I. The
Doctrine of the Word of God (Bibliology)
A. Definition: The Canon of Scripture – The word
“canon” means “measuring rod.” In this
context then the biblical canon is the complete list of books that belong in
the Bible.
1. We must not underestimate the
importance of this doctrine. The Words
of Scripture are the Words that nourish our spiritual lives. Therefore, we can echo the words of Moses to
the nation of Israel in reference to the Words of God’s law:
“For it is no trifle for you, but it is your life, and thereby you
shall live long in the land which you are going over the Jordan to possess”
Deuteronomy 32:47.
2. To add or subtract from the Word of God would either prevent God’s people from fully obeying Him, or would require of God’s people that which God has not commanded. Therefore, the precise determination of the extent of the canon is of the utmost importance.
“You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it;
that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command
you” Deuteronomy 4:2.
II. The Old Testament Canon
A. The earliest collection of words from God is the Ten Commandments.
“When He had finished speaking with him upon
Mount Sinai, He gave Moses the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone,
written by the finger of God.” Exodus
31:18
“Then
Moses turned and went down from the mountain with the two tablets of the
testimony in his hand, tablets which were written on both sides; they were
written on one side and the
other.” Exodus 32:15
B. Other Old
Testament prophets also added to the canon as instructed by God.
“And Joshua wrote these words in the book of
the law of God . . .” Joshua 24:26
2. Samuel
“Then Samuel told the people the ordinances
of the kingdom, and wrote them
in the book and placed it
before the LORD . . .” 1 Samuel 10:25
3. Jehu
“Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat,
first to last, behold, they are written
in the annals of Jehu the son of Hanani, which is recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel.” 2 Chronicles 20:34
4. Jeremiah
"Thus
says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Write all the words which I have
spoken to you in a book.” Jeremiah 30:2
Many more
Old Testament prophets were used by God to write His words to His people, and this list
is by no means exhaustive.
C. The Close
of the Old Testament Canon
1. The Old
Testament canon continued to grow as God spoke through His prophets. If we date Haggai to 520 B.C., Zechariah to
518 B.C. – with some material added about 480 B.C., and Malachi around 435
B.C., we know that this period coincided with the last books of the Old
Testament: Ezra, Nehemiah, and Ester.
2. Jesus and
the New Testament authors quote the Old Testament Scriptures as divinely
authoritative 295 times, but not once do they cite any statement from
the Apocrypha, or any other writings, as having divine authority. Thus, the New Testament writers agreed that
the Old Testament canon, no more and no less, was to be taken as God’s very
words.
D. What the Old Testament Canon is
Not
1. The books that comprise the
Apocrypha, a collection of Jewish historical books, have never been considered
Scripture by the Jews. The Roman Catholic Church includes the Apocrypha
in its Bible. The Apocrypha
includes these non-canonical books: 1
and 2 Esdras, Tobit, Judith, The Rest of Esther, the Wisdom of
Solomon, Ecclesiasticus, Baruch (including the Epistle of Jeremiah), the Song of the
Three Holy Children, Susanna, Bel and the Dragon, the Prayer of Manasseh, and 1
and 2 Maccabees.
2. These books were not included in
Hebrew Scripture, but were included in the Septuagint,
the Greek translation of the Old Testament.
3. The Latin Vulgate
translation of the Bible by Jerome included the Apocrypha, but Jerome himself stated that these books were not
“books of the canon,” but merely “books of the church” that provided historical
background on the Jewish people.
4. At the Council of Trent in
1546 the Roman Catholic Church officially adopted the Apocrypha as part of its Bible.
These books include teaching on prayers for the dead, and justification
by faith plus works rather than by faith alone, and other teaching that
contradicts Scripture. In so doing, the
RCC upholds that the tradition of the church has the same authority as the
Bible. This teaching was prevalent in
the church until the Reformation. This continues to be their belief today.
