Biblical canon

==Christian canons==
{{Christianity}}
The canon of the [[Catholic Church]] was affirmed by the [[Council of Rome]] (AD 382), the [[Synod of Hippo]] (AD 393), two of the [[Council of Carthage|Councils of Carthage]] (AD 397 and 419), the [[Council of Florence]] (AD 1431–1449) and finally, as an article of faith, by the [[Council of Trent]] (AD 1545–1563). Those established the [[Catholic Bible|Catholic biblical canon]] consisting of 46 books in the Old Testament and 27 books in the New Testament for a total of 73 books.{{sfn|Rüger|1989|p=302}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Canons and Decrees of the Council of Trent |url=http://www.bible-researcher.com/trent1.html |website=www.bible-researcher.com |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110805122857/http://www.bible-researcher.com/trent1.html |archive-date=5 August 2011}}</ref>{{efn|The Council of Trent confirmed the identical list/canon of sacred scriptures already anciently approved by the [[Synod of Hippo]] (Synod of 393), [[Council of Carthage (397)|Council of Carthage, 28 August 397]], and [[Council of Florence|Council of Florence, 4 February 1442]];<ref>{{cite web |title=Council of Basel 1431–45 A.D. Council Fathers |url=http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Councils/ecum17.htm |website=Papal Encyclicals |language=en |date=14 December 1431 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424112748/http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Councils/ecum17.htm |archive-date=24 April 2013}}</ref> – [[Bull of Union with the Copts]] ''seventh paragraph down''.}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://taylormarshall.com/2008/08/decree-of-council-of-rome-ad-382-on.html |title=Decree of Council of Rome (AD 382) on the Biblical Canon |date=19 August 2008 |website=Taylor Marshall |access-date=1 December 2019}}</ref>

The canons of the [[Church of England]] and English [[Presbyterianism|Presbyterians]] were decided definitively by the [[Thirty-Nine Articles]] (1563) and the [[Westminster Confession of Faith]] (1647), respectively. The [[Synod of Jerusalem (1672)|Synod of Jerusalem]] (1672) established additional canons that are widely accepted throughout the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]].

Various forms of [[Jewish Christianity]] persisted until around the fifth century, and canonized very different sets of books, including [[Jewish–Christian gospels]] which have been lost to history. These and many other works are classified as [[New Testament apocrypha]] by Pauline denominations.

The Old and New Testament canons did not develop independently of each other and most [[primary source]]s for the canon specify both Old and New Testament books. For the biblical scripture for both Testaments, canonically accepted in major traditions of [[Christendom]], see [[#Canons of various Christian traditions|§ Canons of various traditions]].

===Early Church===
====Earliest Christian communities====
The [[Early Church]] used the [[Old Testament]], namely the [[Septuagint]] (LXX)<ref>{{cite book |editor-last1=McDonald |editor-first1=L. M. |editor-last2=Sanders |editor-first2=J. A. |year=2002 |author-last=Sanders |author-first=J. A. |title=The Canon Debate |chapter=The Issue of Closure in the Canonical Process |publisher=Hendrickson Publishers |page=259 |quote= ... the so-called Septuagint was not in itself formally closed.}} Attributed to Albert Sundberg's 1964 Harvard dissertation.</ref> among Greek speakers, with a canon perhaps as found in the [[Development of the old testament canon#Bryennios List|Bryennios List]] or [[Melito's canon]]. The [[Apostles in the New Testament|Apostles]] did not otherwise leave a defined set of new [[scriptures]]; instead, the [[New Testament]] developed over time.

Writings attributed to the apostles circulated among the earliest [[Christians|Christian]] communities. The [[Pauline epistles]] were circulating in collected forms by the end of the 1st century AD. [[Justin Martyr]], in the early 2nd century, mentions the "memoirs of the Apostles", which Christians (Greek: Χριστιανός) called "[[gospel]]s", and which were considered to be authoritatively equal to the Old Testament.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last1=McDonald |editor-first1=L. M. |editor-last2=Sanders |editor-first2=J. A. |year=2002 |author-last=Ferguson |author-first=Everett |title=The Canon Debate |chapter=Factors leading to the Selection and Closure of the New Testament Canon |publisher=Hendrickson Publishers |pages=302–303 |postscript=none }}; cf. Justin Martyr. ''[[First Apology]]''. 67.3.</ref>

