Codex Climaci Rescriptus

The codex is a 146 leaf remnant of nine separate manuscripts, seven of which are in Christian Palestinian Aramaic, which have been dated to the 5th or 6th century AD; and two of which are in Greek, which have been dated to the 7th or 8th century AD.

The Christian Palestinian Aramaic sections contain significant parts of the four Gospels, as well as the Acts and Epistles, and the remains of chapters of the Old Testament in Christian Palestinian Aramaic, on 112 leaves (23 by 18.5 mm), written in two columns per page, 18 to 23 lines per page in an adapted Syriac Estrangela square script. This manuscript, based on an original text which may date from the 4th century, is one of the largest corpus of Christian Palestinian Aramaic next to the Codex Sinaiticus Rescriptus from the Monastery of Saint Catherine, a dialect that is related to Galilean Aramaic, the presumably dialect of Jesus.

The Greek section contains the text of the four Gospels, with numerous lacunae, on 34 parchment leaves (23 by 15.5 cm). Written in two columns per page, 31 lines per page, in uncial letters.[2][3] In September 2014, it was announced that Codex Climaci Rescriptus contains early texts of Aratus and Eratosthenes in its Greek underwriting.[4] The Christian Palestinian Aramaic texts were read and edited by Agnes Smith Lewis and the Greek text by Ian A. Moir[5], and most of the Christian Palestinian Aramaic part was later improved for the readings and reedited by Christa Müller-Kessler and Michael Sokoloff[6]. Two folios are attributed to the Dormition of the Mother of God and were reedited[7]. Eight folios could be added from the New Finds in Monastery of Saint Catherine[8][9]

The Codex's upper text contains two Syriac treatises of Johannes Climacus (hence name of the codex): the Scala paradisi and portions of the Liber ad pastorem.[10]

In Christian Palestinian Aramaic:

CCR 1

a Gospel-book in Christian Palestinian Aramaic, including the texts of Matthew and Mark

Matt. 21:23-41; 27-31; 22:40-23:1; 23:1-25; 24:42-46; 24: 25:14; 26:24-32; 26:40-49; 27:9-19; 27:39-48; 27:64-28:3; 28:4-10

Mark 1:1-10; 1:20-30; 2:2-11; 17-24

CCR 2

a Gospel of John in Christian Palestinian Aramaic, plus

the Acts and Epistles

John 1:1-9

(The Sotheby's catalogue reports this, but its list of folios reads "I John 1:1-9," i.e., First Epistle, not Gospel. Since it is on the back of II Peter 3:16-18 (136r & v), in canonical order, the ms may have the Epistle text.)[11]

Acts 19:31-36; 20:1; 20:2-7; 20:8-14; 21:3-8; 21:9-14; 24:25-25:1; 25:3-26; 26:23-29; 27:1-13; 27:14-27

Romans 4:17-22; 5:4-15; 6:14-19; 7:2-11; 8: 9-21; 9:30;10:3-9; 15:11-21

I Corin. 1:6-23; 2:10-3:5; 4:1-15; 5:7-6:5; 10:18-31; 12:12-24; 13:4-11; 14:4-7; 14:8-14; 14:14-24; 14:24-37; 15:3-10; 15:10-24; 15:24-49; 16:3-16; 16:16-24

II Corin. 1:1-3; 1:23-2:11; 2:11-3:5; 4:18-5:6; 5:6-12; 6:3-16; 7:3-8

Galat. 1:1-23; 3:20-24; 4:2; 4:4-29; 5:1; 5:24; 6:4-12; 6: 4

Eph. 1:18-2:8; 4:14-27; 5:8-16; 5:17-24

Phill. 2:12-26

Coloss. 4: 6-17

I Thess.1:3-9; 5:15-26

II Thess. 1:3-2:2

II Timothy 3:2-14

Titus 2:7-3:3

Philemon 11-25

II Peter 1:1-12; 3:16-18

CCR 3

a Lectionary in Christian Palestinian Aramaic, including

significant portions of the Old Testament, as well as the New Testament

Exodus 4:14-18

Deut. 6: 4-21; 7:1-26

I Sam. 1:1; 2:19-29; 4:1-6; 6:5-18

Job 6:1-26; 7: 4-21

Psalms 2:7; 40(41):1; 50(51):1; 56(57):1; 109(110):1; 131(132):1

Proverbs 1:20-22

Isaiah 40:1-8; 63:9-11

Jerem. 11:22-12: 4-8

Joel 2:12-14; 2:20

Micah 4:1-3; 4:3-5

Matt. 1:18-25; 2:1-2; 2:2-8; 2:18-23

Luke 1: 26-38

CCR 7

a biblical codex in Christian Palestinian Aramaic:

Leviticus 8:18-30; 11:42-12:2-8

CCR 8

a Lectionary in Christian Palestinian Aramaic

Matt. 27:27-41

Mark 15:16-19

John 13:15-29

John 15:19-26; 16:9

CCR 4

Fragment of a Homily; Unique record of homily and story about the life of Jesus in Christian Palestinian Aramaic

The Dormition of the Mother of God (Liber Requiei Mariae) with chapters 121-122; 125–126 corresponding to the Ethiopic transmission[12]

In Greek (CCR 5 & 6)

Matt. 2:12-23; 3:13-15; 5:1-2.4.30-37; 6:1-4.16-18; 7:12.15-20; 8:7.10-13.16-17.20-21; 9:27-31.36; 10:5; 12:36-38.43-45; 13:36-46; 26:75-27:2.11.13-16.18.20.22-23.26-40;

Mark 14:72-15:2.4-7.10-24.26-28;

Luke 22:60-62.66-67; 23:3-4.20-26.32-34.38;

