A Critical Examination of the Canon of Scripture
I. What is the Bible
A. Significance of the Canon
1. Reveals the Person and work
of God
B. Formation of the Canon
1. A covenant fulfillment
C. Limitation of the Canon
1. Why only 66 books?
II. An Evaluation of the Bible
A. The Old Testament
1. Lower Criticism
a. Manuscript Witness of the
Old Testament
2. Higher Criticism
a. Summary, Authors, and Dates
of the Old Testament
3. The Old Testament Apocrypha
B. The New Testament
1. Lower Criticism
a. Manuscripts Witness of the New
Testament
2. Higher Criticism
a. Summary, Authors, and Dates of
the New Testament
3. The New Testament Apocrypha
III. Interpreting the Bible
A. Presuppositions
1. A balanced approach
a. All Scripture is God-breathed
B. The Logos (The Word of God)
1. Written expression – Scripture
2. Living expression – Jesus
C. Literal/figurative sense
IV. Application of the Bible
A. To whom is the Bible addressed?
1. Universal/particular audience
B. Our response
1. Faith
WHAT IS THE BIBLE?
The Bible is a book that reveals the Person and works of God. It was written by over 40 different authors between a 1600 yr. period (1445 B.C. — A.D. 95). The origin of the term “Bible” itself implies that it is no ordinary book, but has extraordinary claims on rational minds. The human authors come from many different occupational backgrounds, such as kings, farmers, fisherman, and prophets. The Bible is divided into 66 volumes, which are categorized according to genre. Papyrus, an Egyptian invention, was a writing material from the papyrus plant that was used to write the Bible. When the original Bible was written, the Hebrew people used, among other things, papyrus rolls called scrolls. The English word “Bible” derived from the Greek word byblos, which refers to the papyrus rolls on which the Bible was written. And the root word for the papyrus plant is Canon which means standard. Thus the Bible is also called canon, the standard by which we measure and evaluate our lives.
All except one of the authors of the canon were of Hebrew origin (Luke is the only non-Hebrew writer of Scripture). “Hebrew” is the term used to identify the descendants of Eber (Gen. 10:21-25; 11:14-26), who was an ancestor of Abraham, the central figure of the Old Testament. Abraham is said to have received promises — unconditional covenants — from God that he would be the ancestor of the great nation Israel, the three vital components of which are: people, law, and land. Before the Hebrew people received their promised land, and after the increased population of people were delivered from Egyptian slavery (the Exodus of 1445 B.C.), their law would be given through Moses at Mt. Sinai just 50 days after their deliverance, which began the initial formation of the canon; the last book of the canon, Revelation, was written by the apostle John in A.D. 95.
But why are there only 66 books of the Bible when there were many other books that were presumed to be from God? Who decided which books to include and which to exclude? And how do we know the 66 books are the correct books? Church councils of the first few centuries, such as the Council of Jamnia (1st century), Council of Rome (A.D. 382), Council of Hippo (A.D. 393), and the Council of Carthage (A.D. 397) are believed to have discussed such questions. However, their purpose was not to determine which books were from God and which were not. Their purpose was to make an official recognition of the books that had already been determined to be from God. Generally, if a book was known to have been written by an apostle or prophet of God (or someone who was confirmed by an apostle or prophet, i.e. Mark and Luke who were neither apostles nor prophets) it was accepted. Several books of the Bible were written by unknown authors, such as Job, 1st and 2nd Kings, and many of the Psalms. In such cases when the author was not explicitly stated, evidence from within the book itself would reveal signs of prophetic authority, such as internal consistency with other canonical books written by a prophet, or the authors’ confirmation by miracles, or the books immediate acceptance into the community of the people of God, since it was they who knew first-hand how to test a genuine prophet from the false (Deut. 13:1-3; 18:20-22). Among those that were immediately received were the writings of Moses who was told to take the “book of the Law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God” (Deut. 31:26). Such was the case also with Joshua (Josh. 24:26), Samuel (1Sam. 10:25), and many others. Of all books presumed to be from God, only these 66 passed such criteria.
AN EVALUATION OF THE BIBLE
THE OLD TESTAMENT
If the Bible is to be the standard by which we measure and evaluate our lives, then there should be an evaluation to which we can apply to the Bible that would give evidence of whether or not the canon of today is as it was when it was originally written; if it is not, then the essential Christian doctrine that “All Scripture is inspired [God-breathed] by God” has little ground to stand on. Literary Criticism is the art and science of evaluating a piece of literature to discern the accuracy of the transmission of its data throughout time. In the 16th century Martin Luther, the German Reformer, discovered that long-held traditions of the Roman Catholic Church were based on forgeries and inaccurate documents. As a result, Protestants began applying literary criticism to the Bible, thus beginning the rise of Biblical Criticism. There are two forms of Biblical Criticism: Lower Criticism and Higher Criticism. The former deals with the wording of the original document and is foundational to the latter, which deals with and establishes the historical setting of the events and the original author of the document.
Lower Criticism
During the Reformation era, if one were to confirm that the text of the Old Testament was essentially the same as when it was originally written, there would be only a few manuscripts to compare it to, such as the Leningrad Codex of A.D. 1008 (see Worldview/The Three Theistic Religions/Judaism), which represents the Masoretic text on which today’s Old Testament is based), and the Aleppo Codex, a copy of the Old Testament produced in A.D. 925. Since the original writings of the Bible (the autographs) have not been found, copies such as these have produced valuable insight into the text of the original Bible. But this is still nearly 1400 years between what’s believed to be the final editing of the Old Testament (400 B.C.) and the earliest manuscripts of the Old Testament (A.D. 925). However, in 1947 another set of Hebrew manuscripts was discovered on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, called the Dead Sea Scrolls. The Dead Sea Scrolls contain all of the Old Testament books (in part or whole), except Esther, and are dated 250 B.C. – A.D. 70. The significance of these scrolls is that when they were compared to the Masoretic text, they were nearly a word-for-word match, with only slight textual variations. Thus we can be more certain that the text of the Old Testament we have today is the same as when it was originally written.
