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Split a/b -- R1
In the renewed address immediately preceding (2-24), the second person of the pronoun fits very well,[1] while in the main clause, the first person corresponds better to the we-they pattern that characterizes the passage. Hence, the majority reading
b, which creates a certain gap between the speaker and the addressees, is a bit awkward. The
a attestation accordingly has several incoherencies. It is, however, unclear which rhetorical function the second person could have here, and
it may be an accidental adaptation to the preceding phrase, especially considering ὑμῖν and ἡμῖν sounded the same.[2]
[1] As in v. 16, the phrase οἱ ἐν ὑμῖν φοβούμενοι includes the proselytes who are explicitly mentioned in v. 43. (Cf. Barrett 629f.)
[2] Metzger (360) and Pervo (329) are confident that the first person must be read here, but the better rhetorical fit may have motivated a change. Barrett (639) also prefers the first person, but does not exclude the second person.
