HOW THE BIBLE CAME TO BE Canonicity

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HOW THE BIBLECAME TO BECanonicity
Chuck Gianotti March 2006
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• The Bible and Christian tradition claim that the
  Bible is God's direct verbal communication with
  us, and is the infallible source for instructions
  in life and values.

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• If the foundations are destroyed what can the
  righteous do?
• Matthew 724-27

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Necessary Steps From God To Us

• REVELATION
• Gods mind ? mind of original writers
• INSPIRATION
• Writers minds ? original text
• CANONIZATION
• Original text ? post-apostolic acceptance
• TRANSMISSION
• Accepted texts ? manuscript copies (MSS)
• TRANSLATION
• MSS copies ? contemporary translations
• ILLUMINATION
• Contemp. transl. ? our minds/hearts

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Definition CANON

• 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.

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Definition CANON

• Canonization is not the process of making a book
  to be Scripture by human decision. Rather, it is
  the process of recognizing that a book is
  inspired. A book would be inspired of God whether
  or not people recognized it as such.

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Overview

• The importance of this study
• External evidence of history
• Internal Bibles claims about itself
• Claims of Jesus words (Matt 724-27,
  2435)
• Bibles claims for itself (2 Tim
  316, 2 Pet 121)
• Bibles warnings (Rev 2218-19)
• If not true, then its a hoax.

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Overview

• Assaults on the integrity of the Bible
• Current attacks
• Nothing new

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The Original Witnesses

• 12 disciples purportedly appointed to be Jesus
  official witnesses

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father
will send in my name, he will teach you all
things and bring to your remembrance all that I
have said to you. John 1426 But
you i.e. the Apostles will be my witnesses in
Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to
the end of the earth. (Acts 18
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The Original Witnesses

• 12 disciples purportedly appointed to be Jesus
  official witnesses

• Paul was purportedly appoint to be Jesus
  official spokesman

Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom
given him, as he does in all his letters when he
speaks in them of these matters. There are some
things in them that are hard to understand, which
the ignorant and unstable twist to their own
destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.
2 Peter 315-16
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The Eye-Witness Claims

• John claimed to be eye-witness
  (1 John 11-3)
• Peter claimed to be eye-witness (2
  Peter 116-18)
• Luke claimed to be accurate researcher
  (Luke 11-4)
• Paul claimed to be eye-witness, appealed to
  eye-witnesses
  (1Cor 155-8)
• Writer of Hebrews appealed to eye-witnesses (Heb
  23-4)

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Some writers may toy with the fancy of a
Christ-myth, but they do not do so on the
ground of historical evidence. The historicity of
Christ is as axiomatic for an unbiased historian
as the historicity of Julius Caesar. It is not
the historians who propagate the Christ-myth
theories. F. F. Bruce
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PROBLEM

• Jesus didnt pen any writings himself
• Witnesses spread the teachings of Jesus orally.
• Some put into writing their testimony of Christ
  and his teachings.
• After they died, other writings began to appear
  claiming apostolic authority.
• Succeeding generation were faced with determining
  which writings were authentic and authoritative.

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PROBLEM

• They were concerned about corruptions of their
  teachings after they were gone
  
  (2 Peter 21, Acts 2029-30)
• They reportedly made provisions for their
  teachings to be preserved and circulated
  (2 Tim 22, Col 416)

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The Historical Process

• The process of investigation.
• What do we have to work with?
• No original documents
• 1000s of copies and quotes from NT writings
• Manuscripts (MSS)
• Lectionaries
• Ancient Translations
• Quotes found in early church writings

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John 1831-32, 37-38
The Rylands Papyrus 457 (a.k.a. P52) discovered
in Egypt dated not later than A.D. 150.  Its
present location is John Rylands Library in
Manchester.
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Chester Beatty Papyrus II (3rd century) Romans
1529-33, 1625-27
Bruce Metzger, The Text of the New Testament, 2nd
ed., Plate II.
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Codex Sinaiticus (4th century) John 211-25
Bruce Metzger, The Text of the New Testament, 2nd
ed., Plate IV.
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A tattered page from the Geneva Bible ca. 1578
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NUMBER OF MSS EXTANT

• 75 papyri MSS (A.D. 117-300)
• John Rylands Fragment (A.D. 117-138) -
  oldest
• Chester Beatty Papyri (A.D. 250) - most of the
  NT

297 parchment-uncials MSS (4-9th cent.) Codex
Vaticanus A.D. 325-350 Oldest parchment
2,646 parchment-minuscule MSS (9-15th cent)
Oldest family of texts dates from 10th century
1,997 Lectionaries (7th-12th cent)
Total 5,015 MSS
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Comparing of MSS

• Homers Iliad 643
• Caesars Gallic Wars 10
• Livys History of Rome 20
• Tacitus Annals of Imperial Rome 2
• New Testament 5,015

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Comparing time to first MSS

• Caesars Gallic Wars 900 years
• Tacitus Annals of Imperial Rome 800 years
• Homers Iliad (earliest fragments) 400 years
• New Testament
• Complete MSS 300 years
• Most of the NT less than 200 years
• Some books about 100 years
• One fragment within 1 generation

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Canonicity Began With The Apostles

• The authority of the Apostles
• Oral tradition

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• For I did not, like the multitude, take pleasure
  in those who spoke much, but in those who taught
  the truth in those who rehearsed the
  commandments given by the Lord to faith, and
  proceeding from truth itself. If, then, any one
  who had attended on the elders came, I asked
  minutely after their sayings, what Andrew or
  Peter said, or what was said by Philip, or by
  Thomas, or by James, or by John, or by Matthew,
  or by any other of the Lords disciples For I
  imagined that what was to be got from books was
  not so profitable to me as what came from the
  living and abiding voice.
• Papias, Oracles, 1 (early 2nd century)

