The Egerton gospel.

[Ben C. Smith]

Egerton Gospel

Information

Sources: Papyrus Egerton 2 & Köln 255 (century II or early century III).
The Egerton Gospel is long enough that its status as a gospel text of some kind seems assured. It has been at the epicenter of a lively debate as to the date of the papyrus fragments, particularly since it was discovered that Köln 255 and fragment 1 of Egerton 2 are from the same page.
Index to other gospel texts.

Text and Translation

Papyrus Egerton 2 & Köln 255	Papyrus Egerton 2 & Köln 255
Fragment 1 Verso / Köln 255 Verso 1 [................]ι̣. ὁ δὲ / 2 [Ἰ(ησοῦς) εἶπεν] τ̣ο̣ῖ̣ς̣ ν̣ο̣μικο[ῖς· κολά- / 3 [ζετε πά]ντα̣ τ̣ὸν παραπράσσ[οντα / 4 [καὶ ἄνο]μον καὶ μὴ ἐμέ· ε[ἰ γ]ὰρ / 5 [... νο]μοπ̣οιεῖ, π̣ῶς ποιε̣[ῖ·] π̣ρὸς / 6 [δὲ τοὺς] ἄ[ρ]χ̣οντ̣ας τοῦ λαοῦ [στ]ρ̣α̣- / 7 [φεὶς εἶ]π̣ε̣ν τὸν λόγον τοῦτο̣[ν·] ἐρ̣αυ- / 8 [νᾶτε τ]ὰ̣ς γραφάς, ἐν αἷς ὑμεῖς δο- / 9 [κεῖτε] ζωὴν ἔχειν· ἐκεῖναί ε̣ἰ̣[σ]ι̣ν̣ / 10 [αἱ μαρτ]υροῦσαι περὶ ἐμοῦ· μὴ ν̣[ο-] / 11 [μίσητε ὅ]τι ἐγὼ ἦλθον κατηγο[ρ]ῆσαι / 12 [ὑμῶν] πρὸς τὸν π(ατέ)ρα μου· ἔστ̣ιν / 13 [ὁ κατη]γο̣ρῶν ὑμῶν Μω(ϋσῆς), εἰς ὃν / 14 [ὑμεῖς] ἠ̣λπίκατε· α[ὐ]τῶν δὲ λε- / 15 [γόντω]ν· ε[ὖ] οἴδαμεν ὅτ̣ι̣ Μω(ϋσεῖ) ἐλ̣ά̣- / 16 [λησεν] ὁ θ(εό)ς· σὲ δὲ οὐκ οἴδαμεν / 17 [πόθεν εἶ]· ἀποκριθεὶς ὁ Ἰη̣(σοῦς) εἶ- / 18 [πεν αὐτο]ῖς· νῦν κατηγορεῖται / 19 [ὑμῶν ἡ ἀ]π̣ιστ̣εῖ̣[α] / τοῖς ὑπ᾿ α̣ὐτοῦ 20 [γεγραμ]μ̣έ̣ν̣/ο̣ις· εἰ γὰρ ἐπι- 21 / [στεύσατε Μω(ϋσεῖ)], ἐπιστεύσατε ἄ[ν] 22 / [ἐμοί· πε]ρ[ὶ] ἐμοῦ̣ γὰρ ἐκεῖνο[ς] 23 / [ἔγραψε]ν τοῖς πατ[ρά]σ̣ι̣ν ὑ̣μῶ[ν.] 24 / [...]ε̣[....]	Fragment 1 Verso / Köln 255 Verso 1 [................]? And / 2 [J(esus) said] to the lawye[rs, "Pun- / 3 [ish ev]ery wrongdo[er / 4 [and l]aw[less one] and not me. [F]or i[f] / 5 [...] does the [l]aw, how he doe[s] (it)." / 6 [But he tu]rn[ed toward the] ru[l]ers of the / 7 people [and sa]id thi[s] word: "Se[arch] / 8 [t]he scriptures, in which you yourselves sup- / 9 [pose] you have life; these a[r]e / 10 [the ones test]ifying concerning me. Do not / 11 t[hink t]hat I myself came to accu[s]e / 12 [you] before my f(athe)r; [the] one who / 13 [acc]uses you is Mo(ses), upon whom / 14 [you] hoped." And when t[h]ey sa[id,] / 15 We we[ll] know that G(od) sp[oke] / 16 to Moses; but you, we do not know / 17 [whence you are,"] Je(sus) answered and / 18 sa[id] to [them,] "Now what is accused is / 19 [your un]belie[f] / in the things 20 [writ]e/n by him; for if you had be- 21 / [lieved Mo(ses)], you wou[ld] have believed 22 / [in me.] For tha[t] one [wrot]e concer]n[ing] 23 / me to you[r] fat[her]s. 24 / [...]?[....]
Fragment 1 Recto \ Köln 255 Recto 1 \ [... τῷ ὄ]χ̣λ̣ῳ̣ [....] β[...] 2 \ [... δὲ] λίθους ὁμοῦ̣ λ̣ι̣[θάσω-] 3 \ σι[ν αὐ]τ̣όν· καὶ ἐπέβαλον̣ [τὰς] 4 \ χεῖ[ρας] αὐτῶν ἐπ᾿ αὐτὸν οἱ̣ [ἄρχον-] 5 \ τες [ἵ]ν̣α πιάσωσιν καὶ̣ παρ̣[αδώ]σω 6 \ [σι]ν τ̣ῷ̣ ὄχλῳ̣· καὶ οὐκ ἠ̣[δύναντο] 7 \ αὐτὸν πιάσαι ὅτι οὔπω ἐ[ληλύθει] 8 \ αὐτοῦ ἡ ὥρα τῆς παραδό̣[σεως]· 9 \ α̣ὐ̣τὸς δὲ ὁ κ(ύριο)ς ἐξελθὼν [ἐκ τῶν χεί-] 10 \ ρων ἀπένευσεν ἀπ᾿ α̣[ὐτῶν·] 11 \ καὶ̣ [ἰ]δοὺ λεπρὸς προσελθ̣[ὼν αὐτῷ] 12 \ λέγει· διδάσκαλε Ἰη(σοῦ), λε̣[προῖς συν−] 13 \ οδεύων καὶ συνεσθίω[ν αὐτοῖς] 14 \ ἐν τῷ πανδοχείω̣ ἐλ[έπρησα] 15 \ καὶ αὐτὸς ἐγώ· ἐὰν̣ [ο]ὖν̣ [σὺ θέλῃς,] 16 \ καθ̣αρίζοµαι· ὁ δὴ κ(ύριο)ς [ἔφη αὐτῷ·] 17 \ θ̣έ̣λ̣[ω,] καθαρίσθητι· [καὶ εὐθέως] 18 [α]π̣\έστη ἀπ' αὐτου ἡ λέπ̣[ρα· λέγει] 19 δὲ αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰη(σοῦς)· \ [?] π̣ο̣ρε[υθεὶς σεαυ−] 20 τ̣ὸν ἐπίδειξον \ τοῖ[ς ιερεῦσιν] 21 κ̣αὶ ἀνένεγκον [περὶ τοῦ κα−] \ 22 [θ]αρισµοῦ ὡς π̣ρ̣ο̣[σ]έ̣[ταξεν Μω(ϋσῆς) καὶ] \ 23 [µ]ηκέτι ἁ[µά]ρτανε.... \	Fragment 1 Recto \ Köln 255 Recto 1 \ [... to the c]rowd [....] ?[...] 