Draft Apparatus Part 7

2 Corinthians is checked and up with the other (so far) completed books.

This book had an interesting and extremely messy set of variants in the very first chapter. Verse 6 has at least seven different versions and verse 7 has at least three. Unlike many variants this is not family versus family but edition versus edition.

Here's verse 6 in with the Editions collected by variant type:

1. TreL/Treg/TNT1/TNT2/RP:εἴτε δὲ θλιβόμεθα, ὑπὲρ τῆς ὑμῶν παρακλήσεως καὶ σωτηρίας, τῆς ἐνεργουμένης ἐν ὑπομονῇ τῶν αὐτῶν παθημάτων ὧν καὶ ἡμεῖς πάσχομεν, καὶ ἡ ἐλπὶς ἡμῶν βεβαία ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν· εἴτε παρακαλούμεθα, ὑπὲρ τῆς ὑμῶν παρακλήσεως καὶ σωτηρίας,
2. Stp/Elz: ειτε δε ... ειτε παρακαλουμεθα υπερ της υμων παραλκησεως και σωτηριας και η ελπις ημων βεβαια υπερ υμων
3. Bez: ειτε δε ... ειτε παρακαλουμεθα της ενεργουμενης εν υπομονη των αυτων παθημαθων ων και ημεις πασχομεν και η ελπις βεβαια υπερ υμων
4. Scr: ειτε δε ... πασχομεν ειτε παρακαλουμεθα υπερ της υμων παρακλησεως και σωτηριας
5. F35/HF/TH: και η ελπις ημων βεβαια υπερ υμων ειτε παρακαλουμεθα υπερ της υμων παρακλησεως και σωτηριας Omit 
6. WH/N04/NA/SBL: ειτε δε ... ειτε παρακαλουμεθα υπερ της υμων παρακλησεως της ενεργουμενης εν υπομονη των αυτων παθηματων ων και ημεις πασχομεν
7. Tisc: ειτε δε ... ειτε παρακαλουμεθα υπερ της υμων παρακλησεως της ενεργουμενης εν υπομενη των αυτων παθηματων ων και ημεις πασχομεν και η ελπις ημων βεβαια υπερ υμων
   

Number one in the list is the four versions of Tregelles' GNT I have included. As you can see Robinson-Pierpont agrees 100% with them.

Second is Stephanus and Elzevir. It isn't surprising they agree, they are very close in many ways. Despite being published in between the two, Beza (3) goes its own way, as does the much later Scrivener (4).

Number five includes the other two Byzantine texts (F35 and Hodges Farstad) and the Tyndale House GNT. These three seem to omit a lengthy portion of verse 6, but in reality they all simply shift it to the beginning of verse 7. Likewise, Scrivener, Wescott Hort, Nestle 1904/13, NA28 and SBLGNT all do a similar thing by moving και η ελπις ημων βεβαια υπερ υμων to the beginning of verse 7. This is despite the fact that Scrivener varies significantly from the other four in verse 6 as you can see below:

Scr εἴτε δὲ θλιβόμεθα, ὑπὲρ τῆς ὑμῶν παρακλήσεως καὶ σωτηρίας, τῆς ἐνεργουμένης ἐν ὑπομονῇ τῶν αὐτῶν παθημάτων ὧν καὶ ἡμεῖς πάσχομεν· εἴτε παρακαλούμεθα, ὑπὲρ τῆς ὑμῶν παρακλήσεως καὶ σωτηρίας:
WH/N04/NA/SBL εἴτε δὲ θλιβόμεθα, ὑπὲρ τῆς ὑμῶν παρακλήσεως καὶ σωτηρίας· εἴτε παρακαλούμεθα, ὑπὲρ τῆς ὑμῶν παρακλήσεως τῆς ἐνεργουμένης ἐν ὑπομονῇ τῶν αὐτῶν παθημάτων ὧν καὶ ἡμεῖς πάσχομεν,

A fairly significant difference in verse 6 but agreement in verse 7.

Now, as with many of these variants and despite the messiness of it, there is little of theological importance in this collection of variants. These verses are part of Paul's greetings to the congregation at Corinth before he gets into the meat of the letter itself.

We can see how this affects the English by the following:

Darby (Tregelles): 6  But whether we are in tribulation, it is for your encouragement and salvation, wrought in the endurance of the same sufferings which we also suffer, 7 (and our hope for you is sure;) or whether we are encouraged, it is for your encouragement and salvation: knowing that as ye are partakers of the sufferings, so also of the encouragement.

Majority Text Translation (RP GNT) 6 Now if we are afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effective for enduring the same sufferings which we also suffer. 7 (And our hope for you is steadfast); if we are comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation, knowing that as you are partakers of the sufferings, thus also you will partake of the consolation.

KJV (TR) 6 And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. 7 And our hope of you is stedfast, knowing, that as ye are partakers of the sufferings, so shall ye be also of the consolation.

LSB (NA) 6 But whether we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or whether we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is working in your perseverance in the same sufferings which we also suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort.

I find it interesting how this became so varied. We aren't talking about simple word order or a couple of words misspelled or different grammatical forms. No, entire phrases are gone or moved either within the verse or to the next. So it's unlikely there was a theological battle over Paul's words, yet somehow we have ended up with so many different versions of these verses in the printed editions. It will be interesting to see how other editions deal with this when I begin to add them to the apparatus.