Fourth century — Old Latin and Coptic transmission. “Believeth on me” was present in ancient versional evidence.
Earliest surviving Greek support: Fifth century — Codices A and D.
John 6:47
Believeth on Me
KJV Reading Defended
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.
Why the KJV Reading Is Retained
The KJV/TR reads 'believeth on me,' while important early witnesses read the shorter 'believeth.'
Disputed unit
Whether εἰς ἐμέ follows ὁ πιστεύων.
Short omitted phraseComplex evidenceMajority Greek supportLatin supportSyriac supportCoptic supportLectionary support
Evidence assessment
In the 236-document IGNTP/ITSEE John corpus, 107 named Greek entries carry εἰς ἐμέ and ten omit it. Every collatable row of the official Vetus Latina John synopsis except VL22 reads credit in me, and the Peshitta, Harklean, Sahidic, Middle Fayumic and proto-Bohairic are long.
Primary support for the KJV reading
107 named entries in the selected IGNTP John corpus
King James Bible reading
John 6:47 in the King James Bible
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.
Evidence sources
Where the evidence on this page comes from.
Sources used for the witnesses, readings, dates, and notes on this page. Complete citations appear in the References section at the end of the page.
Governing apparatus and count scope
The official IGNTP/ITSEE ECM John Greek apparatus, whose corpus is 236 selected documents including 22 supplements, together with the official Vetus Latina John synopsis and the 2021 Sahidic critical edition.
- B. M. Metzger, The Early Versions of the New Testament
- Förster, Sänger-Böhm and Schulz, Kritische Edition der sahidischen Version des Johannesevangeliums (2021)
- George A. Kiraz, Comparative Edition of the Syriac Gospels
- H. A. G. Houghton, The Latin New Testament
- IGNTP/ITSEE ECM John encoding instructions
- IGNTP/ITSEE ECM John Greek positive apparatus
- IGNTP/ITSEE ECM John introduction and corpus scope
- INTF Kurzgefasste Liste / NTVMR manuscript metadata
- ITSEE Vetus Latina John manuscript register
- ITSEE Vetus Latina John synopsis
- Official Sahidic John XML dataset (University of Birmingham eData 1042)
- Schulz, proto-Bohairic appendix to the 2021 Sahidic critical edition
- Vetus Latina Gospel manuscript register (ITSEE, University of Birmingham)
Earliest KJV-supporting evidence
The earliest reviewed support at a glance.
Primary support for the KJV reading
107 named entries in the selected IGNTP John corpus
The sections below preserve each supporting, competing, and related record under its proper evidence type.
Majority Text standing
The words “on me”
The KJV/TR phrase is the overwhelming numerical Majority Text reading in Greek.
Estimated Greek support: More than 1,500 Greek manuscripts; 107 supporting states in the selected corpus
The selected IGNTP count is exact for its corpus. The broader estimate reflects the established Majority reading in the wider John tradition.
Source scope and denominator
The official IGNTP/ITSEE ECM John Greek apparatus, whose corpus is 236 selected documents including 22 supplements, together with the official Vetus Latina John synopsis and the 2021 Sahidic critical edition.
Greek support in the cited corpus
107 named Greek entries in the 236-document IGNTP John corpus
Greek competing evidence in the cited corpus
10 named Greek states in the 236-document IGNTP John corpus
Lectionary evidence
Lectionaries read 'believeth on me'
Principal competing witnesses named in the snapshot
- P66
- P75
- Codex Sinaiticus (01)
- Codex Vaticanus (03)
Evidence represented on this page
Greek manuscripts
Represented
Ancient versions
Represented
Church fathers
No entry listed
Printed editions
No entry listed
Complete source-scoped roster
Complete roster within the stated source scope.
This roster preserves every named or grouped state recovered in the governing sources, including exact readings, competing readings, corrections, related forms, lacunae, versions, and aggregate traditions. When Maj or Byz appears on the KJV side, it marks the numerically dominant Greek transmission at that unit. The green Majority Text card above supplies the best available passage-specific estimate. The grouped siglum is then retained so it is not mistaken for one individual manuscript.
Apparatus and roster scope
The official IGNTP/ITSEE ECM John Greek apparatus, whose corpus is 236 selected documents including 22 supplements, together with the official Vetus Latina John synopsis and the 2021 Sahidic critical edition.
