Origin of The Bible

Contents
1. What is the Bible? .................................................................................................................................................................................. 7 What is the Bible? .................................................................................................................................................................................. 7 The Significance of the Bible................................................................................................................................................................. 7 1. God Defines Himself ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 2. God defines the purpose of man..................................................................................................................................................... 7 3. God declares His plan of Redemption ........................................................................................................................................... 8 4. God declares our future .................................................................................................................................................................. 8 What does the word Bible mean? .......................................................................................................................................................... 8 What exactly is the Bible? ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 The Need for Revelation ........................................................................................................................................................................ 9 In what languages was the Bible written? .............................................................................................................................................. 9 Why is there an Old and New Testament? ............................................................................................................................................. 9 What does the concept of covenant mean? .......................................................................................................................................... 10 The New Covenant fulfilling the Old................................................................................................................................................... 11 The Authority of the Bible ................................................................................................................................................................... 11 Jewish view ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 11 The Christian View .......................................................................................................................................................................... 11 2. What is the history behind the Bible? .................................................................................................................................................. 13 Introduction to Bible History: The Plan of Redemption ...................................................................................................................... 13 The Plan of Redemption ...................................................................................................................................................................... 13 The history of the Bible ....................................................................................................................................................................... 13 3. Is the Bible Inspired? ........................................................................................................................................................................... 20 What does inspiration mean? ............................................................................................................................................................... 20 What does Inerrant mean?.................................................................................................................................................................... 20 The Evidence for the Inspiration of the Bible ...................................................................................................................................... 21 Super-natural objective evidence ..................................................................................................................................................... 21 Israel .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 21 What is a prophet? ............................................................................................................................................................................... 21 Some examples of Super-Natural Evidence ..................................................................................................................................... 22 Objections to Super-natural objective evidence ............................................................................................................................... 24 Isaiah 52:13-53:12 ............................................................................................................................................................................... 25 Isaiah 53 ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 25 The Seventy Weeks of Daniel .......................................................................................................................................................... 25 4. How was the Bible Written? How did the prophets write the bible ..................................................................................................... 29 Was the Bible transmitted orally? ........................................................................................................................................................ 29 The development of Alphabets ............................................................................................................................................................ 31 The Biblical languages ......................................................................................................................................................................... 31 Hebrew ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 32 Aramaic ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 32 Greek................................................................................................................................................................................................ 33 2 1. 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From Inspiration to Manuscript ........................................................................................................................................................... 34 Writing Materials ............................................................................................................................................................................. 34 Stone ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 34 Clay Tablets ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 34 Papyrus ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 35 Leather ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 35 Parchment ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 35 Metal ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 35 Potsherds (Ostraca) .......................................................................................................................................................................... 35 The Silver Amulets .............................................................................................................................................................................. 36 5. The Books of the Old Testament, the Canon, The Tanakh ................................................................................................................. 37 Definition of Cannon ........................................................................................................................................................................... 37 Authority of scripture ........................................................................................................................................................................... 38 False prophets and false books ......................................................................................................................................................... 38 Designations of the Old Testament Canon ........................................................................................................................................... 39 Formation of the Old Testament Canon ............................................................................................................................................... 40 The Torah......................................................................................................................................................................................... 40 The Torah (1450 to 536 B.C.) .......................................................................................................................................................... 41 The Prophets and other writings before the exile ............................................................................................................................. 41 , Following the Exile (536 B.C. to New Testament times) .............................................................................................................. 42 The Old Testament in the New Testament times ................................................................................................................................. 42 The Debate of Old Testament Canon in the Church ........................................................................................................................ 42 Evidence of the Old Testament Canon................................................................................................................................................. 43 What Old Testament did Jesus use? ................................................................................................................................................. 43 Evidence outside of the Bible .......................................................................................................................................................... 44 The golden age of Ugarit ..................................................................................................................................................................... 46 Reasons the Apocryphal parts of the LXX should be rejected as scripture ......................................................................................... 47 6. The Apocrypha, The Septuagint and the canon Introduction to the non-canonical books ............................................................ 48 A Closed or open Canon? .................................................................................................................................................................... 48 What is the Septuagint? ....................................................................................................................................................................... 49 Early Christianity and the Septuagint .............................................................................................................................................. 49 The Apocrypha ................................................................................................................................................................................ 49 1.Books accepted by All- Homologoumena .................................................................................................................................... 50 2.Books disputed by some- Antilegomena ....................................................................................................................................... 50 3. Books rejected by all- Pseudepigrapha ........................................................................................................................................ 51 4. Books accepted by some- Apocrypha .......................................................................................................................................... 51 Is the Apocrypha Canon? ..................................................................................................................................................................... 52 Arguments against the Apocrypha ....................................................................................................................................................... 53 Summary of Apocrypha Books ............................................................................................................................................................ 54 7. How was the New Testament Canon Decided? Introduction of the New Testament Canon ......................................................... 56 The Old Testament foundation ............................................................................................................................................................ 56 1. Messiahs death ............................................................................................................................................................................ 56 3 1. What is the Bible? |
2. The New Covenant ...................................................................................................................................................................... 57 3. Gentiles receive the light of the Gospel[1]. ................................................................................................................................... 57 New Testament Inspiration .................................................................................................................................................................. 57 Why a New Testament Canon? ............................................................................................................................................................ 58 1. The Books were Prophetic ........................................................................................................................................................... 58 2. The needs of the early church ...................................................................................................................................................... 58 3. Growth of the heretical movements ............................................................................................................................................. 58 4. Missionary movements ................................................................................................................................................................ 58 5. Persecutions of the church ........................................................................................................................................................... 58 What qualifications were used to determine canon? ............................................................................................................................ 59 The Witness of the early church fathers ............................................................................................................................................... 60 The Canon of the New Testament[6] ..................................................................................................................................................... 60 I. Two Preliminary Considerations .................................................................................................................................................. 60 1. Early Christians Had the Old Testament .......................................................................................................................................... 60 II. Three Stages of the Process ......................................................................................................................................................... 60 1. From the Apostles to 170 AD .......................................................................................................................................................... 60 (1) Clement of Rome; Ignarius; Polycarp ........................................................................................................................................ 60 (2) FORCES INCREASING VALUE OF WRITINGS ....................................................................................................................... 61 (A) Apologists, Justin Martyr .......................................................................................................................................................... 61 (B) Gnostics, Marcion ...................................................................................................................................................................... 62 2. From 170 AD to 220 Ad .................................................................................................................................................................. 62 (1) IRENAEUS ................................................................................................................................................................................ 62 (2) THE MURATORIAN FRAGMENT ......................................................................................................................................... 62 3. 3rd and 4th Centuries ....................................................................................................................................................................... 63 (1) ORIGEN ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 63 (2) Dionysius.................................................................................................................................................................................... 63 (3) Cyprian ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 63 (4) Eusebius ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 63 (5) Athanasius .................................................................................................................................................................................. 64 (6) Council of Carthage, Jerome; Augustine .................................................................................................................................... 64 8. How was the Old Testament Transmitted? Introduction to Old Testament transmission.............................................................. 65 The Hebrew Text ................................................................................................................................................................................. 65 Why not the Autographs? .................................................................................................................................................................... 66 The Text before A.D. 100 .................................................................................................................................................................... 67 The scribes (500 B.C- A.D. 100) ......................................................................................................................................................... 68 The Text of the Scribes ........................................................................................................................................................................ 69 Hebrew Vowels ................................................................................................................................................................................ 69 The Old Testament text A.D. 500-1000 ............................................................................................................................................... 69 The Standardized Text ..................................................................................................................................................................... 69 Tannaim (A.D. 70, 135-200) ............................................................................................................................................................ 69 Amoraim (A.D. 200-500)................................................................................................................................................................. 70 The Old Testament Text (A.D. 500-1000) ....................................................................................................................................... 70 4 1. 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Masoretic notes ................................................................................................................................................................................ 70 The Hebrew after A.D. 1000 ............................................................................................................................................................ 70 The Final Masorah ........................................................................................................................................................................... 71 Chapter divisions ............................................................................................................................................................................. 71 Verse divisions ................................................................................................................................................................................. 71 Old Testament Textual Criticism ..................................................................................................................................................... 71 9. How was the New Testament Bible Transmitted? ............................................................................................................................... 72 Introduction to New Testament Transmission ..................................................................................................................................... 72 Late or Early date? ........................................................................................................................................................................... 72 Oral or Written transmission? .......................................................................................................................................................... 73 How was scripture written?.............................................................................................................................................................. 73 Manuscript types .............................................................................................................................................................................. 74 Papyri MMS (P 1-88) ) (2nd-3rd century) ............................................................................................................................................. 74 Uncial MSS (4th- 9thcentury) ............................................................................................................................................................ 74 Minuscules MSS (9th-15th century) .................................................................................................................................................. 75 Lectionaries MSS ............................................................................................................................................................................. 75 Are the New Testament Manuscripts reliable? .................................................................................................................................... 75 Text Families ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 76 Textual Criticism of the New Testament ............................................................................................................................................. 77 10. What are the Old Testament (Tanakh) Manuscripts? ......................................................................................................................... 78 Introduction to New Testament Transmission ..................................................................................................................................... 78 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 78 Biblical Inerrancy................................................................................................................................................................................. 78 Biblical Inerrancy and textual criticism ............................................................................................................................................... 78 Textual Criticism ............................................................................................................................................................................. 79 Evaluating the evidence ....................................................................................................................................................................... 79 Vowel changes ................................................................................................................................................................................. 79 Copyist errors ................................................................................................................................................................................... 79 Evaluating the evidence ....................................................................................................................................................................... 80 Old Testament Manuscripts, sources of textual criticism .................................................................................................................... 80 Silver Amulets ................................................................................................................................................................................. 80 Samaritan Pentateuch ....................................................................................................................................................................... 81 Dead Sea Scrolls (Qumran Manuscripts) ......................................................................................................................................... 81 Nash Papyrus ................................................................................................................................................................................... 82 Murabbaat Manuscripts .................................................................................................................................................................. 82 Masada ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 83 Wadi Habra ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 83 Genizah fragments ........................................................................................................................................................................... 83 Codex Cairenis (C ) ......................................................................................................................................................................... 84 Aleppo Codex (A) ............................................................................................................................................................................ 84 Codex Leningradensis ...................................................................................................................................................................... 84 The Septuagint or the LXX .............................................................................................................................................................. 85 5 1. 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Codex Vaticanus .............................................................................................................................................................................. 85 Codex Sinaticus ............................................................................................................................................................................... 86 The Targums .................................................................................................................................................................................... 86 11. New Testament Manuscripts and Textual Criticism .......................................................................................................................... 88 Introduction to New Testament Criticism ............................................................................................................................................ 88 Textual Criticism of the New Testament ............................................................................................................................................. 89 Variations ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 89 Procedure for New Testament Textual Criticism ................................................................................................................................. 89 1. Collecting the evidence ................................................................................................................................................................ 90 2. Evidence evaluation ..................................................................................................................................................................... 90 3. Determine the most plausible reading .......................................................................................................................................... 90 History of New Testament Textual Criticism ...................................................................................................................................... 91 The Latin Vulgate ............................................................................................................................................................................ 91 The Greek Text Revisited ................................................................................................................................................................ 91 Erasmuss Greek New Testament .................................................................................................................................................... 91 Robert Estienne (1503-1559) (Stephanus) ....................................................................................................................................... 92 Theodore de Beza (1519-1605)........................................................................................................................................................ 92 The John Rylands Fragment John 18:31-33 (117-138 AD) ............................................................................................................. 92 Chester Beatty Papyri (250 AD) ...................................................................................................................................................... 93 Bodmer Papyri (200 AD) ................................................................................................................................................................. 93 CODEX SINATICUS (340 AD) (a) Unical Text) ........................................................................................................................... 93 Codex Vaticanus (325-350 AD) (B) (Unical Text) .......................................................................................................................... 94 12. How was the English Bible created? .................................................................................................................................................. 95 Introduction to the English Bible Translation ...................................................................................................................................... 95 Other Translations ................................................................................................................................................................................ 95 Syriac Versions ................................................................................................................................................................................ 95 Coptic Versions ................................................................................................................................................................................ 96 Armenian Version ............................................................................................................................................................................ 96 Old Latin .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 96 Latin Vulgate[1] ................................................................................................................................................................................ 96 English Translations............................................................................................................................................................................. 97 Rome conquers the British Isles ....................................................................................................................................................... 97 Christianity in England .................................................................................................................................................................... 97 John Wycliffe ................................................................................................................................................................................... 98 William Tyndale (1494-1536) Tyndale Translation ........................................................................................................................ 99 William Coverdale (1488-1569), The Great Bible........................................................................................................................... 99 The Geneva Bible (1560) ................................................................................................................................................................. 99 The Douay-Rheims Bible (New Testament 1582, Old Testament 1609-10) ................................................................................. 100 The King James Bible ( KJV 1611) ............................................................................................................................................... 100
1. What is the Bible? |
1. What is the Bible?

What is the Bible?
What is the Bible? Is a question often asked by both believers and unbelievers. What makes this book so special and so hated in the world? In some nations, such as Saudi Arabia and North Korea, having a Bible could mean prison or death. Even in the United States, the presence of a Bible could get you fired or reprimanded. So, whats the big deal about a book? The reason for this reaction stems from the contents and history of the Bible. In short, the Bible claims to be the inspired Word of God, the communication from the creator of the Universe to His creation. If this claim is true, then it implies God is the final authority (Through His Word) and that other views contrary to the Bible are wrong, and people, like nations just dont like being wrong. The book the Bible claims moral authority over humanity, including people and governments. Hostility to the Bible is not new, throughout much of the Bibles history; the words in the book were born through conflict. The translation of the Bible into English is a story in itself, on how people suffered death, some burned at the stake for translating the Bible into a language spoken by the common masses. The Romans, who wanted to maintain their gods and goddess, persecuted the early church, collecting, and burning the early Bibles. Nearly, two thousand years later the Communists, in Russia, China and North Korea did the same, forbidding the Bible, burning copies and persecuting Christians who trust its words. This course is designed to examine the history of the origin of the Bible, not so much the evidence, since that is covered under another topic, Apologetics. Here the goal is to unravel the story behind the Bible, how the Bible became the Bible.
The Significance of the Bible

The Bibles claim of inspiration[1] is an issue, causing the most consternation, if the Bible is True, and then its views on moral issues would mean others are wrong. Issues such as abortion, gay rights and promiscuity are judged as sin in the Bible. If the Bible were the Word of God, then those who hold such views would be considered out of the will of God, for this reason the Bible becomes the issue. Since no one wants to be wrong, the Bible is the subject of attack. The Bible however, is more then just a moral book. The Bible illuminates the reality of our existence. Four important points revealed in the Bible. 1. God Defines Himself The Bible clearly defines itself as the communication of God to His creation, through men known as prophets. Gods communication to His creation defines His being. God identifies Himself to those He created, that He created the Universe and life and He alone determines what is Right and Wrong.
20 To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them Isaiah 8:20
2. God defines the purpose of man The Bible also lets humanity understand who we are, what is the purpose of life? We are not animals who exist for short time and cease to be. We are created in the image of God, For His glory. (Gen.1:27, Psalm 19:1)
3. God declares His plan of Redemption Through the Bible, God declares His plan for Redemption, providing the details through prophecy, how His plan would be accomplished. Seven-hundred years before the birth of Jesus, Isaiah described the death of Gods servant the Messiah who would die for the sins of the world (Isaiah 52:13-53:12). In Daniel, 539 years before the birth of Jesus, we are given the exact day the Messiah would die. (Daniel 9;24-27) 4. God declares our future The Bible also tells us we are eternal beings, created in the image of God, with an eternal destiny. For those redeemed, their destiny is with God, for those without redemption, separation from God. Through scripture, God gives us a glimpse of eternity, both with and without Him.
What does the word Bible mean?

The origin of the word Bible can be traced to the city of Byblos located on the Phoenician (Lebanon) coast, 20-miles north of modern Beirut. Byblos is one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world, from this city Papyrus was exported throughout the Aegean world; Papyrus came to be known as (byblos, byblinos), because it was exported from the city. Hence, the Bible came to be the Papyrus book. Papyrus was produced from the reed plants, which grew along the Nile River. These sheets of Papyrus were then stitched together to from a scroll, the scroll was then rolled and unrolled until the specific area of text was reached. Latter, it was discovered that the sheets of Papyrus could be stacked on top of each other and stitched down the middle and folded, forming the early versions of the modern-day book, called a codex. According to Paul D. Wegner, one of the earliest uses of term occurs in Daniel 9:2 in the Septuagint.
The Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Old Testament produced probably between 250 and 100 B.C., uses the word biblia in Daniel 9;2 to refer to Jeremiahs words, which may have been in the form of letters or a collection of prophets. Early Greek-speaking Christians employed the plural form biblia (ta biblia [The books]) to refer to the entire collection of Old and New Testament books,.[2]
What exactly is the Bible?

The Bible is actually a collection of books inspired by the Holy Spirit revealed through men known as prophets over a 1500-year period, in three distinct languages, Hebrew Aramaic and Greek. These inspired books, collected into one volume, are referred to as the Bible. Sixty-six books compose the Bible, written by more then forty authors. The authors of the Bible are from diverse backgrounds, and countries. These authors included among others, Moses an official in Egypt, Amos a farmer, Daniel a minister in Babylon, Jeremiah and Ezekiel priests, Peter and John fishermen, Matthew a tax collector, Luke a physician and Paul a Pharisee. The books, though written through time by diverse people are unified in purpose and meaning, pointing the reader/hearer toward the direction of redemption. The Bible is Gods revelation of Himself, to His creation. In the Bible, God demonstrates His desire for His creation, to have relationship with the people He brought into existence. The Bible however, demonstrates how sin separated man from God, and how God plans to redeem us to Himself.
The Need for Revelation

Some may ask, why does God need to reveal Himself though the writings of men, rather then by nature by itself? Nature clearly reveals the existence of God, through creation via the Cosmological (Cosmos) and Teleological (Design) arguments we see the need for Gods existence. The Cosmological argument demonstrates the need for a First-cause (Intelligent-designer) in the creation of the universe. An effect (The Universe) needs a cause greater then itself. Therefore, a finite universe requires God, the Cause (The First Cause) The Teleological argument demonstrates the need of an intelligent designer, who creates life out of the inanimate matter. The complexity and design of life requires the need for Super-intelligence beyond the creation, since the cause (God) is always greater the effect (Life). Despite the logic of Gods existence demonstrated through creation, unless God chooses to reveal Himself through Special Revelation, knowledge of His identity would be limited to what can be observed in the universe. Therefore, through His Spirit, God revealed Himself to individuals, who wrote down His words, and transmitted His revelation over time, to later generations, the Inspired words, came to be known as the Bible. Paul and Peter testify to the inspiration of the Old Testament. Since the Bible for them was the Old Testament.
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 20 knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, 21 for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:20-21
Through prophecy, God demonstrates His unique nature, and character, telling the end at the beginning. By revealing the end at the beginning God reveals the Super-natural nature of scripture, which He Himself can only be the Cause. Since revelation of the future is not in the natural realm of this world, it is beyond nature, it is super-natural.
3 "I have declared the former things from the beginning; They went forth from My mouth, and I caused them to hear it. Suddenly I did them, and they came to pass. 4 Because I knew that you were obstinate, And your neck was an iron sinew, And your brow bronze, 5 Even from the beginning I have declared it to you; Before it came to pass I proclaimed it to you, Lest you should say, 'My idol has done them, And my carved image and my molded image Have commanded them.' Isaiah 48:3-5
God proves his authorship of scripture through prophecy, demonstrating his command over time and nature, to those seeking evidence.
In what languages was the Bible written?

The Bible was originally written in three languages, the Old Testament was written primarily in Hebrew with portions in Aramaic and the New Testament written in Koine Greek. The portions of the Old Testament written in Aramaic are Ezra 4:8-6:18; 7:12-26; Daniel 2:4 to 7:28 and Jeremiah 10:11. Aramaic, a language related to Hebrew, was the common language of the land after the exile in 586 B.C. While Hebrew remained the sacred language of the nation, Aramaic became the common language, since it was spoken in Babylon, the land of their captivity. The New Testament was written in Koine (Common) Greek as opposed to classical Greek. This was the common Greek spoken in the Greek-speaking world in the 1st century.
Why is there an Old and New Testament?

The Bible is divided into two parts an Old Testament and a New Testament. The word Testament however, does not fully convey the meaning behind the Hebrew word, tyrb Beriyth from which it draws its meaning. From Beriyth, we translate the word covenant, which means a treaty or an alliance. The Bible, both Old and New Testaments (Covenants) are centered around two covenants an Old Covenant and a New Covenant. Within the Old Covenant, through the prophet Jeremiah and others, there was anticipation of a coming, greater Covenant, a new covenant, which would supersede and fulfill the older covenant.
31 "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah 32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they
broke, though I was a husband to them, F23 says the Lord. 33 "But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 "No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,' for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more." Jeremiah 31:31-34
Jesus referring to the shedding of his blood at Calvary inaugurated the New Covenant, referred to in the book of Jeremiah, with His death at the Cross.
28 "For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. Matthew 26:28
Jesus the Messiah became the sacrifice for the sins of all humanity, and whoever receives Jesus, through faith, receives forgiveness of sins, having redemption.
What does the concept of covenant mean?

The Old Testament centers around the Covenant or treaty God made with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. Prior to Abraham, the Bible in the first 11 chapters deals with the history of humanity from the creation of world (Genesis 1), to the fall of man (Gen. 3). Genesis then traces humanity from the fall to the flood in Noahs day (Gen. 7-8), to the division of nations (Gen. 11). In the 12th chapter, God separates Abraham from his family calling him to the land of Moriah (Jerusalem), where God establishes a Covenant relationship with him and his offspring. Through Abrahams offspring, specifically through his son Isaac and grandson Jacob, God promised to bring redemption to the world, through their descent, the Messiah (The Son of David) would pay for the sins of the world. (Isaiah 53) To understand what God meant by this Covenant, we need to examine the way a covenant was sealed between two parties. First animals would be killed and their bodies split in two and laid on the ground with the two halves placed opposite each other. Then the two parties would walk down through the animal halves together, solidifying the agreement. Both parties saying, if either fails in their agreement, then may they be split in two as these animals. (Jeremiah 34:18) In Genesis 15, after Abraham cuts the animals in two and lays them down, God alone passes between the animal halves. Declaring to Abraham, that his agreement is unilateral (one-sided), that the Lord Himself will fulfill His words to Abraham and His descendents, and that if He (God) does not fulfill His agreement, may God be split as the animals.
17 And it came to pass, when the sun went down and it was dark, that behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a burning torch that passed between those pieces. 18 On the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying: "To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates Genesis 15:17-18
In Genesis 22, Abraham in a test of faith, is told to take his son Isaac, his only son[3], to the top of Mt. Moriah and offer him as a sacrifice. Just when Abraham was about to slay Isaac, God prevents the sacrifice. God then provides a male sheep, a ram in place of Isaac.
12 And He said, "Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me." 13 Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, "In the Mount of The Lord it shall be provided." 15 Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, 16 and said: "By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son 17 blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. 18 "In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice." Genesis 22:12-18
In Genesis 22:18, God promises through the seed (offspring) of Abraham all the nations of the earth shall be blessed. Scripture here looks forward to the coming of the Messiah, who would fulfill the law by His death and usher in a greater covenant a New Covenant, with the forgiveness of sins. Later as the descendent of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob multiplied and became a nation. The twelve sons of Jacob became the twelve tribes of Israel[4]. When they were delivered out of Egyptian captivity under the hand of Moses (1450 B.C), God established the 10 1. What is the Bible? |
Mosaic Law or Covenant, demonstrating the righteousness required by God, to be part of the Abrahamic Covenant. The penalty of sin was death, atoned for by animal sacrifice. The animals death showed consequences of sin and the need for atonement before a righteous God. However hard they tried, the nation failed to keep the law, demonstrating mankinds bankrupt state, our inability to be righteous by works. This resulted in God fulfilling His words in the Mosaic covenant (Deuteronomy 28-31), judging the descendents of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob with the destruction of Jerusalem and the scattering them during the Babylonian captivity in 586 B.C.
2 "Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem; 3 "and say to them, 'Thus says the Lord God of Israel: "Cursed is the man who does not obey the words of this covenant 4 "which I commanded your fathers in the day I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the iron furnace, saying, 'Obey My voice, and do according to all that I command you; so shall you be My people, and I will be your God,' Jeremiah 11;2-4
The inability of man to fulfill the righteous requirements of the Law, caused God to provide the sacrifice and look forward to the day of a new and greater covenant, an everlasting covenant.
39 'then I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me forever, for the good of them and their children after them. 40 'And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me. Jeremiah 32:39-40
The New Covenant fulfilling the Old

Jesus as Messiah, fulfilled the righteous requirements of the Law, His death foretold hundreds of years before his birth initiated the New Covenant, Gods new agreement with creation, based on the sacrifice of Jesus, the Son of God. Jesus fulfilled the law for all who believed, the book of Hebrews connects the Old Covenant with the New, demonstrating the Old covenant as a foreshadow of the New. Isaiah 700-years before the birth of Jesus, foretold of the atoning death of the Messiah, who would pay for the sins of the world.
9 And they made His grave with the wicked-But with the rich at His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was any deceit in His mouth. 10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.Isaiah 53:9-10 1 For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect.9 then He said, "Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God." He takes away the first that He may establish the second. 10 By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Hebrews 10:1,9-10
Jesus confirmed his death as the beginning of the New Covenant in three of the four gospels, see Matthew 26:28, Mark 14:24, Luke 22;20. In the New Covenant, the Laws of God are written on the hearts of humanity, as the Spirit of God dwells in man.
20 Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you. Luke 22:20
The Authority of the Bible

The authority of the Bible is the chief source of guidance for both Jews and Christians. However, Jews only acknowledge the Old Testament as inspired, while Christians acknowledge both Old and New Testaments as inspired. Jewish view The Old Testament writings are known as the Tanakh, which is an acronym, combining the three sections of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). The Torah (Five books of Moses), the Nebiim (the prophets), and the Kethubim (the writings). ( See Chart Below) The number of books in the Tanakh are the same as in the Protestant Bible, however they are arranged in a different order. The Catholic Bible has seven additional books in the Old Testament known as the Apocrypha. In Judaism, a great deal of emphasis is placed on the Oral Tradition, which is viewed as inspired by the Rabbinical authority. Between the first and second centuries, the traditions of the Rabbis were collected into a work known as the Mishna[5]. The Talmud (The Palestinian and Babylonian) are commentaries on the Mishna, written in the 4th to the 6th centuries, and compiled in books. The Christian View The Bible both Old and New Testaments is the source of authority for Protestants, Orthodox and Catholics. Catholics view the Apocrypha as inspired. The Catholics in contrast to Protestants put a great deal of emphasis on the traditions of earlier Church fathers and popes. We will cover this in detail in further classes.
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[1] Inspiration, the understanding that Holy Sprit, Gods Spirit is the source of the words contained in the Bible versus human effort. Though the words were written by human hands, God Himself was the force behind the pen. [2] Paul D. Wegner, The Journey from Texts to Translations, Baker Academic June 2005, Pg. 30 [3] Abraham through Sarahs servant Hagar had another child, Ishmael who was sent away along with Hagar as to not contend with Isaac the son of promise. Ishmael was born as a result of Abraham trying to fulfill Gods promise, rather then letting God fulfill His promise. [4] Jacob was later renamed Israel by the angel Genesis 32;28 [5] The Mishna is a commentary on the Torah (The five books of Moses) claiming to be the oral traditions, the unwritten law, passed from generation to generation.
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2. What is the history behind the Bible?

