen, named Rhoda; and recognizing Peters voice, she opened not the gate for gladness; but ran in, and told them that Peter was standing before the gate. And they said to her, Thou art mad. But she positively affirmed that it was even so. Then they said, It is his angel. But Peter continued knocking; and opening the door, they saw him, and were amazed. But beckoning to them with his hand to be silent, he related how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, Go and tell these things to James, and to the brethren. And he departed, and went to another place. And when it was day, there was no small commotion among the soldiers, as to what had become of Peter. And Herod, when he had sought for him and found him not, examined the keepers, and commanded that they should be led away [to execution]. And he went down from Judea to Caesarea, and there abode.
But immediately an angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory, and he was eaten by worms, and expired.
But when Paul and Barnabas had had no small dissension and debate with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain others of them, should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders about this question.
And with this agree the words of the Prophets, as it is written:
And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.
And having landed at Caesarea and gone up and saluted the church, he went down to Antioch.
And he went into the synagogue, and spoke boldly for three months, discoursing and persuading concerning the kingdom of God.
And this continued for two years, so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.
And about that time there arose no small tumult concerning the faith.
And when he had gone through those regions, and had given them much exhortation, he came into Greece.
But we set sail from Philippi, after the days of unleavened bread, and came to them at Troas in five days, where we abode seven days. And on the first day of the week, when we had assembled to break bread, Paul discoursed to them, being about to depart on the morrow, and continued the discourse until midnight.
and sailing thence, we came the following day over against Chios. And the next day we arrived at Samos; and having tarried at Trogyllium, we came the next day to Miletus.
And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church.
And having found out the disciples, we remained there seven days; and they told Paul, through the Spirit, not to go up to Jerusalem.
And on the morrow we departed, and came to Caesarea; and entering the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, we stayed with him.
And when we arrived at Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly.
And when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews from Asia, having seen him in the temple, stirred up the whole multitude, and laid hands on him,
And he called to him two of the centurions, saying, Make ready two hundred soldiers to go to Caesarea, and seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen, at the third hour of the night;
But after two years Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus; and Felix, wishing to gain favor with the Jews, left Paul bound.
And having tarried among them not more than eight or ten days, he went down to Caesarea; and on the morrow, sitting on the judgmentseat, ordered Paul to be brought.
If indeed I am an offender, and have done anything deserving death, I refuse not to die; but if there be nothing in the charges which they bring against me, no man can give me up to them. I appeal to Caesar.
Accordingly on the morrow Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp, and entered into the place of hearing, with the chief captains and principal men of the city, and at the order of Festus Paul was brought forward.
And when it was determined that we should sail for Italy, they delivered Paul and certain other prisoners to a centurion named Julius, of the Augustan band.
And when we had come to Rome, Paul was permitted to dwell by himself, with the soldier that guarded him. And it came to pass that after three days he called together the chief men of the Jews, and when they had met he said to them, Brethren, I, though I had done nothing against the people, or the customs of our fathers, was delivered up a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans;
I had no rest in my spirit, because I found not Titus my brother; but taking my leave of them, I went forth into Macedonia.
But when it pleased him who set me apart from my very birth, and called me through his grace, to reveal his Son within me, that I might publish the glad tidings of him among the gentiles, immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood, read more. neither did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus. Then, after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days;
Then, after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days;
Then, after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days;
As I besought thee, when I set out for Macedonia, to remain still in Ephesus, that thou mightst charge certain persons not to teach other doctrine,
For this cause I left thee behind in Crete, that thou shouldst set in order the things that are wanting, and appoint elders in every city, as I directed thee;
yet for loves sake I beseech thee rather; being such a one as Paul an old man, and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus,
Smith
New Testament.
It is proposed in this article to consider the text of the New Testament. The subject naturally divides itself into-- I. The history of the written text; II. The history of the printed text. I. THE HISTORY OF THE WRITTEN TEXT.--
1. The early history of the apostolic writings externally, as far as it can be traced, is the same as that of other contemporary books. St. Paul, like Cicero or Pliny often employed the services of an amanuensis, to whom he dictated his letters, affixing the salutation "with his own hand."
The original copies seem to have soon perished.
2. In the natural course of things the apostolic autographs would be likely to perish soon. The material which was commonly used for letters the papyrus paper, to which St. John incidentally alludes.
comp. 3Joh 1:13 was singularly fragile, and even the stouter kinds, likely to be used for the historical books, were not fitted to bear constant use. The papyrus fragments which have come down to the present time have been preserved under peculiar circumstances as at Herculaneum or in the Egyptian tombs.
3. In the time of the Diocletian persecution, A.D. 303, copies of the Christian Scriptures were sufficiently numerous to furnish a special object for persecutors. Partly, perhaps, owing to the destruction thus caused, but still more from the natural effects of time. no MS. of the New Testament of the first three centuries remains but though no fragment of the New Testament of the first century still remains, the Italian and Egyptian papyri, which are of that date give a clear notion of the caligraphy of the period. In these the text is written in columns, rudely divided, in somewhat awkward capital letters (uncials), without any punctuation or division of words; and there is no trace of accents or breathings.
4. In addition to the later MSS. the earliest versions and patristic quotations give very important testimony to the character and history of the ante-Nicene text; but till the last quarter of the second century this source of information fails us. Only are the remains of Christian literature up to that time extremely scanty, but the practice of verbal quotation from the New Testament was not yet prevalent. As soon as definite controversies arose among Christians, the text of the New Testament assumed its true importance.
