APPENDIX 2. THE GREEK TEXT OF THE
BOOK OF REVELATION.
A BRIEF EXPLANATION OF MY COMMENTS ON THE GREEK
TEXT OF THE APOCALYPSE.
In my textual comments I have omitted the minor textual variations,
which do not effect the meaning of the text or prophecies; but have
considered in greater detail the major textual variations that effect
or alter the meaning of the text and prophecies. The Authorised Version
text is referred to as A.V., and it is based on Stephens 1550 Greek
text, known as the Received Text or Textus Receptus, or T.R. in our
evidence. In the Apocalypse the Textus Receptus often does not follow
the Majority Text. Where it is necessary, I have referred to the evidence
of the major early translations from the Greek into other languages,
and quotations from the “Church Fathers.”
“The Critical Texts,” are the 26th. edition of the Nestle-Aland
Greek Testament, and the Third Edition of the Greek Testament by the
United Bible Societies, called the NU-Text in some Bibles. These Critical
Texts, unfortunately, rely too much on the evidence from a small number
of manuscripts, which are mainly from an Egyptian source, in the New
Testament these vary from the Majority Text in three percent or more
of their readings. Aland says 90% of the minuscules have the Majority
Text, that is about 2,480 out of about 2770; and at least half of
the most significant uncials have the Majority Text. Many authorities
are now saying that it is wrong to rely largely upon a small number
of ancient manuscripts from one part of the world, particularly when
they differ from almost all of the rest of the Textual evidence from
all over the world. It is a fact that the Egyptian manuscripts variant
readings often disagree with the vast majority of the Greek manuscripts
from many parts of the world, and from the major early Versions in
other languages, and also from the majority of the early Church fathers.
Having said this, the Critical Texts have great value, because of
the information they contain in their critical notes. We must
thank God for all those who have preserved the Scriptures, and laboured
in the field of textual criticism, we owe them an incalculable debt
of gratitude for giving to us in our own language, the Word of God
as spoken through His prophets and apostles.
Hodges and Farstad base their Majority Greek Text on the broad mass
of manuscript evidence; their manuscript stemma (family tree) of the
apocalypse is very helpful, and is based on the work done by H. C.
Hoskier and Joseph Schmid, we owe a great deal to the work of all
of these textual scholars. The Mabcde readings are adapted from the
work of Hodges and Farstad. In the Apocalypse the Majority Text of
Hodges and Farstad often agrees with the Critical Texts against the
readings of the Authorised Version and Received Text. In the rest
of the New Testament the Majority Text of Hodges and Farstad usually
agrees with the Authorised Version and Received Text readings against
the Egyptian readings of the Critical Texts. There are one or two
places in the Apocalypse where I feel that the Majority Text is not
the best reading, like “emas,” “us,” in Rev.5v9.,
which is unacceptable on the grounds of prophetic facts, and on the
evidence of the “them” and “they” in v10,
and so “emas,” is quite rightly omitted by Codex A, and
the Critical Texts.
The Authorised Version Text of Revelation is not
as accurate as in the rest of the Scriptures.
The Authorised Version of the New Testament faithfully follows the
majority of the Greek manuscripts except in The Book of Revelation;
as Bishop C. Wordsworth states; “The English Version of the
Apocalypse does not rest upon the same sound basis of manuscript authority
as the Authorised Translation of the other books of the New Testament.
It stands in a place by itself, and ought to be regarded accordingly.”
Erasmus published the first printed edition of the Greek New Testament,
but in the Apocalypse he had only a single incomplete late cursive
manuscript of the twelfth or thirteenth century; all except v20 of
the last six verses were missing, so Erasmus supplied them by translating
the Latin Vulgate into the Greek. The first edition of Erasmus is
dedicated to Pope Leo the 10th., and is dated Feb. 1st. 1516. Scrivener
said in respect of typographical errors it was the most faulty book
he knew. A large number of these misprints, and some readings, were
corrected in four later editions, the fourth and fifth editions came
out in 1527 and 1535. Erasmus died in 1536.