But just knowing that the text of today’s Bible is essentially the same as when it was originally written is only part of literary criticism; it gives us evidence via ancient manuscripts of the accuracy of the transmission of the text. There still remains an examination of the text itself to determine if the original author of the text lived as a contemporary to the events they recorded. If he did not live during the events he records, then his writings become subject to greater criticism.
Higher Criticism
The Old Testament is classified into 5 genres: Law, History, Poetry, Major Prophets, and Minor Prophets.
- Law (written 1445 – 1406 B.C).
The text of the Pentateuch (bks. #1-5) records the creation of the universe, the creation of life and its subsequent moral corruption through sin, the call of Abraham through whom God would raise up a nation – Israel – who eventually become subject to Egyptian slavery. After several years God used Moses to deliver Israel (the Exodus) and lead them through desert wanderings to the land of Canaan, the Promise Land.
Since King Solomon began his reign in 970 B.C., and the Exodus occurred 480 yrs. prior to the 4th year of Solomon’s reign (1 Kings 6:1), then the Exodus occurred around 1446 B.C. And since there were at least 40 yrs. of wandering in the desert between the Exodus and the entry of the Promised Land, Moses most likely wrote the Pentateuch during the desert wanderings between 1445 – 1406 B.C. and then placed his writing in the ark of the covenant as stated in (Deut. 31:26).
The genre of these books, however, is more narrative than law. And up until the 17th century it was traditionally held that Moses wrote the Pentateuch. But between the 17th and 19th century liberal critics have raised doubts of Mosaic authorship, affirming that the Pentateuch was composed by several compilers between 850 – 500 B.C. and that Moses’ name was attached to them to give them greater value and acceptance. Some of the reasons given to deny Moses as the author are that Moses could not have written about his own death (Deut. 34), nor did he have the capability to write, since writing did not exist in Moses’ day. Monotheism, such as seen throughout the Pentateuch, was supposedly not developed till the 6th century B.C. And Moses was not alive yet to write Genesis; he was born long after the events of Genesis occurred.
However, since Moses was a prophet (Deut. 18:15; Acts 3:22) he could well have written of his own death. But more likely Joshua, Moses’ successor, wrote Deut. 34. And archaeological evidence indicates that writing was indeed in existence long before Moses. Excavations in Nineveh have discovered a library built by Assyrian King Ashurbanipal (668 – 626 B.C.) whose scribes are said to have made thousands of copies of historic and religious text of Sumerian writings that are dated at 3500 B.C., which are the earliest writing known to man. In 3000 B.C. there were Egyptian hieroglyphics, which later developed into a cursive script called hieratic. And in 1500 – 1200 B.C. there was not only the cuneiform alphabet of Ugarit consisting of 31 characters, but also the practice of monotheism by the Babylonians; between 2580 – 2250 B.C. the Ebla Tablets contained the earliest accounts of monotheism, the creation account, and the Flood. It is true that Moses was not alive yet when the events of Genesis took place. But the fact that he mentions “historical records” (Gen. 2:4; 5:1; 6:9; 10:1,32; 11:10,27; 25:12,19; 36:1; 37:2) implies that Moses may have compiled the account of Genesis through oral traditions and/or historical records passed on to him. Even without these records Moses still could have received revelation directly from God while on Mt. Sinai for 40 days (Ex. 25:40) or in response to his request to see God’s glory and was revealed “the back” (i.e. God in history past) of Ex. 33:18-23.
- History (written 1390 – 425 B.C.)
The books of History consist of bks. #6-17 of the Old Testament. The events of these books pick up where the last book of the Law left off. The 40 yrs. of wondering are over. The people of Israel have reached the borders of the Promise Land. Since Moses dies just before entering the land, Joshua is now the new leader. The law and people had been established. And now in keeping with the covenant of Abraham, the land would be given over to his descendants with the ark of the covenant, containing the books of Moses, leading the way (Josh. 3:2-3). As new inhabitants of the conquered land of Canaan, the new nation of Israel was not only to be a theocracy with God as their only king, but a “peculiar treasure unto God” (Ex. 19:5) being governed by the Law of Moses. But by their demand for a human king, they became a monarchy which had been set up between 1043 – 587 B.C. In 931 B.C. the united kingdom of Israel became a split nation: Northern Israel, and Southern Judah. And in 722 B.C. in response to Israel’s rebellion to the Law of Moses, God used the Assyrian nation to besiege Northern Israel bringing its inhabitants captive into the surrounding nations. In 587 B.C. the Southern Kingdom of Judah suffered the same fate when the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar besieged the nation of Judah bringing them into captivity in the land of Babylon for 70 yrs. and burned the Jewish temple, which contained the ark of the covenant, to the ground; the ark of the covenant has been missing ever since (Jer. 3:16). This event began the “times of the Gentiles” (Lk. 21:24) in which Israel lost its political independence and became subject to Gentile dominion. However, after the 70 yrs., the Israelites would be allowed back to their homeland to rebuild what had been destroyed.
The Bible, the Jewish Talmud, and the Jewish traditions of the Baba Bathra 14b-15a indicate that the book of Joshua was written by Joshua (Josh. 18:9; 24:26); that the books of Judges and Ruth was written by the prophet Samuel; that 1st and 2nd Samuel was written by Samuel, Nathan and Gad (1Sam. 1-24; 1Chron. 29:29); and that 1st and 2nd Kings was written by the prophet Jeremiah (2Kings 24:18-25:30, Jer. 52). Though not stated explicitly, it’s believed, based on the religious post-exilic context, that the books of 1st and 2nd Chronicles and the book of Ezra were written by Ezra, the religious reformer of 450 B.C. The book of Nehemiah is believed to have been written by Nehemiah (Neh. 1:1), and that the book of Esther was written by Mordecai (Esther 9:20).
- Poetry (written 1000 – 500 B.C.)
Though poetry is found throughout the entire canon, there are five books that are almost entirely poetry. The books of Poetry (bks. #18-22) are believed to have been written mostly during the beginning of Israel’s monarchy, often called the “golden age of literature”, a time when the nation of Israel was experiencing much peace under the reign of King Solomon. The book represents different kinds of poetry. The dramatic poetry of Job and Songs of Solomon express truth through monologue and dialogue; they appeal to the emotions, dealing with issues of love and suffering. Lyric poems such as Psalms are poems that are accompanied by music. Didactic poems such as Proverbs and Ecclesiastes appeal to the mind of the analytical observer, rather than the emotions.
