The Traditional Text of the Holy Gospels

by John William Burgon

Notes of Truth.

1. Antiquity, or Primitiveness;

2. Consent of Witnesses, or Number;

3. Variety of Evidence, or Catholicity;

4. Respectability of Witnesses, or Weight;

5. Continuity, or Unbroken Tradition;

6. Evidence of the Entire Passage, or Context;

7. Internal Considerations, or Reasonableness.

§ 5.

The full consideration of these Tests of Truth must be postponed to the next chapter. Meanwhile, three discussions of a more general character demand immediate attention.