I was pitied and rescued by my groaning to God
CHAPTER 1
EPIPHANIUS OF SALAMIS AND THE TEXT OF THE NEW TESTAMENT
Epiphanius of Salamis achieved fame as a fourth-century bishop mainly due to his intense zeal for orthodoxy.
In playing a major role in the events that shaped both Byzantine history and the history of Christian thought, Epiphanius wrote several theological treatises that
were at the heart of fourth-century religious controversy.
His frequent use of scripture in these writings makes him an important patristic
witness to the text of the NT in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Major questions exist concerning the text of the NT during this era.
Was a major recension of the text undertaken during the third or fourth century?
How widespread was the so-called “Western” text? What is the relationship of the so-called “Western” text to the Alexandrian text?
Were there two forms of text dating from an early period in Alexandria?
Was there a Caesarean text? How is one to understand the origins of the Byzantine text?
This study will analyze the quotations of the Apostolos1 in Epiphanius to ascertain the type of text he used and its value for understanding the developing textual tradition of the NT.
- THE LIFE AND TIMES OF EPIPHANIUS2
A. EPIPHANIUS’ EARLY LIFE
Epiphanius was born between A.D. 315 and 320 near Eleutheropolis, southwest of Jerusalem on the road to Ashkelon.
At this time, the Roman world was transitioning from Rome to Constantinople, the
Empire faced a variety of external as well as internal problems, and pagan religions were locked into a battle with Christianity.4
During Epiphanius’ childhood, problems arose in the East when Licinius banned Christian synods, expelled various bishops and priests and instituted a reign of terror against Christians.
After he was killed in 323, confiscated properties were returned to Christians; however, pagans were permitted to continue in the old faith if they chose.5
While paganism was largely tolerated, heresy among Christians was not.
For viewing the Son as subordinate to the Father, Arius was excommunicated in 320.
After moving to Syria, however, he achieved both patristic and synodal approval and returned to Egypt demanding to be re-instated.
When Archbishop Alexander refused, rioting ensued.
By the time Constantine assumed control of the Empire in 323, the initial matter of Arius’ theological divergence had become an inflammatory issue all around the eastern Mediterranean.6
The Council of Nicea in 325, with approximately 220 Eastern bishops in attendance, but only a handful of Western “observers” present, nullified Arianism, at least for the time being.
Christianity was divided. Among church leaders, Athanasius, a strong opponent of Arius, became archbishop of Alexandria in 328.
On the imperial side, however, Eusebius of Nicomedia took advantage of his proximity to the Imperial court to attack Athanasius relentlessly.
At a synod of pro-Arian bishops at Tyre in 335, Athanasius was deposed and later banished by Constantine to Trier.
Epiphanius states that during this period he followed the Nicean faith of his parents.7
Epiphanius was sent as a young man to Egypt, where he was instructed by the most celebrated monks from ca. 330–335.
Although he could have known both Anthony and Pachomius,8 it was Hilarion who became Epiphanius’ spiritual mentor.
A well-known teacher and ascetic who had been mentored by Anthony, Hilarion
influenced not only Epiphanius’ earlier life in Egypt but also his later monastic life in Palestine.9
Epiphanius’ training involved both formal studies in Alexandria10 and monastic practice in the Egyptian desert.11
As part of his monastic training, Epiphanius studied Greek, Hebrew, Latin, Syriac and Coptic.12
During these years in Egypt, Epiphanius’ Nicene orientation was challenged by ideas that he viewed later as “poisonous snakes.”
One important threat came from a sexually oriented group that he later termed “Gnostics.”13
In his response to this threat, Epiphanius demonstrated the zeal for unmasking error that became characteristic of his later life.14
With impudent boldness moreover, they tried to seduce me themselves
. . . I was pitied and rescued by my groaning to God. . . . Now the women who taught this trivial myth were very lovely to look at, but in their wicked minds they had all the devil’s ugliness. . . . I lost no time reporting them to the bishops there, and finding out which ones were hidden in the church. They were expelled from the city, about eighty of them.
Athanasius returned to Egypt after the Council of Nicea and had a good reception in pro-Nicene monastic circles that were loyal to himself and Alexander, his anti-Arian predecessor.15
In this pro-Nicene monastic environment, Epiphanius’ anti-Arian views were strengthened.
B. EPIPHANIUS, ABBOT OF A PALESTINIAN MONASTERY
About the age of twenty (c. 335), Epiphanius returned to Palestine, where he founded a monastery near Eleutheropolis, some thirty miles inland from Gaza.16
Hilarion had founded a monastery near Gaza some years earlier, and Epiphanius’ friendship with Hilarion continued long after his move from Egypt to Palestine.17
Although abbot of the monastery until 367,18 Epiphanius was also busy keeping the wider community free of heresy.
For example, he mentions the “unmasking” of an elderly ex-priest and monk at a village “in the district of Eleutheropolis [and] Jerusalem, three mile-stones beyond Hebron.”
The old man had been deposed earlier for being a Gnostic, but later returned and, having distributed his possessions to the poor, lived in a cave with only a sheep’s fleece for clothing. this, Peter was quite popular among the villagers.
Upon learning that a certain Eutactus, who was returning to Armenia, had stayed with Peter and learned Peter’s Archontic teaching, Epiphanius says, from things he had whispered to certain persons,
I unmasked him and he was anathematized and refuted by my poor self. And after that he sat in a cave, abhorred by all and deserted by the brotherhood, and by most who were attending to their salvation (Pan 40.1.1-8).
Constantine died in 337, and was succeeded by Constantius, during whose reign (337–61) there was considerable political and ecclesiastical confusion.
By 355, his cousin, Julian, was selected as Caesar in the West.
A student of philosophy and rhetoric, Julian was influenced by the anti-Christian philosopher and self-confessed pagan, Libanius.19 By 351, Julian renounced Christianity.
By 356, he had established control throughout Europe, and by 361 he avowed pagan gods.
When Constantius died, Julian became sole Emperor of the Empire and pagan
hopes revived.
When news of Constantine’s death reached Alexandria, the Arian bishop, George, was murdered by a mob of enraged pagans. ~Carroll D. Osburn, The Text of the Apostolos in Epiphanius of Salamis, Page 1-4
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