Subject: text divisions of the Gospels

From: "Jean Valentin" <[email-masked]>
Date: 26 Apr 97 22:37:40 +0200

I need some information as to the divisions of the text of the gospel
in greek mss for my work on the Arabic version of Sinai arb 71. This
ms has in the margins several indications, numbers and signs, about
which I find no explanation for the moment. It would be very useful
for me if one of you could provide me with indications as to the
divisions of the text in Greek.
Our texts are divided in chapters and verses. Of course this division
is modern and we don't find it in our mss (except for late Vulgate mss
if my memory is good). I know there have been several systems in
Greek, one of which is in the margins of the NA edition. It doesn't
seem to correspond with what I find in my ms, so I suspect it follows
another system or has its own.
There are three series of signs in my margins : (1) occasional
indications of the Eusebian canons, this isn't a problem since it is
well known. (2) Big Roman numbers occurring more or less regularly,
indicating portions of text having approximately the size of our
chapters (but not cutting the text at eh same places). I give a table
of these, so that one of you who is acquainted with text divisions in
the mss might eventually recognize if it corresponds to a system he
knows. In this system, Mt has 28 "chapters" and Mk has 14. (3) Other
signs I haven't been able to read : one looks like a digamma (or an
the armenian letter corresponding to beta), and the other looks like a
nu or a pi (or the armenian letter corresponding to o-micron).

division	folio	verse	remarks

Matthieu
XXIIII	1 r°		23.13
[XXV]	2 r°		23.37	wrongly written XV
XXVI	5 v°	26.1
XXVII	6 v°		26.30	in front of the preceding verse
XXVIII	9 v°		27.26

Marc
I is not indicated; probably beginning of Mk
II	12 v°		1.29
III	14 r°		2.17	mddle of a pericope!
IIII	15 v°		3.31	with annotation in Arabic : "4th chap."
V	17 v°		5.21		alinea after the verse
VI	19 v°		6.30
VII	21 v°		7.24
VIII	24 r°		9.30
[VIIII] 26 r°		10.32	wrongly written VIIIII
X	28 r°		11.27
XI	30 r°		13.3
XII	31 r°		13.37 or 14.1
XIII	absent, but fol. 32 is mutilated (misses a corner)
XIIII	33 v°	14.60

Luc
I	37 v°		1.21		thus not 1.1 !  middle of a pericope
II	40 v°		2.34		middle of a pericope
III	41 r°		3.1
IIII	42 v°		4.1
V	45 r°		5.16
VI	48 r°		7.1

OTHER UNIDENTIFIED SIGNS

folio	verse

Matthieu
1 r°		23.9
5 v°		26.1
8 v°		27.2

Marc
12 r°	1.9	with a mark in the text.
13 r°	1.35
16 r°	4.10
18 r°	6.1
21 r°	7.17
22 v°	8.27
23 v°	9.11
24 r°	9.29
27 r°	11.1
33 v°	14.64

Luc
37 v°	1.26
41 r°	2.41
42 r°	3.18
43 v°	4.23
"  " 	4.28
45 v°	5.27
46 r°	6.13

Thanks for your help!

---------------------------------------------------------
Jean Valentin - Brussels - Belgium
---------------------------------------------------------
"If love is the answer, would you please repeat the question?"
---------------------------------------------------------

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From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 97 18:43:18 +0100

>another system or has its own.

With respect to text divisions you should consult H. von Soden, Die Schriften 
des Neuen Testaments..., I. Teil: Untersuchungen, I. Abteilung: Die Textzeugen, 
Goettingen, 1911, pp. 388-485. Following O. Schmid, Ueber verschiedene 
Einteilungen der Heiligen Schrift, Graz, 1892, von Soden (pp. 476.483) points 
out that our modern chapter division goes back to Stephan Langton prior to 1206 
AD, whereas our modern verse division goes back to Stephanus' editions (1551, 
1555).

>knows. In this system, Mt has 28 "chapters" and Mk has 14. 

The latin mumbers from the margin of your arabic MS seem to roughly equate our 
modern chapter division, as far as I understand. Since this modern _latin_ 
chapter division also made its way in some (late) Greek MSS, maybe it's also the 
source for the arabic MS.  
BTW -- What is the date of your arabic MS? Are there different hands detectable? 
Do the marginal notes belong to the original scribe?

>(3) Other signs I haven't been able to read :

You should check von Soden.

Ulrich Schmid, Muenster