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Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus, two of the great uncial codices, representatives of the Alexandrian text-type, are considered excellent manuscript witnesses of the text of the New Testament. Most critical editions of the Greek New Testament give precedence to these two chief uncial manuscripts, and the majority of translations are based on their text.
New Testament manuscripts in Greek are categorized into five groups,[1] according to a scheme introduced in 1981 by Kurt and Barbara Aland in The text of the New Testament. The categories are based on how each manuscript relates to the various text-types. Generally speaking, earlier Alexandrian manuscripts are category I, while later Byzantine manuscripts are... Continue Reading →
An Eastern form of text, which was formerly called the Caesarean text, is preserved, to a greater or lesser extent, in several Greek manuscripts (including Θ, 565, 700) and in the Armenian and Georgian versions. The text of these witnesses is characterized by a mixture of Western and Alexandrian readings. (Bruce M. Metzger)
The Majority Text is nearly synonymous with the Byzantine Text because it was in Byzantium (and surrounds) that the Lucian text was copied again and again until it was standardized in thousands of manuscripts. (Phillip Comfort)
The chief characteristic of Western readings is fondness for paraphrase. Words, clauses, and even whole sentences are freely changed, omitted, or inserted. Sometimes the motive appears to have been harmonization, while at other times it was the enrichment of the narrative by the inclusion of traditional or apocryphal material. (Bruce M. Metzger)
The Alexandrian text ... is usually considered to be the best text and the most faithful in preserving the original. Characteristics of the Alexandrian text are brevity and austerity. That is, it is generally shorter than the text of other forms, and it does not exhibit the degree of grammatical and stylistic polishing that is characteristic of the Byzantine type of text (Bruce M. Metzger)
A far larger group of New Testament MSS comprises those written in minuscule handwriting, dating from the ninth century to the invention of printing, and a few even later.
A New Testament uncial is a section of the New Testament in Greek or Latin majuscule letters, written on parchment or vellum. This style of writing is called Biblical Uncial or Biblical Majuscule. At present, there are 323 manuscripts. This source page started out Wikipedia but Edward D. Andrews will be updating it for Christian Publishing House. Some things are linked to the CPH blog and others... Continue Reading →
A New Testament Lectionary is a handwritten copy of a lectionary or book of New Testament Bible readings. Lectionaries may be written in majuscule or minuscule Greek letters, on parchment, papyrus, vellum, or paper. This page is from Wikipedia but will be updated over time by Edward D. Andrews for Christian Publishing House. As of November 2019, there are 2,484 Lectionary Greek New Testament Manuscripts. New Testament lectionaries are distinct from: New Testament... Continue Reading →
Caspar René Gregory published a cataloging system for the Greek New Testament manuscripts in 1908. In 1963, Kurt Aland expanded Gregory's work, and the Gregory-Aland (GA) numbers became the industry standard for referencing Greek New Testament manuscripts.