An Introduction to the Greek New Testament, Produced at Tyndale House, Cambridge

by Dirk Jongkind

Is the New Testament text reliable?
What do we do with textual variants?
How do I use the Greek New Testament?

This short book, written as a companion to The Greek New Testament, Produced at Tyndale House, Cambridge, provides crucial information about the Tyndale House Edition in particular and the Greek New Testament in general.

Dirk Jongkind, one of the principal scholars behind this groundbreaking project, answers critical questions for understanding the biblical text so that you can have clarity and confidence as you engage with the New Testament in the original Greek.

Genres: New Testament, Theology, Faith, Linguistics, Christian, Christianity

128 pages, Paperback

Published May 31, 2019

About the author

Dirk Jongkind is probably best-known as editor of the Tyndale House Greek New Testament. However, before he ended up in the academy, Dirk worked in the horticultural sector (together with his wife Marion), growing tropical cut-flowers (Heliconia) in greenhouses in his native country, the Netherlands. He enjoyed this hands-on setting, yet decided to follow his life’s fascination with the history and text of the Bible. He completed a M.A. in Old Testament at Tyndale Theological Seminary (1999, Badhoevedorp, nr. Amsterdam), and moved to the United Kingdom for an M.Phil. in New Testament at Cambridge University, where he also completed a PhD in 2005. At this time he was employed for a brief project at the British Library as part of the preparation of the Codex Sinaiticus Digitisation project.

At Tyndale House Dirk does research in the transmission of the text of the New Testament which has resulted in the Tyndale House Edition of the Greek New Testament (2017). Besides he maintains an interest in lexical and grammatical studies. He is an Associate Editor of the Tyndale Bulletin and serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal for the Study of the New Testament. Working at Tyndale House gives unique opportunities to contribute to the practice and vision of theological education in its many shapes and forms.

He has taught in a wide variety of settings ranging from big conference rooms and University halls to the back rooms of small rural chapels and local village pubs. Dirk is a Fellow of St Edmund’s College and a Member of the Faculty of Divinity.

Without any claims of expertise, he likes to talk and think about how Christians can be good scholars and pursue knowledge and truth without compromising their commitment to faith.

Reviews

[Michael Beck · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introduction to the Tyndale House Greek NT, laying out why and how they made the text selection. This is also a good, basic intro to textual criticism.

[Shawn Paterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really great, short introduction to textual criticism and the Greek New Testament. Highly recommend.

[Josiah Richardson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first 3/4 of this book was really good and helpful. Jongkind gives even the novice a good run down of the in's and out's of how the Tyndale House approached their GNT. The two chapters on the Textus Receptus as well as the Byzantine manuscript tradition were superficial at best. I realize that this was not the main point of this short book, and it was a necessary addition to give a full picture of their approach. At the same time, the chapters felt like dropping a few grenades and then running away. Jongkind has fallen into the same trap that I have seen other Textual critics do concerning the TR and the Byz. - namely recounting the Erasmian myths around his translation, reducing the issue to providential preservation (as important as that may be), and not giving proper indication to the weakness of the Alexandrian tradition. He does well to note that not all TR guys are KJV only guys. But those of us who are TR preferred, or at the very least eclectic in our view of the text of Scripture, do not do so on the basis of providential preservation alone. In other words, we do no hold our view without good evidence to support it.

Again, these conversations get into the weeds when you are just writing an introduction to the GNT, but I thought it necessary to point out that a few jabs were made at the aforementioned views and they deserved some quick jabs back.

[Cole Shiflet · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provides helpful information into how Crossway’s Cambridge Tyndale House Greek New Testament was put together. As a student of the New Testament, it’s helpful to understand how the Greek text you’re reading has been put together. Far too often, Christians assume there is a singular uniform Greek manuscript out there that all of our Bibles are translated from. This book provides a helpful correction to that perspective by revealing the more complicated reality, while at the same time, instilling confidence in the reader of the authenticity and veracity of the text. This book is not for everyone. If I were not interested in textual criticism and particular interested in the THGNT, I would not have picked up this book. Though, for those who are students of the New Testament, perhaps undergraduate and graduate school Greek students, this would be a phenomenal introduction to an important text.

[E · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty straightforward: Crossway has published a unique version of the Greek NT, and this volume orients the reader to that Greek NT. It is an excellent idea to provide background explanation for the sorts of decisions made in a work like this. I wish English translations would publish similar work! Work is also helpful for its concise explanation for the rejection of the Textus Receptus and the Byzantine text type (the former being the basis for the KJV and its children).

No one should read this book unless they are interested in Crossway's new Greek NT. But everyone should be interested in Crossway's new Greek NT! It is high time that evangelical scholars forayed into the field of NT textual criticism at this level. It is my hope that the volume knocks the other competitors off their perch.

