The Crux Registry
65Readings
176Witnesses
0Verdicts
A textual crux is a place where the Bible's oldest manuscripts disagree, over a letter, a word, or a whole passage. Each page here lays one out in full: what every manuscript actually says, side by side, with each claim linked to its published source. Because the Anselm Project Bible was translated by a committee that was never told it was reading Scripture, and its disputed readings were decided by translators who saw the evidence without the references, each page also shows what that committee did at the same place, and why.
17 readings
Hebrew Readings
Places where the Hebrew text of the Old Testament is uncertain, a single letter's difference, a scribe's marginal correction, or an older scroll that reads differently.
Psalm 22:16
Pierced, or like a lion
A vav or yod changes Psalm 22:16 from an action involving hands and feet to a lion comparison. Hebrew witnesses and ancient translations preserve the alternatives.
Genesis 4:8
Cain's missing words
Genesis 4:8 moves from Cain's speech to the field without reporting his words in the Masoretic Text. Three other witnesses include an invitation, while the APB retains the shorter reading.
Deuteronomy 32:8
Sons of God, or of Israel
One word in Deuteronomy 32:8 links the numbering of nations either to divine beings or to Israel’s family. The Hebrew witnesses differ, and the APB prints sons of God.
Isaiah 7:14
Virgin, or young woman
The Masoretic Text and Great Isaiah Scroll agree on young woman in Isaiah 7:14. The Septuagint uses virgin, and Matthew 1:23 quotes its Greek word.
Isaiah 53:11
He shall see: light?
A single object changes the image in Isaiah 53:11: the Masoretic Text leaves the servant's seeing unspecified, while the Great Isaiah Scroll names light and the Septuagint also includes it.
Psalm 145:13
The missing nun line
Psalm 145’s alphabetic sequence passes over nun in the Masoretic Text. A line preserved in 11QPsᵃ and the Septuagint fills that place and appears in the APB.
2 Samuel 21:19
Who killed Goliath?
The Hebrew accounts identify different victims for Elhanan: Goliath in Samuel and Lahmi, Goliath's brother, in Chronicles. The APB prints each account's wording.
Genesis 47:31
Bed, or staff
Jacob’s bed or staff in Genesis 47:31 depends on how the same Hebrew consonants are read: the Masoretic pointing gives bed, while the Septuagint gives staff.
Psalm 40:6
Ears dug, or body prepared
Psalm 40:6 pictures dug ears in the Masoretic Text and a prepared body in the Septuagint. The New Testament quotation follows the Greek wording; the APB prints ears.
Job 13:15
Hope in him: or no hope
One Hebrew letter separates hope from its denial in Job 13:15. The Masoretic text preserves the negative, while its margin directs a reading of hope in him.
Psalm 100:3
Not we: or his we are
A difference between alef and vav gives Psalm 100:3 two senses: God made the people, who did not make themselves, or God made the people and they belong to him.
Judges 18:30
Moses, or Manasseh
A raised nun separates Moses from Manasseh in Judges 18:30. The Vulgate names Moses; the Masoretic Text preserves Manasseh with the letter suspended above the line.
Isaiah 21:8
A lion: or the watcher
A change in Hebrew letter order gives Isaiah 21:8 either a watcher or a lion. The Great Isaiah Scroll supports the watcher; the Masoretic Text and the APB retain a lion.
Isaiah 14:12
Lucifer, or Day Star
Isaiah 14:12 joins a taunt against Babylon's king to a falling morning star. The Vulgate's lucifer became a proper name in later tradition; the APB prints shining one, son of dawn.
Genesis 49:10
Until Shiloh comes
A final-letter difference in Genesis 49:10 separates Shiloh as a name from a reading about the one to whom something belongs; the APB prints “until tribute comes.”
Psalm 2:12
Kiss the Son
The opening of Psalm 2:12 turns on how the same consonants are understood: the Masoretic Text has kiss the son, while the Septuagint has lay hold of instruction.
Zechariah 12:10
Look on me, or on him
A single Hebrew letter changes the identity of the pierced one in Zechariah 12:10. The APB retains the first-person wording found in the Masoretic Text.
24 readings
Greek Readings
Places where the Greek manuscripts of the New Testament disagree over a word or a phrase, and the difference changes what the verse says.
Mark 1:1
Mark's opening line
The title Son of God appears in Nestle-Aland 28 and Robinson-Pierpont at Mark 1:1. Westcott-Hort and the APB end the opening at Jesus Christ.
Mark 1:41
Angry, or compassionate
Codex Bezae and the SBLGNT read anger in Mark 1:41; NA28 and the APB read compassion. The disagreement concerns Jesus' emotion during the healing of a leper.
John 1:18
Only Son, or only God
John 1:18 closes with a disputed title: God in the two earliest witnesses to the prologue, Son in the manuscript majority. The APB prints the unique God.