- Greek support in cited scope
- 107 named Greek entries in the 236-document IGNTP John corpus
- Greek competing evidence in cited scope
- 10 named Greek states in the 236-document IGNTP John corpus
- Evidence classification
- 107 named entries in the selected IGNTP John corpus
Whether εἰς ἐμέ follows ὁ πιστεύων
KJV/TR unit: εἰς ἐμέ
Greek manuscripts
Supports the KJV/TR form02 05 07 011 017 022 028 037 041 044 045 0141 0211 0233 1 13 18 22 33 35 69 109 118 124 138 157 168 173 209 213 226 249 265 295 333 357 377 382 397 430 543 544 565 579r 597 732 788 792 799 807 821 826 828 841 869 884 983 992 994 1009 1010 1014 1029 1079 1093 1128 1192 1210 1219 1230 1241 1242 1253 1278 1293 1319 1320 1321 1344 1424 1463 1546 1561 1571S 1582 1654 1689 1788 1797 2106 2192 2193 2223 2372 2411 2561 2575 2585 2615 2680 2713 2718 2766 2768 2786 2790 2886
Grouped evidence: plus the selected lectionary entries encoded in the IGNTP John XML
Old Latin
Supports the KJV/TR formcredit in me
VL2 VL3 VL4 VL5 VL6 VL7 VL8 VL9A VL10 VL10A VL11A VL13 VL14 VL15 VL22 VL27 VL29 VL30 VL35 VL39 VL40 VL46 VL47 VL48
Syriac and Coptic
Supports the KJV/TR formPeshitta Harklean Sahidic cw1 proto-Bohairic
Grouped evidence: the printed Sahidic critical text and all 11 raw Sahidic John 6:47 files
Greek manuscripts
Competing readingP66 P75 01 03 019 029 032 038 892 1071
Syriac
Related or qualified evidence“believes in God”
Sinaitic Curetonian
Lacunose
Non-directional evidence04 091
Roster distinctions
- GA 04 and 091 are lacunose at this unit.
- The Old Syriac Sinaitic and Curetonian read “believes in God”.
Evidence notes
Important distinctions in the evidence.
- GA 04 and 091 are lacunose at this unit.
- The Old Syriac Sinaitic and Curetonian read “believes in God”.
Evidence assessment
Why the KJV reading is retained
In the 236-document IGNTP/ITSEE John corpus, 107 named Greek entries carry εἰς ἐμέ and ten omit it. Every collatable row of the official Vetus Latina John synopsis except VL22 reads credit in me, and the Peshitta, Harklean, Sahidic, Middle Fayumic and proto-Bohairic are long.
Primary support for the KJV reading
107 named entries in the selected IGNTP John corpus
Evidence represented on this page
Evidence types, without turning rows into votes.
GreekRepresented
LatinRepresented
Other versionsRepresented
FathersNot listed
Printed editionsNot listed
References
Editions and works cited.
Institut für Neutestamentliche Textforschung. New Testament Virtual Manuscript Room. Münster: University of Münster.
Aland, Barbara, et al., eds. Novum Testamentum Graece. 28th rev. ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 2012.
Robinson, Maurice A., and William G. Pierpont. The New Testament in the Original Greek: Byzantine Textform 2018. Nürnberg: VTR Publications, 2018.
Tyndale House, Cambridge, ed. The Greek New Testament. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2017.
IGNTP/ITSEE ECM John Greek positive apparatus. John 6:47, word address 13.
ITSEE Vetus Latina John synopsis. John 6:47.
Förster, Sänger-Böhm and Schulz, Kritische Edition der sahidischen Version des Johannesevangeliums (2021). John 6:47.
George A. Kiraz, Comparative Edition of the Syriac Gospels
INTF Kurzgefasste Liste / NTVMR manuscript metadata. Physical dates for the named Greek manuscripts.
IGNTP/ITSEE ECM John introduction and corpus scope. Selected corpus of 236 Greek manuscripts including 22 supplements.
IGNTP/ITSEE ECM John encoding instructions. Meaning of the state suffixes r and S used at John 6:47.
ITSEE Vetus Latina John manuscript register. Identity and physical date of the VL sigla named at John 6:47.
Official Sahidic John XML dataset (University of Birmingham eData 1042). The 11 raw Sahidic John 6:47 verse files.
Schulz, proto-Bohairic appendix to the 2021 Sahidic critical edition. Proto-Bohairic John 6:47 reads ⲉⲣⲟⲓ.