2 \ [... and] stones together to 3 \ s[to]n[e h]im and the [rul-] 4 \ ers were casting their han[ds] upon 5 \ him [t]o seize (him) and de[li]v[e]r 6 \ (him) to the crowd; and [they] c[ould] not 7 \ seize him since his hour had not yet 8 \ c[ome] to be deliv[ered] up· 9 \ But the L(or)d himself went out [from their] 10 \ [han]ds and withdrew away from t[hem.] 11 \ And [be]hold, a leper ca[me] toward [him] 12 \ and says, "Teacher Je(sus), while traveling 13 \ [together] with le[pers] and eatin[g] together with [them] 14 \ in the inn, even I myself 15 \ became a l[eper.] If [th]erefore [you will,] 16 \ I will be cleansed." Then the L(or)d [said to him,] 17 \ "I will; be cleansed." [And immediately] 18 the lep[rosy] went \ [a]way from him. And Je(sus) 19 [says] to him, \ [?] G[o,] show [your−] 20 self \ to th[e priests] 21 and offer up [concerning the clea]ns- \ 22 [í]ng as Mo(ses) com[m]a[nded and] \ 23 s[í]n [n]o more [....] \
Fragment 2 Recto 1 [................ παραγε-] 2 -νόμενοι πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐξ̣[ετασ-] 3 τικῶς ἐπείραζον αὐτὸν λ̣[έγοντες·] 4 Διδάσκαλε Ἰη(σοὖ), οἴδαμεν ὅτι̣ [ἀπὸ θ(εο)ῦ] 5 ἐλήλυθας· ἅ γὰρ ποιεῖς μα̣[ρτυρεῖ] 6 ὑπὲρ το[ὺ]ς προφ(ήτ)ας πάντας· [λέγε οὖν] 7 ἡμῖν· ἐξὸν τοῖς βα(σι)λεῦσ̣[ιν ἀποδοῦ-] 8 ναι τὰ ἀν̣[ή]κοντα τῇ ἀρχῇ; ἀπ̣[οδῶμεν αὐ-] 9 τοις ἢ μ̣[ή;] ὁ δὲ Ἰη(σοῦς) εἰδὼς [τὴν δι-] 10 άνοιαν [αὐτ]ῶν ἐμβρειμ[ησάμενος] 11 εἴπεν α[ὐτοῖς·] τί με καλεῖτ[ε τῷ στό-] 12 ματι ὑμ[ῶν δι]δάσκαλον; μ[ὴ ἀκού-] 13 οντες ὃ̣ [λ]έγω; καλῶς Ἠ[σ(αϊ)ας περὶ ὑ-] 14 μῶν ἐπ[ρο]φ̣(ήτευ)σεν εἰπ̣ώ̣ν· ὁ̣ [λαὸς οὗ-] 15 τος τοῖς [χείλ]εσιν αὐτ̣[ῶν τιμῶσιν] 16 με, ἡ [δὲ καρδί]α αὐτῶ̣[ν πόρρω ἀπέ-] 17 χ̣ει ἀπ' ἐ̣[μοῦ· μ]άτ̣η̣[ν με σέβονται.] 18 ἐ̣ν̣τ̣ά̣λ̣[ματα....]	Fragment 2 Recto 1 [................ having ar-] 2 -rived toward him they st[renuous-] 3 ly tested him, s[aying,] 4 "Teacher Je(sus), we know that you have 5 come [from G(o)d]; for the things you do 6 te[stify] beyond all th[e] proph(et)s. [So tell] 7 us: is it proper to [gi]ve to the k(i)ng[s] 8 the things pert[a]ining to their rule? Shall [we give] 9 (it) to [th]em or n[ot?] But Je(sus) knew [the]ir 10 [m]ind and became enrag[ed] and 11 said [to] t[hem,] "Why do yo[ú] call me [te]acher 12 [with] yo[ur mou]th, but do n[ot hear] 13 what I [s]ay? Well did I[s(ai)ah] p[ro]ph(e)sy 14 [concerning y]ou, saying, '[Th]is [people] 15 [honors] me with the[ir li]ps, 16 [but] thei[r hear]t [h]olds itself far [away] 17 from m[e. V]ain[ly do they worship me.] 18 command[ments....]