====Marcion's list====
[[Marcion of Sinope]] was the first Christian leader in recorded history (though later considered [[heresy|heretical]]) to propose and delineate a uniquely Christian canon{{sfnp|Metzger|1997|p=98|ps=. "The question whether the Church's canon preceded or followed Marcion's canon continues to be debated."}} (c. 140). This included 10 epistles from [[Paul the Apostle|Paul]], as well as an edited version of the [[Gospel of Luke]], which today is known as the [[Gospel of Marcion]]. By doing this, he established a particular way of looking at [[religious text]]s that persists in Christian thought today.<ref name="Harnack">{{cite book |author-last=von Harnack |author-first=Adolf |chapter-url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/harnack/origin_nt.v.vi.html |chapter=Appendix VI |title=Origin of the New Testament |year=1914}}</ref>

After Marcion, Christians began to divide texts into those that aligned well with the "[[canon (basic principle)|canon]]" (meaning a measuring line, rule, or principle) of accepted theological thought and those that promoted heresy. This played a major role in finalizing the structure of the collection of works called the Bible. It has been proposed that the initial impetus for the [[Proto-orthodox Christianity|proto-orthodox Christian]] project of canonization flowed from opposition to the list produced by Marcion.<ref name="Harnack"/>

====Apostolic Fathers====
A four-gospel canon (the ''Tetramorph'') was asserted by [[Irenaeus]] (c. 130 – c. 202 AD) in the following quote:<ref>{{harvp|Ferguson|2002|p=301}}; cf. Irenaeus. ''[[On the Detection and Overthrow of the So-Called Gnosis|Adversus Haereses]]''. 3.11.8.</ref>{{Blockquote|It is not possible that the gospels can be either more or fewer in number than they are. For, since there are four-quarters of the earth in which we live, and four universal winds, while the church is scattered throughout all the world, and the 'pillar and ground' of the church is the gospel and the spirit of life, it is fitting that she should have four pillars breathing out immortality on every side, and vivifying men afresh&nbsp;[...] Therefore the gospels are in accord with these things&nbsp;... For the living creatures are quadriform and the gospel is quadriform&nbsp;[...] These things being so, all who destroy the form of the gospel are vain, unlearned, and also audacious; those [I mean] who represent the aspects of the gospel as being either more in number than as aforesaid, or, on the other hand, fewer.}}

Irenaeus additionally quotes from passages of all the books that would later be put in the New Testament canon except the [[Letter to Philemon]], [[II Peter]], [[III John]], and the [[Epistle of Jude]] in ''Against Heresies'', refers to the [[Shepherd of Hermas]] as "scripture"{{sfnp|Metzger|1997|p=155}} and appears to regard [[I Clement]] as authoritative.

[[File:P46.jpg|thumb|left|250px|alt=Folio from Papyrus 46, containing 2 Corinthians 11:33–12:9 in Greek|A manuscript page from [[Papyrus 46|P46]], an early 3rd-century collection of [[Pauline epistles]]]]
By the early 3rd century, Christian theologians like [[Origen of Alexandria]] may have been using—or at least were familiar with—the same 27 books found in modern New Testament editions, though there were still disputes over the canonicity of some of the writings (see also [[Antilegomena]]).<ref>Both points taken from {{cite book |author-last=Noll |author-first=Mark A. |year=1997 |title=Turning Points |publisher=Baker Academic |pages=36–37}}</ref> Likewise by 200, the [[Muratorian fragment]] shows that there existed a set of Christian writings somewhat similar to what is now the New Testament, which included four gospels and argued against objections to them.<ref>{{cite book |author-last=de Jonge |author-first=H. J. |chapter=The New Testament Canon |editor-last1=de Jonge |editor-first1=H. J. |editor-last2=Auwers |editor-first2=J. M. |title=The Biblical Canons |publisher=Leuven University Press |year=2003 |page=315}}</ref> Thus, while there was a good measure of debate in the Early Church over the New Testament canon, the major writings were accepted by almost all Christians by the middle of the 3rd century.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last1=Ackroyd |editor-first1=P. R. |editor-last2=Evans |editor-first2=C. F. |year=1970 |title=The Cambridge History of the Bible, Vol. 1 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |page=308 }}</ref>

