Hebrews 11:37

Footnotes

1. 42 The reading ἐπρίσθησαν (ejpristhēsan, “they were sawed apart”) is found in some important witnesses (𝔓46 [D* twice reads ἐπίρσθησαν, “they were burned”?] syp sa Orpt Eus). Other have ἐπειράσθησαν (ejpeirasthēsan, “they were tempted”), either before “sawed apart” ([א] L P [048] 33 81 326 1505 syh), after “sawed apart” (𝔓13vid A D1 Ψ 1739 1881 𝔐 lat bo Orpt), or altogether in place of “sawed apart” (0150 vgmss Cl). Since the two words ἐπρίσθησαν and ἐπειράσθησαν are so much alike in sight and sound, and since the position of “they were tempted” varies in the , it seems best to say that ἐπειράσθησαν is an accidental corruption of ἐπρίσθησαν or an intentional change to a more common word (the root of ἐπρίσθησαν [πρίζω, prizō] occurs only here in the NT, while the root of ἐπειράσθησαν [πειράζω, peirazō] occurs 38 times). The best reading here seems to be “sawed apart” without any addition before or after. (See , for a discussion of emendations that scholars have proposed for this difficult problem.)