Introduction to Bible History: The Plan of Redemption
To understand the story behind the Bible, we must know the historical context. The message of the Bible is conveyed through the history of its written pages. The Bible traces the story of humanity, from beginning to the end. The Bible in essence is Gods plan of redemption for fallen man, woven through the ages, projected forward to our eternal destiny. The Old Testament records the creation of the universe and life, mans perfection and fall. The Old Testament also reveals Gods plan of redemption through a descendent Adam, the Messiah. The first eleven chapters trace the first part of human history, from Adam to Abraham. In Chapter 12, God separates the man Abraham from his family and nation, and sends him to Moriah (Jerusalem). Through Abraham, God would complete his plan of redemption. Through Abrahams offspring, Isaac and Jacob, God would redeem fallen man to Himself. In rest of the Old Testament, from Genesis 12 to Malachi, God details the plan of redemption through the Messiah. Through prophets, God delivers His message to a fallen world. Prophets establish the nature and character of the Messiah, who brings redemption. Two pictures of Messiah emerge, one of a suffering Righteous servant (Isaiah 53) and the other of all-powerful ruling king (Psalm 2). In the Old Testament era, God demonstrated mans inability for selfredemption, showing the depravity of fallen human nature. Only through Gods intervention, humanity could salvation come, not self- effort. In the New Testament, the details of Messiah, foretold by the prophets reach fulfillment in the person of Jesus Christ. The rejection and death of the Righteous servant, who pays for sin, fulfills the words of Isaiah written 700-years before his birth. Jesus becomes Gods sacrifice for humanities sins. The Gospels record the life and teachings of Jesus, as Gods offer of redemption is made available to the Gentile nations after Israels rejection. The book of Acts and the Epistles(letters) record the advance of the good news (Gospel) of redemption as it spreads abroad from Jerusalem. Finally, the book of Revelation, looks forward to the completion of Gods plan following the return of Messiah, at the Second Coming, and the establishment of the Kingdom of God and eternal state of humanity.
The Plan of Redemption

How are we? Why are we here? What is our purpose and future? These are the questions, which plague humanity. Both science and religion attempt to answer these questions, creating a diverse view of the universe from mans perspective. The Bible however, is Gods answer, to a hopeless world trying to find its purpose. The Bible is Gods love letter to humanity, His plan for our salvation, and the final destiny of the saved. The words in the Bible, Gods revelation to man define our being, letting us understand the meaning to our existence. Without Gods revelation, we would have no way of knowing who we are, where we came from or where we are going? The Old Testament records the history of humanity and Gods plan of redemption, the New Testament records, Gods fulfillment and completion of His plan.
The history of the Bible

The are many ways the history of the Bible can be divided, one method is dividing the periods according to the methods of atonement. Six periods of history can be distinguished in the Bible, which allows us to divide scripture into understandable sections. 13 2. What is the history behind the Bible? |
Adam to Exodus: Before the Tabernacle Moses to David: The Tabernacle Solomon to the captivity: The First Temple Zerubabel to Jesus: The Second Temple The New Testament: Jesus Gods sacrifice The Early Church: Redemption offered to the world The Mosaic Covenant, established sacrifice in the law, to demonstrate the righteousness required to be part of the Abrahamic Covenant, these sacrifices pointed to the ultimate sacrifice, the sacrifice of Gods son, the Messiah, who would die for the sins of the world. Both the Tabernacle and the Temple illustrated the holiness of God and the need for redemption. Time Period To 1450 B.C. Adam to the Exodus The Fall of Man Book of the Bible Genesis God created the heavens, the earth and mankind in 6- Job days and rested on the 7th day. God created the first man and woman, Adam and Eve. They had Free Will to obey or disobey God. They choose to reject Gods command and listen to Satan, a fallen angel. By rejecting Gods command, humanity became fallen and corrupt. God however promised a Messiah who would redeem man and restore him. (Genesis 3;15).
15 And I will put enmity Between you (Satan) and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel." Genesis 3;15
Mans corrupt nature caused God to bring an overall judgment on the human race, causing a flood to kill both human and animal life. Noah, his family and all the living animals that entered the arc (the boat Noah built) were spared from Gods judgment.
12 So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. 13 And God said to Noah, "The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Genesis 6:1213
Everybody alive today is a descendent of Noah and his family. Following the flood, The arc landed in the mountains of Ararat (Armenia), in modern day Turkey, from there man as one tribe traveled to the lands of the future Babylon,( Shunar, Summer). As one people, humanity again began to rebel against God, building the tower of Babel, so God caused a confusion in language between Noahs descendents. This confusion caused humanity to be dispersed over the earth forming the different nations.
6 And the Lord said, "Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. 7 "Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech." 8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city. Genesis 11:6-8
Abraham called Abraham, a descendent of Shem, the second son of Noah, left Ur, a city in Babylon, for Mt. Moriah (Jerusalem) at Gods instruction. 14 2. What is the history behind the Bible? |
God promised Abraham, to make him into a great nation. Isaac, Abrahams son, had two sons Jacob and Esau. Jacob had 12 sons, who would later become the nation of Israel. Jacob lived in the land of current day Israel, but would live in Egypt for a time, before being buried in Hebron with Abraham and Isaac. Gods covenant would be transferred to Isaac and then to Jacob. Jacob had twelve sons who would form the tribes of Israel. His brothers into Egypt sold Joseph, Jacobs second youngest son. In Egypt, he became prime minister. Famine struck the land of Canaan (Israel) forcing his brothers to come to Egypt for food. There, they met their brother who they sold as a slave years earlier. Joseph forgave his brothers and they settled in the land of Egypt in an area known as Goshen with Joseph. Over the next 400-years, the descendents of Jacob multiplied. They numbered over 1,000,000, and subsequently they became oppressed in the land of Egypt, as slaves of a new Pharaoh. They cried out to God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob for rescue, and God sent them Moses, a Hebrew raised in Pharaohs house. Moses to David: The Tabernacle Period 1450 B.C. 975 B.C. Moses, representing God to Pharaoh, delivered plagues on Egypt, until Pharaoh freed the children of Israel from captivity. Moses led the descendents of Jacob (Israel) back toward the land of Canaan, the Promised Land. God established the Mosaic Covenantwith the Tabernacle, as a picture of the coming redemption through the Messiah, who would die for the sins of the world. (Hebrews 9, 10) The Messiah was Gods sacrifice for our sins. Exodus Leviticus Number Deuter. Joshua Judges Ruth
I & II Samuel On the way, Israel rebelled against Moses and wanted to return to Egypt. Because of rejecting Gods leadership, at the hand of Moses, Israel wandered the wilderness of Psalms Sinai for 40-years until the rebellious generation died.
11 Then the Lord said to Moses: "How long will these people reject Me? And how long will they not believe Me, with all the signs which I have performed among them? Numbers 14:11
Joshua succeeded Moses, he lead Israel into Canaan. Israel conquered and settled a portion of land and established a confederacy of tribes after the 12 sons of Jacob. God ruled the tribes through judges. Over the next 400-years, judges such asSamson, Gideon, Jephthah, and Deborah would lead the tribes of Israel against their enemies. In the course of time, the people requested a king like the other nations, and God gave them Saul as their first king in 1050 B.C., followed by David 1017 B.C. David conquered the city of Jerusalem from the Jebusites, a Canaanite tribe, making it the City of David. Through prophets, God established Davids throne as an eternal throne later to be ruled by his descendent, the Messiah, who would one day rule the world with Jerusalem as the capital city of the earth.
12 "When your (David) days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 "He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.16 "And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established
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2. What is the history behind the Bible? |
forever." ' " 2 Samuel 7:12-13,16
Solomon to the Captivity: First Temple Period 975 B.C. 536 B.C. Solomon, Davids son succeeded his father Ecclesiastes as king over Israel. He was permitted to build the Temple on Mt. Moriah, which later Proverbs became known asSolomons Temple. The Temple site was the same location, where I & II Kings over 1000-years earlier, Solomons I & II forefather Abraham was tested by God (Genesis 22, I Kings 8) Chron. After Solomon, Israel became a divided kingdom, the northern kingdom, known as Israel (10tribes) and the southern as Judah (Judah and Benjamin). Isaiah Amos
Eventually Israel and Judah tuned away from the God of Hosea Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and started worshipping the idols in the land of Canaan, Baal, Ashtorah, Chemosh, etc. Micah God warned Israel through prophets, letting Israel know these practices would result in their destruction. The Jonah people rejected the messages of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Joel Micah and others, and continued their idol worship. Jeremiah Using Gods pronouncements on Israel and Judahs apostasy, through the prophets, the day of Gods salvation was proclaimed, the coming Messiah, who would redeem Lam. the sins of the world. Ezekiel
13 Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently; He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high. 14 Just as many were astonished at you, So His visage was marred more than any man, And His form more than the sons of men; 15 So shall He sprinkle many nations. Kings shall shut their mouths at Him; For what had not been told them they shall see, And what they had not heard they shall consider. Isaiah 52:1315
Daniel
God responded by sending the armies of Assyria in 722 B.C. to take the northern part of Israel captive to the lands of Assyria. In 586 B.C. the Babylonians, destroyed Jerusalem and Solomons Temple taking those left into Babylon for a period of 70 years. Among the captives were the prophets Daniel and Ezekiel. At the end of 70 years, the Persians defeated Babylon under Cyrus the Great, he allowed the Jews to return to the land of Israel. Cyrus also allowed the Jews to begin reconstruction of their Temple in 536 B.C., construction was completed in 516 B.C., exactly 70-years after the Temple was destroyed. The Temple like the Tabernacle was a picture of Gods redemption, through the coming sacrifice of Messiah, who would atone for the sins of the world.
9 And they made His grave with the wicked-But with the rich at His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was any deceit in His mouth. 10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. 11 He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities. Isaiah 53:9-11
Zerubabel to Jesus; 2
nd
Temple Period, Inter-Testament Period
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536 B.C. 4 B.C.
In Babylon, Israel was humbled becoming servants of the Babylonians. However, in Haggai Babylon God raised prophets like Daniel who became the prime minister of Babylon under kingNebuchadnezzar (Daniel chapters 1-4). Through Daniel, God revealed his Zechariah plans for Israel and the world, and the coming of HisMessiah. Giving the exact Ester month, year and day of Messiahs death (Daniel 9;24-27) "And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Daniel 9:26a Ezra Nehemiah
In 539 B.C. Cyrus the Great, head of a Persian-Median kingdom defeated Babylon. Malachi He allowed the Jews to return to the land of Israel and rebuild their Temple. In 516 B.C., seventy years after the Temple was destroyed, the Second Temple was completed. During this period, God spoke through the prophets, Zechariah,Haggai, and Malachi to encourage Israel about the coming plan of redemption through the Messiah. Malachi was the last prophet of the age, writing about 425 B.C.
1 "Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple, Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Behold, He is coming," Says the Lord of hosts. 2 "But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire And like launderer's soap. Malachi 3:1-2
Inter-Testament Period Malachi wrote during the period of the Persian control of Jerusalem, less then 100-years later, the Persians were defeated by the rising power to the west, the Grecian kingdom led by Alexander the Great. In 331 B.C., Alexander defeated Persian control of Judea. Alexander allowed the Jews to maintain their worship and sacrifice as he went on to fight Persia in the east. In 323 B.C., Alexander the Great died in city of Babylon, and his kingdom was divided between his four generals. Two of his generals, Seleucid and Ptolemyand their descendents, would fight over the land of Jerusalem and Judah for the next 200-years. Then in 168 B.C. Antiochus Epiphanesdecided to unify his Seleucid Greek Kingdom, under the Greek religion, meaning the Jewish faith was to be eliminated. This caused a Jewish revolt known as the Maccabean War, which ended in the creation of an independent Jewish Kingdom for about 100-years, and the celebration of Hanukah. The kingdom came to an end when, two brothers Aristobulus IIand Hyrcanus II requested Romans help to settle their dispute. Pompey the Roman general stepped in, conquered Jerusalem and established Roman control over Judah in 63 B.C. Later Herod the Great, a friend of Rome, was installed on the Jewish throne until his death in 4 B.C., establishing the Herodian dynasty in Judea/Palestine. New Testament Period
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4 B.C. A.D. 95
The New Testament records the life, teachings and commands of Jesus Christ and Matthew His church. Jesus fulfilled the prophecies regarding the suffering Messiah, in the Old Testament. The Messiah, would suffer for the sins of the world, paying the penalty Mark of sin, as foreshadowed in the Mosaic Covenant. (Hebrew 9,10) Luke Two portraits of Messiah emerge in the Old Testament, one is the picture of a John Righteous suffering Servant, who dies for the sins of the world (Isaiah 53). The other is King Messiah who rules over the earth (Psalm 2). The death of Jesus in A.D. 33, fulfilled the prophecies regarding the suffering servant. At His Second Coming, Acts he will fulfill the prophecies regarding King Messiah, who reigns over the earth. Epistles His death brought redemption to humanity, and the mission of the church was to Revelation proclaim salvation and redemption to the fallen world. The Gospels were the written record of the life and teachings of Jesus the Messiah. The Acts of the Apostles record the history of the early church and its establishment in the Gentile nations. The Epistles record the teachings of the apostles and instructions to the church. The book of Revelation records Christs instructions to the church, events leading to the return of Christ and the eternal state of humanity. Revelation completes the picture of Genesis, which records the beginning; Revelation reveals the end of all things. Early Church Period
95 A.D. 325 A.D.
As recorded in the book of Acts, the church began to spread throughout the Roman world. The spread of the church caused many to turn from their Greek and Roman gods and goddess. An early example of their success is illustrated in Acts 19 as the men of Ephesus become alarmed at their loss of goddess business.
24 For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Diana, brought no small profit to the craftsmen. 25 He called them together with the workers of similar occupation, and said: "Men, you know that we have our prosperity by this trade. 26 "Moreover you see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but throughout almost all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are not gods which are made with hands. 27 "So not only is this trade of ours in danger of falling into disrepute, but also the temple of the great goddess Diana may be despised and her magnificence destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worship." 28 Now when they heard this, they were full of wrath and cried out, saying, "Great is Diana of the Ephesians!" Acts 19:24-28 a @ 5152 A.D.
The spread of Christianity caused greater persecution, John one of the last remaining disciples was the bishop of Ephesus, when he was exiled to Patmos during the persecution ofDomitian. On Patmos, John received theRevelation of Jesus Christ, a letter to the seven churches foretelling a period of persecution and apostasy within some of the churches. Jesus however declared the events leading to the Second Coming, and the eternal state of humanity despite the persecution and apostasy. After John there were periods of persecution where Roman officials sent Christians to the arena to be torn apart by lions and burned copies of the scriptures. This persecution reached a climax during the reigns of Diocletian 303-305 and Galerius in 303-311 A.D. Thus Christianity became established as the religion of the Roman Empire by the beginning of the fourth century.
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3. Is the Bible Inspired?

Why should anybody believe the Bible is from God? If Bible was only historical, citing historical facts and recording historical events, then the Bible would be just a history book. If historical content were the sole contents, then the claim of inspiration would be suspect. The original manuscripts (Autographs) would merely be ancient records of historical events corresponding to history. The Bible, however, claims to be more then just an accurate historical book. The Bibles words claim to be Super-natural in origination. The words claim to be inspired, from God, theFirst-Cause of reality, who revealed the words through prophets. The question is, can we in anyway prove the claims of the words in the Bible? Before we examine the super-natural evidence of the Bible, we first need to understand some underlying principles; the meaning of inspiration and inerrancy.
What does inspiration mean?

How did God transmit His words through the Bible? The process according to scripture to was through inspiration.
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 2 Timothy 3:16
The Greek word translated inspiration isqeovpneustoTheopneustos meaning literally Godbreathed out. The idea here means God is the force behind the words of scripture, not the human writer, even though the thought was conveyed through human means. The words of both the Old and New Testaments claim to be inspired. Zechariah in the Old Testament, referred to the words of the prophets who preceded him, such as Jeremiah and Isaiah, as the Lords word.
7 'Should you not have obeyed the words which the Lord proclaimed through the former prophets when Jerusalem and the cities around it were inhabited and prosperous, and the South and the Lowland were inhabited?' " Zechariah 7:7
Jesus attests to the inspiration of the Old Testament and His fulfillment of the prophets and Law.
17 "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 18 "For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Matthew 5:17-18 Then He said to them, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me." Luke 24:44
When Jesus refers to the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms, he is referring to the three-part division of the Tanakh (The Old Testament).
What does Inerrant mean?

Since God is the source of inspiration, the words transmitted to the prophet are without error or inerrant. Inspiration and Inerrancy apply to the autograph and not to the transmission process, which is human. The inerrant autograph is transmitted through scribes in a process known as manuscript transmission, resulting in manuscript copies. The autograph is the original manuscript, the first copy, those which follow are manuscript copies.
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3. Is the Bible Inspired? |
The Evidence for the Inspiration of the Bible

By simply comparing the words that claim super-natural inspiration to the facts, we can test whether the words are super-natural or just vague guesses. We can also examine the probability of the events taking place. In the same way, we examine the improbability of matter and life entering the universe without a cause. We can examine to see if super-natural evidence corresponds with facts. In examining the evidence, we need to ask several questions. Is the evidence Super-natural in nature? Is the evidence manipulated? Could the source document been changed to fit the circumstances? Super-natural objective evidence The definition of Super-natural is evidence outside of the natural order. Miracles and prophecies would fall under this categories since both claim a source outside of the nature. A prophecy describing future specific event is not a natural phenomenon. The source must be outside of nature in order to be True. Super-natural knowledge is required, since knowledge of the future is outside of our natural order.
6Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel, And his 9Remember the former things of old, For I am 3I have declared the former things from the Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: I am the First and God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is beginning; They went forth from My mouth, and I I am the Last; Besides Me there is no God. none like Me, 10Declaring the end from the caused them to hear it. Suddenly I did them, and beginning, And from ancient times things that are they came to pass. not yet done, Saying, My counsel shall stand, And 7And who can proclaim as I do? Then let him I will do all My pleasure, Isaiah 46:9-10 declare it and set it in order for Me, Since I 4Because I knew that you wereobstinate, And appointed the ancient people. And the things that your neck was an iron sinew, And your brow are coming and shall come, Let them show these bronze, to them. 5Even from the beginning I have declared it to 8Do not fear, nor be afraid; Have I not told you you; Before it came to pass I proclaimed it to you, from that time, and declared it? You are My Lest you should say, My idol has done them, And witnesses. Is there a God besides Me? Indeed my carved image and my molded image Have there is no other Rock; I know not one. Isaiah commanded them. Isaiah 48:3-5 44:7-8
The Bibles use of prophecy, the ability to tell the future in the past, can be itemized as follows.
Only God can reveal events in detail thousands of years before they occur. (Isaiah 44:6)
Israel
Israel as a people and nation are witnesses to the events. (Isaiah 44:8) God declares the end from the beginning. (Isaiah 46:9) The purpose of foretelling the event many years before its occurrence was to prove to the obstinate who would give credit to man. (Isaiah 48: 3-5)
What is a prophet?
When you write your name on paper, who is doing the writing, you or the pen? Most answer you, since you are the power behind the pen. You are the inspiration of the words the pen writes. In the same way a pen is used as the conduit between you and the paper, the prophet is the conduit between God and man. The prophet is writing down Gods message for the reader. If the words are from God then they would be True and correspond with reality.
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Some examples of Super-Natural Evidence Description of Evidence Greatness of Abraham Significance Super-natural nature
Genesis was written about 1450 Both Muslims, Christians and Jews Claim BC by Moses. At that time descent and connection to Abraham. This Genesis 12:2-3 AbrahamWas promised Abraham was the forefather of an prophecy was written Well before the to: * Be source for a great nation* Have insignificant group of slaves, the growth of Christianity And Islam. Abraham a great name* All peoples on the earth to Hebrews. name became great after Christianity spread Be blessed through Him. 100 AD and Islam after 632 AD. Today, many people who lived on I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make the Earth, over the Earths 6 If 15 billion people lived since the your name great; And you shall be a blessing. billion People claim a connection beginning of the Human race, the odds Of to Abraham including Muslims, one man have a name of world wide I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be Jews and Christians. Both Jews and Distinction is 1 out of 15 billion. If the blessed." Arabs Claim Abraham as the Promise was recorded 3400 years Before the source their national identity. event it is super-natural.
Genesis 12:2-3
Israel Scattered
For a people to be scattered is a A common event throughout history As one people Deuteronomy 28:64 group takes land and Settles in territory belonging to another. Israel as a nation is 3450 years ago in the Bible scattered and Gathered and then scattered Israel as a nation is told they Second, during the time of Roman again. will be dispersed throughout Occupation. 54 BC-638 AD the world and suffer as a The condition of the people in their people for being Disobedient. Scattered condition is described in Detail, yet they remain a distinct people In the land of their captivity
Two times in Israels history they Were scattered as a nation, first During the Babylonian captivity (605, 598 and 587 BC) Jer 51.
"Then the Lord will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you shall serve other gods, which neither you nor your fathers have known-wood and stone. Deut. 28:64
Two times Israel has been gathered, Once following the Deuteronomy 30:3 Babylonian Captivity after the Persian defeat Of Babylon in 539 3450 years ago Israel is BC by Cyrus The second in our promised to be gathered day with the Creation of the state back into the land of Israel as Jews from Europe, promised to Abraham Africa, Asia, North and South after being scattered.The America founded the state of Israel gathering of Israel as a Nation from the nations is repeated throughout the scriptures Isaiah 11, Isaiah 14:1-2, Isaiah 56:8, Jeremiah 30-31,Ezekiel 36-37, Zechariah 10:6-12 Israel Gathered
"that the Lord your God will bring you back from captivity, and have compassion on you, and gather you again from all the nations where the Lord your God has scattered you. "If any of you are driven out to the farthest parts under heaven, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you. Deuteronomy 30:3-4
The creation of the state of Israel was Result of two world wars. First the Muslim powers were defeated and Only after the worlds Jewish Population was killed in the Holocaust Would the nations agree to allowing A Jewish state to exist, in May 1948 Israel came into existence the first time A Jewish state existed in 2000 years. For a people to maintain national Identity after 1900 years and to be Gathered back into their land is Amazing enoughBut for the event To be written about even before they Were a nation is super-natural.
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We are told that Jerusalem will Be a burden for the world and the Object of conflict. The nations of Zechariah 12:3 foretells the World will be at war with the Jerusalem as the Center Descendents of Israel. of worldwide Attention Jerusalem Focus Of World attention
"And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it. Zechariah 12;3
Over the Earth population view Jerusalem as spiritually significant. 2500 years ago when Jerusalem was just a small regional city Zechariah told about the coming day when all then nations will burden themselves with the possession of the city.
In 70 AD the Roman empire 600 years before the event we are told about destroys The Jewish Temple. Every the destruction following the cutting off of stone Was throne down as Roman the Messiah. Jesus claimed to be Messiah soldiers Looked for melted gold. and as a result 2 billion people,1/3 of the earths population are connected to the city The destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem. How Daniel could know the along each stone being Taken details of the Temples destruction as well down was recorded 600 years as it being Connected with the Messiah Before this event, Messiah was to being Cut Off is super-natural. Be cut off.
Temple destroyedThe destruction of theJewish temple followingThe death of Jesus was Foretold in Daniel 9:26 And Matthew 24:2
Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, "Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down." Matthew 24:1-2
Operation Solomon in 1980 and Isaiah 11:11 specifically mentions Jews Exodus in 1991 rescued Jews From Cush (Ethiopia) as part of the living in Ethiopia from Gathering from the nations. 2700 years extermination and persecution. The Before the event Jews there have been traced back over 2000 years ago.
Jews from Ethiopia Gathered. In the Second gathering Jews living in Ethiopia are Foretold to be gathered to Israel ,2700 years ago in Isaiah 11:11 this gathering was written about.
It shall come to pass in that day That the Lord shall set His hand again the second time To recover the remnant of His people who are left, From Assyria and Egypt, From Pathros and Cush, From Elam and Shinar, From Hamath and the islands of the sea. Isaiah 11:11
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The 70 weeks of Daniel foretells the Exact time Messiah would be cut-off. Following a 483 year period (69 Weeks) after a command to rebuild The walls and streets of Jerusalem Was given to Nehemiah.
The Christian faith is the largest faith in The World and centers on the Messiah Being killed for the sins of the world. 570 before the death of Jesus, Daniel foretold the exact time of Messiah being cut-off with the Temples destruction following his death.
Exact month & year Messiah is killed. 70 Weeks of Daniel is a very specific prophecy foretelling the rejection and cutting off of Messiah 570 years before the event. Daniel 9:24-27
"And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined. Daniel 9:26
Objections to Super-natural objective evidence People worked to fulfill the prophecy This objection does not take into account the aspect of adverse history. For example, Jerusalem becoming the focus of world attention was a result of the spread of Christianity and Islam. Christianity grew in opposition to Jewish wishes; they did not accept Jesus as Messiah. The Roman Empire became Christian in spite of persecution of the Christians. In addition, any series of events could have th changed the scope of the world prior to the spread of Christianity. Pagan Huns in the 5 Century AD could have destroyed Christian th th Byzantium, conflict with Islam in the 6 century; the Mongolian hordes of Genghis Khan in the 12 century are only some examples of historical events that could have prevented this prophecy fulfillment. To imagine that a group of people could manipulate world events in secret also fails to account for persecution by the leading powers of the world. Kings and princes in the land they settled persecuted the Jews as a group. The Spanish inquisition, forced Jews to renounce their Jewish culture, this same pattern of persecution occurred in Germany, England, Russia and Asia. How a persecuted people could control their persecutors, to fulfill prophecy written about the people even before they were a nation would be supernatural in its own right. The prophecy was changed to seem like it was fulfilled. The words recorded in prophecy are virtually the same in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament translated 250 BC. The Dead Sea scrolls dated to 100-200 BC also record the words of the prophets including Daniel, Isaiah, Ezekiel and Jeremiah. Any changes to fulfill scripture would have to have been made by 250 BC well before the events themselves even occurred.
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The prophecy is just a matter of interpretation. Most prophecies have very specific qualifiers, giving us minute details, not vague generalities. Israel, Jerusalem are distinct locations, not vague terms such as a great city in the distant east. They are terms which can compared to facts. The Bible also records historical figures such as Nebuchadnezzar along with events associated their lives. This allows us to compare the words with the facts. Jesus the Messiah The rejection of Jesus and His ministry foretold 700-years before his birth The whole basis of the New Testament is the fulfillment of a New Covenant through the death of Jesus, who died for the sins of the world. Jesus claimed to be the Messiah, as foretold by the Jewish prophets, yet he was rejected and killed. Some will point to his death and say; see if he were the Messiah, he would not have died. Most who understand the death of Jesus as evidence he was not the Messiah, do not know Isaiah 52:13-53:12. The Old Testament book of Isaiah, pointed to the death of the Messiah 700-years before Jesus birth, showing his death was .part of Gods plan for redemption. Isaiah wrote about the rejection and death of the righteous servant who would die for the sins of the world and then be exalted. Isaiah clearly describes the ministry of Jesus 700-years before his birth. He describes how the righteous servant bears the iniquity (Isaiah 53:11), by being the offering for sin (vs. 10). Isaiah describes him as rejected and despised (vs.3). He is wounded or pierced and whipped (vs.5). The servant did not come to his own defense but allowed his death to proceed (vs. 7). Finally, he was killed alongside with the wicked and was buried with the rich (vs. 9). Despite his death and humiliation, the servant will be exalted above the nations, where the kings of the earth will be silenced in his presence (Isaiah 52:13,15).
Isaiah 52:13-53:12
13 Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently; He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high. 14 Just as many were astonished at you, So His visage was marred more than any man, And His form more than the sons of men; 15 So shall He sprinkle many nations. Kings shall shut their mouths at Him; For what had not been told them they shall see, And what they had not heard they shall consider. Isaiah 52:13-15
Isaiah 53
1 Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 2 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him. 3 He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. 4 Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth. 8 He was taken from prison and from judgment, And who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; For the transgressions of My people He was stricken. 9 And they made His grave with the wicked-But with the rich at His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was any deceit in His mouth. 10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. 11 He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors.
The Seventy Weeks of Daniel The Seventy weeks of Daniel is a prophecy, which can be used as an example of associating facts with claims. God has a 490-year plan involving the Jewish People and Jerusalem. We are told Jerusalem would be rebuilt with walls, and streets The Messiah would be killed 483 years after the command to rebuild Jerusalems walls and streets is given. The rebuilt temple would be destroyed by the descends of a future world leader A future world leader who is descendent of the armies who destroyed Jerusalem would make an agreement to build a Third Temple. The Temple would be rebuilt and sacrifices stopped after 3.5 years.
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Daniels 70 Weeks
The Seventy Weeks of Daniel
Super-natural Evidence ( An Example) 24 "Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city, To finish the transgression, To make an end of sins, To make reconciliation for iniquity, To bring in everlasting righteousness, To seal up vision and prophecy, And to anoint the Most Holy. 539 years before the Birth of Jesus, the exact day, month and year Jesus is rejected is foretold 25 "Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times. Destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem is foretold 26 "And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war The future rebuilding of the Third Temple on the Temple Mount is foretold desolations are determined. The future desecration of the Third Temple is foretold 27 Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, Even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate." The Prophecy takes place in 539 B.C., in the First year of Darius the Mede. Daniel an old man, between 83 to 90 years old. As a boy He was taken captive by the Babylonians in 605 B.C. In 586 B.C. The Babylonians destroyed the city of Jerusalem and the Temple. Jeremiah foretold a 70-year period of desolation on the city for their sin. Daniel was praying for the city to be restored since 67 years had now passed. Gabriel the angel was sent to Daniel to answer his prayer and tell him Gods time plan for his city, Jerusalem and his people. 24 "Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city, To finish the transgression, To make an end of sins, To make reconciliation for iniquity, To bring in everlasting righteousness, To seal up vision and prophecy, And to anoint the Most Holy.
Background
Seventy weeks[2] are determined[3] (7 x70=490) A 490 year period of time is established on Your city Jerusalem and Your People the Jewish People. Seven events happen within these 490 years. 1. Finish Transgression 2. Make an end of sins 3. Make reconciliation for iniquity 4. Bring in everlasting righteousness 5. Seal up vision and 6. prophecy 7. Anoint the Most Holy. Super-Natural Objective Evidence The focus of Jerusalem and the Jewish People 26 3. Is the Bible Inspired? |
25 "Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixtytwo weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times.
The 490-year period begins with the command to Restore and Build Jerusalem including the walls and streets in the times of trouble. The command to rebuild the walls and streets takes place in March/April 444 B.C. (Nehemiah 2:8) Nehemiah is given orders to build the walls of Jerusalem, and access to the King of Persias resources. Gabriel tells Daniel from the command given (March/April 444 B.C.) until Messiah the Prince will be 7-weeks (49 years) and 62-weeks (434-years) totaling 483-years[4]. (7 Weeks + 62 Weeks=69 Weeks) (69 x 7=483) From the Command given in March/April 444 B.C. to until Messiah the Prince is 483 Jewish years[5]. Our equivalent to Daniels calander is 476 years and 24 days. The Command was given in March/April 444 B.C. 476 years and 24 days later is March 29th 33 A.D. the Jesus Christ was Cut off by the Jewish Priesthood. (John 19:6) Super-Natural Objective Evidence The Exact month and Year of Messiah Death 500 years before his birth 26 "And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined.
Gabriel tells Daniel after the 62 Week (434 year) Messiah the Prince is cut off. Not for Himself, Messiah dies for the sins of the world (Isaiah 53). Following his death Jerusalem and the Temple are destroyed again, after they were rebuilt, following Daniels prayer. The people of a prince who is to come , destroy Jerusalem and Temple 37 years after the death of Jesus Christ. Daniel foretold of the Roman destruction of Jerusalem over 600-years before the event.
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Gabriel Tells Daniel the desolations on Jerusalem and the Jewish people will continue to the end. The Dome of The Rock, the third most site in Islam occupies the Temple-site. The Temple-Mount is the center of world focus pitting the world of Islam and Judaism against each other. There is a growing movement to rebuild the Temple. The problem is 1.3 billion Muslims hold the Dome of the Rock as their sacred site. The 490-year clock stopped at the death of Messiah at the end of the 69th Week, as desolations were determined till the 70thweek. Super-Natural Objective Evidence The Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple following the death of Christ The continual desolations that befell the Jewish People after the Temple 27 Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, Even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate."
Gabriel tells Daniel, a future 7-year agreement will allow the Temple to be rebuilt allowing sacrifice and offering to take place.He is the prince to come, descended from the people who destroyed the Temple and Jerusalem, the Romans. Rebuilding the Temple is a growing movement in Israel, for a several reasons. Growing religious movement, looking for the return of Messiah Removal of Muslim claims to Jerusalem Establishment of spiritual and cultural identity Gabriel tells Daniel, In the midst of this agreement 7-year agreement, 3.5 years, the Prince to come breaks the agreement and stops sacrifice and offering, until the consummation, or destruction which falls on those destined for Judgment. Super-Natural Objective Evidence The future problem of the Temple-Mount site The rebuilding of the Temple The need of a peace-agreement to allow the Temple to be rebuilt
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4. How was the Bible Written?

How did the prophets write the bible
For many the question on how was the Bible written is a mystery. Even if someone agrees on the inspiration of the Bible, for many the mystery remains on how the Bible became the Bible? If God revealed His words to Moses, how did those words get from Moses to us today? The question easily extends itself to all 40 writers of the 66 books, which make up the Bible. What was the language was the Bible written in? What was it written on? These questions among others face the student of Bible origins. Critics who attack the Bible play on the lack of historical and archeological knowledge to level their charges. Critics ask the question, how did the Bible become the Bible? Charging the Bible was the result of Oral transmission, claiming, writing did not exist in the days of Abraham and Moses. Therefore, the Bible was written down after long periods, its words are not reliable. In fact, they theorize the Bible is a collection of near-east mythology.
Was the Bible transmitted orally?