===Eastern Church===

====Alexandrian Fathers====
[[Origen of Alexandria]] (184/85–253/54), an early scholar involved in the codification of the biblical canon, had a thorough education both in Christian theology and in pagan philosophy, but was posthumously condemned at the [[Second Council of Constantinople]] in 553 since some of his teachings were considered to be heresy. Origen's canon included all of the books in the current New Testament canon except for four books: [[Epistle of James|James]], [[Second Epistle of Peter|2nd Peter]], and the [[Second Epistle of John|2nd]] and [[Third Epistle of John|3rd epistles of John]].<ref>Prat, Ferdinand (1911). [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11306b.htm "Origen and Origenism"]. ''The Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. 11''. New York: Robert Appleton Company. According to Eusebius' Church History [http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf201.iii.xi.xxv.html 6.25]: a 22 book OT [though Eusebius does not name Minor Prophets, presumably just an oversight?] plus 1 deuterocanon ["And outside these are the [[Books of the Maccabees|Maccabees]], which are entitled S<ph?>ar beth sabanai el."] and 4 Gospels but on the Apostle "Paul ... did not so much as write to all the churches that he taught; and even to those to which he wrote he sent but a few lines."
</ref>

He also included the [[Shepherd of Hermas]] which was later rejected. The religious scholar [[Bruce Metzger]] described Origen's efforts, saying "The process of canonization represented by Origen proceeded by way of selection, moving from many candidates for inclusion to fewer."{{sfnp|Metzger|1997|p=141}}

In his Easter letter of 367, Patriarch [[Athanasius of Alexandria]] gave a list of exactly the same books that would become the [[New Testament]]–27 book–proto-canon,<ref name="Lindberg 2006 15">{{cite book|title=A Brief History of Christianity |url=https://archive.org/details/briefhistorychri00lind |url-access=limited |author-first=Carter |author-last=Lindberg |page=[https://archive.org/details/briefhistorychri00lind/page/n26 15] |year=2006 |publisher=[[Blackwell Publishing]] |isbn=1-4051-1078-3}}
</ref> and used the phrase "being canonized" (''kanonizomena'') in regard to them.<ref>
{{cite journal |author-last=Brakke |author-first=David |title=Canon Formation and Social Conflict in Fourth Century Egypt: Athanasius of Alexandria's Thirty Ninth Festal Letter |journal=[[Harvard Theological Review]] |volume=87 |issue=4 |date=1994 |pages=395–419 |doi=10.1017/s0017816000030200|s2cid=161779697 }}
</ref>

====Fifty Bibles of Constantine====
{{main|Fifty Bibles of Constantine}}
In 331, [[Constantine I and Christianity|Constantine I]] commissioned [[Eusebius]] to deliver fifty Bibles for the [[Church of Constantinople]]. [[Athanasius]]<ref>''Apol. Const. 4''</ref> recorded [[Early centers of Christianity#Alexandria|Alexandrian]] scribes around 340 preparing Bibles for [[Constans]]. Little else is known, though there is plenty of speculation. For example, it is speculated that this may have provided motivation for canon lists, and that [[Codex Vaticanus]] and [[Codex Sinaiticus]] are examples of these Bibles. Those codices contain almost a full version of the [[Septuagint]]; Vaticanus lacks only 1–3 [[Books of the Maccabees|Maccabees]] and Sinaiticus lacks 2–3 Maccabees, [[1 Esdras]], [[Book of Baruch|Baruch]] and [[Letter of Jeremiah]].<ref>{{citation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LUmGZ0NiweAC |title=Septuagint As Christian Scripture |author-first=Martin |author-last=Hengel |publisher=A&C Black |year=2004 |isbn=978-0567082879 |page=57}}</ref> Together with the [[Peshitta]] and [[Codex Alexandrinus]], these are the earliest extant Christian Bibles.<ref>''The Canon Debate'', pp. 414–415, for the entire paragraph</ref>

There is no evidence among the [[First Council of Nicaea#Biblical canon|canons of the First Council of Nicaea]] of any determination on the canon; however, [[Jerome]] (347–420), in his ''Prologue to Judith'', makes the claim that the [[Book of Judith]] was "found by the Nicene Council to have been counted among the number of the Sacred Scriptures".<ref>{{CathEncy|wstitle=Book of Judith}}: Canonicity: "..."the Synod of Nicaea is said to have accounted it as Sacred Scripture" (Praef. in Lib.). It is true that no such declaration is to be found in the Canons of Nicaea, and it is uncertain whether St. Jerome is referring to the use made of the book in the discussions of the council, or whether he was misled by some spurious canons attributed to that council"</ref>

