List of Figures and Tables
Foreword by Daniel B. Wallace
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations
1. Introduction (Peter J. Gurry and Elijah Hixson)
2. Myths about Autographs: What They Were and How Long They May
Have Survived (Timothy N. Mitchell)
3. Math Myths: How Many Manuscripts We Have and Why More Isn't
Always Better (Jacob W. Peterson)
4. Myths about Classical Literature: Responsibly Comparing the New
Testament to Ancient Works (James B. Prothro)
5. Dating Myths, Part One: How We Determine the Ages of Manuscripts
(Elijah Hixson)
6. Dating Myths, Part Two: How Later Manuscripts Can Be Better
Manuscripts (Gregory R. Lanier)
7. Myths About Copyists: The Scribes Who Copied Our Earliest
Manuscripts (Zachary J. Cole)
8. Myths About Copying: The Mistakes and Corrections Scribes Made
(Peter Malik)
9. Myths About Transmission: The Text of Philemon from Beginning to
End (S. Matthew Solomon)
10. Myths About Variants: Why Most Variants Are Insignificant and
Why Some Can't Be Ignored (Peter J. Gurry)
11. Myths About Orthodox Corruption: Were Scribes Influenced by
Theology, and How Can We Tell? (Robert D. Marcello)
12. Myths About Patristics: What the Church Fathers Thought About
Textual Variation (Andrew Blaski)
13. Myths About Canon: What the Codex Can and Can't Tell Us (John
D. Meade)
14. Myths About Early Translations: Their Number, Importance, and
Limitations (Jeremiah Coogan)
15. Myths About Modern Translations: Variants, Verdicts, and
Versions (Edgar Battad Ebojo)
Bibliography
List of Contributors
Image Credits
Name Index
Subject Index
Scripture Index
Ancient Writings Index
Manuscript Index
Peter J. Gurry (PhD, University of Cambridge) is assistant professor of New Testament and codirector of the Text and Canon Institute at Phoenix Seminary. His books include A New Approach to Textual Criticism (with Tommy Wasserman) and A Critical Examination of the Coherence-Based Genealogical Method in the New Testament.
Elijah Hixson (PhD, University of Edinburgh) is junior research associate in New Testament Text and Language at Tyndale House, Cambridge, and author of Scribal Habits in Sixth-Century Greek Purple Codices.
"The authors in this book offer a necessary corrective to decades
of overly exuberant apologetic arguments—arguments that have
actually hurt the Christian faith. The writers are refreshingly
honest, and they do not pull their punches. They observe poignantly
that apologetic works on the reliability of the New Testament text
have been drifting away from a proper, well-researched, accurately
documented scholarship that is anchored to actual data. Apologists
have had a tendency to regurgitate other apologetic works, which in
turn are based on other apologetic works. Meanwhile, the
scholarship that is supposedly behind the popular declarations in
many an evangelical trade book is out-of-date, misunderstood, or
simply ignored. These young scholars have something to say—not only
to Christian speakers and writers but to non-Christian speakers and
writers and even to New Testament scholars of all stripes. I was
happily stunned to see the depth of discussion, the candid
examination, and the up-to-date bibliography in each chapter.
Although Myths and Mistakes in New Testament Textual Criticism is
written in clear, user-friendly prose, the contents are
well-grounded and perspicacious. I intend to utilize this volume
unapologetically in my introduction as a primary source for several
analyses."
*From the foreword by Daniel B. Wallace, Dallas Theological
Seminary and Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts*
"Sanity, balance, and sober judgment are all qualities that too
frequently are lacking in recent discourse. Even what some might
consider to be the arcane discipline of New Testament textual
criticism has not been immune from false facts and fake news. It is
against this backdrop that this volume makes an invaluable
contribution. Combining care, caution, and rigorous scholarship,
the contributors place before readers the latest research and an
accurate account of the state of the text of the New Testament. For
those seeking to be reliably informed there will be no better guide
than this book to understand the origins, manuscripts,
transmission, collection, and translations of the writings that
form the New Testament. This book replaces ignorance with
knowledge, foolishness with wisdom, and angry argument with irenic
debate. Anybody who cares about the text of the New Testament must
read this book."
*Paul Foster, professor of New Testament and Christian origins,
School of Divinity, University of Edinburgh*
"I personally don't think that you can defend the truth and
accuracy of Scripture as the Word of God with untruths and
inaccuracies. So I welcome this book that contains an enormous
amount of useful information on the text of the New Testament in a
form aimed to help people involved in apologetics. Occasionally
there is some tough love when mistakes and problems are
highlighted, but the aim is always to improve the reader's
understanding of the New Testament and thus their witness to the
person of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Scriptures that tell his
story."
*Peter M. Head, Wycliffe Hall, University of Oxford*
"Early in my work as an apologist, I made an embarrassing number of
mistakes when it came to comments about textual criticism. In
almost every instance, a book like this one would have provided the
broader perspective that I needed to speak the truth with greater
precision. What Elijah Hixson and Peter Gurry have provided in this
handbook is a tool that every would-be defender of the Christian
faith should purchase and regularly consult. Sloppy defenses of the
truth always end up diminishing the truth instead of exalting the
truth. Myths and Mistakes in New Testament Textual Criticism will
equip you to leave behind sloppy defenses of Scripture when it
comes to textual criticism."
*Timothy Paul Jones, C. Edwin Gheens Endowed Chair of Christian
Ministry, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary*
"Packed with reliable data, Christian-friendly apologetics, but
also critical of exaggerations and inaccuracies of some apologists,
this rich multiauthor volume is a valuable resource. Practically
every aspect of New Testament textual criticism is addressed
competently and clearly. Highly recommended!"
*L. W. Hurtado, emeritus professor of New Testament language,
literature, and theology, University of Edinburgh*
"I am delighted that these rising stars in the field of New
Testament textual criticism have undertaken to guide the church to
more integrity and accuracy in the way we talk about the Bible,
especially to outsiders. Students, pastors, and lay leaders will
find a great foundation for proper handling of Scripture as well as
trustworthy resources for apologetics. The essays are in-depth
enough to inform the expert but written in plain language with
helpful conclusions and takeaways, so the main points are
accessible to any committed reader."
*Amy S. Anderson, professor of Greek and New Testament at North
Central University, Minneapolis*
"Informative, fair-minded, and sober. A corrective to the
text-critical 'malpractice' of the current age."
*Juan Hernández Jr., professor of New Testament and early
Christianity, Bethel University*
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