The Johannine Comma
his, I presume, is the proper time to circle back to the critical text of Erasmus and discuss the controversies surrounding the Johannine Comma, namely 1 John 5:7-8. It is known by it’s Latin term as the Johannine Comma, or in the common tongue, a short clause by John. This statement consists of two verses, 1 John 5:7-8, and has been an element of controversy over the last 2,000 years, but now that we understand the Truth of 1 John, it is my hope to explain the back story of this illusive verse.
ll through history there have been those whom John has been warning us of; haters of God consumed with an anti-Christ spirit. Shortly after the New Testament was written and was being proclaimed throughout the world, these wolves in sheep’s clothing began to infiltrate the early Church trying to destroy their faith in Jesus and His Word. They began writing their own version of scripture, choosing to delete key verses specifically related to Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God made flesh. They proclaimed righteousness to anyone who would attain to the knowledge of the Father. On the surface, this sounds holy, but they purposely left out a crucial piece, Jesus. They denied His divinity. They rejected Him as Christ, and although they admitted [1]Jesus, as a son of the Father, they did not confess Him as “the” Son. They also preached [2]Christ, to be separate from Jesus, along with the [3]Word, and the [4]Truth, , as well as many others to be children of God. As you can see, this is blasphemy, and these people started writing their version of the New Testament, stating it as the inspired Word of God. We now know these manuscripts as the Alexandrian texts of the New Testament, and since their re-discovery in the 19th century, it has brought confusion and doubt to many people, including Christians who now question what is the true written Word of God.
[1] Ἰησοῦς - Iesuous- Jesus
[2] Χριστός - Christos- Christ
[3] Λόγος - Logos- Word
[4] ἀλήθεια - alethetheia- Truth
ll through history there have been those whom John has been warning us of; haters of God consumed with an anti-Christ spirit. Shortly after the New Testament was written and was being proclaimed throughout the world, these wolves in sheep’s clothing began to infiltrate the early Church trying to destroy their faith in Jesus and His Word. They began writing their own version of scripture, choosing to delete key verses specifically related to Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God made flesh. They proclaimed righteousness to anyone who would attain to the knowledge of the Father. On the surface, this sounds holy, but they purposely left out a crucial piece, Jesus. They denied His divinity. They rejected Him as Christ, and although they admitted [1]Jesus, as a son of the Father, they did not confess Him as “the” Son. They also preached [2]Christ, to be separate from Jesus, along with the [3]Word, and the [4]Truth, , as well as many others to be children of God. As you can see, this is blasphemy, and these people started writing their version of the New Testament, stating it as the inspired Word of God. We now know these manuscripts as the Alexandrian texts of the New Testament, and since their re-discovery in the 19th century, it has brought confusion and doubt to many people, including Christians who now question what is the true written Word of God.
[1] Ἰησοῦς - Iesuous- Jesus
[2] Χριστός - Christos- Christ
[3] Λόγος - Logos- Word
[4] ἀλήθεια - alethetheia- Truth
Since 1881, we have had a division within the body of Christ concerning God’s Holy Word, and unfortunately, most of our English translations are now corrupted with these heresies. Many verses, 48 to be exact, in the new translations are missing, and there are literally hundreds of small differences where words have been slightly altered within the verse, changing it from the original Word of God. And now, over one hundred years later, since 1881, these incorrect translations have been distributed to millions of people. I am sharing this with you because the root cause of these missing and altered verses is the infiltration of the gnostic heresies of which John is warning us of.
These non-inclusions have been the subject of serious debate among scholars, specifically the Johnannine Comma. Should it be there or not is the question, and more importantly, how were verses 7 and 8 of his first epistle originally penned? Unfortunately, the certainty will not be known until we can ask him personally when we see him in heaven. Until then, we can study this text with the entire council of God, and the knowledge we have attained of the times and circumstances, thus deriving our best hypothesis. I will spend some time here discussing this topic because of the textual criticism this statement has contrived.
The textural diversities of the Bible, namely the 26 passages of Scripture, totaling about 48 verses missing in the Alexandrian codices, can be attributed to the Gnostic influence. The corruption of the Alexandrian codices, including the missing verses, can be explained by the Gnostics trying to corrupt the Word of God. Therefore, we know that these missing verses should in fact be included in the Bible as the Textus Receptus has done.
