The document discusses the origins and development of the biblical canon. It notes that while some, like Dan Brown, claim the Bible was compiled by men and has changed over time, the early church had tests to determine canonicity. Books were considered based on apostolic authorship, agreement with established scripture, acceptance by the church from an early date, and more. Some books like James and Hebrews were questioned but ultimately included. The Catholic Church later elevated some deuterocanonical books for doctrinal reasons at the Council of Trent. Other religious groups like the LDS Church and Jesus Seminar have also made their own revisions or additions to the biblical text.

1. The Integrity of
The Word
God’s Word Stands Against All
Attacks

2. Questions
Where does the Bible come from?
How did we get the books that
make up the Bible?
Have there been challenges to the
make-up of the Bible?
2

3. The Origin of The Bible?
“The Bible did not arrive by fax from heaven… The
Bible is the product of man, my dear. Not of God.
The Bible did not fall magically from the clouds.
Man created it as a historical record of
tumultuous times, and it has evolved through
countless translations, additions, and revisions.
History has never had a definitive version of the
book…”
--Dan Brown in The Da Vinci Code
3

4. The New Testament
Canon
4

5. The New Testament is
mostly a bunch of letters
written to churches around
the world
5

6. While there was general
consensus on what was
Scripture, a recognized
‘canon’ of Scripture was
required to correct heresy
6

7. canon /kanən/
1.noun - a general law, rule,
principle, or criterion by which
something is judged.
synonyms: principle, rule, law, tenet,
precept
7

8. ‘Canon’ refers to the collection
of books that passed a test of
authenticity and authority
8

9. The Canon and The
Church
9

10. When the decision was made as to
what books were canonical, the
Church explicitly said “we receive”
the Canon
10

11. What the Church said is that we
receive these particular books as
being canonical – as being the Word
of God – and therefore we submit to
their authority
11

12. It’s one thing to make something
authoritative, and it’s another thing to
recognize something that already is
authoritative
12

13. False Church
True Church
Determines Canon
Discovers Canon
Mother of Canon
Child of Canon
Magistrate of Canon
Minister of Canon
Regulates Canon
Recognizes Canon
Judge of Canon
Witness of Canon
Master of Canon
Servant of Canon
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14. Categories of
Books
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15. Under Consideration
The books that were tested for canonicity fall
into four categories:
accepted by all (homologoumena)
rejected by all (pseudepigrapha)
disputed by some (antilegomena)
and those accepted by some (apocrypha)
15

16. 20 of the 27 we have now were
undisputed
16

17. So, what about the “disputed” books?
The ones that are Canon? And the
ones that are not?
17

18. Many Gospels?
“More than eighty gospels were considered for the
New Testament, and yet only a relatively few were
chosen for inclusion – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and
John among them… The early church needed to
convince the world that the mortal prophet Jesus
was a divine being. Therefore, any gospels that
described earthly aspects of Jesus’ life had to be
omitted from the Bible.”
--Dan Brown in The Da Vinci Code
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19. Examples:
Clearly Rejected
 the Gospel of Thomas (a Gnostic writing with Jesus doing childhood
miracles)
 Arabic Gospel of Childhood (more childhood miracles of Jesus while in
Egypt)
 the Gospel of Joseph the Carpenter (written by a cult that glorified Joseph)
 the Passing of Mary (relates the bodily assumption of Mary and other
things involving Mary worship)
 the Gospel of Mary (promotes Mary worship and served as the basis for
popular medieval stories)
 the Acts of Peter (contains the legend that Peter was crucified upside
down)
 the Acts of Andrew (a Gnostic story of the imprisonment and death of
Andrew)
 the Acts of Thomas (presents the mission work and martyrdom of Thomas
in India)
19

20. Since some of them may contain
some truth (and certainly present a
clear view of various teachings of the
time), they are of value for historians,
but are fanciful and contain many
errors & heresies
20

21. Modern Interest In Gnostic
Gospels
The Gospel of Thomas has gained a tremendous amount of
attention lately
From the Amazon.com synopsis on one of the major
translations:
The gospel according to Thomas is an ancient collection of sayings
The gospel according to Thomas is an ancient collection of sayings
attributed to Jesus and thought to be recorded by his brother Judas,
attributed to Jesus and thought to be recorded by his brother Judas,
the Twin (Thomas means ‘twin’ in Aramaic). Some scholars suggest
the Twin (Thomas means ‘twin’ in Aramaic). Some scholars suggest
that this gospel was collected from New Testament sayings, while
that this gospel was collected from New Testament sayings, while
others believe it springs from aacompletely independent author
others believe it springs from completely independent author
because many of the quotations are not in the New Testament at all…
because many of the quotations are not in the New Testament at all…
It is considered by many to be perhaps the closest we’ll ever get to
It is considered by many to be perhaps the closest we’ll ever get to
reading what was actually said by the historical Jesus. In The Gospel of
reading what was actually said by the historical Jesus. In The Gospel of
Thomas, you’ll discover aadifferent kind of Christ ––aawandering spiritual
Thomas, you’ll discover different kind of Christ
wandering spiritual
teacher from Galilee who performs no miracles, reveals little prophecy,
teacher from Galilee who performs no miracles, reveals little prophecy,
announces no apocalypse, and dies for no one's sins.
announces no apocalypse, and dies for no one's sins.
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22. The Tests for
Canonicity
22

