The Reliability of New Testament Manuscripts with Dr. Craig Evans: Digging for Truth Episode 29
Summary
TLDRIn this episode of 'Digging for Truth,' Dr. Craig Evans from Houston Baptist University discusses the reliability of the New Testament text. He addresses common misconceptions about the longevity of original manuscripts and the accuracy of copied texts. With over 5,000 Greek New Testament manuscripts, textual critics can confidently reconstruct the original text. Dr. Evans also touches on the historical evidence for the preservation of autographs and the impact of skepticism on biblical studies.
Takeaways
- 😀 Dr. Craig Evans, a professor of Christian origins at Houston Baptist University, discusses the reliability of New Testament texts.
- 🔍 The conversation covers the transition from Jesus' teachings to their written records, emphasizing the pedagogical and historiographical aspects.
- 📜 Dr. Evans explains the significance of papyri, an ancient form of paper made from reeds, which was used for early manuscripts.
- 📚 The original manuscripts, or autographs, of the New Testament are no longer available, but thousands of copies provide a rich textual tradition.
- 🔎 The possibility of scribal errors in copying manuscripts is acknowledged, but the vast number of manuscripts allows scholars to identify and correct these errors.
- 👨🏫 Jesus did not expect his disciples to memorize his words verbatim but to understand and adapt his teachings, which accounts for variations in the Gospels.
- 📈 The longevity of manuscripts is highlighted, with some remaining in circulation for hundreds of years, suggesting careful preservation by early Christians.
- 🎥 Dr. Evans was involved in the making of 'Fragments of Truth,' a movie that visually presents ancient manuscripts and expert opinions on their authenticity.
- 🙏 The discussion counters skepticism about the Bible's reliability, arguing that the text has been well-preserved and can be trusted.
- ✍️ The script emphasizes the importance of understanding the nature of ancient texts and the methods used in their transmission to appreciate the New Testament's reliability.
Q & A
What is the main focus of the discussion in the 'Digging for Truth' episode featuring Dr. Craig Evans?
-The main focus of the discussion is the reliability of the New Testament text, specifically addressing the claim that the events surrounding the life of Jesus Christ as recorded in the New Testament have been radically changed over time.
What is Dr. Craig Evans' area of expertise?
-Dr. Craig Evans specializes in Jesus and the Gospels, as well as closely related areas such as the Dead Sea Scrolls. He has had the opportunity to study original manuscripts, including the Dead Sea Scrolls, and has emphasized the study of original texts in his career.
What does the term 'papyri' refer to in the context of the discussion?
-In the discussion, 'papyri' refers to sheets made from the papyrus plant, which was used as a writing material in ancient Egypt. It's the origin of the word 'paper' and was a valuable commodity during the time of Jesus and the Roman Empire.
How does Dr. Evans address the concern about Jesus being misquoted in the New Testament?
-Dr. Evans explains that there are two phases to consider: the initial teaching and writing phase, and the later copying phase. He suggests that Jesus did not require his disciples to memorize his words word-for-word and that some variation in wording is expected and not indicative of misquoting.
What role do textual critics play in understanding the New Testament text?
-Textual critics play a crucial role by comparing the vast number of manuscripts to identify and correct scribal errors, ensuring that we have a reliable text that closely matches the original writings.
Why does Dr. Evans believe that the differences in wording between the Gospels are not a cause for concern?
-Dr. Evans believes that the differences in wording between the Gospels are not a cause for concern because Jesus taught his disciples to understand and apply his teachings, which could involve paraphrasing. The variations do not indicate inaccuracies in the transmission of Jesus' teachings.
What is the significance of the number of Greek New Testament manuscripts we have?
-The large number of Greek New Testament manuscripts, over 5,000, is significant because it provides textual critics with an unparalleled resource for comparing texts and confirming the original readings, thus ensuring the reliability of the New Testament text.
How does Dr. Evans respond to the argument that the New Testament has been corrupted over time?