Fragment 2 Verso 1 [...]τῷ̣ τ̣ό̣π̣ῳ̣ [κ]α̣τακλείσαν- 2 [...] ὑ̣π̣ο̣τέτακτ̣α̣[ι] ἀδήλως 3 [...] τ̣ὸ βάρος α̣ὐτοῦ ἄστα̣τ̣ο(ν) 4 [...] ἀπ̣ο̣ρηθέντ̣ω̣ν δὲ ἐκεί- 5 [νων ὡς ] π̣ρὸς τὸ ξένον ἐπ̣ε̣ρώτημα 6 [αὐτοῦ π]εριπατῶν ὁ Ἰη(σοῦς) [ε]σ̣τάθη 7 [ἐπὶ τοῦ] χείλους τοῦ Ἰο[ρδ]ά̣νου 8 [ποταμ]οῦ καὶ ἐκτείνα[ς τὴν] χεῖ- 9 [ρα αὐτο]ῦ τὴν δεξιὰν [ἐγέ]μ̣ισεν 10 [... κ]αὶ κατέσπειρ[εν ἐπ]ὶ τὸν 11 [...]ον· καὶ τότε [...] κατε- 12 [...]ενον ὕ̣δωρ. ε[...]ν τ̣ὴν 13 [...] καὶ ἐπ[...]θη ἐνώ- 14 [πιον αὐτῶν ἐ]ξήγα[γ]εν [δὲ] καρπὸ[ν] 15 [...] π̣ολλ[...] εἰς χα- 16 [ρὰν...] τα[...]υτους.	Fragment 2 Verso 1 [... c]losed up [in] the place 2 [...] arranged undernea[th] unclearly 3 [...] its weight unstabl(e) 4 [...] And while tho[se] men were per- 5 plexed, [as it were,] at [his] strange 6 question, Je(sus) walked [o]ver and stoo[d] 7 [upon the] edge of the Jo[rd]an 8 [Riv]er, and he stretch[ed] out [hi]s 9 right ha[nd] and [f]ill[ed] 10 [... a]nd [he] sowed (it) [up]on the 11 [...]?? and then [...] ????- 12 [...]???? water. ?[...]? the 13 [...] and ??[...]?? be[fore] 14 [them, and] (it) brou[g]ht forth frui[t] 15 [...] man[y..] for j[oy] 16 [...] ??[...]?????
Fragment 3 Recto 1 ἕν ἐσμ̣[εν] 2 μ̣ενω π[... λί-] 3 θ̣ους εἰς [... ἀπο-] 4 κτείνω[σιν αὐτον ...] 5 λέγει· ὁ [...] 6 [.]ε̣[....]	Fragment 3 Recto 1 in ???[??] 2 ???? ?[... st-] 3 ones unto [... they might] 4 ki[ll him ...] 5 says, "The [...] 6 [.]?"[....]
Fragment 3 Verso 1 [...] παρη 2 [...]ς ἐὰν 3 [...] αὐτοῦ 4 [...]ῃ̣μενος 5 [...] εἰδὼς 6 [...]η̣π̣	Fragment 3 Verso 1 [...] ???? 2 [...]? if 3 [...] his 4 [...]?????? 5 [...] knowing 6 [...]??
Fragment 4 Recto [Blank.]	Fragment 4 Recto [Blank.]
Fragment 4 Verso [...]ς[....]	Fragment 4 Verso [...]?[....]