The Complutensian Polyglott was finished on Jan. 10th 1514, two years
before the first edition of Erasmus, but was not given licence to
print by Pope Leo until March 22nd. 1520. Wetstein says it was based
on only one document in the Apocalypse.
Robert Stephens published four editions of the Greek New Testament,
which were highly regarded for their “exquisite beauty;”
these were published in 1546, 1549, 1550, and 1551. Wetstein stated
that Stephens only had two Greek manuscripts on the Apocalypse and
that these were not accurately collated. The 1550 edition is looked
upon by many as the Received or Standard Text, and it formed the basis
of the four editions of Theodore Beza at Geneva in 1565, 1576, 1589,
and 1598, and the Elzevir editions of 1624 and 1633. Beza's 1598 edition
formed the basis of the text behind the English Authorised Version
of the New Testament, which was published in 1611.
THE GREEK MANUSCRIPTS OF THE APOCALYPSE.
THE PAPYRI. Made from the papyrus reed. It
is not known if the earliest documents were made of scroll or codex
book type manuscripts. Of these P47 is the earliest, most of the papyri
contain only very small fragments. P18, 3rd. to 4th. century,
only has Rev.1v4-7.. P24, 4th. century, only has Rev.5v5-8.
and 6v5-8.. P43, 6th. or 7th. century, only has Rev.2v12,13.
and 15v8 to 16v2.. P47, 3rd. century only contains Rev.9v10
to 11v3., 11v5 to 16v15., and 16v17 to 17v2.. P85, 4th. to
5th. century, only has Rev.9v19 to 10v2. and 10v5-9.
THE UNCIALS. These manuscripts approximately correspond
to our English printed capital letters. The New Testament translators
from the 2nd. century onwards used the very durable parchment manuscripts
made from the skins of animals in preference to the more fragile papyrus
manuscripts. The oldest manuscripts of the New Testament are in codex
book form.
Aleph. 01. Sinaiticus. From the 4th. century. The manuscript
brought from Mount Sinai by Tischendorf in 1846, it is now in London.
It contains all the Apocalypse.
A. 02. Alexandrinus. The Alexandrine manuscript from
the 4th. or 5th. century, now in the British Museum in London. It
contains all of the Apocalypse. In the Apocalypse A and C are considered
by many authorities, including Nestle and Aland and Schmid, to be
far superior in textual value than P47 and Aleph.
C. 04. Ephraemi Rescriptus. The most valuable of the
palimpsest manuscripts, which had certain works of Ephraim the Syrian
written over a Greek New Testament from the 4th. century; the original
text has been restored by a chemical process so that almost every
letter is now discernible. It omits; Rev.1v1,2. 3v20-5v14. 7v14-17.
8v9-9v16. 10v10-11v3. 16v13-18v2. 19v5 to 22v21. The manuscript is
now in Paris. (About 50 palimpsest erased uncial New Testament manuscripts
are known.)
P. 025. A ninth century palimpsest, which is now in Leningrad. It
follows Andreas.
B2. The Basilian. Vatican manuscript 2066. 6th. to
8th. century. It often confirms Aleph, A, C, but less than Codex P,
it often follows the later cursives. Manuscript B2 must NOT be confused
with Vaticanus, Codex B, 03, which ends at Heb.9v13. and omits all
the Apocalypse.
Codex Kosinitsanus. Written in the tenth century by Sabbas, a monk.
046. A tenth century manuscript, which contains all of the Apocalypse.
THE MINUSCULES. These were developed from about the
9th. century from the earlier cursive long hand style, they produced
attractive documents, which could be written much quicker than the
uncial style capital manuscripts, and by the end of the 10th. century
it had completely displaced the uncial writing. The earliest minuscule
is dated A.D. 835. Farstad says of the 256 minuscules that Hoskier
lists, 204 are valuable, and uses 149 in his stemma of the Apocalypse,
see the next page.
