Eclectic text - The Manuscript Basis of the Greek New Testament

The goal of textual criticism—rightly, I believe—has traditionally focused upon establishing the original text as it came from the hand of the author. Some scholars have recently challenged this notion of an original text, either on the basis of the available evidence or on the basis of the methods used to recover such a text. Nevertheless, despite such challenges, the notion of an original text has withstood the variety of attacks of such scholars as Bart Ehrman and David Parker. Their objections and attempts to call the text of the New Testament into question have failed to provide substantive arguments of any kind of widespread, sustained, or early effort to detrimentally change or distort the text. In fact, their arguments often are based upon little substantive textual evidence at all. The best evidence of the early text of the New Testament comes from the Alexandrian text-type, although the Western tradition developed early as well. There are those who continue to advocate for the traditional text, whether the Textus Receptus or the Byzantine or Majority text. Despite the overwhelming similarity between the Byzantine or Majority text-type and the Alexandrian text-type, it appears that the Alexandrian is the earliest text-type and gets closer to the original autograph as published by the author. Nevertheless, there are limits to textual reconstruction, and perhaps it is time to reconsider the use of an eclectic text and restore the use of the earliest manuscripts that we have at our disposal.

Porter, Stanley E. 2013. How We Got the New Testament: Text, Transmission, Translation. Edited by Lee Martin McDonald and Craig A. Evans. Acadia Studies in Bible and Theology. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.

An example of Eclectic text

Creating an eclectic text involves consulting a variety of significant manuscripts. For the New Testament, some key manuscripts used include:

Byzantine Text

1. Codex Alexandrinus (A): 5th century, containing both Old and New Testament, with significant Byzantine readings.
2. Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus (C): 5th century, a palimpsest with notable Byzantine content.
3. Codex Bezae (D): 5th century, Greek-Latin manuscript with Byzantine readings.
4. Minuscule 1 (A1): 10th century, a representative of the Byzantine text.
5. Minuscule 4: 9th century, important for its Byzantine text.
6. Minuscule 69: 14th century, known for its Byzantine readings.
7. Minuscule 1739: 10th century, reflecting the Byzantine tradition.
8. Codex Basilensis (E): 8th century, another key Byzantine manuscript.
9. Codex Washingtonianus (W): 5th century, containing Byzantine text in the Gospels.

Alexandrian Text

1. Codex Vaticanus (B): 4th century, one of the oldest and most important Greek manuscripts.
2. Codex Sinaiticus (ℵ): 4th century, containing almost the entire New Testament.
3. Papyrus 46 (P46): 3rd century, early collection of Pauline epistles.
4. Papyrus 66 (P66): 2nd-3rd century, nearly complete manuscript of the Gospel of John.
5. Papyrus 75 (P75): 3rd century, substantial portions of Luke and John.
6. Codex Alexandrinus (A): 5th century, mixed text but crucial for Alexandrian tradition.
7. Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus (C): 5th century, includes Alexandrian readings.
8. Codex Bezae (D): 5th century, with mixed text including Alexandrian readings.
9. Bodmer Papyrus II (P66): 2nd century, significant for its early Alexandrian text.

These manuscripts have greatly contributed to our understanding of the New Testament's textual history and the preservation of its content. They represent a diverse and comprehensive collection, enabling scholars to piece together a text that closely reflects the original writings. 

These ancient documents still guide us today!