Origen and the Text of the New Testament

This article examines a statement found in the writings of Origen regarding the text of the New Testament and how this statement is used in Christian-Muslim dialogue.

In Christian-Muslim dialogue the reliability of the New Testament text is often discussed and sometimes the following statement by Origen (AD c. 184 – c. 253) is presented by some Muslims to prove that the text of the New Testament is not reliable.

From this statement Muslims conclude that the text of the New Testament had serious problems in the 3rd century and is therefore unreliable today, and the inference is given that the Qur'an does not have these textual problems. How should a Christian understand Origen’s statement and respond to this accusation and claim? I will give three points of reply.

Firstly, Origen does not dismiss the text of the New Testament. Throughout his writings he continues to engage with it and relies upon it as the word of God. That is, he does not come to the same conclusion that some Muslims do.

Secondly, we need to see some examples of the textual variants Origen is referring to so we can know how serious the problem actually is. Without these examples, an exaggerated or unwarranted impression can easily be made. Fortunately, these examples are readily available because Origen himself gives them in his writings. Bruce Metzger has surveyed the writings of Origen and gathered these variants. His results have been published in, Explicit References in the Works of Origen to Variant Readings in New Testament Manuscripts.² In this article, Metzger presents and discusses the 22 variants Origen gives. Therefore, we can know exactly what Origen was writing about. Here is a summary of the 22 variants Origin gives.

1. Matthew 4:17. The majority of the New Testament texts read, repent for the kingdom of heaven is near. A few read, the kingdom of heaven is near.

2. Matthew 8:28-32 (Mark 5:1-17, Luke 8:26). Some manuscripts read, to the region of the Gerasenes. Others read, to the region of the Gadarenes.

3. Matthew 16:20. Some manuscripts read, then Jesus warned the disciples. Others read, then Jesus ordered the disciples.

4. Matthew 18:1. Some manuscripts read, in that hour the disciples came to Jesus. Others read, in that day the disciples came to Jesus.

5. Matthew 21:5. Most manuscripts read, on a donkey and on a colt, son of a pack animal. Some read, on a donkey and on a colt of a pack animal.

6. Matthew 24:19. Some manuscripts read, for those who are pregnant and those who are nursing. Others read, for those who are pregnant and those who will nurse.

7. Matthew 27:16-17. Most manuscripts read, Barabbas. A few read, Jesus Barabbas.

8. Mark 2:14. Most manuscripts read, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector's booth. Some read, he saw Jacob/James son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector's booth.

9. Luke 1:46. Most manuscripts read, And Mary said: "My soul glorifies the Lord". Some read, And Elizabeth said: "My soul glorifies the Lord".

10. Luke 9:48. Most manuscripts read, For he who is least among you all - he is the greatest. Some read, For he who is least among you all - he will be the greatest.

11. Luke 14:19. Most manuscripts read, I'm on my way to try them out. I ask you, please excuse me. Some read, I'm on my way to try them out, because of this reason, please excuse me.

12. Luke 23:45. Most manuscripts read, and the sun was darkened. Some read, the sun failed.

13. John 1:3-4. Most manuscripts read, in him was life. Some read, in him is life.

14. John 1:28. All manuscripts Origen had, These things happen in Bethany on the other side of the Jordan. But Origen believed the correct location was Bethabara.

15. John 3:34. Most manuscripts read, for he does not give the Spirit in measure. Some read, for he does not give the Spirit in part.

16. Romans 3:5. Most manuscripts read, I speak as according to man. Some read, I speak as according to men.

17. Roman 5:14. The majority of manuscripts read, whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam. A few read, whose sins were like the transgression of Adam.

18. Romans 7:6. Most manuscripts read, But now we are released from the law. Some read, But now we are released from the law of death.

19. Romans 14:23 and 16:25-27. In some manuscripts the doxology of 16:25-27 is at the end of Romans . In other manuscripts the doxology is placed after 14:23. The text is the same in either case.

20. Colossians 2:15. Most manuscripts read, triumphing over them by him. Some read, triumphing over them by the cross.

21. 2 Timothy 4:6. Most manuscripts read, and the time of my life’s departure has come. Some read, and time of my life has come.

22. Hebrews 2:9. Some manuscripts read, for without God he tasted death for everyone. Others read, for by the grace of God he tasted death for everyone.

Conclusion: There are 22 explicit references to variants across Origin’s writings. For 20 of these, the difference generally has to do with a single word which may be a synonym, a different tense, a different name, or a missing or added word. There were two examples where the text is identical but Origin still had questions.

No doubt, being a scholar and ployglot, Origen desired greater precision, and so wrote the statement he did, but from the examples he gives we can see there is no serious problem with the text of the New Testament. There are a small number of variants which normally have to do with one word and these can be identified and corrected using the tools of textual criticism. Therefore, it is an exaggeration to say that Origen proves the New Testament has serious problems. The evidence simply does not show this.

My third and final point is that when Islamic scholars exegete the Qur’an they, like Origen, discuss variants in the text of the Qu’ran. Here are three examples.

1. Al-Tabari and Qur’an 2:213³

The standardized Qur’an of Uthman reads, Mankind was one community then Allah raised up prophets. However, Abdullah ibn Masud's Qur'an read, Mankind was one community then they had disagreements then Allah raised up prophets.

2. Sahih Al-Bukhari and Qur’an 92:3⁴

The standardized Qur’an of Uthman reads, And by Him Who created male and female. However, Abdullah ibn Masud's Qur'an read, By the male and the female.

3. Abdullah Yusuf Ali and Qur’an 33:6⁵

The standardized Qur’an of Uthman reads, The Prophet is closer to the Believers than their own selves and his wives are their mothers. However, Ubayy ibn Ka’b's Qur'an read, The Prophet is closer to the Believers than their own selves, and he is a father of them and his wives are their mothers.

Historically, there have been different attitudes among Muslims to these variants. In the early decades of Islam they were seen as a problem, and the third caliph, Uthman, commissioned one standardized version of the Qur’an and commanded that all other varying manuscripts be destroyed.⁶ Other Muslims see the variants as part of the Qur’an, so long as the variants are authentic. This means variants need to be judged. Most Muslims, however, are unaware of the variants. The Encyclopedia of the Quranic Readings with an Introduction to Readings and Famous Readers gives the details for 10243 variants.⁷

Conclusion

Origen’s statement about the text of the New Testament is sometimes used by Muslims to show that the New Testament has serious problems. However, as we have seen, Origen never came to this conclusion, and from the examples he gives we can see there are only a small number of variants which normally have to do with one word. These can be identified and corrected using the tools of textual criticism. We also saw that the Qur’an has its own issues with variants which Muslims have dealt with, and continue to deal with. Therefore, Muslims should not seek to create the false impression that Origen thought the New Testament is corrupt; nor should they try to give the impression that the the Qur’an is free from textual variants.

Further reading:

The Different Arabic Versions of the Qur'an
The Preservation of the Qur'an