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Canonicity Began With The Apostles

• The authority of the Apostles
• Oral tradition
• References to the four-fold gospel begin to
  surface in beginning of the 2nd century

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• Let us act according to that which is written
  (for the Holy Spirit saith, Let not the wise man
  glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man
  glory in his might, neither let the rich man
  glory in his riches but let him that glorieth
  glory in the Lord, in diligently seeking Him, and
  doing judgment and righteousness), being
  especially mindful of the words of the Lord Jesus
  which He spake, teaching us meekness and
  long-suffering. For thus He spoke Be ye
  merciful, that ye may obtain mercy forgive, that
  it may be forgiven to you as ye do, so shall it
  be done unto you as ye judge, so shall ye be
  judged as ye are kind, so shall kindness be
  shown to you with what measure ye mete, with the
  same it shall be measured to you. 1st
  Clement to Corinthians

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Canonicity Began With The Apostles

• The authority of the Apostles
• Oral tradition
• References to the 4-fold gospel begin to surface
  in beginning of the 2nd century
• Gospel according to Matthew
• Gospel according to Mark

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Canonicity Began With The Apostles

• Mark became Peters interpreter and wrote down
  accurately all that he remembered, whether the
  sayings or the doings of the Lord, but not in
  orderfor he had neither heard the Lord nor
  followed him, but followed Peter later on, as I
  said. Peter was accustomed to teach as occasion
  required, but not as though he were making a
  compilation of the dominical oracles. So Mark
  made no mistake in writing down certain things as
  he called them to mind for he paid attention to
  one thing to omit none of the things he had
  heard and to make no false statements in any of
  them. Papias (ca. AD 130-140)

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Canonicity Began With The Apostles

• The authority of the Apostles
• Oral tradition
• References to the 4-fold gospel begin to surface
  in beginning of the 2nd century
• Gospel according to Matthew
• Gospel according to Mark

• Gospel according to Luke
• Gospel according to John

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Canonicity Began With The Apostles

• Acts
• The authority of Pauls writings.
• The General Epistles of James, Peter, John, Jude
• Epistle to the Hebrews (anonymous)

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Circulation of the Apostolic Writings

• Copies of Mark circulated to Matthew and Luke
• Pauls letters circulated almost immediately
• Peter refers to in all Pauls epistles (1
  Peter 315-16)
• 1 Peter was written to Christians in wide geo.
  area
• Forgeries of Paul began to surface

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The Apostolic Fathers

• Clement of Rome (AD 95-96)
• Ignatius of Antioch (110)
• Didache (100-150)
• Papias of Hierapolis (130?)
• Epistle of Barnabas (130?)
• Polycarp of Smyrna (110-135)
• Shepherd of Hermas (100-150)

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INFLUENCES ON DEVELOPMENT OF THE CANON

• Apostolic Roots
• Spread of False Teaching
• Judaizers (Apostolic times)
• Gnostics (2nd-5th centuries)

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Gnosticism
Holy
Pure
Emanations
Demiurge (God of Bible)
Sinful
Creation
Material
Unpure
Physical
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INFLUENCES ON DEVELOPMENT OF THE CANON

• Apostolic Roots
• Spread of False Teaching
• Judaizers (Apostolic times)
• Gnostics (2nd-5th centuries)

• Marcionites (2nd century)
• Montanists (last half of 2nd century)

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INFLUENCES ON DEVELOPMENT OF THE CANON

• Apostolic Roots
• Spread of False Teaching

• Persecution
• Book Making Practices

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SUMMARY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CANON

• General pattern of acceptance
• Four Gospels (end of Apostolic period)
• Pauls writings, Acts, Revelation (end of 1st
  cent.)
• Rest of NT debated, took longer to be accepted.
• Some other books debated, but rejected.

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SUMMARY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CANON

• General pattern of acceptance
• No ecclesiastical headquarters
• Recitations in church services

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SUMMARY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CANON

• Although the fringes of the emerging canon
  remained unsettled for generations, a high degree
  of unanimity concerning the greater part of the
  NT was attained among the very diverse and
  scattered congregations of believers not only
  throughout the Mediterranean world but also over
  an area extending from Britain to Mesopotamia. By
  the end of the third century and the beginning of
  the fourth century, the great majority of the
  twenty-seven books that still later came to be
  widely regarded as the canonical NT were almost
  universally acknowledged to be authoritative.
  Bruce Metzger

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CRITERIA FOR INCLUSION

• Apostolic authority
• Acceptance by the churches
• Affirmed spiritual validation

The canon has been considered to be closed since
the 4th century!
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THE APOCRYPHA

• Came from the Septuagint (LXX)
• Writings
• Esdras
• Tobit and Judith
• Prayer of Azariah, etc.
• Ecclesiasticus
• 1 2 Maccabbeees, Psalm 151
• Additions to varrious OT books
• Etc.

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OTHER NON-CANONICAL WRITINGS
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GNOSTIC WRITINGS

• Gospel OF Thomas (A.D. 140)
• Gospel of Philip (2nd century)
• Exegesis of the soul (A.D. 200)

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• For we also have had the gospel preached to us,
  just as they did but the message they heard was
  of no value to them, because those who heard did
  not combine it with faith
• Hebrews 42

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through
the word of Christ Romans 1017
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