[John Majors · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting overview of textual criticism that is well communicated and accessible. I felt like there were many things left unaddressed that I would like to have seen, for instance they made no comment on why they felt this new Greek NT was needed instead of the two most popular current eclectic texts the UBS and the Nestle-Aland versions. I would have loved to see some specific comments on that. But I also understand that their goal was to keep this a short introduction and I'm sure they've commented on this other places as they indicated on their website.

[Salvador Blanco · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great introduction of the Tyndale edition of the Greek New Testament for anyone looking to read it. Insight into the decisions made for this edition are intriguing. It provided clear and concise answers concerning Textus Receptus, the Byzantine texts, and the errors of the manuscripts from a Biblical Theological perspective.

Definitely read this alongside reading the THGNT though it is not obligatory to read before.

[Mike Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot imagine a better introduction to the subject of textual criticism than this book. It culminates with a biblical-theological framework for the transmission of the text that was one of the most unique and insightful treatments I’ve ever read.

[Hiram · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative. Well done.

[Andrew Hageman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book very thoroughly studies the Greek New Testament and really digs into the textual variants. This book just further proves how reliable our Bible truly is.

[Scott W. Vincent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick and easy to understand introduction to issues of textual criticism and how they play out in the Tyndale House Greek New Testament.

[Jeffrey Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Properly this is a companion to the Tyndale Greek New Testament, and explains to the reader why that edition is the way it is and how to use it. However, this book is actually a very good stand alone introduction to the subject of new testament manuscripts and textual criticism. It is not overly scholarly and is a very approachable read even if you have only a superficial awareness of some of the issues discussed. The book is written at a popular level (though you might have to skim a few bits without a basic level of greek) and deals not only with the interesting (aka nerdy) facts about popular manuscripts, text types, and ancient scribal practices, but also with the very practical and theological concerns that many students of the bible have when they encounter "textual variants" for the first time. It covers a wide scope of issues, which makes it necessarily very brief on all of them.

[Samuel Kassing · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fun and informative read on textual transmission in the New Testament. The Tyndale House Greek NT décision making process were payed clearly and in a way that helped my understand the process that goes knot the GNT.

[Zach Hollifield · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent little introduction to the Greek NT. Only wish I had had it when I was studying Greek in undergrad as it helps clear up several questions one has when studying the Greek NT and even walks you through how to read an apparatus.

[J. Rutherford · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderfully concise introduction to the Greek New Testament in general, but specifically the decision making that went into the GNT produced at Tyndale House. The concise introduction to text criticism provided is invaluable.

[Matt Pitts · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sufficiently brief introduction not only the THGNT but also the GNT in general. A great place to start.

[Daniel Supimpa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brief but still sharp introduction, not only to the recently released Greek New Testament produced at Tyndale House, Cambridge, but also to what an evangelical approach to Textual Criticism is.

Jongkind gives an overview of NT manuscripts we have, how we know they were produced, and how to perform the art of defending a certain reading as the probable original—since the objective of the THGNT, among other critical editions, is of reconstructing as close as possible the original version of the NT writings. Thus, the author also defenda their position over against the choice for the Textus Receptus and the Majority or Byzantine Text. He ends his discussion with a short biblical-theological reasoning for the written character of divine revelation and the possibility of working in a critical edition as a confessional Christian—a short but important section, lacking in many introductions to textual criticism.

I was particularly struck to their option of putting the Pastoral Epistles before Paul—a common feature in some ancient manuscripts but not evidenced after the 7th century or so. I would have to think further about this choice and the questions stemming from it, in terms of the discipline of text criticism encountering the text as part of its influence as Christian Scripture (e.g. what point of history should determine the canonical order we use? If we push it backwards, should we put the undisputed Pauline letters before the Gospels?)
A second question mark in my mind had to do with the assumption that the Temple culture gave stability to the text of the OT, while the decentralization of authority in early Christianity produced a more fluid text. It is obvious that the problem of NT textual criticism is way more complex than in the OT, but it seems it doesn’t represent the nuances of the OT textual production (which seems to me way more complex than the production of the OT), and of the OT textual variants.

Still, it’s a very helpful entryway into the woods of textual criticism. As of now, if I had to choose one book for a “lay” person to understand the field, this one would be my call.

[Todd Bryant · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a short book (110 pages). However, it is a book any teacher of God's Word needs to read - especially church leaders. It explains the development of the Greek text we have available to us today. For a shorter introduction, I was quite pleased with the detail Jongkind took in explaining the differences between manuscript families and the development of those families.

