canon Summary and Overview

This word is derived from a Hebrew and Greek word denoting a reed or cane. Hence it means something straight, or something to keep straight; and hence also a rule, or something ruled or measured. It came to be applied to the Scriptures, to denote that they contained the authoritative rule of faith and practice, the standard of doctrine and duty. A book is said to be of canonical authority when it has a right to take a place with the other books which contain a revelation of the Divine will. Such a right does not arise from any ecclesiastical authority, but from the evidence of the inspired authorship of the book. The canonical (i.e., the inspired) books of the Old and New Testaments, are a complete rule, and the only rule, of faith and practice. They contain the whole supernatural revelation of God to men. The New Testament Canon was formed gradually under divine guidance. The different books as they were written came into the possession of the Christian associations which began to be formed soon after the day of Pentecost; and thus slowly the canon increased till all the books were gathered together into one collection containing the whole of the twenty-seven New Testament inspired books. Historical evidence shows that from about the middle of the second century this New Testament collection was substantially such as we now possess. Each book contained in it is proved to have, on its own ground, a right to its place; and thus the whole is of divine authority. The Old Testament Canon is witnessed to by the New Testament writers. Their evidence is conclusive. The quotations in the New from the Old are very numerous, and the references are much more numerous. These quotations and references by our Lord and the apostles most clearly imply the existence at that time of a well-known and publicly acknowledged collection of Hebrew writings under the designation of "The Scriptures;" "The Law and the Prophets and the Psalms;" "Moses and the Prophets," etc. The appeals to these books, moreover, show that they were regarded as of divine authority, finally deciding all questions of which they treat; and that the whole collection so recognized consisted only of the thirty-nine books which we now posses. Thus they endorse as genuine and authentic the canon of the Jewish Scriptures. The Septuagint Version (q.v.) also contained every book we now have in the Old Testament Scriptures. As to the time at which the Old Testament canon was closed, there are many considerations which point to that of Ezra and Nehemiah, immediately after the return from Babylonian exile. (See BIBLE T0000580, EZRA T0001294, QUOTATIONS T0003039.)

CAN'ON (literally, a cane, then a rod of measurement) means the collection of books of the O. and N.T. which form the original and authoritative written rule of faith and practice in the Christian Church. I. The O.T. Canon.--Our Bible is a growth of many generations. Moses put the "book of the law" in the side of the ark. Deut 31:26. This book, which contained not alone direct precepts, Ex 24:7, but also general exhortations, Deut 28:61, and historical narratives, Ex 17:14, was further increased by the records of Joshua, Josh 24:26, and probably by other writings. 1 Sam 10:25. At a subsequent time collections of psalms and proverbs were made. The later prophets, especially Jeremiah, were familiar with the writings of their predecessors. But although book was added to book, there probably was no collection made containing them all until the Captivity. According to Jewish tradition, the formation of the canon of the O. T. in its present form was due to Ezra and the men of the "great synagogue." The division of the O. T. into three parts -- the Law, the Prophets, and the Hagiographa -- i. e. the remaining sacred writings -- (see Bible) was not arbitrary or accidental, but was a reflection of the true historical order of their composition. The Law is the foundation of the Jewish state; the Prophets relate the story of the struggles of the Jews against internal and external dangers, and likewise the revelation of the divine Mind toward them and their neighbors; the Hagiographa contain additional information, and, above all, the outpourings of the nation's heart and the expression of their wisdom. According to Josephus, there were only 22 books in the sacred canon, corresponding to the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet. But this short list was made by combining several books which we properly separate. Thus, the two books of Samuel, of Kings, of Chronicles, formed but one book respectively; Judges and Ruth, Ezra and Nehemiah, Jeremiah and Lamentations, were similarly combined; and finally, the twelve minor prophets were reckoned as one book. And although other lists, slightly different, are given, still the main fact is testified to that the Jews had a certain fixed and uniform amount of writing to which they gave a divine character and paid peculiar regard. This list does not include the Apocrypha of the Septuagint, which, accordingly, has been excluded from the Protestant O. T., though often printed between the Testaments. The Roman Catholic Church, however, receives them as authentic. The British and Foreign Bible Society ceased to print them after 1826. The American Bible Society likewise omits them. We may therefore say that the O. T., as we have it to-day, existed shortly after the Captivity, and that the present number and arrangement of the books do not affect its age, since nothing has been added or omitted which had any right to be in the canon or the individual books. The canon as we have it existed in our Lord's day, as is evident from the quotations in the N. T. by him and his disciples. There are in all 275 quotations from different books, but, with the exception of the words of Enoch in Jude, no book out of the canon is used for this purpose. We may therefore feel certain that we have a canon endorsed by the highest conceivable authority. It should, however, be borne in mind that the Septuagint version is generally quoted, even when it differs from the Hebrew. The apostles were no slaves of the letter, but used the Scriptures in the freedom of the Spirit. II. The N. T. Canon.-- The history of the collection and authoritative determination of the N. T. canon may be divided into three periods. 1. Down to a.d. 170. -- Paul claimed for his Epistles ''a public use and an authoritative power." 1 Thess 5:27; 2 Thess 3:6; Col 4:16; 1 Tim 4:6. John solemnly warns against any additions to or deductions from the book of Revelation. Rev 22:18-19. Peter significantly puts Paul's Epistles side by side with "the other Scriptures." 2 Pet 3:16. Nothing is more striking than the great difference in contents and expression between the N. T. and the Christian writings of the following centuries. This difference is a subsidiary but convincing proof of the inspiration of the former. We see in the Apostolic Fathers (a.d. 70-120) evidence of acquaintance with at least the majority of our present N. T. The period from a.d. 120-170 has been termed the age of the apologists. These efforts to defend the Christian faith led to a new use of the facts of Christ's life, and it then became manifest how greatly superior the four Gospels were to all other accounts; and accordingly, they were separated and assigned to a place of honor and absolute authority. At the close of the period was composed the Muratorian canon in the West, while about the same time appeared the Syriac translation of the N. T. called the Peshito, and the first Latin versions called Itala. 1. From a.d. 170 to A.D. 303.-- As the result of the investigations in the patristic writings of this period, Westcott declares that the four Gospels, the Acts, 1 Peter, 1 John, 13 Epistles of Paul, and the Apocalypse (the Revelation) were accepted by the Church, and, with the exception of the Apocalypse, have never been questioned since until modern times. Speaking generally, we may say that of the so-called "disputed" books of the N.T. the Apocalypse was universally received by all the Christian writers, while the Epistle to the Hebrews found acceptance in the Oriental, but not in the Occidental, Church. Judging from the writings, "the Epistles of James and Jude and the second and third of John were little used, and the second of Peter was barely known." 2. From a.d. 302 to A.D. 307.-- At the close of this period the third Council of Carthage, a.d. 397, took place, memorable as that by which the present canon of the N.T., with its 27 books, was ratified. Since that time it has remained unchanged. Luther revived doubts concerning some of the 7 books which Eusebius calls "disputed," especially the Epistle of James (which he could not harmonize with Paul's doctrine of justification by faith); but these were private opinions, and were not adopted by the Lutheran Church. All the Protestant Churches agree with the Greek and the Roman Churches as regards the extent of the canon of the N. T. And this little book contains the chief wisdom of the world, and will continue to guide mankind in the way of salvation to the end of time.