Papyrus 37 (𝔓37) — Matthew 26 (Gethsemane)
This Is My Body… This Is My Blood
The short answerWhat is this leaf?
This is a single leaf of Papyrus 37 — a third-century copy of the Gospel of Matthew — carrying Matthew 26 across its two sides. On the front (recto) you read the words of institution: “Take, eat; this is my body… this is my blood of the covenant, poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” On the back (verso) you follow Jesus into Gethsemane, where he prays “not what I desire, but what you desire,” and is arrested.
Only this one leaf of the codex survives, but it preserves a remarkable stretch of the Passion narrative — from the preparing of the Passover through the betrayal by Judas. This page shows you exactly which letters survive as ink on the papyrus and which are supplied from the known text, and it notes the places where an ancient corrector went back over the scribe’s work.
The featureThe words over the bread and the cup
“This is my body.” In Matthew 26:26–28 Jesus takes bread, blesses it, breaks it, and gives it to his disciples with the words ΤΟΥΤΟ ΕΣΤΙΝ ΤΟ ΣΩΜΑ ΜΟΥ — “this is my body” — then takes the cup and says ΤΟΥΤΟ ΓΑΡ ΕΣΤΙΝ ΤΟ ΑΙΜΑ ΜΟΥ, “this is my blood of the covenant, poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” These are the words the Church has repeated at the Lord’s Table ever since, and here they sit on a leaf copied within a couple of centuries of Matthew himself.
Then the garden. The same leaf carries Jesus to Gethsemane, where he falls on his face and prays that “this cup” might pass — the same image of the cup, now turned toward his own suffering — and where the disciples cannot stay awake, Judas arrives, and Jesus is seized.
Line by lineThe Greek exactly as it sits on the leaf
Transcribed in the majuscule capitals the scribe used, with the original line breaks preserved. Sacred names keep their overline. Letters shown in gold survive as ink on the papyrus; grey letters in [brackets] are supplied from the known text where the leaf is torn.
Front (recto) — Matthew 26:19–37 (the Last Supper; “this is my body… this is my blood”)
Back (verso) — Matthew 26:37–52 (Gethsemane; the arrest)
Word by wordThe whole leaf, one word at a time
The entire passage on both sides of the leaf, word by word: the Greek exactly as it stands, a transliteration to sound it out, and a word-for-word English gloss. Sacred names carry the scribe’s overline. Words in a gold box appear (at least partly) as ink on the fragment; grey words in [brackets] are supplied from the known text where the leaf is torn.
Matthew 26:19 · front (recto)
19 The disciples did as Jesus commanded them, and they prepared the Passover.
Matthew 26:20
20 Now when evening had come, he was reclining at the table with the twelve disciples.
Matthew 26:21
21 As they were eating, he said, “Most certainly I tell you that one of you will betray me.”
Matthew 26:22
22 They were exceedingly sorrowful, and each began to ask him, “It isn’t me, is it, Lord?”
Matthew 26:23
23 He answered, “He who dipped his hand with me in the dish will betray me.
Matthew 26:24
Matthew 26:24 (continued)
24 The Son of Man goes even as it is written of him, but woe to that man through whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would be better for that man if he had not been born.”
Matthew 26:25
25 Judas, who betrayed him, answered, “It isn’t me, is it, Rabbi?” He said to him, “You said it.”
Matthew 26:26 · words of institution
26 As they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks for it, and broke it. He gave to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”
Matthew 26:27 · words of institution
27 He took the cup, gave thanks, and gave to them, saying, “All of you drink it,
Matthew 26:28 · words of institution
28 for this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the remission of sins.
Matthew 26:29
Matthew 26:29 (continued)
29 But I tell you that I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on, until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”
Matthew 26:30
30 When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Matthew 26:31
Matthew 26:31 (continued)
31 Then Jesus said to them, “All of you will be made to stumble because of me tonight, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’
Matthew 26:32
32 But after I am raised up, I will go before you into Galilee.”
Matthew 26:33
33 But Peter answered him, “Even if all will be made to stumble because of you, I will never be made to stumble.”
Matthew 26:34
34 Jesus said to him, “Most certainly I tell you that tonight, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.”
Matthew 26:35
Matthew 26:35 (continued)
35 Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you.” All of the disciples also said likewise.
Matthew 26:36
36 Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go there and pray.”
Matthew 26:37 · back (verso)
37 He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and severely troubled.
Matthew 26:38
38 Then he said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with me.”
Matthew 26:39
Matthew 26:39 (continued)
39 He went forward a little, fell on his face, and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass away from me; nevertheless, not what I desire, but what you desire.”
