Equipped For Every Good Work

Lesson 7

GROWTH OF THE BIBLE CANON

The canon of the Bible is the catalogue or collection of books which have been inspired by the holy spirit of God. "Canon" comes originally from the Hebrew word qaneh, which means "reed". The corresponding Greek word is kanon, which also means "a reed, or a measuring rod, a straight edge", something by which measurements can be made and also straight lines can be drawn. In other words, the canon of the Bible is the straightedge by which one may determine what is straight truth or straight doctrine. Jehovah God has graciously provided it that his servants may be safeguarded from ensnaring religion. The canon has been committed to God's people, not all at one time, but has had a growth over centuries.

The true canon of the Bible is a matter of dispute even to this day. For example, the Roman Catholic approved Bible, the Douay Version in the English, contains a number of books that are not found in the King James Version Bible. Another instance is the Septuagint Greek Version of the ancient Hebrew Scriptures which contains apocryphal or "spurious" books (the Septuagint originally did not include the Apocrypha). There is great endeavor on the part of translators or their boosters to have people credit full divine authority to all the books in the Apocrypha, and thus add to the Bible canon at this late date.

The canon first began to be committed to writing in the time of Moses, and it was very appropriate that Jehovah God should early contribute to it by writing the Ten Commandments. At Mount Sinai these commandments were written on a durable material, on stone, and that with the finger of God. Then Jehovah God told Moses to write down in legible form the laws, ordinances, statutes and regulations for the typical Theocracy. From then on the canon of the Bible underwent a steady growth and addition. It is therefore seen that what the Scriptures call "the law"

constituted the first part of the canon. This law was one production, one book by Moses. It was later subdivided into five rolls, the first five books of the Bible. Not only did Moses write these first five books, but there is strong reason to believe that Moses wrote the book of Job and Psalms 90 and 91. Therefore, with the death of Moses these first parts of the canon of the Bible would be completed.

It is apparent that the truth did not end with Moses. There may have been some who were stout champions for Moses and who took the same position regarding him as certain Bible students took regarding Pastor Charles Taze Russell, thinking that when Pastor Russell died the truth stopped. There was still a production of further truth, however. So far as the canon of the Hebrew Scriptures is concerned, it continued till the writing of the last book, Malachi. These books, from Genesis to Malachi, do not follow the same order of arrangement as is in the present-day English Bibles. The divisions and subdivisions of these books and the order of their occurrence in Hebrew Bibles is as follows:

1. The Pentateuch: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.

2. The Prophets: Former: Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings. Latter: (Major) Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel; (Minor) Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi.

3. The Hagiographa (a Greek word meaning "holy writings"; the Hebrew is Kethubim, meaning "things written" or "writings"): Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Solomon, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah and 1 and 2 Chronicles.

The Devil always tries to cause a 'dead fly to get into the ointment and to cause it to stink'. (Eccl. 10:1) He tries to cause confusion us to the Word of God and to adulterate or to mix it with that which is false and erroneous. He would therefore endeavor to add to the Word of God that

which did not belong to it. (Deut. 4:2; Prov. 30:6; Rev. 22:18) God decreed that there should be an end of the books of the Hebrew canon, and the end of such books was made with the production of the prophecy of Malachi. The canon of the Hebrew Bible was nearly, if not actually, complete with the scribe Ezra in the fifth century before Christ. It is possible that only the prophecy of Malachi was yet to be appended thereto.

In trying to determine the time of writing of certain Bible books, many "higher critics" contend that the books were written much later than they actually were, basing such claims on the fact that things are recorded that certainly could not have been put there by the original writer, since they occurred after his death. But this does not necessarily set the time of composition at a later date. A major fact ever to be remembered is that the holy spirit of God was working till the very end of the production of the canon of the Hebrew Scriptures. Hence, if there were any additions made in the books thereof, and which additions are anachronisms (misplacing events in order of time), these insertions or additions would be approved by God because his servants would make these additions under the guidance of the same spirit of God that inspired the original composition of the books.

The first version or translation of the Hebrew canon was into the Greek, and it was known as the Septuagint. The Septuagint as it exists today contains apocryphal books, but originally it did not. It harmonized with our present Jewish canon of the Scriptures.

That the Hebrew canon is correct, we have ancient proof. Some, however, may say, "Well, how can the Hebrew canon be correct, in view of the ancient manuscripts or codices, such as the Alexandrine MS. of the fifth century after Christ, the Vatican MS. of the fourth century after Christ, the Sinaitic MS. of the fourth century after Christ, and the Beza MSS. of the sixth century after Christ, all containing some apocryphal books?" On this point the follow-

ing facts are noted: During the first four centuries of the Christian era, that is, running down to the end of the fourth century (to the year 397, to be specific), the only Christian catalogues of inspired books of the Hebrew Bible that were accepted by the Christian congregations were those catalogues which included solely the Hebrew canon of Scripture. Those catalogues excluded the Apocrypha.

It was the Roman Catholic "Saint" Augustine who, at the Council of Carthage in the year 397, submitted an enlarged canon, which included the apocryphal books. That council decreed what should be rated as inspired canonical books in the "Old Testament". But this catalogue as set up by this council was not approved or accepted by any Greek authority, that is to say, by any Eastern church organization. Even in the west, however, there were those associated with the Roman Catholic Hierarchy and prominent in their ecclesiastical circles who held to the Hebrew canon of Scriptures excluding the Apocrypha; and this line of adherents thereto continued all the way down to the Protestant Reformation.

The Council of Trent (1546) in its fourth session decreed that all the books set out in its enlarged canon, which included the apocryphal books, were of "equal veneration". This decree was passed by the majority, yet not without opposition. Confusion exists within Catholic ranks as to what is the Bible canon, but Jehovah's witnesses have assurance that it is complete as in the Bibles now in widest use.