-Dr. Evans counters the argument by stating that while scribes did make mistakes, these errors are identifiable when comparing the many manuscripts available. The consensus among scholars is that we can be confident in the accuracy of the New Testament text as it is today.
What is the importance of the movie 'Fragments of Truth' mentioned in the discussion?
-The movie 'Fragments of Truth' is important as it visually presents the ancient manuscripts and includes interviews with experts, providing evidence for the preservation and reliability of the New Testament text.
What historical evidence does Dr. Evans provide regarding the longevity of manuscripts?
-Dr. Evans cites historical evidence such as the discovery of papyri in libraries that were in circulation for 200-300 years, and references from church fathers like Tertullian, suggesting that original manuscripts were treasured and preserved for a long time.
Why does Dr. Evans believe that the original autographs of the New Testament no longer exist?
-Dr. Evans suggests that the original autographs were likely destroyed during periods of persecution, such as under Emperor Diocletian, rather than being discarded by the early church, which would have treasured them.
Outlines
📜 Introduction to the Episode
The episode begins with a welcome to 'Digging for Truth,' a show sponsored by the Associates for Biblical Research. The guest for this segment is Dr. Craig Evans from Houston Baptist University, specializing in Christian origins and the Gospels. The show's focus is on the reliability of New Testament texts, and Dr. Evans shares his background in studying ancient manuscripts, including the Dead Sea Scrolls. He discusses his experiences with original texts and the importance of understanding the context of Jesus' teachings and the writing process of the Gospels.
🔍 Misquoting Jesus: The Debate
The conversation shifts to address the claim that the events surrounding Jesus' life, as recorded in the New Testament, have been significantly altered over time. Dr. Evans explains the two phases of potential misquoting: the initial recording of Jesus' teachings by his disciples and the subsequent copying of these texts through the centuries. He emphasizes that while there may be minor variations in the texts due to copying errors, the overall message and teachings of Jesus remain intact and reliable. The discussion highlights the importance of understanding the pedagogical and historiographical aspects of the Gospels.
📚 The Rich Manuscript Tradition
Dr. Evans delves into the vast number of Greek New Testament manuscripts available, which provides a strong foundation for textual criticism. He explains that while scribes may have made errors, the sheer number of manuscripts allows scholars to identify and correct these errors, ensuring the accuracy of the original texts. The discussion touches on the work of Bart Ehrman, both as a popular author and as a scholar, and how his views on the textual criticism of the New Testament are not as radical as sometimes portrayed. The segment concludes with a call for a balanced and informed approach to understanding the reliability of the New Testament texts.
🕰️ Longevity of Ancient Manuscripts
The discussion continues with the longevity of ancient manuscripts, particularly those related to the New Testament. Dr. Evans cites historical evidence and the practices of ancient libraries to argue that original texts, or autographs, were kept in circulation for hundreds of years. He references the claims of early Church Fathers and the findings of archaeological discoveries to support the idea that these texts were treasured and preserved by the early Christian community. The segment emphasizes the care with which these documents were handled and the likelihood that they were destroyed due to persecution rather than neglect.
🎞️ Fragments of Truth: A Visual Journey
The final segment introduces the movie 'Fragments of Truth,' in which Dr. Evans participated. The movie aims to visually present the ancient manuscripts and their locations to the audience, featuring interviews with experts in the field. Dr. Evans emphasizes the importance of showing the quality and authenticity of these manuscripts to build confidence in the reliability of the New Testament text. The movie serves as a testament to the preservation efforts of the early Church and the scholarly consensus on the text's authenticity.
🙌 Conclusion and Encouragement
The episode concludes with a summary of the key points discussed and an encouragement for viewers to watch 'Fragments of Truth' to gain a deeper understanding of the New Testament manuscripts. Dr. Evans' expertise is acknowledged, and the show reiterates the message that the text of the New Testament can be trusted as a reliable record of Jesus' teachings and the Apostles' writings.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Archaeology
💡New Testament
💡Papyri
💡Manuscripts
💡Textual Criticism
💡Autographs
💡Variants
💡Scribes
💡Bart Ehrman
💡Fundamentalism
Highlights
Introduction of Dr. Craig Evans, a professor of Christian origins at Houston Baptist University, discussing the reliability of New Testament texts.
