Hello Ray,quick question.
According to the United Bible Societies' text, Matthew 27:17 reads: "...whom will ye that I release unto you? Jesus Barabbas [Greek: Iesous ton Barabban] or Jesus which is called Christ (Iesous ton legomenon Christon)?
The name Barabbas is composed of two elements: bar, meaning son of, and Abba.
Abba also means "father" in Aramaic. Jesus sometimes referred to God as "father;" Jesus' use of the Aramaic word Abba survives untranslated (in most English translations) in Mark 14:36.
Some early Syriac manuscripts of Matthew present Barabbas' name twice as Jesus bar Abbas: manuscripts in the Caesarean group of text, the Sinaitic Palimpsest the Palestinian Syriac lectionaries and some of the manuscripts used by Origen in the 3rd century, all support the fact that Barabbas' name was originally Jesus Barabbas.
Barabbas or bar-abbas, tra nslates to "son of the father" which could be a surname, nor is it common in any other Hebrew text.
So the text reads:whom will ye that I release unto you? Jesus Barabbas(son of the father)or Jesus which is called Christ(the anointed,messiah)
What do you think this means?
Dear Mitchell:
In as much as NONE of the better and older Greek manuscripts have Barabbas' name as "Jesus," I would rather think that it was an early scribal mistake which just contined to be perpetuated a few times. I make no more of it than this.
God be with you,
Ray
PS The fact that Origen was "aware" of this legend that Barabbas' name was Jesus does NOT prove that it was through the manuscripts that he deemed authentic that this legend origenated.
