The Oxyrhynchus 840 gospel.

[Ben C. Smith]

Oxyrhynchus 840 Gospel

Information

Source: Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 840, century IV.
The Oxyrhynchus 840 Gospel is long enough that its status as a gospel text of some kind seems assured. Its connection, if any, to any of the other gospel texts is unclear.
Index to other gospel texts.

Text and Translation

Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 840	Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 840
Verso 1 πρότερον πρὸ <τοῦ> ἀδικῆσ̣α̣ι̣ π̣ά̣ν̣τ̣α̣ σ̣ο̣φ̣ί̣- 2 ζ̣ε̣τ̣α̣ι̣. ἀλλὰ προσέχετε μή πω̣ς καὶ 3 ὑμε̣ῖ̣ς τὰ ὅμοια αὐτοῖς πάθητε̣. ο̣ὐ̣ γὰρ 4 ἐν τοῖς ζωοῖς μόνοις ἀπολαμβά̣ν̣ο̣υ̣- 5 σιν οἱ κακοῦργοι τῶν ἀν(θρώπ)ων ἀλλὰ̣ [κ]α̣ὶ̣ 6 κόλασιν ὑπομένουσιν καὶ πολ[λ]ὴ̣ν̣ 7 βάσανον. καὶ παραλαβὼν αὐτ̣ο̣ὺ̣ς̣ 8 εἰσήγαγεν εἰς αὐτὸ τὸ ἀγνευτήριον̣ κ̣α̣ὶ̣ 9 περιεπάτει ἐν τῶ ἱερῶ. καὶ προσ̣[ελ-] 10 θὼν φαρισαῖός τις ἀ̣ρ̣χιερεὺς Λευ[εὶς?] 11 τὸ ὄνομα συνέτυχεν αὐτοῖς κα̣ὶ̣ ε̣[ἶπεν] 12 τῶ σω(τῆ)ρι· τίς ἐπέτ̣ρ̣εψέν σοι πατ[εῖν] 13 τοῦτο τὸ ἁγνευτήριον καὶ ἰδεῖν [ταῦ-] 14 τα τὰ ἅγια σκεύη μήτε λουσα̣[μ]έ̣ν̣[ω] μ̣[ή-] 15 τε μὴν τῶν μαθητῶν σου τοὺς̣ π̣[όδας βα-] 16 π̣τ̣ισθέντων; ἀλλὰ μεμολυ[μμένος] 17 ἐπάτησας το̣ῦ̣τ̣ο̣ τὸ ἱερὸν τ̣[όπον ὄν-] 18 τα καθαρόν, ὃν οὐδεὶς ἄ̣[λλος εἰ μὴ] 19 λο̣υ̣σάμενος καὶ ἀλλά̣[ξας τὰ ἐνδύ-] 20 μ̣ατ̣α πατεῖ, οὐδ̣ὲ̣ ὁ̣[ρᾶν τολμᾶ ταῦτα] 21 τ̣ὰ̣ ἅγι̣α̣ σκεύ̣η̣. κ̣αὶ σ̣[τὰς εὐθέως ὁ σω(τὴ)ρ] 22 σ[ὺν τ]ο̣ῖς μ̣αθ̣η̣ταῖ[ς ἀπεκρίθη αὐτῶ·]	Verso 1 "First, before doing injustice, he reasons all 2 things out. But be aware lest somehow you 3 also suffer the same things as them. For not 4 only among the living do the wrongdoers 5 of m(e)n receive their due, but they 6 [a]lso endure punishment and mu[c]h 7 torment." And he took them along and 8 led them into the place of purification itself and 9 was walking around in the temple. And there ca[m]e 10 a certain Pharisee, a High Priest, Lev[i?] 11 by name, and he joined them and s[aid] 12 to the Sa(vi)or, "Who allowed you [to] walk 13 this place of purification and see [the]se 14 holy vessels, neither having bat[h]e[d] n[o]r 15 the f[eet] of your disciples having been 16 [ba]ptized? But after having defi[led it,] 17 you walked this holy p[lace, which] is 18 clean, on which no ot[her man, unless] 19 he has bathed and chan[ged his clo]thing, 20 walks, nor [dares to] l[ook at these] 21 holy vessels." And [the Sa(vi)or straightway stood] 22 wi[th t]he disciple[s and answered him:]
