Digital Logos Edition
Samuel Tregelles is one of the few scholarly giants of New Testament textual criticism. Drawing on his encyclopedic knowledge of the New Testament text and his own collations of manuscripts and editions, Tregelles’ Greek New Testament has stood the test of time as an essential piece of biblical scholarship that continues to be held in high regard by modern textual critics.
Samuel Prideaux Tregelles, born in 1813, was a giant of Biblical scholarship during the 19th century. His scholarly endeavors cover the whole gamut of Biblical and theological study, from Hebrew grammar and lexicography, to New Testament textual criticism. Most well-known for his work in textual criticism, he is one of only a handful of scholars to have produced a complete critical edition of the Greek New Testament single-handedly. His efforts laid the foundation for much of the text critical work of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, for scholars such as Westcott and Hort, Eberhard Nestle, Kurt and Barbara Aland, and Bruce Metzger. Known for his vast knowledge on virtually any topic, it is said that he was “able to shed a light upon any topic that might be introduced,” but that asking could be dangerous because, “doing so was like reaching to take a book and having the whole shelf-full precipitated upon your head.” He died in 1875 just following the completion of his tour de force critical edition, The Greek New Testament, Edited from Ancient Authorities, which was seen to publication after his death.