03. III. THE CONTENTS OF SCRIPTURE
III. THE CONTENTS OF SCRIPTURE The Scriptures are divided into the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament is the first part of Scripture. Written by the prophets in Hebrew (with some parts in Aramaic), it chiefly unfolds the ’old covenant’ of works (’Moses and the prophets’, Luke 16:29). ’And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself’ (Luke 24:27). It is divided into sixty-six books which are either historical, doctrinal, or prophetic in nature. THE OLD TESTAMENT Historical Books The historical books record stories of things which took place, which illustrate and confirm the doctrine which is expounded in other books:
’Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition’ (1 Corinthians 10:11); ’For whatever things were written before were written for our learning’ (Romans 15:4). There are fifteen historical books:
Genesis is a history of the creation, the fall, the first promise of salvation, and of the state of the church preserved and kept within the context of private families.
Exodus is a history of the deliverance of the Israelites from the Egyptians. It describes the exodus, the giving of the law, and the tabernacle.
Leviticus records the regulations for ceremonial worship.
Numbers is a history of the people’s military activity in the land of Canaan.
Deuteronomy is a commentary which repeats and explains the laws found in the previous books.
Joshua describes the entrance into and possession of the land of Canaan under Joshua.
Judges provides a history of the corrupt and hopeless condition of the church and commonwealth of Israel from the days of Joshua up to those of Eli.
Ruth gives an account of the marriages and posterity of Ruth.
I and II Samuel record events in the days of the priests Eli and Samuel, and during the reigns of Saul and David.
I and II Kings narrate what happened in the days of the kings of Israel and Judah.
I and II Chronicles contain a methodical history of the beginning, increase and ruin of the people of Israel, and help to trace and explain the lineage of Christ.
Ezra contains a history of the return of the people from captivity in Babylon, and of the beginning of the restoration of the city of Jerusalem.
Nehemiah describes the restoring of the city which as yet remained unfinished.
Esther is a history of the preservation of the Jewish church in Persia through the action of Esther.
Job is a history which traces the causes of his trials and his various conflicts, with their eventually happy outcome.
Doctrinal Books The dogmatic or doctrinal books are those which teach and prescribe the doctrines of our theology. There are four of them in the Old Testament.
Psalms contains sacred songs suitable for every condition of the church and its individual members, composed to be sung with grace in the heart (Colossians 3:16).
Proverbs serves as a handbook of Christian behaviour and teaches us about piety towards God, and justice towards our neighbour.
Ecclesiastes reveals the emptiness of all human pleasures to the extent that they are experienced apart from the fear of God.
The Song of Songs is an allegorical description of the relationship between Christ and the church in terms of the relationship between a bridegroom and his bride (or a husband and wife).
Prophetic Books The prophetic books contain predictions, either of God’s judgments on the sins of the people or of the deliverance of the church which would be finally completed at the coming of Christ. These predictions of the prophets are interspersed with calls to repentance. They almost always point to the consolation which would be found in Christ by those who repent.
It was characteristic of the prophets to help the memory and understanding of their hearers by recording summaries of sermons which they preached at much greater length: ’Moreover the Lord said to me, "Take a large scroll, and write on it with a man’s pen"’ (Isaiah 8:1); ’Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, That he may run who reads it’ (Habakkuk 2:2). The prophetic books are usually described as ’Major’ or ’Minor’. The ’Major’ prophets record in detail the things that are foretold; these include the prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel. Included here too are The Lamentations of Jeremiah which express the misery of the Jews about the time of the death of Josiah. The ’Minor’ prophets deal more briefly or in less detail with things that are foretold for the future, or at least with some of them. These are: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi. So much, then, for the Old Testament. THE NEW TESTAMENT The New Testament is the second part of Scripture. Its contents were written in Greek by the apostles, or at least were approved by them (cf. ’built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets’, Ephesians 2:20). They plainly expound teaching on the new covenant. Peter approved the Gospel of Mark, at whose instigation and appointment it was written by John Mark, according to early church tradition. And John the Evangelist also approved the Gospel of Luke. The view reported by Eusebius that two places in Paul’s letters (2 Timothy 2:8 and Romans 2:16) suggest that he was the author of that Gospel carries little weight. In these verses Paul is not speaking of the gospel as a book, but of his whole ministry, since he adds, ’for which I suffer trouble as an evil doer, even to the point of chains’ (2 Timothy 2:9). The New Testament contains histories and letters.
