Textual variants in the Gospel of Mark are the subject of the study called textual criticism of the New Testament. Textual variants in manuscripts arise when a copyist makes deliberate or inadvertent alterations to a text that is being reproduced. An abbreviated list of textual variants in this particular book is given in this article below.
Origen, writing in the 3rd century, was one of the first who made remarks about differences between manuscripts of texts that were eventually collected as the New Testament. He declared his preferences among variant readings. For example, in , he favored "Barabbas" against "Jesus Barabbas" (In Matt. Comm. ser. 121). In , he preferred "Bethabara" over "Bethany" as the location where John was baptizing (Commentary on John VI.40 (24)). "Gergeza" was preferred over "Geraza" or "Gadara" (Commentary on John VI.40 (24) – see ).
Most of the variations are not significant and some common alterations include the deletion, rearrangement, repetition, or replacement of one or more words when the copyist's eye returns to a similar word in the wrong location of the original text. If their eye skips to an earlier word, they may create a repetition (error of dittography). If their eye skips to a later word, they may create an omission. They may resort to performing a rearranging of words to retain the overall meaning without compromising the context. In other instances, the copyist may add text from memory from a similar or parallel text in another location. Otherwise, they may also replace some text of the original with an alternative reading. Spellings occasionally change. Synonyms may be substituted. A pronoun may be changed into a proper noun (such as "he said" becoming "Jesus said"). John Mill's 1707 Greek New Testament was estimated to contain some 30,000 variants in its accompanying textual apparatus; which was based on "nearly 100 [Greek] manuscripts." Peter J. Gurry puts the number of non-spelling variants among New Testament manuscripts around 500,000, though he acknowledges his estimate is higher than all previous ones.
Legend
Textual variants For a list of many variants not noted here, see the ECM of Mark.
Mark 1:1 Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ (of Jesus Christ) – א* Θ 28 530 582* 820* 1021 1436 1555* 1692 2430 2533 cop arm geo Origen Origen Victorinus-Pettau Asterius Serapion Titus-Bostra Basil Cyril-Jerusalem Severian Jerome Hesychius WH Riv NM Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ υἱοῦ θεοῦ (of Jesus Christ son of God) – א B D L W 732 1602 2427 Diatessaron WH (NA [υἱοῦ θεοῦ]) Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ (of Jesus Christ son of the God) – A E F G H K Δ Π Σ ƒ ƒ 33 180 205 565 579 597 700 892 1006 1009 1010 1071 1079 1195 1216 1230 1242 1243 1253 1292 1342 1344 1365 1424 1505 1546 1646 2148 2174 Byz Lect eth geo slav ς Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ (of Jesus Christ of the God) – 055 pc τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ (of the lord Jesus Christ) – syr Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ κυρίου (of Jesus Christ son of the lord) – 1241 Ἰησοῦ (of Jesus) – 28*
