The Byzantine Text Type

Today in Textual Criticism class we read some of Harry Sturz work on the place of the Byzantine text type. While some have argued for the Byzantine text being a late conflation of the Alexandrian and Western texts, Sturz argues for an early date of the Byzantine text. He bases this on distintively Byzantine readings found in the second century papyri. Some are even readings where the Byzantine is the shorter text compared with the other two.

I think this shows that the Byzantine text is just as early as the Alexandrian and Western. Therefore, given the early nature of all three text types, it is my belief that we should give all three equal weight when attempting to resolve a textual variant. I have not yet been convinced, as Dr. Maurice Robinson has, that the Byzantine should be given priority over the Alexandrian and Western.

I am still in the process of working through all these issues. Let me know what you think.