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Encountering the Manuscripts: An Introduction to New Testament Paleography & Textual Criticism
“[Encountering the Manuscripts] focuses on the most significant New Testament manuscripts from the perspective of paleography and textual criticism. Paleography pertains to the dating of the manuscripts, as well as to the calligraphic features of the manuscripts themselves. Each manuscript has a story to tell; each manuscript gives us a window into the transmission of the New Testament text in the earliest centuries. Textual criticism pertains to the critical evaluation of the trustworthiness of the text of each manuscript with respect to recovering the original wording of the Greek New Testament. This volume merges the two areas of study by looking at both paleography and textual criticism as we encounter the New Testament manuscripts.”
432 pages, Hardcover
First published November 15, 2005
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About the author
Philip W. Comfort
105 books10 followersPhilip W. Comfort, Ph.D., has studied English literature, Greek, and New Testament at the Ohio State University and the University of South Africa. He has taught these classes at a number of colleges, including Wheaton College, Trinity Episcopal Seminary, Columbia International University, and Coastal Carolina University. He is currently senior editor of Bible reference at Tyndale and served as New Testament editor for the New Living Translation. He has contributed a number of books to the Tyndale collection, both as author and editor. Among these are The New Greek-English Interlinear New Testament, The Origin of the Bible, The Tyndale Bible Dictionary, Essential Guide to Bible Versions, The Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts (with D. Barrett), and Who's Who in Christian History�all of which are currently available at Tyndale.
Philip lives in Pawleys Island, South Carolina, with his wife, Georgia. His three children (Jeremy, John, and Peter) live nearby, as do his grandchildren. He enjoys the ocean, soccer, and writing poetry.
Philip lives in Pawleys Island, South Carolina, with his wife, Georgia. His three children (Jeremy, John, and Peter) live nearby, as do his grandchildren. He enjoys the ocean, soccer, and writing poetry.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 19, 2015
Philip W. Comfort is senior editor of Bible reference at Tyndale House Publishers and a noted scholar in the field of biblical studies and textual criticism. Comfort has a Ph.D. in Theology from Fairfax University and a second doctorate degree earned under noted textual critic Jacobus H. Petzer from the University of South Africa. Comfort has taught at several academic institutions, including Wheaton College, Trinity Episcopal Seminary, Columbia International University, and Coastal Carolina University. He is author or co-author of numerous books, including The Origins of the Bible, The Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts, New Testament Text and Translation Commentary (Tyndale, 2008), and the subject of the current review, Encountering the Manuscripts: An Introduction to New Testament Paleography & Textual Criticism.
Encountering the Manuscripts is the effort of several years of detailed examination of every early New Testament manuscript prior to AD 300 (viii). For Comfort, the result of this work has led to the publication of The Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts (with David Barrett), New Testament Text and Translation Commentary, and Encountering the Manuscripts. The first volume represents a joint effort to reconstruct the earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts. The second volume represents Comfort’s longstanding desire to aid the overall conversation around the relationship between textual criticism and English translations of the Bible. This third volume focuses more narrowly on the most significant New Testament manuscripts from the vantage point of paleography and textual criticism.
According to Comfort, Encountering the Manuscripts attempts: (1) to explore scribal participation in the production of the earliest New Testament writings; (2) to provide an annotated list of all significant Greek manuscripts and early versions; (3) to assign dates for the earliest New Testament manuscripts; (4) to examine the use of the nomina sacra in the early New Testament manuscripts; (5) to present the history of textual variation in the early centuries of the Christian church; (6) to explore various methods of recovering the original wording of the Greek New Testament and assess the New Testament manuscripts as to their textual groupings and their influence on New Testament textual criticism; and (7) to offer concrete examples for the praxis of textual criticism, and in so doing to identify how the papyri influenced the text of the Greek New Testament (viii).
The field of New Testament textual criticism is full of complexities and technical nuances. This is evident by the sheer number of introductory material being produced and even more evident when the bulk of that introductory material reads more like a dissertation than an introduction. While Encountering the Manuscripts isn’t going to diverge very far from that current trend, Comfort does an excellent job guiding the reader through the complex issues in such a way to bring about an understanding of the material. In fact, I would say with confidence that he does this much better than most introductions that I have encountered. Still, the reader should be prepared to undergo and partake in a journey through a fairly complex conversation. The journey may be difficult, but the destination is more than desirable.