Mark 1:2 καθὼς γέγραπται (Just as it is written) – Alexandrian text-type: Westcott and Hort 1881, Westcott and Hort / [NA27 and UBS4 variants] 1864–94, Tischendorf 8th Edition, Nestle 1904 ὡς γέγραπται (As it is written) – ς Byz: Stephanus Textus Receptus 1550, Scrivener's Textus Receptus 1894, RP Byzantine Majority Text 2005, Greek Orthodox Church
Mark 1:2 ἐν τοῖς προφήταις (in the prophets) – A E F G H K P W Π Σ ƒ 28 180 579 597 1006 1009 1010 1079 1195 1216 1230 1242 1253 1292 1342 1344 1365 1424 1505 1546 1646 Byz Lect vg syr cop arm eth slav Irenaeus Asterius Photius Theophylact ς ND Dio. Byz: Stephanus Textus Receptus 1550, Scrivener's Textus Receptus 1894, RP Byzantine Majority Text 2005, Greek Orthodox Church ἐν τῷ Ἠσαἲᾳ τῷ προφήτῃ (in the Isaiah the prophet) – א B L D 22 33 565 892 1241 2427 Origen. Alexandrian text-type: Westcott and Hort 1881, Westcott and Hort / [NA27 and UBS4 variants] 1864–94, Tischendorf 8th Edition, Nestle 1904 ἐν Ἠσαἲᾳ τῷ προφήτῃ (in Isaiah the prophet) – D Θ ƒ 205 372 700 1071 1243 2174 2737 pc l arm geo Irenaeus Origen Severian (Jerome) Augustine Hesychius Victor-Antioch ἐν τῷ Ἠσαΐᾳ τῷ προφήτῃ or ἐν Ἠσαΐᾳ τῷ προφήτῃ (in (the) Isaiah the prophet) – it it it it it it it it it vg syr syr syr cop cop goth Irenaeus Irenaeus NR CEI Riv TILC Nv NM ἐν Ἠσαΐᾳ (in Isaiah) – Victorinus-Pettau Ambrosiaster Serapion Titus-Bostra Basil Epiphanius Chromatius ἐν Ἠσαΐᾳ καὶ ἐν τοῖς προφήταις (in Isaiah and in the prophets) – it
Mark 1:2 Ἰδοὺ (Behold...) – B D Θ 28* 565 pc it vg cop Irenaeus. Alexandrian text-type: Westcott and Hort 1881, Westcott and Hort / [NA27 and UBS4 variants] 1864–94, Nestle 1904 Ἰδού, ἐγὼ (Behold, I...) – א A L W ƒ ƒ Byz vg vg syr cop cop Origen Eusebius ς. Tischendorf 8th Edition. Byz: Stephanus Textus Receptus 1550, Scrivener's Textus Receptus 1894, RP Byzantine Majority Text 2005, Greek Orthodox Church
Mark 1:2 τὴν ὁδόν σου· (the way of you:) – א B D K L P W Θ Π Φ 700* 2427 2766 al it vg syr cop Irenaeus WH NR CEI Riv TILC Nv NM. Alexandrian text-type: Westcott and Hort 1881, Westcott and Hort / [NA27 and UBS4 variants] 1864–94, Tischendorf 8th Edition, Nestle 1904 τὴν ὁδόν σου ἔμπροσθέν σου. (the way of you before you.) – A Δ ƒ ƒ 33 565 1342 Byz it it it vg syr cop cop goth Origen Eusebius ς ND Dio. Byz: Stephanus Textus Receptus 1550, Scrivener's Textus Receptus 1894, RP Byzantine Majority Text 2005, Greek Orthodox Church
Mark 1:4 ὁ βαπτίζων ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ καὶ (the Baptist in the wilderness and) – א L Δ 205 1342 cop geo slav (NA [ὁ]) TILC ὁ βαπτίζων ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ (the Baptist in the wilderness) – B 33 2427 pc cop WH NR Riv Nv NM βαπτίζων ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ καὶ (baptising in the wilderness and) – A E F G H K P W Π Σ ƒ ƒ 180 565 579 1006 1009 1010 1071 1079 1195 1216 1230 1241 1242 1243 1253 1292 1344 1365 1424 1505 1546 1646 2148 2174 Byz Lect (l) (l) it syr syr (cop omitted καὶ) goth arm eth slav ς (CEI) (Dio) βαπτίζων ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ (baptising in the wilderness) – 892 ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ βαπτίζων καὶ (in the wilderness baptising and) – D Θ 28 700 it it it it it it it it it vg syr (Eusebius Cyril-Jerusalem omitted καὶ) Jerome Augustine ND ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ καὶ (in the wilderness and) – geo
