Biblical Theology and the Formation of the Canon
Biblical Theology and the Formation of the Canon
The term "canon" derives from a Hebrew and Greek word denoting a reed or cane, signifying something straight or a measuring rule [2]. Applied to Scripture, it designates "the collection of books which form the original and authoritative written rule of the faith and practice of the Christian Church" [1]. The first direct application of "canon" to the Scriptures appears around 380 A.D. in verses by Amphilochius, where the word indicates the rule by which authentic Scripture is measured [1]. This late terminological precision, however, does not mean the concept itself emerged in the fourth century—communities of faith had been distinguishing authoritative texts from other religious writings for centuries prior.
The Question of Authority
A book possesses canonical authority when it has a right to stand alongside other books containing divine revelation. Critically, this right "does not arise from any ecclesiastical authority" [2]—a claim that reflects Protestant convictions about the self-authenticating nature of Scripture. The Westminster Confession articulates this view: nothing is to be added to Scripture "whether by new revelations of the Spirit or traditions of men" [6]. From this perspective, the Church recognized rather than conferred canonical status.
Catholic tradition frames the relationship differently. The Catechism of the Catholic Church emphasizes that "the sacred authors, in writing the four Gospels, selected certain of the many elements which had been handed on, either orally or already in written form," sustaining "the form of preaching" while telling "the honest truth about Jesus" [8]. This formulation acknowledges both apostolic tradition and the written text as mutually informing sources of authority, with the Church's magisterium playing a constitutive role in discerning the canon's boundaries.
The Old Testament Canon
For Christians, determining the Old Testament canon involves ascertaining "what books were" recognized in the Jewish Scriptures that Christ and the apostles endorsed [4]. When Christ or the apostles quote "the Scriptures" or "the law and the prophets," they give sanction to the divine authority of the books that volume contained [4]. Yet this seemingly straightforward principle encounters complications: the Septuagint, used widely in the early Church, included books not present in the later-standardized Hebrew canon. The Council of Trent affirmed the deuterocanonical books as Scripture, while Protestant Reformers followed Jerome's distinction, treating these books as useful but not canonical. The Anglican Articles acknowledge canonical books by name [9], reflecting the Protestant consensus while maintaining a via media in liturgical use.
Criteria and Process
Early Christian communities employed several implicit criteria: apostolic authorship or association, consistency with the rule of faith, and widespread liturgical use. Augustine notes that "the most skillful interpreter of the sacred writings will be he who in the first place has read them all and retained them in his knowledge...those of them, at least, that are called canonical" [7]. This assumes a recognized, if not yet universally fixed, collection by the late fourth century.
The book of Revelation itself contains an internal warning against alteration: "John issues an oath to protect the integrity of the book of Revelation. He declares a curse upon anyone who alters the contents of the book or its message" [3]. This reflects ancient scribal practices where "scribes would sometimes alter books to suit their own views," prompting early Christians to develop "means of authenticating both messages and messengers" [3]. Such concerns shaped the canonical process, as communities sought texts with verifiable apostolic pedigree.
Theological Implications
The formation of the canon raises questions about the relationship between Scripture and tradition, the role of the Spirit in guiding the Church, and the nature of biblical authority itself. Eastern Orthodox tradition emphasizes the Church's living tradition as the context within which Scripture is rightly understood, while Reformed theology insists that Scripture alone (sola scriptura) is the final arbiter of doctrine. These are not merely historical disagreements but reflect divergent ecclesiologies and understandings of revelation.
The canon's boundaries were not settled by a single council or decree but emerged through a complex process of reception, debate, and consensus across centuries. By the time of the Thirty-Nine Articles, Anglicans could state simply: "All the Books of the New Testament, as they are commonly received, we do receive, and account them Canonical" [5]—a formulation that acknowledges both tradition and Protestant principle. The canon thus stands as both a historical artifact of the early Church's discernment and a theological claim about which texts bear ultimate authority for Christian faith and practice.
Sources
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Canon Of Scripture, The — may be generally described as the "collection of books which form the original and authoritative written rule of the faith and practice of the Christian Church," i.e. the Old and New Testaments. The word canon, in classical Greek, is properly a straight rod, "a rule" in the widest sense, and especially in the phrases "the rule of the Church," "the rule of faith," "the rule of truth," The first direct application of the term canon to the Scriptures seems to be in the verses of Amphilochius (cir. 380 A.D.), where the word indicates the rule by ”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Canon — This word is derived from a Hebrew and Greek word denoting a reed or cane. Hence it means something straight, or something to keep straight; and hence also a rule, or something ruled or measured. It came to be applied to the Scriptures, to denote that they contained the authoritative rule of faith and practice, the standard of doctrine and duty. A book is said to be of canonical authority when it has a right to take a place with the other books which contain a revelation of the Divine will. Such a right does not arise from any ecclesiastical authority, but fr”
- Revelation (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Revelation 22:18: 22:18-19 I solemnly declare: John issues an oath to protect the integrity of the book of Revelation. He declares a curse upon anyone who alters the contents of the book or its message (cp. Deut 4:2; 12:32). The curse contrasts with the statement of blessing on all who read aloud, listen to, and obey the prophecy (Rev 1:3). At the time Revelation was written, scribes would sometimes alter books to suit their own views. Early Christians quickly developed means of authenticating both messages and messengers (see John 21:24; 1 Cor 16:21; Gal 6:11; Col 4:18; 2 The”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 1, section 40: Word of God. When we refer to the Bible as 153 of divine authority, we refer to it as a volume and recognize all the writings which it contains as given by the inspiration of the Spirit. In like manner when Christ or his Apostles quote the “Scriptures,” or the “law and the prophets,” and speak of the volume then so called, they give their sanction to the divine authority of all the books which that volume contained. All, therefore, that is necessary to determine for Christians the canon of the Old Testament, is to ascertain what books wer”
- Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (Anglican) “Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (Anglican, 1571), All the Books of the New Testament, as they are commonly received, we do receive, and account them Canonical.: All the Books of the New Testament, as they are commonly received, we do receive, and account them Canonical.”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 1, section 40: down in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture; unto which nothing at any time is to be added whether by new revelations of the Spirit or traditions of men. 107 107 Ibid. § 7. All things in Scripture are not alike plain in themselves, nor alike clear unto all; yet those things which are necessary to be known, believed, and observed, for salvation, are so clearly propounded and opened in some place of Scripture or other, that not only the learned, but the unlearned, in a due use of the ordinary means,”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 2: Augustine — City of God, Christian Doctrine — CHAP. 8.--THE CANONICAL BOOKS. (part 1): 12. But let us now go back to consider the third step here mentioned, for it is about it that I have set myself to speak and reason as the Lord shall grant me wisdom. The most skillful interpreter of the sacred writings, then, will be he who in the first place has read them all and retained them in his knowledge, if not yet with full understanding, still with such knowledge as reading gives,--those of them, at least, that arc called canonical. For he will read the others with greater safety when”
- Catechism of the Catholic Church (Catholic) “Catechism of the Catholic Church, 3. the written Gospels. "The sacred authors, in writing the four Gospels, (part 1): 3. the written Gospels. "The sacred authors, in writing the four Gospels, selected certain of the many elements which had been handed on, either orally or already in written form; others they synthesized or explained with an eye to the situation of the churches, the while sustaining the form of preaching, but always in such a fashion that they have told us the honest truth about Jesus."101 127 The fourfold Gospel holds a unique place in the Church, as is evident both in the ven”
- Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (Anglican) “Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (Anglican, 1571), Of the Names and Number of the Canonical Books: Of the Names and Number of the Canonical Books”