But among the major textural criticisms, the Johannine Comma is the most peculiar. The Alexandrian Codices, those manunuscripts of the Greek New Testament discovered and originally copied in Alexandria Egypt, are corrupt and filled with Gnostic errors and influence. These manuscripts, however, are to date, the oldest documents containing the Greek text of the New Testament. This has deceived scholars and is the subject of debate. Many scholares believe the oldest manuscripts must be the best because they are closer in date to the original. But just because it is the oldest does not make it the most accurate. These Gnostic manuscripts were revised with the purpose of proclaiming their false agenda, and to disregard the authority of Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the Living the God. Erasmus knew of these false heresies, therefore when he transcribed his Greek New Testament into one beautiful volume of Greek text in 1516. He purposely only used Greek manuscripts from the Byzantine Empire. These texts had not been corrupted by the Gnostic influence, and though they are not as old, they hold the original Truth of the Word.
Among the Byzantine manuscripts, they are 99.8% agreeable with only slight changes in word order and accent marks. However, the Johannine Comma is slightly different. 1John 5:7-8, even among the Byzantine manuscripts, is inconsistent. It is the only place in Scripture, among the Byzantine manuscripts, we see this controversy, but as this dilemma is studied, there is one very important thing to keep in mind; the inclusion or non-inclusion of these verses does not alter any foundational doctrine. The inclusion strengthens the Oneness of the Trinity, but also the non-inclusion does not lessen it either.
Any new translation, namely, the NASB, NIV, ESV, RSV, and the NLT, hold the Alexandrian codices, the “early” Greek manuscripts, in high regard. Therefore, the Johannine Comma is not included in these translations. Also, Erasmus, in his first two editions, 1516 and 1519, because of the inconsistencies of the Byzantine manuscripts, were transcribed without the Comma as well. Let us start by reading this passage as it is written without the Comma.
These non-inclusions have been the subject of serious debate among scholars, specifically the Johnannine Comma. Should it be there or not is the question, and more importantly, how were verses 7 and 8 of his first epistle originally penned? Unfortunately, the certainty will not be known until we can ask him personally when we see him in heaven. Until then, we can study this text with the entire council of God, and the knowledge we have attained of the times and circumstances, thus deriving our best hypothesis. I will spend some time here discussing this topic because of the textual criticism this statement has contrived.
The textural diversities of the Bible, namely the 26 passages of Scripture, totaling about 48 verses missing in the Alexandrian codices, can be attributed to the Gnostic influence. The corruption of the Alexandrian codices, including the missing verses, can be explained by the Gnostics trying to corrupt the Word of God. Therefore, we know that these missing verses should in fact be included in the Bible as the Textus Receptus has done.
But among the major textural criticisms, the Johannine Comma is the most peculiar. The Alexandrian Codices, those manunuscripts of the Greek New Testament discovered and originally copied in Alexandria Egypt, are corrupt and filled with Gnostic errors and influence. These manuscripts, however, are to date, the oldest documents containing the Greek text of the New Testament. This has deceived scholars and is the subject of debate. Many scholares believe the oldest manuscripts must be the best because they are closer in date to the original. But just because it is the oldest does not make it the most accurate. These Gnostic manuscripts were revised with the purpose of proclaiming their false agenda, and to disregard the authority of Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the Living the God. Erasmus knew of these false heresies, therefore when he transcribed his Greek New Testament into one beautiful volume of Greek text in 1516. He purposely only used Greek manuscripts from the Byzantine Empire. These texts had not been corrupted by the Gnostic influence, and though they are not as old, they hold the original Truth of the Word.
Among the Byzantine manuscripts, they are 99.8% agreeable with only slight changes in word order and accent marks. However, the Johannine Comma is slightly different. 1John 5:7-8, even among the Byzantine manuscripts, is inconsistent. It is the only place in Scripture, among the Byzantine manuscripts, we see this controversy, but as this dilemma is studied, there is one very important thing to keep in mind; the inclusion or non-inclusion of these verses does not alter any foundational doctrine. The inclusion strengthens the Oneness of the Trinity, but also the non-inclusion does not lessen it either.
