Romans 4

Romans 4:1

:TEXT: “What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found?”

S*,c \ A C* \ 81 \ syr(pal) cop

ASV NASV NIV
RANK: BNOTES: “What then shall we say about Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh?”

B 1739 (“father”)

ASVn RSV : “What then shall we say that Abraham, our father, has found according to the flesh?”

K P 33 104 614 630 1241 1881 2495 Byz Lect syr(p,h)

KJV

The evidence for the text that is in braces reads “father” instead of “forefather.” The word for “has found” was perhaps accidently omitted because the word before it begins with the same letter. Although it is possible that its omission from two manuscripts and that fact that it is found in two different places in the others means that it was not original, it is not the sort of word that a copyist was likely to add. The rare word “forefather” (found only here in the New Testament) was changed to the much more common word “father” (used of Abraham in Luke 16:24; Luke 16:30; John 8:53; Acts 7:2; and Romans 4:12). The second reading in the notes can be translated like the text reading.

Romans 4:19

:TEXT: “his [own] body, which was already as good as dead”

S A C D K P Psi 33 81 104 1241 2495 Byz Lect one lat syr(h+) cop(north)

KJV ASV NASV TEV RANK: CNOTES: “his [own] body, which was as good as dead”

B G 630 1739 1881 most lat vg most syr cop(south)

ASVn RSV NIV : The Greek word for “already” is in brackets in the UBS text. Although it is possible that it might have been added by copyists to heighten the account, the manuscript evidence would seem to indicate that it was original.