Matthew 26:40
Matthew 26:40 (continued)
40 He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What, couldn’t you watch with me for one hour?
Matthew 26:41
41 Watch and pray, that you don’t enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
Matthew 26:42
Matthew 26:42 (continued)
42 Again, a second time he went away and prayed, saying, “My Father, if this cup can’t pass away from me unless I drink it, your desire be done.”
Matthew 26:43
43 He came again and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.
Matthew 26:44
44 He left them again, went away, and prayed a third time, saying the same words.
Matthew 26:45
Matthew 26:45 (continued)
45 Then he came to his disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
Matthew 26:46
46 Arise, let’s be going. Behold, he who betrays me is at hand.”
Matthew 26:47
Matthew 26:47 (continued)
47 While he was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and elders of the people.
Matthew 26:48
48 Now he who betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, “Whoever I kiss, he is the one. Seize him.”
Matthew 26:49
49 Immediately he came to Jesus, and said, “Hail, Rabbi!” and kissed him.
Matthew 26:50
50 Jesus said to him, “Friend, why are you here?” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus, and took him.
Matthew 26:51
Matthew 26:51 (continued)
51 Behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, and struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.
Matthew 26:52
Matthew 26:52 (continued)
52 Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place, for all those who take the sword will die by the sword.
Reading the detailsTextual notes
A corrector at the words of institution (26:26). At “and having blessed, he broke it,” the first hand appears to have written ΕΚΑΛΕΣΕΝ (“he called”) by mistake for ΕΚΛΑΣΕΝ (“he broke”) — an easy slip between two very similar words. The reading was corrected to ΕΚΛΑΣΕΝ, which is what we show as the text of the line.
A corrector at 26:46. The word ΑΓΩΜΕΝ (“let us be going”) carries a corrector’s attention here — one of several places on the leaf where the text was worked over after it was first written.
The deletion at the arrest (26:50). In the line for Jesus’ words to Judas, two words — ΕΙΠΕΝ ΑΥΤΩ (“he said to him”) — are marked for deletion. We show them struck through, as the corrector left them, rather than as part of the running reading.
The sacred names. The scribe abbreviates and overlines the sacred names throughout: ΙΗΣ and its case-forms ΙΗΥ and ΙΗΝ (Jesus), ΚΕ (Lord, 26:22) and ΠΝΑ (Spirit, 26:41).
The manuscriptAt a glance
| This leaf | Matthew 26:19–37 (front) · 26:37–52 (back) |
|---|---|
| Whole codex | A papyrus codex of the Gospel of Matthew; only this single leaf survives |
| Date | About AD 250–300 (3rd century; some scholars 3rd/4th) — a scholarly estimate, not a fixed year |
| Discovered | Egypt; acquired for the University of Michigan in 1924 |
| Held at | University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (P. Mich. inv. 1570) |
| Gregory–Aland no. | 𝔓37 |
| Format | Single papyrus codex leaf; single column, ~33 lines per page |
| Text type | “Mixed” in character (leaning Western); does not follow a single early text-type |
Why it mattersThe Supper and the garden, at the source
Two of the most repeated moments in the Gospels sit on this one leaf. The words Jesus spoke over the bread and the cup — “this is my body… this is my blood, poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” — became the heart of Christian worship. And the prayer of Gethsemane — “not what I desire, but what you desire” — became the model of faithful surrender under suffering.
Papyrus 37 lets us read both in a copy made in the third century, within a couple of centuries of the Gospel’s composition. Its mixed text and its several corrections also give us a window onto how carefully — and how humanly — the earliest Christians copied and re-checked these words.
Own this leaf
Manuscript Shop produces a museum-grade facsimile of this leaf of Papyrus 37 on real Egyptian papyrus, reproducing both sides — the words of institution and the prayer in Gethsemane — at its true size.
ReferencesSources
- Manuscript: Papyrus 37 (Gregory–Aland 𝔓37), P. Mich. inv. 1570, University of Michigan Library, Ann Arbor.
- Editio princeps: H. A. Sanders, “An Early Papyrus Fragment of the Gospel of Matthew in the Michigan Collection,” Harvard Theological Review 19 (1926).
- Text & significance: Nestle–Aland, Novum Testamentum Graece; K. Aland & B. Aland, The Text of the New Testament.
- Word-for-word glosses follow standard tagged Greek New Testament data (STEP Bible, Tyndale House; Berean Interlinear).
- Smooth translation: World English Bible (public domain), ebible.org.