The Development of the New Testament

Kevin P. Edgecomb in biblicalia has a very interesting post in which he gives the reasons for the writing of the books of the New Testament.

The following are two excerpts from his post:

So, I would like to suggest that the writing of the individual New Testament books, their preservation, and subsequent canonization as part of the New Testament was all a part of the growth of the deposit of faith, part of the safeguarding of the original apostolic regula fidei.

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In summary, the writing of the New Testament documents occurred for the reason of defense of the faith, as the further clarification of the very rule of faith (regula fidei) established by the apostles when the local church communities were founded in the first century.

Good post.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Canon, New Testament

Thinking about Canon

I have written three posts on the canon. You can read my posts here, here, and here.

A few days ago, I received an email from John Hobbins in which he tells me that he has written a long essay on the canon. "Thinking about Canon" is a detailed study that covers the canons of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible.

I commend this excellent work to those who are interested in the development of the canon.

Visit John Hobbins at Ancient Hebrew Poetry.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tag: Canon

Athanasius and the Canon

Athanasius (293-373 A.D.) was the bishop of Alexandria who played an important role in the Council of Nicaea. Athanasius deals with the canon in his thirty-ninth Festal Letter written to the churches in Egyptian which were under his supervision. The letter was written in 367 A.D. The following is the text of Athanasius’ letter:

Of the particular books and their number, which are accepted by the Church. From the thirty-ninth Letter of Holy Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria, on the Paschal festival; wherein he defines canonically what are the divine books which are accepted by the Church.

1. They have fabricated books which they call books of tables, in which they shew stars, to which they give the names of Saints. And therein of a truth they have inflicted on themselves a double reproach: those who have written such books, because they have perfected themselves in a lying and contemptible science; and as to the ignorant and simple, they have led them astray by evil thoughts concerning the right faith established in all truth and upright in the presence of God.

2. But since we have made mention of heretics as dead, but of ourselves as possessing the Divine Scriptures for salvation; and since I fear lest, as Paul wrote to the Corinthians, some few of the simple should be beguiled from their simplicity and purity, by the subtility of certain men, and should henceforth read other books — those called apocryphal — led astray by the similarity of their names with the true books; I beseech you to bear patiently, if I also write, by way of remembrance, of matters with which you are acquainted, influenced by the need and advantage of the Church.

3. In proceeding to make mention of these things, I shall adopt, to commend my undertaking, the pattern of Luke the Evangelist, saying on my own account: ‘Forasmuch as some have taken in hand,’ to reduce into order for themselves the books termed apocryphal, and to mix them up with the divinely inspired Scripture, concerning which we have been fully persuaded, as they who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word, delivered to the fathers; it seemed good to me also, having been urged thereto by true brethren, and having learned from the beginning, to set before you the books included in the Canon, and handed down, and accredited as Divine; to the end that any one who has fallen into error may condemn those who have led him astray; and that he who has continued steadfast in purity may again rejoice, having these things brought to his remembrance.

4. There are, then, of the Old Testament, twenty-two books in number; for, as I have heard, it is handed down that this is the number of the letters among the Hebrews; their respective order and names being as follows. The first is Genesis, then Exodus, next Leviticus, after that Numbers, and then Deuteronomy. Following these there is Joshua, the son of Nun, then Judges, then Ruth. And again, after these four books of Kings, the first and second being reckoned as one book, and so likewise the third and fourth as one book. And again, the first and second of the Chronicles are reckoned as one book. Again Ezra, the first and second are similarly one book. After these there is the book of Psalms, then the Proverbs, next Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Songs. Job follows, then the Prophets, the twelve being reckoned as one book. Then Isaiah, one book, then Jeremiah with Baruch, Lamentations, and the epistle, one book; afterwards, Ezekiel and Daniel, each one book. Thus far constitutes the Old Testament.