Before we understand this question, we need to understand Oral Transmission. Oral transmission (tradition) is the process of verbal transmission as opposed to written transmission. Oral transmission relies on the ability of the previous generation, to pass on the stories, traditions and history verbally, from one generation to the next. One of the most well known bible critics is Julius Wellhausen (1844-1918). Wellhausen is a German biblical scholar who put forward theDocumentary Hypothesis theory concerning the Bible. His theory was based on the idea, that the Bible, specifically the Torah (5-books of Moses,) was not authored by Moses but by different authors via oral tradition. He identified these strands (authors) as J-E-D-P, each letter representing a different source of authorship, according to Wellhausen the different strands were collected and put together in the Torah, at a later period. His theory dismisses the authorship of Moses, branding the Torah as a fabrication. Wellhausen based his theory on the idea that writing did not appear amongst the Hebrews until many years after Moses. R.K. Harrison, rejects the basis of the Wellhausen theory, writing, Contrary to the contentions of Wellhausen, who maintained, against archaeological evidence already available in his day, that writing did not appear among the Hebrews until the early monarchy; they had the means of producing written records at their disposal from very early times Hebrew is a Semitic language, and Abraham was from the city of Ur, which was a very literate culture even during the times of Abraham. From the region of Babylon, one of the most famous written documents preserved in stone is the Code of Hammurabi (1792-1750 B.C.), who lived within 250 years of the life of Abraham. On the stele, the laws of ancient Babylon were recorded for generations to come. Hammurabi, also lived 300-years before the time of Moses. So Wellhausen contention of Hebrews not being able to write down the events in their past is not founded on fact, but is completely without merit. In addition to the Code of Hammurabi, there are many proofs of the Literate culture, which both Abraham and Moses existed. Moses who is credited with writing the Torah (Five books of Moses; Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) was educated in the house of Pharaoh, he would have been literate not only in Egyptian but the surrounding cultures in his day. In the book of Job, dated to the Patriarchal period (2100-1800 B.C.) before the time of Moses, Job refers to writing and the material on which one writes. Writing with an Iron pen upon stone and lead is clearly described; lead a soft material could be inscribed with an Iron stylus. Soft Clay was also a material used to write upon, preserving the words of the writer.
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4. How was the Bible Written? |
23 "Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book! 24 That they were engraved on a rock With an iron pen and lead, forever! Job 19:23-24
Other documents exist clearly documenting the existence of writing in the time of Moses, and the invasion of the Hebrews into the land of Canaan. These documents are the Letters from the Tell ElAmarna. A peasant woman digging in the dirt discovered these letters in 1887. The letters were written in Akkadian (Babylonian) script with some Canaanite glosses. These letters dated to the conquest of Joshua, mention the invasion of Habiru (Hebrews). Also Confirming the written language outside of the Bible is the Moabite stone (Mesha Stele), which is dated to the time of King Mesha of Moab. He was a contemporary of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah (870-848 BC), and Joram, king of the northern kingdom of Israel (852-841 BC). The Moabite Stone gives King Meshas point of view of the events of 2 Kings 3. The alphabet and the language on the stone were both Moabite, which a language closely related to Hebrew. Encyclopedia Britannica says the following on the Moabite Language
Eastern subdivision of the Canaanite branch of the early Semitic alphabet, closely related to the early Hebrew alphabet. The best-known example of the Moabite alphabet is from the Mesha, or Moabite, Stone (Louvre, Paris), which was discovered in 1868 at Dibon, east of the Dead Sea. The stone bears a 34-line inscription of Mesha, king of Moab, dating from the middle of the 9th century BC. Until the discovery of the Airam inscription in 1923 at Byblos, the Mesha Stone was considered the earliest extant alphabetic inscription.
The Moabite stone is incontrovertible evidence of a rich Hebrew language and culture, which corresponds to the Moabite civilization, the Moabites were a subject nation to Israel, during the time of Mesha. Even older then the Moabite stone by almost 400 years, is the inscription on the sarcophagus of Ahiram king of Byblos (1250 B.C), which is the earliest known writing of the Phoenician alphabet. The existence of written language and communication during the time of Abraham (2100 B.C.) and Moses (1450 B.C.) is demonstrated by both history and archaeology. There is no need for oral transmission of scripture when the written language was so pervasive. The books of Moses lay claim to a written transmission of the Torah. The king of Israel was to write a copy of the Law (Torah), and read from his copy. 18 "Also it shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the one before the priests, the Levites. 19 "And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes, Deuteronomy 17:18-19 (1450 B.C.) Literacy was both expected and common in the culture of the Exodus, contrary to the critics of the Bible.
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The development of Alphabets

Archeology has clearly demonstrated the existence of a written alphabetic communication dating to the time of Abraham, and an even earlier cuneiform methods. There are several theories about the development of alphabets. An interesting point to note, the early Hebrew Alphabet is nearly identical with the Phoenician Alphabet, which is dated as early as the time of Joseph. Greeks writers have even proposed the Hebrews as the inventors of the alphabet. Quoting Encyclopedia Britannica,
Over the centuries, various theories have been advanced to explain the origin of alphabetic writing, and, since classical times, the problem has been a matter of serious study. The Greeks and Romans considered five different peoples as the possible inventors of the alphabetthe Phoenicians, Egyptians, Assyrians, Cretans, and Hebrews. Among modern theories are some that are not very different from those of ancient days. Every country situated in or more or less near the eastern Mediterranean has been singled out for the honor.
The early Hebrew alphabet, the Paleo-Hebrew alphabet could have been the source behind the Phoenician alphabet; since many agree that the Proto-Canaanite alphabet preceded the Phoenician, which was the source behind the Greek alphabet which is the source behind the alphabets in the Western world. Encyclopedia Britannica continues regarding Hebrew as the origin of todays alphabets.
The inventor or inventors of the alphabet were, no doubt, influenced by Egyptian writing perhaps also by other scripts. Indeed, it is probable that those who invented the alphabet were acquainted with most of the scripts current in the eastern Mediterranean lands at the time. Though the nationality of the inventor or inventors of the alphabet is unknown, it is now generally agreed that he or they belonged to the Northwest Semitic linguistic group, which includes the ancient Canaanites, Phoenicians, and HebrewsOriginally, graphs were perhaps motivated pictorial signs that were subsequently used to represent the initial sound of the name of the pictured object. The North Semitic alphabet remained almost unaltered for many centuries. If the signs' external form (which, it must be emphasized, had no particular significance) is ignored and only their phonetic value, number, and order are considered, the modern Hebrew alphabet may be regarded as a continuation of the original alphabet created more than 3,500 years ago. The Hebrew order of the letters seems to be the oldest. The earliest evidence that the Hebrew alphabet was learned systematically was left in the form of a schoolboy's scribbling on the vertical face of the upper step of a staircase leading up to the palace at Tel Lakhish, in southern Israel. It includes the scratching of the first five letters of the early Hebrew alphabet in their conventional order, and it belongs to the 8th or 7th century BC.[6]
The Biblical languages

The history behind the development of alphabets formed the basis and history of how the Bible would be written from the time of Moses to the New Testament. The Bible was composed in a very literal environment, with well-developed literal methods of recording, thoughts, history and communication. Using this literal environment, God revealed Himself to the Hebrew prophets who recorded His messages not only to the Hebrew nation, but to the world around them. Many people would be able to read the PaleoHebrew writing, and understand the Semitic language of the Hebrews. The Bible in the original is written in three languages, Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. Hebrew and Aramaic are both related languages, being Semitic in nature. After the conquest of Alexander the Great (c. 332 B.C), Greek became the lingua franca of the Mediterranean. Today all three of these languages are still living and existing languages. In fact, the recent movie by Mel Gibson, the Passion was in the Aramaic tongue, the language of Babylon.
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Hebrew
1450-516 B.C.
From the time of the Exodus, Moses in all likelihood recorded the Torah, in the Paleo-Hebrew script; this script was nearly identical with the Early Phoenician script. This same script was used throughout the land of Canaan as recorded by Isaiah in 19:18. This was the main script used until the time of the exile. It is at this point the armies of Babylon (586 B.C.), destroyed the city of Jerusalem and the Temple, taking the survivors into Babylon for seventyyears. The hostages during this period would include the Daniel and Ezekiel. (Daniel 1, Ezekiel 1:1).
539 B.C. to A.D. 500
In 539 B.C., the armies of Cyrus the Great, king of Persia, defeat Babylon, he allows the Jews to return and rebuild of the Temple to begin. This is the beginning of the Second Temple Period. After Seventy-years of captivity, many of the descendents of the Jewish captives had forgotten the Hebrew tongue and alphabet. The Aramaic alphabet was adopted for the Hebrew language, this helped the Jews make the transition, to still be a distinct people and yet being able to communicate with the society around them. Manuscripts of the Torah and Prophets were written in the Aramaic square script (Current Hebrew) rather then the earlier Paleo-Hebrew script (Ancient Hebrew). Nehemiah records the problems facing the restored Hebrew nation in 440 B.C.
23 In those days I also saw Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. 24 And half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod, and could not speak the language of Judah, but spoke according to the language of one or the other people. Nehemiah 13:23-24
The use of Babylonian (Aramaic) square script would become the dominate form of Hebrew in the Biblical manuscript for the future. Although, there were Paleo-Hebrew manuscripts found at the Dead Sea and Bar Kochba introduced them on the coins, the square script remains until this day the current letters used for Hebrew.
500 to 1000 A.D. Masorites
Around A.D. 500, a group of Jewish scribes, based in the Galilee, the Masorites, helped th preserve the Hebrew text from the sixth to the 10 century A.D. They added vowel points to the Hebrew manuscript to ensure proper pronunciation. Earlier manuscripts had no vowel points, since most were familiar with the Hebrew words. The Hebrew manuscripts produced by the Masorites form the basis of current Old Testament translations. These manuscripts are known as the Masoretic Text. Aramaic The second language in the Old Testament is Aramaic, named after the Arameans, the people of Aram. Arameans spoke a Semitic language closely related to Hebrew, Syriac and Phoenician, with an alphabet derived from the Phoenician manuscript. Abraham is described as an Aramean, his wife Sarah and her relatives settled in the land of the Arameans (Syria) (Deut. 26:5, Genesis 25:20) The Arameans established city-states throughout Syria; one of the oldest Aramean settlements is Damascus, a constant threat to Israel. David defeated Damascus, the leading city of Aram (Syria) (2 Samuel 8:3-5), establishing the Hebrew in the area. The Assyrians under Shalmeneser III 841 B.C headed west subduing the Arameans, displacing them from their lands and relocating populations. This process continued until Babylonians defeated the Assyrians in 609 B.C. The 32 4. How was the Bible Written? |
northern kingdom, Israel, removed and transplanted to the East, like many of the Aramean city-states, in 722 B.C. This was the Assyrian policy in conquered territory to subdue populations they moved people. The displaced Arameans throughout Assyria caused Aramaic to become the language of common use, throughout the Assyrian kingdom. Educated Hebrews would be familiar with both Hebrew and Aramaic in the time of Hezekiah (785-686 B.C.). When the Assyrian army surrounds Jerusalem, the leaders in Jerusalem urge the Assyrians to communicate in Aramaic, so the common people do not understand (Isaiah 36:11). Aramaic eventually became the common language of the Babylonian and Persian kingdom. In 586 B.C., the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and took the surviving Jews into exile; During the exile in Babylon the Jews acquired Aramaic as their common language. Daniel chapter 2:4 to 7:28,Ezra 4:8-6:18, 7:12-26 are written in Aramaic. After the Jews return from the exile, the Aramaic square script replaced the Paleo-Hebrew scriptused before the exile. Even after the conquest of Alexander the Great, and the spread of the Greek Language, Aramaic was still the common language in Palestine. Jesus is quoted in Aramaic demonstrating the pervasive nature of Aramaic in the first century. In Aramaic, Jesus is quoted as saying, talitha koum Little girl arise[Mark 5:41]; ephphatha be opened [Mark 7;34]; Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani, My God, My God why have you forsaken me?[Mark 15;34]. Jews would maintain Aramaic-speaking communities many years after the Temple is destroyed in A.D. 70. Targums, the Aramaic word for translation became known as paraphrases of the Old Testament, they were read along with the Hebrew to help Aramaic speaking Jews understand the scripture. Greek In 334 B.C., the armies of Alexander the Great crossed the Dardanelles, with 30,000-foot solders and 5000 horsemen. Within the next 10-years, the Persian Empire would completely fall to the armies of Greece. In 323 B.C., Alexander the Great died in Babylon at the age of 33. His kingdom was divided between his generals. As a result, Greek became the common language in the Mediterranean world, and former Persian Kingdom. In 163 B.C., the Jews were able to reestablish a Jewish Kingdom for about 100-years until Rome arrived. After the region of Palestine fell (the Maccabean Kingdom) to the Romans in 63 B.C., under the general Pompeii, Greek remained the language of trade and commerce in the Roman world. Greek was the language of communication through the East and Europe. Latin was still a western language, foreign to the people of the East. Greek became the common spoken language in the east and west, thanks to Alexander and his kingdom. The Greek language allowed the New Testament to spread, in the Roman and Greek speaking cities and throughout Asia, Europe and Africa. According to Paul D. Wegner, both the language and alphabet of the Greeks are related to the Phoenicians.
Most scholars believe that the Greek alphabet was derived from the Phoenician alphabet, with at least five letters showing direct resemblance. The following evidence suggests that these two languages are related. 1. Nearly all the early Greek letters reflect a Semitic origin. 2. Phonetic values of the majority of early Greek letters are the same as Semitic values and their order is very similar. 3. Until about 500 B.C., Greek was written from right to left, similar to the Semitic languages. 4. Most Greek letter names are meaningless in Greek but mean something in Semitic languages. For example, alpha an beta are simply letter names in Greek but are almost identical to the names of the first two letters of the Hebrew alphabet, alep and bet, which can also denote objects represented by their shapes, namely, ox and house respectively.[9]
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There are five stages to the history of the Greek language. Homer, who wrote the Illiad and Odyssey during the classical age, used classical Greek. Koine (common) Greek was used to write the New Testament and Septuagint. The Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, was written between 250-100 B.C. and is used in eighty-percent of the Old Testament quotes in the New Testament. According to F.F. Bruce, the Greek of the Septuagint, has Greek words but Hebrew idiom.
From Inspiration to Manuscript

Writing Materials The way writing was transmitted varied in the ancient world, the oldest surviving materials were written on stone and metal. While manuscripts written on paper and leather only survived if kept, dry to prevent rot, such as the Dead Sea scrolls and Egyptian Papyri. The greatest numbers of ancient manuscripts surviving were written on stone and clay. Stone The Bible records stone being the preferred method, since the Lord choose stone. The 10-commandments written by the finger of God were written on stone (Exod. 24:12; 31:18; 32;15-19). Job refers to his words being inscribed on stone and lead using an iron pen (Job 19:24). Stone however was not practical for everyday use. The Code of Hammurabi written on black basalt (volcanic stone) has been preserved for more then 3700-years, because it was written on stone. The code written during the time Israel was captive in Egypt, lists many laws with a similar nature to the Mosaic covenant, such as marital faithfulness. The code was stolen 600-year later, by the Elamites, who moved it to Suza (Persia) where it was discovered. The Rosetta Stone another import discovery, also written on basalt, helped to crack the code of Egyptian hieroglyphics. Found in 1799, the stone had the same inscription of a decree written in 3-languages Hieroglyphics (Egyptian pictographs), Demotic (Cursive Egyptian derived from hieroglyphics) and Greek. Clay Tablets Huge numbers of clay tablets have been found verifying many of the events, names and cities found in the Bible. Wagner lists the number of tablets found at various locations. Ten thousand at Bogazkoy [Turkey], the Hittite capital; twenty thousand at Nuzi [Iraq]; twenty thousand at Ugarit [Syria] and sixteen thousand at Ebla [Syria] Among the most famous clay tablets found is the Cyrus Cylinder dated to about 539 B.C., verifyingmany of the events in the Bible, which correspond the Persian victory over Babylon.Clay was cheap and durable but the amount of information was limited and transportation was difficult due to the weight of the document. A three-edged stylus was used with soft clay. The clay was then fired or dried preserving the words.
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Papyrus Papyrus is a plant in the swamps along the Nile River. From Papyrus, we get the word Paper. The pith (inside part) of the plant was cut into strips and laid in horizontal and vertical layers, allowing the natural sugars of the plant to bond the strips together. Papyrus was used for writing from the earliest periods. According to Herodotus (484-430 B.C.), Papyrus was such a common material, he could not think of a civilized people using anything else (Herodotus Historia 5.58). Papyrus was much easier to use then clay and stone, and could be easily transported, but it was not as durable as clay, and the source for it was limited to Egypt. Many of the Papyrus documents found, only survived, because they were kept in dry environments, like the Sinai desert or the Dead Sea area, where the scrolls were not exposed to moisture. One of the oldest New Testament Papyrus manuscripts is the John Rylands manuscript dated to 125 A.D., containing a portion of John 18:31-33. Leather Leather was acquired from sheep, goat, antelope or cowhides; it was dried, shaved and scraped clean for writing. Leather had a greater durability then paper, but still succumbed to the environmental elements. In time like paper, leather dries, cracks and crumbles. From ancient times, leather was used as a writing material. Wagner quoting F.G. Kenyon writes,
In Egypt there are references to documents written on skins in the time of the IV Dynasty (c.2900-2750 B.C.), and the actual specimens are extant from the XII Dynasty (c. 2000-1788 B.C.). Ctesias, the Greek historian [of Persia], refers to the royal chronicles being written on leather, by the ancient Persians, but does not specify their precise dates. They may include those to which reference is made in Ezra vi. 1,2 and Esther vi. 1. Herodotus records that once, when papyrus was scarce, the Ionian Greeks used sheep skins and goatskins in its place; and he ads that any of the barbarians still did so in his dayMore important for our present purpose is the traditional use of leather for the books of the Law in Hebrew. In the Talmud it is laid down that all copies of the Law used in public worship ust be written on skins of clean animals, and in roll-form.
One of the most important scrolls found at the Dead Sea, the Isaiah scroll is made of leather. According to the Letter of Aristeas (second century B.C.) the scrolls, which the translators of the Septuagint used were also made of leather. Parchment Parchment is also made of the hides of animals; however, they are soaked in limewater to make them white. Younger hides gives a finer quality of material, some hides used were those of yet unborn calfs. Parchment was smooth, and the white color and produced a very clear product. The city of Pergamum in Asia Minor, one of the seven-churches in Revelation, was one of the centers of Parchment production. The name parchment is derived from the city. Use of parchment was widespread in the nd 2 century B.C., and became the preferred writing material for scriptures.
Metal One of the most famous Dead Sea Scrolls is the famed Copper Scroll, which is alist of the Temple treasures and their locations. Potsherds (Ostraca) Pieces of pottery were used to jot notes on, the material preserved messages thousands of years old. One of the most famous is the Lachish Ostraca, which records events taking place in the city during the Babylonian siege in 586 B.C.
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The Silver Amulets

In 1979 two small rolled pieces of silver were discovered in a burial cave in Jerusalem, Israel. When the little scrolls were carefully unrolled, researchers found words from the Book of Numbers inscribed into the silver, written in characters from an ancient Hebrew script. The scrolls contain the text of the Priestly Benediction, which appears in Chapter 6 of Numbers, and which is still recited today by Jews in synagogue prayer throughout the world. The dating of the silver scrolls is based on new laboratory techniques. The results were very recently published in a scientific journal in the United States. Tests carried out in NASA laboratories confirm that these words were written around 600 B.C.E., in the days when Solomon's Temple still stood on the Jerusalem mountain. "Archaeologist Gabi Barkai of Bar Ilan University, who discovered the amulets during a salvage excavation on the slopes overlooking the Hinnom Valley in Jerusalem, said that additional fragments of texts on the amulets have been deciphered and one identified as a verse from the book of Deuteronomy."
[1]
Each letter represents a separate strain of authorship according to Wellhausen, J-Jehovah, E-Elohim, D-Deuteronomy, P-Priestly. Wellhausen based his theory on the use of the names for God, to determine who wrote the Torah.
[2]
R.K. Harrison, Introduction to the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1969, pg. 201)
Stele: (Greek: shaft, or pillar) plural Stelea standing stone slab used in the ancient world primarily as a grave marker but also for dedication, commemoration, and demarcation.
[3] [4]
discovered in 1868 at Dhiban, the ancient Dibon, four miles north of the River Arnon. When first seen by Europeans (including a German missionary named Klein) it was an inscribed slab of black basalt 3 feet long by 2 feet wide. The Arabs of the neighborhood, dreading the loss of such a talisman, broke the stone into pieces; but a squeeze had already been obtained by Clermont-Ganneau, and most of the fragments were recovered and pieced together by him. The reconstructed monument is now, together with the squeeze, in the museum of the Louvre in Paris.
[5]
Encyclopedia Britannica 2004 DVD version, Moabite Alphabet Encyclopedia Britannica, 2004, Alphabets .Auxiliary or compromise language used between groups having no other language in common. Examples are English and French for diplomatic purposes Bar Kochba was Jewish leader who revolted against Roman authority A.D. 132. He attempted to restore a Jewish nation. Wegner, Paul D. Journey from Text to Translation, Baker Academic, 1999, pg. 87 Ibid, pg. 92 Ibid, pg. 95
[6]
[7]
[8]
[9]
[10]
[11]
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5. The Books of the Old Testament, the Canon, The Tanakh

The Bible is collection of books, an inspired library from God; critics often challenge the Bible, rejecting its claim of inspiration. Charging the Bible is a book transmitted orally, passed from generation to generation, because no writing existed. Here we will deal with the Old Testament, the Tanakh. Anybody who understands the history of the Old Testament, understand it was very literate society, even before Abraham. The area was the birthplace our modern alphabet, from this very region, our letters took on their meaning. The first five books of the Bible (a.k.a., Torah Pentateuch), are called the books of Moses because he was the writer. After Moses, God spoke through other individuals, prophets, revealing His Word. Determining what is revealed and not revealed is the spark of debate. This debate regards the canon, which means rule or standard. Bible readers often find themselves asking the question, how do they know which books of the Bible are inspired? This is a major issue, often dividing Catholics, Orthodox and Protestants. Even in the time of Jesus the debate was raging, Sadducees, only accepted the first five books, they were at odds with the Pharisees who accepted the whole Old Testament. One of the main differences between the Catholic and Protestant churches among others is the discussion of canon in the Old Testament. The Catholics include seven additional books in the Old Testament, known as the Deuterocanonical or Apocrypha, as opposed to Protestants and Jews, who have the same books in their respective Old Testament. Orthodox churches on the other hand, also include the additional books in the Old Testament but are less adamant then Catholics about their inspiration. With all this variation, is there a way to determine, what books of the Old Testament belong?
Definition of Cannon
The word canon refers to a collection of books, accepted as authoritative, inspired scripture. The source of the word comes from the Hebrew word, hnqQaneh, which means reed or stalk, the English word cane comes from this Semitic or Hebrew word. Reeds were used as measuring rods, because of their straight form, hence the measuring or rule of scripture, became known as cannon. The word came to be associated with Rule; the Greeks associated the word with standard or guideline. Paul uses this word, kanwvnKanon, in Philippians 3:16 and Galatians 6:16, in relation to a standard of behavior.
16 Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind. Philippians 3:16
This word eventually came to mean a list, or standard of authoritative scripture passed down to the Church from both the Old and New Testaments. Athanasius (296-373 A.D.) writes in the Decrees of the Synod of Nicea (5:18), For the blessed Paul in his Epistle to the Hebrews says, By faith we understand that the ages were framed by the Word of God, so that which is seen was not made of things which do appear. But nothing is common to the Word with the ages; for He it is who is in existence before that ages, by whom also the ages came to be. And in the Shepherd of [of Hermas] it is written (since they allege this book also, though it is not of the Canon)
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5. The Books of the Old Testament, the Canon, The Tanakh |
Authority of scripture
Why do we need to have an authoritative collection of scripture? Well, if we believe scripture is from God, inspired by Him, we want to know what is His Word. We want to distinguish His Word, from uninspired works. Scripture originates from God, revealed to man for our benefit. Through the written word, God chose to communicate with humanity. Through His Word, we can know Him.
2 "And Moses alone shall come near the Lord, but they shall not come near; nor shall the people go up with him." 3 So Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord and all the judgments. And all the people answered with one voice and said, "All the words which the Lord has said we will do." 4 And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord. And he rose early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars according to the twelve tribes of Israel.7 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, "All that the Lord has said we will do, and be obedient." Exodus 24:2-4,7
Moses on Mount Sinai received the Words from the Lord, Moses then wrote these words down, using the written word, probably ancient Hebrew. The words would have been written to a scroll, or rpoCepher , meaning book or document. Here we learn the words of God, were recorded as a written document, to be read in the hearing of the people. From this portion of scripture, we learn five important points, which carry forward in the rest of the Old Testament. 1. Moses reported to the people the Words of the Lord 2. Moses wrote the words, requiring a written transmission. 3. Moses recorded the words in a book 4. Moses read from this book 5. The people proclaimed their obedience to the book False prophets and false books Joshua, who followed Moses, led Israel into the Promised Land. God proclaimed the mantel of leadership passed from Moses to Joshua, the words in Joshua are also inspired, contained in the book of Joshua. This set the stage on how God would reveal Himself and His Word, in successive generations. God revealed through Moses, He would reveal His Word through individuals known as prophets. They people (Israel) would be required to obey the Word spoken by these individuals as if God Himself spoke them. 18 'I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him. 19 'And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of him. 20 'But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die.'Deuteronomy 18:18-20 God also warns about the rise of false prophets, people that claimed to speak for God, but really spoke for themselves. Therefore, the existence of false prophets, and false teachers required Israel distinguish between the inspired and the uninspired (profane). They would need to test the words of those who claimed to be prophets false prophets were to die, because they attempted to deceive the people. If the words of a self-proclaimed prophet failed to pass, the false prophet was to die. 22 when a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him. Deuteronomy 18;22 The authority and of scripture was established for the nation. Also established was the possibility of false prophets, and false teachers, who would attempt to subvert the Word of God. For this reason, it was important for the nation to distinguish between the two, to test the prophets. Over the next thousand-years, from the time Israel entered the land, (1450 B.C) until the last prophet, Malachi (425 B.C.) the words of scripture were tested.
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Prophet Statement of Divine Authority Hosea

The word of the Lord that came to Hosea the son of Beeri Hosea 1:1 When the Lord began to speak by Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea Hosea 1:2" It shall come to pass in that day That I will answer," says the Lord; Hosea 2;21 Therefore the Lord says, The Lord of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel, Isaiah 1:24 For so the Lord said to me, Isaiah 18:4
Isaiah
Jeremiah Jeremiah to whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah Jeremiah 1:1,2
Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying Jeremiah 1:4
Ezekiel Daniel
the word of the Lord came expressly to Ezekiel the priest Ezekiel 1:3 tell them, 'Thus says the Lord God,' Ezekiel 3:11 And he said to me, "O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you, Daniel 10:11
Zechariah In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah Zechariah 1:1 Malachi The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi
Malachi 1:1
Designations of the Old Testament Canon

Another term for the canon of the Old Testament is Tanakh, which is an acronym for the 3-part division of the Hebrew scripture, the Torah( The Law), the Nebuim (The Prophets) and the Kethubim (The Writings) . Though the term Tanakh is more recent, the designations of the divisions of Hebrew scripture existed before the New Testament era. One of the first to refer to this division is the grandson of Jesus ben Sirach (132 B.C.). His grandfather is the author of Sirach or Ecclesiasticus. In the prologue he writes the following; Whereas many and great things have been delivered unto us by the law and the prophets, and by others that have followed their steps, for the which things Israel ought to be commended for learning and wisdom; and whereof not only the readers must needs become skillful themselves, but also they that desire to learn be able to profit them which are without, both by speaking and writing: my grandfather Jesus, when he had much given himself to the reading of the law, and the prophets, and other books of our fathers, and had gotten therein good judgment, was drawn on also himself to write something pertaining to learning and wisdom; to the intent that those which are desirous to learn, and are addicted to these things, might profit much more in living according to the law. (King James Version) The three-part division of scripture starts with the Torah or Law, the Hebrew word for Law ishrwtTowrah. In fact, the Law (Torah) required the king to have a copy of the Law, which he copied from the copy held by the Levites. This demonstrates the principle of Manuscript transmission or copies. If Kings were copying, other would make copies also, including scribes and priests.
18 "Also it shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the one before the priests, the Levites. 19 "And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes, Deuteronomy 17:18-19
This copy of the Law, the Torah, included the first 5-books of the Bible. The King was required by the Law not only to read it, but also to copy it. The other parts or divisions were added as revelation came through prophets, who followed Moses. Jesus in the New Testament also refers to the three-part division of the Old Testament. In His reference, the book of Psalms is the first book, of the third-division the Kethubim (the writings). Jesus is referring to scripture as inspired, pointing towards Him. The point being the 3-part division of the Hebrew canon speaks of Him.
44 Then He said to them, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalmsconcerning Me." Luke 24:44
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Titles The Law
Passages I Cor 14:21; Philo Contempl 10:78 Eusebius Proep. Ev. 13.12; Luke 16:17; John 10:34;15:25 The Law and the Prophets 2 Macc 15:9; 4 Macc 18:10; Matt. 5:17; Luke 16:16 Moses and the Prophets Luke 16:29,31; 24:27; John 1:45; Acts 26:22 The Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms Luke 24:44 The Law and the Prophets and the rest of the books Prologue to Sirach (three times0 Laws, and oracles delivered through the mouth of the Philo Contepl. 3:25 prophets, and psalms The scriptures Philo Abr. 61:236; Matt. 21:42; Mark 12:24; 2 Pet. 3:16 The scriptures laid up in the Temple Josephus Ant. 5.1.17:61 The (Most) Holy Scriptures Philo Spec 2.28 :159; 2.43 :238; Praem. 14:79; Contempl. 3 :28; 0::75, 78; Josephus B.J. 6.54 :311; Ant. 1.1.13:13; 10.10.4 :210; I Clem. 45.2 The Book of God Phil Det. 37:139 The (Most) Holy Books I Macc 12:9; Josephus Vita 75 :418; Eusebius Praep. Ev. 9.24 The (Most) Holy Record Philo Somn. 1.27 :172; Congr. 31 :175 A very ancient and permanent record of the past Josephus Contra Apion 1.2 :8
Formation of the Old Testament Canon