Dr. Evans' expertise includes Jesus and the Gospels, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the study of original manuscripts.
Explanation of papyri, the ancient writing material made from reeds, and its significance in preserving early Christian texts.
Discussion on the two phases of potential misquoting of Jesus: initial teachings and later manuscript copying.
Jesus' teaching methods and the expectation for disciples to adapt and apply his teachings, including paraphrasing.
Assurance that differences in wording among Gospels do not indicate inaccuracies in the transmission of Jesus' teachings.
Emphasis on the rigorous process of manuscript proofreading and correction in ancient times to minimize errors.
Dr. Evans' confidence in the accuracy of the New Testament text based on the vast number of available manuscripts.
Comparison of the New Testament manuscript record to other Greco-Roman texts, highlighting its unparalleled preservation.
The role of textual criticism in identifying and correcting scribal errors in ancient manuscripts.
Bart Ehrman's dual role as a popular skeptic and a scholarly textual critic who acknowledges the reliability of the New Testament text.
The impact of Bart Ehrman's work on the church, prompting a strong response and production of apologetic material.
Dr. Evans' concern over brittle fundamentalism and the importance of a robust understanding of Scripture.
The concept of manuscript variance and how it is managed through the comparison of thousands of manuscripts.
The longevity of ancient manuscripts, with some remaining in circulation for hundreds of years.
Historical evidence suggesting that original Christian texts were preserved and venerated, contrary to claims of their early loss.
The destruction of early Christian texts during the Diocletian persecution as a likely cause for the disappearance of autographs.
Recommendation of the movie 'Fragments of Truth' featuring Dr. Evans, which explores the reliability of New Testament manuscripts.
Transcripts
hi welcome to another exciting episode
of digging for truth sponsored by the
associates for biblical research located
in Lancaster County Pennsylvania a br
has been serving the body of Christ for
nearly 50 years sharing information from
the world of archaeology and biblical
studies to show the reliability of the
biblical accounts today we have a
special guest joining us by Skype from
Houston Texas dr. Craig Evans from
Houston Baptist University dr. Evans
welcome to the show we're glad to have
you all the way from Texas with us thank
you very much good to be with you yeah
it's great now you're the professor of
Christian origins at Houston Baptist
University and before we get into our
discussion today we're gonna be talking
about something very exciting the
reliability of a New Testament text and
I'm I'm so excited to have you here to
talk about this important subject if you
would just tell the audience a little
bit about what you do at Houston Baptist
University some of your background and
your interest and expertise my area of
expertise is Jesus and the Gospels but
also areas closely related to that that
would include the Dead Sea Scrolls which
I had the great privilege when I was a
doctoral student to study with John
Trevor and William Hugh Brownlee they
were the first two Americans actually to
see the scrolls when they came to light
in 1947 and 1948 in Israel one of the
things that I emphasized as a doctoral
student it was just all about a
Claremont where I did my PhD was getting
into original text so that was when I
had my first exposure to actual
manuscripts not just the printed
editions that everybody can use like
your Greek New Testament and I continued
pursuing that on into my career over the
decades so I've had the privilege of
being in the Sackler manuscript room in
the bodily and an Oxford
I've actually handled papyri I've held
ancient codices in my hands
including Dead Sea scrolls and fragments
like that and so that's been an emphasis
in my career and that is the original
manuscripts right canonical or non
canonical and the light they shed on the
early
and especially on Jesus in the Gospels
well that's excellent so you've had your
hands on some of the most ancient and
most ancient documents of the of the New
Testament that we that we possess tell
our audience a little bit about what
papyri is use the term papyri it's
really really fascinating let's talk
about that for a brief second what our
prep I read yeah papyrus that's where we
get our word paper by the way it's it's
a read the that used to be quite
prolific not so much now in the marshy
Delta of the of the Nile River in Egypt
and so long long time ago thousands of
years ago the Egyptians discovered that
if you cut these those Reed's into
strips and then lay them out in a
horizontal pattern and then a vertical
pattern on top press them they'll just
naturally dry out and become sheets of
paper and and very durable and of course
obviously durable we have papyrus today
that's been recovered from the dry sands
of Egypt and tombs and so on 3,000 years
old and even older and so that's where
paper came from and so that became a
valuable commodity in the time of Jesus
and the Roman Empire it was hugely
