I'm about three-fourths of the way through Bart Ehrman's Misquoting Jesus, a treatment of biblical textual criticism for non-specialists.

I'm distracted only by its apparent repetitiveness on the main point. But I suspect that writing styles these days must acknowledge that few read from cover-to-cover anymore. Or even necessarily remember what they've read. So, to drive home a main point, it must be stated and restated periodically throughout a work. I hope that's all it is. I'd hate to think that he's underestimating me.

And Ehrman's main point is that we don't possess the autographs of the biblical texts. Claims that the Bible is the inerrant, inspired word of God mean little without those very original, inspired words (page 7).

As an evangelical, Ehrman had reasoned that if God inspired the original words, then God could preserve those words, across copies, through the centuries. To discover that the words were not entirely preserved called into question his belief that the original words were inspired (page 11). His understanding of inspiration was challenged.

The most intriguing part of the story begins on page 113 regarding 1 Timothy 3:16. Compare the verse across these five English translations, especially the KJV.

A scholar examining the Codex Alexandrinus in the early 18th century made a startling discovery. He noted that the Greek word that begins what is believed to be an early hymn, ΟΣ¹, was erroneously turned into an abbreviation for "God" (ΘΕΟΣ) by a later hand using a slightly different color ink. The abbreviation is formed with a horizontal line across the top of the letters, the initial letter and the final letter of ΘΕΟΣ.

In addition, a horizontal line from the reverse side bled through to form the middle part of the first letter, turning an omicron into a theta.

So, instead of the hymn describing Christ as "God made manifest in the flesh," the hymn says of Christ, "who was made manifest in the flesh." The passage no longer explicitly calls Christ "God".

Only the New American Bible has the balls to comment on this textual variance plainly:

"who": the reference is to Christ, who is himself "the mystery of our devotion."

Some predominantly Western manuscripts read "which," harmonizing the gender of the pronoun with that of the Greek word for mystery.

Many later (eighth/ninth century on), predominantly Byzantine manuscripts read "God," possibly for theological reasons.

¹ The Codex Alexandrinus is written in capital letters.