5. Again it is not tedious to speak of the [books] of the New Testament. These are, the four Gospels, according to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Afterwards, the Acts of the Apostles and Epistles (called Catholic), seven, viz. of James, one; of Peter, two; of John, three; after these, one of Jude. In addition, there are fourteen Epistles of Paul, written in this order. The first, to the Romans; then two to the Corinthians; after these, to the Galatians; next, to the Ephesians; then to the Philippians; then to the Colossians; after these, two to the Thessalonians, and that to the Hebrews; and again, two to Timothy; one to Titus; and lastly, that to Philemon. And besides, the Revelation of John.

6. These are fountains of salvation, that they who thirst may be satisfied with the living words they contain. In these alone is proclaimed the doctrine of godliness. Let no man add to these, neither let him take ought from these. For concerning these the Lord put to shame the Sadducees, and said, ‘Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures.’ And He reproved the Jews, saying, ‘Search the Scriptures, for these are they that testify of Me.’

7. But for greater exactness I add this also, writing of necessity; that there are other books besides these not indeed included in the Canon, but appointed by the Fathers to be read by those who newly join us, and who wish for instruction in the word of godliness. The Wisdom of Solomon, and the Wisdom of Sirach, and Esther, and Judith, and Tobit, and that which is called the Teaching of the Apostles, and the Shepherd. But the former, my brethren, are included in the Canon, the latter being [merely] read; nor is there in any place a mention of apocryphal writings. But they are an invention of heretics, who write them when they choose, bestowing upon them their approbation, and assigning to them a date, that so, using them as ancient writings, they may find occasion to lead astray the simple.

Notes on Athanasius’ Canon

1. Athanasius mentions “heretics" in his letter. The heresy he mentions was Arianism, the belief that Jesus was a creature created by God who was not equal with God.

2. Athanasius' Old Testament canon has twenty-two books:

a. The Pentateuch
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

b. The Historical Books
Joshua, Judges, Ruth Samuel (1 and 2 Samuel are one book), Kings (1 and 2 Kings are one book), Chronicles (1 and 2 Chronicles are one book), and Ezra (Ezra and Nehemiah are one book).

c. The Poetical Books
Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, and Job.

d. The Prophetical Books

(1) The Minor Prophets
The Twelve Minor prophets are one book.

(2) The Major Prophets
Isaiah, Jeremiah (including Baruch, Lamentations, and the Letter of Jeremiah as one book), Ezekiel, and Daniel.

3. Esther is not included in the list of canonical books.

4. Athanasius' New Testament canon has twenty-seven books.

a. The Gospel
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

b. The Acts of the Apostles

c. The Catholic Epistles (seven)
James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2, and 3 John, and Jude.

d. The Pauline Epistles (14)
Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, Hebrews, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon.

e. The Revelation of John.

5. Books appointed by the Fathers to be read for instruction
Wisdom of Solomon, Wisdom of Sirach, Esther, Judith, Tobit, the Teaching of the Apostles (Didache), and the Shepherd of Hermas.

6. Athanasius strongly emphasized the difference between the canonical books and the apocrypha.

7. As for the apocryphal books, Athanasius said that they “are an invention of heretics, who write them when they choose, bestowing upon them their approbation, and assigning to them a date, that so, using them as ancient writings, they may find occasion to lead astray the simple.”

In a future post I will deal with the implications of the development of the canon for the church.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Athanasius, Bible, Canon

Augustine and the Canon

Augustine (he is also called Augustin), the Bishop of Hippo (354-430 A.D.), in his treatise, On Christian Doctrine, Book 2, Chapter 8, deals with the study of Scripture and introduces the biblical canon as it existed in his day. This list which mentions all the books that should be considered part of the Christian canon was introduced in the fourth century during the Council of Hippo in 393 A.D. This list of canonical books was also affirmed by the Council of Carthage in 397 A.D.

In his book, Augustine wrote:

But let us now go back to consider the third step here mentioned, for it is about it that I have set myself to speak and reason as the Lord shall grant me wisdom. The most skillful interpreter of the sacred writings, then, will be he who in the first place has read them all and retained them in his knowledge, if not yet with full understanding, still with such knowledge as reading gives, — those of them, at least, that are called canonical.

