βίβλος, βίβλου, ἡ (or rather ἡ βύβλος (but the form βίβλος is more common when it denotes a writing), the plant called papyrus, Theophrastus, hist. plant. 4, 8, 2f; (Pliny, h. n. 13, 11f (21f)); from its bark (rather, the cellular substance of its stem (for it was an endogenous plant)) paper was made (see Tristram, Nat. Hist. etc., p. 433f; especially Dureau de la Malle in the Memoires de l'Acad. d. Inscriptions etc. tom. 19 part 1 (1851), pp. 140-183, and (in correction of current misapprehensions) Prof. E. Abbot in the Library Journal for Nov. 1878, p. 323f, where other references are also given)), a written book, a roll or scroll: Mat_1:1; Luk_3:4; Mar_12:26; Act_1:20; τῆς ζωῆς, Php_4:3; Rev_3:5, etc.; see βιβλίον. (From Aeschylus down.)

βίβλος biblos 10x pr. the inner bark or rind of the papyrus, which was anciently used instead of paper; hence, a written volume or roll, book, catalogue, account, Mat_1:1 ; Mar_12:26 book; scroll; write, writing.

βίβλος , -ου , ἡ (variant form of βύβλος , the Egyptian papyrus, paper made from its fibrous coat), [in LXX for H5612 , the form βύβ - being sometimes used;] a book, a roll , used much less freq . than βιβλίον , and with a "connotation of sacredness and veneration" ( MM , Exp., x), Mat_1:1 , Mar_12:20 , Luk_3:4 ; Luk_20:42 Act_1:20 ; Act_7:42 ; Act_19:19 ; β . τ . ζωῆς , Php_4:3 , Rev_3:5 ; Rev_20:15 .†

βίβλος [page 111] Nδgeli (p. 19) well draws attention to the connotation of sacredness and veneration which always attaches to βίβλος in its rare occurrences. He quotes Lucian, and two papyri, the first of these referring to old, wise, that is Chaldaean books, P Par 19 .1 (A.D. 138) σκεψάμενος ἀπὸ πολλῶν βίβλων ὠς παρεδόθη ἡμεῖν ἀπὸ σοφῶν ἀρχαίων , τουτέστι Χαλδαϊκῶν , and the other to a citation in a mathematical treatise from a book of Hermes, P Oxy III. 470 .4 (iii/A.D.) βίβλος λέγει κτλ . According to Thackeray ( Arist. p. 55 n. .1 ) what seems to be the earliest use of ἡ βίβλος for a collection of sacred writings is to be found in Aristeas 316. In the NT β . is either Scripture ( Mar_12:26 ), or the Book of Life ( Php_4:3 ), or magical writings regarded as highly potent ( Act_19:19 ), or again a royal pedigree record ( Mat_1:1 ). In accordance with this is the inscription OGIS 56 .70 (B.C. 239) ὧν καὶ τὰ ἀντίγραφα καταχωρισθήσεται εἰς τὰς ἱερὰς βύβλους : cf P Oxy VI. 886 .2 (iii/A.D.) and P Leid W vi. 19, viii. 22 (ii/iii A.D.), both occult or magical. As distinguished from χάρτης , the single sheet of papyrus for writing purposes, βίβλος was the roll, made up of χάρται glued together (Dziatzko Das antike Buchwesen , p. 48), while in contrast to βιβλίον and βιβλίδιον it implies a literary work, see the passages cited above (P Par 19 .1 , P Oxy III. 470 .4 ), and the interesting P Tebt II. 291 .43 (A.D. 162) where a candidate for the priesthood gave proof of his knowledge of hieratic and Egyptian writing by reading from a hieratic book produced by the sacred scribes τοῦ ἐπίστασθαι [ἱε ]ρατικὰ [καὶ ] Αἰγύπτια γράμ [ματ ]α ἐξ ἧς οἱ ἱερογραμματεῖς προήνεγκαν βίβλου ἱερατικῆς . It may be added that βίβλος can still mean the papyrus plant, as P Tebt II. 308 .7 (A.D. 174) τιμὴν βίβλου μυριάδων δύο , the price of 20,000 papyrus stalks, and in the case of the adjective BGU II. 544 .4 (ii/A.D.) ζυγείδας βιβλίνας . For the spelling see the reff. under βιβλίον , the derivative in which dissimilation produced the change of υ to ι . βύβλος , being a decidedly rarer word, naturally yielded to the influence of βιβλίον , and then reactions between the two produced the variations which affect them both and their derivatives.

βίβλος [Etym: Prob. a foreign word.] "the inner bark of the papyrus" (βύβλος): generally, "bark", Plat. "a book", of which the leaves were made of this bark, Dem.

βίβλος, -ου, ἡ (variant form of βύβλος, the Egyptian papyrus, paper made from its fibrous coat), [in LXX for סֶפֶר, the form βύβ- being sometimes used ;] a book, a roll, used much less frequently than βιβλίον, and with a "connotation of sacredness and veneration" (MM, Exp., x), Mat.1:1 Mrk.12:26, Luk.3:4 20:42 Act.1:20 7:42 19:19; β. τ. ζωῆς, Php.4:3, Rev.3:5 20:15.† (AS)