Mark 1:5 πάντες, καὶ ἐβαπτίζοντο ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ ποταμῷ (all, and [they] were baptised by him in the Jordan river) – B D L 28 33 892 1241 pc it vg cop? Origen WH NR CEI Riv (TILC) (Nv) NM πάντες, ἐβαπτίζοντο ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ ποταμῷ (all, [they] were baptised by him in the Jordan river) – א* pc καὶ ἐβαπτίζοντο πάντες ἐν τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ ποταμῷ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ (and [they] were baptised all in the Jordan river by him) – A W ƒ 700 Byz syr ς ND Dio καὶ πάντες ἐβαπτίζοντο ἐν τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ ποταμῷ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ (and all were baptised in the Jordan river by him) – ƒ 565 pc καὶ ἐβαπτίζοντο ἐν τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ ποταμῷ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ (and [they] were baptised in the Jordan river by him) – Θ pc
Mark 1:5 ποταμῷ ([in the] river) – Byz ς WH omitted – D W Θ 28 565 799 it Eusebius
Mark 1:6 καὶ ζώνην δερματίνην περὶ τὴν ὀσφὺν αὐτοῦ (and a belt of leather around the waist of him) – Byz it it it it it vg ς WH omitted – D it it it it it it vg
Mark 1:7 ὀπίσω μου (after me) – Byz ς [WH] ὀπίσω (after) – B Origen omitted – Δ 1424 it it
Mark 1:7 κύψας (having stooped down) – Byz ς WH omitted – D Θ ƒ 28* 565 pc it
Mark 1:8 ἐγὼ (I) – WH. Alexandrian text-type: Westcott and Hort 1881, Westcott and Hort / [NA27 and UBS4 variants] 1864–94, Tischendorf 8th Edition, Nestle 1904 ἐγὼ μέν (I indeed) – Byz ς. Byz: Stephanus Textus Receptus 1550, Scrivener's Textus Receptus 1894, RP Byzantine Majority Text 2005, Greek Orthodox Church
Mark 1:8 ὕδατι ([with] water) – א B H Δ 33 892* 1006 1216 1243 1342 2427 vg arm geo Origen Jerome Augustine WH. Alexandrian text-type: Westcott and Hort 1881, Westcott and Hort / [NA27 and UBS4 variants] 1864–94, Tischendorf 8th Edition, Nestle 1904 ἐν ὕδατι (in water) – A E F G K L P W (Θ μέν before ἐν) Π Σ ƒ ƒ 28 157 180 205 565 579 700 892c 1009 1010 1071 1079 1195 1230 1241 1242 1253 1292 1344 1365 1424 1505 1546 1646 2148 2174 Byz Lect it it it it it it it vg cop cop goth eth Hippolytus ς. Byz: Stephanus Textus Receptus 1550, Scrivener's Textus Receptus 1894, RP Byzantine Majority Text 2005, Greek Orthodox Church. Compare Matthew 3:11; John 1:26. ἐν ὕδατι (in water) inserted after λέγων in Mark 1:7 – D it it it it
Mark 1:8 αγ̣[ιω] (the Holy Spirit) – . is a nomen sacrum abbreviation of πν(ευματ)ι, see Papyrus 137 § Particular readings. πνεύματι ἁγίῳ (the Holy Spirit) – B L it it it vg syr syr syr arm geo Augustine WH ἐν πνεύματι ἁγίῳ (with the Holy Spirit) – א A D K W Δ Θ Π 0133 ƒ ƒ 8 33 565 700 892 1009 1010 1071 1079 1216 1230 1242 1253 1344 1365 1546 1646 2148 2174 Byz Lect (it) it it it it it it (it) cop cop syr syr syr goth eth Hippolytus Origen ς. Compare Matthew 3:12; Luke 3:16. ἐν πνεύματι ἁγίῳ καὶ πυρί (with the Holy Spirit and fire) – P 1195 1241 ℓ 44m syr. Compare Matthew 3:12; Luke 3:16.
Mark 1:13 καὶ ἦν ἐν τῇ ερημω (he was in the wilderness) – א A B D L Θ 33. 579. 892. 1342. καὶ ἦν ἐκει ἐν τῇ ερημω (he was there in the wilderness) – W Δ 157. 1241. Byz καὶ ἦν ἐκει (he was there) – 28. 517. 565. 700. ƒ Family Π syr Omit – ƒ Hiatus – C Ψ syr
Mark 1:14 εὐαγγέλιον – א B L Θ ƒ ƒ 28. 33. 565. 892 εὐαγγέλιον τῆς βασιλείας – Α, D Κ, W Δ Π 074 0133 0135 28, 700. 1009. 1010. 1071. 1079. 1195. 1216. 1230. 1241. 1242. 1253. 1344. 1365. 1546. 1646. 2148. 2174. Byz, Lect, lat, syr, cop
σπλαγχνισθεις (filled with compassion) – All manuscripts except those listed belowINTF Mark 1:41 οργισθεις (irritated; angry) – D a ff r
Mark 2:16 ἐσθίει (eating) - B D W it, u[w] ἐσθίει καὶ πίνει (eating and drinking) - A ƒ ƒ 2. 28. 33. 157. 180. 597. 892. 1006. 1010. 1292. 1505. / Byz E F H Lect it, vg, syr, cop, [w]τ ἐσθίεται (=ἐσθίετε?) (eating) - Θ ἐσθίει ό διδάσκαλος ύμων (your teacher eating) - (see Mt 9:11) א 1342. it, vg (Origen), DHH ἐσθίει καὶ πίνει ό διδάσκαλος ύμων (eating and drinking, your teacher) - L Δ ƒ 1071. 1243. 1346. it, vg, cop, Augustine ἐσθίετε καὶ πίνετε ([are you] eating and drinking) - (see Lk 5:30) Σ 124. 565. 700. 1241. 1424. ℓ 547ℓ 866 sry, arm, geo, Diatessaron ἐσθίειτε καὶ πίνειτε ([are you] eating and drinking) - G ό διδάσκαλος ύμων ἐσθίει καὶ πίνει (your teacher eating and drinking) - C 579 ℓ 890 it, cop, eth ἐσθίετε ([are you] eating) - 1424.
Mark 2:26 ἐπὶ Ἀβιαθαρ ἀρχιερέως (when Abiatar was high priest) – א A B K L 892. 1010. 1195. 1216. 1230. 1242. 1344. 1365. 1646. 2174. Byz, ℓ 69 ℓ 70 ℓ 76 ℓ 80 ℓ 150 ℓ 299 ℓ 1127 ℓ 1634 ℓ 1761 arm ἐπὶ Ἀβιαθαρ τοῦ ἀρχιερέως (when Abiatar was high priest) – A C Θ Π 074 ἐπὶ Ἀβιαθαρ τοῦ ἱερέως (when Abiatar was priest) – Δ it phrase is omitted by manuscripts D W 1009. 1546. it, syr
Mark 3:7 ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας ἠκολούθησεν, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας - B L 565. 728. ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας ἠκολούθησεν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας - 61. 427. 555. 732. 892. ℓ 950 Byz ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας - Φ 0211 ƒ 4. 23. 154. 179. 273. 349. 351. 372. 382. 513. 517. 544. 695. 716. 733. 752. 766. 780. 792. 803. 873. 954. 979. 1009. 1047. 1084. 1241. 1326. 1337. 1396. 1424. 1506. 1515. 1546. 1645. 1654. 1675. 2538. 2737. 2766. ℓ 211 ℓ 387 ℓ 770 ℓ 773 ℓ 2211 sy ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας ἠκολούθησαν - א C ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ - Δ 377. 1071. 1342. ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας ἠκολούθησεν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἀπὸ Ἱεροσολύμων καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας καὶ πέραν τοῦ Ἰορδάνου - ƒ 1253. (ἐκ τῆς Γαλιλαίας) 2193.* 2886. καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας καὶ πέραν τοῦ Ἰορδάνου ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας ἠκολούθησεν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἀπὸ Ἱεροσολύμων - 118. 209. 1582.
Mark 3:14 δώδεκα, ἵνα ὦσιν μετʼ αὐτοῦ - C L ƒ 33. 382. 427. 544. 565. 579. 732. 740. 792. 892. 1342. 1424. 2193. 2542. 2766. 2886. ℓ 950 Byz ἵνα ὦσιν δώδεκα μετʼ αὐτοῦ - D 79. δώδεκα, ἵνα ὦσιν περὶ αὐτὸν - 700. δώδεκαμαθητας ἵνα ὦσιν μετʼ αὐτοῦ οὓς καὶ ἀποστόλους ὠνόμασεν - W