Earliest manuscript that spells out "Jesus Christ"?

[rgprice]

I know we've discussed this here before, but I don't think a definitive conclusion was ever reached. From what I recall, a statement was made that the earliest scriptural manuscript in which the name "Jesus" is actually spelled out comes from the 5th century. Prior this this is it only written as ΙΣ or ΙΗΣ.

So what exactly is the earliest manuscript that writes out the name "Jesus"? Also, what about non-scriptural writings? Do we have earlier manuscripts from apologists who write out "Jesus" or were they only using ΙΣ/ΙΗΣ as well? Does anyone ever directly explain the nomina sacra?

[Leucius Charinus]

Also, what about non-scriptural writings? Do we have earlier manuscripts from apologists who write out "Jesus" or were they only using ΙΣ/ΙΗΣ as well?

The manuscripts for the "fathers" are almost all very late.

Does anyone ever directly explain the nomina sacra?

No and there is no accepted general academic theory for the existence of these abbreviations. The NHL is also full of Coptic nomina sacra.

[lclapshaw]

As far as I know Codex E is the earliest copy that we have viewtopic.php?f=3&t=8768

If anyone knows of anything earlier I would love to see it.

[lclapshaw]

The earliest associated name for IC is, I believe, Iesuos in a copy of the Septuagint conservatively dated to the early third century.

[rgprice]

The earliest associated name for IC is, I believe, Iesuos in a copy of the Septuagint conservatively dated to the early third century.

Interesting. I would assume that this was a Christian copy that applied the nomina sacra to Joshua son of Nun?

[lclapshaw]

The earliest associated name for IC is, I believe, Iesuos in a copy of the Septuagint conservatively dated to the early third century.

Interesting. I would assume that this was a Christian copy that applied the nomina sacra to Joshua son of Nun?

Correct. The nomia sacra itself makes it likely to be a XCian copy.

[MrMacSon]

As far as I currently know the only forms of the name were IS, IU, and IN and perhaps later IE. The suspension IE would seem to indicate the name Iesos, however the contractions IS, IU, and IN could be any name that started with an i in ancient Greek.

There was also the three letter form, ΙΗΣ.

Here are three instances of the Hebrew hero Joshua/Jesus [Iesous] in Chester Beatty VI (century II):



Two abbreviations (ΙΗΣ and ΙΣ) and one written in full (ΙΗΣΟΥ).

• The missing 'image' was from Ben's textexcavation.com site which is no longer available; but clearly the source is Chester Beatty VI, a manuscript of the Book of Numbers and Deuteronomy, consisting of around 50 partial leaves (out of 108).

On the same page [in the same thread]:

There is also ISOU in Vatican 1899

And get a load of Ƿ37, per Paap:

Paap, Pages 20-21.png (10.93 KiB) Viewed 357 times

I assume Ƿ37 is Papyrus 37, a papyrus manuscript of the Gospel of Matthew: of 26:19-52 on a fragment of a single leaf consisting of one column of 33 lines (40 to 50 characters per line), roughly 12.1 cm by 22.4 cm. Wikipedia says

Certain nomina sacra (ΚΕ ΙΗΣ ΠΝΑ ΙΗΣΥ) are employed in the text. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papyrus_37

with supralinear lines over those Greek 'words' ie. it characterises them as nomina sacra, though, of course, ΙΗΣΥ has more letter-chaaracters than the more frequent two or three character nomina sacra for 'Iesous.' And Wikipedia's representations of them in capital/'uppercase' letters is at odds with Ben's image per Paap.

[GakuseiDon]

Not directly, but indirectly we see it in the works of Justin Martyr, around 150 CE.

There were several "Joshuas" in the OT, which early Christians associated with Jesus Christ. I assume that name is spelled out in the Septuagint. Looking at Zech 6:1 it seems to show "Ἰησοῦς". That's part of Carrier's reasoning that there was a pre-Christian belief in an archangel named "Jesus".

Justin Martyr also discusses Joshua of Nun as a type of Jesus, so even if he had used the nomina sacra for Jesus himself, he had been associating it with the (I assume) the spelt out name in the Septuagint. He does that many times. An example:
http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/t ... rypho.html

[Justin talking to Trypho] "What I mean is this. Jesus (Joshua), as I have now frequently remarked, who was called Oshea, when he was sent to spy out the land of Canaan, was named by Moses Jesus (Joshua). Why he did this you neither ask, nor are at a loss about it, nor make strict inquiries. Therefore Christ has escaped your notice; and though you read, you understand not; and even now, though you hear that Jesus is our Christ, you consider not that the name was bestowed on Him not purposelessly nor by chance.

[rgprice]

Not directly, but indirectly we see it in the works of Justin Martyr, around 150 CE.

There were several "Joshuas" in the OT, which early Christians associated with Jesus Christ. I assume that name is spelled out in the Septuagint. Looking at Zech 6:1 it seems to show "Ἰησοῦς". That's part of Carrier's reasoning that there was a pre-Christian belief in an archangel named "Jesus".

Justin Martyr also discusses Joshua of Nun as a type of Jesus, so even if he had used the nomina sacra for Jesus himself, he had been associating it with the (I assume) the spelt out name in the Septuagint. He does that many times. An example:
http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/t ... rypho.html

[Justin talking to Trypho] "What I mean is this. Jesus (Joshua), as I have now frequently remarked, who was called Oshea, when he was sent to spy out the land of Canaan, was named by Moses Jesus (Joshua). Why he did this you neither ask, nor are at a loss about it, nor make strict inquiries. Therefore Christ has escaped your notice; and though you read, you understand not; and even now, though you hear that Jesus is our Christ, you consider not that the name was bestowed on Him not purposelessly nor by chance.

So in this case what are the earliest manuscripts from JM? Does he use nomina sacra, or does he always it spell it out, or don't we know because all of the manuscripts are late?

[Leucius Charinus]

The earliest MS for JM:
Dated 11 September 1364,
"Parisinus Graecus 450".

"It is a sort of omnibus edition of Justin."