====Eastern canons====
The Eastern Churches had, in general, a weaker feeling than those in the West for the necessity of making sharp delineations with regard to the canon. They were more conscious of the gradation of spiritual quality among the books that they accepted (for example, the classification of Eusebius, see also [[Antilegomena]]) and were less often disposed to assert that the books which they rejected possessed no spiritual quality at all. For example, the [[Quinisext Council|Trullan Synod of 691–692]], which [[Pope Sergius I]] (in office 687–701) rejected<ref>{{cite book |author-last=Ekonomou |author-first= Andrew J. |year=2007 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zomZk6DbFTIC&pg=PA222 |title=Byzantine Rome and the Greek Popes |publisher=Lexington Books |isbn=978-0-73911977-8 |page=222}}</ref> (see also [[Pentarchy]]), endorsed the following lists of canonical writings: the [[Canons of the Apostles|Apostolic Canons]] (c. 385), the [[Synod of Laodicea]] (c. 363), the [[Council of Carthage (397)|Third Synod of Carthage]] (c. 397), and the [[Easter letter|39th Festal Letter of Athanasius]] (367).<ref>{{cite book |chapter-url=http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3814.htm |chapter=Council in Trullo |title=Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. 14 |editor-last1=Schaff |editor-first1=Philip |editor-last2=Wace |editor-first2=Henry }}</ref> And yet, these lists do not agree. Similarly, the New Testament canons of the [[Syriac Orthodox Church|Syriac]], [[Armenian Apostolic Church|Armenian]], [[Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria|Egyptian Coptic]] and [[Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church|Ethiopian]] Churches all have minor differences, yet five of these Churches are part of the [[Oriental Orthodoxy|same communion]] and hold the same theological beliefs.{{sfnp|Metzger|1997}}

====Peshitta====
{{main|Peshitta}}
The [[Peshitta]] is the standard version of the Bible for churches in the [[Syriac Christianity|Syriac tradition]]. Most of the [[deuterocanonical books]] of the Old Testament are found in the Syriac, and the [[Wisdom of Sirach]] is held to have been translated from the [[Hebrew]] and not from the [[Septuagint]].<ref>[http://www.bible-researcher.com/syriac-isbe.html Syriac Versions of the Bible by Thomas Nicol]</ref> This New Testament, originally excluding certain [[Antilegomena|disputed books]] (2 Peter, 2 John, 3 John, Jude, Revelation), had become a standard by the early 5th century. The five excluded books were added in the [[Harklean Version]] (616 AD) of [[Thomas of Harqel]].<ref>Geoffrey W. Bromiley ''The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Q–Z'' 1995. p. 976 "Printed editions of the Peshitta frequently contain these books in order to fill the gaps. D. Harklean Version. The Harklean version is connected with the labors of Thomas of Harqel. When thousands were fleeing Khosrou's invading armies, ..."</ref>

The standard [[United Bible Societies]] 1905 edition of the New Testament of the Peshitta was based on editions prepared by Syriacists [[Philip E. Pusey]] (d. 1880), [[George Gwilliam]] (d. 1914) and [[John Gwynn (professor)|John Gwyn]].<ref>''Corpus scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium: Subsidia'' Catholic University of America, 1987 "37 ff. The project was founded by Philip E. Pusey who started the collation work in 1872. However, he could not see it to completion since he died in 1880. Gwilliam,</ref> All twenty seven books of the common western [[#New Testament|New Testament]] are included in this British & Foreign Bible Society's 1905 Peshitta edition.