Notes and Quotes

Context and Textual Parallels

Fragment 1 Verso, translation by Ehrman and Plese: And Jesus said to the lawyers: “Punish every wrongdoer and transgressor, but not me. . . . how he does what he does.” Then he turned to the rulers of the people and spoke this word: “Search the Scriptures; you think that in them you have life. They are the ones that testify concerning me. Do not think that I came to accuse you to my Father. The one who accuses you is Moses, in whom you have hoped.” They replied, “We know full well that God spoke to Moses. But we do not know where you have come from.” Jesus answered them, “Now what stands accused is your failure to believe his testimonies. For if you had believed Moses, you would have believed me. For that one wrote to your fathers about me. . . .”
John 5.39 (search the scriptures).
John 5.45-46 (Moses accuses you, if you had believed Moses).
John 9.29 (God spoke to Moses).

Fragment 1 Recto, translation by Ehrman and Plese: . . . to the crowd . . . stones together so that they might stone him. And the rulers sought to lay their hands on him, that they might arrest him and deliver him over to the crowd. They were unable to arrest him because the hour for him to be delivered over had not yet come. But the Lord himself went out through their midst and escaped from them. And behold, a leper approached him and said, “Teacher Jesus, while I was traveling with some lepers and eating with them at the inn, I myself contracted leprosy. If, then, you are willing, I will be made clean.” Then the Lord said to him, “I am willing: be clean.” Immediately the leprosy left him. Jesus said to him, “Go, show yourself to the priests and make an offering for your cleansing as Moses commanded; and sin no more. . . .”
Matthew 8.1-4 = Mark 1.40-45 = Luke 5.12-16 (healing of a leper).
Luke 4.30 (slipping through the midst of a hostile crowd).
Luke 17.11-19 (healing of ten lepers).
John 7.30; 8.20; 10.31, 39 (his hour not yet come).
John 8.11 (sin no more).

Fragment 2 Recto, translation by Ehrman and Plese: . . . [they came] to him and began rigorously testing him, saying, “Teacher Jesus, we know that you have come from God. For the things you do give a testimony that is beyond all the prophets. And so, tell us: is it right to pay the kings the things that relate to their rule? Shall we pay them or not?” But Jesus, knowing their mind, became incensed and said to them, “Why do you call me teacher with your mouth, when you do not listen to what I say? Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far removed from me. In vain do they worship me, commandments. . . .’”
Matthew 22.15-22 = Mark 12.13-17 = Luke 20.19-26 (render unto God).
Isaiah 29.13: וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲדֹנָ֗י יַ֚עַן כִּ֤י נִגַּשׁ֙ הָעָ֣ם הַזֶּ֔ה בְּפִ֤יו וּבִשְׂפָתָיו֙ כִּבְּד֔וּנִי וְלִבּ֖וֹ רִחַ֣ק מִמֶּ֑נִּי וַתְּהִ֤י יִרְאָתָם֙ אֹתִ֔י מִצְוַ֥ת אֲנָשִׁ֖ים מְלֻמָּדָֽה׃ / καὶ εἶπεν κύριος ἐγγίζει μοι ὁ λαὸς οὗτος τοῖς χείλεσιν αὐτῶν τιμῶσίν με ἡ δὲ καρδία αὐτῶν πόρρω ἀπέχει ἀπ᾽ ἐμοῦ μάτην δὲ σέβονταί με διδάσκοντες ἐντάλματα ἀνθρώπων καὶ διδασκαλίας. / Then the Lord said, "Because this people draw near with their words And honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts far from Me, And their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote.
Matthew 15.7-9 = Mark 7.6-7 (lips without hearts).
1 Clement 15.2: λέγει γάρ που· Οὗτος ὁ λαὸς τοῖς χείλεσίν με τιμᾷ, ἡ δὲ καρδία αὐτῶν πόρρω ἄπεστιν ἀπ’ ἐμοῦ. / For it says in a certain place, "This people honours Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me."
Thomas 100: They showed Jesus a gold coin and said to him, "The Roman emperor's people demand taxes from us." He said to them, "Give the emperor what belongs to the emperor, give God what belongs to God, and give me what is mine."

