Editing British Codex

The manuscripts called the ''British Codex'' (also ''Codex Britannicus'') by Erasmus is most probably not [[Minuscule 61]] [[Codex Montfortianus]] as is popularly thought. Erasmus quoted it in his Annotaions:

:Ὅτι τρεῖς εἰσιν οἱ μαρτυροῦντες ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, πατήρ, λόγος καὶ πνεῦμα, καὶ οὗτοι οἱ τρεῖς ἕν εἰσιν. Καὶ τρεῖς εἰσιν μαρτυροῦντες ἐν τῇ γῇ, πνεῦμα, ὕδωρ, καὶ αἷμα. Εἰ τὴν μαρτυρίαν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, (Codex Britannicus)

Context:

:Veruntamen, ne quid dissimulem, repertus est apud Anglos græcus codex vnus, in quo habetur quod in vulgatis deest. Scriptum est enim hunc ad modum: Ὅτι τρεῖς εἰσιν οἱ μαρτυροῦντες ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, πατήρ, λόγος καὶ πνεῦμα, καὶ οὗτοι οἱ τρεῖς ἕν εἰσιν. Καὶ τρεῖς εἰσιν μαρτυροῦντες ἐν τῇ γῇ, πνεῦμα, ὕδωρ, καὶ αἷμα. Εἰ τὴν μαρτυρίαν τῶν ἀνθρώπων etc. Quanquam haud scio an casu factum sit, vt hoc loco non repetatur quod est in græcis nostris: καὶ οἱ τρεῖς εἰς τὸ ἕν εἰσιν. Ex hoc igitur codice Britannico reposuimus quod in nostris dicebatur deesse, ne cui sit ansa calumniandi.

Translated as:

:However—lest I should keep anything hidden—there has been found in England one single Greek manuscript in which occurs what is lacking in the commonly-accepted texts. It is written as follows: Ὅτι τρεῖς εἰσιν οἱ μαρτυροῦντες ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, πατήρ, λόγος καὶ πνεῦμα, καὶ οὗτοι οἱ τρεῖς ἕν εἰσιν. Καὶ τρεῖς εἰσιν μαρτυροῦντες ἐν τῇ γῇ, πνεῦμα, ὕδωρ, καὶ αἷμα. Εἰ τὴν μαρτυρίαν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, etc, although I am not sure if it is by accident that the phrase “and these three are unto one,” which is found in our Greek manuscripts, is not repeated at this point [i.e. in verse 8]. I therefore restored from this British codex what was said to be lacking in our editions, lest anyone should have any handle to blame me unjustly.[https://scholarlypublications.universiteitleiden.nl/access/item%3A2954624/view]

==Comparison with Montfortianus==
Some people in the past such as Thomas Burgess (1756 – 19 February 1837) have disputed the identification of Erasmus' "Codex Britannicus" as the same manuscript as the Codex Montfortianus, instead proposing that it is a now lost Greek manuscript.

:Ὅτι τρεῖς εἰσιν οἱ μαρτυροῦντες ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, πατήρ, λόγος καὶ πνεῦμα '''<u>----</u>''', καὶ οὗτοι οἱ τρεῖς ἕν εἰσιν. Καὶ τρεῖς εἰσιν '''<u>--</u>''' μαρτυροῦντες ἐν τῇ γῇ, πνεῦμα, ὕδωρ, καὶ αἷμα. Εἰ τὴν μαρτυρίαν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, (Codex Britannicus)

:ὁτϊ τρεῖς εἰσιν οἱ μαρτϋροῦντ·¨ ἐν τῶ <span style="text-decoration: overline">ουνω</span>, <span style="text-decoration: overline">πηρ</span>, λογος, καί <span style="text-decoration: overline">πνα</span> '''<u>αγῖον</u>''', καί οὗτοι οἱ τρεῖς εν εισϊ. καί τρεῖς εἰσιν '''<u>οἱ</u>''' μαρτϋροῦντ·¨ ἐν τῃ γῃ, <span style="text-decoration: overline">πνα</span>, ὑδωρ, καί αιμα. (Codex Montfortianus)[https://digitalcollections.tcd.ie/concern/works/000004722?locale=en]