For he will read the others with greater safety when built up in the belief of the truth, so that they will not take first possession of a weak mind, nor, cheating it with dangerous falsehoods and delusions, fill it with prejudices adverse to a sound understanding.

Now, in regard to the canonical Scriptures, he must follow the judgment of the greater number of catholic churches; and among these, of course, a high place must be given to such as have been thought worthy to be the seat of an apostle and to receive epistles.

Accordingly, among the canonical Scriptures he will judge according to the following standard: to prefer those that are received by all the catholic churches to those which some do not receive. Among those, again, which are not received by all, he will prefer such as have the sanction of the greater number and those of greater authority, to such as are held by the smaller number and those of less authority. If, however, he shall find that some books are held by the greater number of churches, and others by the churches of greater authority (though this is not a very likely thing to happen), I think that in such a case the authority on the two sides is to be looked upon as equal.

Now the whole canon of Scripture on which we say this judgment is to be exercised, is contained in the following books: — Five books of Moses, that is, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy; one book of Joshua the son of Nun; one of Judges; one short book called Ruth, which seems rather to belong to the beginning of Kings; next, four books of Kings, and two of Chronicles— these last not following one another, but running parallel, so to speak, and going over the same ground. The books now mentioned are history, which contains a connected narrative of the times, and follows the order of the events.

There are other books which seem to follow no regular order, and are connected neither with the order of the preceding books nor with one another, such as Job, and Tobias, and Esther, and Judith, and the two books of Maccabees, and the two of Ezra, which last look more like a sequel to the continuous regular history which terminates with the books of Kings and Chronicles.

Next are the Prophets, in which there is one book of the Psalms of David; and three books of Solomon, viz., Proverbs, Song of Songs, and Ecclesiastes. For two books, one called Wisdom and the other Ecclesiasticus, are ascribed to Solomon from a certain resemblance of style, but the most likely opinion is that they were written by Jesus the son of Sirach. Still they are to be reckoned among the prophetical books, since they have attained recognition as being authoritative.

The remainder are the books which are strictly called the Prophets: twelve separate books of the prophets which are connected with one another, and having never been disjoined, are reckoned as one book; the names of these prophets are as follows: — Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi; then there are the four greater prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Ezekiel. The authority of the Old Testament is contained within the limits of these forty-four books.

That of the New Testament, again, is contained within the following: — Four books of the Gospel, according to Matthew, according to Mark, according to Luke, according to John; fourteen epistles of the Apostle Paul — one to the Romans, two to the Corinthians, one to the Galatians, to the Ephesians, to the Philippians, two to the Thessalonians, one to the Colossians, two to Timothy, one to Titus, to Philemon, to the Hebrews: two of Peter; three of John; one of Jude; and one of James; one book of the Acts of the Apostles; and one of the Revelation of John.

Notes on Augustine’s View of the Canon

1. Augustine recommends that Christians read and retain the content of the canonical books.

2. It is clear that in his day the canon was not fixed, since he does not include the Book of Lamentations (see below) and since he speaks of accepting as canonical only those books that were widely accepted by the church.

3. His canon of the Old Testament contains forty-four books. These books are divided as follows:

a. The five books of Moses: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

b. The historical books: Joshua, Judges, Ruth, four books of Kings (1 and 2 Samuel; 1 and 2 Kings), and 1 and 2 Chronicles.

c. Other books which he says are not connected: Job, Tobias, Esther, Judith, 1 and 2 Maccabees, and the two books of Ezra (Ezra and Nehemiah).

d. The Wisdom books, which Augustine called “The Prophets.” These are: one book of the Psalms of David, three books of Solomon, that is, Proverbs, Song of Songs, and Ecclesiastes, and Wisdom and Ecclesiasticus, which Augustine believed were written by Jesus the son of Sirach.

e. The Prophetic books. Augustine lists the Minor Prophets first and then he lists the Major Prophets.

