Development of the Printed NT Greek Text

As I have been exploring the history of the Received Text (the Greek New Testament translated into the King James), I thought it would be helpful to have a timeline of printed and published Greek texts dating from the early 1500s to the late 1600s.

Complutensian Polyglot
Cardinal Francisco Ximenes de Cisneros (1514)

Received Text (Textus Receptus)
First Erasmus Edition (1516 called “Novum Instrumentum” )
Second Erasmus Edition (1519 retitled “Novum Testamentum“)
Third Erasmus Edition (1522)
Forth Erasmus Edition (1527 and reprinted in 1535)

First Stephens Edition (1546)
Second Stephens Edition (1549)
Third Stephens Edition (1551)

First Beza Edition (1565)
Second Beza Edition (1582)
Third Beza Edition (1588)
Fourth Beza Edition (1598 –this would become the primary edition used to translate the KJV in 1611)
Fifth Beza Edition (1565)
Sixth Beza Edition (1567)
Seventh Beza Edition (1580)
Eighth Beza Edition (1591)
Ninth Beza Edition (1604)

First Elzevir Edition (1624)
[1627 Codex Alexandrinus Discovered]
Second Elzevir Edition (1633 –This edition was edited by Jeremias Hoelzlin. Its introduction stated, “Textum ergo habes, nunc ab omnibus receptum, in quo nihil immutatum
aut corruptum damus” (“Therefore you [dear reader] have the text
now received by all, in which we give nothing changed or corrupted”) the first place where this text was referred to as “Textum…receptum” or more commonly “Textus Receptus”, meaning “Received Text”.)

London Polyglott
Brian Walton (1655-1657 – Took the 1550 Stphanus’ Edition and added a critical apparatus comparing it to Codex Alexandrinus)

Third Elzevir Edition (Date Unknown. That is, I can’t find it.)
Fourth Elzevir Edition (Date Unknown)
Fifth Elzevir Edition (Date Unknown)
Sixth Elzevir Edition (Date Unknown)
Seventh Elzevir Edition (1678)

Received Text (contd.)
Fell Edition (1675 – Dr. John Fell took the 1633 Elzevir edition and added a critical apparatus comparing it to “over 100 manuscripts”)

After this, we see the familiar work of Mills, Wells, Bently and Mace. It’s important to keep in mind that none of these men actually published a Greek text of their own. Their work centerered around comparing the Greek text of a an earlier TR edition to newly discovered or collected manuscripts. A completely re-worked Greek text (similar to the process of Erasmus) wouldn’t take place until Westcott and Hort in 1881.