Recto 23 σ̣ὺ̣ ο̣ὖ̣ν̣ ἐνταυθα ὢν ἐν τῶ ἱερῶ καθα- 24 ρ̣ε̣ύ̣εις; λέγει αὐτῷ ἐκεῖνος· καθαρεύω, ἐλο̣υσά- 25 μη̣ν̣ γὰρ ἐν τῆ λίμνη τοῦ Δ(αυεὶ)δ καὶ δἰ ἑτέ- 26 ρας κλίμακος κατελθὼν δἰ ἑτέρας 27 ἀ̣[ν]ῆλθον, καὶ λευκὰ ἐνδύματα ἐνε- 28 δυσάμην καὶ καθαρά, καὶ τότε ἦλθον 29 κ̣α̣ὶ̣ προσέβλεψα τούτοις τοῖς ἁγίοις 30 σκεύεσιν. ὁ σω(τὴ)ρ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀπο- 31 [κρι]θεὶς εἶπεν· οὐαί, τυφλοὶ μὴ ὁρῶν- 32 τ[ε]ς. σὺ ἐλούσω τούτοις τοῖς χεομένοις 33 ὕ[δ]α̣σι̣(ν) ἐν οἷς κύνες καὶ χοῖροι βέβλην- 34 [ται] νυκτὸς καὶ ἡμέρας, καὶ νιψάμε- 35 [ν]ο̣ς̣ τὸ ἐκτὸς δέρμα ἐσμήξω, ὅπερ 36 [κα]ὶ̣ αἱ̣ πόρναι καὶ α[ἱ] αὐλητρίδες μυρί- 37 [ζ]ο̣υ̣[σιν κ]α̣ὶ̣ λούουσιν καὶ σμήχουσι 38 [καὶ κ]αλλωπίζουσι πρὸς ἐπιθυμί- 39 [αν τ]ῶν ἀν(θρώπ)ων, ἔνδοθεν δὲ ἐκεῖ- 40 [ναι πεπλ]ήρω<ν>ται σκορπίων καὶ 41 [πάσης κα]κίας. ἐγὼ δὲ καὶ οἱ 42 [μαθηταί μου] οὓς λέγεις μὴ βεβα- 43 [πτίσθαι βεβά]μ̣μεθα ἐν ὕδασι ζω- 44 [ῆς αἰωνίου τοῖ]ς ἐλθοῦσιν ἀπὸ [...] 45 [... ἀλ]λ̣ὰ οὐαὶ̣ [τ]οῖς [....]	Recto 23 "You, therefore, being here in the temple, are you 24 clean?" That man says to him, "I am clean. For 25 I bathed in the pool of D(avi)d and going 26 down by one ladder I went u[p] by 27 another, and I clothed myself in clothing 28 white and clean, and then came 29 and looked upon these holy 30 vessels." The Sa(vi)or answ[er]ed him 31 and said, "Woe, blind men who do not 32 s[e]e. You bathed in these flowing 33 w[a]ters in which dogs and swine [are] 34 cast night and day, and was[h]ed 35 and smeared the outside skin, with which 36 [eve]n the prostitutes and th[e] flute-girls 37 per[f]um[e a]nd bathe and wipe 38 [and b]eautify for the desi[re] 39 [o]f m(e)n, but within th[ey] 40 [are fi]l<l>ed with scorpions and 41 [all ev]il. But I and [my] 42 [disciples,] whom you say [have] not 43 [been] ba[ptized, have been im]mersed in waters 44 [of eternal] li[fe whic]h come from [...] 45 [... Bu]t woe to [t]he [...."]

