Our English word > canon@ goes back through Latin to the Greek kanon, which in its turn was borrowed from a Semitic word which in Hebrew takes the form qaneh. The root meaning of the word is > reed= (it is also the word from which our > cane= is derived). It then acquires a number of derivative senses; since a reed might be used as a measuring rod kanon is found with this meaning, and also with the meaning of a rule or standard in a metaphorical sense . . . Then there is a further use of kanon in the sense of a list or index . . . This is the sense which lies behind the expression > the canon of Scripture= . . . .

1. THE CANON OF SCRIPTURE
   1. The Word
      1. As we have seen in the above quotation, the word canon has more than one meaning.
      2. First, it can mean Aa standard or rule.@ We could say, then, that the Bible is our standard or rule of faith and practice.
      3. Secondly, the word canon can mean Aa list or index.@ This would mean that the books of the Bible are a list in the Bible to denote which books were accepted as God= s actual word and words.
   2. The Authority
      1. F. F. Bruce goes on to say that in the word canon we do not have the authority of scripture. He says that Aauthority precedes canonicity.@ God is the authority for the word of God. The canon comes after the authority is manifested.
      2. The Old Testament
         1. Lu 24:44 And he said unto them, These [are] the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and [in] the prophets, and [in] the psalms, concerning me.
         2. Jesus accepted as authoritative (1) the law of Moses, (2) the prophets, and (3) the psalms.
         3. By 70 AD the whole of the Old Testament as we know it today was put together and accepted. In 90 AD The Council of Jamnia, a small group of Jewish Rabbis questioned some of the books, but the canon was already established by this time, although Roman Catholicism denies that the O. T. was canonized until the third century AD.
      3. The New Testament
         1. From a scholastic standpoint, the New Testament seems to have less warrant for canonicity than does the Old Testament, that because Jesus referred to the Old Testament scriptures as he preached and thus authorized its content and use for personal growth and comfort.
         2. But whereas Jesus retrospectively accredited the Old Testament, he prospectively accredited the New Testament. He sent his Holy Spirit to lead us into all truth (John 14:26; 16:13).
         3. Heb 1:1-2 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by [his] Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
         4. After Jesus went to Heaven, his apostles wrote down what the Holy Spirit led them to write in forms of letters and other documents. They were eye witnesses to the Lord. As John puts it in 1 John1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
         5. By the year 96 AD all of the books that we now accept as the New Testament were received by nearly all believers to be authoritative.
         6. Much of the New Testament is made up of the words of Jesus, and we have no doubt about their authority.
         7. Also, much of the N. T. is made up of quotes from the Old Testament, and we already know that these scriptures are authoritative.
         8. Other considerations on the canon are these:
            1. Apostolic authorship. Many of the New Testament books were written by apostles. Some were not, but they are called A apostolic men,@ who lived among the apostles.
            2. General recognition. Most of the books of the New Testament were generally accepted as canonical by most Christians and churches.
            3. Disputes with heretics. When heretics, such as Marcion (140 AD), tried to change the canon and subtract some writings and change others, those who knew what the accepted books were stood against these heresies and strengthened the canon.
         9. No church council gave any authority to the canon of scripture. The scriptures were accepted by the churches throughout the years before any councils were ever held. If councils listed a canon, the list was already accepted as authoritative.
         10. By 327 AD the whole list of 27 books was accepted by all Christian churches as the canon of the New Testament.
         11. So, with 39 books of the O. T. and 27 of the N. T., we have 66 books that complete the canon of scripture.

1. THE CONTENT OF SCRIPTURE
   1. Does Not Contain The Apocrypha
      1. The word Apocrypha means A hidden things@ and refers to the mysterious nature of their origin (questionable origin).
      2. These are 14 or 15 books (depending upon what is read) that have been printed alongside the canonical books of the Bible but have never been accepted in the canon except by some including the Roman Catholic Church.
      3. (1) The Third Book of Esdras, (2) The Fourth Book of Esdras, (3) The Book of Tobias (or Tobit), (4) The Book of Judith, (5) The rest of the Book of Esther, (6) The Book of Wisdom, (7) Jesus the Son of Sirach, (8) Baruch the Prophet, (9) The Song of the Three Hebrew Children, (10) The Story of Susanna, (11) Of Bel and the Dragon, (12) The Prayer of Manasses, (13) The First Book of Maccabees, (14) The Second Book of Maccabees.
      4. AThere is no evidence that these books were ever regarded as canonical by the Jews, whether inside or outside Palestine, whether they read the Bible in Hebrew or in Greek. The books of the Apocrypha were first given canonical status by Greek-speaking Christians, quite possibly through a mistaken belief that they already formed part of the Alexandrian Canon.@
      5. The Apocrypha was printed along with the canonical scriptures in many Bibles, because it was considered good literature to be read in the churches. Individuals did not have books to read in those days, and everything was read to them in the churches.
      6. It is noteworthy that the first English Bible printed in America (1782-3) lacked the Apocrypha.
      7. Characteristics of the books of the Apocrypha.
         1. Neither Jews nor Christians (majority) accepted them as canonical.
         2. The books themselves do not claim inspiration.
         3. There is not a single reference to the books of the Apocrypha in the New Testament.
         4. These books were declared at the Council of Trent on April 8, 1546, by the pope to be canonical along with tradition.
         5. These books teach several false doctrines and have inaccurate history.
   1. Does Not Contain Lost Books
      1. These are books named in scripture that no longer exist.
      2. They have not been preserved for us, so they are not meant to be in the canon.
         1. Book of the wars of the Lord (Num. 21:14)
         2. Book of Jasher (Josh. 10:13; 2 Sam. 1:18)
         3. Book of the Acts of Solomon (1 Kings 11:41)
         4. Book of Nathan the Prophet (1 Chron. 29:29)
         5. Book of Gad the Seer (1 Chron. 29:29)
         6. Prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite (2 Chron. 9:29)
         7. Visions of Iddo the Seer (2 Chron. 9:29)
   1. Does Not Contain the Pseudo-epigrapha
      1. These are False Writings. Claimed by some to be scripture but were never accepted by Jews or Christians.
         1. Teaching of the Twelve Apostles
         2. Epistle of Barnabas
         3. Shepherd of Hermas
         4. Apocalypse of Peter
         5. Gospel of Nicodemus
         6. Gospel of the Nativity of Mary
         7. Gospel of the Savior=s Infancy