important later on people started using
animal skins calf skin stretching it out
making parchment so that became a
writing medium that's what it is so we
say papyrus and the plural is papyri
yeah that's what we're talking about
very ancient ancient material it's
incredible how long some of it has
lasted now we're going to jump right in
with the the big question first and
they're gonna kind of work through the
details and and and really people out
there scholars you know this more than
anyone and even a lot of lay people in
in the culture that we live in will make
this radical claim that the events
surrounding the life of Jesus of
Nazareth that are recorded in the New
Testament between the time that Jesus
lived and the time later these texts
have been radically changed and that's a
it's a challenge for the church to
respond
to this claim now I see you're smiling
because I know you have the answers many
answers to this this challenge but the
question is fundamentally has has Jesus
been misquoted let's let's start with
that big question and work through that
well there are two things that come into
play and they're really like apples and
oranges there are two separate things
one of them is just listening to Jesus
hearing him teach and then deciding to
write down some of the things that he
taught and so that's the one phase and
that's what we call our two things
involve pedagogy how Jesus taught and
how he expected his disciples to learn
what he taught and historiography that
is the writing of the history itself so
that's one part of it and so you go from
Jesus the teacher to the disciples the
learners to people writing down what
Jesus taught things they saw him do
things that happened and so forth so the
chance for misquoting
could take place there where people
simply misrepresent what Jesus taught
however there's a second there's a
second phase and that's just once the
Gospels are written down they get copied
and they get copied again and again and
down through the centuries until we
finally reach you know the printing
press in the 15th century and so that's
the possibility where changes can take
place there where a scribe makes a
mistake
he's simply goofs writes the wrong word
maybe he does that deliberately does it
accidentally whatever so those are the
two ways that you can misquote Jesus
either misrepresent him at the very
beginning when a gospel is written or
perhaps blunders somehow and copying a
gospel so let me answer your question
Jesus taught his disciples and said look
guys here's my teaching and what we need
to understand he didn't require his
disciples to memorize his words
word-for-word I think there was some of
that I think sometimes you have Jesus
quoted word for it but he was teaching
most of the time in Aramaic
so there's translation going on anyway
and if you turn to Matthew 13 he tells
his disciples that if you're a scribe
trained for the kingdom of heaven and
you really know your stuff you can dip
into the treasure box
and pull out old and new teaching and
when I take that to mean and
commentators agree this means that Jesus
is expecting his disciples to adapt to
apply his teaching and that includes
paraphrasing it once you recognize that
then you see oh the wording is a little
bit different when you compare Matthew
and Luke there's nothing to be shocked
about this this is not a tape-recording
society this is not videotape it's Jesus
teaching his disciples and saying do you
understand me are you ascribe trained
for the kingdom they say yes we
understand you so I am very satisfied at
that first phase I'm not worried about
Matthew Mark Luke and John with
difference in wording because that's the
way Jesus taught his disciples the
question is did they understand it all
the evidence suggests they did and if
they got it wrong then why do
archaeologists use the Gospels why do
Jewish archaeologists use the Gospels if
they're inaccurate and if they're full
of mistakes that then brings us to the
next phase were they properly copied
sure they were dead scribes make
mistakes well of course of course
everybody every copyist makes mistakes
that's why they then proofread their
work and catch most of their mistakes
someone else proofreads it we have
manuscripts with the corrections and the
margins so the real question is are we
in a situation where we we honestly
don't know how did the text originally
read because the originals are gone and
are we in that position
no and real textual critics will tell
you that there might be a handful of
verses where we're not sure how it
originally read but it's a small number
and not one has anything to do with
important teaching in the New Testament
well we're gonna pick up on what you
just said in just a moment and we will
be right back Vimal and spade is a
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published by the associates for biblical
research
from a scholarly and conservative
viewpoint bible and spade supports the
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[Music]
welcome back to digging for truth I'm
joined today by dr. Craig Evans a
professor of Christian origins at
Houston Baptist University and we're
talking about the reliability of the New
Testament text and our last segment dr.
