by James D. Price
According to Bruce M. Metzger, a well-known authority on the text of the Greek New Testament, “Stephanus’ third edition [1550] became for many persons, especially in England, the received or standard text of the Greek New Testament.” This was the “standard” text used by the translators of the Authorized Version. In addition, the translators had at their disposal the editions of Erasmus (1516, 1519, etc.), Beza (1589), and the Complutensian Polyglott (1514-1522). The translators did not always follow the standard text of Stephanus (Stephens), but sometimes followed readings found in the other available texts. Until the nineteenth century, the exact form of the resultant text was not published in printed form. In 1825 Oxford Press published a Greek text containing the words that underlie the English of the Authorized Version. This was followed by editions published by F. H. A. Scrivener (1894, 1902). Scrivener’s edition is currently reprinted by the Trinitarian Bible Society.
This is a list of the places where the AV translators followed a Greek text other than Stephens’ 1550 edition, the edition that was regarded as the traditional Received Text in 1611.
Against Stephens and Beza
Scrivener catalogued
23 passages in which the text of the AV differs from that of Stephens
(1550) and Beza (1589) jointly. These readings were usually derived from
the Complutensian Polyglott that seems often to have been influenced by
the Latin Vulgate. A few were derived from Erasmus. One reading seems to
have been derived from some unknown source.
Ref.
KJV Source
Matt. 2:11* ei=don
Compl.
Matt. 9:18* a;rcwn ei-j
Compl., Vulg.
Matt. 10:10 r`a,bdouj
Compl.
Mark 4:18 ou`toi, eivsi.n (omits 2nd
occurance) Compl.
Mark 5:38* kai. klai,ontaj
Erasm., Vulg.
Mark 9:42* tw/n mikrw/n tou,twn
Compl, Vulg.
Mark 15:3 auvto.j de. ouvde.n avpekri,nato
Comp., Steph. (1546)
Luke 3:31 Mena,m
Erasm.
Luke 3:35 ~Ebe,r
Erasm.
Luke 12:56 tou/ ouvranou/ kai. th/j gh/j
Compl., Vulg.
Luke 20:31 kai.
(added) Erasm.
John 8:6 mh. prospoiou,menoj
Compl., Steph. (1546, 1549)
John 18:1 tw/n (!) Ke,drwn
???
Acts 7:16 VEmo.r
Erasm.
Acts 8:13 duna,meij kai. shmei/a gino,menaj
Erasm.
Acts 27:29* evkpe,swmen
Compl.
Phile. 7* cara.n
Compl., Vulg.
Heb. 12:24 to.
:Abel Erasm.
2 Pet. 1:1 Si,mwn
Compl., Vulg.
1 John 3:16 tou/ Qeou/
(added) Compl., Vulg.
Jude 12 u`mi/n
(added) Compl.
Rev. 11:4 ai` du,o lucni,ai
Compl.
Rev. 17:4* h=n peribeblhme,nh
Compl., Vulg.
Rev. 18:1 a;llon
(added) Erasm., Compl.
Rev. 18:5* evkollh,qhsan
Compl.
Rev. 19:18* evleuqe,rwn te
Compl.
Rev. 21:13* kai. avpo. dusmw/n
Compl., Vulg.
Total = 23.
Beza Against Stephens
Scrivener catalogued 87
passages in which the text of the AV agrees with the text of Beza (1589)
against that of Stephens (1550).
Ref. KJV
Additional Sources
Matt. 9:33* omits o[ti Compl.,
Erasm.
Matt. 21:7 evpeka,qisan
Matt. 23:13, 14 verse order reversed Compl.
Mark 6:29* evn mnhmei,w|
Mark 8:24 o[ti (omitted) Compl.
Mark 8:24 o`rw/ (omitted) Compl.
Mark 9:40 h`mw/n Erasm.
Mark 9:40 h`mw/n Erasm.
Mark 12:20 ou=n (added)
Luke 1:35 evk sou/ (added) Compl.,
Erasm., Vulg.
Luke 2:22 auvth/j Compl.
Luke 7:12 i`kano.j h=n
Luke 15:26 auvtou/ (omitted) Compl.,
Vulg.
Luke 17:35 h` mi,a Erasm.
Luke 17:36 verse added Compl.
Luke 17:45 auvtou/ (added) Erasm.
John 8:25* o[ ti (instead of o[ti)
John 13:31* ou=n (added) Erasm.,
Vulg.
John 16:33 e[xete
John 18:24* ou=n (added)
Acts 1:4 metv auvtw/n (added)
Acts 17:25 kai. ta. pa,nta Vulg.
Acts 21:8* h;lqomen Compl.,
Vulg.
Acts 22:25* proe,teinan Compl.,
Vulg.
Acts 24:13* me (omitted) Compl.
Acts 24:18 de, (omitted) Compl.
Acts 24:19 e;dei (instead of dei/) Vulg.
Acts 27:13 a=sson (instead of Asson) Erasm.
Ref. KJV
Additional sources
Rom. 7:6 avpoqano,ntoj
Rom. 8:11* dia. tou/ evnoikou/ntoj auvtou/
Pneu,matoj evn u`mi/n
Compl.
Rom. 12:11* Kuri,w| (instead of kairw/|)
Compl., Vulg.
Rom. 16:20 avmh,n (added)
1 Cor. 5:11* h=| po,rnoj (instead of h;
po,rnoj) Erasm., Vulg.