Any new translation, namely, the NASB, NIV, ESV, RSV, and the NLT, hold the Alexandrian codices, the “early” Greek manuscripts, in high regard. Therefore, the Johannine Comma is not included in these translations. Also, Erasmus, in his first two editions, 1516 and 1519, because of the inconsistencies of the Byzantine manuscripts, were transcribed without the Comma as well. Let us start by reading this passage as it is written without the Comma.
The NASB, which does not include the Comma, reads:
7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.
As the reader can see, this translation does not include the latter part of verse 7 and the beginning of verse 8. And, quite frankly, is confusing. This Scripture only makes sense when it is written in its entirety, including the Johannine Comma.
The full reading in the Greek as stated in the Textus Receptus by Erasmus in his later Greek editions, Stephanus’ Greek New Testament in 1550, and the English translation of this statement as written in the KJV, derived from the Textus Receptus is as follows, the Johannine Comma is in red:
7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.
As the reader can see, this translation does not include the latter part of verse 7 and the beginning of verse 8. And, quite frankly, is confusing. This Scripture only makes sense when it is written in its entirety, including the Johannine Comma.
The full reading in the Greek as stated in the Textus Receptus by Erasmus in his later Greek editions, Stephanus’ Greek New Testament in 1550, and the English translation of this statement as written in the KJV, derived from the Textus Receptus is as follows, the Johannine Comma is in red:
In chapter 5, John is explaining the concept of being born again of God and stipulates this statement by saying only those who believe that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of God can be born again and overcome the world, (1Jn 5:1-5). He then continues into verse 6 which says,
He (Jesus) arrived by water and blood and it is the Spirit who testifies because the Spirit is Truth.
This verse 6 is very important to understanding the Johannine Comma, for it is here that John speaks of Jesus’ incarnation, His being made a man and coming to this earth by way of the Spirit, the water and the blood. Verse 7 describes the Godhead in heaven as witnesses to the coming of the Messiah, for this was the plan of God before the foundation of the world, to send His Son as the Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world, and reconcile mankind to Himself, forever to live together in eternal happiness as a family forever. It was in heaven in which the Three witnesses, the Godhead, the Three as One, commenced this plan and created the universe. Thus, to fulfill this plan, Jesus, the Word, was sent to this world and made flesh, (Jn 1:14); and Jesus, in His physical form, manifested by the fundamental building blocks of life, the Spirit, the water, and the blood, these three, as one person, Jesus Christ, became the witness of the Glory of the Father, representing his Grace and Truth; for it is through the evidence of Jesus by which we know and come to the Father in heaven.
Therefore, 1John 5:6-8 is the description of John 1:1-14, the Messiah incarnate, the Word made flesh as a Light of the Glory of the Father. Once you realize the power of this statement, it makes perfect sense why Satan would want to destroy it. These verses prove Jesus as the Word, the Christ, the Son of God, sent to the earth to redeem man and crush the head of Satan, all the while proving the unity, oneness and perfect harmony between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
The Johannine Comma was returned to the text by Erasmus in his 1522 edition at the persistence of other scholars of that time. The missing statement had been a part of the Latin Vulgate for over 1,000 years, and the Catholic Church, who, in all their faults, was correct in their belief in the Trinity, and urged Erasmus to include the statement in his text. He admittedly said the Greek manuscripts he had previously, did not include this statement, therefore he did not include it in his 1516 or 1519 editions, but he promised that if there was a Greek manuscript which contained these verses, he would include them in his next edition. The Codex Britannicus contained these illusive verses, and was presented to Erasmus, therefore, he included them in his text. Some people who argue against the Johannine Comma state the Codex Britannicus was a forgery, produced by the Catholic Church in order for Erasmus to include it in his next edition. This is blasphemous and incorrect. Erasmus was a scholarly man, motivated to produce the Word of God correctly. He would have never allowed a forgery to influence him. I believe he wanted the Comma to be included, even in the earlier manuscripts, but he didn’t have the textual support, therefore his earlier work did not include this statement. Erasmus is even quoted saying, “the verse (1Jn 5:7-8) was in the Vulgate, and must therefore have been in the Greek text used by Jerome.” Finally, when the Codex Britannicus, or as scholars today name it, the Codex Montfortianus, presented itself, he was excited to include the statement into his Greek Testament.
He (Jesus) arrived by water and blood and it is the Spirit who testifies because the Spirit is Truth.