Rather than dealing with particular issues as the books of History, the books of Poetry are applicable to universal issues. All people experience suffering, but not all suffer for the same reasons. Quite often an honest wrestling with the problem of suffering and evil, as with Job, is an evidence of faith, rather than a lack of it. The love relation between Solomon and his bride, as in Songs of Solomon, has parallels to how God treats His people and is often seen as a pattern for holy intimacy between a man and a woman within the context of marriage. Psalms frequently express songs of praise, often in times of great trial and affliction. Their personal and spiritual insights have also been seen as an interpretive aid for the Law of Moses, History, and Prophets. Ecclesiastes seeks to find unity in diversity, for without unity all the particulars “under the sun” are an empty chasing after the wind (Eccl. 1:2-3; 5:16). The wisdom of Proverbs is relevant to all of life; it contrasts the ways of the wise with the ways of the fool.
Job probably lived after Noah’s Flood, but before the time of Moses, since Job performs the duties of a priest (Job 1:5), a function delegated only to the Levites of the Law of Moses (Ex. 28–29; Lev. 8–10), which had probably not been given yet. The author is nowhere stated, but the context reflects a poetry style from the Solomon era. Solomon is credited with writing Songs of Solomon (1:1). The superscriptions of almost half the Psalms are “of David”; Ps. 50 and 73–83 were written by Asaph; Ps. 88 was written by Heman; Ps. 89 was written by Ethan; Ps. 72 and 127 were written by Solomon; Ps. 90 was written by Moses; the rest are anonymous. From tradition, Jewish Talmud, and the Bible Ecclesiastes is said to be written by Solomon, the “son of David” and “king over Israel” (1:1, 12). Proverbs was written by Solomon (1:1; 10:1; 25:1, cp. 1 Kings 4:29-34), and the final 2 Proverbs written by Agur and King Lemuel (Prov. 30:1; 31:1).
- Major Prophets (written 740 – 587 B.C.)
The Major Prophets (bks. #23-27) are so called, not because they are more important, but because they are of greater length. There were hundreds of prophets sent to Israel, the first of which was Moses (Jer. 7:25); of these hundreds only 16 contributed prophetic writing preserved in the Old Testament canon. The prophets spoke as God’s representative to the people since it was the prophets to whom God “revealed His secrets” (Deut. 18:18; Amos 3:7-8; Zech. 7:12). Their function was not only to predict an event but to call God’s people to repentance and obedience to the Law of Moses; the degree of obedience was often reflected in the prosperity of the land.
The historical setting of the Major Prophets begins during the monarchy after Israel had been split in half (Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah) in 931 B.C. The Major Prophets begin with Isaiah in 740 B.C. They continue on through the Assyrian invasion of the Northern Kingdom in 722 B.C. to the Babylonian invasion and exile of the Southern Kingdom in 587 B.C. The prophets then committed their words to writing (Isa. 8:1; Ez. 43:10-11) and occasionally copies were made (Jer. 36).
Liberal critics have claimed that the book of Isaiah was originally written by two authors; one writing ch.1-39 and another over a hundred years later writing ch.40-66. However, internal evidence suggests both sections were written by the same person. Jesus, quoting both Isa. 53:1 and 6:10, stated explicitly that both sections were written by the same Isaiah (Jn. 12:38-40). Jeremiah wrote his own book (Jer. 30:1-3; 51:60-64; 25:13) occasionally dictating his words to Baruch (Jer. 36). Because of the emotional intensity over the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 B.C., some have placed Lamentation in the Poetry section. The author of Lamentation is nowhere stated, but because of similarity in style and content with the book of Jeremiah, it’s believed that Jeremiah wrote it; the author was also an eyewitness to the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 B.C. (Lam. 2:6-12; Jer. 39:1-14). Just six years prior to this destruction, Ezekiel received the first of his revelations and committed them to writing (Ez. 1:1-3). Liberal critics of the 17th century A.D., building on the works of Porphyry of the 3rd century A.D., have held to a 167 B.C. date for Daniel. But evidence indicates that the book was written by the prophet Daniel of the 6th century B.C. Jesus states that it was written by “the prophet Daniel” (Mt. 24:15; 26:64; Mk. 13:14; 14:62). The book itself presumes to be written by Daniel (Dan. 7–10; 12:4-13). And since Ezekiel began writing his book in 593 B.C., and Ezekiel mentions Daniel by name (Ez. 14:14, 20; 28:3), then Daniel the prophet also wrote his book in the 6th century B.C.
- Minor Prophets (written 830 – 430 B.C)
The Minor Prophets (bks. #28-39) began to be written at a time when the nation of Assyria began to expand its territory into the region of Philistine. Not only had Israel been a split nation for almost a hundred years, but it became a vassal state to Assyria. The Law of Moses had been Israel’s moral, civil, and ceremonial “plumb line” (standard) of life (Amos 7:7-8). Obedience to the Law resulted in blessings, such as a fruitful and prosperous land (Deut. 11:10-28); disobedience resulted in an unfruitful and unprosperous land and even the possibility of expulsion from the land (Lev. 26:14-34, 43). Thus Israel’s spiritual wellbeing determined their natural, social, and economic well being. As Israel departed from the Law of Moses, the Minor Prophets were sent to Israel to remind them of their covenant commitment. However, Israel’s continued disobedience brought about their judgment as God allowed His covenant people to be exiled into surrounding nations. But just as the prophets predicted judgment on the nation, so also did they promise a time in the future when Israel would be restored to their land and be sent the coming Messiah that would bring ultimate restoration of all things. Judah would be exiled for 70 yrs. (Jer. 25:11; 29:10), one year for each violated Sabbath year (Lev. 25:1-7; 26:14-34, 43), but would return to their land in 538 B.C.
