ShopDreamUp AI ArtDreamUp
Deviation Actions
Literature Text
Revelations 22:18-19 and the Comma Johanneum: Oops!
Revelations 22:18-19 (KJV)
18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
An alarmingly common misperception exists concerning the above passage. Due to Revelations’ location at the end of the Bible, people mistake this verse to mean that not only has the Bible been finished but that nothing has happened to it in the years since it was compiled. What these people fail to realize, however, is that the Bible has indeed been added to in a very definite fashion - The Comma Johanneum.
1 John 5:7-8 (KJV)
7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
The underlined portion of the passage above does not appear in any manuscript that dates before the 16th century [“Comma Johanneum”]. At this point, one may be wondering how such a gross deviation from the original texts could have been made. To understand how the Comma came into existance, one needs to look at the source for the Comma - the Textus Receptus.
The Textus Receptus (Latin for “received text”) was compiled in 1516 by Catholic scholar Desiderius Erasmus for his attempt at a Latin translation of the Bible. Erasmus’ first version was done in a hurry, as he was attempting to finish ahead of an English monk with similar plans. As a result of his haste, the first edition had a number of errors. To make matters worse, he only had a limited number of manuscripts available; a number of modern scholars have concluded that many of these manuscripts were actually of dubious quality. The nature of his manuscripts forced him to back-translate several portions of the Vulgate (including the last few verses of Revelations, it should be noted); Erasmus also found himself having to fabricate items. This first edition only saw a use as the basis for the second edition [“Textus Receptus”].
Eventually, Erasmus made the decision to produce a third edition; this edition would be published in 1522. The Catholic Church had been applying pressure for a more Trinitarian viewpoint in the Textus Receptus, so in this edition Erasmus introduced what is now known as the Comma Johanneum. It was this edition that was used by the KJV translators [“Textus Receptus”]. It should be noted that Erasmus had attempted to resist efforts to have the Comma included, on the grounds that he couldn’t find a single Greek manuscript that included it. When one was produced, he had no choice but to include it. Although his annotations to the edition featured his defense against charges of indolence, he also noted that he “had taken care to find whatever manuscripts he could for the production of his Greek New Testament” [Wallace].
Research eventually determined that only four Greek manuscripts actually contained the Comma; none of them date before the 11th century, and all of the instaces of the passage appear to have come from a late edition of the Latin Vulgate. None of the Greek Fathers made use of the Comma, and the Comma is absent from the earliest texts that the Greek had been translated into; in fact, the earliest known instance of the Comma is in a 4th century piece entitled Liber Apologeticus, which is considered a likely source for the Comma’s useage by the Latin Fathers [Jackson]. Ironically, the author of the Liber Apologeticus was quite possibly either the heretic Priscillian or one of his followers [Hushbeck], something that would most likely make the Biblical Inerrists cringe if they knew about it. Isaac Newton would later trace the origin of the Comma to a Cardinal Ximenes; in 1515, Ximenes inserted what was originally a marginal note into the actual text of a Greek manuscript. Newton’s findings were posthumously published in 1754 as part of a larger dissertation dealing with both the Comma and a passage in 1 Timothy that was also in dispute due to a perceived textual insertion [“An Historical Account”]. The Catholic Church eventually admitted that the incident represented a move that was unwise on their part [“Textus Receptus”]. In 1927, Pope Pius XI officially declared that the Comma was open for dispute [“Comma Johanneum”].
Any person wishing to hold onto their interpretation of Revelations 22:18-19 as applying to the whole Bible now has a rather large dilemma to consider: how does one take the perfection implied with that interpretation and mesh it with a passage that was proven to have been added by the hand of humans? To quote Daniel B. Wallace:
“Unfortunately, for many, the Comma and other similar passages have become such emotional baggage that is dragged around whenever the Bible is read that a knee-jerk reaction and ad hominem argumentation becomes the first and only way that they can process this issue. Sadly, neither empirical evidence nor reason can dissuade them from their views. The irony is that their very clinging to tradition at all costs (namely, of an outmoded translation which, though a literary monument in its day, is now like a Model T on the Autobahn) emulates Roman Catholicism in its regard for tradition. If the King James translators knew that this would be the result nearly four hundred years after the completion of their work, they’d be writhing in their graves.” [Wallace]
Additionally, that this passage - which has been shown to be of dubious origin - made it past not only Erasmus himself but also the translators of the King James Version raises doubts concerning whether or not they were as inspired as the KJV - Only crowd would like to believe that they were [Hushbeck]. At best, the Comma represents a mere scribal gloss - an accidental instance caused by a careless scribe inserting marginal notes into the text of a document. At worst, we have an instance of deliberate textual manipulation in order to meet a doctrinal need. In either case, the Comma was the work of human hands and not the work of God; as such, everyone involved in the process should have come under the condemnation espoused in Revelations had 22:18-19 applied to the entire Bible. However, Erasmus himself would actually live in relative peace amid the turmoil of the Protestant Reformation for another 13 years, where he died among friends in Basel, Switzerland in 1835 [Erasmus]; anyone attempting to explain his survival must then have to explain why God would be partial to the man who played a major part in the Comma’s acceptance. Either that, or they must explain how God could not have been paying attention for so long.
