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The Deity of Jesus Christ in 1 Corinthians 10:9

Martin Andrews

Member
Site Supporter
"Nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents"

Instead of the reading, "Christon" (Christ), we have "Kurion" (Lord) and "Theon" (God), in some manuscripts and adopted into many of the modern Bible verions. The corruption is subtle, as no one would consider either "Lord" or "God" to refer to Christ, but to God the Father, because it is a reference to the Old Testament, where we read in the Book of Numbers, “So the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and many of the people of Israel died” (21:6).

The Hebrew word for "Lord", used here is "Yahweh", and not "Adonay", which is used for the One, eternal God of the Holy Bible, and which can not be taken in any lower sense. And Paul is very clear that it was the Lord Jesus Christ, in His pre-incarnational state, Who was the One "tested" by the Jews in the wilderness, and it was He, "Yahweh", Who punished them by sending snakes to bite them. The fact that here, as elsewhere, Jesus is called "Yahweh", shows beyond any doubt, that He is the ETERNAL GOD, as the Name means this, and therefore could not have been created at any time, as the Jehovah's Witnesses and others blasphemously teach.

The oldest evidence for the reading "Lord", is the Greek codex Manuscript (Mss.), the Vaticanus, which dates from the middle of the fourth century, and also another Mss of the same time, the Sinaiticus. Of the Ancient Versions, we have the Armenian (5th), and of the Church fathers, Epiphanius (315-403), and Hesychius of Jerusalem (d.451), both of the Greek Church.

On the other hand, for the reading, "Christ", we have the oldest Greek Mss. in existence for this Epistle of Paul, which is know as the Chester Beatty Papyri, P46, and which dates from around 200 A.D.. The other principle Greek Mss. that we have for this reading, is the codex Claromontanus, which is of the 6th century, and many Mss. of later date. Now, to this evidence, we must add the Old Latin Version, which dates before the P46, and which itself was based on Greek Mss. Then we have the Latin Version which was done by the scholar, Jerome, in the fourth century, which he based on the Old Latin Version, and Greek and Latin Mss., which would pre-date his time. To this we add the Syriac Peshitta Version, which some date from the second century, and the Syriac Harclean Versions, which is of the seventh century. Then, we have the old Egyptian Versions, the Coptic Sahidic and Bohairic, of the third and sixth centuries. The Georgian Version, of the 6th century. These versions represent a wide area of their usage, and in different languages, all of which would have been made from Greek Mss., that were available to them. The Patristic (Church father's) evidence dates from a very early time, and would represent Greek Mss. that would have been very early. For starters we have the great Bishop of Lyons, Irenaeus, who was born about A.D. 140, and who was from the Greek Church. Clement of Alexandria (150-215), also knew of "Christ", who also was from the Greek Church. We have the reading "Christ" also supported by two heretics, Marcion (who actually was before Irenaeus' time, as he died in 160), who came from Pontus (in Asia Minor); and Origen (185-254), who was from Alexandria in Egypt, both were from the Greek Church, and both denied the Deity of Jesus Christ! Actually, we can add another whose Christology was also heretical, the Church historian, Eusebius (260-340)who was also from the Greek Church. He denied that Jesus is co-eternal with the Father, which, of course would deny His Deity. It was Eusebius' "creed" from his church in Caesarea, that was the basis for the Nicene Creed, which contains his subordinationism, of the Person of Jesus Christ to the Father. Phrases like, "God from God", where in the Greek, the preposition, "ek" (lit., out of, which is used to denote "source"), was used for the purpose in showing that Jesus Christ derives His "life", from the Father, Who alone is seen as the Fons Deitatis (the fountain of Deity), which he would never use for Jesus. A heresy that has been accepted and taught as fact by many Evangelicals, even in our own time! Eusebius, in his creed also included the phrase, "life from (ek) life", which was not adopted in the Nicene Creed, but his other words, "begotten before all ages from (ek) the Father", was used, in the Nicene clause, "begotten from (ek) the Father". None of these phrases have any Biblical warrant, and must be rejected as being, what the Apostle Paul calls, "doctrines of demons"! From the Latin Church, we have, Ambrose, Bishp of Malan (339-97), Augustine, Bishop of Hippo (354-430), both who knew Greek and used the Greek New Testament. Jerome, as mentioned above. A writer of the fourth century, who is known as Ambrrosiaster, issued a commentary on the Epistles of Paul in the Old Latin text. And, then the British writer, Pelagius (4th cent), who also wrote issued a commentary on the Epistles of Paul, but using the Latin Vulgate text. Then, we also the the Syriac father, Ephraem (306-373), who came from Edessa.

