THE CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT
THE word “canon” has come to mean (1)
“rule of faith” or the standard, authoritative teaching by which all doctrines
were measured; and (2) a list or index. The English word “canon” was derived
from the Hebrew qaneh, meaning “reed” or “stalk.” The Greek took over this
Semitic word, thus “kanon” in Greek. The root meaning of the word (“reed”)
denotes a rule, a measuring stick or an instrument with which to make straight
lines.
Because the word “canon” could
also means a list or index, the phrase “Canon of Scriptures” is the list of
books that belong to the Holy Scriptures or those said to be “canonical.”
How many books that belong to the canon of
the Old Testament or those said to be canonical? How many books that belong to
the canon of the contemporary Bible? How many books that belong to the Jewish
canon? Why limit the number of the canonical books to the number the Jewish
canon and the canon of the Septuagint gave?