Internal evidence indicates the authors and dates of the Minor Prophets, most of which are dated according to the kings they served under. Joel wrote in 830 B.C. (Joel 1:1); Jonah wrote during the reign of King Jeroboam II of 2nd Kings 14:25 in 780 B.C. (Jonah 1:1); Amos wrote during the reign of King Uzziah in 760 B.C. (Amos 1:1; 7:14-15); Hosea wrote during the reigns of King Uzziah and King Jeroboam II in 750 B.C. (Hos. 1:1); Micha wrote in the later reign of King Jotham in 735 B.C. (Mic. 1:1); Nahum wrote in 650 B.C. prophesying the judgment of Nineveh which took place in 612 B.C. (Nah. 1:1; ch.2); Zephaniah wrote during the reign of King Josiah in 635 B.C. (Zeph. 1:1); Habakkuk wrote in 609 B.C. just before the first Babylonian invasion, which took place in 606 B.C., (Hab. 1:1); Obadiah wrote in 585 B.C. just after the third Babylonian invasion of 587 B.C. (Obed. 1:1); Haggai wrote during the reign of King Darius in 520 B.C. (Hag. 1:1; 2:1,10,18,20); Zechariah wrote during the reign of King Darius in 518 B.C. (Zech. 1:1; 7:1; cp. Ezra 5:1; 6:14); Malachi, with a post exilic context, wrote in 430 B.C. (Mal. 1:1).
Old Testament Apocrypha
Old Testament Apocrypha – Between 430 B.C. and the beginning of the first century A.D. is a period known as the “intertestamental period”, the time between the Old and New Testament. It was during these years that the Jewish community began writing what is known today as the Old Testament Apocrypha, which means “things that are hidden.” The Old Testament Apocrypha consists of 14 books written between 250 B.C. – A.D. 100. Several of the early church councils (Rome, Hippo, and Carthage) believed that some of these books had the same level of authority as the Bible. But it wasn’t until A.D. 1546 that the Roman Catholic Council made an official declaration that 11 of the 15 books be added to the canon. These 11 books are referred to by Roman Catholics as “deuterocanonical” (the second canon). They include: Tobit (200 B.C.), Judith (200 B.C.), The Wisdom of Solomon (200 – 175 B.C.), Ecclesiasticus (200 – 175 B.C.), Baruch (150 B.C.), 1st Maccabees (110 B.C.), 2nd Maccabees (110 B.C.), Esther 10:4– 16:24 (140 B.C.), three additions to Daniel: Susanna (2nd – 1st century B.C.), The Song of the Three Young Men (2nd – 1st century B.C.), and Bel and the Dragon (1st century B.C.).
The Apocrypha represent several genres: history, wisdom, devotional, romance, and apocalyptic. They often parallel events found in the Old Testament and give greater detail not found in the Old Testament. Within these books, there is high regard given to the Law of Moses, prayer, and the Jewish sacrificial system. Prophecies of Daniel are brought to partial fulfillment in the Old Testament Apocrypha. The “mighty king” – Alexander the Great of Dan. 11:3 – who was a student of Aristotle ( a student of Plato, who himself was a student of Socrates) has now conquered Persia (331 B.C.) and its territories including Palestine during the events recorded in the Apocrypha. Thus the Apocrypha was written at a time when the Jewish people were undergoing a new phase of national life. After Alexander’s death, his kingdom was divided among four of his generals (Dan. 11:4). As a result of the Grecian conquest, one of Alexander’s generals, Ptolemy (285-246 B.C.) had the Hebrew Old Testament translated into Greek (the Septuagint) in order to meet the needs of the new Hellenized culture of Palestine. Another general, Seleucids, had a descendent named Antiochus Epiphanes (175 – 163 B.C.), the “little horn” of Dan. 8:9-14 who began persecuting the Jewish community by desecrating the Temple (Dan. 11:20-32), forbidding Sabbath observance, and demanding the death penalty to anyone who possessed or read the Torah, the events of which are highlighted in 1st Maccabees. Mattathias, a Jewish priest, rose up and began a revolt against the oppression. After his death, the movement continued by his son, Judas Maccabees. Because of Judas’ religious zeal and strategy the Jews defeated Antiochus in December of 164 B.C., cleansed and rededicated their Temple, and officially regained their independence in 143 B.C. In commemorating this victory, the Jews still celebrate Hanukkah every Dec. 25th. Although the Old Testament Apocrypha has historical significance, there are several reasons for rejecting it from the canon of Scripture: On the testimony of Josephus, historian of the 1st century, there were “only 22 books [corresponding to the 39 of the Old Testament] which are justly believed to be divine.” The decision to accept the Apocrypha into the canon by the Council of Trent (1546) was in reaction to the Reformers who denounced Roman Catholic doctrines such as prayers for the dead (2Macc. 12:45) as against the teaching of the Bible (Heb. 9:27). And only books that were written by prophets had acceptance into the canon (Jer. 26:5; Amos 3:7-8; Zech. 7:12). The Apocrypha was not written by prophets (1Macc. 9:27), nor do they have prophetic authority. Therefore, the Apocrypha has no acceptance into the canon.