The Torah The Torah before Moses? (Before 1450 B.C.) The formation of the Old Testament Canon begins with the Torah, or the Law, (the books of Moses). Moses is dated to about 1450 B.C., before Moses was a period covered in Genesis, known as the Patriarchal period. Some may ask, how did Moses who lived about 600-years after Abraham, know the details of Abrahams life? Further how did Moses know about the events before the flood and what transpired in the Garden of Eden? There are a couple of answers, which can clear up this question; 1. Since writing clearly existing in the time of Abraham, remember Abraham was from the urban centers of Ur. Abraham could have recorded the aspects of his life from the times of Noah until his day. What happened after his son Isaac, also could have been recorded, written down for later generations. This written transmission would continue until the days of Moses. Genesis ends with the death of Joseph (Genesis 50:25-26). Exodus begins with the time of Moses, with a reference to the 400-years of Egyptian bondage, from Joseph to Moses. 2. Since, many of the details of events in Genesis would require intimate knowledge of the events, knowledge only available to the Lord. Moses on Mount Sinai, received not only the 10 commandments, but additional revelations, revealing the creation of the world, Adam and Eve, the fall of man and so forth.
12 Then the Lord said to Moses, "Come up to Me on the mountain and be there; and I will give you tablets of stone, and the law and commandments which I have written, that you may teach them." 13 So Moses arose with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up to the mountain of God. 14 And he said to the elders, "Wait here for us until we come back to you. Indeed Aaron and Hur are with you. If any man has a difficulty, let him go to them." 15 Then Moses went up into the mountain, and a cloud covered the mountain. 16 Now the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day He called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. 17 The sight of the glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the children of Israel. 18 So Moses went into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights. Exodus 24:12-18
For forty-days, Moses received revelation from God, including instructions on the building of the Tabernacle, and the laws to atone for sins.
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The Torah (1450 to 536 B.C.) Moses would have completed the Law (Torah) to Deuteronomy 33. Deuteronomy 34 includes the death of Moses, probably written down by Joshua, who succeeded Moses. The Law of Moses, passed from generation to generation, several ways. 1. Every seven-years the Law was to be read in public. (Deuteronomy 31:9-11) 2. The Law was to be alongside the Arc of the Covenant. (Deuteronomy 31:24-26) 2. The priest were to have a copy of the Law (Deuteronomy 17:18) 4. The king himself was to make a copy of the law, which the priests kept. (Deuteronomy 17:19) Joshua contributed the book of Joshua to scripture, as succeeding prophets would also add to the scripture, people such as Samuel, Amos, Isaiah, Ezekiel and others. Each succeeding generation, would point back to Moses and the line of scripture. Joshua set the example, as illustrated in Joshua chapter eight (See Joshua 8:35).
26 Then Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God. And he took a large stone, and set it up there under the oak that was by the sanctuary of the Lord. Joshua 24:26
This process would continue for ages to come, the Law preserved at the Tabernacle, during the time of the judges, until the Temple period (960 B.C) in the time of Solomon. Samuel like Joshua, wrote down the law in a book (I Samuel 10;25), preserving and transmitting the law for future generations. David followed the Law of Moses (1 Kings 2:3), unlike some of his descendents who forgot about the law. The nation Israel fell into the sins of the lands, which they occupied. As a result, Israel became two nations, divided into northern and southern kingdoms, Israel in the north and Judah in the south. Judah, the southern kingdom, preserved the law and the prophets. The written revelations of Moses and the prophets were stored in the Temple. The law was also preserved and transmitted in other parts of Judah, as shown by the Qumran community at the Dead Sea. Judah also of fell away, followed by periods of revival, God often intervened by send prophets, bringing the people back. Prophets such as Isaiah (700 B.C.) and Jeremiah (605 B.C.) appeared on the scene to restore the people, and communicate Gods word to backslidden nation. In the days of Josiah (640-609 B.C.), the law was discovered in the Temple, leading to a revival prior to the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.. Ezekiel and Daniel were products of Josiahs revival. They set the stage for the captives who would be led into Babylon as the nation was judged for her sins.
8 Then Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, "I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord." And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. 11 Now it happened, when the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, that he tore his clothes. 2 Kings 22:8,11
Through the ministry of Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel, the Law was preserved, through the exile period. Both Jeremiah and Ezekiel were priests and Daniel became a high official in the Babylonian and Persian Kingdoms. At the end of Daniels life, the Jews were allowed to return and the Temple was rebuilt. Cyrus the great allowed the Jews to return and build the Temple. The Prophets and other writings before the exile Following Moses, the Lord revealed His word through prophets, including Joshua and others. Joshua for example, saw the Lord, before the conquest of Jericho (Joshua 5:13-15). From Joshua until the exile, twenty-three writers of the canon (Old Testament) preserved the revelations of Gods Word. The Old Testament records the written words of these prophets (2 Chron. 21:12; Isa. 30:8; Jer. 25:13; 29:1; 30:2; 36:1-32; 51:60-64; Ezek. 43:11; Dan. 7:1; Hab. 2:2). Their prophetic revelations take place within the context of the nations history (1 Chron. 29:29; 2 Chron. 9:29; 12:15; 13:22; 20:34; 26:22 32:32; 33:18-19). Isaiah for example delivers Gods message to a sinful people, who are being attacked by the Assyrian nation, a result of Gods judgment for their sins. Daniel a prophet taken into exile refers to the collection of books taken into the Babylon. The Jews taken to Babylon, preserved the writings of the Jewish prophets, who wrote before the exile. Daniel was an official in both Babylon and Persia, his status allowed him to preserve the texts, along with unknown others. Mordecai, Esther and Nehemiah were also officials in Persia, who maintained the revelations, prior to the exile. Today, Daniels tomb to is in the city of Susa, in Iran.
2 in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the Lord through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. Daniel 9:2
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The books refer to the collection of books taken into the exile, among them a copy of Jeremiah or original from Jeremiah. The books would have also included the other prophets and the Law of Moses, which Daniel quotes from. , Following the Exile (536 B.C. to New Testament times) In the Babylonian exile, the words of the prophets were preserved. Daniel was added to the canon in the exile, Daniel was revealed during the exile under Babylon and Persia. After the Jews returned to Judah, and reestablish the Temple, the books of Esther, Ezra, Nehemiah, Haggai, Zechariahand Malachi were added to the canon. During this period the words of were then preserved in the Aramaic square script as the manuscripts wore out, replacing the ancient Hebrew alphabet. Second Maccabees records the establishment of a library by Nehemiah, the Jewish governor appointed by the Persian king. This collection continued in the time of Judas Maccabees, who preserved the writing of the prophets.
The same things are reported in the records and in the memories of Nehemiah, and also that he founded a library and collected the books about the kings and prophets, and the writings of David, and letters of kings about votive offerings. In the same way, Judas also collected all the books that had been lost on account of the war which had come upon us, and they are in our possession. 2 Maccabees 2:13-14.
Ezra the scribe along with Nehemiah worked to maintain the peoples fidelity to the Law of Moses.
1Now all the people gathered together as one man in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded Israel. 2So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could hear with understanding on the first day of the seventh month. Nehemiah 8:1-2
Following the time of Malachi (425 B.C.), the last prophet of the Jewish canon, who lived in the second Temple period, the Talmud records the closing of canon with the ceasing of the Holy Spirit. Until then [the coming of Alexander the Great and the end of the empire of the Persians] the prophets prophesied through the Holy Spirit. From then on, incline thine ear and hear the words of the wise (Seder Olam Rabbah 30, quoting Prov. 22:17) Surely R. Samuel b. Inia said: ..To indicate that in five things the first Santuary differed from the second: in the ark, the ark-cover the Cherubim, the fire, the Shechinah, the Holy Spirit [of Prophecy] and the Urim-we-Thummim [the oracle plate] (T.D. Yoma 21b;T.P. Taanit 2.1; T.P. Makkot 2.4-8) R. Abdimi of Haifa said, Since the day when the Temple was destroyed, prophecy has been taken from the prophets and given to the wise. (T.B. Baba Batra 12a)
First Maccabees records Simon Maccabees who speaks of great sorrow in Israel since the prophets ceased to appear to the nation (I Macc. 9;27)
The Old Testament in the New Testament times

The foundation of the New Testament is the Old Testament. Jesus Christ (Messiah) is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies regarding the Messiah. Jesus Himself, proclaims the exalted position of the word of Moses, placing them above the heavens and the earth.
18 "For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Matthew 5:18
The Debate of Old Testament Canon in the Church The Apocrypha is collection of books, for the most part introduced during the time after Malachi (425 B.C.). From Malachi to the Maccabean period (165 B.C.),this period is known as the Inter-testimonial Period was when most of the books in the Apocrypha were written. The debate within Christian circles, Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox is whether these books are part of the canon. Encyclopedia Britannica summarizes the argument In biblical literature, works outside an accepted canon of scripture. The history of the term's usage indicates that it referred to a body of esoteric writings that were at first prized, later tolerated, and finally excluded. In its broadest sense apocrypha has come to mean any writings of dubious authority. There are several levels of dubiety within the general concept of apocryphal works in Judeo-Christian biblical writings. Apocrypha per se are outside the canon, not considered divinely inspired but regarded as worthy of study by the faithful. Pseudepigrapha are spurious works ostensibly written by a biblical figure. Deuterocanonical works are those that are accepted in one canon but not in all. At the time when Greek was the common spoken language in the Mediterranean region, the Old Testamentthe Hebrew Biblewas incomprehensible to most of the population. For this reason, Jewish scholars produced the Septuagint, a translation of the Old 42 5. The Books of the Old Testament, the Canon, The Tanakh |
Testament books from various Hebrew texts, along with fragments in Aramaic, into Greek. That version incorporated a number of works that later, non-Hellenistic Jewish scholarship at the Council of Jamnia (AD 90) identified as being outside the authentic Hebrew canon. The Talmud separates these works as Sefarim Hizonim (Extraneous Books). The Septuagint was an important basis for St. Jerome's translation of the Old Testament into Latin for the Vulgate Bible; and, although he had doubts about the authenticity of some of the apocryphal works that it contained (he was the first to employ the word apocrypha in the sense of noncanonical), he was overruled, and most of them were included in the Vulgate. On April 8, 1546, the Council of Trent declared the canonicity of nearly the entire Vulgate, excluding only the Third and Fourth Books of Maccabees, the Prayer of Manasseh, Psalm 151, and the First and Second Books of Esdras. Eastern Christendom, meanwhile, had accepted some of the Old Testament apocryphaTobit, Judith, the Wisdom of Solomon, and Ecclesiasticus (Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach)but rejected the rest.
Evidence of the Old Testament Canon

What Old Testament did Jesus use? Since Christianity is based on the identity of Jesus (The Messiah), the Old Testament Jesus used is the Old Testament his church should use. The internal evidence of New Testament reveals the Old Testament used by Jesus is same books used in the Jewish Bible today, the Tanakh. This would therefore exclude the seven books known as the Apocrypha to Protestants and Jews and theDeuterocanonical books to the Catholics. Lets examine the evidence.
1. Luke 24:44
Jesus makes reference in Luke 24:44, to a three part division of scripture; this division is the current structure of the Jewish Bible. Psalms is the first and longest book of the third section of the Jewish Bible. Then He said to them, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalmsconcerning Me." Luke 24;44 The Law of Moses The Prophets The Psalms The Torah Nebhim (Prophets) Kethubhim or Hagiographa
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2. Luke 11:51, Matthew 23:35
"from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation. Luke 11:51 From the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah With these words Jesus confirms his witness to the extent of the Old Testament canon. Abel was the first martyr recorded in Scripture (Genesis 4:8) and Zechariah the last martyr to be named in the Hebrew Old Testament order. Zechariah was stoned while prophesying to the people in the court of the house of the Lord (2 Chronicles 24:21). Genesis was the first book in the Hebrew canon and 2 Chronicles the last. Jesus is saying from Genesis to II Chronicles, or according to our order Genesis to Malachi thereby confirming the divine authority and inspiration of the entire Hebrew canon. He confirms the 3-part division of the Old Testament.
3. John 10:31-36; Luke 24:44
Jesus disagreed with the oral tradition of the Pharisees (Mark 7, Matthew 15), not with their concept of the Hebrew canon. There is no evidence whatever of any dispute between Him and the Jews as to the canonicity of any Old Testament book. Evidence outside of the Bible
4. Prologue to Ecclesiasticus Sirach (130 B.C.)
Sirach who wrote and lived in Jerusalem makes mention of most famous men of the Old Testament. He makes explicit mention of the Twelve Prophets. (Minor Prophets) This would indicate the whole or at least most of the OT was known to him and already in his day the Minor Prophets were regarded as a special group by themselves. In his prologue, he three-times refers to the tripartite division (3 part) of the OT. Example: Whereas many great teachings have been given to us through the law and the prophets and the others that followed them Sirach 19:20-24
5. Philo
Just after Christ (A.D. 20 B.C.-A.D.), Philo witnessed to a threefold classification, making reference to the Law, the Prophets (or Prophecies), as well as hymns and the others which foster and perfect knowledge and piety[7]
6. Josephus (A.D. 37-100 )
About 90 AD, the Jewish historian, Josephus, spoke about the closing of the Hebrew canon. Since Artaxerexes age the succession of prophets had ceased This is what he wrote in Contra Apion. Showing in his day the Canon was closed. Josephus also wrote about the number of books in the Hebrew canon. It therefore naturally, or rather necessarily, follows (seeing that with us it is not open to everybody to write the records, and that there is no discrepancy in what is written; seeing that , on the contrary, the prophets alone had this privilege, obtaining their knowledge of the most remote and ancient history through the inspiration which they owed to God, and committing to writing a clear account of the events of their own time just as they occurred)it follows, I say, that we do not possess myriads of inconsistent books, Conflicting with each other. Our book, those which are justly accredited, are but two and twenty and contain the record of all time. Contra Apion 1:7-8 The twenty-two books here combine Jeremiah and Lamentation, and Ruth and Judges.
7. 2 Esdras
The apocryphal book of 2 Esdras (sometimes called 4 Esdras) was written in the first century. In this fictional account Ezra rewrites the biblical books after they were burned (2 Esd. 14:21), in forty days Ezra revealed ninety-four books, but only 24 were to be given to the people, the wise and un-wise. Make public the twenty-four books that you wrote first, and let the worthy and the unworthy read them; but keep the seventy that were written last, in order to give them to the wise among your people. For in them is the spring of understanding, the fountain of wisdom, and the river of knowledge. And I did so. (2 Esdras 14;45b-48) The point here is the twenty-four books referred to is the Hebrew canon, which corresponds to the current accounting of the Old Testament in the time of Jesus.
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8. Origen (A.D.185-253)
Origen one of the early church fathers writes regarding the number of books in the Hebrew canon. But it should be known that there are twenty-two canonical books, according to the Hebrew tradition; the same as the number of the letters of their alphabet. He then lists them according to their Hebrew and Greek names.
9. Jerome (A.D.345-420)
Jerome was the translator of the Catholic Bible the Vulgate, and the eminent scholar of his day. In the preface to the book of Daniel he writes regarding the Jewish canon. For all scripture is by them divided into three parts: the law, the Prophets, and the Hagiographa [writings], which have respectively five, eight, and eleven books The twenty-four books listed by Jerome correspond to the thirty-nine books of our Old Testament. By adding the 12 books of the minor prophets and separating Lamentations, and Ezra. Samuel, Kings and Chronicles are also divided into two books instead of one each.
10. The Council of Jamnia A.D. 90
The council of Jewish rabbis affirmed the Tanakh, as being the inspired word of the Lord to the Jewish people. They rejected the Apocrypha as uninspired. 39 Books (Today order) 22 , 24 (Josephus, 22, Jerome accounting 24) Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers Deuteronomy Joshua, Judges, I Samuel, II Samuel, I Kings, II Kings Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, I Chronicles, II Chronicles Total Books 39 13 Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, EzraNehemiah, Chronicles (I & II) 24 11 15 6 5 Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy Joshua, Judges-, Samuel (I & II), Kings (I & II) Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, the 12 Minor Prophets 4 4 5
[8]
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The golden age of Ugarit
The most prosperous and the best-documented age in Ugarit's history, dated from about 1450 to about 1200 BC, produced great royal palaces and temples and shrines, with a high priests' library and other libraries on the acropolis. Some of the family vaults built under the stone houses show strong Mycenaean influence. Mycenaean and Cypriot pottery in great amounts has also been found. After the discovery of the temple library, which revealed a hitherto unknown cuneiform alphabetic script as well as an entirely new mythological and religious literature, several other palatial as well as private libraries were found, along with archives dealing with all aspects of the city's political, social, economic, and cultural life. The art of Ugarit in its golden age is best illustrated by a golden cup and patera (bowl) ornamented with incised Ugaritic scenes; by carved stone stelae and bronze statuettes and ceremonial axes; by carved ivory panels depicting royal activities; and by other finecarved ivories. Despite Egyptian influence, Ugaritic art exhibits a Syrian style of its own. Soon after 1200 BC Ugarit came to an end. Its fall coincided with the invasion of the Northern and Sea Peoples and certainly with earthquakes and famines. In the Iron Age and during the 6th4th century BC, there were small settlements on the site (Leukos Limen). The excavators of the site were fortunate in the number and variety of finds of ancient records in cuneiform script. The excavations continue, and each season throws some new and often unexpected light on the ancient north Canaanite civilization. The texts are written on clay tablets either in the Babylonian cuneiform script or in the special alphabetic cuneiform script invented in Ugarit. Several copies of this alphabet, with its 30 signs, were found in 1949 and later. A shorter alphabet, with 25, or even 22, signs, seems to have been used by 13th-century traders. Scribes used four languages: Ugaritic, Akkadian, Sumerian, and Hurrian, and seven different scripts were used in Ugarit in this period: Egyptian and Hittite hieroglyphic and Cypro-Minoan, Sumerian, Akkadian, Hurrian, and Ugaritic cuneiform. These show clearly the cosmopolitan character of the city.
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Reasons the Apocryphal parts of the LXX should be rejected as scripture

1. There is not sufficient evidence that they were reckoned as canonical by the Jews anywhere. 2. The LXX design was literary, to build the library of Ptolemy and Alexandrians. 3. All LXX manuscripts are Christian and not Jewish origin. With a 500 years difference between translation and existing manuscripts. Enough time for Apocryphal books to slip in. 4. LXX manuscripts do not all have the same apocryphal books and names. 5. During the 2nd Century AD the Alexandrian Jews adopted Aquilas Greek version of the OT without apocryphal books. 6. The manuscripts at the Dead Sea make it clear no canonical book of the OT was written later than the Persian period. 7. Philo, Alexandrian Jewish philosopher (20 BC-40 AD), quoted the Old Testament prolifically, and even recognized the threefold classification, but he never quoted from the Apocrypha as inspired. 8. Josephus (30-100 AD.), Jewish historian, explicitly excludes the Apocrypha; numbering the books of the Old Testament as 22 neither does he quote the apocryphal books as Scripture. 9. Jesus and the New Testament writes never once quote the Apocrypha, although there are hundreds of quotes and references to almost the entire book of the Old Testament. 10. The Jewish scholars of Jamnia (90 AD) did not recognize the Apocrypha. 11. No canon or council of the Christian church recognized the Apocrypha as inspired for nearly four centuries. 12. Many of the great fathers of the early church spoke out against the Apocrypha---for example, Origen, Cyril of Jerusalem, and Athanasius. 13. Jerome (AD 340-420) The great scholar and translator of the Latin Vulgate rejected the Apocrypha as part of the canon. 14. Not until 1546 AD in a polemical action at the counter-Reformation Council of Trent (1545-63), did the apocryphal books receive full canonical status by the Roman Catholic Church.
[1]
Theologian, ecclesiastical statesman, and Egyptian national leader; he was the chief defender of Christian orthodoxy in the 4th-century battle against Arianism,
[2] [3]
Wegner, Paul D. The Journey from the Texts to the Translations, Pg. 102 Baker Academic . Sirach is also called the Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach a deuterocanonical (Apocrypha) work (accepted in the Roman Catholic canon but non-canonical for Jews and Protestants)
[4]
The period of exile is when the Jewish nation was taken captive into Babylon from 605 to 539 B.C. Wegner, Paul D. The Journey from the Texts to the Translations, Pg. 106 Baker Academic 1999 Encyclopedia Brittanica, 2004 Apocrypha article Geisler, Norman, A General Introduction to the Bible, Pg. 246, Moody Press When Jeremiah & Lamentations and Judges and Ruth are combined the total number of books is 22 as opposed to 24
[5] [6]
[7] [8]
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6. The Apocrypha, The Septuagint and the canon

Introduction to the non-canonical books What are the books of the Old Testament? Today, many critics of the Bible attack the Bible by pointing out the differences between the Catholic and Protestant Bibles, specifically the books in the Old Testament. Questions often brought up are, Why do the Catholics have seven additional books not contained in the Protestant Bible? What is the history and origin of these additional books? Are there other books excluded from the Old Testament? For those not familiar with the history of the Bible, these questions can pose an obstacle.
A Closed or open Canon?

The history regarding this issue of additional books in the Old Testament is really an issue of canon. The word canon, means rule or standard. As applied to scripture the question, was the Old Testament canon, open or closed after Malachi (425 B.C.), or were new books added? is at the heart of the issue. There are several strong arguments, which clearly show the Old Testament Canon was closed before the New Testament period, as dealt with previously. We will just review some of the main arguments here, 1. Jesus, in Luke 11:51 and Matthew 23:55 when he refers to the the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah affirms the first book of the Hebrew scripture as Genesis, and the last book as II Chronicles. This affirmation demonstrates the Hebrew Canon was closed by the time of Malachi in 425 B.C. 2. Jesus also referred to the 3-part division of Hebrew scripture in Luke 24:44, referring to the, Law of Moses.. the prophets the Psalms. This reference confirms the current division of Hebrew canon, which excludes the books known as the Apocrypha or Deuterocanonicals. 3. Josephus (37-100 A.D), the Jewish historian also affirmed in his arguments in Contra Apion 1:7-8the number of books in the Hebrew canon was numbered at 22, which according to Jewish numbering is the same as the 39 in the Protestant Old Testament. (See Chapter 5, Old Testament Canon).
Our books, those which are justly accredited, are but two and twenty and contain the record of all time. Contra Apion 1:7-8
4. Jewish tradition also taught in the Babylonian Talmud, the books in the Hebrew Canon are the identical 39 books, which are in both the Protestant and Catholic Bibles, to the exclusion of the Apocrypha. (See Talmud Babylon Baba Batra 14b) 5. Jerome (325-420 A.D.) The Biblical scholar of his day, and the translator of the Catholic Bible, the Latin Vulgate, clearly agreed with the Hebrew canon, being limited 39 books of the present Old Testament to the exclusion of the additional books of the Apocrypha. The debate regarding the canon stems back to the early church and the Greek translation of the Old Testament known as the Septuagint. To understand this debate regarding the apocrypha, we first need to understand the history of the Septuagint.
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6. The Apocrypha, The Septuagint and the canon Introduction to the non-canonical books |
What is the Septuagint?

In short, the Septuagint is the early Greek translation of the Old Testament dating to 250 B.C. The history behind a Greek translation dates back to the days of Alexander the Great. When the armies of Alexander defeated the Persians in 331 B.C., and established themselves in the lands of Israel, Greek became one of the common languages in the Mediterranean world. After Alexander died, his four generals divided his kingdom between themselves. Two of his Generals established competing Greek kingdoms, the Ptolemy and the Seleucidskingdoms, each battling over the lands of Israel from the time of Alexanders death to the Maccabean war (165 B.C.), which established an independent Jewish Kingdom for about 100-years. During this time, the Jewish Greek-speaking population of Alexandria Egypt continued to grow and flourish. The primary language of the Jews in Alexandria was Greek; Hebrew became more archaic over time, in Egypt. Spoken and written Hebrew remained strong in the lands of Judea/Palestine, as opposed to Alexandria. This lack of familiarity with the Hebrew Scriptures gave impetus for Greek speaking Jews, to translate the Hebrew scriptures. At this time, during the reign of Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285246 BC), the ruler of Ptolemaic Kingdom, sent a request to Eleazar, the chief priest in Jerusalem. He wanted him to send translators, to translate the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek, for his library at Alexandria. The letter known as theLetter of Aristeas describes how Ptolemy II requested translators and Eleazar sent 72 scribes, who translated the Septuagint in 72-days. Hence, the name Septuagint, means Seventy from the Latinseptuaginta, 70, seventy-two translators translating the scriptures in seventy-two days. This account in the letter is not completely accepted by many because of circumstances surrounding the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures. The translation began during this time, the details are not completely clear. Many scholars feel the Pentateuch; the Laws of Moses, were translated about 250B.C., with the other books of the Bible, following a 100-year period, until the complete Old Testament was translated. The translation had a profound influence on the Jewish Greek speaking community. Greeks could now read and comment on the Hebrew Scriptures without having to learn Hebrew. Early Christianity and the Septuagint The Septuagint became the Jewish Bible for the Jews of the [1] Diaspora who communicated in the Greek language. In 63 B.C., the Jewish Maccabean Kingdom fell to the Romans, and Judea became a Roman province. By this time, the Greek language well established in the Mediterranean world, allowed Christianity began to spread in the Roman world, the Jewish Bible, the Old Testament, for the Greek-speaking world was the Septuagint. The basis of Christianity is Jesus, who is the Messiah of the Old Testament. Christians, those who believe Jesus Christ is Messiah presented Jesus to the Jews of Asia and Rome, they used the Septuagint as their proof text. Showing how Jesus fulfilled Jewish prophecy about the Messiah. In fact, at the writing of the Gospels and epistles, many of the quotes from the Hebrew Scriptures come from the Septuagint because they were widely accepted in the Roman and Greek worlds. The Apocrypha The word Apocrypha comes from the Greek word, meaning hidden or concealed. The term has several meanings, which are important to distinguish. The term generally refers to religious writings found in the Septuagint and Latin Vulgate, but not in the Hebrew Bible. The names for these writings can differ between Protestants and Catholics. The Catholics consider these writings as canonical, while Protestants do not, and Orthodox churches consider some as canon to a lesser extent then Catholics.
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Protestant Names 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Tobit Judith Wisdom of Solomon Ecclesiasticus / Sirach I Maccabees II Maccabees Baruch Epistle of Jeremiah Additions to Esther Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Young men
Roman Catholic Names

Tobias Judith Wisdom Ecclesiasticus I Maccabees II Maccabees Baruch 1-5 Baruch 6 Esther 10:4-16:24 Daniel 3:24-90
11 12 13 14
Susanna Bel and the Dragon I Esdras 2 Esdras
Daniel 13 Daniel 14 3 Esdras (sometimes called I Esdras) 4 Esdras (sometimes called 2 Esdras)
15 Prayer of Manasseh Prayer of Manasseh Since Catholics consider these books canon, therefore they do not call them Apocrypha butdeuterocanonical, meaning later canon. The Council of Trent in 1546, declared the Apocrypha as canon, except for 3 Esdras, 4 Esdras and the Prayer of Manasseh which they call apocryphal. In the Catholic Bible, these additional writings within the books themselves, for example, Susana becomesDaniel 13, and Bel and the Dragon becomes Daniel 14, while the Protestant Bible only has 12 chapters to the book of Daniel. When referring to the Old Testament, there are four classes of literature. Books accepted by all- Homologoumena Books disputed by some- Antilegomena Books rejected by all- Pseudepigrapha Books accepted by some- Apocrypha 1.Books accepted by All- Homologoumena These are the books of the Old Testament, which were not disputed once they became part of the Hebrew canon. These books number 34 of the 39 books in the Hebrew canon, as numbered in the Protestant Old Testament. 2.Books disputed by some- Antilegomena Following the fall of the Temple in A.D. 70, Johanan ben Zakkai set up rabbinical center in the city of Jamnia, with Roman permission. The rise of Christianity and their use of Jewish writings, including the Apocrypha alarmed the rabbis; they then held discussions regarding the Hebrew canon. These discussions became known as the Council of Jamnia (.A.D. 90). At this council, five of the books in the Hebrew canon were questioned, regarding their canon. These included Ezekiel, Proverbs, Esther, Ecclesiastes and the Song of Songs. In the end, each book was affirmed as part of the Hebrew canon. The books of the apocrypha were dismissed, as outside of the Hebrew canon. The following are quick summations of the reasons these books were questioned by the rabbis.
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Ezekiels was questioned regarding the Mosaic Law in chapters 40-48. Proverbs was brought into question regarding some apparent contradictions. Esther did not mention God, so it was questioned. Ecclesiastes appeared to by to pessimistic or skeptical. Song of Songs was questioned because of its explicitness regarding sexual love.
3. Books rejected by all- Pseudepigrapha A third grouping of books, are those which claim to be written by biblical authors but are false (Pseudo) writings. They express religious fancy and magic, being written between the period of 200 B.C. and 200 A..D. Norman Geisler comments the actual number of the books are not known, but those worth noting are listed below. Regarding their contents, he makes the following remarks. Most of these books are comprised of dreams, visions, and revelations in the apocalyptic style of Ezekiel, Daniel and Zechariah. A notable characteristic of these books is that they depict the bright future of the Messianic kingdom, as well as the questions of creation, angels, sin, suffering and rewards for faithful living.[2] Type of work Legendary Name 1. The Book of Jubilee 2. The Letter of Aristeas 3. The Book of Adam and Eve 4. The Martyrdom of Isaiah Apocalyptic 1. 1 Enoch 2. The Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs 3. The Sibylline Oracle 4. The Assumption of Moses 5. 2 Enoch, or the Book of the Secrets of Enoch 6. 2 Baruch, or the Syriac Apocalypse of Baruch 7. 3 Baruch, or the Greek Apocalypse of Baruch Didatical 1. 3 Maccabees 2. 4 Maccabees 3. Pirke Aboth 4. The Story of Ahikar Poetical 1. The Psalms of Solomon 2. Psalm 151 Historical 1. The Fragment of a Zadokite Work These books are called Apocrypha in the Catholic Church; this is to be distinguished from the Apocrypha in the Protestant churches, which the Catholics accept as deuterocanonical. Copies of several of the pseudepigraphical works were found in Dead Sea caves in Qumran, includingJubilees, I Enoch, Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs. 4. Books accepted by some- Apocrypha These books are what most people think of when we refer to the Apocrypha. In Judaism, they were classified as, writings which do not defile the hands. The term was applied because the books were not considered scripture, and therefore handling them did not cause ones hands to be defiled. 51 6. The Apocrypha, The Septuagint and the canon Introduction to the non-canonical books |
With the rise of Christianity in the first century, the Septuagint (LXX ) was the Bible (Old Testament) used by the early church. The early members of the church felt no urge to denounce the additional writings (the apocrypha) which came along with the Greek translation (LXX) of the Hebrew Scriptures. These same books (Apocrypha) were not found in the Hebrew canon, the writers of the New Testament; though they quote from the Septuagint, do not quote from the Apocrypha. The period between Testaments, between B.C. 425 and the time of Christ, gave rise to additional writings, which included the history of the Maccabees among others. These writing became part of the LXX library; some in the early church viewed these additional works as scripture rather then additional works. In the early church, there was debate as some used the Apocrypha to help with Christian instruction. Clement (d. A.D. 95) quoted from the Wisdom of Solomon and Polycarp of Smyrna (d. A.D. 156) quoted Tobit. Jerome (d. A.D.420) however, was clear to make a distinction between it and the Hebrew canon, which he considered scripture and the Apocrypha. Jerome with some reservations included the Apocrypha in his Vulgate translation upon the Catholic Churchs insistence. Others such as Augustine (d. A.D. 430), held the view the apocrypha was canon, but later admitted to a distinction between the Hebrew Canon and the Outside books. The distinction between the Hebrew Canon, and the Apocrypha would become an issue during the Reformation, as the grip of the Rome on the Bible lessened with the printing press, and churches broke from Romes authority. In the Reformation, the Bible became the supreme authority for belief and conduct, causing a greater focus on the Apocryphas inclusion. In 1534, Martin Luther placed these writings at the end of his bible, under the label Apocrypha, calling them outside books. The Catholic Church responded in the Council of Trent, 1546 by declaring them as Canon, all except 1 and 2 Esdras and the Prayer of Mannaseh. Calvin and those who followed him rejected the authority of the Apocrypha, stating that its words were not divinely inspired. Following Luthers lead, translations of the Bible separated the Apocrypha from the rest of scripture placing it at the end, throughout Europe. In the end the Catholic Church, elevated the status of the Apocrypha to the level of scripture, while Protestant churches placed it on par with non-inspired writings.
[3]
Is the Apocrypha Canon?