Notes and Quotes

Context and Textual Parallels

Verso, translation by Andrew Bernhard: ". . . earlier, before doing wrong, he slyly reasons everything out. Be careful that you do not end up suffering the same fate as them. For the evil-doers of humanity receive retribution not only among the living, but they will also undergo punishment and much torture later." Taking them along, he went into the place of purification itself and wandered around in the temple. Then a certain high priest of the Pharisees named Levi came toward them and said to the savior, "Who permitted you to wander in this place of purification and to see these holy vessels, even though you have not bathed and the feet of your disciples have not been washed? And now that you have defiled it, you walk around in this pure area of the temple where only a person who has bathed and changed his clothes can walk, and even such a person does not dare to look upon these holy vessels." Standing nearby with his disciples, the savior replied. . . .
Mark 11.27 (walking in the temple); compare Matthew 21.23 = Luke 20.1.
Matthew 15.1-20 = Mark 7.1-23 (purity traditions).
Luke 2.11; John 4.42 ("Savior").

Recto, translation by Andrew Bernhard: "Since you are here in the temple too, are you clean?" The Pharisee said to him, "I am clean. For I bathed in the pool of David. I went down into the pool by one set of stairs and came back out by another. Then I put on white clothes and they were clean. And then I came and looked at these holy vessels." Replying to him, the savior said, "Woe to blind people who do not see! You have washed in the gushing waters that dogs and pigs are thrown into day and night. And when you washed yourself, you scrubbed the outer layer of skin, the layer of skin that prostitutes and flute-girls anoint and wash and scrub when they put on make up to become the desire of the men. But inside they are filled with scorpions and all unrighteousness. But my disciples and I, whom you say have not washed, we have washed in waters of eternal life that come from the God of heaven. But woe to those . . . "
Matthew 23.25-26 = Luke 11.37-41 (inside and outside).
Luke 2.11; John 4.42 ("Savior").
Eusebius, Theophany 4.12: Ἐπεὶ δὲ τὸ εἰς ἡμᾶς ἧκον Ἑβραϊκοῖς χαρακτῆρσιν εὐαγγέλιον τὴν ἀπειλὴν οὐ κατὰ τοῦ ἀποκρύψαντος ἐπῆγεν, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τοῦ ἀσώτως ἐζηκότος – τρεῖς γὰρ δούλους περιεῖχε, τὸν μὲν καταφαγόντα τὴν ὕπαρξιν τοῦ δεσπότου μετὰ πορνῶν καὶ αὐλητρίδων, τὸν δὲ πολλαπλασιάσαντα τὴν ἐργασίαν, τὸν δὲ κατακρύψαντα τὸ τάλαντον· εἶτα τὸν μὲν ἀποδεχθῆναι, τὸν δὲ μεμφθῆναι μόνον, τὸν δὲ συγκλεισθῆναι δεσμωτηρίῳ – ἐφίστημι, μήποτε κατὰ τὸν Ματθαῖον μετὰ τὴν συμπλήρωσιν τοῦ λόγου τοῦ κατὰ τοῦ μηδὲν ἐργασαμένου ἡ ἑξῆς ἐπιλεγομένη ἀπειλὴ οὐ περὶ αὐτοῦ, ἀλλὰ περὶ τοῦ προτέρου κατ' ἐπανάληψιν λέλεκται, τοῦ ἐσθίοντος καὶ πίνοντος μετὰ τῶν μεθυόντων. / But since the gospel written in Hebraic characters which has come to us levels the threat, not against the man who hid the talent, but against him who had lived unsafely (for it had three servants, the one eating up the belongings of his master with prostitutes and flute-girls, another multiplying it by the work of trade, and the other hiding the talent, then made the one to be accepted, another only blamed, and the other to be closed up in prison), I wonder whether in Matthew, after the end of the word against the one who did not work, the threat that follows was said, not about him, but about the first, by epanalepsis, the one who ate and drank with the drunkards.

Works Consulted and Links

B. P. Grenfell and A. S. Hunt, The Oxyrhynchus Papyri.
Bart Ehrman and Zlatko Plese, The Apocryphal Gospels: Texts and Translations.
Andrew Bernhard, translation based on Henry Sweet Barclay.
Early Christian Writings: The Oxyrhynchus 840 Gospel.
TextExcavation: Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 840.
Biblical Criticism & History Forum: Other Gospel Texts.

Image

Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 840 Verso: http://members.bib-arch.org/bswb_graphi ... 06700L.jpg.