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THE OLD TESTAMENT CANON FORMED GRADUALLY.

collection which the Israelites had. See Deut. xxxi. 24; Josh. i. 8; viii. 31; 1-Ki. ii. 3; 2-Ki. xiv. 6; xxii. 8; Neh. viii. 1-8. Samuel wrote scriptures. See 1-Sam. x. 25. There were various other books during this period. See Josh. x. 13; 2-Sam. i. 18; 1-Ki. xi. 41; 1-Chron. ix. 1; xxix. 29; 2-Chron. ix. 29; we see here that there were the book of Jasher, the Acts of Solomon, the book of the kings of Samaria and Judah, the book of the prophet Samuel, the book of Nathan the prophet, the book of Gad the prophet, and the book of the Vision of Iddo. In 2-Ki. xxii. 8, 10, 16; xxiii. 24, we also read of the book of the law in the house of the Lord. Again from Is. xxix. 18; xxxiv. 16, we learn that in the time of Isaiah there was already a portion of the prophetical books, or writings added to the five books of Moses and the earlier histories. In Zech. vii. 12, we infer that the words of the older prophets were preserved; and in Dan. ix. 2, we learn that the books of the prophets existed then. See also Prov. xxv. 1; Eccl. xii. 11, 12. Again, about B.C. 445, we find Ezra reading the book of the law of Moses for a week to the assembled people. See Ezra vii. 6, 12; Neh. viii. chapter. Also compare Neh. viii. 14 with Lev. xxiii.

40-43.

According to the traditions of the Jews, when Nehemiah returned from Babylon to Jerusalem, he gathered together the books of Moses, the books of History, the Psalms, the books of the Prophets and Ezra, under God's direction edited those books, and wrote 1-and 2-Chron. and put them in one collection of inspired writings. Again, Josephus says that from about B.C.400, there were no prophets in Israel, and hence there were no inspired writings produced, and the Canon of the Old Testament which Josephus gave, is the same we possess to-day.

According to the Talmud, Moses wrote the Pentateuch and Job; Joshua wrote Joshua and the last part of Deut.; Samuel wrote 1-and 2-Sam.; Ruth and Judges, David and other poets wrote the Psalms; Jeremiah wrote the prophecy of Jeremiah, 1-and 2-Kings, and the Lamentations; Hezekiah edited the prophecies of Isaiah, also Prov. Sol. Song and Eccl; the priests edited Esther, Ezekiel, Daniel, and the twelve minor prophets; Ezra wrote Ezra and the Chronicles to his own time; and Nehemiah wrote Neh. and the rest of the Chronicles.

We are not sure who wrote all the books of the Old Testament nor who edited them all, but the arguments brought forward in chapter ninth are sufficient to show that

THE NEW TESTAMENT CANON.

235 we may regard the whole Old Testament, as we have it, of Divine authority.

The books of the Apocrypha were put into the Septuagint, but they are distinguished from the books of the Old Testament, and we find that neither Christ nor the Apostles, quote from them, and none of the church fathers during the first two centuries quote from the Apocrypha as scripture.

Coming now to the New Testament; while the Apostles lived, it was very natural that the early Christians should rather have heard from the living lips of the disciples of Christ, when possible, than to read anything which they had written, so that although most of the books of the New Testament were written some time before the close of the first century, yet, while Paul and the other apostles lived, the churches would not prize these letters so highly as they afterwards did: but when the Apostles were dead, the churches would greatly prize the books they had left and would collect them together and read them. We find that Paul in 1-Tim. v. 18, quotes from Luke x. 7, as "The scripture saith ;" also, in Rom. xvi. 26, "The scriptures of the prophets" probably refers to the earliest gospels. Peter also, in 2-Pet. iii. 16, refers to Paul's letters as "Scriptures." Jude also, ver. 17, 18 quotes from 2-Pet. iii. 3, as "Words which were spoken before of the Apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ." The Syriac version of the New Testament which was made near the close of the first century, or in the beginning of the second, contains all the books of the New Testament but 2-Pet., 2 and 3John, Jude and Rev.; but as the Eastern churches received these books as genuine, it seems likely that this version was made before these later books were written, or before they came into general use and circulation. Irenaeus was born about the time of John's death in the midst of the seven churches of Asia, near Ephesus, and he says, "It is not long since the Revelation appeared, but it is almost in our generation, toward the close of Domitian's reign." Many of the early fathers say that John was banished to Patmos by Domitian, and that he died in Asia Minor in A.D. 103. The Revelation was probably written about A.D. 96. Ignatius who died A.D. 107, quotes Rev. i. 9. Polycarp, probably martyred A.D. 166, when the fire was kindled about him at the stake, began his prayer with Rev. xi. 17.

About fifteen years after Christ's death, about A.D. 48. came 1-and 2-Thes. From A.D. 48-65, the four Gospels, (John possibly later,) the Acts, the thirteen epistles of Paul, 1-Pet. and 1-John appeared. James was written about A.D.

236

EUSEBIUS ON THE CANON.

