Acts 27:37

Acts 27:37 diako,siai e`bdomh,konta e[x {B}

The reading in B and cop^sa (“about seventy-six”) probably arose by taking ploiwc=o=^ as ploiwwco=^. ³⁷⁷ In any case, w`j with an exact statement of number is inappropriate (despite Luke’s penchant for qualifying numbers by using w`j or w`sei,, cf. Luke 3:23; Acts 2:41; Acts 4:4; Acts 5:7, Acts 5:36; Acts 10:3; Acts 13:18, Acts 13:20; Acts 19:7, Acts 19:34).

Other witnesses present a curious vacillation: codex Alexandrinus reads 275; 69 and Ephraem read 270; occasional Coptic (Bohairic) manuscripts read r®o®õ® (= 176) or w®o®õ® (= 876); 522 and ù⁶⁸⁰ read 76; and Epiphanius reads w`j e`bdomh,konta.

³⁷⁷ In Greek the letter sigma may stand for the numeral 200, and omicron for 70; the letter digamma (or stigma) is 6. (See also footnote 19[4] on page 216 above.)