Cruel Hand Lucian. Failure to Communicate. Lucian Recension.

[JoeWallack]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=452XjnaHr1A

JW:
The Lucian Recension Theory is a theory that Lucian of Antioch:

Saint Lucian of Antioch (c. 240 – January 7, 312),[1] known as Lucian the Martyr, was a Christian presbyter, theologian and martyr. He was noted for both his scholarship and ascetic piety.

created a recension of the Christian Bible late third century:

Lucian is also commonly credited with a critical recension of the text of the Septuagint and the Greek New Testament, which was later used by Chrysostom and the later Greek fathers, and which lies at the basis of the textus receptus;[7]

There's not much evidence for the theory but not really any evidence against. Ehrman and Metzger, perhaps the two greatest Textual Critics of all time, both accept the theory. In an old article, Metzger provides the support for the Lucian Recension Theory:

Lucian and the Lucianic Recension of the Greek Bible1

Unfortunately, the article is poorly written and the burden of clearly identifying the reasons supporting the theory fall on the reader. Metzger identifies the following reasons:

• 1) Trained at Antioch - major Christian theological center.
  
  2) Patristics cited Lucian in general as an authority.
  
  3) Jerome is critical of Manuscripts associated with Lucian's name.
  
  4) 2 ancient explicit claims of a Lucian recension.
  
  5) Subsequent scribes used the notation "L" to refer to the Lucian reading.
  
  6) There is much more evidence than the above that Lucian created a recension of the Jewish Bible.
  
  7) The Lucian recension of the Jewish Bible appears to contain Lucian's own original interpolations with the purpose of making the meaning clearer.
  
  8) Lucian editing of the Christian Bible follows 7).
  
  9) Authority before Metzger accepted the theory.
  
  10) There appears to be no known earlier papyrus that tends to support the Lucian text suggesting that it was eclectic.

The Lucian Recension Theory fits well with general observations regarding the historical change in extant manuscripts:

• 1) Pre 300 = General variety and significant unorthodox readings = Manuscripts based primarily on exemplars on hand.
  
  2) c. 300 Lucian recension.
  
  3) 4th century = In Antioch geographical area movement towards standardized recension and orthodox readings.
  
  4) 5th century = 3) spreads outside of Antioch area.
  
  5) 6th century = 3) becomes standard for Greek manuscript transmission (which explains why variation/unorthodox readings lasted longer in Versions).

Joseph

The New Porphyry