THE NEW TESTAMENT
Lower Criticism
The original New Testament writings that were written by the original authors (the autographs) have not been found. However, there are over 5677 Greek manuscripts of the New Testament dating between the 2nd and the 15th century (see Worldview/The Three Theistic Religions/Christianity). These manuscripts are hand-written copies of the original that have been preserved throughout the centuries, and upon which our modern New Testament is based. There are several ways these manuscripts have been categorized. Two of the most significant classes are, 1.) papyrus (refers to the papyrus plant which was used as writing material for the New Testament), and, 2.) uncials (refers to the letter formation of the manuscripts). There are 115 papyri manuscripts of the New Testament ranging from small fragments to whole codices (codex = papyri sheets in book form). The oldest is the John Rayland’s Fragment. It is a fragment of a codex dated at A.D. 125 and contains several verses from John ch.18. The Bodmer Papyri is dated between A.D. 175 – 225 and contains Jude, 1st and 2nd Peter, and almost the entire book of John and Luke. The Chester Beatty Papyri is dated A.D. 200-250 and contains most of the New Testament. Manuscripts found written in the uncial letter type, whether on papyri, vellum, or parchment, are classified as uncials. New Testament uncials on vellum or parchment are dated from the 4th century following the conversion of Constantine and the authorization of the Council of Nicea (A.D. 325) to make copies of the Bible. Among the most significant of the 300+ New Testament uncials are: Codex Sinaiticus, dated at A.D. 325 and contains all of the New Testament except Mark 16:9-20 and John 7:35– 8:11. The Codex Alexandrinus, dated in the late fourth century, contains all of the Old Testament, except for Gen. 14–16, 1Sam. 12–14, and Psalm 49:19–79:10. It contains all of the New Testament except for Matthew 1:1-25:6, John 6:50–8:52 and 1st Corinthians 4:13–12:6; both of these codices are housed at the National Library of the British Museum. The Codex Vaticanus, dated at A.D. 325, contains all of the New Testament except for 1st Timothy through Philemon. Also missing is Hebrews 9:14 to the end of the New Testament; it is housed at the Vatican Library of Vatican City in Rome. When all 5677 manuscripts are compared, there is 95% agreement; the other 5% are variant readings, all of which have been categorized according to the Canons of Textual Criticism as intentional or unintentional and significant or insignificant. The majority of the variant readings of the New Testament have been classified as unintentional and insignificant; intentional variants are the scribes’ attempts to correct grammatical spellings. Only 1 out of every 60 (1.67%) variants have been classified as “significant”, thus giving the Greek New Testament manuscripts 98.33% purity.
There are 5 genres of the New Testament: Gospels, History, Pauline Epistles, General Epistle, and Apocalyptic.
Higher Criticism
- Gospels (written A.D. 61 -95)
The independent Jewish nation was characterized by strife and contention. As conflict over power struggles increased within the nation, their liberties began to decrease until Rome intervened and brought peace to Israel in 63 B.C.; consequently, Israel was now subject to the dominion of Rome who had appointed Herod the Great as king of Palestine. In 19 B.C. King Herod began rebuilding the temple that had been destroyed in 587 B.C. by King Nebuchadnezzar. Just before the death of King Herod, a child named Jesus was born to a Jewish woman who was a descendant of King David – the Gospel was now beginning to be revealed. The general definition of the Gospel is ‘good news’ of which there are four accounts: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, each giving a unique perspective of the life of Jesus Christ, the long-awaited Messiah of the Old Testament. The Gospels record the virgin birth of Jesus presenting him as the Son of God and king of the Jews who would establish a literal kingdom on earth. Compelled by love, he reveals the heart of God by healing the sick, performing miracles, and forgiving people their sins. Some of the religious leaders of the time, however, rejected Jesus and attributed his miracles to the power of the devil. Because of this rejection, Jesus shifts his attention from the Jewish nation as a whole announcing that the kingdom would be taken from them (Mt. 21:43); the kingdom would be postponed. The attention is then focused on the 12 disciples preparing them to carry on his ministry of building his church (Mt. 16:18). Shortly afterward, Jesus would be crucified and killed by the Jewish leaders in about A.D. 33. However, the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ ultimately instituted the New Covenant (Lk. 22:14-23) and brought to greater realization the blessings and promises of the Old Testament covenants (Rom. 4:13-16; 15:8; Heb. 8:6-13; 9:11-15, 24-28; 10:4-14), and brought to completion the very first prophecy of the Bible, that the seed of the woman would crush the head of the serpent (Gen. 3:15).
There is both external and internal evidence that each of the four Gospels was written by the authors traditionally attributed to them. Based primarily on the writings of Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons, France, (A.D. 180) each Gospel writer wrote his own book beginning with Matthew, the tax collector. According to Irenaeus “Matthew published his Gospel… when Peter and Paul were preaching their Gospel in Rome.” After Peter’s death, “Mark, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, himself handed down to us in writing the substance of Peter’s preaching.” And “Luke, the follower of Paul, set down in a book the Gospel preached by his teacher.” Then “John… produced his Gospel, while he was living in Ephesus” (see Irenaeus, Against Heresies). As the only Gospel to mention paying the Temple tax (Mt. 17:24-27) the first book is consistent with Matthew’s occupation as a tax collector and is given a date of A.D. 61, since this is the year Paul preached in Rome. Mark is given a date of A.D. 67 since according to tradition (1 Clement 5:1-6:1) this was the year Peter was martyred by Emperor Nero. Luke, writing before Acts (A.D. 63) wrote his Gospel around A.D. 62. Tradition states John remained in Ephesus in the later parts of his life, thus a date of A.D.95 is given for the book of John.
- History (written in A.D. 63)
The book of Acts is a historical narrative of the first 30 years of the Christian church, recording the spread of the Gospel message from Jerusalem to Rome. Christ had risen from the dead and for 40 days “shewed himself alive…by many infallible proofs” (Acts 1:3). The disciples were expecting Jesus to restore the political kingdom back to Israel. But because of Israel’s rejection of Jesus, the kingdom would be postponed until the worldwide spread of the Gospel message. The Christian church, which began on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2), would consist of individuals of all nations who believed the Gospel message – that “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:3-4) and that “there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). As stated in Act 1:8 the growth and development of the church went in a westward direction from “Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
Evidence from both tradition and the book itself indicates that Luke wrote the book of Acts. Tertullian and Irenaeus have both indicated that Luke is the author. And throughout the book itself, the writer indicates that he had been with the apostle Paul on his missionary journeys (Acts 16:10-17; 20:521:18; 27:1-28:16). At the conclusion of his missionary journeys, Paul ended up in a Roman prison for two yrs. (Acts 28) between A.D. 61 – 62 from which he wrote several epistles indicating that Luke had been with him during his travels (Col. 4:14; Phm. 24; 2Tim. 4:11), thus implying that Luke wrote Acts, probably in A.D. 63.