This verse 6 is very important to understanding the Johannine Comma, for it is here that John speaks of Jesus’ incarnation, His being made a man and coming to this earth by way of the Spirit, the water and the blood. Verse 7 describes the Godhead in heaven as witnesses to the coming of the Messiah, for this was the plan of God before the foundation of the world, to send His Son as the Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world, and reconcile mankind to Himself, forever to live together in eternal happiness as a family forever. It was in heaven in which the Three witnesses, the Godhead, the Three as One, commenced this plan and created the universe. Thus, to fulfill this plan, Jesus, the Word, was sent to this world and made flesh, (Jn 1:14); and Jesus, in His physical form, manifested by the fundamental building blocks of life, the Spirit, the water, and the blood, these three, as one person, Jesus Christ, became the witness of the Glory of the Father, representing his Grace and Truth; for it is through the evidence of Jesus by which we know and come to the Father in heaven.
Therefore, 1John 5:6-8 is the description of John 1:1-14, the Messiah incarnate, the Word made flesh as a Light of the Glory of the Father. Once you realize the power of this statement, it makes perfect sense why Satan would want to destroy it. These verses prove Jesus as the Word, the Christ, the Son of God, sent to the earth to redeem man and crush the head of Satan, all the while proving the unity, oneness and perfect harmony between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
The Johannine Comma was returned to the text by Erasmus in his 1522 edition at the persistence of other scholars of that time. The missing statement had been a part of the Latin Vulgate for over 1,000 years, and the Catholic Church, who, in all their faults, was correct in their belief in the Trinity, and urged Erasmus to include the statement in his text. He admittedly said the Greek manuscripts he had previously, did not include this statement, therefore he did not include it in his 1516 or 1519 editions, but he promised that if there was a Greek manuscript which contained these verses, he would include them in his next edition. The Codex Britannicus contained these illusive verses, and was presented to Erasmus, therefore, he included them in his text. Some people who argue against the Johannine Comma state the Codex Britannicus was a forgery, produced by the Catholic Church in order for Erasmus to include it in his next edition. This is blasphemous and incorrect. Erasmus was a scholarly man, motivated to produce the Word of God correctly. He would have never allowed a forgery to influence him. I believe he wanted the Comma to be included, even in the earlier manuscripts, but he didn’t have the textual support, therefore his earlier work did not include this statement. Erasmus is even quoted saying, “the verse (1Jn 5:7-8) was in the Vulgate, and must therefore have been in the Greek text used by Jerome.” Finally, when the Codex Britannicus, or as scholars today name it, the Codex Montfortianus, presented itself, he was excited to include the statement into his Greek Testament.
Codex Britannicus and the Johannine Comma
There were two main reasons Erasmus produced his Greek New Testament:
1)to bring the original language of the New Testament to light
2)to correct the current edition of the Vulgate that had been corrupted by the Catholic Church over the last1,000 years.
Since this was his motivation, Erasmus certainly knew the corrupted verses of the Vulgate, and he was also aware of the Gnostic corruption of the Alexandrian codices. Therefore, in his scholarly opinion, he decisively chose1John 5:7-8 as part of the Greek New Testament.
Of the 5,300 Byzantine manuscript fragments, only 501 of these texts actually include the 5th chapter of 1John, not because it was not included in the original text, but because the abuse of time had destroyed the parchment. Of these 501 manuscripts, only 10 contain the Johannine Comma. Therefore, since the majority of the texts agree as not including the statement, scholars against the Johannine Comma will ask, why and how did this text stay in the Bible? As a supporter of the Johannine Comma, I am going to propose a conjecture in favor of this divine text. Erasmus obviously believed the Johannine Comma to be originally written by John, because he kept this statement in his next two editions, that of 1527 and the last in 1535. There were other notable scholars who carried on the Textus Receptus editions, namely Stephanus and the Elzevir brothers, they undoubtedly believed the Truth of this text as well.
The basis of the Johannine Comma confirms the Trinity in heaven and the incarnation of Jesus who represented and became the image of God displaying His Truth and Glory. The Gnostics, as discussed previously, did not believe Jesus to be the Christ and the Son of God. They absolutely rejected the Trinity and corrupted the text of the New Testament to prove their destructive doctrine. The Alexandrian codices portray these deleted verses, therefore it makes perfect sense that the Johannine Comma would not be found in any of the “early” Alexandrian codices. And, as I have mentioned previous, we shouldn’t even be considering these manuscripts. However, I would certainly expect to see this statement in the Byzantine manuscripts, but we only see this Comma in10 of the 501 available texts.