There are a number of excellent sections in this book that I found to be particularly helpful. First, the sections that address the topic of paleography (or the dating) of the New Testament Manuscripts are sure to be received as a highpoint for many readers. Comfort does an excellent job explaining the process and procedure that accompanies the task of paleography. Some readers may find his ascribed dates contestable, but Comfort provides ample explanation to support his conclusions. Second, the discussion that surrounds the nomina sacra (sacred name) in the New Testament manuscripts is indispensable and worth the price of the book alone. Lastly, the inclusion of a chapter devoted entirely to the praxis of New Testament textual criticism accommodates a much needed sense of practical application. This allows the reader to experience some practical benefit from the long journey in which they just embarked on.
Encountering the Manuscripts: An Introduction to New Testament Paleography & Textual Criticism by Philip W. Comfort will inspire readers to engage the New Testament text through cultivating a closer sense of interaction and familiarity with the manuscripts themselves. It is from this realization that the reader is able to better understand and utilize the tools of textual criticism. From the careful and comprehensive explanations provided throughout the book, to the visible firsthand familiarity with the manuscripts themselves, Comfort has provided an excellent introduction to the field. I think readers of all backgrounds and interests will find great benefit in this book. It is technical but readable, intricate but informative. If you are a student of the New Testament, a pastor, or a teacher, then I would recommend that you prepare room for this book to find a new home on your bookshelf—sooner rather than later.
I received a review copy of this book in exchange for and honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
Encountering the Manuscripts is the effort of several years of detailed examination of every early New Testament manuscript prior to AD 300 (viii). For Comfort, the result of this work has led to the publication of The Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts (with David Barrett), New Testament Text and Translation Commentary, and Encountering the Manuscripts. The first volume represents a joint effort to reconstruct the earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts. The second volume represents Comfort’s longstanding desire to aid the overall conversation around the relationship between textual criticism and English translations of the Bible. This third volume focuses more narrowly on the most significant New Testament manuscripts from the vantage point of paleography and textual criticism.
According to Comfort, Encountering the Manuscripts attempts: (1) to explore scribal participation in the production of the earliest New Testament writings; (2) to provide an annotated list of all significant Greek manuscripts and early versions; (3) to assign dates for the earliest New Testament manuscripts; (4) to examine the use of the nomina sacra in the early New Testament manuscripts; (5) to present the history of textual variation in the early centuries of the Christian church; (6) to explore various methods of recovering the original wording of the Greek New Testament and assess the New Testament manuscripts as to their textual groupings and their influence on New Testament textual criticism; and (7) to offer concrete examples for the praxis of textual criticism, and in so doing to identify how the papyri influenced the text of the Greek New Testament (viii).
The field of New Testament textual criticism is full of complexities and technical nuances. This is evident by the sheer number of introductory material being produced and even more evident when the bulk of that introductory material reads more like a dissertation than an introduction. While Encountering the Manuscripts isn’t going to diverge very far from that current trend, Comfort does an excellent job guiding the reader through the complex issues in such a way to bring about an understanding of the material. In fact, I would say with confidence that he does this much better than most introductions that I have encountered. Still, the reader should be prepared to undergo and partake in a journey through a fairly complex conversation. The journey may be difficult, but the destination is more than desirable.
There are a number of excellent sections in this book that I found to be particularly helpful. First, the sections that address the topic of paleography (or the dating) of the New Testament Manuscripts are sure to be received as a highpoint for many readers. Comfort does an excellent job explaining the process and procedure that accompanies the task of paleography. Some readers may find his ascribed dates contestable, but Comfort provides ample explanation to support his conclusions. Second, the discussion that surrounds the nomina sacra (sacred name) in the New Testament manuscripts is indispensable and worth the price of the book alone. Lastly, the inclusion of a chapter devoted entirely to the praxis of New Testament textual criticism accommodates a much needed sense of practical application. This allows the reader to experience some practical benefit from the long journey in which they just embarked on.
