Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Colossians 4:19 [sic]

8
Over at Project Wulfila (the Gothic language project) there is something that is puzzling me at the end of Colossians 4, namely Colossians 4:19. Now in the various Bibles I have available to me, Colossians ends at 4:18. The Project Wulfila edition does not in fact have any additional text. It simply defines the phrase 'Remember my chains. Grace be with you. Amen' as belonging to '4:19' rather than 4:18. Can anyone enlighten me as to the history of this particular verse division? Can anyone tell me of any other editions of the NT with a 19th verse to Colossians 4?

8 comments

  1. Although it does not appear that Greek editions or English translations ever divide Col 4:18 into two verses, perhaps with the Gothic version some indication of division might be present in the MSS; if not, something at least "traditional" must be involved.

    For example,Gregory's Textkritik 2:733, cites Gothic MS 3 as having the verses "Kol 1,6-29; 2,11-4,19." Unless the "19" were a misprint, it would seem Gregory was familiar with that verse division among the Gothic MSS.

    Certainly the division exists in Balg's edition (The First Germanic Bible, New York: B. Westermann, 1891), 176, where the printed text maintains a distinction between the (numbered) verses 4:18 and 4:19.

    But why this is so remains another matter.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks. This at least provides further instances of this numbering. The relevant manuscript will be Codex Ambrosianus B. Are there any facsimiles of it?

    ReplyDelete
  4. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  5. PW: "Are there any facsimiles of it?"

    Here is one photo:

    http://www.ub.uu.se/arv/codex/
    faksimiledition/jpg_files/001k_133.html


    Perhaps you find something in the bibliography of the library:

    http://www.ambrosiana.it/ita/index.asp

    (at least you can order a reproduction if you are very interested...)

    ReplyDelete
  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Pete,

    In Metzger's Early Versions, p. 381, n. 5 I read:

    "The manuscripts have been most recently edited, with facsimiles, by Jan de Vries, Wulfilae codices Ambrosiani ... (Turin and Florence, 1936)."

    The publication might contain what you are looking for, but I suppose "facsimiles" refer to some plates-you may be lucky.

    ReplyDelete