My conjecture to this illusive statement is that the devil, working through the Gnostics, removed this statement from the Greek manuscripts and almost succeeded in removing it from the entire existence of the Bible, but God, in His divine mercy and power would not allow His Word to perish, therefore, He kept a thread of this Truth alive until Erasmus included it in his Testament and thus became a part of the Textus Receptus.
1John 5:7-8 is the only text in the Scriptures that corresponds the Word, with the Son of God, correlating the Father, the Son or the Word, and the Holy Spirit as One in the Trinity. Even though the textural proof in Greek manuscripts is scarce, the thread of this statement can be traced back through several examples in the early church.[1]
Athenagorus
The first and earliest on record is Athenagorus, a 2nd-century Greek writer (~177 AD). He wrote, “Plea for the Christians”, addressing two Roman Emperors, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus and Lucius Aurelius Commodus, seeking from them toleration for Christians within the Empire. In his discussion, Athenagorus defines and explains the doctrine of the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. While not directly quoting the Comma, Athenagorus uses words which could only have been found in 1John 5:7-8.
“Nor let anyone think it ridiculous that God should have a Son. For though the poets, in their fictions, represent the gods as no better than men, our mode of thinking is not the same as theirs, concerning either God the Father or the Son. But the Son of God is the Logos of the Father, in idea and in operation; for after the pattern of Him and by Him were all things made, the Father and the Son being one. And, the Son being in the Father and the Father in the Son, in oneness and power of spirit, the understanding and reason of the Father is the Son of God.
The Holy Spirit Himself also, which operates in the prophets, we assert to be an effluence of God, flowing from Him, and returning back again like a beam of the sun. Who, then, would not be astonished to hear men who speak of God the Father, and of God the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and who declare both their power in union and their distinction in order…"
Athenagorus’ use of the term Logos, meaning Word, to describe the Son, is unique to the Johannine Comma. It is only in verses 6-9 that the Logos is defined as the Son of God, thus, one can perceive that Athenagorus was quoting 1John.
Tertullian
Around 200AD, Tertullian, in his apologetic work “Against Praxeas”, he makes the statement concerning the Trinity,
"Thus, the connection of the Father in the Son, and of the Son in the Paraclete (Holy Spirit), produces three coherent Persons, who are yet distinct One from Another. These Three are One essence, not one Person, as it is said, 'I and my Father are One,' in respect of unity of substance not singularity of number."
Although Tertullian doesn’t specifically quote the Johannine Comma, he unifies the Three in One, using the terminology of 1John 5 saying, “These Three are One”.
Cyprian
Around 250AD, Cyprian, a North African bishop, quotes the Comma in his “Unity of the Catholic Church”,
"He who breaks the peace and the concord of Christ, does so in opposition to Christ; he who gathereth elsewhere than in the Church, scatters the Church of Christ. The Lord says, 'I and the Father are one;' and again it is written of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, 'And these three are one.'"
Cyprian specifically states that it is written of the Trinity, the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit that they are one. He could not have been quoting verse 8, because this describes the Spirit, the water and the blood, and he could not be referring to John 10:30 because there it only refers to the Father and the Son.
The Latin Vulgate
The Vulgate, in its original edition from Jerome was a correct Latin translation of the Scriptures. The earliest Vulgate manuscript still extant today is the Codex Sangallensis with the Gospels dating to the 5th century and the epistles between the 8th – 10th century. The Codex Sangallensis contains the comma, but it is written at the bottom of the page, however, the majority of the Vulgate manuscripts contain the Comma in the body of the text. In fact, out of the 8,000+ extant Vulgate manuscripts, nearly 49 out of every 50 contains this statement. Jerome, when preparing his Latin translation, certainly believed it to be a part of the original text. He even noted that the reading of 1John 5:7 was being removed from Greek manuscripts in which he writes in his “Prologue to the Canonical Epistles”
"Just as these are properly understood and so translated faithfully by interpreters into Latin without leaving ambiguity for the readers nor [allowing] the variety of genres to conflict, especially in that text where we read the unity of the trinity is placed in the first letter of John, where much error has occurred at the hands of unfaithful translators contrary to the truth of faith, who have kept just the three words water, blood and spirit in this edition omitting mention of Father, Word and Spirit in which especially the catholic faith is strengthened and the unity of substance of Father, Son and Holy Spirit is attested."