===Western Church===
{{main|Latin Church|Catholic Bible}}

====Latin Fathers====
The first Council that accepted the present Catholic canon (the [[Canon of Trent]] of 1546) may have been the [[Synod of Hippo|Synod of Hippo Regius]], held in North Africa in 393. A brief summary of the acts was read at and accepted by the [[Council of Carthage (397)]] and also the [[Council of Carthage (419)]].{{sfnp|McDonald|Sanders|2002|loc=Appendix D-2, Note 19|ps=. "Revelation was added later in 419 at the subsequent synod of Carthage."}} These Councils took place under the authority of [[Augustine of Hippo]] (354–430), who regarded the canon as already closed.<ref>{{harvp|Ferguson|2002|p=320}}; {{cite book |author-first=F. F. |author-last=Bruce |title=The Canon of Scripture |publisher=Intervarsity Press |year=1988 |page=230 }}; cf. Augustine. ''De Civitate Dei''. 22.8.</ref>

[[Augustine of Hippo]] declared without qualification that one is to "prefer those that are received by all Catholic Churches to those which some of them do not receive" (On Christian Doctrines 2.12). In the same passage, Augustine asserted that these dissenting churches should be outweighed by the opinions of "the more numerous and weightier churches", which would include Eastern Churches, the prestige of which Augustine stated moved him to include the [[Book of Hebrews]] among the canonical writings, though he had reservation about its authorship.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ntgreek.org/SeminaryPapers/ChurchHistory/Criteria%20for%20Development%20of%20the%20NT%20Canon%20in%20First%20Four%20Centuries.pdf |title=Corey Keating, The Criteria Used for Developing the New Testament Canon.}}</ref>

[[Philip Schaff]] says that "the council of Hippo in 393, and the third (according to another reckoning the sixth) council of Carthage in 397, under the influence of Augustine, who attended both, fixed the catholic canon of the Holy Scriptures, including the Apocrypha of the Old Testament, ... This decision of the transmarine church however, was subject to ratification; and the concurrence of the [[Roman see]] it received when [[Innocent I]] and [[Gelasius I]] (414 AD) repeated the same index of biblical books. This canon remained undisturbed till the sixteenth century, and was sanctioned by the [[council of Trent]] at its fourth session."<ref name="Schaff">{{citation |title=History of the Christian Church |chapter=Chapter IX. Theological Controversies, and Development of the Ecumenical Orthodoxy |author-first=Philip |author-last=Schaff |publisher=CCEL |chapter-url=http://www.ccel.org/s/schaff/history/3_ch09.htm}}</ref> According to Lee Martin McDonald, the [[Book of Revelation|Revelation]] was added to the list in 419.{{sfnp|McDonald|Sanders|2002|loc=Appendix D-2, Note 19|ps=. "Revelation was added later in 419 at the subsequent synod of Carthage."}} These councils were convened under the influence of [[Augustine of Hippo]], who regarded the canon as already closed.<ref name="Ferguson, Everett">Ferguson, Everett. "Factors leading to the Selection and Closure of the New Testament Canon", in ''The Canon Debate'', eds. L. M. McDonald & J. A. Sanders (Hendrickson, 2002) p. 320</ref><ref>F. F. Bruce, ''The Canon of Scripture'' (Intervarsity Press, 1988) p. 230</ref><ref>cf. Augustine, ''De Civitate Dei'' 22.8.</ref>

[[Pope Damasus I]]'s [[Council of Rome]] in 382 (if the ''[[Decretum Gelasianum|Decretum]]'' is correctly associated with it) issued a biblical canon identical to that mentioned above.<ref name="Lindberg 2006 15" /> Likewise, Damasus' commissioning of the Latin [[Vulgate]] edition of the Bible, {{circa}} 383, proved instrumental in the fixation of the canon in the West.{{sfnp|Bruce|1988|p= 225}}

In a letter ({{circa}} 405) to [[Exuperius|Exsuperius of Toulouse]], a Gallic bishop, [[Pope Innocent I]] mentioned the sacred books that were already received in the canon.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bible-researcher.com/innocent.html |title=Innocent I |publisher=Bible Research |access-date=21 May 2016}}</ref> When bishops and Councils spoke on the matter of the Biblican canon, however, they were not defining something new, but instead "were ratifying what had already become the mind of the Church".{{sfnp|Ferguson|2002|pp=319–320}} Thus from the 4th century there existed unanimity in the [[Western Christianity|West]] concerning the New Testament canon as it is today,{{sfnp|Bruce|1988|p= 215}} with the exception of the [[Book of Revelation]]. In the 5th century the [[Eastern Christianity|East]] too, with a few exceptions, came to accept the Book of Revelation and thus came into harmony on the matter of the New Testament canon.<ref>{{harvp|Ackroyd|Evans|1970|p=305}}; cf. {{cite book |author-last=Reid |author-first=George |title=Catholic Encyclopedia |publisher=Robert Appleton Company |year=1908 |chapter=Canon of the New Testament |chapter-url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03274a.htm}}</ref>