1 Cor. 14:10* auvtw/n (omit) Vulg.
1 Cor. 15:31* u`mete,ran (instead of
h`mete,ran) Compl., Vulg.
2 Cor. 3:1* h' mh. (instead of ei; mh.)
Vulg.
2 Cor. 5:4* evfV w-| (instead of evpeidh,)
Compl., Vulg.
2 Cor. 6:15 Belia,l (instead of Belia,r)
Compl., Vulg.
2 Cor. 7:12 th.n spoudh.n h`mw/n th.n u`pe.r
u`mw/n Vulg.
2 Cor. 7:16* ou=n (added)
2 Cor 11:10* fragh,setai (instead of
sfragi,setai)
Eph 1:3* evn Cristw/ (instead of Cristw/|)
Compl., Vulg.
Eph. 6:7* w`j (added) Compl. Vulg.
Col. 1:2* Kolossai/j (instead of Kolassai/j)
Col. 1:24 {Oj
(added) Vulg.
Col. 2:13 u`mi/n (instead of h`mi/n)
Vulg.
1 Thes. 2:15* h`ma/j (instead of u`ma/j)
Compl., Vulg.
1 Tim. 1:4 oivkodomi,an (instead of
oivkonomi,an) Erasm., Vulg.
Titus 2:10* h`mw/n (instead of u`mw/n)
Erasm., Compl., Vulg.
Heb. 9:1* skhnh,
(omitted) Erasm., Vulg.
Heb. 10:10 dia. (instead of oi` dia.)
Heb. 12:22 panhgu,rei (1st word of vs. 23)
James 4:13* poreuso,meqa
Vulg.
James 4:13* poih,somen
Vulg.
James 4:13* evmporeuso,meqa
Vulg.
James 4:13* kerdh,somen
Vulg.
James 4:15* poih,somen
Vulg.
James 5:12* u`po. kri,sin (instead of ei;j
u`po.kri,sin)
1 Pet. 3:21 w-| (instead of
o]) Compl.
Ref. KJV
Additional Sources
2 Pet. 2:18 evn avselgei,aij
2 Pet. 3:7* auvtw/| (instead of auvtou/)
Vulg.
1 John 1:4 u`mw/n (instead of h`mw/n)
Erasm.
1 John 2:23* o` o`mologw/n to.n ui`o.n kai.
to.n pate,ra e;cei (added)
1 John 5:14 h`mw/n (instead of u`mw/n)
2 John 3 u`mw/n (instead of h`mw/n)
Compl.
2 John 5* gra,fwn
3 John 7 auvtou/
(added) Compl., Vulg.
Jude 19 e`autou,j
(added) Vulg.
Jude 24* u`ma/j (instead of auvtou,j)
Vulg.
Rev. 1:11* e`pta.
(added) Compl. Vulg.
Rev. 3:1* e`pta. (added before pneu,mata)
Compl. Vulg.
Rev. 5:11* kai. h=n o` avriqmo.j auvtw/n
muria,dej
muria,dwn( kai. cilia,dej
cilia,dwn
(added) Compl.
Rev. 7:2* avnabai,nonta
Compl., Vulg.
Rev 7:3* sfragi,swmen
Compl.
Rev 7:10* tw/| Qew/| h`mw/n
(added) Compl., Vulg.
Rev. 7:14* auvta.j (instead of stola.j
auvtw/n) Compl., Vulg.
Rev 8:6* oi` e;contej (instead of
e;contej) Compl., Vulg.
Rev. 8:11* tw/n u`da,twn
(added) Compl., Vulg.
Rev. 9:19* h` (instead of ai`)
Compl. (?)
Rev. 9:19* kai. evn tai/j ouvrai. auvtw/n
(added) Compl.
Rev. 11:1 kai. o` a;ggeloj eivsth,kei
(added) Compl.
Rev. 11:2* e;xwqen (instead of e;swqen)
Compl., Vulg.
Rev. 13:3* e[n
(omitted) Compl., Vulg.
Rev. 14:18* th/j avmpe,lou
(added) Compl., Vulg.
Rev. 16:5 evso,menoj (instead of o[sioj)
Rev. 16:14* a] evkporeu,etai
(instead of evkporeu,esqai)
Compl., Vulg.
Rev. 19:14* ta. evn tw/| ouvranw/|
Compl., Vulg.
Total = 87
Textual Changes Since
1611
Scrivener produced
the Greek text that underlies the English of the 1611 edition of the AV.
There have been a few alterations in later revisions of the AV that no
longer follow the text followed by the 1611 translators. The following are
places where the AV has words not in italics that are not in Scrivener’s
TR:
2 Tim. 1:18
added “unto me” after “ministered” following the Vulg.
Eph. 6:24 added “amen”
at the end.
1 Cor. 14:10 added “of
them” after “none.” The 1611 edition had the words in italics,
but the 1769 edition
erroneously replaced the italics with regular
typeface indicating that
the words are in the Greek text.
The following is a place where the AV has words in italics that are actually in Scrivener’s TR:
2 Peter 2:18 The word “through” was erroneously italicized in 1769 as though the word is not in the Greek text; and the word “much” was added.
The following are places where the AV does not follow the Scrivener’s text:
Acts 19:20 Scrivener’s TR reads tou/ Kuri,ou (of the Lord) but the KJV reads “of God.”
Heb. 10:23 Scrivener’s TR reads th/j evlpi,doj (of the hope) but the KJV reads “of our faith.”