Does the presence or absence of the definite article in Greek affect the meaning of a verse? While a noun or participle being definite or indefinite can be significant for interpretation, Eldon Epp is probably correct that in most cases, the absence or presence of an article does not affect meaning. A significant exception is the anarthrous form of κυριος. In Matthew’s Gospel, κυριος is used anarthrously when God is the referent, possibly mirroring the LXX translation technique, rendering the tetragrammaton with an anarthrous κυριος and אֲדֹנָי with an articular κυριος. A textual variant occurs with Jesus’s citation of Ps 109:1 LXX, with several early manuscripts omitting the definite article with the nominative κυριος.
Utilizing recent advances in New Testament Textual Criticism, I will argue from external and internal evidence that the definite article should be omitted before κυριος in Matt 22:44. Further, I will demonstrate that this reading is theologically significant, with the anarthrous κυριος likely reflecting the divine name.
I will begin with a survey of critical editions and commentaries on the citation of Ps 109:1 LXX in Matt 22:44, Mark 12:36, and Luke 20:42. Nolland, Osborne, France, Hagner, and Davies and Allison accept the omission in Matt 22:44, but do not state the significance. Rather, there is a brief comment on the relationship between the synoptic parallels. Moreover, as commentators note the difference between the LXX and the citation in the Synoptics, the definite article is accepted in 109:1 LXX without critical engagement.
Next, I will assess the external evidence, including early manuscript witnesses, patristic citations, geographical distribution, and textual relationships. The external evidence favors the omission of the article in Matt 22:44, while including it in Mark 12:36 and Luke 20:42. However, this evidence alone is inconclusive.
I will then examine the internal evidence, including transcriptional and intrinsic considerations. A key contribution in this section will be arguing that Ps 109:1 LXX omits the definite article in the Old Greek, based on P. Bodmer XXIV (Rahlfs 2110). Thus, the synoptic Gospels may be following their source text. For intrinsic evidence, I will analyze the use of κυριος in the synoptic Gospels to determine whether their translation technique aligns with the LXX pattern. This section will also establish that translating the tetragrammaton with an anarthrous κυριος is Old Greek feature rather than a “Christian” LXX manuscript feature. Notably, Matthew most consistently uses κυριος anarthrously when referring to God.
My paper will conclude by addressing the significance of the reading Ειπεν κυριος τω κυριω μου. If the omission of the article in Ps 109:1 LXX reflects the Old Greek, then the nominative κυριος likely renders the divine name, differentiating it from τω κυριω μου. While we can only speculate about Jesus’s exact words in Aramaic, the anarthrous κυριος aligns more closely with the Hebrew text of Ps 110:1 (“A declaration of YHWH to my Lord”), suggesting that Jesus’s statement does not necessarily involve wordplay with κυριος, as suggested by France.