Week 2:

Origin, development,
and translation of
the New Testament
Hurricane West Stake
Adult Religion Class
 Joseph Smith on the Bible
“I believe the Bible as it read
when it came from the pen of
the original writers.
Ignorant translators, careless
transcribers, or designing and
corrupt priests have committed many
errors.”
—Joseph Smith, 1843
History of the Church 5:67

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 Questions we’ll answer
• Who wrote the New Testament?
• Why these 27 books?
• How was the text transmitted? What
kinds of errors and changes?
• Which Bible translation is the best?

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 Early Christian writings
• Koine Greek.
• Oral culture.
• First written gospels 20–40
years after Jesus.
• Gospels and letters read
aloud in the churches
(Colossians 4:15–16).
• Copied by amateurs.

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 The New Testament canon
• Books that are authoritative and
accepted.
• Canon = κανων (kanOn) = “measuring
rod.”
• Non-canonical gospels and letters.
• Current canon (27 NT books) finalized
before A.D. 400.
• Widely used/accepted, written by a
known apostle, no heretical teachings.
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 New Testament authorship
• Authorship certain.
 Most of Paul’s epistles.
• Anonymous books.
 The Gospels.
 The Epistle to the Hebrews.
 Epistles of John.
• Pseudonymous books.
 Some of Paul’s epistles.
 Epistles of Peter.
• Is he the same guy?
 The Epistle of James.
 The Revelation of John. 6
 Accidental changes
• John 17:15 (majority):
I do not ask that you keep them from the
world, but that you keep them from the
evil one.
• John 17:5 (Codex Vaticanus):
I do not ask that you keep them from the
evil one.

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 Accidental changes
• Revelation 1:5b (later manuscripts):
Unto him that loved us, and washed us from
our sins in his own blood.
• Revelation 1:5b (earlier manuscripts):
Unto him that loved us, and freed us from our
sins by his blood.
• An error in hearing?
 “released” = λύσαντι (lusanti)
 “washed” = λούσαντι (lousanti)
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 Deliberate changes
• Luke 11:2–4 (KJV): • Luke 11:2–4 (early mss.):
2Our Father which art in 2Father, Hallowed be thy
heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come.
name. Thy kingdom come. 3Give us day by day our daily
Thy will be done, as in bread.
heaven, so in earth. 4And forgive us our sins; for
3Give us day by day our
we also forgive every one
daily bread. that is indebted to us. And
4And forgive us our sins; lead us not into temptation.
for we also forgive every
one that is indebted to us.
And lead us not into
temptation; but deliver us
from evil.
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 Deliberate changes
• Luke 2:33 (earlier manuscripts):
And the child’s father and mother were
amazed at what was being said about him.
• Luke 2:33 (later manuscripts):
And Joseph and his mother were amazed at
what was being said about him.

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 Early Christians knew
“The differences among the
manuscripts [of the Gospels] have
become great, either through the
negligence of some copyists or
through the perverse audacity of
others; they either neglect to check
over what they have transcribed, or,
in the process of checking, they make additions or
deletions as they please.”
—Origen, c. A.D. 248
Commentary on Matthew 15:14

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How many manuscripts are there?
• About 5,700 Greek New
Testament manuscripts.
• Fragments, partial
copies, full volumes.

Papyrus 52
Earliest known NT manuscript (~A.D. 125)
3½" high × 2½" wide
Fragment of John 18:31–33 (front)
& John 18:37–38 (back)

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Codex Sinaiticus
Earliest known complete NT (c. A.D. 330–360)
Written on parchment (binding not original)

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Surviving Greek manuscripts
per century Papyri Majuscules

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
2nd/3rd
1st/2nd

3rd/4th

4th/5th

5th/6th

6th/7th
2nd

3rd
1st

4th

5th

6th

7th
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 100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900

0
1,000
1st
1st/2nd
2nd
2nd/3rd
3rd
3rd/4th
4th
4th/5th
5th
5th/6th
6th
6th/7th
7th
7th/8th
8th
8th/9th
9th
9th/10th
10th
10th/11th
11th
11th/12th
per century Papyri Majuscules Minuscules

12th
Surviving Greek manuscripts

12th/13th
13th
13th/14th
14th
14th/15th
15th
15th/16th
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16th
 How many differences?
“Scholars differ significantly in their
estimates—some say there are 200,000
variants known, some say 300,000, some
say 400,000 or more! We do not know for
sure because, despite impressive
developments in computer technology, no
one has yet been able to count them all.
Perhaps…it is best simply to leave the
matter in comparative terms. There are
more variations among our manuscripts
than there are words in the New Testament.”
—Bart Ehrman
Misquoting Jesus (2005), 89–90
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 Early NT translations
• Syriac (Mesopotamia).
• Coptic (Egypt).
• Latin (Rome).
 Early Latin versions
(2nd–4th centuries).
 The Vulgate (A.D. 382).