Bibliography:
“Comma Johanneum.” Wikipeida.org en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comma_... . 13 January 2006
“Textus Receptus.” Wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Textus... . 13 January 2006
“An Historical Account of Two Notable Corruptions of Scripture.” Wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_His... . 13 January 2006
Wallace, Daniel B. “The Textual Problem in 1 John 5:7-8” Bible.org www.bible.org/page.asp?page_... . 14 January 2006
Jackson, Wayne. “Defending the Faith With a Broken Sword - Part 3.” Christian Courier. 31 October 2003. www.christiancourier.com/arc... 16 January 2006.
Hushbeck, Elgin L, Jr. “Which Bible is the Word of God?” www.consider.org/library/whi... 16 January 2006.
“Erasmus” Wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erasmus 17 January 2006.
Revelations 22:18-19 (KJV)
18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
An alarmingly common misperception exists concerning the above passage. Due to Revelations’ location at the end of the Bible, people mistake this verse to mean that not only has the Bible been finished but that nothing has happened to it in the years since it was compiled. What these people fail to realize, however, is that the Bible has indeed been added to in a very definite fashion - The Comma Johanneum.
1 John 5:7-8 (KJV)
7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
The underlined portion of the passage above does not appear in any manuscript that dates before the 16th century [“Comma Johanneum”]. At this point, one may be wondering how such a gross deviation from the original texts could have been made. To understand how the Comma came into existance, one needs to look at the source for the Comma - the Textus Receptus.
The Textus Receptus (Latin for “received text”) was compiled in 1516 by Catholic scholar Desiderius Erasmus for his attempt at a Latin translation of the Bible. Erasmus’ first version was done in a hurry, as he was attempting to finish ahead of an English monk with similar plans. As a result of his haste, the first edition had a number of errors. To make matters worse, he only had a limited number of manuscripts available; a number of modern scholars have concluded that many of these manuscripts were actually of dubious quality. The nature of his manuscripts forced him to back-translate several portions of the Vulgate (including the last few verses of Revelations, it should be noted); Erasmus also found himself having to fabricate items. This first edition only saw a use as the basis for the second edition [“Textus Receptus”].
Eventually, Erasmus made the decision to produce a third edition; this edition would be published in 1522. The Catholic Church had been applying pressure for a more Trinitarian viewpoint in the Textus Receptus, so in this edition Erasmus introduced what is now known as the Comma Johanneum. It was this edition that was used by the KJV translators [“Textus Receptus”]. It should be noted that Erasmus had attempted to resist efforts to have the Comma included, on the grounds that he couldn’t find a single Greek manuscript that included it. When one was produced, he had no choice but to include it. Although his annotations to the edition featured his defense against charges of indolence, he also noted that he “had taken care to find whatever manuscripts he could for the production of his Greek New Testament” [Wallace].
Research eventually determined that only four Greek manuscripts actually contained the Comma; none of them date before the 11th century, and all of the instaces of the passage appear to have come from a late edition of the Latin Vulgate. None of the Greek Fathers made use of the Comma, and the Comma is absent from the earliest texts that the Greek had been translated into; in fact, the earliest known instance of the Comma is in a 4th century piece entitled Liber Apologeticus, which is considered a likely source for the Comma’s useage by the Latin Fathers [Jackson]. Ironically, the author of the Liber Apologeticus was quite possibly either the heretic Priscillian or one of his followers [Hushbeck], something that would most likely make the Biblical Inerrists cringe if they knew about it. Isaac Newton would later trace the origin of the Comma to a Cardinal Ximenes; in 1515, Ximenes inserted what was originally a marginal note into the actual text of a Greek manuscript. Newton’s findings were posthumously published in 1754 as part of a larger dissertation dealing with both the Comma and a passage in 1 Timothy that was also in dispute due to a perceived textual insertion [“An Historical Account”]. The Catholic Church eventually admitted that the incident represented a move that was unwise on their part [“Textus Receptus”]. In 1927, Pope Pius XI officially declared that the Comma was open for dispute [“Comma Johanneum”].