There are several arguments put forward to show the Apocrypha should be considered part of the Old Testament Canon.
Arguments for Inclusion Replies to the Arguments
1. The New Testament reflects the thought of the Apocrypha and even refers to it Hebrews 11:35, with 2 Macc 7,12) 2. The New Testament quotes mostly from the Greek Old Testament, the LXX, which contained the Apocrypha.
There may be allusions but there is no direct quote from any of the 15 books as authoritative or canonical. There is no evidence that the Septuagint of the first century contained the Apocrypha. The earliest Greek manuscripts, which contain them, date from the 4th Century. (Codex Sinaiticus, Codex Alexandrinus, Codex Vaticanus) Though respected an honored for their status in the early church, the early church fathers were not inspired, so their actions and writings must be compared to scripture as opposed to themselves. Although some fathers accepted them, others vehemently opposed their use, including Athanasius, Cyril of Jerusalem, Origen and Jerome. The earliest Greek manuscripts date to the time of Augustine, whose influence is reflected in the codex manuscripts. In addition, none of the Greek Manuscripts
3. Some of the early church fathers used the Apocrypha as scripture in public worship.
4. Some of the early church fathers accepted all of the books of the Apocrypha as canonical, for example Irenaeus, Tertullian and Clement of Alexandria. 5. The Greek Manuscripts interpose the Apocrypha among the Old Testament Books. 52
contain all the Apocryphal books. No Greek manuscript has the exact list of Apocryphal books accepted by the Council of Trent (154563) 6. Some of the apocryphal books written in Hebrew have been found among other Old Testament canonical books in the Dead Sea community at Qumran. The discoveries at Qumran included their libraries which would have included Bibles and other books. Canonical books at the Dead Sea site, were written on special parchment and in script which was not the case with the Apocryphal books.
Arguments against the Apocrypha

1. There is not sufficient evidence that they were reckoned as canonical by the Jews anywhere. 2. The LXX design was literary, to build the library of Ptolemy and the Alexandrians. 3. All LXX manuscripts are Christian and not Jewish origin. With a 500 years difference between translation and existing manuscripts. Enough time for Apocryphal books to slip in. 4. LXX manuscripts do not all have the same apocryphal books and names. 5. During the 2nd Century AD the Alexandrian Jews adopted Aquilas Greek version of the OT without apocryphal books. 6. The manuscripts at the Dead Sea make it clear no canonical book of the OT was written later than the Persian period. 7. Philo, Alexandrian Jewish philosopher (20 BC-40 AD), quoted the Old Testament prolifically, and even recognized the threefold classification, but he never quoted from the Apocrypha as inspired. 8. Josephus (30-100 AD.), Jewish historian, explicitly excludes the Apocrypha; numbering the books of the Old Testament as 22 neither does he quote the apocryphal books as Scripture. 9. Jesus and the New Testament writes never once quote the Apocrypha, although there are hundreds of quotes and references to almost the entire book of the Old Testament. 10. The Jewish scholars of Jamnia (90 AD) did not recognize the Apocrypha. 11. No canon or council of the Christian church recognized the Apocrypha as inspired for nearly four centuries. 12. Many of the great fathers of the early church spoke out against the Apocrypha---for example, Origen, Cyril of Jerusalem, and Athanasius. 13. Jerome (AD 340-420) The great scholar and translator of the Latin Vulgate rejected the Apocrypha as part of the canon. 14. Not until 1546 AD in a polemical action at the counter-Reformation Council of Trent (1545-63), did the apocryphal books receive full canonical status by the Roman Catholic Church.
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Summary of Apocrypha Books[4]

Book Wisdom of Solomon Sirach Tobit Date
Later part of the first century B.C. 180 B.C.
Summary
Describes the benefits of wisdom and the joys that accompany righteous living, as well as punishments for the wicked Very similar to the biblical Book of Proverbs, it includes moral ethical maxims, proverbs, songs of praise, theological and philosophical reflections on life, and customs of the day. Tobit a righteous Israelite living in Nineveh, is an example to the rest of the captives even in the midst of the great adversities. Tobit becomes blind and prays to God to restore his sight. At the same time in Media, Sarah, Tobits niece, prays to God for deliverance form the demon Asmodeus. God sends an angel named Raphael to deliver them both. Nebuchadnezzar sends Holofernes to punish the people west of Babylon for their insubordination. The people of Judea pray to God for help; in answer Judith beguiles Holofernes, getting him thoroughly drunk, and then decapitates him. Begins abruptly by describing the reinstitution of Passover by King Josiah in Jerusalem about 622/621 B.C. and continues to Ezras reforms about 458 B.C. but the majority of the book emphasizes Ezras reforms. Covers Judean history from the accession of Antiochus IV (Epiphanies) in about 175 B.C. to the reign of John Hyrcanus I (134104 B.C.) Covers Jewish history from the time of the high priest Onias III and the Syrian King Seleucus IV (c. 180 B.C.) to the defeat of Nicanors army (c. 161 B.C.) Claims to be a letter sent from Baruch to Jerusalem to be read on a feast day as a confession of their sin. (1:14)
180 B.C.
Judith
150 B.C.
I Esdras (3 Esdras)
Second to First Century B.C.
I Maccabees 2 Maccabees
Latter part of the second century B.C. End of the second century to beginning of the first century B.C. Second to First Century B.C. Third to First Century B.C. First Century A.D.
Baruch Epistle of Jeremiah 2 Esdras (4 Esdras) Additions to the book of Ester Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Young Men Susanna Bel and the Dragon
Letter from Jeremiah to Jewish captives, soon to be taken to Babylon, describing the folly of idolatry.
Apocalyptic book dealing with the problem of why an all powerful, loving God allows great evils to befall mankind. The reason is mans sinfulness. The six additions to the Greek text of Esther were apparently introduced to highlight the religious aspect of the story that the author thought was lacking. Before being thrown into the fiery furnace (Dan. 3:23). Abednego (Azariah in Hebrew) prayed, asking God to bring glory to his name though this ordeal. It was followed by the song of the three young men who sang praise and glory to God.
latter part of second to first century B.C. Second to first century B.C.
Second to first century B.C. Second to first century B.C/
Prayer of Manasseh 54
Second to first century B.C.
Susanna is tried and found guilty because of the lies told by two elders of Israel. Daniel however, has a vision form God and comes to the rescue. Daniel outwits the priests of Bel and shows that their great stature of Bel, the patron deity of Babylon, was a worthless idol. Next, Daniel kills a dragon that the Babylonians believed was a god. Daniel is thrown into the lions den, but on the seventh day is removed and his enemies are thrown in. 2 Chronicles 33:10-13 says Manasseh prayed to God while in captivity and asked forgiveness for his many sins. This work supposedly records this prayer.
[1]
Diaspora, comes from the verb to disperse and means the Jews who have been dispersed from Israel and were living outside of the Biblical lands. Norman Geisler, William E. Nix, A General Introduction to the Bible, Moody Press 1986, Page 263. LXX is the Roman numerals for 70 Paul Wegner, Journey from Text to Translation, Baker Academic, Pgs. 122,123 1999
[2]
[3]
[4]
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7. How was the New Testament Canon Decided?

Introduction of the New Testament Canon For Christians today, their Bible has an Old and New Testament; both testaments are a collection of books revealed over time. The Old Testament was revealed over a thousand year period, 1450 B.C. to 425 B.C.; the New Testament is separated from the New Testament by a 450-year period known as the Inter-testimonial period. The New Testament, unlike the Old was revealed over a much shorter time, a sixty-year period, from A.D. 33 to 100. By the time of Jesus, the Old Testament canon was closed 450-years earlier. The question many people have is how did the New Testament find itself placed alongside the books of the Old Testament? In addition, how did the books in the New Testament get included in the canon? First, the any Bible student needs to understand the Old Testament is the foundation of the New Testament. Jesus the Messiah is the fulfillment of prophecies of the Old Testament canon. The Messiahs death and the establishment of a New Covenant is a chief focus of the Old Covenant and its canon. The Messiah would come, suffer and die for the sins of the world; through the Messiahs death, God would establish a New Covenant. The New Covenant would establish an eternal relationship between God and fallen humanity. The New Testament Canon confirms and testifies to the life of Jesus the Messiah, who established the New Covenant in accordance to the Old Testament canon. The New Testament has several divisions. First, the Gospels, they reveal the life, ministry, and teachings of Jesus the Messiah. Second, history, known as the Book of Acts records the history of the early church after the ascension of Christ. Thirdly, the Epistles are letters of instruction, from Apostles to the churches and church leaders in the early church. Finally, the Apocalypse or Revelation describes the final events leading to the return of Jesus the Messiah. Therefore when discussing the New Testament canon, we need to understand its dependence on Old Testament canon. For example, half the verses of the book of Revelation have a direct or indirect reference to verses in the Old Testament. The Gospels and Epistles constantly refer to the Old Testament.
The Old Testament foundation

The death of Jesus the Messiah was event foretold hundreds of years before his birth. His death was payment for sins, as typified in the Old Testament sacrificial system. His death established the New Covenant, the basis of the revealed Scripture in the New Testament. The word testament originates from the Greek word for covenant. The basis of the New Testament is the atoning death of Messiah, the New-Covenant is established on his death, the Church is the inclusion of the Gentiles as part of Gods people, grafted into the covenant blessings of Israel (Romans11:20-22). 1. Messiahs death Isaiah foretold the death of Messiah, who would die for the sins of the world 700-years before His birth. Daniel foretold the exact month, year and day of Messiah death (Daniel 9:24-27).
13 Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently; He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His
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hand. 11 He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities. Isaiah 52:13,53:10-11
2. The New Covenant Jeremiah wrote 600 years before the birth of Jesus about the coming of greater covenant, greater then the Mosaic covenant, with this Covenant iniquity will be forgiven, and sins forgotten. This covenant will be relational, Israel will be called my people, and the laws will be in the hearts and minds of the Lords people. Into this Covenant the Gentiles were included.
31 "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah 32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, F23 says the Lord. 33 "But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 "No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,' for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more." Jeremiah 31:31-34
3. Gentiles receive the light of the Gospel[1]. Isaiah wrote of the coming of the righteous servant, who would bring justice to the Gentiles (nations). The servants death (Isaiah 53:11) will be a covenant and light to the Gentiles. After the death of Jesus, He established his church to carry the gospel to the nations, offering his atoning death to the lost. (Matthew 28:19)
1 "Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles. 2 He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street. 3 A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth. 4 He will not fail nor be discouraged, Till He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands shall wait for His law." 5 Thus says God the Lord, Who created the heavens and stretched them out, Who spread forth the earth and that which comes from it, Who gives breath to the people on it, And spirit to those who walk on it: 6 "I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness, And will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the Gentiles, Isaiah 42:1-6
Upon this foundation, that Jesus Christ established His church and revealed His words through his Apostles, that they should be a light to the nations, offering salvation to the lost. On this basis is the New Testament Canon revealed. Before the establishment of the New Testament Canon, the Old Testament was the Bible of the early church. Before Jesus was crucified, he promised the coming of the Holy Spirit who would help the Apostles remember the words spoken to them. Here Jesus established the Inspirational aspect of the New Covenant.
New Testament Inspiration

The Holy Spirit inspires the New Testament like Old Testament; the Holy Spirit is the source of the words contained in the pages of the New Testament. Jesus when he was with His disciples promised them they would be able to remember the words spoken, through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit would be the source of their words.
25 "These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. 26 "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 things that I said to you.John 14:25-26
Likewise, in the epistles and the rest of the New Testament, the Holy Spirit is the source of the words, and not human wisdom. Therefore, since God is the source of scripture, it follows then; He has the ability to preserve His word for coming generations.
10 But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. 13 These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. I Cor 2:10-13
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Through his disciples, Jesus would reveal the Gospel to the nations, through the inspiration of the Holy Sprit; Truth would be transmitted to the written document. These documents then would be compiled into the New Testament canon. The apostles and prophets are the vehicle, which Jesus choose to transmit the Gospel to the nations.
having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. Ephesians 2:20
Why a New Testament Canon?

As Christianity began to spread throughout the Gentile world, there developed several important reasons to establish, which written works were from apostolic sources and which were from heretical sources. 1. The Books were Prophetic The books revealed through the Apostles were prophetic in nature, since Jesus promised through the Holy Spirit to communicate His words to His church. Therefore it was important to establish just what books had apostolic authority and which did not. (2 Peter 3:15-17, Col. 4:16, 2 Tim. 3:16). 2. The needs of the early church As the church grew in Asia, Africa and Europe, it became important to establish, which books originated from apostolic authority . Since the churches used the writing of the apostles to establish doctrine and teach, it was mandatory to discriminate against books, which had dubious origins. 3. Growth of the heretical movements Since Jesus Christ established His church on the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, heretical groups attempted to use the names of apostles to establish their own particular doctrines, many contrary to the revealed scriptures of the Old Testament. One Gnostic group in particularMarcionites, founded by Marcion, rejected the Old Testament, declaring the God of the Old Testament, the God of the Jews, was a lower level deity. Maricon, expelled from the church in A.D. 144, attempted to establish a rival church. In addition to rejecting the Old Testament, Marcion also rejected of all the epistles except for the Pauline epistles[2] and the Gospel of Luke. Polycarp saw Marcion as a real threat to the early church, upon meeting him; he called him, The Firstborn of Satan. In addition to the Marcionites, other sects also developed, each with their own agenda and leader. Among these were the Judaisers[3], the Gnostics, The Mandaens and the Manichaens. In order to establish their credibility, they published works that included apostles names. Many of the writings of the early church fathers, such as Irenaeus (A.D. 120-200) and Justin Martyr (A.D. 100-165) fought with these heretical groups by exposing and refuting their doctrines. The false works, which originated with many of these groups (i.e. Gospel of Thomas, Gospel of Judas), caused confusion for many as Christianity spread in Europe, Asia and Africa. Many of the new believers needed an authoritative list of books to distinguish between fallacious and authentic works. 4. Missionary movements As Christianity spread into foreign lands, the need for translations of scripture was required, and since there was no Bible but individual New Testament books, there was a need to establish what books had apostolic authority and which did not. In the first half of the 2nd century, the books of the Bible were translated into Syriac, Old Latin, in the 3rd century into Coptic both the Sahidic and Bohairicversions. 5. Persecutions of the church Since the time of Nero, the Christian church faced periods of persecution, with this persecution Christians were forced to surrender their scriptures. Since many viewed the Words in their possession as the Word of God, many would willingly face death, rather then surrender their scriptures. In the Christian persecutions during the reign of Decius (A.D. 249-51) and Diocletian (A.D. 302-305) Christian scriptures were specifically targeted for destruction. Those who refused to relinquish them faced Roman execution. Eusebius (A.D. 318) records the words of the Diocletian edict, 58 7. How was the New Testament Canon Decided? Introduction of the New Testament Canon |
It was the nineteenth year of the reign of Diocletian, and the month Dystrus, or March, as the Romans would call it, in which as the festival of the Saviours Passion was coming on, an imperial letter was everywhere promulgated, ordering the razing of the churches to the ground and the destruction by fire of the scriptures, and proclaiming that those who held high positions would lose all civil rights, while those in households, if they persisted in their profession of Christianity, would be deprived of their liberty. Such was the first document against us. But not long afterwards we were further visited with other letters, and in them the orders was given that the presidents of the churches should all, in every place, be first committed to prison, and then afterwards compelled by every kind of device to sacrifice.[4]
What qualifications were used to determine canon?

There needs to be a distinction between discovery and selection of canon. The church did not choose the canon, but discovered the canon. The basis of New Testament canon is Jesus Christ and the revelation of inspired scripture through the work of the Holy Spirit (John 14:26). Jesus through His apostles established His church, and through them revealed scripture. Therefore, the basis of canon is apostolic authority. Therefore, the role in the church in canon was to distinguish between apostolic works built on the foundation of Jesus Christ, as opposed to non-authoritative and false works, whichclaimed to be inspired.
The Church was built on the foundation of the disciples, who received their authority from Jesus Christ. The canon is the written words of apostolic authority; therefore, the church is the child of canon and not its mother. These are important distinctions to understand when we examine canon; the claim the church chose certain gospel over others is false. The church, through councils and the witness of early church fathers, recognized what books were authentic and which were false. These principles to determine canon are based on the following principles. 1. Was the author an apostle or did it have apostolic authority? For example, John Mark wrote the gospel of Mark, under the authority of Peter. Luke was written under the authority of Paul. 2. Does the document agree with the canon of truth? Since the book is inspired, it will not contradict Old Testament or authenticated New Testament canon. 3. Was the work accepted by the early church? Could the work be verified in early church history? Was it commented on by the early church fathers, or was it cited as scripture? These were important questions in determining the authentic nature of the books. The Muratorian Canon The principles of canon recognition are demonstrated in a Latin manuscript found by Cardinal L.A. Muratori (1672-1750) in a Ambrosian library in Milan Italy. The document was written in the seventh to eight century, but was copied from an earlier document dated to about A.D. 170, because it refers to the episcopate of Pius I of Rome (died 157). He mentions only two epistles of John, without describing them. The Apocalypse of Peter is mentioned as a book which "some of us will not allow to be read in church." The manuscript is a fragment, therefore it starts with Luke being the third book of the Gospels, Matthew and Mark would have been the first and second. This list could have been a response to Marcions canon list, since Marcion is specifically mentioned at the end of the document.
. . at which nevertheless he was present, and so he placed [them in his narrative]. (2) The third book of the Gospel is that according to Luke. (3) Luke, the well-known physician, after the ascension of Christ, (4-5) when Paul had taken with him as one zealous for the law, (6) composed it in his own name, according to [the general] belief. Yet he himself had not (7) seen the Lord in the flesh; and therefore, as he was able to ascertain events, (8) so indeed he begins to tell the story from the birth of John. (9) The fourth of the Gospels is that of John, [one] of the disciples. (10) To his fellow disciples and bishops, who had been urging him [to write], (11) he said, 'Fast with me from today to three days, and what (12) will be revealed to each one (13) let us tell it to one another.' In the same night it was revealed (14) to Andrew, [one] of the apostles, (15-16) that John should write down all things in his own
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name while all of them should review it. And so, though various (17) elements may be taught in the individual books of the Gospels, (18) nevertheless this makes no difference to the faith of believers, since by the one sovereign Spirit all things (20) have been declared in all [the Gospels]: concerning the (21) nativity, concerning the passion, concerning the resurrection, (22) concerning life with his disciples, (23) and concerning his twofold coming; (24) the first in lowliness when he was despised, which has taken place, (25) the second glorious in royal power, (26) which is still in the future. What (27) marvel is it then, if John so consistently (28) mentions these particular points also in his Epistles, (29) saying about himself, 'What we have seen with our eyes (30) and heard with our ears and our hands (31) have handled, these things we have written to you? (32) For in this way he professes [himself] to be not only an eye-witness and hearer, (33) but also a writer of all the marvelous deeds of the Lord, in their order. (34) Moreover, the acts of all the apostles (35) were written in one book. For 'most excellent Theophilus' Luke compiled (36) the individual events that took place in his presence (37) as he plainly shows by omitting the martyrdom of Peter (38) as well as the departure of Paul from the city [of Rome] (39) when he journeyed to Spain. As for the Epistles of (40-1) Paul, they themselves make clear to those desiring to understand, which ones [they are], from what place, or for what reason they were sent. (42) First of all, to the Corinthians, prohibiting their heretical schisms; (43) next, to the Galatians, against circumcision; (44-6) then to the Romans he wrote at length, explaining the order (or, plan) of the Scriptures, and also that Christ is their principle (or, main theme). It is necessary (47) for us to discuss these one by one, since the blessed (48) apostle Paul himself, following the example of his predecessor (49-50) John, writes by name to only seven churches in the following sequence: To the Corinthians (51) first, to the Ephesians second, to the Philippians third, (52) to the Colossians fourth, to the Galatians fifth, (53) to the Thessalonians sixth, to the Romans (54-5) seventh. It is true that he writes once more to the Corinthians and to the Thessalonians for the sake of admonition, (56-7) yet it is clearly recognizable that there is one Church spread throughout the whole extent of the earth. For John also in the (58) Apocalypse, though he writes to seven churches, (59-60) nevertheless speaks to all. [Paul also wrote] out of affection and love one to Philemon, one to Titus, and two to Timothy; and these are held sacred (62-3) in the esteem of the Church catholic for the regulation of ecclesiastical discipline. There is current also [an epistle] to (64) the Laodiceans, [and] another to the Alexandrians, [both] forged in Paul's (65) name to [further] the heresy of Marcion, and several others (66) which cannot be received into the catholic Church (67) for it is not fitting that gall be mixed with honey. (68) Moreover, the epistle of Jude and two of the above-mentioned (or, bearing the name of) John are counted (or, used) in the catholic [Church]; and [the book of] Wisdom, (70) written by the friends of Solomon in his honour. (71) We receive only the apocalypses of John and Peter, (72) though some of us are not willing that the latter be read in church. (73) But Hermas wrote the Shepherd (74) very recently, in our times, in the city of Rome, (75) while bishop Pius, his brother, was occupying the [episcopal] chair (76) of the church of the city of Rome. (77) And therefore it ought indeed to be read; but (78) it cannot be read publicly to the people in church either among (79) the Prophets, whose number is complete, or among (80) the Apostles, for it is after [their] time. (81) But we accept nothing whatever of Arsinous or Valentinus or Miltiades, (82) who also composed (83) a new book of psalms for Marcion, (84-5) together with Basilides, the Asian founder of the Cataphrygians . .[5]
The Witness of the early church fathers The Canon of the New Testament[6]
I. Two Preliminary Considerations The canon is the collection of 27 books, which the church (generally) receives as its New Testament Scriptures. The history of the canon is the history of the process by which these books were brought together and their value as sacred Scriptures officially recognized. That process was gradual, furthered by definite needs, and, though unquestionably continuous, is in its earlier stages difficult to trace. It is always well in turning to the study of it to have in mind two considerations which bear upon the earliest phases of the whole movement. These are:
1. Early Christians Had the Old Testament

The early Christians had in their hands what was a Bible to them, namely, the Old Testament Scriptures. II. Three Stages of the Process For convenience of arrangement and definiteness of impression the whole process may be marked off in three stages: 1. that from the time of the apostles until about 170 AD; 2. that of the closing years of the 2nd century and the opening of the 3rd (170-220 AD); 3. that of the 3rd and 4th centuries. In the first we seek for the evidences of the growth in appreciation of the peculiar value of the New Testament writings; in the second we discover the clear, full recognition of a large part of these writings as sacred and authoritative; in the third the acceptance of the complete canon in the East and in the West.
1. From the Apostles to 170 AD

(1) Clement of Rome; Ignarius; Polycarp The first period extending to 170 AD.It does not lie within the scope of this article to recount the origin of the several books of the New Testament. This belongs properly to New Testament Introduction (which see). By the end of the 1st century all of the books of the New Testament were in existence. They were, as treasures of given churches, widely separated and honored as containing the word of Jesus or the teaching of the apostles. From the very first the authority of Jesus had full recognition in all the Christian world. 60 7. How was the New Testament Canon Decided? Introduction of the New Testament Canon |
The whole work of the apostles was in interpreting Him to the growing church. His sayings and His life were in part for the illumination of the Old Testament; wholly for the understanding of life and its issues. In every assembly of Christians from the earliest days He was taught as well as the Old Testament. In each church to which an epistle was written that epistle was likewise read. Paul asked that his letters be read in this way (1 Thess 5:27; Col 4:16). In this attentive listening to the exposition of some event in the life of Jesus or to the reading of the epistle of an apostle began the authorization of the traditions concerning Jesus and the apostolic writings. The widening of the area of the church and the departure of the apostles from earth emphasized increasingly the value of that which the writers of the New Testament left behind them. Quite early the desire to have the benefit of all possible instruction led to the interchange of Christian writings. Polycarp (110 AD ?) writes to the Philippians, I have received letters from you and from Ignatius. You recommend me to send on yours to Syria; I shall do so either personally or by some other means. In return I send you the letter of Ignatius as well as others which I have in my hands and for which you made request. I add them to the present one; they will serve to edify your faith and perseverance (Epistle to Phil, XIII). This is an illustration of what must have happened toward furthering a knowledge of the writings of the apostles. Just when and to what extent collections of our New Testament books began to be made it is impossible to say, but it is fair to infer that a collection of the Pauline epistles existed at the time Polycarp wrote to the Phil and when Ignatius wrote his seven letters to the churches of Asia Minor, i.e. about 115 AD. There is good reason to think also that the four Gospels were brought together in some places as early as this. A clear distinction, however, is to be kept in mind between collections and such recognition as we imply in the word canonical. The gathering of books was one of the steps preliminary to this. Examination of the testimony to the New Testament in this early time indicates also that it is given with no intention of framing the canonicity of New Testament books. In numerous instances only echoes of the thought of the epistles appear; again quotations are incomplete; both showing that Scripture words are used as the natural expression of Christian thought. In the same way the Apostolic Fathers refer to the teachings and deeds of Jesus. Clement of Rome, in 95 AD, wrote a letter in the name of the Christians of Rome to those in Corinth. In this letter he uses material found in Mt, Lk, giving it a free rendering (see chapters 46 and 13); he has been much influenced by the Epistle to the Hebrews (see chapters 9, 10, 17, 19, 36). He knows Romans, Corinthians, and there are found echoes of 1 Timothy, Titus, 1 Peter and Ephesians. The Epistles of Ignatius (115 AD) have correspondences with our gospels in several places (Eph 5; Rom 6; 7) and incorporate language from nearly all of the Pauline epistles. The Epistle to Polycarp makes large use of Phil, and besides this cites nine of the other Pauline epistles. Ignatius quotes from Matthew, apparently from memory; also from 1 Peter and 1 John. In regard to all these three writersClement, Polycarp, Ignatiusit is not enough to say that they bring us reminiscences or quotations from this or that book. Their thought is tinctured all through with New Testament truth. As we move a little farther down the years we come to The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles (circa 120 ad in its present form; see DIDACHE); the Epistle of Barnabas (circa 130 ad) and the Shepherd of Hermas (circa 130 ad). These exhibit the same phenomena as appear in the writings of Clement, Ignatius and Polycarp as far as references to the New Testament are concerned. Some books are quoted, and the thought of the three writings echoes again and again the teachings of the New Testament. They bear distinct witness to the value of the gospel and the doctrine of the apostles, so much so as to place these clearly above their own words. It is in the Epistle of Barnabas that we first come upon the phrase it is written, referring to a New Testament book (Matthew) (see Epis., iv.14). In this deepening sense of value was enfolded the feeling of authoritativeness, which slowly was to find expression. It is well to add that what we have so far discovered was true in widely separated parts of the Christian world as e.g. Rome and Asia Minor.
(2) FORCES INCREASING VALUE OF WRITINGS

(A) Apologists, Justin Martyr The literature of the period we are examining was not, however, wholly of the kind of which we have been speaking. Two forces were calling out other expressions of the singular value of the writings of the apostles, whether gospels or epistles. These were (a) the attention of the civil government in view of the rapid growth of the Christian church and (b) heresy. The first brought to the defense or commendation of Christianity the Apologists, among whom were Justin Martyr, Aristides, Melito of Sardis and Theophilus of Antioch. By far the most important of these was Justin Martyr, and his work may be taken as representative. He was born about 100 AD at Shechem, and died as a martyr at Rome in 165 AD. His two Apologies and the Dialogue with Trypho are the sources for the study of his testimony. He speaks of the Memoirs of the Apostles called Gospels (Ap., i.66) which were read on Sunday interchangeably with the prophets (i.67). Here emerges that equivalence in value of these Gospels with the Old Testament Scriptures which may really mark the beginning of canonization. That these Gospels were our four Gospels as we now have them is yet a disputed question; but the evidence is weighty that they were. (See Purves, Testimony of Justin Martyr to Early Christianity, Lect V.) The fact that Tatian, his pupil, made a harmony of the Gospels, i.e. of our four Gospels, also bears upon our interpretation of Justins Memoirs. (See Hemphill, The Diatessaron of Tatian.) The only other New Testament book which Justin mentions is the Apocalypse; but he appears to have known the Acts, six epistles of Paul, Hebrew and 1 John, and echoes of still other epistles are perceptible. When he speaks of the apostles it is after this fashion: By the power of God they proclaimed to every race of men that 61 7. How was the New Testament Canon Decided? Introduction of the New Testament Canon |
they were sent by Christ to teach to all the Word of God (Ap., i.39). It is debatable, however, whether this refers to more than the actual preaching of the apostles. The beginning of the formation of the canon is in the position and authority given to the Gospels. (B) Gnostics, Marcion While the Apologists were busy commending or defending Christianity, heresy in the form of Gnosticism was also compelling attention to the matter of the writings of the apostles. From the beginning Gnostic teachers claimed that Jesus had favored chosen ones of His apostles with a body of esoteric truth which had been handed down by secret tradition. This the church denied, and in the controversy that went on through years the question of what were authoritative writings became more and more pronounced. Basilides e.g., who taught in Alexandria during the reign of Hadrian (AD 117-38), had for his secret authority the secret tradition of the apostle Matthias and of Glaucias, an alleged interpreter of Peter, but he bears witness to Matthew, Luke, John, Romans, 1 Corinthians, Ephesians, and Colossians in the effort to recommend his doctrines, and, what is more, gives them the value of Scripture in order to support more securely his teachings. (See Philosophoumena of Hippolytus, VII, 17). Valentinus, tracing his authority through Theodas to Paul, makes the same general use of New Testament books, and Tertullian tells us that he appeared to use the whole New Testament as then known. The most noted of the Gnostics was Marcion, a native of Pontus. He went to Rome (circa 140 AD), there broke with the church and became a dangerous heretic. In support of his peculiar views, he formed a canon of his own which consisted of Lukes Gospel and ten of the Pauline epistles. He rejected the Pastoral Epistles, Hebrews, Matthew, Mark, John, the Acts, the Catholic epistles and the Apocalypse, and made a recension of both the gospel of Luke and the Pauline epistles which he accepted. His importance, for us, however, is in the fact that he gives us the first clear evidence of the canonization of the Pauline epistles. Such use of the Scriptures inevitably called forth both criticism and a clearer marking off of those books which were to be used in the churches opposed to heresy, and so in the struggle with Gnosticism the canon was made. We are Thus brought to the end of the first period in which we have marked the collection of New Testament books in greater or smaller compass, the increasing valuation of them as depositions of the truth of Jesus and His apostles, and finally the movement toward the claim of their authoritativeness as over against perverted teaching. No sharp line as to a given year can be drawn between the first stage of the process and the second. Forces working in the first go on into the second, but results are accomplished in the second which give it its right to separate consideration.
2. From 170 AD to 220 Ad

