This post is part of an ongoing series on the Scriptures of Saint Patrick of Ireland.
| Confessio 40 & Matthew 28:19-20 | ||
| Patrick | O’Loughlin (161) | ‘Go therefore,’ now, ‘and teach all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and behold, I am with you always even to the close of the age.’ |
| Bieler (80) & Conneely (43) | Euntes ergo nunc docete omnes gentes baptizantes eas in nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti docentes eos observare omnia quaecumque mandavi vobis: et ecce ego vobiscum sum omnibus diebus usque ad consummationem saeculi. | |
| Matthew 28:19-20 | ||
| Vulgate | euntes ergo docete omnes gentes baptizantes eos in nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti docentes eos servare omnia quaecumque mandavi vobis et ecce ego vobiscum sum omnibus diebus usque ad consummationem saeculi | |
| e (5th c. Italy)[1] | Ite ergo docete omnes gentes baptizantes eos in nomine patris et fili et sps sancti docentes eos obserbare omnia quaecumque praecepi vobis et ecce ego vobiscum sum omnibus usque ad consummationem saeculi. Amen. | |
| a (4th c. Italy) | Euntes nunc docete omnes gentes, baptizantes eos in nomine Patris, et Fili, et Spiritus Sancti docentes eos servare omnia quaecumque mandavi vobis. Et ecce ego vobiscum sum omnibus diebus usque ad consummationem saeculi. Amen. | |
| h (4th-5th c. Western Europe)[2] | Euntes nunc docete omnes gentes baptizantes eos in nomine patris et filii et spiritus sancti docentes eos servare omnia quaecumque mandavi vobis. Et ecce vobiscum sum omnibus diebus usque ad consummationem saeculi. | |
Patrick’s quotation of the Great Commission suggests his access to a mixed-type manuscript, as he incorporates terminology of both the Vetus Latina and Vulgate families. His use of the term observare, only found in e among our manuscripts, stands over against the more common servare, present in the Vulgate, a, and h. Additionally, Patrick does not include the “Amen” at the end of his quotation; this could be for stylistic purposes, or he could be following an exemplar with that designation missing, such as the Vulgate or h. Moreover, he also displays a curious “double reading” of the transition terms ergo and nunc, suggesting that his exemplar possessed this phraseology (from the manuscripts examined, the Vulgate and e contain ergo and a and h use nunc.). Though our previous example from Matthew’s Gospel revealed a uniform text, this example demonstrates the difficulty in arguing that any one biblical tradition held sway over Patrick’s manuscript of Matthew.
[1] Codex Palatinus. Metzger indicates that this type of Latin text was highly similar to the form that Augustine employed. See Metzger, 73.
[2] Codex Claromontanus V. This manuscript—which is part of a larger gospel collection—is unique for its Vetus Latina text amid an otherwise primarily Vulgate codex. This suggests its origins on the “front lines” of the Vulgate’s advance, though precisely which geography this would encompass is uncertain.
Pursuing Veritas 
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