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The Lord Your Healer: 

Discover Him and Find His Healing Touch by Paul J. Bucknell

Newest! The Lord Your Healer

Discover Him and Find His Healing Touch

First step of discipleship
revive devotions
Advanced Discipleship

The Bible Teaching Commentary on Genesis: The Book of Foundations

Commentaries that specialize on training the teacher!

Overcoming Anxiety: Finding Peace, Discovering God

 

The Origins of the Bible

The Extent of the Bible

Why aren't other books part of the Bible?

The Bible's Challenge | Transformation | Canonization| Extent | Inspiration | Reliability | Relevance | Version

The books of the Bible were not equally accepted by Christians. Some were accepted by all. The veracity of the books was doubted by some. Other books were treated as scripture by some Christians yet rejected by others, and yet other books were rejected by all Christians. Below is an explanative chart.

Responses

Old Testament
New Testament

Unquestionably
Accepted

(homologoumena - spoken as one)

This was the majority of books.

Always Accepted

•34 of the 39 OT books fit into this category starting with the Law.

• Once accepted as divinely inspired, always accepted.

Always Accepted

• 20 of the 27 NT books were not questioned.

• All the church Fathers spoke in favor of their canonicity.

Accepted
but questioned

(antilegomena - spoken against)

The Old Latin version omitted Hebrews,
James, 1 & 2 Peter.
The Old Syriac Bible omitted 2 Peter,
2 & John, Jude and Revelation

Question 5 OT books

Song of Solomon: too sensual
but really beautiful.
Ecclesiastes: too pagan
but summary sets standard.
• Proverbs: self-contradictory
(Pr 26:4-5) but it isn't.
Esther: no use of God's name
but God is very evident.
Ezekiel: anti-Mosaic
but nothing contradictory

Question of 7 NT books

Hebrews: no clear author made the distant Western church suspicious.
James: Western church not certain James was the apostle; doctrinal conflict (justification).
2 Peter: highly debated because of style difference but this is due to the lack of a scribe (1 Pe 5:12).
2,3 John: was doubted because of vagueness of who the ‘elder' was and limited circulation.
Jude: questioned because of reference to Book of Enoch (14-5) which was not inspired.
Revelation:Debated longest because of doctrinal issue of chapter 20 and Montanists misuse of the book. Interestingly, it was one of first books recognized by church Fathers.
Philemon, 1 Peter and 1 John at times lacked recognition but considered more omitted than disputed.

Accepted
only
by some

(apocrypha - hidden or doubtful)

15 Books of Apocrypha

• The acceptance of the apocrypha is largely due to the inclusion of it by Greek scholars in the Septuagint. Certain church fathers like Augustine accepted them. They have historical value.

• The apocrypha, however, was never accepted authoritative by the Jewish community nor does it claim to be so. Jerome rejected its inspiration.

OT Examples:
1, 2 Maccabees
Tobit
Ecclesiasticus
Prayer of Manasseh

11 Books of Apocrypha

• The acceptance of these books by some show their devotional value.

• These books, though, were never accepted as canonical nor did they claim or have the authority of the New Testament books.

NT Examples:
Epistle to Corinthians
Shepherd of Hermas
Ancient Homily
The Didache Teachings

Rejected
by
all

(pseudepigrapha - false writings)

The OT Pseudepigrapha

• These 17+ books were written between 200 BC and 200 AD.

• Although thy often claim to be written by biblical authors, they have been treated as spurious and even heretical at points.

OT Examples:
The Book of Adam and Eve,
Psalm 151,
The Assumption of Moses

The NT Pseudepigrapha

• By 9th century there were said to be 280 such books all of which are nearly unanimously rejected.

• They are heretical and most often books of cultic movements such as the Gnostics, Docetists, etc.

NT Examples:
Gospel of Thomas
Gospel of Peter
Gospel of Nicodemus
Acts of Paul
Lost Epistle to Corinthians

Knowing about God's Word and its reliability is one important matter, but one also needs to know how to meet God in the scriptures.


Other Articles on the Origin of the Bible Series

1. How is the Bible different today from before?

The Transformation of the Bible

2. How did the Bible come into being?

3. Why aren't other books part of the Bible?

4. How is the Bible different from other books?

5. Doesn't the Bible have a lot of mistakes?

6. Is the Bible really relevant to my life?

7. What Bible version should I use? I'm confused.

8. Why do some people say that I must use the KJV?

 


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Scriptures typically quoted from the New American Standard Bible unless noted: (C) Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1988

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