As the canon crystallised, non-canonical texts fell into relative disfavour and neglect.<ref>{{cite book |author-last1=Rohmann |author-first1=Dirk |title=Christianity, Book-Burning and Censorship in Late Antiquity: Studies in Text Transmission |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ie7CDAAAQBAJ |series=Arbeiten zur Kirchengeschichte |volume=135 |publisher=[[Walter de Gruyter]] GmbH & Co KG |date=2016 |isbn=9783110485554 |access-date=11 April 2018 |quote=Prudentius [348–{{circa}} 410] ... intends to demonstrate the superiority of Christianity and was likely aware that at this time the Bible has not replaced other books as much as he wants to think. This passage also presents a possible hint that old Latin translations were replaced with a new canonical version, perhaps alluding to the Vulgate, written by Jerome at the end of the fourth century. By implication, this suggests that uncanonical texts were unlikely to be transcribed—an ideologically and authoritatively endorsed selection process that comes close to modern understandings of censorship.}}</ref>

====Council of Florence====
[[File:KJV 1769 Oxford Edition, vol. 1.djvu|page=21|thumb|The contents page in a complete 80 book [[King James Bible]], listing "The Books of the Old Testament", "The Books called Apocrypha", and "The Books of the New Testament"]]
Before the [[Protestant Reformation]], the [[Council of Florence]] (1439–1443) took place. With the approval of this [[ecumenical council]], Pope [[Eugenius IV]] (in office 1431–1447) issued several [[papal bulls]] ([[Decree (Catholic canon law)|decrees]]) with a view to restoring the [[Eastern churches]], which the Catholic Church considered as [[schism]]atic bodies, into [[Full communion|communion with Rome]]. Catholic theologians regard these documents as [[infallible]] statements of [[Catholic theology|Catholic doctrine]]. The ''Decretum pro Jacobitis'' contains a complete list of the books received by the Catholic Church as inspired, but omits the terms "canon" and "canonical". The Council of Florence therefore taught the inspiration of all the Scriptures, but did not formally pronounce itself on canonicity.<ref>{{cite book |author-last1=Gigot |author-first1=Francis Ernest Charles |author-link1=Francis Gigot |chapter=The Canon of the Old Testament in the Christian Church: Section II. From the Middle of the Fifth Century to our Day |title=General Introduction to the Study of the Holy Scriptures |year=1900 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=n3kQAQAAIAAJ |volume=1 of Introduction to the study of the Holy Scriptures |edition=3 |location=New York |publisher=Benziger |publication-date=1900 |page=71 |access-date=1 February 2021 |quote=[...] the bull of Eugenius IV did not deal with the ''canonicity'' of the books which were not found in the Hebrew Text, but simply proclaimed their ''inspiration'' [...].}}</ref><ref>
{{CathEncy|wstitle= Canon of the Old Testament}} section titled "The Council of Florence 1442"</ref>

====Luther's canon and apocrypha====
{{Main|Luther's canon}}
[[Martin Luther]] (1483–1546) moved seven Old Testament books (Tobit, Judith, 1–2 Maccabees, Book of Wisdom, Sirach, and Baruch) into a section he called the "[[Biblical apocrypha|Apocrypha]], that are books which are not considered equal to the Holy Scriptures, but are useful and good to read".<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rl3lcbLkHV0C&pg=PA521 |title=The Popular and Critical Bible Encyclopædia and Scriptural Dictionary, Fully Defining and Explaining All Religious Terms, Including Biographical, Geographical, Historical, Archæological and Doctrinal Themes |page=521 |editor-first=Samuel |editor-last=Fallows |publisher=The Howard-Severance co |orig-year=1901 |year=1910 |display-editors=etal}}</ref>

All of these apocrypha are called [[Biblical Apocrypha#Anagignoskomena|''anagignoskomena'']] by the Eastern Orthodox Church per the [[Synod of Jerusalem (1672)|Synod of Jerusalem]].