1 Timothy 3:16
God, or he who
Two small strokes separate ΟΣ, who, from ΘΣ, God. In 1 Timothy 3:16, NA28 prints the pronoun, Robinson-Pierpont prints God, and the APB translates with he.
Jude 1:5
Jesus, or the Lord
Naming Jesus in Jude 5 connects him directly with the rescue from Egypt and the judgment that follows; the alternative uses the title Lord. The APB prints Jesus.
Romans 5:1
One vowel in Romans
A single vowel changes Romans 5:1 from an assurance of peace with God to an appeal to have that peace; the oldest copies favor the appeal.
Hebrews 2:9
Grace of God, or apart from God
The grace reading dominates the manuscripts of Hebrews 2:9, while Origen attests without God in many copies. The APB prints without God.
2 Peter 3:10
Burned up, or laid bare
One verb in 2 Peter 3:10 changes the earth's fate from exposure to burning; NA28 adopts the further alternative will NOT be found without Greek manuscript attestation.
Luke 2:14
The angels' sigma
A final sigma in Luke 2:14 connects good pleasure to the people receiving peace; the form without it expresses good will toward men.
John 1:34
Son, or Chosen One
The Baptist's testimony in John 1:34 differs across witnesses: early Egyptian manuscripts support Chosen One, while Son appears in NA28 and the Byzantine text.
Matthew 24:36
Nor the Son
The disputed words “nor the Son” explicitly extend Matthew 24:36's statement of unknowing to the Son. NA28 retains them; the Byzantine majority edition does not have them.
Matthew 5:22
The softening word
An added adverb in Matthew 5:22 limits the warning to causeless anger. The shorter reading states the warning without that exception.
John 3:13
Who is in heaven
The disputed ending of John 3:13 places the Son of Man in heaven while he speaks on earth. WH omits the clause; RP retains it, and the APB prints the shorter reading.
Acts 20:28
Church of God, or of the Lord
The title attached to the church in Acts 20:28 varies between God and Lord, shaping the question of whose blood purchased it.
Matthew 27:16
Jesus Barabbas
Matthew 27:16 varies over Barabbas's name: Nestle-Aland 28 includes Jesus, Westcott-Hort omits it, and the APB prints Jesus Barabbas.
Mark 10:24
The camel's qualifier
A qualifier in Mark 10:24 focuses the difficulty of entering God's kingdom on those who trust in riches. The APB prints the shorter wording, which leaves the saying unrestricted.
Luke 4:44
Judea, or Galilee
A regional name divides the text of Luke 4:44: Westcott-Hort prints Judea, while Tregelles prints Galilee, the setting of the surrounding narrative.
Ephesians 1:1
In Ephesus: or blank
The city name in Ephesians 1:1 is absent from the first hands of three early witnesses. Printed editions retain it, leaving a question about the letter’s intended destination.
1 Thessalonians 2:7
Gentle, or infants
A single nu changes the apostles’ description in 1 Thessalonians 2:7 from gentle to little children; the editions divide over the wording before the nursing mother comparison.
1 Corinthians 13:3
Burned, or boast
A one-letter Greek difference in 1 Corinthians 13:3 shifts Paul's example from bodily sacrifice by fire to grounds for boasting; both readings keep love central.
Revelation 1:5
Washed, or freed
A single Greek vowel separates “freed us” from “washed us” in Revelation 1:5. The critical editions favor release; the Robinson-Pierpont Byzantine Textform preserves washing.
John 14:14
Ask me: or just ask
A two-letter Greek word makes Jesus the explicit recipient of requests in John 14:14. Three editions retain it, Tregelles omits it, and the APB prints it.
Revelation 5:9
Purchased us, or them
An added pronoun in Revelation 5:9 makes the choir sing of its own purchase; related wording in 5:10 describes those purchased as a kingdom or as kings.
Colossians 1:14
Through his blood
Colossians 1:14 has a shorter form in SBLGNT and its collated editions, while the Textus Receptus includes “through his blood.” The APB prints the shorter form.
14 verses
Verses Not in Every Bible
Whole verses that appear in some Bibles but not in others. If your Bible seems to skip a verse number, the reason is probably on this list.
Joshua 21:36
Joshua's missing verses
Joshua 21:36-37 contains Reuben’s four Levitical cities. Hebrew witnesses differ over including these verses, whose presence completes the count of forty-eight.
1 John 5:7
The Comma Johanneum
The heavenly witnesses in 1 John 5:7 became standard in medieval Vulgate copies and entered the Textus Receptus through Erasmus's third edition.
Luke 23:34
Father, forgive them
Luke 23:34 has a divided textual history: a broad early alliance omits Jesus' prayer for forgiveness, while several editions retain it. The APB keeps the prayer.
