he Old
Latin, Vulgate, and Gothic, alone of Versions; in Irenaeus and Origen
(who contradict themselves), and in the Latin Fathers. All the Greek
authorities, with the few exceptions just recorded, of which A and D are
the only consistent witnesses, unite in condemning the evident
blunder[16].

I once hoped that it might be possible to refer all the Corruptions of
the Text of Scripture to ordinary causes: as, careless transcription,--
divers accidents,--misplaced critical assiduity,--doctrinal
animus,--small acts of unpardonable licence.

But increased attention and enlarged acquaintance with the subject, have
convinced me that by far the larger number of the omissions of such
Codexes as [Symbol: Aleph]BLD must needs be due to quite a different
cause. These MSS. omit so many words, phrases, sentences, verses of
Scripture,--that it is altogether incredible that the proximity of like
endings can have much to do with the matter. Inadvertency may be made to
bear the blame of some omissions: it cannot bear the blame of shrewd and
significant omissions of clauses, which invariably leave the sense
complete. A systematic and perpetual mutilation of the inspired Text
must needs be the result of design, not of accident[17].

[It will be seen therefore that the causes of the Corruptions of the
Text class themselves under two main heads, viz. (I.) Those which arose
from Inadvertency, and (II.) Those which took their origin in Design.]

FOOTNOTES:

[10] 2 Kings xxii. 8 = 2 Chron. xxxiv. 15.

[11] [This name is used for want of a better. Churchmen are Unitarians
as well as Trinitarians. The two names in combination express our Faith.
We dare not alienate either of them.]

[12] See The Traditional Text of the Holy Gospels (Burgon and Miller),
p. 21, note 1.

[13] See Traditional Text, chapter ii, Sec. 6, p. 33.

[14] [Perhaps this point may be cleared by dividing readings into two
classes, viz. (1) such as really have strong evidence for their support,
and require examination before we can be certain that they are corrupt;
and (2) those which afford no doubt as to their being destitute of
foundation, and are only interesting as specimens of the modes in which
error was sometimes introduced. Evidently, the latter class are not
'various' at all.]

[15] [I.e. generally [Greek: krabatton], or else [Greek: krabaton], or
even [Greek: krabakton]; seldom found as [Greek: krabbatton], or spelt
in the corrupt form [Greek: krabbaton