The rare Bible fragments are believed to come from the Gospel of Matthew
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Small sections of the New Testament that are believed to be nearly 2,000 years old are considered some of the earliest surviving pieces of the Christian text.
The New Testament forms the second major part of the Christian Bible and includes 27 individual books. It centers on the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The main writers linked to the New Testament are Jesus’ apostles, including Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Scholars believe these specific fragments likely come from the Gospel of Matthew.
Today, these delicate fragments are kept at the Magdalen College Library at the University of Oxford in the UK.
They are not only among the earliest surviving New Testament texts, but they are also the oldest known examples of a codex, which is an early form of a bound book rather than a traditional scroll.
Researchers believe the fragments came from a bound book because writing appears on both sides of all three pieces, which was common in codices but not in scrolls.
The scraps of the New Testament date back 2,000 years
Magdalen College Library
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Magdalen College Library received the historic manuscript, known as the Magdalen Papyrus (P64), in 1901. Reverend Charles Bousfield Huleatt donated the fragments to the college.
Huleatt is said to have purchased the pieces in Luxor, Egypt, before later giving them to Magdalen College, where he had previously studied.
As for what the fragments actually say, the surviving lines mention figures such as Judas, Jesus, and Galilee. Since the fragments are incomplete and only small portions of pages remain, the text consists of partial sentences written in Koine Greek.
According to the Magdalen College website, one fragment reads: "Poured it on his head as he was at table. When they saw this, the disciples said indignantly."
The reverse side of the first fragment states: "Jesus said to them, 'You will all fall away from me tonight, for the scripture says...'"
The second fragment includes the words: "Jesus noticed this and said, 'Why are you upsetting the woman? What she has done for me...'"
Reportedly the writing is from the Gospel of Matthew
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"I shall go ahead of you to Galilee.' At this, Peter said to him..." the opposite side reads.
"Then one of the Twelve, the man called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, 'What are you prepared to give me...'" per fragment three.
The back of the third fragment contains: "They were greatly distressed and started asking him in turn, 'Not me, Lord, surely?' He answered, 'Someone who has dipped his hand into the dish with me.'"
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Dr. Jeremiah Johnston, who has carried out extensive research on the Magdalen Papyrus P64, has personally examined the fragments and said the moment left a deep impact on him.
"It was literally taken out of what looks like a shoebox, not even on display, and I had as much time as I wanted with one of the most priceless Christian artefacts on earth," he told Mail Online.
"I'm holding that fragment, and to know that it's 2,000 years old, and to know that it's true, and that the scales of truth tip in the favor of Christianity, was transformational for me."