Matthew 6:13
The Lord's Prayer doxology
Matthew 6:13 ends with a plea for rescue in Nestle-Aland 28 and with closing praise in Robinson-Pierpont Byzantine Textform. The APB prints the shorter ending.
Acts 8:36
The eunuch's confession
Acts 8:37 adds Philip’s condition for baptism and the eunuch’s confession of faith. The KJV prints the exchange; the APB preserves it in brackets as a disputed passage.
John 5:3
The angel at Bethesda
John 5:4 supplies an angel's action as the explanation for the pool's disturbed water. NA28 omits that explanation, RP retains it, and the APB prints the verse in brackets.
Matthew 18:10
Matthew's missing verse
Matthew 18:11 adds a statement about saving the lost before the lost sheep parable. Westcott-Hort (1881) omits it; Robinson-Pierpont Byzantine Textform includes it; the APB keeps it in brackets.
Mark 7:15
Ears to hear
Mark 7:16 adds a familiar call to hear in Robinson-Pierpont; Westcott-Hort and NA28 move directly from verse 15 to verse 17. The APB retains the disputed sentence in brackets.
Mark 9:45
The worm verses
Mark 9:44 and 9:46 repeat the worm-and-fire refrain in one textual form; another reserves it for verse 48. The APB prints the two disputed repetitions in brackets.
Luke 23:16
Luke's missing verse
Luke 23:17 adds an explanation of the feast release custom. Westcott-Hort omits the sentence, Robinson-Pierpont includes it, and the APB prints it in brackets.
Romans 16:24
The wandering benediction
Romans 16:24 places a repeated grace blessing after the greetings in the Byzantine text. Westcott-Hort omits it, while the APB preserves the full sentence in brackets.
Matthew 21:44
The crushing stone
Almost every manuscript includes Matthew 21:44. A small group omits it, and its agreement with Luke 20:18 raises a question about how the stone saying entered Matthew.
Matthew 17:20
Prayer and fasting
Matthew 17:21 adds an instruction about prayer and fasting after the mustard seed saying. Westcott-Hort and NA28 omit it; Tregelles includes it, and the APB prints it in brackets.
Luke 9:55
What spirit you are of
Luke 9:55 differs over the content of Jesus' rebuke: Westcott-Hort leaves his words unstated, while Robinson-Pierpont Byzantine Textform includes the saying about the disciples' spirit.
4 passages
Passages Not in Every Bible
Entire passages (up to twelve verses long) that some manuscripts include and others leave out.
Mark 16:8
Mark's longer ending
Mark's ending has two principal forms: a close with the women's fear at 16:8 and twelve further verses recounting appearances, signs, and the ascension. The APB retains the disputed verses in brackets.
John 7:52
The wandering pericope
John’s adultery story is absent from early witnesses and present in the Byzantine text. The APB retains its wording in brackets to mark the committee’s judgment that it was added later.
Luke 22:43
The bloody sweat
Luke 22:43-44 adds an angel's help and sweat like blood to Jesus' prayer. The verses are absent from early witnesses and appear in brackets in the APB.
Matthew 16:2
Signs of the times
Sinaiticus and Vaticanus omit Matthew's red-sky weather lesson; Tregelles, NA28, and the Byzantine text retain it. The APB includes the passage with recorded doubt.
6 numbers
Disputed Numbers
Numbers the manuscripts disagree about, from the number of the beast to the length of a king's reign.
1 Samuel 13:1
Saul's missing age
Saul's age in 1 Samuel 13:1 turns on an apparent gap: the Hebrew reads a year old, later Greek gives thirty, and Codex Vaticanus skips the verse.
1 Samuel 17:4
Goliath: four cubits or six
One number in 1 Samuel 17:4 changes Goliath’s height by about three feet: the Hebrew witnesses differ, and the Greek witness supports the shorter measurement.
2 Kings 8:26
Ahaziah: 22 or 42
Kings gives Ahaziah’s accession age as twenty-two; Chronicles gives forty-two. The APB preserves both figures, while Greek Chronicles has a third number: twenty.
1 Samuel 6:19
Seventy men: and fifty thousand?
The death toll at Beth-shemesh differs across accounts: the Masoretic Text and Septuagint preserve seventy and fifty thousand, while Josephus counts seventy. The APB prints both quantities separately.
Revelation 13:18
666, or 616
Revelation 13:18 has two numerical readings: the editions agree on six hundred sixty-six, but the earliest witness to the verse, Papyrus 115, gives six hundred sixteen.
Luke 10:1
Seventy, or seventy-two
A single Greek word changes the group’s size in Luke 10:1. Two editions retain it, two omit it, and the APB prints seventy-two.
Every page documents its witnesses from open data, the Westminster Leningrad Codex and the SBLGNT apparatus (CC BY 4.0), and links each manuscript claim to its published source. The committee records are quoted verbatim from the Anselm Project Bible's public audit trail, downloadable in full on Hugging Face.