Did Tertullian Possess a Greek Copy or Latin Translation of Marcion's Gospel?

Abstract

AbstractIn his significant work on Marcion, Adolf von Harnack was the first to advance the view that Tertullian employed a Latin translation of Marcion's Euangelion when writing Adversus Marcionem. This view was quickly embraced and subsequently accepted by numerous scholars throughout the twentieth century. However, several scholars, most recently those focusing on Marcion's Apostolikon, have argued against the various attempts to advance Harnack's view. In particular, Ulrich Schmid's recent study of both the similarities and differences of the vocabulary of Tertullian's citations from his own and the Marcionite scriptures demonstrated that it is much more probable that Tertullian was translating Marcion's text ad hoc from a Greek copy of Marcion's Apostolikon. This article undertakes a similar examination of the vocabulary in Marcion's Gospel, which reveals that it in all likelihood Tertullian was working from a Greek copy, and not a Latin translation, of this text as well.