The period from 170 AD to 220 AD.This is the age of a voluminous theological literature busy with the great issues of church canon and creed. It is the period of the great names of Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, and Tertullian, representing respectively Asia Minor, Egypt and North Africa. In passing into it we come into the clear light of Christian history. There is no longer any question as to a New Testament canon; the only difference of judgment is as to its extent. What has been slowly but surely shaping itself in the consciousness of the church now comes to clear expression. (1) IRENAEUS That expression we may study in Irenaeus as representative of the period. He was born in Asia Minor, lived and taught in Rome and became afterward bishop of Lyons. He had, therefore, a wide acquaintance with the churches, and was peculiarly competent to speak concerning the general judgment of the Christian world. As a pupil of Polycarp, who was a disciple of John, he is connected with the apostles themselves. An earnest defender of the truth, he makes the New Testament in great part his authority, and often appeals to it. The four Gospels, the Acts, the epistles of Paul, several of the Catholic epistles and the Apocalypse are to him Scripture in the fullest sense. They are genuine and authoritative, as much so as the Old Testament ever was. He dwells upon the fact that there are four gospels, the very number being prefigured in the four winds and the four quarters of the earth. Every attempt to increase or diminish the number is heresy. Tertullian takes virtually the same position (Adv. Marc., iv. 2), while Clement of Alexandria quotes all four gospels as Scripture. By the end of the 2nd century the canon of the gospels was settled. The same is true also of the Pauline epistles. Irenaeus makes more than two hundred citations from Paul, and looks upon his epistles as Scripture (Adv. Haer., iii.12, 12). Indeed, at this time it may be said that the new canon was known under the designation The Gospel and the Apostles in contradistinction to the old as the Law and the Prophets. The title New Testament appears to have been first used by an unknown writer against Montanism (circa 193 AD). It occurs frequently after this in Origen and later writers. In considering all this testimony two facts should have emphasis: (1) its wide extent: Clement and Irenaeus represent parts of Christendom which are widely separated; (2) The relation of these men to those who have gone before them. Their lives together with those before them spanned nearly the whole time from the apostles. They but voiced the judgment which silently, gradually had been selecting the Scripture which they freely and fully acknowledged and to which they made appeal. (2) THE MURATORIAN FRAGMENT Just here we come upon the Muratorian Fragment, so called because discovered in 1740 by the librarian of Milan, Muratori. It dates from some time near the end of the 2nd century, is of vital interest in the study of the history of the canon, since it gives us a list of New Testament books and is concerned with the question of the canon itself. The document comes from Rome, and Lightfoot assigns 62 7. How was the New Testament Canon Decided? Introduction of the New Testament Canon |
it to Hippolytus. Its list contains the Gospels (the first line of the fragment is incomplete, beginning with Mark, but Matthew is clearly implied), the Acts, the Pauline epistles, the Apocalypse, 1 and 2 John (perhaps by implication the third) and Jude. It does not mention Hebrew, 1 and 2 Peter, James. In this list we have virtually the real position of the canon at the close of the 2nd century. Complete unanimity had not been attained in reference to all the books which are now between the covers of our New Testament. Seven books had not yet found a secure place beside the gospel and Paul in all parts of the church. The Palestinian and Syrian churches for a long time rejected the Apocalypse, while some of the Catholic epistles were in Egypt considered doubtful. The history of the final acceptance of these belongs to the third period.
3. 3rd and 4th Centuries

(1) ORIGEN The period included by the 3rd and 4 centuriesIt has been said that the question of the canon did not make much progress in the course of the 3rd century (Reuss, History of the Canon of Holy Scripture, 125). We have the testimony of a few notable teachers mostly from one center, Alexandria. Their consideration of the question of the disputed book serves just here one purpose. By far the most distinguished name of the 3rd century is Origen. He was born in Alexandria about 185 AD, and before he was seventeen became an instructor in the school for catechumens. In 203 he was appointed bishop, experienced various fortunes, and died in 254. His fame rests upon his ability as an exegete, though he worked laboriously and successfully in other fields. His testimony is of high value, not simply because of his own studies, but also because of his wide knowledge of what was thought in other Christian centers in the world of his time. Space permits us only to give in summary form his conclusions, especially in regard to the books still in doubt. The Gospels, the Pauline epistles, the Acts, he accepts without question. He discusses at some length the authorship of He, believes that God alone knows who wrote it, and accepts it as Scripture. His testimony to the Apocalypse is given in the sentence, Therefore John the son of Zebedee says in the Revelation. He also gives sure witness to Jude, but wavers in regard to James, 2 Peter, 2 John, and 3 John. (2) Dionysius Another noted name of this century is Dionysius of Alexandria, a pupil of Origen (died 265). His most interesting discussion is regarding the Apocalypse, which he attributes to an unknown John, but he does not dispute its inspiration. It is a singular fact that the western church accepted this book from the first, while its position in the East was variable. Conversely the Epistle to the He was more insecure in the West than in the East. In regard to the Catholic epistles Dionysius supports James, 2 John, and 3 John, but not 2 Peter or Jude. (3) Cyprian In the West the name of Cyprian, bishop of Carthage (248-58 AD), was most influential. He was much engaged in controversy, but a man of great personal force. The Apocalypse he highly honored, but he was silent about the Epistle to the Hebrews. He refers to only two of the Catholic epistles, 1 Peter and 1 John. These testimonies confirm what was said above, namely, that the end of the 3rd century leaves the question of the full canon about where it was at the beginning. 1 Peter and 1 John seem to have been everywhere known and accepted. In the West the five Catholic epistles gained recognition more slowly than in the East. (4) Eusebius In the early part of the 4th century Eusebius (270-340 AD), bishop of Caesarea before 315, sets before us in his Church History (III, chapters iii-xxv) his estimate of the canon in his time. He does not of course use the word canon, but he conducts an historical inquiry into the belief and practice of earlier generations. He lived through the last great persecution in the early part of the 4th century, when not only places of worship were razed to the ground, but also the sacred Scriptures were in the public market-places consigned to the flames (Historia Ecclesiastica, VIII, 2). It was, therefore, no idle question what book a loyal Christian must stand for as his Scripture. The question of the canon had an earnest, practical significance. Despite some obscurity and apparent contradictions, his classification of the New Testament books was as follows: (1) The acknowledged books. His criteria for each of these was authenticity and apostolicity and he placed in this list the Gospels, Acts, and Pauls epistles, including He. (2) The disputed books, i.e. those which had obtained only partial recognition, to which he assigned Jas, Jude, 2 Pet and 2 Jn. About the Apocalypse also he was not sure. In this testimony there is not much advance over that of the 3rd century. It is virtually the canon of Origen. All this makes evident the fact that as yet no official decision nor uniformity of usage in the church gave a completed canon. The time, however, was drawing on when various forces at work were to bring much nearer this unanimity and enlarge the list of acknowledged books. In the second half of the 4th century repeated efforts were made to put an end to uncertainty.
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(5) Athanasius Athanasius in one of his pastoral letters in connection with the publishing of the ecclesiastical calendar gives a list of the books comprising Scripture, and in the New Testament portion are included all the 27 books which we now recognize. These are the wells of salvation, he writes, so that he who thirsts may be satisfied with the sayings in these. Let no one add to these. Let nothing be taken away. Gregory of Nazianzen (died 390 AD) also published a list omitting Revelation, as did Cyril of Jerusalem (died 386), and quite at the end of the century (4th) Isidore of Pelusium speaks of the canon of truth, the Divine Scriptures. For a considerable time the Apocalypse was not accepted in the Palestinian or Syrian churches. Athanasius helped toward its acceptance in the church of Alexandria. Some differences of opinion, however, continued. The Syrian church did not accept all of the Catholic epistles until much later. (6) Council of Carthage, Jerome; Augustine The Council of Carthage in 397, in connection with its decree that aside from the canonical Scriptures nothing is to be read in church under the name of Divine Scriptures, gives a list of the books of the New Testament. After this fashion there was an endeavor to secure unanimity, while at the same time differences of judgment and practice continued. The books which had varied treatment through these early centuries were He, the Apocalypse and the five minor Catholic epistles. The advance of Christianity under Constantine had much to do with the reception of the whole group of books in the East. The task which the emperor gave to Eusebius to prepare fifty copies of the Divine Scriptures established a standard which in time gave recognition to all doubtful books. In the West, Jerome and Augustine were the controlling factors in its settlement of the canon. The publication of the Vulgate (Jeromes Latin Bible, 390-405 AD) virtually determined the matter. In conclusion let it be noted how much the human element was involved in the whole process of forming our New Testament. No one would wish to dispute a providential overruling of it all. Also it is well to bear in mind that all the books have not the same clear title to their places in the canon as far as the history of their attestation is concerned. Clear and full and unanimous, however, has been the judgment from the beginning upon the Gospels, the Acts, the Pauline epistles, 1 Peter and 1 John.
LITERATUREReuss, History of the Canon of Holy Scriptures; E. C. Moore, The New Testament in the Christian Church; Gregory, Canon and Text of the
New Testament; Introductions to New Testament of Jlicher, Weiss, Reuss; Zahn,Geschichte des Neutest. Kanons; Harnack, Das New Testament um das Jahr 200; Chronologie der altchristlichen Literatur; Westcott, The Canon of the New Testament; Zahn, Forschungen zur Gesch. des neutest. Kanons.J. S. RIGGS
Gospel means Good News, the good news is the Messiah came and paid for sins, establishing a way of restoration with the creator. By accepting Jesus as your Messiah and Lord, you receive Salvation. This is the message the church was to announce to the nations.
[1] [2] [3]
Epistles (Letters) written by Paul Judaisers taught the church must practice the laws of Moses and be circumcised for inclusion into the New Covenant. Eusebius HE 8.2.4-5 Bruce Metzger translation from The Canon of the New Testament: Its Origin, Development, and Significance International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Editor James Orr,
[4] [5]
[6]
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8. How was the Old Testament Transmitted?

Introduction to Old Testament transmission
Today there is no known surviving autograph of an Old or New Testament Book. What we have are copies of copies of the autograph. An autograph is the original copy of the manuscript, which the prophet or his secretary copied to text. This Inspired autograph was then transmitted over time, copied from generation to generation. The Bible we have today is collection of these copied manuscripts assembled into two collections, an Old Testament and New Testament. The topic covered here is the process of this transmission, especially in regards to Old Testament manuscripts. The circumstances regarding New Testament manuscript transmission are different, and treated separately.
The Hebrew Text

The task of taking a document and transmitting it over time is more daunting then most realize. There are a number of factor, which work against the transmission process in addition to time itself. Wars, adverse environments, and competing cultures all work against this whole process of transmission. In our day, with computers, DVDs and email our concept of document transmission is instant and exact. It is hard for us to relate to the biblical process. From biblical times to the invention of the printing press (A.D. 1455), the Bible was transmitted by hand, hence the name manuscript.
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8. How was the Old Testament Transmitted? Introduction to Old Testament transmission |
The history of the Old Testament text, can be divided into several periods, 1. The Text before A.D. 100 2. The Text from A.D. 100 to 500 3. The Text from A.D. 500 to 1000 4. The Text after A.D. 1000 The Hebrew text of today is different from the original in several aspects. First, the Hebrew alphabet changed after the Babylonian exile (586 B.C.) from a Paleo-Hebrew script to the Babylonian-Aramaic square script, the current Hebrew script. Another change from the original was the addition of vowel points, which aid the reader in pronunciation (A.D. 500-800). In addition, chapters added in the 12thand 13th centuries, helped locate specific areas of scripture. In the 15th century, the Hebrew text solidified with the first printed copy of the Hebrew Bible in 1488. The purpose of the original manuscript was to convey the communication, the Word of the Lordto His people. The fact we do not have the original manuscripts, the autographs, often leads to the question, why did God allow the autographs to disappear, making us rely on copies of copies to know His Word.
Why not the Autographs?

Could God have preserved the original autographs? Of course, He could have, so why not? There are several reasons suggested, one of the most consistent with history and human nature, is the tendency of man to worship an object, rather then the creator. If the original manuscripts were preserved, humanity would more than likely would have made the item an object of worship, keeping it out of the reach of common people. Wars would have be fought over it, churches, synagogues or mosques built on top of it. The item itself would be too scared to read, and only Kings and priests would ever have access to it. We know this because, this is exactly what has happened with other relics and objects of adoration. In the day of Gideon, when Israel defeated Midian, Gideon made an ephod (Ceremonial apron) of gold from the plunder, this ephod became a snare to Gideons family.
Then Gideon made it into an ephod and set it up in his city, Ophrah. And all Israel played the harlot with it there. It became a snare to Gideon and to his house Judges 8:27
The Bronze Serpent (Numbers 21:8-9) made by Moses in the wilderness also became a subject of worship, forcing Hezekiah to destroy the image, 700-years later.
4 He removed the high places and broke the sacred pillars, cut down the wooden image and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan. II Kings 18:4
The subject of preservation is not the document, but the message, The Word of the Lord contained in the document. Aside from the above reason there were also several other factors which work against manuscripts. 1. Age and Decay: Most manuscripts were made of leather or papyrus, which because of their nature would have deteriorated over time. The main reason the Dead Scrolls were preserved was that they were virtually untouched for 2000-years, and remained in an arid and dry location, in the Qumran caves near the Dead Sea, hidden from humanity. 2. Calamities on the Jewish people: The history of the Jewish people has undergone at least three national calamities in the last 2500years. In each of these calamities, the biblical manuscripts would have been subject to the destruction of foreign armies. A. Babylon destroyed the Temple and Jerusalem in 586 B.C., we know from Daniel, scriptures were carried into Babylon (Daniel 9:2), and Daniel reads from the book of Jeremiah in 539 B.C. B. Antiochus Epiphanies (165-163 B.C.), the king of Seleucid, Greek Kingdom, sought out and destroyed biblical manuscripts in an attempt to turn the Jews away from the God of Israel. This lead attack on Judaism, leading to the Maccabean revolt and a hundredyear Jewish kingdom in 163 B.C. after the Jews defeated the Greeks. 66 8. How was the Old Testament Transmitted? Introduction to Old Testament transmission |
C. Roman destruction of Jerusalem (A.D. 70, 132). The Romans, like the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in A.D. 70, led by the future emperor Titus. According to Josephus, over 1 million Jews died in the war. In 132 A.D., the Roman Emperor Hadrian put down a Jewish rebellion, slaughtering 580,000 Jews, destroying Jerusalem again. 3. Reverence for the text: Since the manuscripts were sacred, they bore the Word of the Lord and contained the sacred name of God. When they became old and began to deteriorate, they were replaced by newer manuscripts. The older worn manuscripts were then placed in a genizah (hiding), a storage area, until they could be buried in a ceremonial grave. The Qaraite synagogue of Old Cairo, had one such genizah uncovered in the late 19th century. In 1896, Solomon Schechter uncovered many as 90,000 documents including fragments. Encyclopedia Britannica highlights the discovery of these documents,
In 1896 Solomon Schechter investigated a genizah in the old Ezra synagogue in Cairo. In time, some 90,000 manuscripts were uncovered there, a cache so priceless that biblical scholars subsequently referred to the site simply as the genizah. This vast collection of liturgical, legal, commercial, and literary documentsamong them a fragment of the original Hebrew text of Ecclesiasticusgenerally revolutionized the study of the medieval history of Palestinian and Middle Eastern Jewry.[1]
The Text before A.D. 100

When the English translation of the bible, the King James Version, was translated, the Hebrew Bible used as the source, was based on the Masoretic Text[2]. The Masoretic Text was the work of Talmudic scholars in Tiberius and Babylon who began their work in the 7th century A.D. Their work is main source of Hebrew Bible translations today. Sixty years ago, the oldest dated, complete Hebrew manuscript was the Leningrad (St. Petersburg) Manuscript dated to A.D.1008, based on the Masoretic Text. This all changed with the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The Dead Sea Scrolls provided biblical manuscripts dated from 250 B.C. to A.D. 50, over 1100-years older then the Leningrad Manuscript. In short, the Dead Sea Scrolls gave Bible students and critics, a view back in history, to a time before the Masorites. The newly discovered documents allowed an examination of the process of Manuscript transmission, over a significant period. When compared to the Masoretic Text, the Dead Sea Scrolls according to Norman Geisler is 95% identical,
With the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, scholars have Hebrew manuscripts one thousand years earlier than the great Masoretic Text manuscripts, enabling them to check on the fidelity of the Hebrew text. The result of comparative studies reveals that there is a word-for-word identity in more than 95 percent of the cases, and the 5percent variation consists mostly of slips of the pen and spelling. [3]
Questions such as, what types of script was used by Moses and those before him remained. We know alphabetic script existed, which predated Moses, such as those found in Babylon and Canaan. The script used in the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Masoretic was the Babylonian square script, which is a newer script adopted following the return from Babylonian captivity in 586-539 B.C. The script used by Israel before the Babylonian captivity was the Paleo-Hebrew script as evidenced in the Siloam inscription, the Silver Amulets, the Gezer Calendar and the Moabite Stone. All these archeological finds predate the Babylonian captivity, and demonstrate an alphabet closely related to the Phoenician Alphabet. The Hebrew Scriptures were more then likely recorded in this text type first, then copied into the newer alphabet, after the Jews returned from Babylon.
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Archeological find
Siloam Carving (701 B.C)
Scripture Reference
2 Kings 20:20, 2 Chronicles 32:30 Numbers 6:22-27
Find details
When the armies of Assyria were in the process of invasion, Hezekiah secured the water supply to Jerusalem. When the tunnel diggers met, an inscription was carved into the wall recording the event. Scripture engraved on silver strips in the paleo-Hebrew script. Schoolchilds calendar with cursive paleo-Hebrew. The Moabite stone proclaims freedom from Israelite oppression, recorded in the paleo-Hebrew or Phoenician script.
Silver Amulets (850 B.C.) Gezer Calendar 800-900 B.C. Moabite Stone
2 Kings 3:4 1 Kings 16
Other questions regarding the earlier Hebrew text remain. One debate still raging is the use of word division. The Siloam inscription had dots, between words, which indicated a separation of words, while the Silver Amulets do not have spaces between separate words. The Dead Sea Scrolls manuscripts, which date almost 500 later show a less then, clear division between words in the Hebrew square script. The work of the Dead Sea Scrolls was the continuation of a group known as The scribes.
The scribes (500 B.C- A.D. 100)

In 539 B.C., the Persians defeated Babylon under Cyrus the Great (Daniel 5). Cyrus issued a proclamation allowing the Jews to return from the land of their captivity back into the land of Israel. The problem was many Jews had lost the ability to communicate in the ancient paleo-Hebrew script. Ezra the scribe, who established the tradition of the scribes, is credited with changing the Hebrew alphabet to the Babylonian square script, which is in use today.
10 For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel. 11 This is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave Ezra the priest, the scribe, expert in the words of the commandments of the Lord, and of His statutes to Israel: 12 Artaxerxes, king of kings, To Ezra the priest, a scribe of the Law of the God of heaven: Perfect peace, and so forth. Ezra 7;10-11
Ezra was both a priest and a scribe, the pattern he established continued until the New Testament era. Ezras legacy was continued by a group known as the Soferim (Scribes), they preserved the sacred traditions of Israel. Regarding the scribes, Paul Wegner writes,
From 500 B.C. to A.D. 100, an influential group of teachers and interpreters of the Law called sopherim (scribes) arose to preserve Israels sacred traditions, the foundation of the nation. The Babylonian Talmud (Qidd. 30a) says, The early [scholars] were called soferim because they used to count [sfr] all the letters in the Torah[4]
The impact of this group is demonstrated in the New Testament, they are the experts in the law and scriptures in the time of Christ. Their close association with the Priests, Law and Pharisees is the demonstration of this link, traced back to the time Ezra. The scribes were experts in the law, maintaining the transmission of the manuscript from the time of Ezra to the time of Christ. Questions about scripture were taken to them, since they spend all day long committing the words to the scroll.
From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day. Matthew 16:21
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The Text of the Scribes

What is the text maintained by these scribes is the subject of debate, since there are minor variations between the Masoretic Texts, Qumran (Dead Sea) Texts, Septuagint (LXX)andSamaritan Pentateuch. There are several theories, which can be explored in detail when we explore the manuscripts of the Old Testament. William F. Albright from John Hopkins University and Frank M. Cross form Harvard University argued the source of the Masoretic Text was three text families, which were standardized by the rabbinic community in A.D. 100, accounting for the diversity present in various Old Testament manuscripts. Hebrew Vowels In the 9 century B.C., Hebrew did not have vowels in their alphabet. To help with pronunciation, long consonants were added, the consonants of h He, y (yod) and w(waw). These words became known as Matres lectionis (mothers of reading). Words without these consonants were known as partial reading as opposed to full reading (plene).
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The Old Testament text A.D. 500-1000

The Standardized Text In the first century, the Hebrew text became standardized. The evidence for this is found in recent manuscript discoveries, the text found at Qumran (The Dead Sea), which dated from 250 B.C. to A.D. 50 showed variety from manuscript to manuscript. While the later discoveries at Masada (A.D. 73) andWaddi Muraba (those text related to Bar Kochba rebellion A.D. 132-35) showed little variation. Therefore, at some time, near A.D. 100 the text was standardized, from that point, scribes were careful to maintain the standard text. This text would become known as the Masoretic text over time. Tannaim (A.D. 70, 135-200) The standardized text corresponds with the period in Jewish history, where a group of scribes known as the Tannaim came into existence. The word Tannaim means, to hand down orally, to study, to teach. With the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, and the defeat of Bar Kochba, the rabbinic community became the leaders of the Jewish community. The rabbis represented the Jewish community to Rome. The Tannaim also maintained the traditions (Oral Law, Mishna[5]) and biblical manuscripts under the watchful eye of Rome. Encyclopedia Britannica comments on this age of Jewish history,
With the defeat of Bar Kokhba and the ensuing collapse of active Jewish resistance to Roman rule (135136), politically moderate and quietist rabbinic elements remained the only cohesive group within Jewish society. With Jerusalem off limits to the Jews, rabbinic ideology and practice, which were not dependent on Temple, priesthood, or political independence for their vitality, provided a viable program for autonomous community life and thus filled the vacuum created by the suppression of allother Jewish leadership. The Romans, confident that the will for insurrection had been shattered, soon relaxed the Hadrianic prohibitions of Jewish ordination, public assembly, and regulation of the calendar and permitted rabbis who had fled the country to return and reestablish an academy in the town of Usha in Galilee.[6]
Rabbi Akiba (A.D. 55-137) established the structure of the Mishna, the six divisions and minor tractates, and Judah the Prince (Nasi) at the close of the 2nd century compiled the various oral traditions and closed collection, the Mishna. During this period and the later Talmudic period, rules were established regarding the preservation of the Old Testament texts. Paul Wegner, quoting F.G. Kenyon, records these rules of transmission,
1. Only parchments made from clean animals were allowed; these were to be joined together with thread from clean animals. 2. Each written column of the scroll was to have no fewer than forty-eight and no more than sixty lines whose breadth must consist of thirty letters.
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3.The page was first to be lined, from which the letters were to be suspended. 4.The ink as to be black, prepared according to the specific recipe. 5. No word or letter was to be written from memory. 6.There was to be the space of a hair between each consonant and the space of a small consonant between each word, as well as several other spacing rules. 7. The scribe must wash himself entirely and be in full Jewish dress before beginning to the scroll. 8. He could not write then name of Yahweh with a newly dipped brush, nor take notice of anyone, even a king, while writing this sacred name.[7]
Amoraim (A.D. 200-500) During this period, a third group of Jewish scribes came into existence. Known as the amoraim, meaning lecturers or interpreters. They developed what is known as the Talmud, a commentary on the Mishna, the Oral Law. Two centers of Talmudic study were established one in Palestine the other in Babylon, giving rise to the Babylonian Talmud and the Palestinian Talmud. Also during this time, the scribes began to note the areas in scripture where there might have been corruption in the whole transmission process over time. These notations were made in what later became known as the Masorah, or in the text. These notations are recorded in the Biblica Hebraica Stuttgartensia[8]. The Old Testament Text (A.D. 500-1000) A forth group of scribes followed in the tradition of the Amoraim, known as the Masorites from A.D. 500 to 1000. Their work established the source of todays Hebrew text, which has been translated into most English bibles. Their goal was to preserve the text, the Hebrew Canon, their notes numbered each letter and chapter, even recording the number of letters used in a book, even showing the middle letter in a book. The Masorites work flourished in the two centers of Jewish learning and scholarship, Babylon and Tiberius, Palestine. After the Muslim defeat of Byzantium in Palestine A.D. 638, Tiberius became the chief center for Jewish studies. The Masorites also added vowel points, accents and Masorahs (text notes) to clearly transmit the text. In the 10th century, two families came to the forefront of biblical manuscripts, the Ben Asher family and the Ben Naphtlai family. Over time, the Ben Asher traditions became the standard verses the Naphtali tradition. Masoretic notes The Masorites made notations were they felt there were textual problems. These notations were designed to help the reader understand what the textual problem was and possible solutions to it, in the reading. Here are some examples of the Masoretic notes, the list is not complete. 1. Special notes (puncta extraordinaria): The Masorites added small diamonds over either the letters or the words, which is not clear. These notes indicated some reservation on either the text or the doctrine. This notation is used in 15 places in the Hebrew text. According to a statement in the Babylonian Talmud, tractate Abot de Rabbi Nathan, the reason for the diamonds was not clear. Quoting Wegner, Some say, why are the dots used? Ezra said, If Elijah should come and askme why I accept that reading, I can point out that I have dotted the letters in question (to show they are suspect), but if he should tell me that the reading is correct, I can remove the dots (Version A, 34).[9] 2. Suspended letters (litterae suspensae): Four words have suspended letters above the line ( Judges 18;30, Job 38:13,15, Psalm 80:14) The suspended nun in Judges 18:30 is thought to be added to protect Moses from the embarrassment of having a relative who set up a graven images at Dan. 3. Perpetual Qere: The Masorites used these notations to indicate when scribes felt the text to be lacking. The Masorites rather then change the text, noted their preferred reading. Also, Words which read different then they are written are known as Perpetual Qere. The name of God is a Perpetual Qere,the Hebrew reads
hwhy but is pronounced differently.
The Hebrew after A.D. 1000 The Masoretic text was mostly hand copied (Manuscript) until the printing press. Even after the printing press, hand written copies continued for almost 100-years. The first Hebrew Bible was printed in 1488. This was followed by the first rabbinic Bible, printed by Daniel Bomberg in 1516-17. Bomberg printed a second edition in 1524-25, prepared by Jacob ben Chayyim. The text of this Hebrew Bible was the source in the translation of the King James Bible.
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The Final Masorah At the end of each book, notations were made indicating, the number of verses, the number of words and the middle word, this helped guarantee a faithful transmission of the manuscript. Chapter divisions When someone quotes a Chapter and a verse from a Bible, its often assumed the Chapters and verses always existed. Most people are surprised to learn chapter divisions are fairly new. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Stephen Langton (1150-1228) is credited with adding them to the Latin Vulgate. His divisions were later transferred by Solomon ben Ishmael (1330) to the Hebrew Bible, with some modifications. Verse divisions Verse notations have an early date, but there were significant variations at these various centers. Ben Asher is credited with standardizing these verse settings. The Hebrew Text has 23,100 verses, notations of these verses, were separated by a large colon, : , which was placed at the end of the verse. Old Testament Textual Criticism When we read the Bible, in particular its important to understand, the source document is in Hebrew and Aramaic. Additionally, the source document has been transmitted over time by human hands. In the process of transmission, human errors have crept into the biblical text. Finding and correcting these errors in the transmission process is the science known as Biblical Criticism. The goal being, to come as close as possible to the original autograph. By comparing the various available manuscripts, the Septuagint (LXX) (250 B.C.), The Dead Sea scrolls (250 B.C.-100 A.D.) the Samaritan Pentateuch (100 B.C.), and the Masoretic Text, (A.D. 1000), we can see there is some variety to the Hebrew text. These manuscripts along with other manuscripts, allows us to go back into time an view the options regarding any scriptures in question.
[1] [2]
Encyclopedia Britannica 1994, Genizah article. Masoretic text is named after a group of scribes known as the Masorites who lived in Palestine. They copied and preserved manuscripts for Jews in 7th to 11th centuries. [3] Geisler and Nix, A General Introduction to the Bible, 1986 Moody Press Pg. 382 [4] Paul D. Wegner, The Journey from Text to Translation, Pg. 168, Baker Academics [5] The Mishna is called the Oral Law, and contains the rabbinic traditions on various aspects of the five books of Moses. Jewish tradition claim the oral law was an oral transmission of law dating back to the time of Moses. The Oral Law was placed into written text, becoming known as the Mishna. The Talmud is a commentary on the Mishna. [6] Encyclopedia Britannica, 1994 Edition, Rabbinic Judaism, the age of the Tannaim. [7] Paul D. Wegner, The Journey from Texts to Translation, Baker Academic, Pg. 172 [8] This work was completed in 1977, and incorporates the work of the Masorites into a completed Hebrew volume for those wanting to study the Hebrew text. [9] Ibid Pg. 173
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9. How was the New Testament Bible Transmitted?