Fragment 2 Verso, translation by Ehrman and Plese: . . . enclosed in a secret place . . . placed underneath inwardly . . . its weight beyond measure. . . . And when they were puzzled, as it were, over his strange question, Jesus walked and stood on the bank of the Jordan river; he reached out his right hand, and filled it . . . . And he sowed it on the . . . . . . And then . . . . . . water . . . . . . and . . . before their eyes; and it brought forth fruit . . . many . . . for joy . . . .

Works Consulted and Links

H. Idris Bell & T. C. Skeat, Fragments of an Unknown Gospel.
John Dominic Crossan, The Historical Jesus.
Bart Ehrman and Zlatko Plese, The Apocryphal Gospels: Texts and Translations.
Torat Yeshua, Le Papyrus d'Egerton 2.
Julio López Saco, Fuentes Grecolatinas del Próximo Oriente, Egipto, Grecia y Roma.
FaithFutures, Scriptures and Jesus.
Early Christian Writings: The Egerton Gospel.
TextExcavation: Papyrus Egerton 2.
Biblical Criticism & History Forum: Other Gospel Texts.

Images

Papyrus Egerton 2 Fragments 1-3 Recto: http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.asp ... us_2_f001r.


Papyrus Egerton 2 Fragments 1-3 Verso: http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.asp ... us_2_f001v.


Papyrus Köln 255 Recto: http://www.uni-koeln.de/phil-fak/ifa/NR ... PK608r.jpg.


Papyrus Köln 255 Verso: http://www.uni-koeln.de/phil-fak/ifa/NR ... PK608v.jpg.

[rakovsky]

Dear Ben,

What might be the story in Fragment 2 (Verso) about sowing at the river? Does something like the story show up in other writings?

As you know, much of the Egerton Gospel's fragments bear similarity to the stories in the canonical gospel. But fragment 2 (verso) has missing words that tells a story that seems different than what we see in the gospels:

Jesus walked and stood on the bank of the Jordan river; he reached out his right hand, and filled it.... And he sowed it on the... And then...water...and...before their eyes; and it brought forth fruit...many...for joy

Here are other translations:

translation by Ehrman and Plese: . . . enclosed in a secret place . . . placed underneath inwardly . . . its weight beyond measure. . . . And when they were puzzled, as it were, over his strange question, Jesus walked and stood on the bank of the Jordan river; he reached out his right hand, and filled it . . . . And he sowed it on the . . . . . . And then . . . . . . water . . . . . . and . . . before their eyes; and it brought forth fruit . . . many . . . for joy . . . .

. . . shut up . . . in . . . place . . . its weight unweighed? And when they were perplexed at his strange question, Jesus, as he walked, stood still on the edge of the river Jordan, and stretching forth his right hand he . . . and sprinkled it upon the . . . And then . . . water that had been sprinkled . . . before them and sent forth fruit . . .

Translation reprinted from: H.I. Bell and T.C. Skeat, Fragments of an Unknown Gospel and Other Early Christian Papyri (London: Oxford University Press, 1935).

Some attempted reconstructions of the verse can be found here: http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/t ... glish.html
One attempt goes: "When a husbandman has enclosed a small seed in a secret place, so that it is invisibly buried, how does its abundance become immeasurable?" This reminds me of Jesus' parable of the mustard seed, which is small but becomes a large plant.

In the opening post in this thread, Fragment 1 Verso is given, then Fragment 1 Recto, then Fragment 2 Recto, then Fragment 2 Verso.
But in order to better understand the fragments in potential context with each other, wouldn't it be better to list Fragment 1 Verso, immediately followed by Fragment 2 Verso, then Fragment 1 Recto followed by Fragment 2 Recto? That is, if the papyrus were intact, the reader would read the page from top to bottom and then turn it over and then read the other side top to bottom?

