Why is Acts 8:37 missing from many Bibles?

[ronfazio]

Could you elaborate on the mystery behind Acts 8:37? Am I correct in my assumption that this verse was not included in the earliest transcriptions of the bible and was only added about 500 years later? How could that be so? How does it have a verse number 37 if it was inserted later? Some bibles don’t even include the verse…I see a verse 35, and a verse 36, and then it goes directly to verse 38…Why? Why is there no 37 in some bibles? Who do you think inserted it? Thank you.

 

[Fr.Charles_Grondin]

The verse is not found in the oldest versions of Acts of the Apostles. Even when it does appear later on it appears only in Western versions and not Eastern. It is generally believed to be a quote from the Western baptismal liturgies that was inserted into the Scripture.
However it is still a debatable topic. Scholars are free to argue whether it is was added or omitted.

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Why is Acts 8:37 omitted from many Bible translations?