Introduction to New Testament Transmission
The New Testament like the Old Testament has no surviving autographs, and relies on the transmission of scripture over the generations. However, there are several differences between the New and Old Testaments regarding scripture transmission. The period of New Testament transmission is much shorter then the Old Testament, stretching from A.D. 50-100 to 1450s, about 1400 years. The Old Testament range is 1800 to 2800 years (1450 B.C. to A.D. 1400s). Additionally, there are many more New Testament manuscripts nearer to the original autographs, (A.D. 40-100) some dating to within 60-years. Even though the Hebrew manuscripts are smaller in number, they tend to be of higher quality. The purpose of the New Testament manuscripts was to transmit the Gospel message to the church of Jesus Christ. The last two verses in the Gospel of John speak for much of the Gospels and the New Testament.
24 This is the disciple who testifies of these things, and wrote these things; and we know that his testimony is true. 25 And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen. John 21:24-25
The disciple John recorded in written format his personal witness of life of Jesus Christ for later generations. The process to bring this forward to future generations was the process manuscript transmission.
Late or Early date? Critics of the Bible have attempted to assign a late date to the New Testament manuscripts claiming, they were committed to writing in the early third century, after a period of oral transmission. Archeological discoveries have frustrated many of their claims; one notable skeptic was Sir William Ramsay. Ramsay (1850s) regarded as one of the greatest archaeologist ever was a skeptic of the early dates attributed to the books of the bible. He dated Acts and Luke to the mid 2nd century. After doing a topographical study of Asia Minor and using the writings of Luke, he was forced to change his mind. He wrote,
I found myself brought into contact with the Book of Acts as an authority for the topography, antiquities and society of Asia Minor. It was gradually borne upon me that in various details the narrative showed marvelous truth.
The intricate details in the New Testament, including people, places and geographic markers, make a late date a virtual impossibility. In addition to Archeological evidence, manuscript evidence also point to an early date. The John Rylands Fragment (P52), which is dated between A.D. 117-138, makes late date for the Gospel of John seem rather silly. Manuscripts such as the Chester Beatty Papyri (P52, P46, P47) (A.D. 250) and the Bodmer Papyri (P66, P72, P75) (A.D. 200) cement an early date to the New Testament books, with the latest book being Revelation revealed during the reign of Domitian (A.D. 81-96).
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9. How was the New Testament Bible Transmitted? |
Oral or Written transmission? The transmission of the Gospels, Epistles and the rest of the New Testament was not an oral transmission but a written transmission. The book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament was a written letter to the seven-churches in Asia. John is specifically told to write down, what he sees and send it to the seven-churches, meaning the scripture is God-breathed or inspired.
11 saying, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last," and, "What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea." Revelation 1:11
Luke like John wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, with the purpose of documenting the events in a written format for future generations.
1 Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus Luke 1:1-3
At the point, when the scripture was committed to paper, the witness of the apostles was apostolic witness of past events, was not the result of human effort, but inspiration from the Holy Spirit.
26 "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 things that I said to you.John 14:26
How was scripture written? From the time of Moses, to the close of the Old Testament, the method of writing varied in the land of Israel. The more permanent form being words recorded in stone, clay and metal, which could last thousands of years. Stone and clay was limited in mobility and content, only so much could be written on a stone, and the material written, eventually the weight limited its ease of use. Leather and Papyrus followed clay and stone, Leather lasted longer then Papyrus but cost more, both were easier to use, but less permanent then stone and clay. The Dead Scrolls contained scrolls written on leather, Papyrus and copper, demonstrating living recorded of how documents were prepared and transmitted in the first century. The New Testament manuscripts, transmitted on papyrus and leather scrolls initially, with papyrus being the more likely alternative. The earliest surviving New Testament manuscripts are made of papyrus. During the 2nd century, the technology of writing advanced with the development of the Codexversus the scroll. The codex was the early form of the book, which solved many problems with ease of use. Papyrus sheets were stacked upon each other and stitched down the center, with writing on both sides. The earliest manuscript (P52) has writing on both sides, which suggest it was an early Codex manuscript. In addition to Papyrus scroll and codex, parchment, other materials were also used to transmit the scriptures.
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Other materials which scripture was transmitted Vellum: animal skins from lambs and young goats, which was rather costly, finer then parchment and more costly, the materials was soaked in lime, giving it a white sheen, which allowed a cleaner and then regular animals skins. Velum was sometimes obtained from animals not yet born. Parchment: The name is derivived from the city of Pergamum in Asia Minor, which was nd a major manufacturer of the material. The material was used by the 2 century B.C. for scripture, as the Dead Sea scrolls demonstrated. Like Vellum, parchment was soaked in lime to give it whitish clear look. Redressed parchment: After the original writing became faded, the parchment could be used again after the original writing was erased. These became known as palimpsest(Greek, rubbed again) rescriptus (Latin, rewritten). Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus ( C ) is an example of this type of manuscript. Paper: Invented in China in second century A.D, it was manufactured in Arabia in the th eighth century, introduced into Europe in the 10 century, manufactured in Europe in th th the 12 century, and became common by the 13 century.
Manuscript types There are four main manuscript types for the New Testament documents. These four types ofmanuscripts are used to classify the 5,336 (5222)[1]New Testament manuscripts, which are known to exist. These four types are, Papyri MMS, ( P1-88) Unical MSS (01-274), Minuscules MSS (01-2795)and Lectionaries (01-2209). Papyri MMS (P 1-88) ) (2nd-3rd century) The earliest Greek NT manuscripts are Papyri manuscripts, all including the earliest one (P-52) are from a codex format. The manuscripts number 88, and are delineated by a letter P followed by the manuscript number. John Rylands Fragment is P 52. Uncial MSS (4th- 9thcentury) These manuscripts number about 274; they are some of the most important, if not the most important manuscripts of the New Testament. They include Codexs, Sinaticus, Vaticanus andAlexandrinus among others. These manuscripts appeared after Constantine authorized the making of multiple copies of scripture after the council of Nicea A.D. 325. They utilize Greek capital letters with curves so they could be written on the common writing materials. There are no breaks between words or sentences and no punctuation marks, these manuscripts utilize a style known as scripta continua (continuous script). These manuscripts are identified by a capital letter, mainly Latin letters, also Hebrew and Greek. Codex Sinaiticus is identified by the Hebrew letter aleph ( a)), Codex Vaticanus by the letter ( B) and Codex Alexandrinus by the letter (A). About one in five Uncials are palimpsest manuscripts, which are reused parchments. When the scripture text became worn, it was erased and used for another purpose. Some of the early texts have been recovered, which lie underneath a later writing. One example is the Ephraemi manuscript dated to A.D. 345, of the New Testament was written over by in the twelfth century and replaced by the 38 sermons of a 4th century Syrian church father Ephraem.
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Minuscules MSS (9th-15th century) Following the Uncial type of manuscript was the Minuscule, which used a smaller cursive script developed at the close of the ninth century. These manuscripts number 2,745, about eight times the number of Uncials manuscripts. They were written from the 8th to the 15th century. The earliest Minuscule manuscript is dated to the year A.D. 835 and contains the four Gospels, located in Leningrad State Public Library. Lectionaries MSS The church developed a lectionary, so both Old and New Testaments could be read over the course of a year. Lectionaries was the scripture reading in the church, they also stand as a witness to the scripture, but in a secondary nature. They number about 2,209, Lectionaries are hard to date, since they were used throughout Church history, and they still used the Uncial writing long after the Minuscule had taken over. Regarding their value, Geisler writes,
It must be admitted, however, that lectionaries are only of a secondary value in establishing the New Testament text. (1.) They contain all the New Testament many times over, with the exceptions of Revelation and parts of Acts. (2) As a result of recent scholarship on the lectionaries, they are assuming a more significant role in establishing the true text. Lectionary text types are predominantly Byzantine, but there are certain groups that are characterized b Alexandrian and Caesarean readings.[2]
Are the New Testament Manuscripts reliable?

The large number of Greek manuscripts often leads to the question, how reliable is the New Testament? When we compare the Greek manuscripts for the New Testament to other ancient books, and their manuscript witness nothing even comes close to what the New Testament offers. The Greek historian Herodotus, whose is called the father of history, wrote in the 5th century B.C., the earliest surviving work is almost 1000-years after his lifetime, with only eight known manuscripts existing. Compare this to the NT, with over 5000 manuscripts. Secondly, the time between the autograph and the manuscript copy is extremely short when we compare the New Testament to other works, which are not even questioned as to their authenticity. Caesars war commentary on the Gallic Wars, which is dated to 44 B.C., has only 9 to 10 existing manuscripts surviving. The earliest manuscript is almost 1000-years after the events. Compare this to the New Testament, which has some manuscripts dated to 60-years or earlier to the actual autograph, and copies of the each book of the NT, dated less then 200-years from the autograph. In addition, we have entire New Testaments, written 300-years from the NT period. Sir Frederic Kenyon writes about the reliability of the scriptures,
The interval then between the dates of the original composition and the earliest extant evidence becomes so small as to be in fact negligible, and the last foundation for any doubt that the Scriptures have come down to us substantially as they were written has now been removed. Both the authenticity and the general integrity of the books of the New Testament may be regarded as finally established.[3]
Author
Homer Herodotus Thucydides Plato Demosthenes Caesar Livy
Book
Iliad History History
Date Written
800 BC 480-425 BC 460-400 BC 400 BC 300 BC 100-44 BC 59-17 AD
Earliest Copies
C. 400 BC C. 900 AD 900 AD 900 AD 900 AD 900 AD 4th Century (Partial), Mostly 10th Century 1100 AD 850 AD 114 Fragments 200 (Books) 250 (Most NT) 325 (Complete NT)
Time Gap
400 years 1350 years 1300 years 1300 years 1300 years 1000 years 400 years 1000 years 1000 years 750 years 50 years 100 years 150 years 225 years
No. of Copies
643 8 8 8 7 10 1 partial 19 copies 20 7 5366
Gallic Wars History of Rome
Tacitus Pliny Secundus New Testament
Annals Natural History
100 AD 61-113 AD 50-100 AD
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The Early Church fathers

Another witness to scriptures are the writings of the early church fathers, who wrote in the early church period and centuries following. They quote some 36,289 references to the New Testament. If we lost all the manuscripts, we could reconstruct the New Testament from their citations alone. Writer
Justin Martyr (133 AD) Irenaeus (180 AD) Clement (150-212 AD) Origen (185-253 AD) Tertullian (166-220 AD) Hippolytus (170-235 AD) Eusebius (324 AD) Grand Total
Gospels
268 1038 1107 9231 3822 734 3258 19,368
Acts
10 194 44 349 502 42 211 1352
Pauline Epistles
43 499 1127 7778 2609 387 1592 14,035
General Epistles
6 23 207 399 120 27 88 870
Revelation
3 (266 allusions) 65 11 165 205 188 27 664
Totals
330 1819 2406 17,992 7258 1378 5176 36,289
Text Families
When the churched spread throughout the Greek, Roman, Asian and African world, the NewTestament manuscripts also went with it. Because of great distances, regional between various parts of the Christian world, centers of influence were established. From these centers flowed manuscript copies to be used by individuals and churches. These centers of influence are known as text types, since the manuscript can be traced to a geographic area, which it was copied. The manuscript families are; 1. Alexandrian 2. Caesarian 3. Western 4.Byzantine.
When a manuscript has a combination of text from different text families, it is known as a mixed manuscript. The differences between the text type is minimal and has no effect on doctrinal issues in the church. In our attempt to find, the best reading of the New Testament, closest to the original, autograph, we need to examine the available manuscripts, and their text families. Regarding the variation between copies from the text families, Paul Wegner puts this in perspective,
It is important near the beginning of our discussion on New Testament textual criticism to note that the verbal agreement between various New Testament manuscripts is closer than between many English translations of the New Testament and that the actual number of variants is small (approximately 10%), none of which call into question any major doctrine. The greatest number of variants are differences or errors in spelling. For example, the author of Codex Vaticanus spells John with only one n instead of the common spelling with two. This type of variant makes no difference in the meaning of the text.
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The second largest group of variants arises because of omissions of small Greek words or variations in word order. For example, in Greek a persons name may or may not be preceded in an article(the). And the phrase the good man could also be written in Greek as the man, the good one, although in English both phrases are translated as the good man. These types of variants also make no difference in the meaning of the text. It is very rare for a scribe to accidentally make nonsense out of a word or phrase when copying, but it does happen. One scribe accidentally wrote the Greek letter pi instead of phi in Luke 6:41, rendering the text, Why do you look at the fruit in your brothers eye instead of Why do you look at the speck in your brothers eye. These types of errors are easily identifiable.[4]
Textual Criticism of the New Testament

The purpose of textual criticism is to come as close as possible to the original autograph, by examining the available and manuscripts and their texts. We must however distinguish this from Higher criticism. Textual criticism does not question the inspiration of scripture, but is concerned with the text of the Bible, attempting to restore the autograph, from the available manuscripts. Jerome the translator of the Latin Vulgate (A.D. 382-390) was an early textual critic of the New Testament. To prepare his translation, he needed to compare various manuscripts to determine the most accurate reading, which to use as the source for his translation. Jeromes translation was the dominant Latin translation in Europe for almost 1000-years. The current debate in many churches has its roots in the source manuscript used in the translation. In the 14th century, the availability of Greek manuscripts was not like today. The King James Bible, used a Greek text, commonly known as the Textus Receptus [5]or Received Text. The forth edition of the Textus Receptus was used as the New Testament Greek source for both the King James Bible (1611) and the Geneva Bible (1557 and 1560). This version used 15-Greek manuscripts giving variant readings in the margins. The verse divisions of the Textus Receptus was also adopted in the King James translation.
[1]
Bruce Metzger (The Text of the New Testament 1961,) numbers the NT manuscripts at 5,336, while Kurt and Barbara Aland (Der Text des Neuen Testaments 1982) differ on the number because the Alands exclude from their list manuscripts whose century of origin is uncertain.
[2]
Geisler & Nix, A General Introduction to the Bible, Pg. 418, Moody Press, Chicago 1986 Ibid, Pg. 405
[3]
[4] [5]
Paul D. Wegner, The Journey from Text to Translation, Pg.215,217, Baker Books, 1999 The term Textus Receptus originates from the words on the cover page of Greek Bible printed by Robert Estienne (Stephanus), the Royal Printer in Paris. In the fourth edition (1557) the printer announced his conversion to Protestantism.
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10. What are the Old Testament (Tanakh) Manuscripts?

Introduction to New Testament Transmission Introduction
The Old Testament portion of todays Bible is derived from Hebrew manuscripts. These manuscripts are copies derived from the autographs, which originated from 1450 to 425 B.C. The process of manuscript copying, from generation to generation is manuscripttransmission. Manuscript transmission is a human process, as copies are made of copies, originating from an autograph. Because the process is human and over long periods, copying variations and errors may occur over time. These transmission errors themselves became part of the text over time, causing variations in some manuscripts. By examining the manuscripts themselves, their history and background, we are able to get to arrive at a clearer understanding of the text of the autograph. This process of examination, textual criticism, is defined as the science and art that seeks to determine the most reliable wording of the biblical text.[1] In studying the Bible, a distinction needs to be made between the autograph and the copy of the autograph (manuscript transmission). Since the copy of the autograph, is transmitted via human agency, over long periods, variations and human error have a tendency to appear in the text, the result of copyist errors. This is in contrast to the autograph, which was inspired or God breathed when it was originally revealed.
Biblical Inerrancy
The message of the scripture is inspired and original autograph is inerrant. For the most part, when looking at variations of between various manuscripts, the effect on the text is rather minimal. Most variations involve spelling and grammatical differences between manuscripts with absolutely no effect on the meaning of the text. Many people confuse the concept of manuscript transmission and textual criticism, as evidence the bible is a book with errors and therefore not inerrant. First, what does inerrancy mean? The Evangelical Dictionary of Theology defines Inerrancy;
the view that when a the facts become known, they will demonstrate that the Bible in its original autograph and correctly interpreted is entirely true and never false in all it affirms, whether that relates to doctrine or ethics or to social, physical or life sciences. [2]
Biblical Inerrancy and textual criticism

The purpose of textual criticism is to restore, as near as possible the text of the original autograph, by examining the various manuscripts. Commenting on the extent of variation between the manuscript sources, Paul Wegner writes, [3]
Bruce Waltke, former Old Testament professor at Regent College in Vancouver, Canada, notes in the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia[4] one textual notes appears for every ten words; thus 90 percent of the text is without significant variation. And Shermaryahu Talmon, from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, asserts, errors and textual divergences between the versions materially affect the intrinsic message only in relatively few instances. Old Testament textual criticism therefore, concerns mainly details and discrepancies in relatively insignificant matters.
By comparing the various OT manuscripts, we are able to examine the textual transmission of the Old Testament, and see if there is corruption in the transmission process.
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10. What are the Old Testament (Tanakh) Manuscripts? |
Textual Criticism The process of textual criticism begins with a compilation of the evidence. The main sources of evidence are the available manuscript readings on the verse. The textual critic would then weigh the various reading from the manuscripts. A summary of these main sources are: 1 The Masoretic Text: The most authoritative version of the Hebrew scriptures, which became standardized about A.D. 100, based on manuscript evidence. The name come from the Masorites who were scribes from A.D. 500-1000. They carried on the work of earlier scribes who maintained the Hebrew scriptures. The Samaritan Pentateuch: Written in paleo-Hebrew, this work only involves the first rd nd five books (Torah), the version could be dated to the 3 to 2 century B.C. The oldest th existing manuscript is dated to the 13 century. The Qumran Manuscripts (Dead Sea Scrolls): Manuscripts found at the Dead Sea, dating between 250 B.C. to A.D. 50. A portion of every book of the Bible except has been found at this site. Ancient Hebrew Manuscripts: Other ancient Hebrew manuscripts have been discovered, in addition to the Dead Sea Scrolls. These include the Nash Papyrus, Masada, Murabbarat and the Cairo Genizah). The Septuagint: (250-100 B.C.), the Greek translation of the Old Testament. OT Greek Manuscripts: Aquila, Symmachus and Theodotion. st Syriac Peshitta: Dated to the 1 century A.D. rd Jewish Targums: Aramaic paraphrase translations of the Old Testament 3 and th 4 centuries A.D., These translations have a much older tradition dating back to the time of Ezra possibly. Latin Vulgate: A.D. 390-405, Latin Translation by Jerome.
5 6 7 8
Evaluating the evidence

Once the verse in question is compared against the manuscripts, the textual critic then begins to evaluate the verse itself, based on its construction. He would look for: 1. Vowel changes 2. Copying mistakes Vowel changes Vowels in Hebrew are a late addition (9 century), they were added to help the have the correct pronunciation of the word. If a vowel was pointed incorrectly, it can change the entire meaning of a word. Pointing are the symbols (points) used under and over words indicating if the vowel and whether is long or short. For example the dog, has the consonants d and g. These consonants can make up the words,dog, dug, dag, dig and deg. If you had the following sentence, The boy loves his dig. More than likely, the word meant here is dog instead of dig. Copyist errors No matter how well trained the scribes were, they are still human, and over time various copyist errors have crept into the manuscripts. These errors would then follow as the manuscript was copied and then recopied from generation to generation. Many of these copyist errors are clearly known and very obvious, many are noted in the manuscripts themselves. The types of errors and some examples are below, adopted from Paul Wegner chart:[5]
th
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Error 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Mistaken letters
Definition
Confusion of similar letters
Possible examples
Genesis 10:4 cites a race known as the Dodanim but I Chronicles 1:7 calls them the Rodanim. Isaiah 9:2 Judges 20:13 Jeremiah 51:3 yidrok (he drew) appears 2 times Deuteronomy 31:1, Masoretic Text reads Moses went, Qumran reads, Moses finished. Leviticus 16:8 Hosea 6:5 I Samuel 14:41 Genesis 31:18 The years that Saul reigned are omitted from 1 Samuel 13;1
Homophony Haplography Dittography Metathesis
Substitution of similar sounding words. Omission of a letter or word usually due to similar letter or word in context. A letter or word that has been written twice instead of once Reversal in order of two letters or words Incorrect word division that results in two words joined as one Incorrect word division that results in one word written as two. An omission caused by two words or phrases that end similarly. An omission caused by two words or phrases that begin similarly. Any other omissions.
Fusion Fission Homoioteleuton Homoioarchton Other omissions
Evaluating the evidence

There are several factors to weigh when you examine the evidence for a particular verse. The weight of evidence does not lie with the number of manuscripts but with the weight of manuscripts. In addition to the manuscript evidence several other factors need to be taken into account. 1. Language of the witness 2. Date of the witness 3. Reliability of the witness 4. Provenance (Origin/Source) and purpose of the witness 5. Interdependence of the witness.
Old Testament Manuscripts, sources of textual criticism

Silver Amulets These are the oldest existing Old Testament texts in existence. They were found in a grave, near St. Andrews church of Scotland at Jerusalem, south of the walls of Jerusalem about one mile. They quote numbers 6:22-27, the priestly benediction, they are similar to the Masoretic Text. They are dated to about 850 B.C., amulets like these were worn as charms on the arms or neck to protect against evil. The fact they are made out of rolled thin silver preserved them to this point. The large one measures 4 inches by 1 inch, the other one is 1 inch by inch.
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Samaritan Pentateuch In 722 B.C., the Assyrians removed 22,290 Israelites and replaced them with other people from conquered Assyrian lands. These foreigners mixed with the remaining population of Israel and became known as the Samaritans. They were considered half-breeds by the Jews of Judah, when the Jews returned after the Babylonian captivity in 539 B.C., the Samaritans were not allowed to help rebuild the Temple. So the Samaritans built their own Temple on Mt. Gerizim. With the split of the Samaritans from the Jews from the 8th century B.C., there arose a second Hebrew revision of the Pentateuch, known as the Samaritan Pentateuch. It contains the five books of Moses and is written in Paleo-Hebrew script similar to the that found on the Moabite Stone, Siloam inscription. Author Frank Cross believes the Samaritan Pentateuch branched off in the Pre- Masoretic text in the 2nd century BC. The differences from the Masoretic text aretrivial and orthographic. The Samaritan Pentateuch differs from the Masoretic text in about 6000 places, most are spelling and grammatical in nature. Sixteen hundred of these differences agree with the Septuagint. Some of the differences were introduced by Samaritans with the interest in preserving their status. Such as the location of the Arc. The oldest existing manuscript is dated to the 11th century AD. Dead Sea Scrolls (Qumran Manuscripts) Dead Sea Scrolls In March 1947 a young Arab boy discovered in the caves of Qumran near the Dead Sea jars containing several leather manuscripts dating to the time of Christ. They belonged to the Essenes. The Essenes were a Jewish sect that settled in the Judean desert, near Qumran. Other manuscripts were found over the next 10 years. Two copies of the book of Isaiah were found along with books and fragments from the whole Old Testament except for the book of Ester. Prior to the discovery the oldest existing book of the Hebrew Old Testament dated to about 1000 AD. Carbon dating has placed them between 168 BC and 233 AD. Archaeology puts the dates at
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between 150 BC to 100 AD. Gleason Archer observed that the two copies of Isaiah proved to be word for word, identical with our standard Hebrew Bible in more than 95% of the text. The 5% of variation consisted chiefly of obvious slips of the pen and variations in spelling. The scrolls gave an overwhelming confirmation of the Masoretic text. Some of the variants show parallels to the Greek text of the Septuagint (LXX). The Dead Sea Scrolls are owned by the Nation of Israel Nash Papyrus In 1902 W.L. Nash acquired a damaged copy of the 10 commandments from an Egyptian dealer, he donated them to Cambridge University. This manuscript has been dated to the Maccabean period by William F. Albright (169-37 B.C.). Paul Kahle places its origin before the destruction of [6] the Temple in A.D. 70. This scroll seems to be a combination of texts from Exodus 20:2-17 an Deuteronomy 5:6-21 and may have been used for another purpose, rather then just a text.
Murabbaat Manuscripts Excavated in January 1952, caves found 11 miles south of the Dead Sea site, manuscripts were found dating to the time of the Simon bar Kochba revolt, (A.D. 132-135). Archeologists found in Cave 2, fragments from the books of Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, along with Isaiah. Also one of the oldest papyrus manuscripts of the minor prophets was discovered, this manuscript was nearly identical to the Masoretic Text, affirming a standardization nd of the text by the 2 century, only three variants existed.
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Masada Herod constructed a palace at Masada (36-30 B.C.), located along the Dead Sea. The 1300-foot walls create a natural fortress. Masada was the last scene of the Jewish revolt against the Romans in the first revolt in A.D. 66-73. The occupants held out until the Romans used forced Jewish labor to build a ramp. As the Roman th 10 legion, led by Flavius Silva was about to enter, the Zealots who occupied Masada, committed suicide. Manuscripts found at the site during excavations 1963-1965 include Genesis, Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Psalms and Ezekiel. These documents were dated prior to A.D. 73. Wadi Habra Located one the western shore of the Dead Sea, one mile south of Ein Gedi, in 1952 fragments of Genesis, Numbers, Deuteronomy and Psalms were found. One of the more amazing discoveries was a Greek translation of the Minor prophets, which used the ancient Hebrew script, for the Lords name in the Greek text. These manuscripts dated to A.D. 132, were virtually identical with the Masoretic Text.
Genizah fragments The Ben-Ezra Synagogue in Cairo Egypt was built in 1015, in Old Cairo. Located in the attic was the Genizah or storage room, which had no walls or windows and was only accessable by a hole in the western wall. The room was discovered in 1860, and from that point manuscripts made their way to Europe. Some estimates put the number of manuscripts and fragments at 200,000. Most manuscripts dated from 1000 to 1400, some however, were dated much earlier. The most important manuscripts included biblical th manuscripts dated to the 5 century. The Zadokite Document, also known as the Damascus Document. And a Hebrew version of the Wisdom of Ben Sirach, prior to this only Greek texts were in exisitence.
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Codex Cairenis (C ) This manuscript was preserved by the [7] Karaite Community of Cairo, and contains only the former and Later prophets. The codex seems to have been written and pointed by Moses ben Asher in Tiberias for Yabes ben Shelomo in A.D. 895, a Karaite Jew.
Aleppo Codex (A) The Aleppo Codex dates from the Masoretic period, of Old Testament copying. During this period there was a deep reverence of the Scriptures, complete review of established rules and a systematic renovation of transmission techniques. During the crusades July 15, 1099 it was taken as plunder, but seven years it was returned to the Karaites, who then brought it their community at Cairo. Aleppo was written by Shelomo ben Bayaa but according to a colophon it was pointed (vowel marks were added) by Moses ben Asher (930 A.D.) It is a model codex based on the Masoretic text. It was not permitted to be copied for a long time and was reported to be destroyed. Aleppo Codex was smuggled from Syria to Israel. It has now been photographed and will be the basis of the New Hebrew Bible to be published by Hebrew University. It is a sound authority for the Ben Asher text. Codex Leningradensis This manuscript is dated A.D. 1008, and was pointed by the ben Asher family. This manuscript was the source for the Biblia Hebraia, edited by R. Kittel ( 1929-1937) version of the Old Testament, and used by most recent translations of the Old Testament today.
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The Septuagint or the LXX The LXX version is the first translation of the OT ever made. The translation was inaugurated by Ptolemy of Philadelphus (285-247 BC). Ptolemy was fond of books and wanted to add the Hebrew Pentateuch to his collection in Alexandria. The LXX was the bible of the early church. The order of OT books is derived from the LXX through the Latin Vulgate translated by St. Jerome. On the basis of the LXX Catholics advocate the Larger canon of the Jews in Alexandria. Protestants deny the existence of an independent canon in Alexandria, in view of the smaller canon of the Jews in Palestine. The difference is 7 complete books and portions of 2 others. The books are Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, I & 2 Macabees and additions to Daniel and Esther. These portions are rejected by protestants. The oldest existing LXX manuscripts is dated to th the mid 4 century, they are Sinaticus and Vaticanus Codexs. Codex Vaticanus Dated to the 4 century, contained all the Old Testament at first, portions are missing today. Missing are Genesis 1-46:28a, 2 Samuel 2:5-7, 10-13; Psalms 105[106]:27-137 [138]:6b; There are 617 leaves for the Old Testament, each leave bearing three columns with black ink, written on calf skin (velllum). This was cataloged in the Vatican library in 1471 or 1481, but was not available for viewing. Napoleon carried off this codex to Paris was war booty, it was returned after his death in 1815. Constantin von Tischendorf (1815-1874) viewed the document for a few hours in 1867, and published an edition. The Vatican released photographs of the leaves in 1889/90.
th
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Codex Sinaticus This version of the Septuagint contains only half th of the Old Testament. Dated the 4 century, the story of its discovery is amazing in its own right. In 1844, Count von Tishchendorf was at St. Catherines monastery, at Mt. Sinai, in the Library, when he noticed the monks using manuscripts leaves to keep a fire burning. He later saw they were Septuagint Greek manuscripts. He was able to secure the remaining leaves, he was informed two baskets had already been burned. In 1853, he returned not finding any more manuscripts. Again he returned in 1859, with a letter from czar Alexander II of Russia, he was shown Sinaticus but was not allowed to purchase it. Later , the monks gave it to Tishchendorf as a gift, because the czar influence over St. Catherines. In 1863, he published Codex Sinaticus. In 1933, Russia sold the manuscript to the British Museum for 100,000 pounds.
The Targums The Targums are Aramaic translations of the Old Testament. After the Jews returned from Babylon in 539 B.C., many had lost the ability to communicate in Hebrew, which became the sacred language of priests and scribes. Aramaic was the common language. To help Jews understand scripture, a vernacular version of the scriptures was assembled, which was varied from literal to paraphrase in the quality of translations. Targum Onqelos was very literal and became stand for the Pentateuh. Targum of Jonathan ben Uzziel became standard for the prophets. The Targums are viewed more as commentaries more then translations because of their interpretive nature. They reflect the Masoretic Text in their translation, and allow us to see how the rabbis applied scripture. Targums exist for every book of the Old Testament except for Daniel, Ezra and Nehemiah.
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[1] [2]
Paul Wegner, Journey from Text to Translation, Baker Academic 1999, pg 177 The Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Baker Books, 1984, Walter A. Elwell, editor, Pg. 142 [3] Paul Wegner, Journey from Text to Translation, Baker Academic 1999, Pgs. 177-178 [4] The Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, or BHS, is an edition of the Hebrew Bible published by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft (German Bible Society) in Stuttgart. It is widely regarded by both Jews and Christians as a reliable edition of the Hebrew and Aramaic scriptures (i.e., the Tanakh in Jewish terminology, the Old Testament in Christian terminology) and is substantially the most widely used original-language edition among scholars.It is a revision of the third edition of the Biblia Hebraica edited by Rudolf Kittel, the first Bible to be based on the Leningrad Codex. The footnotes are completely revised. It originally appeared in instalments, from 1968 to 1976, with the first one-volume edition in 1977; it has been reprinted many times. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biblia_Hebraica_Stuttgartensia [5] Paul Wegner, Journey from Text to Translation, Baker Academic 1999, Pg. 180 [6] Ibid, Pg.188 [7] The Karaites were a community of Jews which rejected the traditions of the Rabbis, including the Talmuds and Midrash. They came to existence in the Middle ages, about 10,000 exist today.
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11. New Testament Manuscripts and Textual Criticism

Introduction to New Testament Criticism
When either the Old or New Testament is read in English, the reader needs to understand they are reading a translation. The translation is based on manuscripts, copies of copies, which were transmitted over time by humanity. Since the original autograph does not exist, we depend on faithful transmission of the text. Textual Criticism understands with the human process of translation, there exists the potential of transmittal errors. The purpose of textual criticism is to restore as near as possible the words of the autograph. This is done by examining the evidence, the manuscripts, comparing the manuscript to manuscript. The New Testament manuscripts contrasted to the Old Testament manuscripts has a greater quantity, closer to the date of authorship but lower in quality. There are about 5400 Greek New Testament manuscripts, which allows us to verify the transmission of the Greek manuscripts. The dynamic links between manuscripts, manuscript transmission and textual criticism can clearly be illustrated in the commonly known, Textus Receptus[1], which is the Greek text used in the translation of the King James bible of 1611.
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Textual Criticism of the New Testament

