Q. Hasn't the New Testament been changed since it has been copied and recopied throughout history?
A. A
common misconception is that the text of the Bible has not come down to us the
way in which it was originally written. Accusations abound of zealous monks
changing the biblical text throughout Church history. This issue is of the
utmost importance, since an altered text would do grave damage to the
credibility of the story.
As F. F. Bruce says, "The historical 'once-and-for-all-ness' of
Christianity which distinguishes it from those religious and philosophical
systems, which are not specially related to any particular time, makes the
reliability of the writings which purport to record this revelation a question
of first-rate importance." (The New Testimony Documents: Are They Reliable?
p.8).
Fortunately, the problem is not lack of evidence. There are three different
types of evidence that are to be used in evaluating the New Testament text.
These are the Greek manuscripts, the various versions in which the New Testament
is translated, and the writings of the Church fathers.
The New Testament was originally composed in the Greek language. There are
approximately 5,500 copies in existence that contain all or part of the New
Testament. Although we do not possess the originals, copies exist from a very
early date.
The New Testament was written from about A. D. 50 to A. D. 90. The earliest
fragment dates about A. D. 120, with about 50 other fragments dating within
150-200 years from the time of composition.
Two major manuscripts, Codex Vaticanus (A. D. 325) and Codex Sinaiticus (A. D.
350), a complete copy, date within 250 years of the time of composition. This
may seem like a long time span, but it is minimal compared to the most ancient
works.
The earliest copy of Caesar's The Gallic Wars dates 1,000 years after it was
written, and the first complete copy of the Odyssey by Homer dates 2,200 years
after it was written. When the interval between the writing of the New Testament
and earliest copies is compared to other ancient works, the New Testament proves
to be much closer to the time of the original.
The 5,500 copies are far and away the most we have of any ancient work. Many
ancient writings have been transmitted to us by only a handful of manuscripts (Catullus
- three copies, earliest one is 1,600 years after he wrote; Herodotus - eight
copies and 1,300 years).
Not only do the New Testament documents have more manuscript evidence and close
time interval between the writing and earliest copy, but they were also
translated into several other languages at an early date. Translation of a
document into another language was rare in the ancient world, so this is an
added plus for the New Testament.
The number of copies of the versions is in excess of 18,000, with possibly as
many as 25,000. This is further evidence that helps us establish the New
Testament text.
Even if we did not possess the 5,500 Greek manuscripts or the 18,000 copies of
the versions, the text of the New Testament could still be reproduced within 250
years from its composition. How? By the writings of early Christians. In
commentaries, letters, etc., these ancient writers quote the biblical text, thus
giving us another witness to the text of the New Testament.
John Burgon has catalogued more than 86,000 citations by the early Church
fathers who cite different parts of the New Testament. Thus we observe that
there is so much more evidence for the reliability of the New Testament text
than any other comparable writings in the ancient world.
F. F. Bruce makes the following observation: "The evidence for our New
Testament writings is ever so much greater than the evidence for many writings
of classical authors, the authenticity of which no one dreams of
questioning."
He also states, "And if the New Testament were a collection of secular
writings, their authenticity would generally be regarded beyond all doubt"
(The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable? p. 15).
Sir Frederic Kenyon, former director and principal librarian of the British
Museum, was one of the foremost experts on ancient manuscripts and their
authority. Shortly before his death, he wrote this concerning the New Testament: