Hebrews 2:9, by the grace of God, or apart from God?
Hebrews 2:9 is transmitted with both apart from God and by the grace of God. The question turns on whether Jesus tasted death apart from God or by God’s grace.
The APB text at this verse
The manuscripts, editions, and versions
The committee record at this verse
The APB's translation committee works blind: it is never told it is translating the Bible, never given a book name or a verse number, and it never sees the witnesses above. Since revision 3.5, the places where the manuscripts disagree are decided before translation by three readers, Grok 4.3, GPT-6 Astra, and Claude Fable 5.1, who see the readings and the witnesses by age and class but never a reference or a manuscript name. Whatever was done at this verse was done on the language and the evidence alone, and the record is public.
“The base text reads χάριτι. The copies also carry the omission [early greek manuscript tradition]; the committee kept the base text. Default wording chosen; evidence is not overwhelming.”
“The base text reads χωρὶς. The copies also carry χάριτι [greek majuscule; greek papyrus; early greek manuscript tradition; later majority tradition]; the committee kept the base text. The evidence favors χωρὶς as the earlier and harder reading, though the limited number of early witnesses for χωρὶς reduces confidence below 0.8”
The APB’s printed text at this verse reads apart from God. Its 3.5 record lists two textual decisions. The first says, “The base text reads χάριτι. The copies also carry the omission [early greek manuscript tradition]; the committee kept the base text. Default wording chosen; evidence is not overwhelming.” The subsequent decision says, “The base text reads χωρὶς.” It adds that limited early support reduces confidence below 0.8.
The argument for each reading
If “apart from God”
The case for χωρὶς θεοῦ begins with its presence in the SBL Greek New Testament (Holmes), which prints apart from God where the other modern editions listed here print grace. Origen and early citations report both forms and know apart from God in many copies. The supplied description calls this the harder reading, a feature that can matter when considering how one form may have been replaced by another. The SBLGNT apparatus sets Holmes’s χωρὶς against χάριτι in WH, Tregelles, NA28, and RP. The limitation is also explicit: physical evidence for this form is now reduced to a few late witnesses.
If “by the grace of God”
The case for χάριτι θεοῦ is its broad manuscript support: the supplied summary says nearly every manuscript reads grace. NA28 prints χάριτι, and its witness note also places WH, Tregelles, NA28, and the Byzantine text on this side. The SBLGNT apparatus likewise lists χάριτι for WH, Tregelles, NA28, and RP. This reading yields by the grace of God in the clause about Jesus tasting death on behalf of everyone. Its strength in the packet is numerical and editorial breadth. The competing evidence remains material, since Origen reports both readings and the SBL Greek New Testament (Holmes) prints χωρὶς.
The packet preserves genuine uncertainty: one reading has nearly universal manuscript support in the supplied summary, while the other is reported by Origen and printed by the SBL Greek New Testament (Holmes). The wording changes whether the clause says apart from God or by the grace of God. It does not remove the statement that Jesus tasted death on behalf of everyone. No doctrine should be settled from this unit alone; most doctrines rest on many passages.
Common questions
Does Hebrews 2:9 say apart from God or by the grace of God?
Both readings are supplied: χωρὶς θεοῦ means apart from God, while χάριτι θεοῦ means by the grace of God. The APB printed text uses apart from God.
Which editions print grace in Hebrews 2:9?
The supplied apparatus lists χάριτι in WH, Tregelles, NA28, and RP. NA28’s witness note also says the Byzantine text reads grace.
Why is apart from God considered in Hebrews 2:9?
Origen and early citations report both readings and know apart from God in many copies. The supplied summary also describes it as the harder reading, though physical evidence is now reduced to a few late witnesses.
Related entries
Witness readings for critical editions are quoted from the SBLGNT apparatus (CC BY 4.0); Hebrew text from the Westminster Leningrad Codex (Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible). Readings of ancient manuscripts and versions are cited as published scholarly fact with their sources linked above. The page does not declare which reading is original.
The registry gives no verdict
The registry does not say which reading is original. Each page lists the witnesses, shows what the committee did with the same text, and leaves the judgment to the reader.