Today we present a thrilling skirmish in the arena of John 3:22-26: Codex Sinaiticus (from the mid-300s) vs. minuscule 1690 (at the National Library of Greece, from the 1200s or 1300s). Digital page-views of 1690 are at the CSNTM website, and Codex Sinaiticus can be viewed at Codex Sinaiticus.org . The text of John 3:22-36 in UBS4 (which is the same in UBS5 and NA27 and NA28) shall serve as referee. The usual rules apply: nomina sacra contractions shall not be considered variants, and transcriptions shall be noted but not considered variants unless they involve some addition or loss of letters.
John 3:22-36 in GA 1690:
22 – has διέτριβε instead of
διέτριβεν (-1)
23 – Ἰωάννης is written as ιω
23 – has σαλημ instead of σαλείμ (+1, -2)
23 – has παρεγένοντο instead of παρεγίνοντο (+1, -1)
24 – Ἰωάννης is written as ιω
25 – has Ἰωάννου written as ιω
26 – has Ἰωάννην written as ιω
26 – has ειπον instead of ειπαν (+1, -1)
26 – has μεμαρτύρεκας instead of μεμαρτύρηκας (+1, -1)
27 – has Ἰωάννης written as ιω
27 – has λαμβάνει instead of
λαμβάνειν (-1)
27 – has ουδεν instead of
ουδε εν (-1)
28 – does not have μοι (-3)
28 – does not have [οτι] (-3)
29 – has ἐιστηκως instead of ἐστηκως (+1)
30 – has ἐστι instead of ἐστιν (-1)
31 – has ἐστι instead of ἐστιν at the end of the verse (-1)
32 – begins the verse with
και (+3)
32 – has ἑώρακε instead of
ἑώρακεν (-1)
32 – has ηκουσε instead of
ηκουσεν (-1)
33 – has αυτου transposed to
follow μαρτυρίαν instead of after λαβων
33 – has ὁ θς after
δίδωσιν (+5, expanding the nomen sacrum)
34 – no variants
35 – no variants
36 – has την before ζωήν (+3)
The text of John 3:22-36 in 1690 is missing 18 original letters and includes 16 original letters, for a total of 34 letters’ worth of corruption. Now let’s see how the text of À does.
John 3:22-36 in Sinaiticus:
22 – transposes και οι μαθηται αυτου to follow εις την Ιουδαιαν γην
22 – has κακει instead
of και εκει (-2)
23 – has ενγυς instead of εγγυς +1, -1)
23 – has παρεγεινοντο instead
of παρεγίνοντο (+1, -1)
24 – does not have ὁ (added
by a corrector) (-1)
24 – has δε συν- before
ζήτησις (a corector has overdotted and written ουν above the line) (+5)
24
– has μετα ϊουδαιων instead of
μετα ιουδαιου (changed by a corrector) (+2, -2)
25 – has ειπον instead of ειπαν (+1, -1)
26 – has ραββει instead of ραββι (+1)
26 – has βαπτιζι instead of
βαπτιζει (-1)
27 – has λαβιν instead of λαμβάνειν
(-4)
27 – has ουδεν instead of
ουδε εν (-1)
28 – has υμις instead of υμεις (-1)
28 – has μαρτυριται
instead of μαρτυρειτε (-2, +2)
28 – does not have [οτι] (-3)
29 – has αυτου after ἑστηκως
(transposed)
30 – has αυξανιν instead of
αυξανειν (-1)
31 – has ο δε ων instead of ὁ ων (+2)
31 – has επι instead of the
first εκ (+2, -10
31 – does not have ἑπάνω
πάντων ἐστιν (-16)
32 – begins the verse with ον
(+2)
32 – has ἑώρακε instead of
ἑώρακεν (ν is added above the line)
(-1)
32 – has ηκουσε instead of ηκουσεν (ν is added above the line) (-1)
32 – has ουδις instead of ουδεις (-1)
33 – no variants
34 – has απεστιλεν instead of απεστειλεν (-1)
34 – has δίδωσι instead of
δίδωσιν (-1)
35 – no variants
36 – does not have δε (-2)
36 – has απιθων instead of απειθων (-1)
36 – has εχει instead of ὄψεται
(+4, -6)
36 – transposes μένει to the
end of the verse
The text of John 3:22-36 in À is missing 61 original letters and includes 23 non-original letters, for a total of 94 letters’ worth of corruption. Wait; 1690 has just 34 letters’ worth of corruption here and À has 94?
Let’s drop all
those itacisms and final-νs and transpositions from consideration, boiling
things down a bit, and see how things stand:
1690:
27 – has ουδεν instead of
ουδε εν (-1)
28 – does not have μοι (-3)
28 – does not have [οτι] (-3)
32 – begins the verse with
και (+3)
33 – has ὁ θς after
δίδωσιν (+5, if the nomen sacrum is expanded)
36 – has την before ζωήν (+3)
With trivialities set aside, the text of John 3:22-36 in 1690 is missing 7 original letters and includes 11 original letters, for a total of 18 letters’ worth of corruption. Now let’s see how the text of À does:
Sinaiticus’ text of John
3:22-36:
23 – has ενγυς instead of εγγυς +1, -1)
24 – does not have ὁ (added
by a corrector) (-1)
24 – has δε συν- before
ζήτησις (a corector has overdotted and written ουν above the line) (+5)
24
– has μετα ϊουδαιων instead of
μετα ιουδαιου (changed by a corrector) (+2, -2)
27 – has λαβιν instead of λαμβάνειν
(-4)
27 – has ουδεν instead of
ουδε εν (-1)
28 – does not have [οτι] (-3)
31 – has ο δε ων instead of ὁ ων (+2)
31 – has επι instead of the
first εκ (+2, -1)
31 – does not have ἑπάνω
πάντων ἐστιν (-16)
32 – begins the verse with ον
(+2)
36 – does not have δε (-2)
36 – has εχει instead of
ὄψεται (+4, -6)
With trivialities set aside, the text of John 3:22-36 in À is missing 17 original letters and includes 37 non-original letters, for a total of 54 letters’ worth of corruption. (That's assuming, remember, that the editors of UBS4 got things right here. That οτι in verse 28, and a couple of other points, look very suspect.)