Histories
The four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John contain the narrative of the life, deeds and teaching which Christ showed to the world, from the time of his conception until his ascension into heaven. Of these four authors, two were hearers and eyewitnesses, so that they were able to give greater assurance of the truth of the history.
The difference between the Gospels can be expressed as follows: Matthew gives a clear account of the doctrines which Christ delivered. Mark sets down the history briefly; although his Gospel is not an abridgement of Matthew’s Gospel, as Jerome thought. He begins his account in a quite different way, and proceeds in a different order, dealing with some things more generally and also interweaving some new material. Luke aimed at providing an accurate history, and describes events in a certain order. John is almost completely dedicated to displaying the deity of Christ and the benefits which we derive from it.
Jerome distinguished the evangelists from one another by their different approaches. He says Matthew is like a man, because he begins with the manhood of Christ; Mark like a lion, because he begins with the preaching of John the Baptist, which was like the roaring of a lion. He compares Luke to an ox, because he begins with Zechariah the priest offering his sacrifice. He compares John to an eagle, because he soars to the heights, as it were, and begins with the deity of Christ.
The Acts of the Apostles is an orderly history recording the work of Peter and Paul particularly, and illustrating the governing of the early church (cf. 2 Timothy 3:10).
Revelation is a prophetic history of the condition of the church from the age in which John the apostle lived until the end of the world.
Letters As for the Letters, thirteen of them are from Paul and cover the following themes:
Romans: justification, sanctification, and the duties of the Christian life.
I Corinthians: reforming abuses in the church at Corinth.
II Corinthians: Paul’s defence of himself and of his apostleship against his opponents.
Galatians: justification by faith without the works of the law.
Ephesians ,
6. Philippians,
7. Colossians,
8. I Thessalonians,
9. II Thessalonians: confirm the churches in doctrine and in the duties of the Christian life.
I Timothy,
11. II Timothy: prescribe the form of ordering the church aright.
Titus: ordering the church in Crete.
Philemon: the reception of the runaway slave Onesimus.
14. Hebrews deals with the person and offices of Christ and describes the character of the faith which produces fruit in good works.
15. James expounds the good works which are to accompany faith.
16. I and II Peter deal with sanctification and the works of new obedience.
17. I John expounds the signs of fellowship with God.
John was written to ’the elect lady’ about perseverance in the truth.
John, addressed to Gaius, is about hospitality and constancy in the good.
Jude emphasises constancy in the faith against the influence of false prophets.
These, then, are the books which belong to the canonical Scriptures. THE CANON OF SCRIPTURE
There is strong evidence to show that these books alone, and no others, constitute the Word of God. One kind of proof enables us to know this, the other gives expression to it. Of the former kind there is only one, namely the inward testimony of the Holy Spirit speaking in the Scriptures, not only telling an individual within his heart but also effectually persuading him that these books of the Scripture are the Word of God. ’My Spirit who is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth ... from this time and for evermore’ (Isaiah 59:21). The way in which we are persuaded is as follows. The elect, having the Spirit of God, first of all discern the voice of Christ speaking in the Scriptures. Furthermore, they approve the voice which they discern; and what they approve they also believe. Finally, believing they are (as it were) sealed with the seal of the Spirit. ’In whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise’ (Ephesians 1:13). The church can bear witness to the canon of Scripture, but it cannot inwardly persuade us of its authority. If that were so the voice of the church would have greater force than the voice of God, and the whole state of man’s salvation would be dependent on men. What could be more miserable than that?
More than one objection has been raised against this view by the Roman Catholic Church:
Objection 1: The Scripture is the Word of God by itself, but it is not clear to us that this is so except through the judgment of the church.
Answer. (i) This is an irrelevant contrast. For the first part of it shows the manner in which the Scripture is the Word of God (i.e. by itself as breathed out by God); the latter part shows not the manner how, but the person to whom it is the Word of God.