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 The first printed Bible
Johannes Gutenberg
(c. 1398–1468)

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 The first printed Greek NT
• Desiderius Erasmus
(1466–1536).
• Greek New Testament
published 1516.
• Textus Receptus (TR)
= “received text.”
• Basis for all printed
Bibles until 1881.

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 Joseph Smith on the Bible
“Our latitude and longitude can
be determined in the original
Hebrew with far greater
accuracy than in the English
version. There is a grand
distinction between the actual meaning of
the prophets and the present [English]
translation.” —Joseph Smith, 1843
History of the Church 5:342

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 The King James Version
• Authorized by the
Church of England.
• Abbreviated “KJV.”
• Based on earlier English
Bibles.
• Published A.D. 1611
(current version revised
in 1769).
• Greatest English literary
achievement.
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 Difficult KJV readings
• KJV 2 Corinthians 6:11–13:
O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our
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heart is enlarged. 12Ye are not straitened in us, but ye

are straitened in your own bowels. 13Now for a
recompence in the same, (I speak as unto my
children,) be ye also enlarged.
• NRSV 2 Corinthians 6:11–13:
11We have spoken frankly to you Corinthians; our heart
is wide open to you. 12There is no restriction in our
affections, but only in yours. 13In return—I speak as to
children—open wide your hearts also.

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 A typo in the KJV
• KJV Matthew 23:24:
Ye blind guides, which strain at
a gnat, and swallow a camel.
• NRSV Matthew 23:24:
You blind guides! You strain out
a gnat but swallow a camel!

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 So why do we use the KJV?
It is not superior in translation, readability,
source documents, but…
• It is the Church’s official Bible.
• It is sufficient for devotional use.
• It does share a “family relationship” with
other LDS scriptures.

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 KJV translators not inspired
“…[If the Bible] be translated
incorrectly, and there is a scholar on
the earth who professes to be a
Christian, and he can translate it any
better than King James’ translators
did it, he is under obligation to do
so…. I think it is translated just as
correctly as the scholars could get it, although it
is not correct in a great many instances.”
—Brigham Young, 1871
Journal of Discourses 14:226–27

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Approaches to translation
Literal

Formal equivalence (word-for-word)

Dynamic equivalence (thought-for-thought)

Paraphrase 27
Recommended study Bibles

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 The Joseph Smith Translation
• What is the JST?
• How did Joseph make his translation?
• Is the JST a restoration of an
“original text,” or something else?
• How can we use it along with other
resources?

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 “Scriptural illiteracy”
“[Five hundred years ago]
scriptural ignorance abounded
because people lacked access to
the Bible, especially in a language
they could understand. Today the
Bible and other scripture are
readily at hand, yet there is a
growing scriptural illiteracy
because people will not open the books.”
—Elder D. Todd Christofferson
General Conference, April 2010

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 Latter-day Saints and the NT
• We revere the Bible, in spite of its flaws.
• NT contains the central message of the
gospel: Jesus lived, died, and lives again.
• We are not scriptural inerrantists.
• Our doctrine is based on revelation to
living prophets.

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 Scriptural faith
“Faith will not come from the study of
ancient texts as a purely academic
pursuit. It will not come from archaeo-
logical digs and discoveries. It will not
come from scientific experiments. It will
not even come from witnessing miracles.
These things may serve to confirm faith,
or at times to challenge it, but they do
not create faith. Faith comes by the
witness of the Holy Spirit to our souls, Spirit to spirit,
as we hear or read the word of God. And faith
matures as we continue to feast upon the word.”
—Elder D. Todd Christofferson
General Conference, April 2010
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 Next week:
Mark 1:1–6:6