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Are there any known historical variants, interpolations, or alternate interpretations regarding the Entrustment of Mary in John 19:26-27?
Specifically the four bold words in verse 26 below?


John 19

[26] "When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy Son!"

[27] Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.


~thank you in advance for sharing your knowledge!

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    Check NET Bible footnotes on basic textual issues, see stepbible.org. No variant.
    – Michael16
    Jul 18, 2022 at 4:27
  • Also see SBL footnotes or apparatus which is freely available on many sites.
    – Michael16
    Jul 18, 2022 at 4:35

1 Answer 1

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There are three textual variations in the MSS of John 19:26, 27, two if which make no difference to the translation or meaning whatever. These are:

UBS5, NA28, W&H, etc.

Ἰησοῦς οὖν ἰδὼν τὴν μητέρα καὶ τὸν μαθητὴν παρεστῶτα ὃν ἠγάπα, λέγει τῇ μητρί Γύναι, ἴδε ὁ υἱός σου. εἶτα λέγει τῷ μαθητῇ Ἴδε ἡ μήτηρ σου. καὶ ἀπ’ ἐκείνης τῆς ὥρας ἔλαβεν ὁ μαθητὴς αὐτὴν εἰς τὰ ἴδια.

= Therefore Jesus, having seen the mother and the disciple whom He loved standing by, says to His mother, "Woman, behold, your son." Then He says to the disciple, "Behold, your mother." And from that hour the disciple took her to the own [home; or to be his own mother, both implied].

Byzantine text, TR, etc

Ἰησοῦς οὖν ἰδὼν τὴν μητέρα, καὶ τὸν μαθητὴν παρεστῶτα ὃν ἠγάπα, λέγει τῇ μητρὶ αὐτοῦ, Γύναι, ἰδοὺ ὁ υἱός σου. Εἴτα λέγει τῷ μαθητῇ, Ἰδοὺ ἡ μήτηρ σου. Καὶ ἀπ’ ἐκείνης τῆς ὥρας ἔλαβεν ὁ μαθητὴς αὐτὴν εἰς τὰ ἴδια.

= When Jesus therefore saw the mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” Then He says to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” And from that hour that disciple took her into his own [home; or to be his own mother, both implied].

Note that the variation ἴδε vs Ἰδοὺ is untranslatable and does not affect the meaning. The only significant variation is the insertion of "His" in one place.

These variations only exist erratically and inconsistently in the Byzantine text tradition, ie, some have them and some do not.

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  • Thank you. I was in need of verifying whether Jesus was referring to Himself, (paraphrasing: "Dear woman, look at me, your Child!") or to the beloved desciple (paraphrasing again: "Woman, look! Your new son!")
    – Bnpg
    Jul 18, 2022 at 4:44
  • @Bnpg - very honored to have been of some help.
    – Dottard
    Jul 18, 2022 at 4:58

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