5. Several very important conclusions follow from this earliest appearance of textual criticism. It is in the first place evident that various readings existed in the books of the New Testament at a time prior to all extant authorities. History affords a trace of the pure apostolic originals. Again, from the preservation of the first variations noticed, which are often extremely minute, in one or more of the primary documents still left, we may be certain that no important changes have been made in the sacred text which we cannot now detect.
6. Passing from these isolated quotations, we find the first great witnesses to the apostolic text in the early Syriac and Latin versions and in the rich quotations of Clement of Alexandria (cir. A.D. 220) and Origen (A.D. 1842~4). From the extant works of Origen alone no inconsiderable portion of the whole New Testament might be transcribed; and his writings are an almost inexhaustible store house for the history of the text. There can be no doubt that in Origen's time the variations in the New Testament MSS. were beginning to lead to the formation of specific groups of copies.
7. The most ancient MSS. and versions now extant exhibit the characteristic differences which have been found to exist in different parts of the works of Origen. These cannot have had their source later than the beginning of the third century, and probably were much earlier. Bengel was the first (1734) who pointed out the affinity of certain groups of MSS., which as he remarks, must have arisen before the first versions were made. The honor of carefully determining the relations of critical authorities for the New Testament text belongs to Griesbach. According to him two distinct recensions of the Gospels existed at the beginning of the third century-the Alexandrine and the Western.
8. From the consideration of the earliest history of the New Testament text we now pass to the era of MSS. The quotations of Dionsius Alex. (A.D. 264), Petrus Alex. (cir. A.D. 312), Methodius (A.D. 311) and Eusebius (A.D. 340) confirm the prevalence of the ancient type of tent; but the public establishment of Christianity in the Roman empire necessarily led to important changes. The nominal or real adherence of the higher ranks to the Christian faith must have largely increased the demand for costly MSS. As a natural consequence the rude Hellenistic forms gave way before the current Greek, and at the same time it is reasonable to believe that smoother and fuller constructions were substituted for the rougher turns of the apostolic language. In this way the foundation of the Byzantine text was laid. Meanwhile the multiplication of copies in Africa and Syria was checked by Mohammedan conquests.
9. The appearance of the oldest MSS. have been already described. The MSS. of the fourth century, of which Codex Vaticanus may be taken as a type present a close resemblance to these. The writing is in elegant continuous uncials (capitals), in three columns, without initial letters or iota subscript or adscript. A small interval serves as a simple punctuation; and there are no accents or breathings by the hand of the first writer, though these have been added subsequently. Uncial writing continued in general use till the middle of the tenth century. From the eleventh century downward cursive writing prevailed. The earliest cursive biblical MS, is dated 964 A.D. The MSS. of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries abound in the contractions which afterward passed into the early printed books. The oldest MSS. are written on the thinnest and finest vellum; in later copies the parchment is thick and coarse. Papprus was very rarely used after the ninth century. In the tenth century cotton paper was generally employed in Europe; and one example at least occurs of its use in the ninth century. In the twelfth century the common linen or rag paper came into use. One other kind of material requires notice --re-dressed parchment, called palimpsests. Even at a very early period the original text of a parchment MS. was often erased, that the material might be used afresh. In lapse of time the original writing frequently reappeared in faint lines below the later text, and in this way many precious fragments of biblical MSS. which had been once obliterated for the transcription of other works, have been recovered.
10. The division of the Gospels into "chapters" must have come into general use some time before the fifth century. The division of the Acts and Epistles into chapters came into use at a later time. It is commonly referred to Euthalius, who, however, says that he borrowed the divisions of the Pauline Epistles from an earlier father and there is reason to believe that the division of the Acts and Catholic Epistles which he published was originally the work of Pamphilus the martyr. The Apocalypse was divided into sections by Andreas of Caesarea about A.D. 500. The titles of the sacred books are from their nature additions to the original text. The distinct names of the Gospels imply a collection, and the titles of the Epistles are notes by the possessors, and not addresses by the writers.
11. Very few MSS. certain the whole New Testament --twenty-seven in all out of the vast mass of extant documents. Besides the MSS. of the New Testament, or of parts of it, there are also lectionaries, which contain extracts arranged for the church services.
12. The number of uncial MSS. remaining. though great when compared with the ancient MSS. extent of other writings, is inconsiderable. Tischendorf reckons forty in the Gospels. In these must be added Cod. Sinait., which is entire; a new MS. of Tischendorf, which is nearly entire; and Cod. Zacynth., Which contains considerable fragments of St. Luke. In the Acts there are nine: in the Catholic Epistles five; in th
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And he said to them, This kind can go out by nothing, except by prayer.
{The remaining twelve verses, according to Tischendorf and others, made originally no part of Marks Gospel. As the passage was added very early, however, since it is referred to by Irenaeus in the latter part of the second century, it is here given, as an appendix.} [And having risen early, on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary the Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven demons.
The salutation of me, Paul, with my own hand.
The salutation by the hand of me, Paul. Remember my bonds. Grace be with you.
how much more shall the blood of Christ, who by his everlasting spirit offered himself without spot to God, purify your conscience from dead works, for the worship of the living God!
Having many things to write to you, I would not write with paper and ink; but I hope to come to you, and to speak face to face, that our joy may be full.
I had many things to write to thee, but I do not wish to write to thee with ink and pen;