23. Regards itself as Scripture (e.g., does not explicitly
say it is not Scripture)
Written by an Apostle (defined as person seeing
Jesus Christ after His resurrection) or companion of
Apostle
Testified to by other Scripture (self recognition)
No contradiction in core teachings of the faith
(analogy of faith)
Accepted early and by majority of churches
(catholicity)
23

24. 7 of the 27
The books that were included in the Canon but were questioned were:
 Hebrews (unknown author)
 James (because of apparent conflicts with the Gospel as presented in the
clearly accepted books)
 2 Peter (because of significant style differences between this and 1 Peter)
 2 & 3 John (because of the anonymity of the author [“the elder”] and they
had a very limited distribution)
 Jude (because it referenced clearly non-Biblical books)
 Revelation (because of the “millennium” of Revelation 20)
24

25. Despite the questions, once all of the
facts were known, no one questioned
their place in the Canon
The only serious questioning since
the Forth Century was in regards to
James...
25

26. Self Recognition:
If well-established Scripture regards
another writing as being Scripture,
then it’s Scripture.
26

27. “and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as
“and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as
also our beloved brother Paul,, according to the wisdom
also our beloved brother Paul according to the wisdom
given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters,,
given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters
speaking in them of these things, in which are some
speaking in them of these things, in which are some
things hard to understand, which the untaught and
things hard to understand, which the untaught and
unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the
unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the
Scriptures,, to their own destruction.” –2 Peter 3:15-16
Scriptures to their own destruction.” –2 Peter 3:15-16
“For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle the ox
“For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle the ox
while he is threshing,” and “The laborer is worthy of his
while he is threshing,” and “The laborer is worthy of his
wages.”” –1 Timothy 5:18; cf. Luke 10:7
wages.”” –1 Timothy 5:18; cf. Luke 10:7
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28. What about Paul/Saul?
He was not “one of the Twelve” that
studied at Jesus’ feet
Jesus did come to and teach Paul after
Accession (Acts 9)
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29. What about the book of Hebrews?
Though the ideas and form are similar to
Paul, the Greek is much more “educated”
than Paul. It also specifically denies that it
was written by one who “heard” the Lord
(i.e., an Apostle) in 2:3.
Virtually everyone agrees from many
clues in the book that it was written by
someone commissioned/trained by Paul
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30. James: Contradictions In The Core
Faith?
“You see that a person is justified by what
“You see that a person is justified by what
he does and not by faith alone.”
he does and not by faith alone.”
–James 2:4
–James 2:4
“For it is by grace you have been saved,
“For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith—and this not from
through faith—and this not from
yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by
yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by
works, so that no one can boast.”
works, so that no one can boast.”
–Ephesians 2:8,9
–Ephesians 2:8,9
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31. James: No Contradictions In The Core
Faith
It was because of things like this that James was one
of the “debated” books, and Martin Luther famously
called it “an epistle of straw”
Luther didn’t have the all the writings of the
Fathers that we have now, so he didn’t know that
battle had already been fought
Once it was understood that James confirms and
reinforces the “by faith alone, but not a faith that is
alone” position of the rest of the Bible, James’
position as part of the Canon became stronger than
ever
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32. “Changes” to The
Canon
32

33. The Canon is something we
recognize/receive from God, but
there are religious groups that have
taken it upon themselves to sit in
judgment upon what makes up
Scripture
33

34. Reasons vary, but the examples we’ll
look at all have the defining feature of
people wanting Scripture to support
their views/beliefs
It’s very inconvenient when you want God to agree with you,
but the Bible expressly contradicts your teachings...
34

35. The Apocryphal
Books
35

36. In Roman Catholic and Eastern/Oriental
Orthodox Bibles, there are several books
(and amendments to Esther and Daniel)
that are not in “catholic” Bibles
 They were part of the Septuagint
(Greek translation of the Old
Testament), but not the Hebrew Bible
 Three are not considered canonical,
but the others are termed
“Deuterocanonical” (“second canon”;
delayed acceptance)
36

37. While they fail the tests that the the
other books had to go through and
therefore clearly not the same status
as Scripture, they are generally good
for study and reflection
They were included in many Bibles
over the centuries as “supplemental”
reading
37