As with the [[Lutheran Church]]es,<ref name="GeislerMacKenzie1995">{{cite book |author-last1=Geisler |author-first1=Norman L. |author-last2=MacKenzie |author-first2=Ralph E. |title=Roman Catholics and Evangelicals: Agreements and Differences |date=1995 |publisher=Baker Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-8010-3875-4 |page=171 |language=English |quote=Lutherans and Anglicans used it only for ethical / devotional matters but did not consider it authoritative in matters of faith.}}</ref> the [[Anglican Communion]] accepts "the Apocrypha for instruction in life and manners, but not for the establishment of doctrine",<ref>{{cite book|author-last=Ewert |author-first=David |title=A General Introduction to the Bible: From Ancient Tablets to Modern Translations |date=2010 |publisher=[[Zondervan]] |isbn=978-0310872436 |page=104}}</ref> and many "lectionary readings in [[The Book of Common Prayer]] are taken from the Apocrypha", with these lessons being "read in the same ways as those from the Old Testament".<ref>{{cite book|author-last1=Thomas |author-first1=Owen C. |author-last2=Wondra |author-first2=Ellen K. |author-link2=Ellen Wondra |title=Introduction to Theology|edition =3rd|date=2002 |publisher=Church Publishing, Inc. |isbn=978-0819218971 |page=56}}</ref> The Protestant Apocrypha contains three books (3 Esdras, 4 Esdras and the Prayer of Manasseh) that are accepted by many Eastern Orthodox Churches and Oriental Orthodox Churches as canonical, but are regarded as non-canonical by the Catholic Church and are therefore not included in modern Catholic Bibles.<ref>{{cite book|author-last1=Henze |author-first1=Matthias |author-last2=Boccaccini |author-first2=Gabriele |title=Fourth Ezra and Second Baruch: Reconstruction after the Fall |year=2013 |publisher=[[Brill Publishing]] |isbn=978-9004258815 |page=383}}</ref>

[[Anabaptists]] use the [[Luther Bible]], which contains the intertestamental books; [[Amish]] wedding ceremonies include "the retelling of the marriage of Tobias and Sarah in the Apocrypha".<ref name="Wesner">{{cite web |author-last1=Wesner |author-first1=Erik J. |title=The Bible |date=8 April 2015 |url=https://amishamerica.com/bible/#apocrypha |publisher=Amish America |access-date=23 May 2021 |language=English}}</ref> The fathers of Anabaptism, such as [[Menno Simons]], quoted "them [the Apocrypha] with the same authority and nearly the same frequency as books of the Hebrew Bible" and the texts regarding the martyrdoms under Antiochus IV in [[1 Maccabees]] and [[2 Maccabees]] are held in high esteem by the Anabaptists, who historically faced persecution.<ref name="deSilva2018">{{cite book |last1=deSilva |first1=David A. |title=Introducing the Apocrypha: Message, Context, and Significance |date=2018 |publisher=Baker Books |isbn=978-1-4934-1307-2 |language=English}}</ref>

Lutheran and Anglican lectionaries continue to include readings from the Apocrypha.<ref name="Forward1981">{{cite book|title=Readings from the Apocrypha |year=1981 |publisher=Forward Movement Publications |page=5}}</ref>

====Council of Trent====
{{main|Canon of Trent}}
In response to [[Martin Luther]]'s demands, the [[Council of Trent]] on 8 April 1546 approved the present [[Catholic Bible]] canon, which includes the [[deuterocanonical books]], and the decision was confirmed by an [[anathema]] by vote (24 yea, 15 nay, 16 abstain).{{sfnp|Metzger|1997|p=246|ps=. "Finally on 8 April 1546, by a vote of 24 to 15, with 16 abstentions, the Council issued a decree (''De Canonicis Scripturis'') in which, for the first time in the history of the Church, the question of the contents of the Bible was made an absolute article of faith and confirmed by an anathema."}} The council confirmed the same list as produced at the [[Council of Florence]] in 1442,<ref>{{cite web|title=Council of Basel 1431–45 A |date=14 December 1431 |url=http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Councils/ecum17.htm |website=Papalencyclicals.net |access-date=7 January 2015}}</ref> Augustine's 397–419 [[Councils of Carthage]],<ref name="Schaff"/> and probably Damasus' 382 [[Council of Rome]].<ref name="Lindberg 2006 15" /><ref name="Cross">{{citation |title=The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church |edition=2nd |editor-first1=F.L. |editor-last1=Cross |editor-first2=E.A. |editor-last2=Livingstone |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |year=1983 |page=232}}</ref> The Old Testament books that had been rejected by Luther were later termed "deuterocanonical", not indicating a lesser degree of inspiration, but a later time of final approval. The [[Sixto-Clementine Vulgate]] contained in the Appendix several books considered as apocryphal by the council: [[Prayer of Manasseh]], [[1 Esdras|3 Esdras]], and [[2 Esdras|4 Esdras]].<ref name="BSVxx">Praefatio, ''Biblia Sacra Vulgata'', Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart 1983, p. xx. {{ISBN|3-438-05303-9}}</ref>