The Scripture itself testifies to itself with the kind of testimony which is more certain than all human oaths. For we have the voice of the Holy Spirit speaking in the Scriptures, who also works in our hearts a full persuasion of their inspiration, when we are engaged in hearing, reading and meditating on them. We do not believe something because the church says it is to be believed; rather we believe it because what the church says has first of all been said by Scripture.
As a matter of fact the church cannot stand, or its existence be imagined, apart from faith; and faith does not exist apart from the Word. It alone is the rule or object of faith; not the judgment of mere men, even of the holiest men.
The person who doubts the Scriptures will also doubt the testimony of the church.
Objection 2: The church has a proper role to play in exercising its judgment in determining such matters. Thus the letter which was sent from the special council of apostles and elders in Jerusalem was phrased in these terms: ’it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us’ (Acts 15:28).
Answer: (i) The sovereign or supreme judgment in matters of faith is the prerogative of the Holy Spirit speaking in the Scriptures. The ministry of judgment (or a ministerial judgment) is given to the church only because she must judge according to the Scriptures. Because she does not always do this, she sometimes fails.
The apostles were present at the council which was held at Jerusalem. They were men whose authority was to be believed in and of itself. But the church’s ministry no longer possesses that immediate authority.
Thus the proof of declaration or testimony which the church gives to Scripture does not demonstrate or persuade us that it is God’s Word. It only testifies to it and in various ways approves the true canon. Nevertheless, this proof is multi-faceted:
First, there is the perpetual consent of the church to the Scriptures. This begins with believers in the Old Testament period: to them were committed ’the oracles of God’ (Romans 3:2). It continues in the New Testament and the church:
From Christ and the apostles, who cited testimonies out of those books;
From the Fathers: Origen, Melito of Sardis, Athanasius, Cyril, Cyprian, Rufinus, Hilary, Jerome, Epiphanius, Gregory, and so on.
From the Councils of Nicea and Laodicea.
Secondly, there is the partial consent of the pagan thinkers and even enemies of the faith who say the very same things which are taught in Holy Scripture; men such as Homer, Plato, Josephus, Lactantius, Cicero, Virgil, Suetonius, Tacitus and Pliny can be included here.
Thirdly, there is the antiquity of the Word. It contains a record of human history since the beginning of the world. By contrast the oldest secular histories were not written before the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, who lived in the fifth century before Christ.
Fourthly, the origin of Scripture is confirmed by the fulfilment of such prophecies as the calling of the Gentiles, of the Antichrist and of the apostasy of the Jews.
Fifthly, there is the substance of Scripture’s teaching: the one true God, the true worship of God, and the truth that God is the Saviour.
Sixthly, the harmony of all the different parts of Scripture.
Seventhly, the remarkable way in which the Scriptures have been preserved through all the periods of peril and times of general revolt the church has experienced.
Eighthly, the effect of Scripture: it converts people, and even although it is completely contrary to their thinking and desires, it wins them to itself.
Nimbly, the simplicity of its words which are full of the majesty of God.
Lastly, the holy authors did not avoid recording their own corruption; yet Moses commends himself, saying that he was the meekest of all men. That he does both is a further argument for believing that these writers were led by the Holy Spirit. Christ, who is described in the Gospels, clearly claims to be the Son of God, and one with God the Father. He directs all God’s glory to himself. If this claim had not been right and true, Christ would have felt the wrath of God as Adam and Herod did, when they sought to make themselves like God. But what, in fact, happened was that God revenged his death upon Herod and upon the Jews, and upon Pilate, and upon those emperors who persecuted the church.
These, then, are the tokens of the divine origin of Scripture. In the light of these considerations it is clear that the Book of Tobit, the Prayer of Manasseh, the Book of Judith, the Book of Baruch, the Epistle of Jeremiah, the additions to Daniel, the Third and Fourth Books of Ezra, the additions to the Book of Esther, I and II Maccabees, the Book of Wisdom, and Ecclesiasticus, are not to be reckoned part of the canon for the following reasons:
They were not written by the prophets.
They were not written in Hebrew.
In the New Testament neither Christ nor the apostles appeal to the testimony of these books.
They include false teaching which is contrary to the Scriptures.