In plain language and with ample illustration, Paul D. Wegner presents an overview of the history and methods, aims and results of textual criticism of the whole Bible--the Hebrew Old Testament and the Greek New Testament. You will gain an appreciation for the vast work that has been accomplished in preserving the text of Scripture and find a renewed confidence in its reliability.

Textual Criticism of the Bible provides a starting point for the study of both Old and New Testament textual criticism. In this book, you will be introduced to the world of biblical manuscripts and learn how scholars analyze and evaluate all of that textual data to bring us copies of the Bible in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek that can be used for translating the Bible into modern languages. Textual Criticism of the Bible surveys the field, explains technical terminology, and demonstrates in numerous examples how various textual questions are evaluated. Complicated concepts are clearly explained and illustrated to prepare readers for further study with either more advanced texts on textual criticism or scholarly commentaries with detailed discussions of textual issues. You may not become a textual critic after reading this book, but you will be well prepared to make use of a wide variety of text--critical resources.

This study deals with Latin texts from the twelfth to the fifteenth century that discuss the emendation of the Latin Bible. After consideration of the medieval terminology for different versions of the Bible, it offers an overview of the transmission of the Latin Bible in the Middle Ages and its medieval editions. A survey of the cult of Jerome precedes an investigation of statements by textual critics about the status of the Vulgate and other versions of the Bible. The main body of the work is dedicated to the authors’ views of the textual tradition by examining their statements on the status of Hebrew, Greek and Latin manuscripts for the emendation of the Latin Bible. Finally, this study explores the struggle between consuetudo and veritas and the role of grammar in the emendation of the Latin Bible.

Customers in North America who wish to purchase this publication, please contact Augsburg Fortress Press. First published in 1992, Emanuel Tov’s Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible has rapidly established itself as the authoritative reference work for all those engaged in the study of the text of the Hebrew Bible. This thoroughly revised second edition will be welcomed by students and scholars alike. A wide range of readers will find this book accessible and indispensable. Emanuel Tov offers extensive descriptions of the major witnesses to the text of the Hebrew Bible–the Hebrew texts from Qumran, the Septuagint, the Masoretic Text–as well as the Aramaic Targumim, the Syriac translations, the Vulgate, and others. Special attention is given to the exegetical aspects of the textual transmission, literary issues, and the problem of the original shape of the biblical text. Praise for the First Edition: “Emanuel Tov is preeminent in the world in the field of Septuagint studies. This is a solid and durable work which, given its technical character, is written in a readable way.” Frank Moore Cross, Harvard University “Nowhere else can you find such a thorough presentation of how the Bible was transmitted in Second Temple times ... This excellently written handbook represents a major step forward for biblical studies.” Lawrence Schiffman, New York University “History will surely regard Emanuel Tov’s monumental work as the definitive discussion of textual criticism of this generation. A ‘must-have’ for any serious scholar of the Bible!” Sidnie A. White, University of Nebraska “The basic reference work on the textual criticism of the Hebrew Bible for at least the next decade. This is a magisterial work which is badly needed and masterfully done.” Journal for the Study of Judaism “This book will soon be viewed as a classic of biblical studies.” Ralph W. Klein, Journal of Religion “Replete with examples, tables, plates, lucid definitions and explanations, as well as extensive bibliographies, the volume brings together a wealth of information not previously so accessible and makes the theory and practice of textual criticism easily understandable and visually clear.” Judith E. Sanderson, Seattle University

Thirty-three revised and updated essays on the textual criticism of the Hebrew Bible, Qumran and the Septuagint, originally published between 2008 and 2014 are presented in this volume, the third volume of the author’s collected writings. All three areas have developed much in modern research, and the auhor, the past editor-in-chief of the international Dead Sea Scrolls publication project, is a major speaker in all of them. The scrolls are of central importance in the modern textual research and this aspect is well represented in this volume. Among the studies included in this volume are central studies on coincidence, consistency, the Torah, the nature of the MT and SP, the diffusion of manuscripts, and the LXX of Genesis. The previous two volumes are: The Greek and Hebrew Bible: Collected Essays on the Septuagint (VTS 72; Leiden: Brill, 1999). Hebrew Bible, Greek Bible, and Qumran: Collected Essays (TSAJ 121; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2008).

For many years, Professor Joel Delobel has served as a member of the Department of Biblical Studies of the Faculty of Theology, K.U. Leuven (1969-2001). His research has tended to focus on Luke-Acts, Pauline Literature and especially Textual Criticism (he is a member of Das Institut fur Neutestamentliche Textforschung, Munster). His friends and colleagues in the Department of Biblical Studies of the Faculty of Theology and elsewhere have honoured him with a Festschrift on the occasion of his retirement. The congratulatory volume deals with an issue that is dear to him: the mutual link between textual criticism and exegesis, which he himself once referred to as the 'Siamese twins'. A number of international scholars in the field of textual criticism have treated different aspects of this relationship. Some contributions are of a more general nature: B. Aland deals with the criteria used to judge the value of smaller New Testament Papyrus fragments, J. Lust compares the textual critical investigation of the Old Testament to that of the New, W.L. Petersen studies the earliest form of the text of the Gospel. Other contributions are related to a specific text: Mt 21,28-32 (J.K. Elliott); Mk 16,8 (C. Focant); Lk 7,42b (T. Baarda); Lk 22, 43-44 (C.M. Tuckett); Lk 24,12 (F. Neirynck); Jn 4,1 (G. Van Belle); Jn 12,31 (M.-E. Boismard); Jn 16,13 (R. Bieringer); Acts 15,20.29; 21,25 (C.-B. Amphoux); Rom 16,7 (E.J. Epp); Rom 16,25-27 (R.F. Collins); 1 Cor 2,1 (V. Koperski); The Epistle of James (D.C. Parker); Rev 13,9-10 (J. Lambrecht) and Rev 13,18 (J.N. Birdsall); J. Verheyden deals with the New Testament text in the 2nd Century, more specifically in the writings of Justin.

Before the 1960s, the goal of New Testament Textual Criticism was singular: to retrieve the "original text" of the New Testament. Since then, the goalpost has incrementally shifted away from the "original text" to retrieving "any text" or "many texts" of the NT. Some scholars have even concluded that the "original text" is hopelessly lost and cannot be retrieved with any confidence or accuracy. Other scholars have gone a step further to claim that the idea of an "original text" itself is a misconception that needs to be abandoned. If this new approach in NTTC is correct, then the authority of Scripture is weakened or no longer valid. It will be shown in this book that such is not the case. Furthermore, emphasis will be placed on the need to return to the traditional goalpost of NTTC, i.e., to retrieve the original text. Without a generally definitive text, the door will be left wide open to recreate any desired text of the NT. An unsettled original text will result in an unsettled biblical theology due to a lack of any authoritative and standard text. Consequently, it will lead to an unsettled Christian faith and practice.