====Protestant confessions====
{{see also|Protestant Bible}}
Several [[Protestant confessions of faith]] identify the 27 books of the New Testament canon by name, including the [[French Confession of Faith]] (1559),<ref>[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds3/Page_361.html Schaff, Philip. ''Creeds of the Evangelical Protestant Churches'', French Confession of Faith, p. 361]</ref> the [[Belgic Confession]] (1561), and the [[Westminster Confession of Faith]] (1647). The [[Second Helvetic Confession]] (1562), affirms "both Testaments to be the true Word of God" and appealing to [[Augustine of Hippo|Augustine]]'s ''[[De Civitate Dei]]'', it rejected the canonicity of the Apocrypha.<ref>The [[Second Helvetic Confession]], Chapter 1, Of The Holy Scripture Being The True Word of God</ref> The [[Thirty-Nine Articles]], issued by the Church of England in 1563, names the books of the Old Testament, but not the New Testament. The Belgic Confession<ref>[http://creeds.net/belgic/ Belgic Confession 4. Canonical Books of the Holy Scripture]</ref> and the Westminster Confession named the 39 books in the Old Testament and, apart from the aforementioned New Testament books, expressly rejected the canonicity of any others.<ref>The Westminster Confession rejected the canonicity of the Apocrypha stating that "The books commonly called Apocrypha, not being of divine inspiration, are no part of the canon of the Scripture, and therefore are of no authority in the Church of God, nor to be any otherwise approved, or made use of, than other human writings." [[s:The Confession of Faith of the Assembly of Divines at Westminster#Chapter 1|Westminster Confession of Faith, 1646]]</ref>

The Lutheran [[Epitome of the Formula of Concord]] of 1577 declared that the prophetic and apostolic Scriptures comprised the Old and New Testaments alone.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://bookofconcord.org/fc-ep.php |title=The Epitome of the Formula of Concord – Book of Concord |access-date=19 August 2020 |archive-date=31 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031063041/http://bookofconcord.org/fc-ep.php |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Luther's canon|Luther himself did not accept the canonicity of the Apocrypha]] although he believed that its books were "Not Held Equal to the Scriptures, but Are Useful and Good to Read".<ref>Brecht, Martin. Martin Luther. Volume 3, p. 98 James L. Schaaf, trans. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1985–1993. {{ISBN|0-8006-2813-6}}</ref> Lutheran and Anglican lectionaries continue to include readings from the Apocrypha.<ref name="Forward1981"/>

====Other apocrypha====
{{main|Biblical apocrypha|New Testament apocrypha}}
Various books that were never canonized by any church, but are known to have existed in antiquity, are similar to the New Testament and often claim apostolic authorship, are known as the [[New Testament apocrypha]]. Some of these writings have been cited as [[Bible|scripture]] by early Christians, but since the fifth century a widespread consensus has emerged limiting the New Testament to the [[Development of the New Testament canon|27 books of the modern canon]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Van Liere |first=Frans |date=2014 |title=An Introduction to the Medieval Bible |pages=68–69 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0521865784 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dwd-AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA68}}</ref><ref name="Ehrman2003">{{cite book |last=Ehrman |first=Bart D. |author-link=Bart Ehrman |date=2003 |title=Lost Christianities: Battles for Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew |pages=230–231 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0199756681 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHDNe8KmMAIC&pg=PA230}}</ref> Thus Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Protestant churches generally do not view these New Testament apocrypha as part of the Bible.<ref name=Ehrman2003/>