Writing Material

1. Papyrus –

   1. Reeds, split, pressed and dried

   2. Form paper-like sheets

   3. From Egypt and Syria

   4. Our English word “paper” comes from papyrus

   5. Oldest we have date back to 2400 BC
       

2. Parchment –

   1. Sheep, goat skins, or antelope

   2. These skins were shaved or scraped thinner

   3. This made them more flexible

   4. But they dried, cracked, dry rot – not long lasting
       

3. Vellum –

   1. Calf or Deed skins

   2. Dyed purple for dark background

   3. Ink was gold or silver

   4. Oldest we have date to about 1500 BC
       

4. Ostraca –

   1. Pottery, clay tablets, stone, or wax covered wood

   2. Much longer lasting

   3. Heavy, hard to carry

   4. Cannot be altered or added to

Writing Instruments

1. Chisel – to carve in stone

2. Metal stylus – write in soft clay

3. Pen – sharp stick, quill (feather), reed-pen

4. Ink – compounds of charcoal, gum, and water

Forms of ancient books

1. Rolls or scrolls – sheets of vellum sewn together

2. Codex or Book form – Sheets of papyrus in leaf form, often written on both sides

Types of Writing

1. Uncial –

   1. All capital letters – easy to chisel or write in clay

   2. Vaticanus and Sinaiticus are uncial manuscripts
       

2. Minuscule –

   1. Script writing – small letters in a running hand

   2. Often no breaks between words

   3. Hebrew without vowels until 900 AD

   4. Massorites – added vowels to aid in proper pronunciation

Divisions

1. Sections – Hebrew canon

   1. Law – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy

   2. Prophets – Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings

   3. Latter prophets – Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, the 12

   4. The writings – Psalm, Proverbs, Job

   5. Five rolls – Song of Solomon, Ruth, Lamentations, Esther, Ecclesiastes

   6. Historical – Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, Chronicles
       

   Sections of OT in NT

   1. Luke 24:44 – Law, Prophets and Psalms

   2. John 10:31-36 – disagreed about interpretation, not about canon
      
       

2. Chapters

   1. Pentateuch – divided into 154 groupings in 586 BC

   2. 536 BC – sectioned into 54 divisions and into 669 smaller segments

   3. Greeks made divisions around 250 BC and noted the divisions in the margin until about 350 AD
       

3. Verses

   1. The sections remained until the 13^th century

   2. Archbishop of Canterbury – 1227

   3. The first verse divisions were around 900 AD

   4. The Latin Vulgate (4^th century) – first Bible with both chapter and verse divisions of the Old and New Testament.