Papyrus 4

Papyrus 4 (𝔓⁴, part of Suppl. Gr. 1120) is an early New Testament papyrus of the Gospel of Luke in Greek. Opinions differ as to its age. It has been dated anywhere from the late second century to the fourth century.

Papyrus 4

New Testament manuscript
Luke 6:4-16
Sign	𝔓4
Text	Luke 1-6 (extensive parts of,)
Date	Late 2nd/3rd century
Script	Greek
Found	Coptos, Egypt
Now at	Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale, Suppl. Gr. 1120
Type	Alexandrian text-type
Category	I

Description

Fragment of a flyleaf with the title of the Gospel of Matthew, ευαγγελιον κ̣ατ̣α μαθ᾽θαιον (euangelion kata Maththaion). Dated to late 2nd or early 3rd century, it is the earliest manuscript title for Matthew and one of the earliest manuscript titles for any gospel (along with John's 𝔓⁶⁶ and 𝔓⁷⁵).

It is one of the earliest manuscripts (along with 𝔓⁷⁵)^[1] of the Gospel of Luke and contains extensive sections of its first six chapters.^[2] It is currently housed in the Bibliothèque nationale de France (Suppl. Gr. 1120) in Paris.

It contains texts of Luke: 1:58-59; 1:62-2:1; 2:6-7; 3:8-4:2; 4:29-32, 34-35; 5:3-8; 5:30-6:16

The Greek text-type of this codex is a representative of the Alexandrian. Aland placed it in Category I.^[3] There is agreement with 𝔓⁷⁵ in 93%.^[4]

Notable readings

In Luke 6:2 — οὐκ ἔξεστιν (not lawful) for οὐκ ἔξεστιν ποιεῖν (not lawful to do); the reading is supported only by Codex Vaticanus Graecus 1209, (Codex Bezae), Codex Nitriensis, 700, lat, cop^sa, cop^bo, arm, geo;^[5]

Some early accounts stated that 𝔓⁴ was used as stuffing for the binding of a codex of Philo, written in the late third century and found walled up in a house at Coptos.^[6] Apparently this account was incorrect, however, as the fragments were actually found stashed between pages of the codex of Philo, not in the binding.^[7]

Philip Comfort and David Barret in their book Text of the Earliest NT Greek Manuscripts argue that 𝔓⁴ came from the same codex as 𝔓⁶⁴⁺⁶⁷, the Magdalen papyrus, and date the texts to 150-175.^[8] Willker tentatively agrees stating 'The [3rd century] dating given is that of NA. Some date it into the 2nd CE (e.g. Roberts and Comfort). This is quite probable considering the use as binding material for a 3rd CE codex'.^[2] Comfort and Barret also show that 𝔓⁴ and 𝔓⁶⁴⁺⁶⁷ have affinities with a number of late 2nd century papyri.^[9] Roberts (1979), Skeat (1997),^[10] Willker^[2] and Stanton^[11] also date the text to the late 2nd century, leading Gregory to conclude that '[t]here is good reason to believe that 𝔓⁴ ... may have been written late in the 2nd century...'.^[10] Frederic Kenyon dated 𝔓⁴ to the fourth century. In 2018, Brent Nongbri argued that it was not possible with current knowledge to date 𝔓⁴ to a specific century, and that any dates from the 2nd to 4th centuries were equally reasonable.^[12] Charlesworth has concluded 'that 𝔓⁶⁴⁺⁶⁷ and 𝔓⁴, though written by the same scribe, are not from the same ... codex.'^[13]

See also

• List of New Testament papyri
• Luke 1–6

Notes

1. Gregory (2003) p.28
2. Wieland
3. Aland, Kurt; Aland, Barbara (1995). The Text of the New Testament: An Introduction to the Critical Editions and to the Theory and Practice of Modern Textual Criticism. Erroll F. Rhodes (trans.). Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. p. 96. ISBN 978-0-8028-4098-1.
4. Philip W. Comfort, David P. Barrett, The Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts, Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton 1999, s. 43.
5. NA26, p. 170.
6. Roberts (1979) p. 8
7. Nongbri, Brent (August 21, 2018). God's Library: The Archaeology of the Earliest Christian Manuscripts. Yale University Press. p. 256–260. ISBN 978-0300215410.
8. Comfort (2001) pp. 50-53, see also Comfort (1999)
9. i.e. P. Oxy. 224, 661, 2334, 2404 2750, P. Ryl. 16, 547, and P. Vindob G 29784
10. Gregory (2003), p.30
11. Stanton (1997) p. 327
12. Nongbri, Brent (August 21, 2018). God's Library: The Archaeology of the Earliest Christian Manuscripts. Yale University Press. p. 263–268. ISBN 978-0300215410.
13. Charlesworth (2007), p.604

References

• Charlesworth, SD (2007) T. C. Skeat, P64+67 and P4, and the Problem of Fibre Orientation in Codicological Reconstruction, New Test. Stud. Vol.53, pp. 582–604, doi:10.1017/S002868850700029X
• Comfort, Philip W. "New Reconstructions and Identifications of New Testament Papyri," Novum Testamentum, Vol. 41, Fasc. 3., (Jul., 1999) pp. 214–230.
• Comfort, Philip W.; David P. Barrett (2001). The Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts. Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers. pp. 46–71. ISBN 978-0-8423-5265-9.
• Gregory, A. The Reception of Luke and Acts in the Period Before Irenaeus, Mohr Siebeck, (2003) ISBN 3-16-148086-4, p. 28
• C. R. Gregory, Die griechischen Handschriften des Neuen Testament, Hinrichs, p. 45.
• Head, P. M. (2005), Is P4, P64 and P67 the Oldest Manuscript of the Four Gospels? A Response to T. C. Skeat, New Test. Stud. 51, pp. 450–457, doi:10.1017/S0028688505000238
• Roberts, Colin. Manuscript, Society, and Belief in Early Christian Egypt Longwood (June 1979) ISBN 0-85672-710-5 pp. 8+23
• Skeat, T. C. (1997), The Oldest Manuscript of the Four Gospels?, New Test. Stud. 43, p. 1-34
• Stanton, G. N. (1997), The Fourfold Gospel, New Test. Stud. 43, p. 327

External links

• Willker, Wieland. A Textual Commentary on the Greek Gospels, (undated+unfinished)
• "Handschriftenliste". Münster: Institute for New Testament Textual Research. Retrieved 13 August 2011.