Meet GA 200 - A Definitive Byzantine Gospels Manuscript

          GA 200 never gets cited individually in the Nestle-Aland apparatus, or any other modern textual apparatus as far as I know.  Housed at the Laurentian Library in Florence, Italy (Conv. Sopp. 159), the text of this fine thousand-year-old Gospels manuscript could practically serve as the definitive medieval text of the Gospels.  Its text is Byzantine – but it is not a member of family 35.

The beginning of Mark in GA 200

          Eusebius’ letter to Carpian precedes the five-page Canon-tables, with a pair of peacocks above the epistle in a quadrefoil frame.  The Gospels- text is written in dark brown ink; assorted comments in red occassionally frame the main text on up to three sides.

          Let’s take a closer look at 200’s text of Matthew.

 

Mt. 5:38 – σου σιαγόνα

Mt. 5:45 – includes τοις

Mt. 9:4 – reads ιδον before ο ις

Mt. 9:5 – σου after αφέωνται

Mt. 9:27 – υιε  

Mt. 10:28 – has την before ψυχην

Mt. 10:28 – has και before το σωμα

Mt. 11:16 – reads αγοραις

Mt. 11:16 – reads ετεροις

Mt. 11:21 – reads βεθσαιδα

Mt. 11:23 – reads υψωθεισα

Mt. 13:3 – reads σπειρειν

Mt. 13:15 – reads ιασομαι

Mt. 13:28 – reads συλλεξοεν

Mt. 13:33 – reads εκρυψεν

Mt. 15:39 – reads ανεβη

Mt. 17:2 – reads εγενετο

Mt. 17:27 – αναβαινοντα

Mt. 19:5 – does not have αυτου after ρπα

Mt. 19:5 – reads προσκολληθήσεται

Mt. 19:26 – does not have εστιν after δυνατα

Mt. 21:1 – reads βηθφαγη

Mt. 21:22 – reads εαν

Mt. 21:30 – reads ετέρω

Mt. 21:33 – reads τις after ανος

Mt. 22:9 – reads αν

Mt. 22:13 – reads χειρα και ποδας

Mt. 22:23 – does not read οι after σαδδουκαιοι

Mt. 22:32 – reads αυτῃ

Mt. 23:36 – reads ταυτα (no παντα)

Mt. 24:2 – reads ταυτα παντα  

Mt. 24:33 – reads ταυτα παντα  

Mt. 26:9 – has τοις before πτωχοις 

Mt. 26:11 – begins τουσ πτωχους γαρ παντοτε 

Mt.  26:15 – reads και εγω 

Mt. 26:17 – reads ετοιμάσομεν 

Mt. 26:33 – reads δε ουδέποτε   

Mt. 26:35 – reads απαρνήσομαι 

Mt. 28:11 – reads και εκει

 

In John, the pericope adulterae appears at the usual place after 7:52 and begins και απηλθεν εκαστος εις τον οικον αυτου.

Jn 8:2 – βαθεως

Jn 8:3 – includes προς αυτον

Jn 8:4 – αυτοφώρω

Jn 8:5 – μωσης

Jn 8:5 – does not read περι αυτης after λεγεις

Jn 8:9 –  after γυναι:  ουδεις σε κατέκρινεν

 

After the end of the text of John, the subscription reads τελος του ια εωθινου και του αποστολ[ου].   There follow five and a half pages of Gregory Nazianzus' composition Against the Arians, and then a long list of lectionary-related material.

 

The entire manuscript is very well executed and is in excellent condition.  GA 200 is fully indexed at the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts.