Acts 8:5
Here is a Greek textual variant that should demonstrate to beginners in NT Greek that maybe they don’t know how to interpret the definite article.
The Textus Receptus and the Robinson-Pierpont Greek texts both read εις πολιν της Σαμαρειας, without the definite article την present before πολιν, “city.” Here are some translations from the Textus Receptus:
KJV
Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.
NKJV
Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them.
MEV
Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them.
The UBS / NA text reads, εις την πολιν της Σαμαρειας, with the definite article την present before “city.”
Here are some translations reputedly from the UBS text:
NIV, TNIV
Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there.
RSV
Philip went down to a city of Samaria, and proclaimed to them the Christ.
HCSB
Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah to them.
CEB
Philip went down to a city in Samaria and began to preach Christ to them.
CJB
Now Philip went down to a city in Shomron and was proclaiming the Messiah to them;
NABRE
Thus Philip went down to [the] city of Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah to them.
NASB
Philip went down to the city of Samaria and began proclaiming Christ to them.
ESV
Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ.
NRSV
Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah to them.
GNT
Philip went to the principal city in Samaria and preached the Messiah to the people there.
MOUNCE
Philip went down to the main city of Samaria and began proclaiming to them the Christ.
NET
Philip went down to the main city of Samaria and began proclaiming the Christ to them.
πολις της Σαμαρειας, for the city of Samaria had been utterly destroyed by Hyrcanus, and the city built by Herod on its site was called Σεβαστη, that is, Augusta, in honour of Augustus. Samaria comprised the tract of country formerly occupied by the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, west of Jordan, lying between Judea and Galilee, beginning, says Josephus, at Ginea in the great plain, and ending at the toparchy of Acrabateni.
The manuscripts:
txt πολιν C D E H P Ψ 049 056 33 1611 1739 1891 cop-sa,bo,meg chrys TR RP ‖ την πολιν ?⁷⁴ ℵ A B 1175 SBL [NA28] {C} ‖ lac ?⁴⁵ L