These unfaithful translators were, in my opinion, influenced by the Gnostics, and greatly corrupted the Word of God. It was God’s divine power that employed men like Jerome and Erasmus to bring the Word of Truth to light and preserve His precious Word.
I am convinced that the Johannine Comma was an original writing by John in his first epistle. There are plenty of people who would disagree with me, but I like to look at this as an example of the perseverance of the Truth and the divine influence of the Father to preserve His Word and overcome the enemy. The Johannine Comma could have passed from existence, and the power of the Truth concerning the Word, but the Truth endured, and the thread of the Comma has been persevered at the hand of God for the last 2,000 years, never to be vanquished from the Bible again.
The next several pages are some examples of the Johannine Comma on its journey into the Textus Receptus.
[1] Defense of the Johannine Comma- http://www.studytoanswer.net/bibleversions/1john5n7.html
1)to bring the original language of the New Testament to light
2)to correct the current edition of the Vulgate that had been corrupted by the Catholic Church over the last1,000 years.
Since this was his motivation, Erasmus certainly knew the corrupted verses of the Vulgate, and he was also aware of the Gnostic corruption of the Alexandrian codices. Therefore, in his scholarly opinion, he decisively chose1John 5:7-8 as part of the Greek New Testament.
Of the 5,300 Byzantine manuscript fragments, only 501 of these texts actually include the 5th chapter of 1John, not because it was not included in the original text, but because the abuse of time had destroyed the parchment. Of these 501 manuscripts, only 10 contain the Johannine Comma. Therefore, since the majority of the texts agree as not including the statement, scholars against the Johannine Comma will ask, why and how did this text stay in the Bible? As a supporter of the Johannine Comma, I am going to propose a conjecture in favor of this divine text. Erasmus obviously believed the Johannine Comma to be originally written by John, because he kept this statement in his next two editions, that of 1527 and the last in 1535. There were other notable scholars who carried on the Textus Receptus editions, namely Stephanus and the Elzevir brothers, they undoubtedly believed the Truth of this text as well.
The basis of the Johannine Comma confirms the Trinity in heaven and the incarnation of Jesus who represented and became the image of God displaying His Truth and Glory. The Gnostics, as discussed previously, did not believe Jesus to be the Christ and the Son of God. They absolutely rejected the Trinity and corrupted the text of the New Testament to prove their destructive doctrine. The Alexandrian codices portray these deleted verses, therefore it makes perfect sense that the Johannine Comma would not be found in any of the “early” Alexandrian codices. And, as I have mentioned previous, we shouldn’t even be considering these manuscripts. However, I would certainly expect to see this statement in the Byzantine manuscripts, but we only see this Comma in10 of the 501 available texts.
My conjecture to this illusive statement is that the devil, working through the Gnostics, removed this statement from the Greek manuscripts and almost succeeded in removing it from the entire existence of the Bible, but God, in His divine mercy and power would not allow His Word to perish, therefore, He kept a thread of this Truth alive until Erasmus included it in his Testament and thus became a part of the Textus Receptus.
1John 5:7-8 is the only text in the Scriptures that corresponds the Word, with the Son of God, correlating the Father, the Son or the Word, and the Holy Spirit as One in the Trinity. Even though the textural proof in Greek manuscripts is scarce, the thread of this statement can be traced back through several examples in the early church.[1]
Athenagorus
The first and earliest on record is Athenagorus, a 2nd-century Greek writer (~177 AD). He wrote, “Plea for the Christians”, addressing two Roman Emperors, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus and Lucius Aurelius Commodus, seeking from them toleration for Christians within the Empire. In his discussion, Athenagorus defines and explains the doctrine of the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. While not directly quoting the Comma, Athenagorus uses words which could only have been found in 1John 5:7-8.