Encountering the Manuscripts: An Introduction to New Testament Paleography & Textual Criticism by Philip W. Comfort will inspire readers to engage the New Testament text through cultivating a closer sense of interaction and familiarity with the manuscripts themselves. It is from this realization that the reader is able to better understand and utilize the tools of textual criticism. From the careful and comprehensive explanations provided throughout the book, to the visible firsthand familiarity with the manuscripts themselves, Comfort has provided an excellent introduction to the field. I think readers of all backgrounds and interests will find great benefit in this book. It is technical but readable, intricate but informative. If you are a student of the New Testament, a pastor, or a teacher, then I would recommend that you prepare room for this book to find a new home on your bookshelf—sooner rather than later.
I received a review copy of this book in exchange for and honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
October 30, 2020
Encountering The Manuscripts
A good book to pair with this reading might be - The P52 Project, Edward D. Andrews
A fantastic and thorough introductory text into the World of paleography and textual criticism of the Greek New Testament manuscripts. I would recommend Comfort's & Barrett's two-volume book, The Text Of The Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts Papyri 1-72 & 75-139, as supplementary texts providing further information and illustrations that are sometimes cited inside this book.
Philip Comfort's efforts allow for the beginner to make that step into understanding a paleographer's mind when dating these manuscripts. The jargon is explained with clarity, pointing towards some of the manuscripts that exhibit features mentioned so that the reader can participate in a small-form of paleography by hunting and matching them up to the jargon. Such examples are understanding the differences and similarities between the Roman Uncial, Biblical Uncial; Decorated Rounded, and Severe styles. Part of the book discusses the ancient publication process, from oral proclamation to written documentation, and when it may be that the codex was adopted by Christians - Comfort examines Paul's texts to show that the membranae he asks Timothy to bring may very well have been the ancient wax tablets, much like our modern notebook even including the stylus, that could suggest it was very early on and perhaps mid-first Century onwards. He explains the technical uses of the terms autographs, archetypes, the exemplar and the originals, which may have inadvertently left an impression on some that Philip Comfort does not believe in the infallibility of Scripture, whereas that is not true. He merely presents the case that the originals could have gone through draft-versions as autographs before publication, no more or less than what we do today. What was therefore published in its final form is infallible. Philip Comfort brings the topic up again in Chapter three, about the critical editions of the Greek New Testament by the Nestle-Aland and United Bible Societies are not, and should not be, taken as infallible.
A good book to pair with this reading might be - The P52 Project, Edward D. Andrews
A fantastic and thorough introductory text into the World of paleography and textual criticism of the Greek New Testament manuscripts. I would recommend Comfort's & Barrett's two-volume book, The Text Of The Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts Papyri 1-72 & 75-139, as supplementary texts providing further information and illustrations that are sometimes cited inside this book.
Philip Comfort's efforts allow for the beginner to make that step into understanding a paleographer's mind when dating these manuscripts. The jargon is explained with clarity, pointing towards some of the manuscripts that exhibit features mentioned so that the reader can participate in a small-form of paleography by hunting and matching them up to the jargon. Such examples are understanding the differences and similarities between the Roman Uncial, Biblical Uncial; Decorated Rounded, and Severe styles. Part of the book discusses the ancient publication process, from oral proclamation to written documentation, and when it may be that the codex was adopted by Christians - Comfort examines Paul's texts to show that the membranae he asks Timothy to bring may very well have been the ancient wax tablets, much like our modern notebook even including the stylus, that could suggest it was very early on and perhaps mid-first Century onwards. He explains the technical uses of the terms autographs, archetypes, the exemplar and the originals, which may have inadvertently left an impression on some that Philip Comfort does not believe in the infallibility of Scripture, whereas that is not true. He merely presents the case that the originals could have gone through draft-versions as autographs before publication, no more or less than what we do today. What was therefore published in its final form is infallible. Philip Comfort brings the topic up again in Chapter three, about the critical editions of the Greek New Testament by the Nestle-Aland and United Bible Societies are not, and should not be, taken as infallible.
September 16, 2017
Excellent, in-depth book dealing with New Testament manuscripts. This book is a "must read" for anyone with a serious interest in the early manuscripts.
December 18, 2017
In chapter 1 the author indicates in several places that he denies the inerrancy of the original autographs. This makes it difficult to take seriously anything else he says.
January 18, 2016
This is a scholarly work. In fact, it might even be a textbook. I learned so much about the early Christian texts and came away with a great confidence in the scriptures as we have them today. My rating of a 5 has to do with the material itself and the author's expertise in his subject.
May 16, 2016
Fantastic book. So informative. Really enjoyed reading it.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews