In 2011, work on the Editio Critica Maior of the Apocalypse began, within the framework of which the present study has been created and can be located. Recent textual research has come to the conclusion that the current text of the Apocalypse and the existing model of its textual history are no longer convincing. Therefore, the question arises regarding a new representation of the Apocalypse tradition using the tools of modern textual criticism as a reference framework for the upcoming textual decisions.
The presented study takes on this challenge and, based on the „Text and Textual Value“ and taking into account the methodology of the coherence-based genealogical method (CBGM), develops an innovative historical model of the Apocalypse’s transmission history. This is done in a deliberate engagement with the studies of Josef Schmid. The thesis is put forth that the transmission of the Apocalypse can be explained through a continuous development of early and late textual states, rather than being based on the formation of four distinct textual types. Thus, an alternative textual historical explanatory model for the Apocalypse is presented, upon which future research can fruitfully build.
Dr. Darius Müller is a research associate at the Institute for Septuagint and Biblical Textual Research (ISBTF) at the Kirchliche Hochschule Wuppertal.