Evans started talking about all the
manuscripts that we have that are
available to us and the way that
sometimes errors or mistakes crept into
the text but how we're gonna talk now in
this segment how we don't need to be
alarmed by that so dr. Evans let's pick
up from our last segment about this
concept of copying what scribes did in
the ancient world and the what I call a
lot of people call an embarrassment of
riches that we have within number of
manuscripts that we have let you roll
with it from there well yes that's true
we have more than 5,000 Greek New
Testaments either whole or part and and
some of these large chunks of the Greek
New Testament that reached back within a
couple hundred years of when the
originals were written and so as a
manuscript record it's unparalleled
there's nothing else from the
greco-roman world that has Greek and
Latin text classical texts nothing that
compares to the record of the New
Testament and this is great for the
textual critic I mean it's daunting on
the one hand because the textual critic
has so many manuscripts that it is
humanly impossible to compare them all
but on the other hand he has so many
manuscripts that he can then do enough
comparison and be satisfied that he
knows what the original text was because
when a scribe makes a mistake you know
another scribe might copy his same
mistake and carry it over into a new
copy of Scripture that's true but all
the other scribes hundreds and hundreds
of other scribes elsewhere they don't
make that mistake and so what happens is
the textual critic today can take the
manuscripts and compare them and very
quickly identify the the error the one
the the outlier the the reading that is
not original now by the way cuz the
scribes from antiquity they pick up on
that too they're not stupid they realize
this can't be right somebody's made a
mistake yes and they scribble a
correction
so there is no mystery and even a
skeptic like you know bart airmen who
you know made a lot of noise at his book
misquoting Jesus there are two Bart
Airman's a lot of people don't know that
there's the popular BART airman who
wrote the book misquoting Jesus but
there's also the scholar Bart airman a
textual critic and he isn't radical like
that at all
yes so so let's talk a little bit about
about dr. airman because you know I find
it interesting back in the mid 2000s
when he started publishing all of his
stuff you know putting trying to shed a
doubt on the reliability of the New
Testament in a popular he went over you
know into the popular realm and a lot of
people bought into this but he kind of
talks out of two sides of his mouth with
this on one hand so I'll let you comment
on that the other is the thing that I
think has benefitted the church from dr.
