Textus Receptus Bibles
Wessex Gospels c.1175
Anglo-Saxon
|3:1||Note: Erat homo ex phariseis Nichodemus nomine princeps iudeorum. Soðlice sum phariseisc man wæs ge-nemned Nichodemus se wæs iudea ealdor.|
|3:2||þes com to hym on nyht. & cwæð to hym. Rabbi þæt ys lareow. we witen þæt þu come fram gode. ne mayg nan man þas taken wyrcan þe þu wyrcst buton god beo mid hym.|
|3:3||Se halend hym andswerede & cwæð. Soð ic þe segge buton hwa beo eadniwan ge-kenned ne mayg he ge-seon godes riche.|
|3:4||Þa cwæð Nichodemus to hym. hwu mayg man beon eft akenned þanne he beoð eald. Cwest þu. mag he eft cuman on hys moder innoðe & beon eft akenned.|
|3:5||Se hælend hym andswerede & cwæð. Soð ic þe segge buton hwa beo ge-edkenned of watere & of halegen gaste ne maig he in-faren on godes riche.|
|3:6||þæt þe akenned ys of flaesce þæt is flæsc. & þæt þe of gaste ys akenned. þæt ys gast.|
|3:7||Ne wundre þu for þan þe ic segge þe. eow ge-bered þæt ge beon akende eadniwan.|
|3:8||Gast or-eðað þær he wile. & þu ge-hyrst hys stefne. & þu nast hwanen he cymð. ne hwyder he geð. swa ys ælc þe akenned is of gaste.|
|3:9||Ða andswerede Nichodemus & cwæð. hu magen þas þing þus ge-wurðon.|
|3:10||Se hælend answerede & cwæð to hym. Ðu eart lareow israele folke & þu nast þas þïng.|
|3:11||Soð ic þe segge þæt we sprecað þt we witeð. & we keðeð þæt we ge-sawon. & ge ne under-foð ure cyðnisse.|
|3:12||Gif ic eow eordlice þïng sægde & ge ne lifeð. Hu-mæte ge-lefe ge gif ic eow hefenlice þing segge.|
|3:13||& nan man nastigð to heofene buten se þe nyðer com of heofene. Mannes sunu se þe com of heofonum|
|3:14||ænd swa swa moyses þa neddre up ä-hof on þam westene. swa ge-bereð þæt mannes sunu beo up a-hafen.|
|3:15||þæt nan þare ne for-wurðe þe on hine ge-lefð ac habbe þæt eche lyf.|
|3:16||God lufede middan-eard swa þæt he sealde hys akennedan sune þæt nan ne for-wurðe þe on hine ge-lefð. Ac habbe þt eche lyf.|
|3:17||Ne sende god hys sune on middan-earde þæt he demde midden-earde. ac þt middan-eard sy ge-haled þurh hyne.|
|3:18||ne byð þam ge-demed þe on hym ge-lyfð. Se þe ge ne lyfð (sic) hym. byð ge-demed. for-þan þe he ne lyfde on þanne namen þas akennedan godes sunu.|
|3:19||þæt ys se dom þæt leoht com on middan-eard. & men lufeden þeostre swiðor þonne þæt leoht. Heora werc wæren yfele.|
|3:20||Ælc þare þe yfele deð hateð þæt leoht. & he ne cymð to leohte. þæt hys werc ne sin ge-rihtlæhte.|
|3:21||Witeðlice se þe wercheð soðfestnysse cymð to þam leohte. þt hys werc syn ge-swutolede. for-þam þe hyo synt on göde ge-done.|
|3:22||Æfter þisen com se halend & hys leorning-cnihtas to Iudea lande & wuneden þær mid hym. & fullode.|
|3:23||& Iohannes fullode on ennon wið salim for-þam þe þær wære manega wætere. & hyo to-gadere comen & wæren ge-fullode.|
|3:24||Ða gyt næs Iohannes ge-don on cwartern.|
|3:25||þa smeagdon iohannes leorning-cnihtes & þa iudeas be þare clænsunge.|
|3:26||& coman to Iohanne & cwæðen to hym. Rabbi; se þe mid þe wæs be-genden Iordane. be þam þu kyddest ge-wytnesse. nu he fulleð & ealle cumeð to hym.|
|3:27||Iohannes andswerede & cwæð. ne may man nan þing under-fon bute hyt beo hym of hefonum ge-seald.|
|3:28||Ge sylf me sind to ge-witnesse þt ic sæde ne em ic crist. ac ic em asend be-foran hine.|