61; Heb. and 2-Pet. were written later and 2 and 3 John, Jude and Rev. were probably written toward the close of the first century. Origen, born A. D. 185, gives our whole Canon; He calls Jude a Divine scripture, more than fifteen times. Eusebius, bishop of Smyrna, from A.D. 315, wrote a book on the Canon which he says contained twenty seven books. He divides the books into two classes. "1. Those scriptures universally, absolutely and constantly recognised from the beginning, as Divine by all the churches, and all ecclesiastical writers; namely, the four Gospels, Acts, Paul's fourteen epistles, 1-John, 1-Pet. and Rev. 2. 2-Pet. 2 and 3 John. Jas, Jude. These were received as the others in the great majority of the churches, but some doubt because they are less cited by ancient writers." Then he mentions as not scripture and yet useful, The Acts of Paul, The Shepherd of Hermas, The Rev. of Peter, and the epistle of Barnabas." Then those of injurious tendency, "The Gospels of Peter, of Thomas, or Matthias, and the Acts of Andrew and of John." Some doubted Hebrews because they thought Paul was not the author.

In the fourth century, we find nine catalogues of the books of the N.T. and except that three of them omit Rev., all are like ours. The council of Carthage in Africa, A.D. 397, gives the names of the Old and New Testament books, "which we find from the monuments to have been delivered to the churches as inspired by the Holy Ghost." They are the same as ours. We may ask whence came the unanimity of the acceptance of the 22 books? 1. From the long career of the Apostles and their influence in introducing these books as scriptures. 2. From the immense number of churches which were formed and to which those books were sent. 3. From the reading of them in the churches. See Acts xiii. 15, 27; xv. 21; 2-Tim. iii. 15; 1-Thes. v. 27; Col. iv. 16; 2-Pet. iii. 16; Rev. i. 3. Justyn Martyr, only about 36 years after the death of John, wrote to the Roman officials, "On the day called Sunday, there is an assembly of those residing in the cities and in the country, and then the Memoirs of the Apostles, or the writings of the prophets are read as long as possible, and when the reader has finished his part, the presbyter delivers an exhortation."

The friends and enemies of the church of Christ during the first centuries continually appeal to, and quote from the Gospels and the epistles as we have them, but they do not quote from any other books, yet during the first and second centuries false Christs and false Gospels and Epistles

MIRACLES NOT CONTINUED.

237

abounded. See Mark xiii. 22; Luke i. 1; Gal. i. 6-9; 2-Thes. ii. 2-12; 1-John ii. 18.

We may conclude then, that the New Testament Canon was formed naturally and gradually, during the first hundred years after the death of Christ, by the universal consensus of the churches and that two causes helped them to reach this harmonious result; 1. The Great superiority of the books of the Canon over all others. 2. The Holy Spirit leading all Christians to know the truth. After the death of the Apostles, no one claimed as they did, to write with the authority of Christ and in the power of the Holy Spirit. When we compare the books of the New Testament with the writings of the fathers, we see at once a great difference. There is a lack of new thought in the fathers' writings, and a constant repetition of the words from the New Testament scriptures.

Then, again, all the miraculous powers of the apostolic age seemed to depart with the apostles, or at most to soon fade out after they had gone, so that there is no indication of any inspiration to produce scriptures later. It is true that Iraeneus, who was born about the time of John's death, says, "Those possessed with devils are healed, and unite with our churches; others see visions and prophesy; others cure diseases by laying on of hands, and the dead, too have been raised up," (he does not say, are raised up,) And remained some years with us, Book ii. Chap. 32. No Christian writer in the second or third century mentions the raising of the dead as performed in his time. In the third century Origen, against Celsus, Book iii. p. 109, says, "Signs of the Holy Spirit were shown when Jesus began to teach, more numerous after his ascension and in succeeding times less numerous, but even at this day, there are traces of it in a few men who have had their souls cleansed." Eusebius in the beginning of the fourth century, says, "Our Lord, himself, even at this day, is wont to manifest some small portions of his power in those whom he judges proper for it." Eusebius Dem. Ev. Book iii. p. 109. These extracts are enough to show that miraculous power gradually ceased, and there is no proof of the working of great miracles after the death of the Apostles. There were spurious miracles claimed to be worked later, and they may serve as a proof of the true miracles of the apostolic age, for if there were none worked by the Apostles, why shoud later men claim to work them?

We may feel that we have in the books of the Old and New Testaments a full and sufficient revelation from God, and

238

SCIENTIFIC MEN AND THE BIBLE.

that we have it in its purity; and we may rest assured that it will never be overthrown. There is now in the Bodleian library at Oxford, a manifesto, drawn up in 1865 and signed by 617 scientific men, many of them men of the highest eminence in Great Britain, like Sir Thomas. Bell, Sir David Brewster, and Lord Alfred Churchill, in which they declare their belief in the authenticity of scripture and the harmony of the scriptures with natural science. Let us rest in God's Word and take it for our guide.

THE END.

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