The Minor Prophets: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.

The Major Prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, and Ezekiel.

Augustine does not mention the book of Lamentations which was excluded from his list of canonical books. In his list, Daniel precedes Ezekiel, probably following a chronological arrangement of the two books.

f. New Testament. Augustine is credited as the first person to list all the New Testament books as they appear in today’s Bibles. According to Augustine, the New Testament in composed of the following books:

Four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Pauline Epistles: Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, and Hebrews. Augustine accepted the traditional view that Paul wrote Hebrews.

The Other Epistles: 1 and 2 Peter; 1, 2, and 3 John; Jude; and James.

The Other Books: The book of the Acts of the Apostles; and the Revelation of John.

Thus, it seems that the canon of the biblical books, including the New Testament, was almost fixed by the end of the fourth century. Although Augustine rejected the book of Lamentations, Jerome included the book in his translation of the Bible.

Before there was the canonical list of Augustine, there was the list developed by Athanasius in 367 A.D. In my next post I will compare Athanasius’ list with Augustine’s list.

Next in the series: Athanasius and the Canon.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Augustine, Bible, Canon

Psalm 151

In my post on the “The Canon of the Old Testament,” I mentioned that the Orthodox Bible contains one extra psalm, Psalm 151.

This psalm appears in some manuscripts of the Septuagint as a genuine psalm of David and counted as part of the collection of biblical psalms. In other manuscripts, however, the psalm appears as supernumerary, that is, the psalm is not numbered among the biblical psalms. Since many people have never read Psalm 151, I have decided to post the psalm as an addition to my post on the canon.

The title of psalm in the Septuagint reads:

“This psalm is ascribed to David as his own composition (though it is outside the number), after he had fought in single combat with Goliath.”

The translation of Psalm 151 below comes from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV):

1 I was small among my brothers, and the youngest in my father’s house; I tended my father’s sheep.

2 My hands made a harp; my fingers fashioned a lyre.

3 And who will tell my Lord? The Lord himself; it is he who hears.

4 It was he who sent his messenger and took me from my father’s sheep, and anointed me with his anointing oil.

5 My brothers were handsome and tall, but the Lord was not pleased with them.

6 I went out to meet the Philistine, and he cursed me by his idols.

7 But I drew his own sword; I beheaded him, and took away disgrace from the people of Israel.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tag: Canon, Psalm 151, Septuagint

The Canon of the Old Testament

Today I begin a series of studies on the canon of the Old Testament. Although the Bible is the book of the church and although Christians everywhere recognize that the Bible is the Word of God, Christians (and Jews) look at the Bible from different perspectives.

This first study deals with the content of the Bible. The Bible is divided into two sections: the Old Testament and the New Testament. The word “Testament” comes from a Hebrew word (by the way of the Greek New Testament) which means “covenant.”

The name “Old Testament” reflects the Christian’s belief that the promise of a new covenant in Jeremiah 31:31-34 was fulfilled in Christ.

The Jewish people today call their scripture Tanak. It is also known as the Hebrew Bible. The word “Tanak” comes from an acronym made up of the initial consonants of the three major parts of the Hebrew Bible: Torah (Law), Nebiim (Prophets) and Kethubim (Writings).

The Canon of the Old Testament

The word “canon” is a Greek word derived from a Hebrew word which means “reed.” In the ancient Near East reeds were used as measuring sticks. The word also means “rule,” “list,” and “standard.” In Ezekiel 40:3, 5 the Hebrew word is translated as “a measuring reed.”

The canon is a body of authoritative literature which is directly related to the religious life of the community which treasures it. There are three accepted canons. First, the Jewish canon, also known as the “Palestinian canon,” contains 24 books. The Alexandrian canon, the canon used in the Catholic and Orthodox churches, contains 39 books plus additional books or additions to biblical books. These books are generally known as the Apocrypha or the Deuterocanonical books. The Protestant canon contains 39 books. These are the same books of the Palestinian canon, but organized in a different order.