When one finishes this book, he will be confident that God has enriched us with great access to Greek manuscripts of the New Testament. We simply have an embarrassment of riches today.

Pastors, you specifically must know a little bit about everything. This is a good starter book to textual criticism and how it works.

[Scott Ristau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent introduction to the Greek New Testament and textual criticism. A ton of good information packed into a small and accessible book. I would anticipate many NT Greek students being assigned this short introduction as a supplement to their Greek studies in order to understand the background and transmission of the text they are beginning to study.

If you’re looking for great detail, even at an introductory level, you should look elsewhere. If you’re looking for thoroughness and depth and yet are not interested in spending more than a couple hours on the subject, start here!

This is also helpful in understanding the differences and validity of multiple editions of the Greek NT (i.e. Nestle-Aland, UBS, and the new Greek NT Produced at Tyndale House, Cambridge).

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book explains the intent behind the production of the Tyndale House Greek New Testament as well as answering about how they went about creating the Greek text. They are also questions related to textual criticism and how certain text families were treated in the creation of the Tyndale House NT.

For those who have the Tyndale House NT this is a companion resource to help understand the methods used to produce the Greek NT. For those who do not have it, it is a nice resource to help those understand a bit more of textual criticism in relation to the Bible.

*I received a review copy of this title in exchange for my honest assessment.

[John Pawlik · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a great introduction to the Tyndale edition of the Greek New Testament! It was helpful in explaining their reasoning behind the choices they made, both textual and aesthetic. It also provided a helpful introduction to textual criticism, and provided theological insight into the questions surrounding the composition of God’s Word as a collection of individual manuscripts. Even if you do not know Greek, you would not be disappointed by this book, it would instill confidence in your reading of a (proper) English translation of the Bible. Let me know if you want me to mail my copy to you. It’s small!

[Filip Sylwestrowicz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dirk Jongkind's short book is a succinct, clear and very competent basic introduction to New Testament textual criticism. Although it is technically an introduction to the particular edition of the Greek New Testament (i.e. the one produced by Tyndale House, Cambridge under editorial oversight of Dirk Jongkind and Peter Williams), it discusses in an accessible manner issues pertaining generally to the text of the Greek New Testament. More on my blog: https://fsylwestrowicz.com/book-thoug...

[Niya Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5

It was a good read. A little heavy to read, but it was enlighten to read. It’s nice to be able to focus on one whole section of the Bible. I enjoyed it, however I wish I would have refreshed myself on the Greek alphabet.


If you are looking for a book that’s an introduction to the Greek New Testament. Go for it it: read this book. It can be a fast read, depending on what you want to get out it.

[William Dicks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Importance of the New Testament text

This very enjoyable introduction to textual criticism, and how the text of THGNT was derived can be enjoyed and understood by anyone, not just scholars. In fact, I get the distinct feeling that this book was written so that the "normal" Christian can also understand this process of getting to a reliable Greek text. I definitely recommend this book!

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Does what it sets out to do, IMO. Very specifically concerned with the Tyndale House Greek New Testament, but it was useful for my purpose: to get a brief overview of manuscript evidence of the New Testament and introduce the process of text criticism to a complete newbie. Only four stars because there are some areas where I think a few good charts could have communicated some of the data covered more effectively than prose.

[Luke Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jongkind does a great job of flying high enough to explain lots of important areas and issues in a short book, while also providing some of the great, on-the-ground details, opening our eyes to some of the gritty realities—and just plain interesting tidbits—that belong to the work of textual criticism. His chapter, “Why Not the Textus Receptus?” was particularly helpful, balanced, and fair, as Jongkind seems to be in most every issue he addresses in this book.

[Benjamin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is intended primarily as an introduction to the Tyndale House Greek New Testament. But it also works very well as a beginner's introduction to textual criticism. Even though I don't agree with all the positions taken here, I highly recommend the book for a good, clear, plain language introduction to the issues associated with New Testament textual criticism.

[J B · Rating 5 out of 5]

While this book is aimed at the reader/scholar using the THGNT, it is an excellent short introduction to textual criticism itself; maybe the best available for the layperson studying the field. The short chapter on the theological reasons textual variants exist in the first place is worth the cost of the book. I highly recommend it!

[Caleb Rolling · Rating 4 out of 5]

A helpful and brief introduction to the field of textual criticism that would be excellent for beginners; its brevity makes it especially suitable for beginners (made all the more evident when one compares Metzger and Ehrman’s “The Text of the New Testament”). It also is a helpful companion to the Tyndale House GK NT.

[Zac Iqbal · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short, to the point and clear introduction to the manuscript tradition and text criticism as a whole. Included, is also a bonus chapter on the theology of textual transmission, which I found very informative.

I can definitely recommend this book!