|Alterations for the sake of harmonizing.| Here are seven divergences from the received text. (1) The insertion of ἐν before ψαλμοῖς in Ephes.; (2) The omission of καί, καί, attaching ψαλμοῖς, ὕμνοις, ᾠδαῖς in Col.; (3) The omission of πνευματικαῖς in Ephes.; (4) The insertion of τῇ before χάριτι in Col.; (5) The omission of ἐν before τῇ καρδίᾳ in Ephes.; (6) The substitution of ταῖς καρδίαις for τῇ καρδίᾳ in Col.; (7) The substitution of τῷ Θεῷ for τῷ Κυρίῳ in Col.
Of these seven divergences the fourth alone does not affect the question: of the remaining six, the readings of B in (2), (6), (7) are supported by the great preponderance of the best authorities, and are unquestionably right. In (1), (3), (5) however the case stands thus:
ἐν ψαλμοῖς.
(1) ἐν ψαλμοῖς B, P, with the cursives 17, 67**, 73, 116, 118, and in Latin, d, e, vulg., with the Latin commentators Victorinus, Hilary and Jerome. Of these however it is clear that the Latin authorities can have little weight in such a case, as the preposition might have been introduced by the translator. All the other Greek MSS with several Greek fathers omit ἐν.
πνευματικαῖς.
(3) πνευματικαῖς omitted in B, d, e. Of the Ambrosian Hilary Tischendorf says ‘fluct. lectio’; but his comment ‘In quo enim est spiritus, semper spiritualia meditatur’ seems certainly to recognise the word. It appears to be found in every other authority.
τῇ καρδίᾳ.
(5) τῇ καρδίᾳ א* B with Origen in Cramer’s Catena, p. 201.
ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ K L, and the vast majority of later MSS, the Armenian and Æthiopic Versions, Euthalius (Tischendorf’s MS), Theodoret, and others. The Harclean Syriac (text) is quoted by Tischendorf and Tregelles in favour of ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ, but it is impossible to say whether the translator had or had not the preposition.
ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις אc A D F G P, 47, 8pe; the Old Latin, Vulgate, Memphitic, Peshito Syriac, and Gothic Versions, together with the margin of the Harclean Syriac; the fathers Basil (II. p. 464), Victorinus (probably), Theodore of Mopsuestia, the Ambrosian Hilary, Jerome, and others. Chrysostom (as read in the existing texts) wavers between ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ and ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις. This form of the reading is an attempt to bring Ephes. into harmony with Col., just as (6) is an attempt to bring Col. into harmony with Ephes.