Any person wishing to hold onto their interpretation of Revelations 22:18-19 as applying to the whole Bible now has a rather large dilemma to consider: how does one take the perfection implied with that interpretation and mesh it with a passage that was proven to have been added by the hand of humans? To quote Daniel B. Wallace:
“Unfortunately, for many, the Comma and other similar passages have become such emotional baggage that is dragged around whenever the Bible is read that a knee-jerk reaction and ad hominem argumentation becomes the first and only way that they can process this issue. Sadly, neither empirical evidence nor reason can dissuade them from their views. The irony is that their very clinging to tradition at all costs (namely, of an outmoded translation which, though a literary monument in its day, is now like a Model T on the Autobahn) emulates Roman Catholicism in its regard for tradition. If the King James translators knew that this would be the result nearly four hundred years after the completion of their work, they’d be writhing in their graves.” [Wallace]
Additionally, that this passage - which has been shown to be of dubious origin - made it past not only Erasmus himself but also the translators of the King James Version raises doubts concerning whether or not they were as inspired as the KJV - Only crowd would like to believe that they were [Hushbeck]. At best, the Comma represents a mere scribal gloss - an accidental instance caused by a careless scribe inserting marginal notes into the text of a document. At worst, we have an instance of deliberate textual manipulation in order to meet a doctrinal need. In either case, the Comma was the work of human hands and not the work of God; as such, everyone involved in the process should have come under the condemnation espoused in Revelations had 22:18-19 applied to the entire Bible. However, Erasmus himself would actually live in relative peace amid the turmoil of the Protestant Reformation for another 13 years, where he died among friends in Basel, Switzerland in 1835 [Erasmus]; anyone attempting to explain his survival must then have to explain why God would be partial to the man who played a major part in the Comma’s acceptance. Either that, or they must explain how God could not have been paying attention for so long.
Bibliography:
“Comma Johanneum.” Wikipeida.org en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comma_... . 13 January 2006
“Textus Receptus.” Wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Textus... . 13 January 2006
“An Historical Account of Two Notable Corruptions of Scripture.” Wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_His... . 13 January 2006
Wallace, Daniel B. “The Textual Problem in 1 John 5:7-8” Bible.org www.bible.org/page.asp?page_... . 14 January 2006
Jackson, Wayne. “Defending the Faith With a Broken Sword - Part 3.” Christian Courier. 31 October 2003. www.christiancourier.com/arc... 16 January 2006.
Hushbeck, Elgin L, Jr. “Which Bible is the Word of God?” www.consider.org/library/whi... 16 January 2006.
“Erasmus” Wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erasmus 17 January 2006.
Another step in my process of getting all of my theological and apologetical articles hosted for easier access and usage.
This piece was written for an Intro to New Testament class I took at college. I was wanting to see how non-Mormon Christians interpreted the Bible, and this class was part of my effort to do so.
This piece was written for an Intro to New Testament class I took at college. I was wanting to see how non-Mormon Christians interpreted the Bible, and this class was part of my effort to do so.
Comments20
Join the community to add your comment. Already a deviant? Log In
on this one you clearly site in comments your reason for writing this originally. that lets us know not to read it as doctrine but as a school assignment with professors as the intended audiance. this is helpful.
I found this interesting for what it is although I think the best arguement against revelation saying the bible is not to be added to is that the bible did not exist at the time Revelations was written. THe BIble was cannonized later, placing this book at the end. so if revelations was saying nothing should be added to revelation, the cannonization of the Bible could be considered adding something to the book of revelation in violation of the intention of "do not add anything"
I found this interesting for what it is although I think the best arguement against revelation saying the bible is not to be added to is that the bible did not exist at the time Revelations was written. THe BIble was cannonized later, placing this book at the end. so if revelations was saying nothing should be added to revelation, the cannonization of the Bible could be considered adding something to the book of revelation in violation of the intention of "do not add anything"