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==Question: What did early Christians think about alterations to the scriptures?== | ==Question: What did early Christians think about alterations to the scriptures?== |
Justin Martyr, a second-century Christian author, complained that the Jews had altered scripture:
And I wish you to observe, that they [the Jews] have altogether taken away many Scriptures from the translations....[1]
Origen, a third-century Christian author, bemoaned the problem of poor textual transmission even in his era:
The differences among the manuscripts have become great, either through the negligence of some copyists or through the perverse audacity of others; they either neglect to check over what they have transcribed, or, in the process of checking, they make additions or deletions as they please.[2]
Textual scholar Bruce Metzger quoted this passage, and then observed:
Origen suggests that perhaps all of the manuscripts existing in his day may have become corrupt....[3]
The Book of Mormon describes how "plain and precious things" (1 Nephi 13꞉28) were removed from the Bible—Origen here complains of "deletions," from the scriptures, which would be the hardest changes to detect. An alteration may be detectable, but a deletion is simply gone forever.
Corinthian bishop Dionysius complained in the second century:
When my fellow-Christians invited me to write letters to them I did so. These the devil's apostles have filled with tares, taking away some things and adding others. For them the woe is reserved. Small wonder then if some have dared to tamper even with the word of the Lord himself, when they have conspired to mutilate my own humble efforts.[4]
Notes
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