Of the English Versions that have the reading, we have the, King James Version, New King James, Darby, Douay,New Living Translation, 21st Century King James, Webster, Contemporary English Version, New Century Version, Common English Bible, Young's Literal Translation, Holman Christian Standard Bible, Today’s New International Version, New International Version (though the 1984 edtion has "Lord"), and the English Standard Version.

Bruce Metzger, the editor of the United Bible Societies', A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament, accepts the reading, "Christ", but then comments, "The reading that best explains the origin of the others is Christon, attested by the oldest Greek manuscript (P46) as well as by a wide diversity of early patristic and versional witnesses (Irenaeus in Gaul, Ephraem in Edessa, Clement in Alexandria, Origen in Palestine, as well as by the Old Latin, the Vulgate, Syriac, Sahidic and Bohairic). The difficulty of explaining how the ancient Israelites in the wilderness could have tempted Christ prompted some copyists to substitute either the ambiguous kurion or the unobjectionable theon. Paul’s reference to Christ here is analogous to that in ver. 4." (page 560. 3rd edition)

For the reading, "Christon", the UBS committee, have allocated a "C" rating, which "means that there is a considerable degree of doubt whether the text or the apparatus contains the superior reading" (ibid, Introduction, p.xxviii.). However, in the second edition, it was given a "B" rating, which "indicates that there is some degree of doubt concerning the reading selected for the text"! Incidentally, there is no difference between the textual evidence given in the two editions, so, why was the rating down-graded from "B" to "C"? This is the Liberal scholarship that we have to contend with, by those who are responsible of producing Texts for the Holy Bible, which will be used by translator's around the world, who will not challenge the "scholarship", of the likes of Metzger and co.. It is evident from what we read they have said on this text, that their judgement cannot be trusted, and they are no doubt driven by some theological bias, rather than presenting the facts are they are. It is very clear from what they have said, that "The reading that best explains the origin of the others is Christon", and showing textual support from a very early time for it, and, yet they feel content in throwing "considerable doubt" on the Inspired Word of Almighty God. For, this is exactly what they have done here, and elsewhere, when they challenge the reading that is best attested, and no doubt the original, without as much as giving any justification for their actions!

ONLY is Jesus Christ Himself is COEQUAL, COETERNAL and COESSENTIAL, with God the Father, could the Apostle Paul ever have applied an Old Testament passage, which speaks of the actions of YAHWEH to Jesus. The fact that Paul, writing under the guidance of God the Holy Spirit, does exactly that, shows beyond any doubt, that JESUS CHRIST IS ALMIGHTY GOD.
 

TCassidy

Late-Administator Emeritus
Administrator
Instead of the reading, "Christon" (Christ), we have "Kurion" (Lord) and "Theon" (God), in some manuscripts and adopted into many of the modern Bible verions. The corruption is subtle, as no one would consider either "Lord" or "God" to refer to Christ, but to God the Father, because it is a reference to the Old Testament,
Uh, well, actually the Critical Text of Westcott and Hort reads τον κυριον χριστον with κυριον in brackets | | indicating a variant.

And NA/28, the latest iteration of the Critical Text reads τὸν Χριστόν.
 

Martin Andrews

Member
Site Supporter
Uh, well, actually the Critical Text of Westcott and Hort reads τον κυριον χριστον with κυριον in brackets | | indicating a variant.

And NA/28, the latest iteration of the Critical Text reads τὸν Χριστόν.

Thanks for that. I don't own NA only UBS 4th edition and their Textual Commentary, 3rd edition. The W&H I have only reads "κυριον", as does my Nestle which an old original, which has a footnote with "Χριστόν". Does the NA/28 have a note for this?
 

AresMan

Active Member
Site Supporter
Although there is a textual variant in v.9, Christ in v.16 is also the Lord in vv.21-22 who is also the Lord in vv.26,28, which is a quote from Psa 24:1 referring to Yahweh as creator.

Kurios translates the Tetragrammaton in the LXX, which would be what the LXX translation of Psa 24:1 would say.
 
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