airman has done is the church has
responded very strongly against what
he's tried to argue and produced a
massive amount of material maybe you
could talk about those about those two
things because I think that's important
yes it is important you know what what
dr. Airman's books
I think revealed was that the church
hadn't fought through on a popular level
some of these critical issues there was
this naive fundamentalism which is what
Bart airman came out of as a young
Christian teenager yeah which is really
too bad and by the way I have a pastoral
sense about this and I don't see him as
an enemy and I don't want him harmed I
care about the guy I consider him a
friend I had know him personally but
there was a brittle fundamentalism there
that didn't that was very ill at ease
with the idea of errors in the
manuscripts scribal errors accidental or
even deliberate and and that was he just
didn't know how to deal with that and it
created a crisis of faith when somebody
pointed something out when he was at
Princeton seminary that maybe there's
simply a mistake in the text and somehow
in the manuscript tradition going way
back
something got bungled and now we don't
really know what the original reading
was or something like that and this
caused his faith to crumble
he began he says he himself describes it
at misquoting Jesus everything began to
unravel and and so for me that's a
that's a big concern I have an academic
pedagogical and pastoral concern that
that not happen to other people and so
when I teach my students or I'm in a
church setting preaching or whatever I
say my you know my goodness you can't
have a brittle understanding of
Scripture like that in a sense it's not
scriptural
that isn't what scripture says about
itself that isn't how Jesus taught his
disciples that's not how the Apostles
taught the church this is a brittle
fundamentalism that's relatively modern
and it becomes a false stumbling block
no one should trip over that yeah I
think it's tragic yeah I agree with you
and I think that's the kind of posture
that we ought to have we've talked on
our program before when we respond we
can demolish arguments but not people
and there's a difference we can show an
argument to be a bad argument against
the faith but not the person we have to
remember that dr. Airmen and others who
hold these skeptical views are made in
the image of God and I think that's an
important pastoral concern that we ought
to have we got about a minute and a half
left in this segment let's just talk
about what we call these errors or
variants in the text the distinction
between the copies in the original text
if you could just sort of quickly lay
that out for the audience because I
think many people that have been going
to church for 20 30 40 years they've
never thought about any of that and when
they hear the word you know alarm bells
go off yeah that's right you have the
autographs the originals the very first
copies and that would mean a copy that
is put in the mail you might say
distributed circulated then there's the
original copy also a second original
copy that the author retains but once
copies start being made of those
originals invariably somebody makes a
mistake or just doesn't quite write it
correctly and then that's what then sets
this chain in in effect and people then
look at that say well that's must be a
mistake and they correct it and
sometimes they correct it correctly and
sometimes they don't
and this is why you end up with what we
call variance different readings but as
I said a little earlier we have enough
manuscripts that we can compare them and
we can get back to what we believe and
with good reason is the original reading
it makes sense and so forth and the
scholars across the board whether
they're Evan Jellicle and conservative
or not that's widely recognized and like
I said Bart Ehrman as a scholar when
he's with scholars and not in front of a
popular audience he's pretty well that
way too he's actually said in the second
edition of misquoting Jesus that his
views of the New Testament as attached
to critic are not any different from
bruce metzger his teacher and bruce
metzger was a devout christian
evangelical yes excellent okay folks
we'll be right back for a third segment
with dr. Evans thanks in a culture of
intense Bible denying skepticism
associates for biblical research exists
to strengthen followers of Jesus by
affirming the authority of the Bible our
archaeological fieldwork and original
research form a strong foundation in
upholding the reliability of the
Scriptures for students or anyone asking
if they can really trust the Bible
please visit our website and partner
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thank you for standing with us
[Music]
hi welcome back to digging for truth I'm
your co-host Henry Smith and I'm joined
today by dr. Craig Evans from Houston
Baptist University who's an expert on
Christian origins and the New Testament
texts particularly the Gospels of Jesus
Christ dr. Evans we were talking about
the what we called the embarrassment of
riches the manuscript tradition that we
have preserving the New Testament that
the church ought not be alarmed by the
fact that copies have errors we can
reproduce the original text I believe
that that's a theological phenomenon
actually that God and his Providence has
has allowed that to happen so we can
know what it is that he wanted us to
learn from Jesus himself and his
apostles but let's talk about something
you've been doing research on the length
of time the longevity of the manuscripts
from the ancient world because this is
really a important component of the
whole argument that they've been
preserved for us I'll let you go you
know that it's a very important topic
when I was in seminary it was the first
time I thought about and I asked her
professor you know how long did the