In textual criticism of the New Testament, we need to understand the role Greek New Testament manuscripts play. Since the New Testament was written in Greek, the Greek manuscripts are the closest point to the original autographs. During the transmission process, variations occur, because manuscripts are copied by hand, these copyist variations, then copies of the manuscript over time. These variations allow us to trace families of manuscripts because of similarities contained with the documents. Variations Just what is a variation? The vast majority of variations have very little impact on the meaning of the manuscript. A variation is just what means, if one manuscript spells the word different there is a variation. If one manuscript has different punctuation, that is a variation. To put these variations between manuscripts in context, Paul Wagner writes,
The verbal agreement between various New Testament manuscripts is closer than between many English translations of the New Testament and that the actual number of variants in the New Testament is small (approximately 10 percent), none o which call into question any major doctrine. The greatest number of variants are differences or errors in spelling. For example, the author of Codex Vaticanus spells John with only one n instead of the common spelling with two. This type of variant makes no difference in the meaning of the text. The second largest group arises because of omissions of small Greek words or variations in word order. For example, in Greek a person a persons name may or may not be preceded by an article (the). And the phrase the good man could also be written in Greek as the man, the good one although in English both phrases are translated the good man. These types of variants also make no difference to the meaning of the text.[2]
Textual criticisms goal is to reach back to the autograph, examining the variations to determine, what exact words would have been in the autograph.
Procedure for New Testament Textual Criticism
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1. Collecting the evidence Like the Old Testament, the purpose of Textual Criticism is to try to restore as near as possible the original autograph, by examining the manuscript evidence. So the procedure would be to first to collect the available evidence. The three primary sources of this evidence are: 1. New Testament Manuscripts 2. The writings of the Church Fathers 3. Early translation versions 2. Evidence evaluation Human beings copied the Old Testament, and they also copied the New Testament, the errors of Old Testament copyist are the same as those in the New Testament.
3. Determine the most plausible reading There are six principles used to determine the most plausible reading, when comparing the evidence of a verse. 1. Manuscripts must be weighed, not counted 2. Determine the reading that would most likely give rise to the others. 3. The more distinctive reading is usually preferable. 4. The shorter reading is generally favored. 5. Determine which reading is more appropriate in its context (examine literary contexts, grammatical or spelling errors, historical context). 6. Examine parallel passages for any differences and determine why they may appear.[3]
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History of New Testament Textual Criticism

From the autographs, the New Testament spread throughout the Greek speaking world, as manuscript copies were made by the various growing Christian communities. As Christianity became more established, copies of manuscripts continued to be made, some more careful then others. As the Christian faith reached the non-Greek speaking world, translations of the New Testament scriptures also came into existence. The Latin Vulgate One of the first languages, which the New and Old Testaments were translated into was Latin, specifically Old Latin, the official language of the Roman Empire. When Constantine, the Roman Emperor became Christian (A.D. 312), Christianity became the religion of the Roman Empire. Accordingly, the Greek scriptures were translated into Old Latin, since Latin was the official language of Rome. By A.D. 382, the variations of in the Old Latin translations reached an unacceptable point. In 382, Pope Damascus appointed Eusebius Hieronymus, known as St. Jerome, the Biblical scholar of his day to conform the Latin text with the Greek text. Jerome used textual criticism, by comparing the Latin manuscripts to the Greek manuscripts, making sure the Latin translation was in line with the Greek, this process took 2-years (382-390). Bruce Metzger, refers to the process of Jerome translation, which later became known as the Vulgate (common).
He used a relatively good Latin text as the basis for his revision, and compared it with some old Greek manuscripts. He emphasizes that he treated he current Latin text as conservatively as possible, and changed it only where the meaning was distorted. [4]
Jeromes Vulgate NT translation became the standard Bible for the Roman Empire for the next 1000-years, despite the fact copyist were included in the transmission of the Vulgate. The Latin Bible was well established in Europe as the official Bible, however the only ones who could read and understand its message, were clergy and those fluent in the ancient languages. Several events would occur in the 15th century, which would change the status quo of the Latin translation. The Greek Text Revisited The excessive ecclesiastical control over catholic nations and abusive clergy brought about a reformation movement, which was fueled by the printing press developed by Johann Gutenberg (1398-1468), in 1466. Gutenberg printed the Latin Vulgate, but for the first time the possibility of less expensive books (manuscripts) became a reality. On May 29th, 1453 Constantinople fell to the Turkish armies, this caused many of the Greeks, who were part of the eastern church to flee to the west with their Greek manuscripts. Until this time the Latin Vulgate translations stood unchallenged as authority of scripture for both the Catholic church and clergy. In Germany, England and other European countries, movements to translate scripture into vernacular languages began to take hold. Advances in printing made Bibles more accessible available for the common man. The rebirth of the scripture caused a need for a Greek text of scripture. What Erasmuss Greek New Testament Like Jerome a thousand years earlier, translators could use the Vulgate, or they could look at the available Greek manuscripts as the source of their translation work. In Italy by 1471, there were two versions of an Italian Bible, in Spain the Bible was translated in 1478, in France 1487 and a Dutch version in 1477. A revival of scripture had taken hold in Europe pitting many of its leaders against the established Catholic Church. The Greek text of scripture had yet to be published yet, this was about to change with Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam ( 1466-1536), who is credited preparing the first Greek text in 1516. Erasmus was born the illegitimate son of a Dutch priest and a physicians daughter. Both parents died at an early age, his guardians sent him to a school in Hertogenbosch conducted by the Brethren of the Common Life, a religious group which taught the virtue of monastic life. Erasmus became a monk in the Augustine order (1485-92). Erasmus became known for his scholarship in Latin and his disdain for corruption of the church. He was released from his vows and went on to teach at Cambridge, where he saw he need to learn Greek. The Swiss printer Froben asked Erasmus to prepare a copy of the Greek New Testament, which he agreed. Erasmus left for Basel Switzerland in July 1515, to begin this work. The publisher was in a rush to finish the project, knowing Cardinal Ximenes was also preparing a Greek text for publication, 91 11. New Testament Manuscripts and Textual Criticism |
later known as the Complutum Polygot. Erasmus had hoped to just find one Greek manuscript for the whole volume and publish it along side his new Latin translation this was not the case. He was saw the manuscripts needed correction, he ended up using a half dozen Greek Minuscule including Codex 1, a tenth century, which often agrees with the earlier uncial texts, this he used least. The work was completed in ten months and had hundreds of typographical errors. These errors were corrected in later editions. One of the early disputes about the work of Erasmus was the verse I John 5:7-8, Erasmus did not include the words the Father, the Word and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth. Erasmus was accused of removing Gods word, Bruce Metzger records his reply:
Erasmus replied that he had not found any Greek manuscripts containing these words, though he had in the meanwhile examined several others besides those on which he relied when first preparing his text. In an unguarded moment Erasmus promised that he would insert the Comma Johanneum, as it is called, in further editions if a single Greek manuscript could be found that contained the passage. At length such a copy was found [now designated Greg. 61]or was made to order! As it now appears the Greek manuscript had probably been written in Oxford about 1520 by a Franciscan friar named Froy (or Roy), who took the disputed words from the Latin Vulgate. Erasmus stood by his promise and inserted the passage in his third edition (1522), but he indicated in a lengthy footnote his suspicions that the manuscript had been prepared expressly in order to confute him.[5]
Erasmus Greek Text had five editions, Luther used the second edition in his translation of the German Bible in 1522 and William Tyndale used the third edition for his English translation. The fourth edition was the superior work, the text had three parallel columns, the Greek Text, the Latin Vulgate, and Erasmuss own Latin translation. Erasmus incorporated some of Cardinal Ximenes translation work in his fourth edition seeing the advantages the Complutum Polygot, Ximenes Greek translation. He used it to modify his translation. His text became the standard text for about four hundred years, though there were better. Robert Estienne (1503-1559) (Stephanus) Estienne is also known as Stephanus in Latin, this Paris publisher published four editions of the Greek New Testament (1546, 1549, 1550, 1551). The first three were prepared for the French government in Paris, the fourth edition was after Robert Estienne made a confession of his conversion to the Protestant faith. In the first and second editions, Robert Estienne used Erasmuss work and Cardinal XimenessComplutum Polygot and combined their readings. The third edition, included a apparatus with various readings from 14 Greek manuscripts in the margins. The fourth edition was of Estienne Greek text was flanked on both sides by the Latin Vulgate and Erasmuss Latin translation, this edition is also the first to appear with modern verse divisions. Theodore de Beza (1519-1605) Theodore de Beza succeeded Calvin in Geneva as the leader of the Reformed Protestant movement. Early in his life, his family wanted him to be a priest, he however choose to be married, and secretly married Claudine Desnoz in 1548. At twenty-nine he renounced the Catholic faith and went to Geneva where he publicly married Claudine Desnoz. He published nine editions of the Greek New Testament during his life. Beza text was very similar to Stephanus fourth edition (1551). The work of Erasmus, Estienne and Beza would be the underlying Greek which would be used in the King James bible and every English Bible until 1881. The John Rylands Fragment John 18:31-33 (117-138 AD) The earliest known copy of any portion of the New Testament is from a papyrus codex (2.5 by 3.5 inches). It dates from the first half of the second century A.D. 117-138. (P.52)The papyrus is written on both sides and contains portions of five verses from the gospel of John (18:31-33,37-38). Because this fragment was found in Egypt a distance from the place of composition (Asia Minor) it demonstrates the chain of transmission. The fragment belongs to the John Rylands Library at Manchester, England
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Chester Beatty Papyri (250 AD)

This important papyri consists of three codices and contains most of the New Testament. (P.45, P.46, P.47). The first codex(P.45) has 30 leaves (pages) of papyrus codex. Two from Matthew, two from John, six from Mark, seven from Luke and thirteen from Acts, originally there were 220 pages measuring 8x10 inches each. (P.46)The second codex has 86 leaves 11x6.5 inches from an original, which contained 104 pages of Pauls epistles. P.47 is made of 10 leaves from Revelation measuring 9.5 by 5.5 inches, there were 32 leaves in originally, chapters 9:10-17:2 remain. P.47 generally agrees with the Alexandrian text of Codex Sinaiticus (a)))).
Bodmer Papyri (200 AD)

Dating from 200 A.D. or earlier the Bodmer Papyri Collection (P.66,P.72,P.75) P.66 104-leaves containing the Gospel of John 1:1-6:11, 6:35-14:26, 14-21. The text is a combination of Western and Alexandrian Text types, twenty alterations belong to the Western family text type. This papyri was prepared by four scribes and was part of a private collection, it measured 6 x 5 inches and is affiliated with the Alexandrian text tradition.P.72 has the earliest know copy of Jude, I Peter, and 2 Peter also contains other Canonical and apocryphal books. P.72 measures 6 x 5.75 inches. P.75 is 102 pages measuring 10.25 by 5.33 inches. It contains most of Luke and John dated between A.D. 175 and 225. P. 75 has the earliest known copy of Luke, the text is very similar to the Codex Vaticanus. (B)
CODEX SINATICUS (340 AD) (a) Unical Text)

Considered by many, to the most important witness to the Greek text of the New Testament dated in the 4th century. Sinaiticus is highly valued because of its age, accuracy and completeness. Found at St. Catherines monastery at Mt. Sinai by Von Tischendorf (1815-1874), it was acquired for the Czar of Russia. Sinaiticus contains over 1/2 of the Old Testament (LXX) and all of the new except for Mark 16:9-20 and John 7:53-8:11.. Also contains the Old Testament Apocrypha. Sinaiticus is written on 364.5 pages measuring 13.5 by 14 inches. The material is good vellum made from antelope skins. Sinaticus was purchased by the British government for $500,000 in 1933. The type text is Alexandrian with strains of Western.
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Codex Vaticanus (325-350 AD) (B) (Unical Text)

Vaticanus was written in the middle of the 4th century and was not know to textual scholars until 1475 when it was catalogued in the Vatican Library. For the next 400years scholars were prohibited from studying it. It includes most of the LXX version of the Old Testament and most of the New. It contains 759 leaves measuring 10 by 10.5 inches. In 1890, a complete photographic facsimile was made available. Missing from the Codex Vaticanus is Hebrews 9:14 to the end of the New Testament and I Timothy through Philemon, some of the OT Apocrypha is included. Mark 16:9-20 and John 7:53-8:11 were omitted intentionally from the document. Vaticanus is owned by the Roman Catholic Church and is housed in the Vatican Library, Vatican City. Vaticanus is considered an excellent example of Alexandrian script.
Textus Recptus means the received text and was the common term for the Greek Text, which was published by Elzevir family of Leiden, the term was used as an advertising blurb.
[1] [2]
Paul D. Wegner, The Journey from the Text to Translation, Baker Academic, Pg. 215,217, 1999
[3] [4]
Ibid, pg. 224 B.M. Metzger, The Text of the New Testament: Its Transmission, Corruption and Restoration, 3d enlarged ed. (New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992) , pg. 76 [5] Metzer, the Text of the New Testament, pg. 101
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12. How was the English Bible created?

Introduction to the English Bible Translation
The translation of the Bible from its original languages (Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek), is a complex story. The process of translation for each language is story in itself. As the Gospel spread to other lands, the books of the Bible, both Old and New Testaments were also translated, some earlier then others. The English translation compared to other translations is a relatively late translation. The story of the English Bible in many ways is similar to the other translation stories. To under the translation process, the student needs to be familiar with history and source documents behind the translation. Most readers of the English Bible today, are not aware of the dramatic story behind the book they hold in their hand. How a collection of books written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek changed Europe and especially England is taken for granted by many Christians. By using the story of the English Bible, we can see how religion, politics and intrigue each played their part. Although each translation story is unique, each story involves a process, how a group of people received Gods Word in their own tongue.
Other Translations
Syriac Versions The Syriac translation is the Aramaic translation of the New Testament. The Gospel has an early history in this region of the world; Antioch and Jerusalem were the first centers of Christianity. From Syria, according to Eusebius, an early an early missionary named Pantaenus in about A.D. 180, took the Gospel to India and found one of the apostles, Bartholomew had preceded him, leaving the Gospel of Matthew in Hebrew or Aramaic letters (Eusebius HE 5.10.2-3). Prior to the New Testament, the Old Testament had already been translated into Aramaic in the Jewish Targums. One of earlier known translations to Syriac is Tatians work called theDiatessaron, meaning through four. Tatians translation was a harmony of the four Gospels. Tatian founded a group of ascetics in Mesopotamia called the Encratites who were vegetarians, did not marry and did not drink alcohol. His views caused his translation, the Diatessaron to be tainted, for example, John the Baptist ate milk and honey as opposed to Locust. The marriage of Joseph and Mary is not mentioned in Matthew 1:18-19. In the fifth century, the Bishop of Edessa, Rabbula (411-435) established the Syriac Peshitta. Theodoreus, bishop of Cyrrhus near the Euphrates (423-457) collected and removed Tatians harmony, Diatessaron, and replaced it with four separated Gospels.
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Coptic Versions The Coptic language is the language of Egypt, as opposed to Greek, which was introduced by the armies of Alexander the Great (333323 B.C.) and Arabic which the armies of Islam introduced in the 7 th century. There are two main dialects of Egyptian Sahidic (Upper Egypt) and Bohairic (Lower Egypt). The Coptic script is based on the demotic script, which was derived from the hieroglyphic script. The Old Testament translation is based on the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament. The New Testament is based on a translation from the Alexandrian text. Armenian Version Next to the Latin Vulgate, the Armenian translation of the Bible has the greatest number of manuscripts, 1,244 numbered completely or in part. The Armenian version was produced in the 5th century an Armenian priest, Mesrop Mashtotz (361-439) who developed the thirty-six letter Armenian alphabet. Prior to this, all the books written were in either Greek or Syriac (Aramaic). The source of the Armenian Bibles translation is the Septuagint for the Old Testament and the Syriac Peshitta.
Old Latin Before St. Jeromes translation, the Latin Vulgate, the Bible in Latin was termed Old Latin. By A.D. 250, Latin was the language of the Christian scribes and clerics, creating a need for a Latin Bible. The translation of the Bible into Old Latin varied among the different versions. These variations causedPope Damasus I (345-420) to ask St. Jerome, a Latin and Greek scholar to revise the Latin translation of the Bible. Latin Vulgate[1] Jerome was commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise and standardize the Old Latin version. His translation became known as the Latin Vulgate, which became the standard of the Catholic Church for 1000-years after its completion. By A.D. 383, Jerome completed his translation of the four Gospels based on the Old Latin, but compared to the Greek text. Jerome later translated the Old Testament directly from the Hebrew, this was completed in 405; his basis of translation was sense-forsense rather then word-for-word. Jerome received a great deal of criticism because he translated from the Hebrew Old Testament rather then from the Septuagint.
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English Translations
Rome conquers the British Isles The history of the King James Bible starts with the history of England. The first written record of England begins with the Roman conquest dating back to the time of Julius Caesar in 55 BC, recorded in his Gallic War commentaries. He describes his conquest of England with more then 800 ships. The Celts made peace with Caesar, this allowed him to leave and manage Gaul (France). This peace between England and Rome lasted until the reign of the Emperor Claudius. Rome invaded with 40,000 soldiers and established its control over the British Isles in A.D. 43. England became part of the Roman Empire. Today, Hadrians Wall (117-138) marks the northern boundary of Roman territory. Christianity in England With the spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire, Christianity became the faith of England by the 3rd century, as missionaries brought the Gospel to the outer parts of the Empire. The church in England was well enough established by the 4th century to send three British bishopsof Londinium (London), Eboracum (York), and Colonia Linum (Lincoln)to the Council of Arles (in modern France) in 314. However, there is no record of the Bibles translation into the English language at this point. Latin was the language of Rome and its various outposts, including England. The Romans withdrew from England in the 5th century to save the capital, Rome, from invading Germans tribes. German tribes also invaded the British Isles, two tribes, the Angles and Saxons swarmed from Germany, in the process Christianity almost vanished from the Isles. The Angles and Saxons, German tribes from Saxony; eventually merged with the Celts and became known as the English. For the next 1000 years until the time of Henry VIII (1491-1547), England was part of the Roman Catholic Church. The Roman Catholic Church dominated both the political and religious spheres of 97 12. How was the English Bible created? |
nations. During this period portions of scripture were translated in by various people, Caedmon (A.D. 678) a cowherder turned scripture into Old English poems, allowing people to memorize and sing scripture. Aldhelm ( A.D. 709) the bishop of Sherborne, translated a portion of the Psalms from the Vulgate into Anglo-Saxon. Bede, the father of English history, (A.D. 675-735) translated the Gospel of John into English on his deathbed. No portion of this translation remains. Alfred the Great (A.D. 849-901) was a literate king of Wessex from 871, he encouraged Christianity in his reign. He introduced the law code, with translations from the Ten Commandments, Exodus 21-23 and the book of Acts 15:23-29. For the majority of the people, the Bible was a book only understood by the educated clergy. Several factors caused a growing interest in the Bible, one factor was the schism of the Catholic Church in 1378-1417, known as the Great Schism, causing there to be two popes, one based in Rome and the other in Avignon, challenging Papal authority, demonstrated Papal fallibility. Another factor was the Black Death, the Bubonic plague that caused the death of 30 to 40% of urban populations. The plague resurfaced several times in 1360, 1369, 1374 causing the populations to be devastated. Life expectancy in England dropped to seventeen years of age in 1376 from twenty-five in 1348. All this caused people to look for answers, causing a revival in religious interest among the laity. This growing interest in eternal matters was hindered by the lack of resources. One of the main issues was the role of the laity and clergy. The Roman language, Latin, became the language of the clergy. Most of the laity could not read or understand Latin. The Bible, the Latin Vulgate, first translated in the 4th century by Jerome from the Septuagint and then later from the Hebrew was inaccessible to English speaking people. John Wycliffe To remedy the problem of accessibility, John Wycliffe (1320-84) an oxford scholar, began to translate parts of the Bible into English. Wycliffe also challenged Roman doctrines, such astransubstantiation[2] and the role of the church in national politics. His students would carry his views to the rest of England, traveling preachers known as the Lollards (derived from lowlanders, used in the sense of heretics) He completed the translation of the New Testament in 1380. Four years after his death the Old Testament translation was completed by John Purvey (1354-1428), Wycliffes secretary. The basis Wycliffes translation was the Latin Vulgate. Purveys edition became the dominant English translation for almost 200-years. The Catholic Church was so opposed to Wycliffe translating the Bible into the English language that in the year 1415, the Council of Constance ordered his bones exhumed and burned, and his ashes to be scattered in the river Swift. People caught reading the Bible were liable to loose their land, cattle , life and goods. In 1408, a synod at Oxford decreed it as unlawful to read Wycliffes Bible, declaring,
It is a dangerous thing.as witnesseth blessed St. Jerome, to translate the text of the holy Scripture out of one tongue into another; for in the translation the same sense is not always easily kept, as the same St. Jerome confesseth, that although he were inspired...yet oftentimes in this he erred; we therefore decree and ordain that no man hereafter by his own authority translate any text of the Scripture into English or any other tongue, by way of a book, pamphlet, or treatise; and that no man read any such book, pamphlet or treatise, now lately composed in the time of John Wycliffe or since or hereafter to be set forth in part or in whole, publicly or privately, upon pain of greater excommunication, until the said translation be approved by the ordinary of the place or, if the case so require, by the council provincial. He that shall do contrary to this shall likewise be punished as a favourer of heresy and error. [3]
Still people paid to borrow the Wycliffe bible, with the price being recorded as a load of hay, to read the Bible an hour a day over a period [4]. In 1455, Johannes Gutenberg invented a printing press using movable type. Gutenbergs first work was the printing of the Bible, the Latin Vulgate. Gutenbergs printing became known as theForty-Two-line Bible, because of 42-lines in a column. Gutenbergs invention solved a major problem for scripture transmission. With the printing press, human error in text copying was virtually eliminated. In addition, copies could be made much quicker and less expensive than hand copies, making books and Bibles available to the masses.
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William Tyndale (1494-1536) Tyndale Translation William Tyndale, a Catholic priest, (1492-1536) born in Gloucestershire, went to Oxford at the age of sixteen. After receiving his Master of Arts degree, he taught at Oxford for a year and then at Cambridge. During this period, he became aware of the lack of scripture knowledge amongst the priests and laity. In a debate with an English priest, Tyndale showed his early desire to make scripture available to all,
Not long after, Tindall happened to be in the company of a certain divine, recounted for a learned man, and in disputing with him drave him to that issue, that the great doctor burst out into these blasphemous words: We are better to be without Gods law than the Popes. Master Tindall, replied, I defy the Pope and all his laws, and added that if God spared him life, ere many years he would cause a boy that driveth the plough to know more of Scripture than he did.[5]
He took on the task of establishing an English translation of the Bible based on the Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek text. The first Hebrew Bible was published in 1488, along with the Hebrew Lexicon in 1506. Tyndale planned to use these for an English translation of the scripture. Martin Luther published his German translation in 1522, but Tyndale needed permission of the church to translate the Bible. The Church of Rome opposed his plans his plans to translate the Bible into English. Tyndale left for Cologne in 1525, but the church prevented the printer from completing the job, Tyndale rescued 6000 copies of Matthew chapters 1-22 already printed and fled to Worms, in Germany. In Worms, he completed two editions and had them smuggled to England (1525). The Bishop of London, Cuthbert Tunstall purchased as many copies as possible and had them burned. Of the 18,000 copies smuggled only two remain. Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor considered Tyndale a heretic and had him kidnapped in Antwerp, Belgium and imprisoned. Later found guilty of heresy, Tyndale removed from his priestly office, was handed over to secular powers for execution in August 1536. Burning at the stake, Tyndale cried, Lord, open the King of Englands eyes. This statement would seem prophetic as Tyndales version of the New Testament provided the basis for all successive versions between his day and ours. The King James Version is practically a fifth revision of Tyndales revision. The basis of Tyndales New Testament was the Erasmus 2 nd or 3rd edition of the Greek New Testament printed in 1519 and 1522. Tyndale used the Hebrew Bible and Lexicon to translate portions of the Old Testament. Miles Coverdale would complete and edit portions of the Old Testament, after Tyndales death. This became known as the Coverdale translation (1535). Another of Tyndales disciples John Rogers, was the force behind the Matthews Bible (1537), Henry the VIII allowed the Bible to be distributed throughout England. This free flow of scriptures caused many theologians concern. Edward Foxe, complained The lay people do now know the holy scripture better than many of us; and the Germans have made the text of the Bible so plain and easy by the Hebrew and Greek tongue that now many things may be better understood without any glosses at all than by all the commentaries of the doctors[6] William Coverdale (1488-1569), The Great Bible The atmosphere changed in England as Rome and Henry the VIII came into conflict. Henry the VII wanted to divorce his Catholic wife, Katherine of Aragon, the Catholic Church refused. When the Pope refused, Henry VII renounced the Catholic Church and appointed himself head of the Church of England. To spite the Catholic Church and unify his kingdom, he ordered the Bible printed and translated into English, and placed in all the churches, the translation they placed in the churches was the Great Bible. Miles Coverdale was the editor behind the Great Bible, which used the Matthews Bible as its basis. The size of the Bible, 16 inches by 11 inches was the reason it was called the Great Bible. The Geneva Bible (1560) When Mary Tudor (1553-1558) (Daughter of Henry VIII) became Queen of England, she tried to restore Catholicism Protestants were persecuted and killed. Many fled to John Calvins Geneva, where another translation of the English Bible was prepared, the Geneva Bible. The Geneva Bible translation (1557, 1560) was done under the direction of William Coverdale and John Knox and influenced by John Calvin. This Bible became popular in England after Mary Tudors execution and Protestant persecution stopped. An act of the Scottish Parliament required it compulsory for every householder who had an income above a certain amount, to buy a copy of the Geneva Bible. The popularity of the Geneva Bible with Protestants caused the Great Bibles revision. This revised edition later became known as theBishops Bible (1568). 99 12. How was the English Bible created? |
The marginal notes of the Geneva Bible had a Calvinist theology, which caused concern for the Church of England. To counter this concern, Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury, who recognized the superior quality of the Geneva translation, published the Bishops Bible in 1568 to counter its theology. The Douay-Rheims Bible (New Testament 1582, Old Testament 1609-10) With the popularity of the Geneva Bible and its marginal notes, the Catholic Church was forced to respond with their own English translation. William Allen an Oxford fellow and strict Catholic, fled to Europe, when Elizabeth I came to the throne. He established and English College in Douay, France 1568. The college was later forced to move to Rheims in 1578, where the New Testament was published. The college returned to Douay, France in 1593 where the Old Testament was published, hence the name Douay-Rheims. The source text used in the translation was the Latin Vulgate. The translators made their aims clear in the preface, To meet the Protestant challenge, priests must be ready to quote Scripture in the vulgar tongue since their adversaries have every favorable passage at their fingers ends; they must know the passages correctly used by Catholics in support of our faith, or impiously misused by heretics in opposition to the Churchs faith[7] The apocryphal books are interspersed among the canon as in the Latin Vulgate. The King James Bible ( KJV 1611) In 1604, the Puritan Party made a petition to King James I (1603-1625) called the Millenary Petition[8], about grievances between the Puritans and the English Church. John Reynolds, the Puritan president of Corpus Christi College, Oxford raised the question of having an authorized version of the English Bible that would be acceptable to all parties. This Bible was to replace both the Bishops Bible and the Geneva Bibleas the English translation. The purpose of this new translation was to have a Bible, that could be read in church services and at home. Six companies of men totaling 54 were assigned with only 47 actually working on the revision of the Bible. Each committee had a set of instructions. All other English translations were to be consulted as well as the Hebrew and Greek Texts but the Bishops Bible was to be used as the base in translation. Their finished work is known as the King James Authorized Bible. The Hebrew Text used was second edition of the Rabbinic Bible prepared by Jacob ben Chayim published by Bromberg (1524-1525). The New Testament consulted the work commonly known as Textus Receptus or the Received Text. Bezas Greek New Testament of 1565 was the underlying text of the New Testament used in the King James Bible, which became known as Textus Receptus. The King James 1611 translation also became known by the name Textus Receptus or received text. King James established the principles for the translation of the Authorized Version, hence the name authorized.
1. The 1602 version of the Bishops Bible was to be used as the basis of the translation, but the original Greek and Hebrew were to be examined. Other translations were also to be consulted to determine the best reading of the Hebrew and Greek. 2. So the translation did not become too stilted a variety of words were to be used for the same Greek and Hebrew words. 3. Words necessary in English but not in Hebrew or Greek were to be set in Italics. 4. Names of biblical characters were to correspond as closely as possible to those in common use; however names were not standardized. Example Jesus and Joshua. 5. Old Ecclesiastical words were to be maintained, congregation and washing in the Tyndales translation became Church and Baptism in the Authorized Version. 6. No marginal notes were to appear other then to explain the Hebrew and Greek words. 7. Existing chapter and verse divisions were to be retained, but new headings would be supplied.[9]
[1] [2]
Vulgate is Latin for the word translation The belief the bread and the wine become the actual physical body and blood of Christ as opposed to symbolic body and blood. [3] Paul Wagner, The Journey from Text to Translation, Baker Book House 1999, Pg. 283. [4] ibid [5] Ibid, Pg. 285 [6] Ibid, pg. 295 [7] Ibid pg., 304 [8] It was called the Millenary Petition because it had 1000 signatures of the Puritan party and their grievances with the Church of England. [9] Paul Wagner, The Journey from Text to Translation, Baker Book House 1999, Pg. 310
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Origin of The Bible

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Origin of The Bible

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Contents

1. What is the Bible? |

1. What is the Bible?

The Significance of the Bible

1. What is the Bible? |

What does the word Bible mean?

What exactly is the Bible?

1. What is the Bible? |

The Need for Revelation

In what languages was the Bible written?

Why is there an Old and New Testament?

1. What is the Bible? |

What does the concept of covenant mean?

The New Covenant fulfilling the Old

The Authority of the Bible

1. What is the Bible? |

1. What is the Bible? |

2. What is the history behind the Bible?

The Plan of Redemption

The history of the Bible

2. What is the history behind the Bible? |

forever." ' " 2 Samuel 7:12-13,16

Temple Period, Inter-Testament Period

2. What is the history behind the Bible? |

536 B.C. 4 B.C.

2. What is the history behind the Bible? |

95 A.D. 325 A.D.

2. What is the history behind the Bible? |

2. What is the history behind the Bible? |

3. Is the Bible Inspired?

What does inspiration mean?

What does Inerrant mean?

3. Is the Bible Inspired? |

The Evidence for the Inspiration of the Bible

3. Is the Bible Inspired? |

3. Is the Bible Inspired? |

3. Is the Bible Inspired? |

3. Is the Bible Inspired? |

3. Is the Bible Inspired? |

The Seventy Weeks of Daniel

3. Is the Bible Inspired? |

3. Is the Bible Inspired? |

4. How was the Bible Written?

Was the Bible transmitted orally?

4. How was the Bible Written? |

4. How was the Bible Written? |

The development of Alphabets

The Biblical languages

4. How was the Bible Written? |

4. How was the Bible Written? |

From Inspiration to Manuscript

4. How was the Bible Written? |

4. How was the Bible Written? |

The Silver Amulets

4. How was the Bible Written? |

5. The Books of the Old Testament, the Canon, The Tanakh

5. The Books of the Old Testament, the Canon, The Tanakh |

5. The Books of the Old Testament, the Canon, The Tanakh |

Prophet Statement of Divine Authority Hosea

Designations of the Old Testament Canon

5. The Books of the Old Testament, the Canon, The Tanakh |

Titles The Law

Formation of the Old Testament Canon