The New Testament has been called “the most documented book in all of antiquity.” That is not a devotional claim — it is a conclusion of textual scholarship. The manuscript evidence for the New Testament surpasses that of any other ancient document by an extraordinary margin.
When people ask whether the Bible has been “corrupted” over centuries of copying, they are asking a genuine and important question. The discipline that answers it is called textual criticism.
5,800+
GREEK NT MANUSCRIPTS
GREEK NT MANUSCRIPTS
25,000+
TOTAL NT MANUSCRIPTS
TOTAL NT MANUSCRIPTS
~45
YEARS — EARLIEST FRAGMENT
YEARS — EARLIEST FRAGMENT
The Manuscript Evidence — By the Numbers
| Ancient Work | Date Written | Earliest Copy | Time Gap | Manuscripts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Testament | 50–100 AD | ~125 AD | ~25–45 years | 5,800+ Greek |
| Caesar — Gallic Wars | 51 BC | 900 AD | 950 years | 10 manuscripts |
| Plato — Tetralogies | 400 BC | 900 AD | 1,300 years | 7 manuscripts |
📅 Early Dating
The Rylands Papyrus (P52), a fragment of John 18, dates to approximately 125 AD.
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”
— Matthew 24:35