[186:2] In justification of this statement, I must content myself for
the present with referring to an able and (as it seems to me)
unanswerable article on Marcion's Gospel by Mr Sanday, in the June
[1875] number of the _Fortnightly Review_, in reply to the author of
_Supernatural Religion_.

[187:1] John xix. 35; xx. 31.

[188:1] This fragment may be conveniently consulted in the edition of
Tregelles (Oxford, 1867), or in Westcott's _History of the Canon_ p. 514
sq (ed. 4). It must be remembered, _first_, that this document is an
unskilful Latin translation from a lost Greek original; and, _secondly_,
that the extant copy of this translation has been written by an
extremely careless scribe, and is full of clerical errors. These facts
however do not affect the question with which I am concerned, since on
all the points at issue the bearing of the document is clear.

[189:1] I venture to offer a conjectural emendation of the text, which
is obviously corrupt or defective. It runs--'et ide prout asequi potuit
ita et ad nativitate Johannis incipet dicere.' I propose to insert
'posuit ita' after 'potuit ita,' supposing that the words have dropped
out owing to the homoeoteleuton. The text will then stand, 'et idem,
prout assequi potuit, ita posuit. Ita et ab nativitate,' etc. ([Greek:
kai autos, kathos hedunato parakolouthein, outos etheke, k.t.l.]), 'And
he too [like Mark] set down events according as he had opportunity of
following them' (see Luke i. 3). But the general meaning of the passage
is quite independent of any textual conjectures.

[189:2] 'Johannis ex. discipulis, i.e. [Greek: tou ek ton matheton],
where [Greek: mathetes], 'a disciple,' is applied, as in Papias and
Irenaeus, in conformity with the language of the Gospels, to those who
had been taught directly by Christ.

[189:3] The plural appears to be used here, as not uncommonly, of a
single letter. See above, p.114. The sentence runs in the Latin (when
some obvious errors of transcription are corrected):--'Quid ergo mirum
si Johannes singula etiam in epistulis suis proferat dicens in semet
ipsum, _Quae vidimus_,' etc.; and so I have translated it. But I cannot
help suspecting that the order in the original was, [Greek: hekasta
propherei, kai en tais epistolais autou legon eis heauton, k.t.l.] 'puts
forward each statement (_i.e._ in the Gospel), as he says in his epistle
also respecting himself,' etc.; and that the translator has wrongly
attached the word