Papyrus 3 is designated by the sign P³ in the numbering Gregory-Aland. It is a small fragment of fifteen verses from the Gospel of Luke (Luke 7:36-45; 10:38-42) dating to the 4th century.^[1] It is formed part of a lectionary. It is dated palaeographically to the 6th or 7th century by Karl Wessely in 1882.^[2] Karl Wessely was an Austrian palaeographer and papyrus scholar. He examined manuscripts housed at the Austrian National Library and in other important European libraries. See Comfort’s dating below.

Philip W. Comfort writes the following, “Wessely dated this manuscript to the sixth century, but the handwriting of P3 is paralleled by several third and fourth-century manuscripts: (1) P. Merton 29, dated ‘third/fourth century’ (See Montevecci, Plate 86 and photo display 4B); (2) P. London II, 353, dated A.D. 222 (See Montevecci, Plate 74); (3) P. Oxyrhynchus 1271, dated A.D. 246 (See Montevecci, Plate 75); (4) P. Oxyrhynchus 4747, dated A.D. 296; (5) P. Oxyrhynchus 5007, dated ‘third-fourth century’;  (6) PSI I.22 + VIII.98, mentioning horoscope date no later than A.D. 385; and (7) P86 (see comments there). Therefore, P3 can safely be dated to the fourth century, at the latest.” – Philip Wesley Comfort and David P. Barrett, THE TEXT OF THE EARLIEST NEW TESTAMENT MANUSCRIPTS: Papyri 75-139 and Uncials, Vol. 2 (English and Greek Edition) (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Academic, 2019), 370.

NAME: Pap. G. 2323 SIGN: P3 CONTENT: Luke 7:36-45; 10:38-42 DATE: 4th cent. HOUSED: Vienna, Austrian National Library LANGUAGE: Greek TEXT-TYPE: Generally Alexandrian PROVENANCE: ALAND CATEGORY: III BIBLIOGRAPHY: Wessely, C.: Evangelien-Fragmente auf Papyrus, in: WSt 4 (1882) 198-214; id.: Neue Evangelien-Fragmente auf Papyrus, WSt 7 (1885) 69f.; Schofield 96-99; Porter, S.E. – Porter, W.J., New Testament Greek Papyri and Parchments, in: MPÖNB XXIX (2008) 13-17; Rep., 218; Turner, 145; TNT 1, 85, 96, 160, 244; TNT 2, 95, 106, 248; Hirunuma I, 13-17; Elliott, 22

The Greek text-type of this codex is generally Alexandrian. The Aland’s placed it in Category III.

The Text

Luke 7:36

ΑΓΓ . . ΙΟ

ΤΟΝ Κ ̣̅ ΗΣο^υ

ΤΟΝ̣Τ̣Ω̣ΝΦΣΡΙΣ̣

Ε̣Λ̣ΘΩΝΕ̣ΙΣΤ̣

ΙΕΙΔΟΥΓΥΝΗΗΤΙΣΗ

ΓΝΟΥΣΑΟΤΙ̣ΚΑΤ^ΑΚ

ΣΑΑΛΑΒΑΣΤΡΟΝΜΥΡ̣

Ο̣ΔΑΣΑΥΤΟΥΚΛΑΣΙΟΥΣ̣

ΥΣΠΟΔΑΣΑ^ΥΤΟΥ ΚΑΙ

ΕΞΕΜΑΞΕΝΚΑΙΚΑΤΕ

ΗΛΙΦΕΝ ΤΩΜΥΡΩ

ΑΣΑΥΤΟΝΕΙΠΕΝΕ . . . . ΤΩ

ΗΣΕΓΙΓΝΩΣΚΕΝΑΝΤ̣ΙΣΚΑΙΠΟΤΑΠ

ΤΑΙΑΥΤΟΥΟΤΙΑ.ΑΡΤΩΛΟ̣ΣΕΣΤΙΝ

ΕΙΠΕΝ Ο ΙΣΠΡΟΣ̣Α.Τ̣Ο̣Ν̣ΣΙΜΩΝ

ΔΕΔΕΔΑ . . . ΛΕΕΙ̣ΠΕΝΦΗΣΙΝΔΥΟ

ΤΙΝΙΟΕΙΣΩ

Η̣ΚΟΝ̣ΤΑΜΗ̣

ΤΟΤΙΣΟΥ

ΔΕΣΙΜΩ̣

Π̣ΕΝΑΥΤΩ̣

Ω̣Σ̣Ι̣ΜΩ

Luke 10:38

ΝΤΟΥΑΓΙΟ^υΛΟ^υΚΑ

. . . . . . ΚΩΜΗ̣

ΡΕΥΕΣΘΑΙΑΥΤΟΥ

ΘΕΝΕΙΣΚΩΜΗΝΤΙΝ

^[1] Philip Wesley Comfort and David P. Barrett, The Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts, Volume 1: Papyri 1-72 (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Academic & Professional, Oct. 22, 2019), 29.

^[2] 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: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. p. 96.

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