“Nor let anyone think it ridiculous that God should have a Son. For though the poets, in their fictions, represent the gods as no better than men, our mode of thinking is not the same as theirs, concerning either God the Father or the Son. But the Son of God is the Logos of the Father, in idea and in operation; for after the pattern of Him and by Him were all things made, the Father and the Son being one. And, the Son being in the Father and the Father in the Son, in oneness and power of spirit, the understanding and reason of the Father is the Son of God.
The Holy Spirit Himself also, which operates in the prophets, we assert to be an effluence of God, flowing from Him, and returning back again like a beam of the sun. Who, then, would not be astonished to hear men who speak of God the Father, and of God the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and who declare both their power in union and their distinction in order…"
Athenagorus’ use of the term Logos, meaning Word, to describe the Son, is unique to the Johannine Comma. It is only in verses 6-9 that the Logos is defined as the Son of God, thus, one can perceive that Athenagorus was quoting 1John.
Tertullian
Around 200AD, Tertullian, in his apologetic work “Against Praxeas”, he makes the statement concerning the Trinity,
"Thus, the connection of the Father in the Son, and of the Son in the Paraclete (Holy Spirit), produces three coherent Persons, who are yet distinct One from Another. These Three are One essence, not one Person, as it is said, 'I and my Father are One,' in respect of unity of substance not singularity of number."
Although Tertullian doesn’t specifically quote the Johannine Comma, he unifies the Three in One, using the terminology of 1John 5 saying, “These Three are One”.
Cyprian
Around 250AD, Cyprian, a North African bishop, quotes the Comma in his “Unity of the Catholic Church”,
"He who breaks the peace and the concord of Christ, does so in opposition to Christ; he who gathereth elsewhere than in the Church, scatters the Church of Christ. The Lord says, 'I and the Father are one;' and again it is written of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, 'And these three are one.'"
Cyprian specifically states that it is written of the Trinity, the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit that they are one. He could not have been quoting verse 8, because this describes the Spirit, the water and the blood, and he could not be referring to John 10:30 because there it only refers to the Father and the Son.
The Latin Vulgate
The Vulgate, in its original edition from Jerome was a correct Latin translation of the Scriptures. The earliest Vulgate manuscript still extant today is the Codex Sangallensis with the Gospels dating to the 5th century and the epistles between the 8th – 10th century. The Codex Sangallensis contains the comma, but it is written at the bottom of the page, however, the majority of the Vulgate manuscripts contain the Comma in the body of the text. In fact, out of the 8,000+ extant Vulgate manuscripts, nearly 49 out of every 50 contains this statement. Jerome, when preparing his Latin translation, certainly believed it to be a part of the original text. He even noted that the reading of 1John 5:7 was being removed from Greek manuscripts in which he writes in his “Prologue to the Canonical Epistles”
"Just as these are properly understood and so translated faithfully by interpreters into Latin without leaving ambiguity for the readers nor [allowing] the variety of genres to conflict, especially in that text where we read the unity of the trinity is placed in the first letter of John, where much error has occurred at the hands of unfaithful translators contrary to the truth of faith, who have kept just the three words water, blood and spirit in this edition omitting mention of Father, Word and Spirit in which especially the catholic faith is strengthened and the unity of substance of Father, Son and Holy Spirit is attested."
These unfaithful translators were, in my opinion, influenced by the Gnostics, and greatly corrupted the Word of God. It was God’s divine power that employed men like Jerome and Erasmus to bring the Word of Truth to light and preserve His precious Word.
I am convinced that the Johannine Comma was an original writing by John in his first epistle. There are plenty of people who would disagree with me, but I like to look at this as an example of the perseverance of the Truth and the divine influence of the Father to preserve His Word and overcome the enemy. The Johannine Comma could have passed from existence, and the power of the Truth concerning the Word, but the Truth endured, and the thread of the Comma has been persevered at the hand of God for the last 2,000 years, never to be vanquished from the Bible again.
The next several pages are some examples of the Johannine Comma on its journey into the Textus Receptus.
[1] Defense of the Johannine Comma- http://www.studytoanswer.net/bibleversions/1john5n7.html
1516 Erasmus Greek Testament without Comma
1519 Erasmus Greek Testament without Comma
1522 Erasmus Greek Testament with Comma
1527 Erasmus Greek Testament with Comma
1535 Erasmus Greek Testament with Comma
1550 Stephanus Greek Testament with Comma
1611 King James Bible with Comma