- Pauline Epistles (written A.D. 48 – 64)
As the message of Jesus’s death, burial, and resurrection began to spread into the uttermost parts of the earth, it became necessary for believers to have a written form of instructions to guide them in their new life. The Pauline epistles are 13 letters written by the apostle Paul during his missionary travels. The purpose of these epistles was to guide, strengthen, and give specific instructions to churches (and individuals) that he had established on his journeys. Ten of these 13 books were written during the events that Acts records. In A.D. 47 Paul begins the first of three missionary journeys. On his first journey, he leaves Antioch, his home base, and establishes the Galatian church (Acts 13–14). Immediately afterward, the church began being polluted by the bondage of Jewish legalism, perhaps out of “envy” of the freedom granted by the grace of Christ (Acts 13:45). In response, Paul writes Galatians in A.D. 48 to remind the church that justification (right standing with God) is by faith in Christ, not by following the law (Gal. 2:16). On Paul’s second journey (A.D. 50 – 53) he establishes a church in Thessalonica (Acts 17:1-10), and in Corinth (Acts 18:1-17) where he writes 1st and 2nd Thessalonians (1Thess. 1:1; 2Thess.1:1; 3:17); after writing these letters, he then returns to Antioch. Paul then takes a third missionary journey between A.D. 53 – 57, stops off in Ephesus (Acts 19) and writes 1st Corinthians (1 Cor. 1:1; 16:21) in A.D. 54 to correct particular moral problems in the church. Leaving Ephesus he goes to Macedonia (Acts 20:1) where he writes 2nd Corinthians (2Cor. 1:1) in A.D. 55. A year later (A.D. 56) he enters Corinth (Acts 20:2) where he writes the book of Romans (Rom. 1:1) to emphasize that Adam’s sin in the Garden of Eden was imputed to all men so that all are sinners in both nature and practice (Rom. 5:12-21). Since all are sinners, all are sentenced to the penalty of sin – death. But Jesus Christ paid our penalty in full when he died on the cross and fully satisfied God’s righteous demands. And now any sinner can have God’s righteousness imputed to him as he trusts in the works of Jesus apart from any self-effort (Rom. 3:23-30).
To be in a right relation with God one must first hear and understand the Gospel message (Rom. 10:9-10). To understand the Gospel message is to recognize the need for it; only after one has recognized their need for the Gospel can it be received as an act of faith. And faith is given as a gift from God as the individual identifies Christs’ death, burial, and resurrection as his own death, burial, and resurrection (Rom. 6:1-14). Upon leaving Corinth Paul continues his travels until, as seen in the last chapter of Acts (Acts 28), he ends up in a Roman prison for 2 yrs. (A.D. 61-62). From here Paul writes the letters of Ephesians (Eph. 1:1), Colossians (Col. 1:1), Philemon (Phm. 1:1), and Philippians (Phil. 1:1), each emphasizing the person and works of Christ. According to tradition Paul was acquitted of all charges in Rome and then traveled to the island of Crete to establish a church there in A.D. 62. Afterward, he went to Macedonia where he wrote 1 Timothy (1 Tim. 1:1-3) and sent it to Timothy who was in Ephesus in A.D. 62. Leaving Macedonia, Paul finds Titus and both travel to Spain and then Crete where Paul leaves Titus to lead the Cretan church. From Crete, Paul travels back to Ephesus and writes the book of Titus in A.D. 63 (Titus 1:1), then sends it to Titus who was in Crete. In A.D. 64 Paul was arrested and brought to a Roman prison a 2nd time where he wrote 2nd Timothy (2Tim. 1:1) shortly before his death at the hands of Emperor Nero in A.D. 64.
- General Epistles (written A.D. 45 – 90).
The General Epistles are a collection of 8 letters, 7 of which were written after the death of the apostle Paul. Unlike the Pauline Epistles which were written to a particular church, the General Epistles were written to be circulated among many believers throughout the Roman Empire, thus the term “general”. They were written to Christians who were experiencing trials, temptations and afflictions, both from within and from without. They were reminded of the importance of holy living (1Pet. 1:15-16) and that being a follower of Jesus often results in persecution. However, suffering is often evidence of faith, and the temporary trying of our faith can result in eternal rewards (James 1:12). These letters also deal with the problem of false teachers. Early in church history (A.D. 48) there had been the threat of the bondage by false teachers of legalism (see Pauline Epistles above), but several years later in A.D. 67 there had been the threat of the bondage by the false teachers of libertinism (2Pet. ch.2; Jude.vs.8), and Gnosticism (1Jn. 2:18-28); these false teachers would experience the judgment of God, but Christians still have the moral obligation to earnestly contend for the faith, while maintaining their fellowship with God and love for their brothers (1Jn. 1:5-7).
Joseph and Mary had several sons (and daughters) besides Jesus (Mt. 13:55; Mk. 6:3) who were not believers in the Messianic claims of Jesus (Jn. 7:3-5). Among these were “James the Lord’s brother” (Gal. 1:19), who became a believer after witnessing the resurrected Christ (1Cor. 15:7). He later became the leader of the Jerusalem Church (Acts 15) and wrote the book of James – the first book of the New Testament to be written – in A.D. 45 to Jewish Christians who had been driven out of Jerusalem after the persecution of Christians in general, and the martyrdom of Stephen in particular (Acts 7-8). James himself died in A.D. 62 at the hands of the Jewish Sanhedrin. The author of the book of Hebrews is not mentioned, nor is there a general consensus of who wrote it. However, the recipients were Jewish Christians who were experiencing the beginning of the persecutions of Emperor Nero in Italy (Heb. 12:4; 13:24). Since the book mentions the beginning of the Neronian persecution of the church (A.D. 64) but makes no mention of the destruction of the Jewish Temple (A.D. 70), the book of Hebrews is given a date of A.D. 65. The apostle Peter, being a first-hand eyewitness of Christ (1Pet. 5:1; 2Pet. 1:16-18) wrote 1st Peter from “Babylon” (1Pet. 1:1; 5:13), symbolic for Rome, to Jewish Christians scattered because of persecution; the book of 2nd Peter was written by Peter (2Pet. 1:1) just before his death in Rome by Emperor Nero in A.D. 67. Since Jude, “brother of James” (Jude 1:1) and half-brother of Jesus (Mt. 13:55), writes to counter the false teachers that Peter warned of, a date of A.D. 72 is given to the book of Jude. Early church tradition, based on Papias of the 1st century and Irenaeus of A.D. 180, attributes 1st and 2nd John to the apostle John “the elder” (2Jn. 1:1; 3Jn. 1:1) who, like Peter, was a first-hand eyewitness of Christ (1Jn. 1:1-4). In the later part of his life, the apostle John wrote 1st and 2nd John in A.D. 85 and 3rd John in A.D. 90.
