The Bible is a collection of written works that have been inspired by God. There are 66 divinely inspired books in the Bible that make up what is commonly called the biblical canon. But who decided these 66 books were inspired by God and who decided these 66 books were allowed to be part of the biblical canon?
The biblical authors themselves and God’s people at the time of writing decided that the biblical author’s written work was inspired by God, canonical, and should be included in what is now called the Bible. This is contrary to some opinions that rabbinic or church councils made the decision.
Because the Old Testament was written well before the New Testament, I will focus on the Old Testament first, the New Testament second, and then offer a summary at the end.
Who Decided the 39 Books of the Old Testament Were Canonical?
Many critical biblical scholars believe that an AD 90 Jewish rabbinic council in Jamnia (commonly referred to as the Jamnia council) decided which books should be in the biblical canon. According to this theory, the 39 books of the Old Testament were not formally recognized as canonical until well after the ascension of Jesus.
Contrary to a rabbinic council in AD 90 deciding which books were part of the Old Testament canon, the concept of a canon of books that are a “God-given, written rule of faith and practice” (Beckwith, 63) and the 39 books of the Old Testament as comprising that canon were well-established not only prior to the council of Jamnia in AD 90, but prior to Jesus’ incarnation. Roger Beckwith, in his book The Old Testament Canon of the New Testament Church and its Background in Early Judaism, concludes that all 39 books of the Old Testament were considered canonical to the exclusion of all other books prior to the first century AD. Walter Kaiser agrees with Beckwith:
“there is no evidence that any group, council, or any other religious or nonreligious body made such a decision, much less left a clue as to what their criteria were.”
Walter C. Kaiser Jr., The Old Testament Documents: Are They Reliable & Relevant? Downers Grove: IVP, 2001
If Kaiser is correct in his assertion that there is no evidence that a singular group or council decided which books were to be considered canonical and there is no evidence of any deciding criteria, how, then, were the 39 books that comprise the Old Testament chosen and made canonical?
The best answer is that (a) the biblical authors themselves were aware that what they were writing was divine revelation from God and (b) God’s people recognized that what was written was divine revelation from God, resulting in the book immediately being accepted as divine revelation from God and canonical (Kaiser, The Old Testament Documents, 31–39).
Because all the Old Testament books were written by prophets or kings who were filled with the Holy Spirit (click here for the list of authors), with the exception of Ezra, Nehemiah, and possibly Job and Esther, the authors would have known when they were writing Scripture and God’s people who received the divinely inspired work would have known it was canonical because it came from a prophet of God or a king of God. There is evidence of this all throughout the Old Testament, especially the Pentateuch, the historical writings, and the prophetic literature.
In short, both the author and God’s people decided what written works were inspired by God shortly after the work was written and made it canonical.
If this topic interests you, here are two sources on Amazon that I strongly suggest you read:
- Roger Beckwith, The Old Testament Canon of the New Testament Church and its Background in Early Judaism. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1985.
- Walter C. Kaiser Jr., The Old Testament Documents: Are They Reliable & Relevant? Downers Grove: IVP, 2001.
Who Decided the 27 Books of the New Testament Were Canonical?
Some critical biblical scholars believe that the Christianity that arose to power, called the “Proto-Orthodox” strand of Christianity, were the ones who chose the 27 books of the New Testament to be included in the canon and rejected any documents that competed with their brand of Christianity. This view understands all literature as merely man-made documents, not divinely inspired. This position also holds that the New Testament canon was closed in 419 AD after three North African church councils (under the influence of Augustine) declared the 27 books of the New Testament the only New Testament canonical scriptures.
Contrary to the above, however, the New Testament books were adopted as canonical in the same way as the Old Testament books: (a) the biblical authors themselves were aware that what they were writing was divine revelation from God and (b) God’s people recognized that what was written was divine revelation from God, resulting in the book immediately being accepted as divine revelation from God and canonical.
The New Testament books were not written by prophets or kings, but by apostles of Jesus or those in close association with the apostles (click here for the list of authors). This is important because the apostles of Jesus were given the unique ministry of receiving all the teaching from Jesus for the purpose of passing it on to God’s people so that they could be faithful disciples (John 16:12–15; Matt 28:19–20). Thus, when the apostles or someone in close association with the apostles wrote a letter or Gospel, it was immediately recognized as Scripture and canonized. For a more detailed explanation of this, click here.
It is true that there was some debate in the early church about whether or not certain books were to be considered Scripture and should be accepted as canonical, but it was never to add them. The 27 books of the New Testament were always canonical. The issue was whether or not to remove them. It is also true that various church leaders and councils gave their approval of the 27 New Testament books at various times throughout history, but again, this was to confirm what was already broadly acknowledged, not to add any new books.
If this topic interests you, I encourage you to check out Michael Kruger’s book, Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books (Wheaton: Crossway, 2012) which is found on Amazon.
Summary and Concluding Thoughts
The Bible was, by and large, written by God’s prophets, kings, and apostles. Because God called these people into a special ministry, they were aware that they were writing the words of God. Further, because it was God’s prophets, kings, and apostles who were writing God’s words, God’s people accepted their works as the Word of God and, thus, as canonical. God’s people have accepted these works as canonical ever since. So, who decided what books went into the Bible? Both the authors and God’s people at the time of writing.
As you can tell, the authorship of each biblical book is extremely important. There is currently a concerted effort in parts of the scholarly community to undermine the traditional authorship of the Bible. This may seem harmless on the surface. Many people have said, “who cares who wrote the books of the Bible? It’s still inspired by God.” But without the traditional authorship of the biblical books, God’s people can’t know if what is written is truly inspired by God. The Bible must be written by God’s prophets, kings, apostles, and those in close association with such people for us to have confidence that the books in our Bible are God’s words. God gave his prophets, kings, and apostles a special ministry. Amongst other things, they were commissioned to write Scripture.