The Protestant Canon

The Old Testament in the Protestant canon, found in most English Bibles, contains 39 books and is divided into four sections:

1. Pentateuch: 5 books

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

2. Historical Books: 12 books

Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther.

3. Poetical Books: 5 books

Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs.

4. Prophetical Books: 17 books

(a) Major Prophets: 5 books

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentation, Ezekiel, and Daniel.

(b) Minor Prophets: 12 books

Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.

The Hebrew Bible (Tanak)

The Hebrew Bible, or the Palestinian canon, contains 24 books and it is divided into three sections:

1. Torah (Law or Teaching): 5 books

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

2. Nebiim (Prophets): 8 books

(a) Former Prophets: 4 books

Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings.

(b) Latter Prophets: 4 books

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Twelve.

3. Kethubim (Writings): 11 books

(a) Poetry: 3 books

Psalms, Job, and Proverbs.

(b) Megilloth (Festal Scrolls): 5 books

Song of Songs: read at Passover.

Ruth: read at the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost.

Lamentations: read on the ninth of Ab, the day Jerusalem was destroyed in 587 B.C.

Ecclesiastes (Qoheleth): read at the feast of Tabernacles (Feast of Booths).

Esther: read at the feast of Purim.

(c) The other writings: 3 books

Daniel, Ezra-Nehemiah, and Chronicles.

The Alexandrian Canon

The Alexandrian canon was compiled in Alexandria, Egypt by Jews who had adopted Greek culture and used the Greek language as the primary means of communication. The translation of Hebrew scriptures into Greek became known as the Septuagint (generally abbreviated as the LXX).

The Old Testament in the Alexandrian canon, contains the same books found in the Palestinian canon and several other books and addition to biblical books which were not included in the Palestinian canon. These are the books of the Alexandrian canon:

1. Pentateuch: 5 books

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

2. Historical Books: 16 books

Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Tobit, Judith, Esther (including the additions to the book), 1 Maccabees, and 2 Maccabees.

3. Poetical Books: 7 books

Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Wisdom of Solomon, and Ecclesiasticus (also known as Wisdom of ben Sirach).

4. Prophetical Books: 17 books

(a) Major Prophets: 6 books

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentation, Baruc (including the Letter of Jeremiah), Ezekiel, and Daniel (including The Prayer of Azariah, The Song of the Three Jews, Susanna, and Bel and the Dragon).

(b) Minor Prophets: 12 books

Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.

The Orthodox Canon

The Orthodox canon is used in Orthodox churches. The Old Testament in the Orthodox Bible contains the same books found in the Palestinian canon, the additional books and addition to biblical books found in the Alexandrian canon plus other books and additions which were not included in the Palestinian nor the Alexandrian canons. These are the books of the Orthodox Bible:

1. Pentateuch: 5 books

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

2. Historical Books: 17 books

Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Kingdoms (1 Samuel), 2 Kingdoms (2 Samuel), 3 Kingdoms (1 Kings), 4 Kingdoms (2 Kings), 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, 1 Esdras, 2 Esdras (Ezra, Nehemiah), Esther (including the additions to the book), Judith, Tobit, 1 Maccabees, 2 Maccabees, and 3 Maccabees (4 Maccabees appears in the appendix).

3. Poetical Books: 8 books

Psalms (including Psalm 151), Prayer of Manasseh, Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Wisdom of Solomon, and Ecclesiasticus (also known as Wisdom of ben Sirach).

4. Prophetical Books: 17 books

(a) Minor Prophets: 12 books

Hosea, Amos, Micah, Joel, Obadiah, Jonah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.

(b) Major Prophets: 6 books

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Baruc, Lamentation, Letter of Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel (including The Prayer of Azariah, The Song of the Three Jews, Susanna, and Bel and the Dragon).

In a later post I will discuss in more detail these different canons.

Next in this series: “Augustine and the Canon.”

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Apocrypha, Bible, Canon, Deuterocanonical, Septuagint