Last week, I highlighted the first of a series of articles on "textual criticism" of the New Testament of the Bible. This week's installment in that four-part series answers some basic questions about the manuscripts we possess --none of which are the original "autograph" of the books that make up the New Testament.

This article comes second in a four-part series on New Testament textual criticism. It answers questions about the material and process of making the pages of a document, along with the scribal art of writing. What were the scribe's utensils? How was a papyrus sheet or page made? What is parchment? Why wouldn't God protect his Word from such complications? Should I trust the New Testament?

The entire series assumes the basic Christian doctrine of inspiration. The original authors of the New Testament were inspired. But we no longer have their very original manuscripts. Rather, they were transmitted by scribes and copiests who took their work seriously, but were not inspired as the original authors were. They made typical errors that all scribes and copyists do before the age of copy machines, word processors, and spell checks.
Textual criticism attempts to recover the originals, as much as humanly possible. Have textual critics succeeded? By any reckoning, we have 95% of the inspired words, and some scholars place the number as high as 97-98%. Where any uncertainties remain, they do not overturn New Testament doctrine, which are supported by other verses.

That is a remarkable achievement for any text coming out of the Greco-Roman world. Web readers need to know this, so they can be reassured about their Bible when they hear its critics misleading the public about the complete trustworthiness of Scripture. The New Testament (and the Old Testament) is a highly accurate, reliable, and faithful record of the words and ideas of the original authors, as inspired by God.

This article (and the entire series) is about the later manuscripts. Let's educate ourselves about them so we won't be caught unprepared when the needlessly and heedlessly harsh critics appear in the media.

I've got to tell you, despite a degree in history and four years in the seminary, I learned things about the nature of these early manuscripts that I didn't know or had forgotten. I'd again encourage my readers to follow these articles to learn more about the New testament and the process by which we have received and understand it.

Posted by: Greg at 04:38 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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