|3:29||Se þe bryde hafð se ys brydguma. Se þe ys þas brydguman freond. & stent & ge-hyrð hine. mid ge-fean he ge-blissað for þas brydguman stæfne. þes min ge-fea ys ge-felled.|
|3:30||hyt ge-berað þæt he weaxe. & þæt ic wanige.|
|3:31||Se þe ufenan com se ys ofer ealle. Se þe of eorðan ys; se sprecð be eorðan. Se þe of hefene com se ys ofer ealle.|
|3:32||& he cyð þæt he ge-seah & ge-hyrde & nan man ne under-fegð hys cydnysse.|
|3:33||Soðlice se þe hys ceðnysse. under-fehð. he tacneð þæt god ys soðfestnysse.|
|3:34||Se þe god sende sprycð. godes word. ne seld god þanne gast be ge-mete.|
|3:35||Fader lufeð þonne sune. & sealde ealle þing on hys hand.|
|3:36||Se þe ge-lyfð on hys sunu. he hafð eche lyf. Se þe þam sunu is un-ge-leafsum ne ge-sihð he lyf. ac godes yrre wuneð ofer hyne.|
Wessex Gospels c.1175
The Wessex Gospels (also known as the West-Saxon Gospels) are a full translation of the four gospels of the Christian Bible into a West Saxon dialect of Old English. Designated Royal MS 1 A XIV, it is historically important.
- The Wessex Gospels are the oldest translations into English without the Latin.
- The gospels are written in the Old English West Anglo-Saxon dialect of Northumbria.
- Royal MS 1 A XIV is written on parchment and is also known as the Codex Evangeliorum Anglice.
- The title written at the top of the page, 'Text[us] iv evangelior[um] anglice', is reproduced in the 14th-century catalogue of the Benedictine Christ Church library, but at the Reformation this book was one of many acquired from religious houses by Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury from 1532 to 1534, whose name is written at the top of the page.
- Seven extant copies exist today. The earliest version dates from 990AD.
- Royal MS 1 A XIV was copied directly from MS 441 in the Bodleian library at Oxford. We know this as the same passages have been omitted from both. It has a transmission jump of 185 years.
- MS 441 (990AD) is extant and still resides in the Bodleian Library at Oxford University, England. It was given to the library by Baron Hatton in 1671. Paleographical evidence suggests a Canterbury origin. The earliest extant evidence of ownership is through Archbishop Matthew Parker (1504-75).
- MS Corp. Ch Coll Camb 140 (1000AD) is in Corpus Christi College Cambridge.
- Royal MS 1 A XIV (1175AD) is in the British Library and was presented to the British Museum by King George II in 1757 from the Old Royal Library.
- Royal MS 1 A XIV once belonged to the Prince of Wales: Henry Frederick, (1594-1612), eldest child of King James the First.
Why is this important?
- Desiderius Erasmus had access to these MSS before starting his translation of the Textus Receptus. In the five years prior to starting his translation work Erasmus was Professor of Divinity at Cambridge at a time when the university's benefactors owned these manuscripts.
- The King James Bible translators had access to these manuscripts. All the six KJV translation companies where housed at Oxford, Cambridge and Westminster and all had access to the Wessex Gospels.
- The codex contains the long ending in Mark chapter 16.
- The codex contains the Pericope Adulterae (John 7:53-8:11)