38. Why the Apocrypha Isn't in the Bible:
1.Not one of the apocryphal books is written in the Hebrew language, which was alone used by
the inspired historians and poets of the Old Testament. All Apocryphal books are in Greek,
except one which is exists only in Latin.
2.None of the apocryphal writers laid claim to inspiration.
3.The apocryphal books were never acknowledged as sacred scriptures by the Jews, custodians
of the Hebrew scriptures (the apocrypha was written prior to the New Testament). In fact, the
Jewish people rejected and destroyed the apocrypha after the overthrow of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.
4.The apocryphal books were not permitted among the sacred books during the first four
centuries of the Christian church
5. The Apocrypha contains fabulous statements which not only contradict the “canonical”
scriptures but themselves. For example, in the two Books of Maccabees, Antiochus Epiphanes is
made to die three different deaths in three different places.
6.The Apocrypha includes doctrines in variance with the Bible, such as prayers for the dead and
sinless perfection.
7.It teaches immoral practices, such as lying, suicide, assassination and magical incantation.
8.No apocryphal book is referred to in the New Testament whereas the Old Testament is
referred to hundreds of times.
9.Not even Jerome, who did the Vulgate translation that Rome uses as the “official” version of
the Bible, considered them Scripture.
38

39. Rome Elevates
Some Books
39

40. Before the Council of Trent, Rome had
held the Apocrypha as holy, but not
Scripture (per prior Popes and Councils
that had made express declarations to
that point)
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41. However, Rome considers itself
to be the Mother of Scripture,
and therefore has the authority
to elevate books
41

42. Why would Rome contradict
Nicaea and more than a
millennia of her own
teachings on those books?
(And why then?)
42

43. Trent is where Rome condemns the
Protestants as heretics, and the
“deuterocanonical” books are the only
scriptural support Rome has for some
of the major points of contention with
the Protestants
43

44. Examples
Basis for the doctrine of purgatory:
 2 Maccabees 12:43-45, 2,000 pieces of silver were sent to Jerusalem for a sin-
offering...Whereupon he made reconciliation for the dead, that they might be
delivered from sin.
Salvation by works:
 Ecclesiasticus 3:30, Water will quench a flaming fire, and alms maketh
atonement for sin.
 Tobit 12:8-9,17, It is better to give alms than to lay up gold; for alms doth
deliver from death, and shall purge away all sin.
Magic:
 Tobit 6:5-8, If the Devil, or an evil spirit troubles anyone, they can be driven
away by making a smoke of the heart, liver, and gall of a fish...and the Devil
will smell it, and flee away, and never come again anymore.
Mary was born sinless (immaculate conception):
 Wisdom 8:19-20, And I was a witty child and had received a good soul. And
whereas I was more good, I came to a body undefiled.
44

45. The Church of
Jesus Christ of
Latter-Day Saints
45

46. Joseph Smith was “divinely inspired” to
declare the King James Bible to be the
closest to actual Scripture
He then made thousands of changes to
it, including adding a passage to Genesis
50 saying “That seer will I bless... And his
name shall be called Joseph.”
46

47. The Book of Mormon (which would be
“deuterocanonical”) is an exact recitation
into English of the Reformed Egyptian
tablets Smith found
Sadly, it would appear that Smith was not a very good
conveyor of what the angel told him, because it has been
edited/revised over four thousand times
It includes a number of “lifts” from the the original KJV along
with the KJV translators’ comments and errors...
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48. The Jesus
Seminar
48

49.  Founded in 1985, this is a group of about 150 scholars with
advanced degrees in biblical studies, religious studies or related
fields
 One of the most active groups in biblical criticism, the seminar uses
votes with colored beads to decide their collective view of the
historicity of Jesus, specifically what he may or may not have said
and done as a historical figure
 In addition, the seminar popularizes the quest for the “historical
Jesus”
 They produced new translations of the New Testament and
apocrypha to use as textual sources
49

50. “The seminar's reconstruction of the historical Jesus portrayed
him as an itinerant Hellenistic Jewish sage and faith healer who
preached a gospel of liberation from injustice in startling
parables and aphorisms. An iconoclast, Jesus broke with
established Jewish theological dogmas and social conventions
both in his teachings and behaviors, often by turning commonsense ideas upside down, confounding the expectations of his
audience: He preached of "Heaven's imperial rule" (traditionally
translated as "Kingdom of God") as being already present but
unseen; he depicts God as a loving father; he fraternizes with
outsiders and criticizes insiders. According to the seminar, Jesus
was a mortal man born of two human parents, who did not
perform nature miracles nor die as a substitute for sinners nor
rise bodily from the dead. Sightings of a risen Jesus were
nothing more than the visionary experiences of some of his
disciples rather than physical encounters.” – Wikipedia
(emphasis mine)
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51. 51

52. The Final Words
But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in
But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in
my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of
my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of
everything I have said to you.–John 14:26
everything I have said to you.–John 14:26
Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens
Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens
with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the
with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the
foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the
foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the
chief cornerstone.–Eph 2:19-20
chief cornerstone.–Eph 2:19-20
"Behold, II am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in
"Behold, am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in
this book." ... II warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book:
this book." ... warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book:
If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in
If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in
this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will
this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will
take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are
take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are
described in this book.–Rev 22:7,18-19
described in this book.–Rev 22:7,18-19
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