John 6:53-7:25.45.48-51; 8:12-44; 9:12-10:15; 10:41-12:3.6.9.14-24.26-35.44-49; 14:22-15:15; 16:13-18; 16:29-17:5; 18:1-9.11-13.18-24.28-29.31; 18:36-19:1.4.6.9.16.18.23-24.31-34; 20:1-2.13-16.18-20.25; 20:28-21:1.[13]

The Greek text of the codex 0250 is mixed with a predominant element of the Byzantine text-type. Aland placed it in Category III.[2]

Matthew 8:12

it has ἐξελεύσονται (will go out) instead of ἐκβληθήσονται (will be thrown). This variant is supported only by one Greek manuscript Codex Sinaiticus, by Latin Codex Bobiensis, syr^{c, s, p, pal}, arm, and Diatessaron.[14]

Matthew 8:13

It has additional text (see Luke 7:10): και υποστρεψας ο εκατονταρχος εις τον οικον αυτου εν αυτη τη ωρα ευρεν τον παιδα υγιαινοντα (and when the centurion returned to the house in that hour, he found the slave well) along with א, C, (N), Θ, f¹, (33, 1241), g¹, syr^h.[15]

Matthew 27:35

It has additional text (see John 19:24): Διεμερίσαντο τα ιματια μου εαυτοις, και επι τον ιματισμον μου εβαλον κληρον (they divided my clothes among themselves, and for my clothing they cast lots) along with Δ, Θ, f¹, f¹³, 537, 1424.

One leaf of the codex was purchased by A. S. Lewis in Cairo in 1895, 89 leaves were received from a Berlin scholar in 1905, and 48 further leaves were purchased in Port Tewfik in 1906.[16]. One leaf was bought by Alphonse Mingana.[17]. Eight leaves belong to the New Finds in the Monastery of Saint Catherine from 1975.[18].

Gregory classified it as lectionary (ℓ 1561).[19] The manuscript was not mentioned by Hermann von Soden in his Die Schriften des NT.

According to Moir this manuscript contains a substantial record of an early Greek uncial manuscript of the Gospels once at Caesarea, which would have been the sister of Codex Sinaiticus, Codex Vaticanus and Codex Alexandrinus, but is now lost.

Until 2010, the codex was housed at the Westminster College in Cambridge. It was listed for sale at a Sotheby's auction, where it failed to sell on July 7, 2009.[20] In 2010, Steve Green, president of Hobby Lobby and evangelical Christian, bought the codex directly from Sotheby's after their auction ended unsuccessfully. The codex now resides in the Green Collection and is featured in its worldwide-traveling exhibition, Passages.[21][22] Eight folios were retrieved from the New Finds of the Monastery of St Catherine in 1975.[23]

• List of New Testament uncials
• Textual criticism

• Agnes Smith Lewis, Codex Climaci rescriptus, Horae Semiticae 8 (Cambridge, 1909), pp. 27–31.
• Hugo Duensing, Zwei christlich-palästinisch-aramäische Fragmente aus der Apostelgeschichte, Zeitschrift für die neutestamentliche Wissenschaft 37, 1938, pp. 42–46.
• Matthew Black, A Palestinian Syriac Leaf of Acts XXI, Bulletin of the John Rylands Library 23, 1939, pp. 201–214.
• Ian A. Moir, Codex Climaci rescriptus grecus (Ms. Gregory 1561, L), Texts and Studies NS, 2 (Cambridge, 1956).
• Christa Müller-Kessler and M. Sokoloff, The Christian Palestinian Aramaic Old Testament and Apocrypha, Corpus of Christian Palestinian Aramaic I (Groningen, 1997). ISBN 90-5693-007-9
• Christa Müller-Kessler and M. Sokoloff, The Christian Palestinian Aramaic New Testament Version from the Early Period. Gospels, Corpus of Christian Palestinian Aramaic IIA (Groningen, 1998). ISBN 90-5693-018-4
• Christa Müller-Kessler and M. Sokoloff, The Christian Palestinian Aramaic New Testament Version from the Early Period. Acts of the Apostles and Epistles, Corpus of Christian Palestinian Aramaic IIB (Groningen, 1998). ISBN 90-5693-019-2
• Christa Müller-Kessler, An Overlooked Christian Palestinian Aramaic Witness of the Dormition of Mary in Codex Climaci Rescriptus (CCR IV), Collectanea Christiana Orientalia 16, 2019, pp. 81–98
• Christa Müller-Kessler, The Missing Quire of the Codex Climaci Rescriptus Containing 1–2 Corinthians in Christian Palestinian Aramaic (Sinai, Syriac NF 38), in Jana Gruskova, Grigory Kessel, Claudia Rapp, Giulia Rossetto (eds.), New Light on Old Manuscripts: Recent Advances in Palimpsest Studies (2020).

• Agnes Smith Lewis, A Palestinian Syriac Lectionary containing Lessons from the Pentateuch, Job, Proverbs, Prophets, Acts and Epistles, Studia Sinaitica 6 (London, 1895), p. cxxxix.
• Christa Müller-Kessler, Christian Palestinian Aramaic and Its Significance to the Western Aramaic Dialect Group, Journal of the American Oriental Society 119, 1999, pp. 631–636.
• Christa Müller-Kessler, Die Frühe Christlich-Palästinisch-Aramäische Evangelienhandschrift CCR1 übersetzt durch einen Ostaramäischen (Syrischen) Schreiber?, Journal for the Aramaic Bible 1, 1999, pp. 79–86.
• Sebastian P. Brock, Ktabe mpassqe: Dismembered and Reconstructed Syriac and Christian Palestinian Aramaic Manuscripts: Some Examples, Ancient and Modern, Hugoye. Journal of Syriac Studies 15, 2012, pp. 7–20.

• Uncial 0250 at the Wieland Willker, "Textual Commentary"