- Apocalyptic (written in A.D. 95)
The last book of the Bible is apocalyptic literature. It gets its title from the books’ first word, apokalupsis, which means to “unveil”. Thus the book of Revelation is an unveiling, or a revealing “of’, “from”, and “about” Jesus Christ (Rev. 1:1). By the time Revelation was written, a new Roman emperor came into power, Emperor Domitian (A.D. 81 – 96). Persecution against the Christians was on an incline. And many of the churches that the apostle Paul had started began to be characterized by moral and doctrinal compromise. The apostle John had been exiled to the island of Patmos (Rev. 1:9) because of his “testimony of Jesus Christ.” And while there he received visions of end-time events; these visions are the content of Revelation. The book of Revelation has been subject to many different interpretations. One approach is futuristic; it views the majority of the visions as yet future (rather than already occurring in the past) and interprets Revelation in its most plain, literal language. It avoids subjectively spiritualizing the text while acknowledging the presence of figurative language and symbolism. Of all approaches, it is the only one that links the prophecies (actual events yet to occur) of Dan. 7-9; Mt. 24–25; 2 Thess. 2; Jer. 23, 30; Rom. 11; Jn. 5; Zech. 8,12 to the content of Revelation with consistency. Therefore, to understand Revelation, one must have an understanding of the Old Testament. The outline of the book is given in Rev. 1:19: I. “things which thou hast seen” (past events of ch.1), II. “things which are” (present events of ch.23), and III. “things which shall be hereafter” (future events of ch.4–22). Thus the events of Revelation are basically chronological. After seeing the glorified Jesus in all power and majesty, the apostle John is told to write in a book an evaluation of the church’s spiritual condition. Then John is shown visions of a time when the church will be raptured into heaven above and when judgments (for a 7 yr. period) poured out on earth below. At the climax of the judgments, Jesus Christ returns as King of kings to set up his 1000 yr. kingdom (the postponed kingdom of Mt. 21:43) on earth. Afterward, will be the eternal state of the wicked in the lake of fire, and the eternal state of the righteous in a new heaven and a new earth, fulfilling the Abrahamic Covenant with its promises of worldwide blessings, land with its theocratic government, and the New Covenant with its promise of God making His eternal habitation with His redeemed (Rev. 19–22).
The author of Revelation claims to be “John” (Rev. 1:1, 4,9; 22:8) but does not specifically claim to be the apostle John. However, both the author of Revelation and the Gospel of John refer to Jesus as the “Word of God” and the “Lamb” (In. 1:1, 14, 29; Rev. 13:8; 17:14; 19:13). And based on the testimony of Irenaeus, Eusebius, and Clement of Alexandria the “apostle John” was exiled to Patmos by Emperor Domitian where he received revelation at the end of Domitian’s reign (A.D. 87 – 96) and later died during the reign of Emperor Trajan (A.D. 98 – 117), thus dating the book of Revelation in A.D. 95.
New Testament Apocrypha
There were many other books besides the 27 books of the New Testament believed to have contained teachings of Jesus and the life of early Christianity. The New Testament Apocrypha are books written between the 1st – 4th centuries, many of which were written to preserve the history of New Testament figures. Some of these books were believed to have the same level of authority as the New Testament since they were supposedly written by an apostle of Jesus and because of their similarity in form to the New Testament books. The Apocrypha are classified according to type, such as: Apocryphal Gospels, Apocryphal Acts, Apocryphal Epistles, and Apocryphal Apocalypses. The Gospel of Thomas (A.D. 140 – 170) contains 114 “sayings” of the resurrected Christ. The Infancy Gospel of Thomas records the miraculous works of Jesus in his childhood years. The Acts of John (A.D. 150-160) claims to be a record of the miraculous life of the apostle John and his exile to Patmos, The Epistle of the Apostles (2nd century A.D.) is post-resurrection teachings of Jesus. The Epistle to the Laodiceans likely was written to supply the “epistle from Laodicea” of Colossians 4:16. The Apocalypse of Peter (A.D. 150) records visions of the resurrected Christ. Of all the many Apocryphal books written, none were ever accepted into the canon, though many are valued for their historical significance. The primary reason for their rejection is that their teaching is in opposition to the 27 books already received into the New Testament canon. For example, rather than performing miracles as a child, the apostle John states that Jesus performed his first miracle as an adult (Jn. 2:11). And since a book had to have been written by an apostle or prophet of God (Deut. 18:18; Amos 3:7-8; Zech. 7:12), and since the majority of the New Testament Apocrypha was written after the death of the apostles (the New Testament canon was closed in A.D. 95 with the apostle John – Rev. 22:18-19), then the New Testament Apocrypha failed to meet the qualifications to be included into the canon of Scripture.
INTERPRETING THE BIBLE
No one approaches the Bible without having a set of preconceived ideas (presuppositions) about the Bible (see Worldview/What Is A Worldview). Between the 4th – 16th centuries A.D. the predominant approach was to view the Bible as a supernatural book with supernatural origins, to the exclusion of its human elements. Between the 17th – 19th centuries A.D. the predominant approach was to view the Bible as a human book with human origins, to the exclusion of its supernatural elements. Both of these approaches are a result of subjectivism; meaning of the text was reader-dependent. But in order to remain faithful to the integrity of communication (the Bible being a form of communication), the author, not the reader, determines the meaning of the text. And the authors of the Bible affirm an undeniable premise: the Bible is both human and divine. Therefore, to arrive at a correct interpretation, the Bible must be recognized as a theanthropic (theo = God; anthropos = man) book. Before the creation of the physical universe, the Word of God was eternally and intimately One with the mind of God (Psalm. 119:89). Scripture is the eternal Word of God that at just the right time was given human expression through the receptive, passive instruments of the apostles and prophets as the divine Word; Scripture is God’s Word “from above” (Lk. 1:3) in human language (Ex. 24:3-8; Jer. 1:1-9; 30:1-4; Ez. 2:7; 3:27; Isa. 49:1-2; 1Thess. 2:13; 2Pet. 1:20-21).
