Oldest New Testament fragments reveal 'what Jesus said' 2,000 years ago as expert gets rare inside look
Pieces of the New Testament thought to date back 2,000 years are said to be some of the earliest known fragments of the historic book.
The religious book, which is the second part of the Christian Bible consisting of a whopping 27 books, focuses on the life and death of Jesus Christ.
Key contributors of the New Testament were Jesus' apostles, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, and these particular fragments are thought to have come from the Gospel of Matthew.
These scraps are currently housed at the Magdalen College Library at the University of Oxford, UK.
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As well as being earliest known surviving fragments of the New Testament, the pieces of paper are the oldest known pieces of a codex (a bound book, rather than a scripture).
It's thought the fragments are from a book because there's writing on both sides of all three pieces.
Magdalen College Library acquired the historic text — which is known as Magdalen Papyrus (P64) — in 1901 after being given them by Reverend Charles Bousfield Huleatt.
Huleatt reportedly purchased them from Luxor, Egypt, before gifting them to the college where he'd once been a student.
As to what scraps of text read, the papers discuss things like Judas, Jesus, and Galilee. Of course, since the papers aren't full pages, it's largely incomplete sentences on the fragments (that were penned in Koine Greek).
One piece reads, per the Magdalen College website: "Poured it on his head as he was at table. When they saw this, the disciples said indignantly."
The other side of fragment one says: "Jesus said to them, 'You will all fall away from me tonight, for the scripture says...'"
Fragment two states: "Jesus noticed this and said, 'Why are you upsetting the woman? What she has done for me...'"
"I shall go ahead of you to Galilee.' At this, Peter said to him..." the opposite side reads.
"Then one of the Twelve, the man called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, 'What are you prepared to give me...'" per fragment three.
The other side of fragment three says: "They were greatly distressed and started asking him in turn, 'Not me, Lord, surely?' He answered, 'Someone who has dipped his hand into the dish with me.'"
Dr Jeremiah Johnston, who has studied the Magdalen Papyrus P64 extensively, has seen the pieces of the gospel for himself and described the experience as life-changing.
"It was literally taken out of what looks like a shoebox, not even on display, and I had as much time as I wanted with one of the most priceless Christian artefacts on earth," he told Mail Online.
"I'm holding that fragment, and to know that it's 2,000 years old, and to know that it's true, and that the scales of truth tip in the favor of Christianity, was transformational for me."
Niamh Shackleton