Ancient Manuscripts of the Bible
While archaeology provides a great deal of information and physical evidence, much of it also needs to be interpreted in a historical framework and with ancient texts to help us decipher events, architecture, and artifacts. Many ancient documents have survived millennia. Among these documents are historical sections which recorded people, places, and events, giving us detailed insights into the past. In Mesopotamia, thousands of clay tablets have been preserved which record historical events, religious beliefs, economic and social practices, and technology. In Egypt, stone inscriptions, painted walls of tombs and temples, and papyrus were the preferred mediums for similar writings. The Bible, however, was primarily written on parchment (animal skin) with ink, or in some cases on papyrus. Many of these ancient Biblical texts have been discovered through archaeological excavations in Egypt and in caves near the Dead Sea, while others were handed down and preserved in libraries of monasteries. What we call the “Bible” (Greek scrolls/books) is a collection of books and writings spanning over 1500 years, written primarily in Hebrew and Greek, and divided into a Hebrew Bible “Old Testament” and the Greek “New Testament” (ca. 1440 BC-400 BC, 40-96 AD). In the Old Testament, the books of Moses (the Pentateuch or Torah) and probably Job are the earliest, while the books of Zechariah and Malachi are the latest. In the New Testament, the Gospel of Matthew may have been the first written, while the book of Revelation was certainly the last.
The ancient manuscripts of the Bible that we have today are copies of the originals, but research and new discoveries have continued to demonstrate that these copies have accurately preserved the text of the various books of the Bible over the centuries. The English translations of the Old Testament that most people had in their Bibles was until recently based on the “Masoretic Text,” which is represented by very old Hebrew manuscripts that were preserved by dedicated followers of Judaism. However, the oldest of these Masoretic Text manuscripts were only from the 10th century AD, so the oldest copies of the Old Testament were from the Septuagint, or Greek translation of the Old Testament done in the 3rd century BC. But then, in 1946 the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered by accident in a cave near the Dead Sea by a Bedouin shepherd. Archaeological excavations at the caves and the site of Qumran were quickly undertaken, and hundreds of ancient manuscripts dating back to as early as about 300 BC were discovered. In fact, every book of the Old Testament except Esther has been discovered so far among the Dead Sea Scrolls. These scrolls, primarily written in Hebrew, are extremely significant because they contain copies of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament from over 1100 years before the Masoretic text, and yet are about 95% identical in most books. Most of the differences are due to spelling, word choice, misunderstanding of a number, or the omission of a word or phrase. Thankfully, we have enough ancient texts that we are able to determine what is the original of each book of the Old Testament. Overall, the Dead Sea Scrolls demonstrate that the text of the Old Testament has been accurately copied and preserved over thousands of years. Since between 3rd century BC and 10th century AD the copying tradition was so stringent, even with the destruction of Jerusalem, the Temple, and the Diaspora, it suggests that the Old Testament had been accurately copied and preserved over the centuries prior. This was the view of the Apostles (1 Peter 1:23-25). Even the few extreme examples that have meaningful implications are not a problem, as we are able to determine the original text. For example, in 1 Samuel 17:4 the height of Goliath is stated as: 1) MT “six cubits and a span” (Hebrew, 10th century AD), 2) LXX “four cubits and a span” (Greek translation, variants, 2nd century BC), 3) DSS “four cubits and a span” (Hebrew, 2nd century BC). The most ancient manuscripts, and evidence from skeletal remains discovered through archaeology make it clear that Goliath was 4 cubits and 1 span (approximately 6’9” to 6’11”). Another example comes from Psalm 22:16, a Psalm of David, which states: 1) MT “like a lion are my hands and my feet” (10th century AD), 2) LXX “they pierced my hands and my feet” (2nd century BC), 3) DSS “they pierced my hands and my feet” (2nd century BC). Again, the two most ancient texts agree, and in both cases it appears as if the Masoretic Text purposely changed the readings, but the way it was originally written has been preserved and can be determined.
For the text of the New Testament, the ancient manuscript copies are even closer to the time of the original writings and many more copies exist. At least 17 currently known New Testament manuscripts date to within 150 years of their original composition, with several being only decades from when one of the Apostles penned a Gospel or an Epistle. Papyrus 52, which contains part of John 18, dates to as early as 90 AD, which is probably less than 30 years after John originally wrote the Gospel.
In the New Testament, the variations do not present major theological or historical discrepancies, and radically different variants are obvious modifications or additions. In most cases, it is simply a spelling error, a minor grammatical change, or an accidental omission. Historical or geographical variations are very rare, but even those can be deciphered. For example, in manuscript copies of John 5:2, there is a spelling difference for the location of a pool in Jerusalem: 1) Bethesda (Majority/Byzantine, A, C, Josephus, Copper Scroll), 2) Bethsaida (P75, B), 3) Bethzatha (Sinaiticus). The answer from the vast majority of different ancient texts, Bethesda, is obvious. In Acts 12:25 the return of Paul to Jerusalem has a few variants: 1) To Jerusalem (Sinaiticus, B, H, L, P, Byzantine/Majority), 2) From Jerusalem (P74, A, D, Ψ, miniscules, etc.), 3) To Antioch (E, miniscules). In this case, the overwhelming ancient manuscript evidence and the context agree that “to Jerusalem” is the original reading. Again, the ancient manuscripts of the Bible (specifically the New Testament) demonstrate how the Biblical books have been preserved over the centuries, and that even 2000 years later we can be confident that we have the exact words as they were originally written.
Ancient Manuscripts of the Bible
Dr. Titus Kennedy is a field archaeologist working primarily with sites and materials related to the Bible. He works with ColdWater Media and Drive Thru History® to maintain historical accuracy throughout their scripts and locations. Many of the archaeology blog posts are based on his publications, including Unearthing the Bible, Excavating the Evidence for Jesus, and The Essential Archaeological Guide to Bible Lands.