Canon Of The Bible
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CANON OF THE BIBLE
(Bibliology: Doctrine Of The Bible)
SECTION 1: WHICH BOOKS OF THE BIBLE ARE AUTHORITATIVE
1. Apocryphal: Are Books Which Were Claimed To Be The Bible Which Came Out Between The Time Of Old Testament To New Testament
* Between Malachi and Matthew there were people who wrote some books and they tried to put in the bible
* The Roman Catholics have the Apocryphal in their bible
2. Pseudepigrapha: Are All The Other Extra Books Of The Bible
eg. Gospel of Thomas, Books Of Abraham, Book of Enoch etc
SECTION 2: HOW DO WE KNOW WE HAVE THE RIGHT BOOKS?
1. God Approved The Books
a. Jesus Refered To Isaiah As Scripture
Luke 4:17, 21 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.
* Jesus referred to Isaiah as the scriptures and therefore approved of his writings as reliable.
b. Jesus Called Jonah And Daniel As Prophets
(i) Jesus Called Jonah A Prophet
Matthew 12:39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:
(ii) Jesus Called Daniel A Prophet
Matthew 24:15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)
* A prophet is one who speaks out God’s words.
c. Jesus Quoted These Books As Authoritative And Reliable
(i) Deuteronomy
Matthew 4:4, 7, 10 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
(ii) Psalms
Matthew 4:6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
(iii) Deuteronomy, Leviticus
John 8:17 It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is true.
(iv) Zechariah
Mark 14:27 And Jesus saith unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.
d. Jesus Said The Scriptures Were The Law Of Moses, The Prophets And The Psalms
Luke 24:44-45 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.
45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
e. Which Are Books Of Law Of Moses, Prophets And Psalms?
* Josephus, a first-century Jewish historian, he recorded the following:
* The law of Moses are books from Genesis to Deutoronomy
* The prophets are books from Joshua to Daniel and the 12 minor prophets are books from Hosea to Malachi
* The psalms are book of Psalms to Song of Solomon
f. The Books In The KJV Bible Matches The Books In The Masoretic Text And Jesus Christ Quotes The Books
Matthew 23:35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
* the verse shows that Jesus quoted the blood of righteous Abel (Genesis) unto the blood of Zacharias (2nd Chronicles) which is the same as the Masoretic Text
* The Hebrew Old Testament is the Masoretic Text that’s what the KJV bible is based upon.
* The Masoretic Text has a different order in their bible that is from Genesis to 2nd Chronicles
* In the KJV bible it is from Genesis to Malachi
* The Masoretic Text has all the same books as the KJV bible
g. Jesus Said His Words Will Be Passed Upon His Disciples
John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
John 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
* The Holy Spirit will guide them and help them to remember
* One can believe that God’s words can be found in the New Testament because they are written by Jesus’ disciples.
h. Peter Called Paul's Writings Scripture
2 Peter 3:15-16 And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;
16 As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.
* Peter talked about Paul's writings and called them scriptures
* We can trust all Paul's writings as scriptures
2. Evidences Supporting The Books
a. Dead Sea Scrolls
* Contains all the books in our bible except the book of Esther
* They are the oldest manuscripts that were found. Scholars claimed that they are dated in BC
* Source: The Meaning Of The Dead Sea Scrolls By James Vanderkam
b. The Jews Were In Charged Of The Old Testament
(i) Moses Had The Bible And He Gave It To The Jews And They Were The Ones In Charge Of The Old Testament
Deuteronomy 31:25-26 That Moses commanded the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, saying,
26 Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee.
(ii) The Jews Read The Book Distinctly And Caused The People To Understand It
Nehemiah 8:7-8 Also Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to understand the law: and the people stood in their place.
8 So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.
(iii) Paul Agreed That The Oracles Of God Were Given To The Jews
Romans 3:1-2 What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision?
2 Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God.
c. The Hebrew Masoretic Text
* That’s the Jewish Old Testament and it matches the KJV bible
d. Dr Edward F Hills
* He is a scholar from Yale and Harvard. He said all the books in the KJV bible are inspired by God while the non canonicle books (Book of Abraham, Book Of Enoch, Apocryphal, Pseudepigrapha) are corrupt
* Source: His own book Believing Bible Study Pages 5-9
e. The Majority Of Early Churches Agree That All The Books In The Bible Are The Word Of God And We Have The Right Bible
* Source: Biblical Canon by Dr Lee Martin Mcdonald and Believing Bible Study Pages 5-9 by Dr Edward F Hills
g. The Bible Says That The Early Christian Churches Have The Word Of God
Acts 13:49 And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region.
Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
h. There Is A List Of New Testament Scriptures Dated 2nd Century And It Matches The Books In The KJV Bible
* a list of new testament scriptures dating to the later half of 2nd century was discovered in the Ambrosian Library in Milan Italy in 1740
* It contains all of the 27 books of the new testament canon which is in the KJV bible
* Source: History Of The Lutheran Version By John Hens Page 60
SECTION 3: THE LONG LASTING AVAILABILITY OF THE BOOK
1. God Said His Words Are Not Going To Be Gone But Will Be Available
Isaiah 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
* The non canonicle books are called lost books because they were not read for centuries
2. God's Word Is Protected And Preserved For Generations
Psalms 12:6-7 The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
7 Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
* God will protect His word and cause them to be read through all generations. No generation will be able to wipe out the word of God.
3. Jesus Said That His Words Are Never Going To Be Gone Or Lost.
Matthew 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
SECTION 4: THE BLESSINGS OF GOD UPON THE BOOK
1. God Curses People Who Change His Words
Revelation 22:18-19 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
* God takes it very seriously
2. Jesus Blessed Those That Hear And Keep The Word Of God
Luke 11:28 But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.
* Queen Victoria said the greatness of their country is because of the KJV Bible
* America started with the KJV Bible
SECTION 5: PROBLEMS WITH THE APOCRYPHAL AND PSEUDOPIGRAPHA
1. Witchcraft (Tobit 6:5-7)
Tobit 6:5-7 So the young man did as the angel commanded him; and when they had roasted the fish, they did eat it: then they both went on their way, till they drew near to Ecbatane. Then the young man said to the angel, Brother Azarias, to what use is the heart and the liver and the gal of the fish? And he said unto him, Touching the heart and the liver, if a devil or an evil spirit trouble any, we must make a smoke thereof before the man or the woman, and the party shall be no more vexed.
2. Alms Cleanses All Sins (Tobit 12:9)
Answer: Blood Of Jesus Cleanses All Sins
1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
=> Tobit 12:9 contradicts 1 John 1:7
3. Babylon Captivity For 7 Generations (Baruch 6:2)
Answer: The Captivity In Babylon Is 70 Years
Jeremiah 29:10 For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.
=> Baruch 6:2 contradicts Jeremiah 29:10
4. Nonsense Of Antiochus Death And Glorification Of Suicide (2 Maccabes 9:5-6, 18)
5. Wrong Calculation Of Years And Age (Tobit 1:3-5, 14:11)
Tobit 1:3-5, 14:11 * claims that he is alive during 931 BC (Israel revolt) and 722 BC (Assyria conquers Israel) which is more than 200 years apart, but he is recorded as only living 185 years.
6. Contradiction With Jude 14 And Enoch 1:9
Jude 1:14-15 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
15 To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.
* Jude 1:14 said 10 thousand, Enoch 1:9 said 10 million
* Jude 1:15 said convince all that are ungodly, Enoch 1:9 said destroy the wicked ones
* Jude 1:15 said they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches, Enoch 1:9 they substracted of their heart speeches
SECTION 6: OBJECTIONS TO THE CANON
1. There Are Early Christians And Churches That Claim Some Apocryphal And Pseudepigraphic Writings As Scripture
* Ask them to name a book
* Any book they give will contradict one of the points from this teaching.
2. There Are Some Early Churches And Christian That Did Not Approve Some Of The Books In The KJV Bible As The Word Of God
* Ask them to name a book.
* * Even if those early churches did think that the books in the KJV Bible weren’t right, the majority of early churches and Christians did think so. Regardless, evidence proves every single book in this Bible.
* Man cannot be dependable as the final authority. (All the previous sections show that all the books are right)
3. The Catholic Council Of Nicea At 325 Ad Gave Us The Books Of The Bible, So The Final Authority Must Be The Catholic Church
* This is common objection from catholics
Answer: It Is True But Not The Whole Truth
Answer (a): Yes, It Is True That The Catholic Council Of Nicea At 325 Ad Gave Us The Books Of The Bible, Then The Catholics Should Follow The Bible
* That's why Martin Luther left the catholic church because the catholic church did not follow the bible
* Martin Luther says a simple lay man armed with scriptures is greater than the mightiest pope without it
Answer (b): There Are Evidences That Support The KJV Bible Before The Catholic Council Of Nicea At 325 Ad Gave Us The Books Of The Bible
* Dead Sea Scrolls, the Masoretic Text, List Of New Testament Scriptures found in Ambrosian Library, Milan, Italy