Koine Foundations

Although I have many things to write to you, I decided not to do so with paper and ink. But I hope to come to you and speak face to face so that our joy may be full. (2 John 1:12)

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Word Focus
paper
χάρτης / chartēs
<Hear It>

2 John 1:12 is familiar to you if you read the post from last week. Second John is a short, personal letter written to the “chosen lady and her children” (verse 1:1), which probably refers to a particular church and its members. In this short letter John emphasizes truth and love and warns about false teachers. Anyone who claims to follow Christ must walk in the truth (verse 1:4) and walk in love (verse 1:6). The word walk implies more than just knowing what the Bible says – it means doing what the Bible says. Click here to read the entire letter of Second John in the Blue Letter Bible if you did not do so in the last post. It takes less than two minutes.

John had many things he wanted to write, but decided not to write them in a letter (“with paper and ink”). Instead, he hoped to visit the “chosen lady” for a face to face talk.

In 2 John 1:12 above, “paper” is a translation of the Greek word χάρτης which refers to a sheet made of papyrus (πάπυρος / papuros <Hear It>), which was the common writing material during the time the New Testament was written. Papyrus sheets were made from the papyrus plant, which is a woody reed that grows in shallow water and wet soils. The center of the stem was cut into strips and laid side by side in two layers at right angles to one another. The layers were then pressed or pounded together. Some type of glue may have been used between the layers. After drying, the sheet was polished using a rounded stone, seashell, or piece of wood. The resulting sheet was a χάρτης. Writing was usually only done on one side and parallel with the direction of the fibers of the papyrus strip.

Sheets were often glued together to form a roll. The written side would be the inside of the roll. However, rolls had their limits. A longer book of the New Testament like Matthew would require a roll up to 30 feet long. It would be impractical to put the entire New Testament on a single roll. But the early Christians quickly adapted to get the Good News into writing and distributed to the world. By the second century A.D. they were replacing papyrus scrolls with cut sheets of papyrus in bound books similar to modern books. This is called a codex. Though the codex had been around for hundreds of years, it never caught on – until Christians started using it with passion. The codex seems to have gained wide acceptance corresponding to the spread of Christianity. By the sixth century, the codex had completely replaced the scroll in the Christianized world. The papyrus pages were also replaced with a more durable material – parchment made from animal skins. Along with the printing press, the codex is one of the most important developments in the history of the book. Christian values can have an effect on all aspects of culture.

If you are interested in trying your reed pen and ink on a χάρτης, you can purchase real papyrus sheets through the internet at a reasonable price. They are available on Amazon, or google “papyrus paper” to find a seller.

In the next post I will continue the word focus on different aspects of writing.

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Word Focus Lexicon

Lexical Form: ὁ χάρτης χάρτου <Hear It>
Gloss: sheet of papyrus, paper
Part of Speech: First Declension Masculine Noun
New Testament Frequency: 1
English Derivative: chart
Strong’s Number: G5489 (Link to Blue Letter Bible Lexicon)

Unless otherwise noted, English translations of Bible verses are by the author from the Greek text and are not quotations from any copyrighted Bible version or translation.