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2Tim. 3:16). The word “inspiration” here is not to be confused with its Latin meaning, ‘to breathe in’. Used here, the Greek (the original language of the New Testament) term is theopneustos [theo = God; pneustos = breathed] meaning ‘to breathe out’. God did not breathe into the words that the apostles and prophets wrote. Scripture is what God-breathed out through the apostles and prophets, who were “moved” (borne about, carried) as passive instruments by the Holy Spirit (2Pet. 1:20-21). Yet they were not passive in the sense of having no free will, for Luke in writing his Gospel said, “It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first [Gk. anothen = from above], to write…” (Lk. 1:3). Thus the Spirit of God searched out the deep things of God (1Cor. 2:9-14), taking the eternal Word of God (Ps. 119:89) and breathed it out through the apostles and prophets of God (2Tim. 3:16), so that what they wrote became “every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Mt. 4:4).
The word Logos is a Greek term used in the original language of the New Testament that means the Word of God. It has two expressions: the written Word of God (Scripture – Heb. 4:12), and the living Word of God (Jesus – Jn. 1:1-14). If presuppositions determine how the written word is interpreted, they will also determine how the living Word is interpreted. Therefore, what’s true of Scripture is also true of Jesus: Jesus is the eternal Word of God (In. 1:1-2), who at just the right time was given human expression (Lk. 1:26-38; 2:7) through the receptive, passive instrument of Mary as the divine Word; Jesus is God’s Word “from above” (Jn. 3:31) in human language. Just as the Bible is an errorless theanthropic book (Prov. 30:5), so also is Jesus a sinless theanthropic Person (Heb. 4:15).
Since the Word of God is God’s divine Word in human language, it should be interpreted as any other form of human language. The authors of Scripture did not write in some esoteric language of the mystics, nor did they intend their readers to read it as such. It was written in the language of the common people to be received in its most plain, literal language. Therefore, all Scripture should be interpreted in its literal sense, unless one of three conditions are met: 1.) it would be illogical or irrational in its literal sense, 2.) the immediate context demands a non-literal sense, 3.) other parts of Scripture interpret a particular passage in a non-literal sense. Even when figurative language is used in the Bible, there is always something literal to which the figure points. In the passage, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1), every word should be taken as literal, just as every word that follows. But when “God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters…” (Gen. 1:6), there is an obvious figure of speech being used, since the immediate context (#2) and other passages (#3) indicate that the “firmament” (Hb. = a solid dome) was not a literal dome, but rather a partition – or expanse – to separate the waters above from the waters below.
APPLICATION OF THE BIBLE
All Scripture is God’s Word. Therefore, all Scripture has significance for us today, since God’s voice is heard throughout all 66 books of the Bible. However, not all Scripture applies to us directly. Just because a particular event or instruction is mentioned in Scripture does not automatically make it applicable for modern-day faith and practice (though there usually is a principle behind the particular events). Likewise, just because something is not mentioned in Scripture does not mean it’s forbidden. But since Scripture is the authoritative Word of God, only it has the authority to determine the audience intended. Therefore, all of Scripture has universal application for all people at all times, unless one of two conditions exists: 1.) the immediate context indicates a particular audience, or 2.) later Scriptural revelation modifies (or fulfills) earlier revelation.
But what should be our subjective response to the objective truths of Scripture? If Scripture is the Logos, and the Logos is Jesus, then when we approach Scripture we are approaching a Person (Jn. 5:39) – the Living Word of God. A question that everyone will eventually have to face is, “what think ye of Christ? (Mt. 22:42). Is he human, but not divine? Is he divine, but not human? Moreover, what difference does it make to us who he is? If sin separates from God (Isa. 59:2), and all people are sinners (Rom. 3:23), then all people are separated from God because of sin. And all people are sinners because we’ve all inherited the sin nature from Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden (Rom. 5:12-14). Left in such a state, all humanity would be barred from the presence of God and banished to the eternal lake of fire, “having no hope, and without God” (Eph. 2:12). But because of the immeasurable love of God, “when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son” (Gal. 4:4), to die a real physical death as a substitute – as a sin debt – for all mankind (2Cor. 5:21). If Jesus were only man, his death would have been insufficient to pay the debt; if Jesus were only divine, he would not have been able to pay the debt, since “the wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23).
However, based on the authority of the words of Scripture Jesus is both fully God and fully man. And all are commanded to repent – turn away – from the sin of unbelief of who Jesus is (Jn. 16:8-9: Acts 2:38: 17:30). The objective facts of the Gospel are “that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:3-4). And as Christ was dying on the cross where God made “his soul an offering for sin” (Isa. 53:10) a real transference of sin and guilt was taking place as God “made him [Jesus] to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2Cor. 5:21). But the subjective benefits of the Gospel do not come till genuine faith (expressed in an active entrustment and surrender of the soul) is placed in Jesus Christ as the one who has already paid one’s personal sin debt. “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved” (Rom. 10:9-13). To confess is to believe, and to believe is to be justified – declared “not guilty” – from all charges of sin committed against God. Our sin was imputed to Jesus; his righteousness is imputed to the believer as a free gift of grace (unmerited favor) received from God through Jesus Christ to all those who trustingly “call upon the name of the Lord” (Rom. 10:13), apart from any self-effort to make ourselves righteous (Rom. 3:19-26; ch.4; 5:12-21; Gal. 2:16; 3:10-12).
And just as in the producing of Scripture, and the Incarnation of Christ, regeneration (being born “from above” – Jn. 3:3) is “not by works of righteousness which we have done” (Titus 3:5), but what the Holy Spirit of God does through a willing heart that calls out to God, “be it unto me according to thy word” (Lk. 1:38). For all that come to Jesus with a willing heart “will in no wise be cast out” (Jn. 6:37), but will know the love and the doctrine, whether it be of God (Jn. 7:17).
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