{"collection":"Hypertext Bible","full_text_available":false,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/sacred_texts_v1_bib_wb_got_phi_htm/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/sacred_texts_v1_bib_wb_got_phi_htm","id":"sacred_texts_v1_bib_wb_got_phi_htm","license":"unknown_pending_legal_review","rights_basis":"sacred_texts_v1_preview_gate_primary_text_only; acquisition-method/ToS and compilation-copyright questions still open, not resolved by this gate","source":"sacred_texts_v1","source_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/bib/wb/got/phi.htm","summary":"This is a manuscript transcription of the Gothic Bible \u2014 specifically, Paul's Epistle to the Philippians (chapters 1\u20134, with some lacunae) \u2014 in the 4th-century translation attributed to Bishop Wulfila (Ulfilas), the oldest substantial surviving text in any Germanic language. The parallel columns marked [A] and [B] represent two distinct manuscript witnesses, allowing direct comparison of textual variants between codices \u2014 a feature making this a critical or diplomatic edition rather than a simple reading text. The content follows the canonical Pauline letter: Paul writing from imprisonment, reflecting on whether to live or die (\"for me to live is Christ, and to die is gain\"), urging the Philippians toward unity and humility using the Christ-hymn of 2:6\u20138, warning against Judaizing opponents, and closing with exhortations to rejoice and give thanks. What is distinctive here is not theological novelty but linguistic and philological significance: Gothic preserves archaic Germanic morphology and vocabulary (e.g., *waurstwa*, *galaubein*, *usstassai*) found nowhere else at this date, and the variant readings between [A] and [B] offer evidence for Gothic textual transmission and scribal practice. This text is essential reading for Gothic linguistics, Germanic philology, and the history of Bible translation, but holds little interest for someone seeking theological commentary or a readable English rendering of Philippians.","tags":[],"text":null,"title":"Gothic Bible (partial): Philippians","tradition":"Hypertext Bible","translated_text":null,"word_count":1837}