Papyrus 5 is an early copy of the New Testament inGreek. It is apapyrusmanuscript of theGospel of John. It is designated by thesiglum𝔓5 in theGregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts. Using the study of comparative writing styles (palaeography), it has been assigned to the early 3rd century.[1] The papyrus is housed in theBritish Library. It has survived in a very fragmentary condition, which has resulted in differing ways of transcribing the text.
The manuscript is a fragment of three leaves, written in one column per page, 27 lines per page.[1] The surviving text of John are verses 1:23-31,33-40; 16:14-30; 20:11-17,19-20,22-25.[1]
It was written in a documentary hand, in a round, upright uncial of medium size. It uses thenomina sacra throughout (sacred names, these being words/titles considered sacred inChristianity), with the following: (ΙΗΝΙΗΣΠΡΠΡΑΠΡΣΘΥ), though not for ανθρωπος.[2]
There is a tendency to brevity, especially in omitting unnecessary pronouns and conjunctions.[3]
In John 1:34 it reads ὁ ἐκλεκτός together with the manuscripts𝔓106, א,b,e,ff2, syrc, s.
In John 16:17 at line 7 of the recto of the second fragment there appears to be extra space which would require some additional material.[2]: 405
In John 16:20, λυπηθησεσθε originally read λουπηθησεσθε, to which the scribe corrected to λυπηθησεσθε. In 16:21, λυπην originally read λοιπην, to which the scribe corrected to λυπην. In 16:27, it singularly omits εγω. In 20:19 the scribe originally omitted και, but then added it superlinearly later on.[1]: 78
At line 19 of the third folio of the recto (John 20:16) the missing fragment is difficult for a reconstruction. Grenfell & Hunt remarked that there is no space for the ordinary reading ο λεγεται διδασκαλε because a line should have 34 letters, which is too long.[3] Grenfell & Hunt rejected another possible readingκε διδασκαλε, which is found inCodex Bezae (possible conflation), and proposedκε alone, becauseDomine is found inCodex Vercellensis and inCodex Usserianus I,[3] but in the reconstructed text of the manuscript they did not decide to include this proposed variant to the text:
All the editors agree that the space is insufficient for ο λεγεται διδασκαλε (John 20,16) butκε alone is too short and it is not supported by any Greek manuscript. Elliott & Parker have suggested ο λεγεταικε.[4] It was supported by Biblical scholar Peter Head.[2]: 405 Comfort proposedκε μου though this reading is not supported by any known Greek manuscript.[1]: 77 It is close forκε διδασκαλε ofCodex Bezae and Old-Latin Magister Domine or Domine.[5]
The Greek text of this codex is considered a representative of theWestern text-type. Biblical scholarKurt Aland ascribed it as a "Normal text", and placed it inCategory I of his New Testament manuscript classification system.[6] It stays in close agreement withCodex Sinaiticus againstCodex Vaticanus (e.g. John 1:27.34; 16:22.27.28; 20:25).[1] "This agreement is unfortunately obscured by mutilation".[3]: 2
The manuscript was discovered at the end of the 19th century by Grenfell and Hunt inOxyrhynchus,Egypt. The first and third leaves were published inOxyrhynchus Papyri, Part II (1899), no. 208. Biblical scholarCaspar René Gregory classified it under number 5 on his list.[7]The second leaf (John 16:14-30) was published in 1922 as Oxyrhynchus no. 1781.[8]
It was examined by Grenfell, Hunt,Karl Wessely,[9] Schofield, and Comfort.[1]
.jpg)
