Luke 23:43 - the punctuation of the verse

GregStffrd at aol.com GregStffrd at aol.com
Mon Jun 4 01:33:42 EDT 2001


In a message dated 06/03/2001 8:10:34 PM Pacific Daylight Time, 
dwashbur at nyx.net writes:

<< ???  I thought the original hand of B didn't use any punctuation or 
 diacritical marks (accents etc.)?
 
 Dave Washburn >>


Dear Dave:

That is a common misunderstanding, but early papyri and some of the Uncial 
codexes use both. Though many reference works do not seem to read the actual 
manuscripts and therefore make themselves susceptible to these views, some 
grammars, like Blass-Debrunner and others, are more reliable. Of course, I 
have viewed numerous papyri and Codex B on microfilm, so I speak from 
first-hand exposure to the texts in question. 

The original hand of B used punctuation, and so did the later copyist. The 
color of the ink will tell you which is which, though the later copyist may 
have also traced over some of the original marks. 

Best regards,

Greg Stafford



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