Do we have access to the original, handwritten manuscripts of the Bible?

The assertion that we have access to copies, not originals, is accurate because the original manuscripts of the Bible, known as autographs, are no longer extant. Over centuries, these original texts were hand-copied as scribes sought to preserve the scriptures. However, this process inevitably led to the existence of numerous copies, each of which may have slight variations due to the manual copying process.

In terms of biblical manuscripts, scholars have discovered a variety of ancient copies, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, which include some of the oldest known texts of the Hebrew Bible. Additionally, there are extensive collections of Greek New Testament manuscripts, demonstrating the text's transmission over time. Yet none of these manuscripts represent the original autographs; they are all derived from those originals, reflecting the historical development of the text.

Understanding this context underlines why the other choices do not hold. The idea that the originals are completely lost does not account for the copies that exist, while the notion that they are widely available mischaracterizes the nature of biblical manuscript access. The alternative suggesting that only some fragments are available is too narrow; while fragments do exist, there is a much larger number of known manuscripts. Thus, stating that we have access to copies, not