N.B. Like Codex B. 03 Vaticanus, (which ends at Heb.9v13.),
the Lectionaries, dated tenth to fifteenth centuries; the Peshitta,
dated by Scrivener at 170 A.D.; and the Gothic Bible of Ulfilas, dated
310 A.D., do not contain the Apocalypse.
SOME AUTHORITIES QUOTED IN THE TEXTUAL APPARATUS
OF THE GREEK NEW TESTAMENT.
Name |
Died Approx |
Name |
Died Approx |
Ambrose |
A.D. 397 |
Haymo |
A.D. 841 |
Ambrosiaster |
4th. Century |
Hilary |
A.D. 367 |
Andrew of Ceasarea |
A.D. 614 |
Hyppolytus |
A.D. 235 |
Ansbert |
8th. Century |
Ignatius |
A.D. 110 |
Anthony |
8th. or 12th. Century |
Irenaeus |
A.D. 202 |
Aphraates |
A.D. 367 |
Jerome |
A.D. 420 |
Apostolic Canons |
4th. Century |
Maternus |
A.D. 348 |
Apostolic Constitution |
A.D. 380 |
Methodius |
3rd. Century |
Apringius |
A.D. 551 |
Oecumenius |
6th. Century |
Arethas |
A.D. 914 |
Origen |
A.D. 254 |
Arius |
A.D. 336 |
Papias |
2nd. Century |
Athanasius |
A.D. 373 |
Polycarp |
A.D. 156 |
Augustine |
A.D. 430 |
Primasius |
5th. Century |
Basil the Great |
A.D. 379 |
Promissionibus |
A.D. 453 |
Beatus |
A.D. 786 |
Priscillian |
A.D. 385 |
Bede |
A.D. 735 |
Ps-Ambrose |
6th. Century |
Cassiodorus |
A.D. 580 |
Ps-Athanasius |
6th. Century |
Clement of Alexandria |
A.D. 215 |
Ps-Cyprian |
? |
Crysostom |
A.D. 407 |
Tertullian |
A.D. 220 |
Cyprian |
A.D. 258 |
Theodore-Studita |
A.D. 826 |
Epiphanius |
A.D. 403 |
Theodoret |
A.D. 466 |
Eusebius of Ceasarea |
A.D. 339 |
Tyconius |
A.D. 380 |
Fulgentius |
A.D. 533 |
Victorinus Pettau |
A.D. 304 |
Gregory-Elvira |
A.D. 392 |
Vigilius |
A.D. 484 |
SOME OF THE ANCIENT COMMENTATORS ON THE APOCALYPSE.
Victorinus. Bishop of Petabium, or Petavium, Pettau
in Pannonia, he was martyred in A.D. 303, in the Diocletian persecution.
He wrote his commentary about A.D. 270; it was revised and modified
by Jerome.
Auctor Anonymus. Some think Tichonius, the Donatist
Expositor, a contemporary of Augustine, wrote this in about A.D. 390.
Primasius. Bishop of Adrumetum in Africa, “flourished A.D.
550.”
Cassiodorus Aurelius Magnus. Wrote a commentary about A.D. 556. He
speaks of Primasius being contemporary with him.
Andreas, or Andrew. Archbishop of Crete, and later
Bishop of Ceasarea. Probably in the sixth or seventh centuries. Arethas
and Oecumenius derived their materials mainly from Andreas.
Arethas. Bishop of Ceasarea, in Cappodicia, he died
about A.D. 914. A Latin translation of his work has survived.
Oecumenius. Bishop of Tricca in Thessaly. Opinions vary from 6th.
to 10th. century.
Bede. Born in the county of Durham in A.D. 672, and died A.D. 735.
Haymo. Had a reputation of being a good expositor; he died A.D. 841.
THE STEMMA OF THE GREEK TEXTS OF THE APOCALYPSE
WITH THE PRINCIPAL ROUTES OF MIXTURE.
Adapted from H. C. Hoskier, J. Schmid, and the Majority Text
Greek Testament by Zane Hodges and Arthur L. Farstad.