Bible 101

Lesson 1: Where do the Scriptures we know as “The Bible” come from ?

Surviving Manuscripts

So far, we have learned that the oldest methods of writing involved the use of papyrus. We have also learned, that papyrus, just like any other plant material, disintegrates more quickly than other materials. For this reason, in order to sustain the various manuscripts, the manuscript writers copied the content of an old piece of papyrus onto a new one, and so forth, until finally more durable materials, such as parchment or vellum, became available.

There are a number of fragments of original manuscripts, as well as manuscripts preserved in their entirety, which survived the ages. The consistent repetition of the scriptures in various codices, as well as the sum of the surviving manuscripts itself, make a very persuasive case for the completeness of our modern Bible. The following is an abridged list of them:

• The Codex Vaticanus, or Codex B, dated 350 anno Domini (AD). It contains the entire NT, except Hebrews 9:13-end, I and II Timothy, Titus and Revelations. Further, it contains all of the OT, but in Greek, except the first few chapters of Genesis and several Psalms. (4)
• The Bodmer Papyri, dated ca 220 AD, contains a manuscript of Luke and John. (5)
• The Cairo Codex (Codex Cairensis), dated 895 anno Domini (AD), containing the former and latter prophets. (6)
• The Leningrad Codex of the Prophets, dated 916 AD, containing Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and the twelve minor prophets.
• The Leningrad Codex (Codex Babylonicus Petropalitanus), dated 1008 AD, representing the oldest known Hebrew copy of the OT in its entirety. (7)

For a further study on all of the available manuscripts in existence today, as well as their locations, please take note of the Recommended Books Section that is part of this course. The student wishing to study this subject more deeply, will find these books a treasure trove of information.

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