Canon Archives - Bible Authenticity

EVIDENCE of EARLY NEW TESTAMENT CANON by c. 100 CE

September 28, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

Revised November 29, 2022

Although it is popular to do so, we should not measure the existence of the New Testament (NT) canon (authoritative, or inspired, books) just by the existence of lists, which came into being somewhat later than the NT canon’s coming into existence. When we examine the way the NT books were viewed and used in the very early days of Christianity, we can determine the de facto existence of a functioning canon by about 100 CE.

The views expressed here are admittedly a little different than the traditional, or orthodox, view of how the NT canon, in particular, and the Bible as a whole, came into acceptance. The views presented here actually stand in stark contrast to modern-day populist scholars, like the agnostic Bart Ehrman. read more

Notes on the Origin of the New Testament Canon

May 26, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

The New Testament canon was established early, by Holy Spirit

The New Testament canon was established in the first century by Holy Spirit. Let’s examine some notes on the scriptures which confirm this fact:

2 Peter 1:16-21 – Peter affirms Old Testament prophets wrote God’s word. He puts himself and other apostles in the same category.

2 Peter 3:15-16 – Paul’s letters were on the same level as all the “rest of the scriptures.” That is, inspired of God. Early Greek manuscripts show Paul writing 14 letters.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 – The rest of the scriptures (the Old Testament) are inspired of God. We can broaden this now, and apply the principle to all 66 canonical books as shown below: read more

The Origin, Transmission, and Canonization of the Old Testament Books

May 11, 2015 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

The term canon is used to describe the list of books approved for inclusion in the Bible. It stems from a Greek word meaning “rod,” as in a straight stick that serves as a standard for measuring. Hence, to speak of the biblical canon is to speak of authoritative books, given by God, the teachings of which define correct belief and practice. Obviously, only books inspired by God should be received as canonical. The Bible before you includes 39 books in the Old Testament (OT). Are these the right books? Who wrote them? What were their sources of information? These questions are asked by friends and foes of biblical faith. ThIs article touches on such issues with an aim to bolster confidence in the OT as the “inspired” “word of God” (1 Thessalonians 2:13 NLT; 2 Timothy 3:16 NLT). read more

What Is The Apocrypha?

March 5, 2015 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

“Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms”—Luke 24:44 NIV

Jesus referred to the Hebrew scripture Bible canon, by referring to the three sections that the Jews divided it into. These sections comprise the 39 book Old Testament, from Genesis through Malachi.

As the early church developed, Gentile believers needed to be taught “sound doctrine” (Titus 2:1). Although Jesus, Paul and the apostles exclusively used the Old Testament (referred to in Luke 24:44) as their canonical Bible, Gentiles also encountered many other Jewish religious texts among the Greek scrolls of the Scriptures. Over time some Gentile believers began to embrace these books as authoritative, and debate over their place in the churches has raged ever since. read more

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