Codex Montfortianus and Codex Britannicus compared:
{|border=1 cellpadding=5 style="text-align:left; border-collapse: collapse;
|-
!|Montfortianus
!|Britannicus
|-
|valign=top align=left|ὁτϊ
|valign=top align=left|Ὅτι
|-
|valign=top align=left|τρεῖς
|valign=top align=left|τρεῖς
|-
|valign=top align=left|εἰσιν
|valign=top align=left|εἰσιν
|-
|valign=top align=left|οἱ
|valign=top align=left|οἱ
|-
|valign=top align=left|μαρτϋροῦντ·¨
|valign=top align=left|μαρτυροῦντες
|-
|valign=top align=left|ἐν
|valign=top align=left|ἐν
|-
|valign=top align=left|τῶ
|valign=top align=left|τῷ
|-
|valign=top align=left|<span style="text-decoration: overline">ουνω</span>,
|valign=top align=left|οὐρανῷ,
|-
|valign=top align=left|<span style="text-decoration: overline">πηρ</span>
|valign=top align=left|πατήρ
|-
|valign=top align=left|λογος,
|valign=top align=left|λόγος
|-
|valign=top align=left|καί
|valign=top align=left|καὶ
|-
|valign=top align=left|<span style="text-decoration: overline">πνα</span>
|valign=top align=left|πνεῦμα,
|-
|valign=top align=left|αγῖον,
|valign=top align=left|
|-
|valign=top align=left|καί
|valign=top align=left|καὶ
|-
|valign=top align=left|οὗτοι
|valign=top align=left|οὗτοι
|-
|valign=top align=left|οἱ
|valign=top align=left|οἱ
|-
|valign=top align=left|τρεῖς
|valign=top align=left|τρεῖς
|-
|valign=top align=left|εν
|valign=top align=left|ἕν
|-
|valign=top align=left|εισϊ.
|valign=top align=left|εἰσιν.
|-
|valign=top align=left|καί 
|valign=top align=left|Καὶ 
|-
|valign=top align=left|τρεῖς 
|valign=top align=left|τρεῖς
|-
|valign=top align=left|εἰσιν
|valign=top align=left|εἰσιν 
|-
|valign=top align=left|οἱ 
|valign=top align=left| 
|-
|valign=top align=left|μαρτϋροῦντ·¨
|valign=top align=left|μαρτυροῦντες 
|-
|valign=top align=left|ἐν
|valign=top align=left|ἐν 
|-
|valign=top align=left|τῃ
|valign=top align=left|τῇ 
|-
|valign=top align=left|γῃ,
|valign=top align=left|γῇ,
|-
|valign=top align=left|<span style="text-decoration: overline">πνα</span>,
|valign=top align=left|πνεῦμα,
|-
|valign=top align=left|ὑδωρ,
|valign=top align=left|ὕδωρ,
|-
|valign=top align=left|καί
|valign=top align=left|καὶ
|-
|valign=top align=left|αιμα.
|valign=top align=left|αἷμα.
|-
|valign=top align=left|εἰ
|valign=top align=left|Εἰ
|-
|valign=top align=left|τὴν
|valign=top align=left|τὴν
|-
|valign=top align=left|μαρτϋρίαν
|valign=top align=left|μαρτυρίαν
|-
|valign=top align=left|τῶν
|valign=top align=left|τῶν
|-
|valign=top align=left|<span style="text-decoration: overline">ἀνων</span>
|valign=top align=left|ἀνθρώπων,
|-
|}

==See also==

* [[1 John 5:7]]
* [[1 John 5:8]]
* [[Johannine Comma]]
* [[Minuscule 61]] 
* [[Codex Montfortianus]]

==External links==

* [https://confessionalbibliology.com/2016/06/15/nt-manuscripts-made-to-order-erasmus-and-1-jn57/ NT Manuscripts Made to Order (Erasmus and I Jn5.7)]
* [https://confessionalbibliology.com/2016/06/17/follow-up-codex-montfortianus-erasmus-and-1-john-57/ Follow Up: Codex Montfortianus, Erasmus, and 1 John 5:7]

{{Article Index Johannine Comma}}
{{Donate}}