Luke 10:1, did Jesus send seventy, or seventy-two?
Luke 10:1 is transmitted with both seventy-two and seventy disciples. The difference is whether the small word δύο appears after ἑβδομήκοντα.
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 καὶ. The copies also carry the omission [early greek manuscript tradition]; the committee kept the base text. The external evidence favors καὶ because of its earlier and more diverse attestation. The internal evidence is nearly neutral but slightly supports καὶ as the harder reading to lose.”
“The base text reads δύο. The copies also carry the omission [greek papyrus; early greek manuscript tradition; later majority tradition]; the committee kept the base text. default chosen because early independent attestation outweighs the later omission”
“The base text reads καὶ. The copies also carry the omission [early greek manuscript tradition]; the committee kept the base text. Default chosen because the external evidence for καὶ is earlier and more widespread, and the internal evidence favors the harder reading.”
“The base text reads ⸀δύο. The copies also carry the omission [greek papyrus; early greek manuscript tradition; later majority tradition]; the committee kept the base text. The committee retains the default, but would want another reader because both readings are early and the nearby repetition of δύο makes addition a credible explanation.”
“The base text reads ⸁δύο. The copies also carry the omission [greek papyrus; early greek manuscript tradition; later majority tradition]; the committee kept the base text. The default wording is preferred. The early support for the omission prevents complete certainty, but the combined external evidence and plausible omission account favor ⸁δύο.”
The APB 3.5 decision retained ⸁δύο in the committee’s printed text, which reads seventy-two. Its final note says, “The default wording is preferred.” It also records that early support for omission prevents complete certainty and that nearby repetition of δύο makes addition a credible explanation. The three blind readers saw readings and witnesses only by class and date, without a reference, book name, or manuscript name. The pericope audit verdict is “clean.”
The argument for each reading
If seventy-two
The case for seventy-two rests on the presence of δύο in WH and NA28. In the apparatus, both entries for the disputed word align these editions on the side that includes it: “⸀δύο WH NA28 ] – Treg RP” and “⸁δύο WH NA28 ] – Treg RP.” WH’s witness note associates its wording with very early witnesses and observes that the count recurs in verse 17. NA28 keeps the word in its printed text, though its brackets signal hesitation rather than an unqualified presentation. On this reading, ἑβδομήκοντα δύο gives the number seventy-two. The symbolic force of a larger numbered mission helps explain why the precise count attracted attention.
If seventy
The case for seventy begins with the omission of δύο in Treg and RP. The same apparatus lines place both on the omission side: “⸀δύο WH NA28 ] – Treg RP” and “⸁δύο WH NA28 ] – Treg RP.” Tregelles is described as reading seventy with the majority of manuscripts, and the Robinson-Pierpont Byzantine Textform likewise counts seventy. This reading leaves ἑβδομήκοντα without the added number word. Since either total can carry symbolic weight, omission need not be treated as a casual simplification; it represents a sustained transmitted count in its own right.
The unresolved point is whether δύο belonged in the wording at Luke 10:1 or entered through transmission. The witnesses listed here divide almost evenly, and the committee record itself preserves uncertainty. The difference changes the stated number from seventy to seventy-two, but not the account’s appointment of others or their being sent two by two. Broader doctrines do not hinge on this count alone; they rest on many passages.
Common questions
Did Jesus send seventy or seventy-two disciples in Luke 10:1?
The transmitted readings give both answers. WH and NA28 include δύο and read seventy-two; Treg and RP omit it and read seventy.
What word creates the difference in Luke 10:1?
The difference is δύο. With it, the wording is ἑβδομήκοντα δύο, seventy-two; without it, the count is ἑβδομήκοντα, seventy.
What does the APB printed text say?
The APB printed text says that the Lord appointed seventy-two others. Its 3.5 decision retained ⸁δύο while noting uncertainty about the omission.
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.