The vital role of the Syriac New Testament was explored in this essay by Gwilliam. Supplementing his previous work on this important material, this study examines the relationship between the Peshitto and various codices of the Greek New Testament. Gwilliam also explores disagreements between the Syriac and the traditional text. An apology for the Peshitto and problems associated with it are incorporated in the wider discussion of how the Syriac text relates to the Greek New Testament. Some conjectures considering the history of the Syriac New Testament are clarified in the hope that the actual importance of this document will not be overshadowed by speculations on its origins.

George Henry Gwilliam, Fellow of Hertford College and editor of the influential Oxford Peshito, was a noted champion of the importance of Syriac for understanding the textual criticism of the New Testament. Along with P. E. Pusey, Gwilliam published a standard-setting critical edition of the Peshitta.