Bearing that in mind, we would get this order:

• Fragment 1 Verso: Jesus says to search the scriptures because Moses testified about Jesus (John 5)
• Fragment 2 Verso: Jesus maybe asks a riddle about something closed up. Jesus stretches his hand out while standing by the Jordan. Someone sowed something and something brought fruit before peoples' eyes.
• Fragment 1 Recto: Jesus slips through a hostile crowd and then heals a leper (Luke 4.30 : slipping through the midst of a hostile crowd;
  Matthew 8.1-4 = Mark 1.40-45 = Luke 5.12-16 : healing of a leper; John 7.30; 8.20; 10.31, 39 : his hour not yet come ; John 8.11 : sin no more).
• Fragment 2 Recto: People ask Jesus if they should pay taxes and Jesus implies that they speak hypocritically when they call him teacher (Matthew 22.15-22 = Mark 12.13-17 = Luke 20.19-26 : render unto God ; Matthew 15.7-9 = Mark 7.6-7 : lips without hearts).

One would guess based on my chronological list that the story in Fragment 2 Recto would tend to occur between John 5 and John 7-8, or before Luke 4-5, but one couldn't be sure because the elements in the fragments don't always follow the canonical gospels' chronological order (eg. in Fragment 2 Recto, "lips without hearts" should precede "render unto God" according to the synoptics' order).

In relation to this chronology, I note that John 5:35 calls John the Baptist "the burning and shining lamp" that people rejoiced in, and Jesus said not to hide a lamp under a bushel (Matthew 5:14–15, Mark 4:21–25 and Luke 8:16–18). John 6 has the story of Jesus sitting by the sea and multiplying the loaves and then comparing himself to bread from heaven that people must eat. The beginning of John 7 mentions Jesus going to a festival in secret.
Matthew 13 has Jesus sit by the sea and tell parables about sowers, like how in verse 13:8, some seeds "fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold". The Parable of the Mustard Seed is in: Matthew (13:31–32), Mark (4:30–32), and Luke (13:18–19).

I guess that if someone wanted to speculate on the meaning of the puzzle in Fragment 2 Verso, one could imagine that Jesus posed a riddle that compared himself to a secret light (based on his secretive festival attendance in John 7 in contrast to John being an open light that everyone saw), he asked how something hidden could multiply (referring to the parables about the seeds that get buried and produce bountiful fruit) and then he held out his hand, acted like a sower himself, and a lot of fruit/crop was produced out of the ground (like the story of multiplying the loaves). So the story was also serving as a metaphor for Jesus himself as being a secret light (considering the end of John 5 and the beginning of John 7, where Jesus acts opposite from John the Baptist who was very public about his own ministry's meaning as heralding the Messiah) and as multiplying like the bread from heaven (in John 6).

This could help explain where the "bushel" came from in Jesus' parable about a "lamp" under a "bushel", if the context could be both (A) talking about John the Baptist as a lamp (John 5) and the gospel message or Jesus as a light, and (B) Jesus making loaves that are in 12 baskets or bushels (John 6). The 12 bushels could a metaphor therefore for the twelve disciples who have Jesus, His spirit, or his light inside them (referring to the Eucharist and light in them). They are not to keep the light in their bushels, but are to spread it around according to the parable of the light under a bushel.

[Ben C. Smith]

In the opening post in this thread, Fragment 1 Verso is given, then Fragment 1 Recto, then Fragment 2 Recto, then Fragment 2 Verso.
But in order to better understand the fragments in potential context with each other, wouldn't it be better to list Fragment 1 Verso, immediately followed by Fragment 2 Verso, then Fragment 1 Recto followed by Fragment 2 Recto? That is, if the papyrus were intact, the reader would read the page from top to bottom and then turn it over and then read the other side top to bottom?

For the purpose of reconstructing the text itself, as you are doing in this post, your order of listing the fragments is probably best, I agree. For the purpose of merely presenting the fragments in as close to their original state as possible, however, which is what the OP is all about, I believe it is best to keep the recto and verso of each fragment together.

Thanks.