originals autographs as they're called
and the very first copies how long did
they remain in circulation and my
professor said oh that's an interesting
question I haven't thought about it
before I don't know 20 years ten years I
don't know and and so that's stuck with
me for a long time it was only later
when I was doing research relating to
papyri and some work that's been done on
libraries that have been discovered
intact like a tox ring cos thanks to
Grenfell and Hunt who found papyri in
Egypt back in the 1890s in the beginning
of 20th century
they made some interesting discoveries
they would find a basket of books book
rolls that have been thrown out and of
course they could date them by the
handwriting and they and the manuscripts
dated to the 1st or 2nd century and yet
they were thrown out in the 4th or 5th
century and what that led to was the
realization that my goodness these these
writings stayed in circulation for
200-300 years or longer well then we
started taking a serious look at what
the ancient writers said and that
include greek pagans Greek and Roman who
would talk about
we've got copies autographs of Aristotle
that are 250 years old so so has some
manuscripts that are 300 years old and
so then we took seriously church fathers
like Tertullian and the Year 190 he says
look if you don't believe me why don't
you look at the originals of Paul's
letters and actually names five
different cities seven different letters
of Paul which he claimed were still in
existence well in the year 190 that
would make these letters a hundred and
thirty five hundred and forty years old
well it turns out he isn't just making
this up this isn't nonsense
we actually have hard evidence that
literature was treasured books were
expensive no wonder they take good care
of them and preserve them and could last
two or three hundred years yeah it seems
to make sense when you look at the
totality of the evidence now I've read
you know online some people sort of pick
it to chileans say that he was
exaggerating or making a apologetic
point but but when you start looking at
it's not just him saying it's it's the
research that you've done it's the
matrix of evidence and and just the if
you could talk about this just a common
sense of if a church has the Gospel of
John the original it's not gonna throw
it away it's going to keep it as long as
you possible that just it just doesn't
make any sense that the church would not
treat these original autographs with
great care so I would like you to just
expand upon that for well that's a good
example the Gospel of John Bishop Peter
Bishop of Alexandria that's in North
Africa near the Nile River he refers to
the autograph the original of the Gospel
of John that's in Ephesus where the
faithful venerate it well when he says
this this is in about the Year 290 that
would make the Gospel John two hundred
years old well we now know that that's
quite possible and the other thing that
that he says about it is that you know
it's a public document and he
says by God's grace it still exists now
what does he mean by that if you know
your history in the 290s
Emperor Diocletian is trying to destroy
Christian books and he destroys a lot of
them yes and in fact in the aftermath
Bishop Peter himself is is martyred at
the very beginning of the 4th century so
I think what happened was the early
Christians treasured the autographs of
course they did not just for academic
purposes so they could study them and
copy them and so on but they venerated
them but because they were venerated
they were known and the the state could
confiscate them and destroy them and I
think that's what happened to the
autographs in the 3rd century and the
beginning the 4th century they were
deliberately destroyed and that's why
they disappeared yeah that makes a lot
of sense historically that that the
church would have kept them as long as
possible would not have deliberately
gotten rid of the autographs and that
they disappeared because of persecution
I want to ask you here we're down to
about a minute and a half about the
movie that you were in called fragments
of truth which tells people a lot more
about what we're discussing we just
touched the tip of the tip of the tip of
the iceberg today if you could tell take
about a minute and tell folks about this
great movie I've seen it a couple times
I absolutely love it I want to keep
watching it what we wanted to do was to
show people visually let them see what
the manuscripts are and where they are
so we went to half a dozen different
locations we showed our viewers the
oldest manuscripts and we talked to
experts people who are curators of the
museums and the library's textual
critics papper ologists all of the
experts I I didn't want this my opinion
there wasn't a reflection of my research
I wanted 20 different people around the
world to be interviewed and talk about
the old manuscripts so that people could
see for themselves these things do exist
we have a whole bunch of them they're
good quality
they've been carefully studied and we
have every
reason to have confidence that the text
of the New Testament that we have today
is the text of the New Testament that
the original authors wrote excellent I
want to commend everyone out there to
pick up a copy of fragments of truth
with dr. Evans dr. Evans we want to
thank you so much for taking time out of
your your very busy schedule to share
your expertise with us about this
subject thank you for joining us today
we are so grateful for your work
you're very welcome great to be with you
friends I just want to encourage you to
pick up a copy of fragments of truth
online at faith Life TV it's an
excellent movie you can trust the text
of the New Testament what Jesus said and
what the Apostles taught has been
preserved for us thank you for joining
us today
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