Establishing the New Testament.

Rejected entire Old Testament. Of the four gospels accepted only a copy of Mark that he had edited, and only about half of Paul’s writings.

His list includes Revelation and Peter, but notes public non-acceptance of Revalation and II Peter. Rejects Paul’s letter to the Laodaceans and to the Alexandrians. He also rejected Paul’s letter to the Hebrews, the Sheperd of Hermas, but said it was ok for private reading and teaching.

Influenced by Clement and Origin. Origin had studied inder Polycarp who had studied under John the apostle.

Three categories: Accepted, Disputed and Heretical.

Accepted: The Gospels, 13 Letters of Paul, Hebrews (noting that Rome held it was not by Paul), I Peter and I John, and with reservations, Revelation.

Disputed: James, Jude, II Peter, II and III John, but notes they are widely accepted. Also disputed and general not accepted are Acts of Paul, Shephrd of Hermans, Apocalyps of Peter, Epistle of Barnabus and the Didache and Revelation.

Heretical: Gospel of Thomas, Acts of Andrew and Acts of John

The first list that includes all 27 books and no others.

The council of Laodicea ad. 363, includes all 27 except the Revelation of John,

Council of Carthage 397, attended by Augustine, accepts all 27 books to be a cannon of scripture, and that has been the case since that time.

This became the official cannon of the Western or Roman Church.

Easter Church had them all except II Peter, II and III John, Revelation and Jude.

Ethiopian Church accepted all 27, and had eight more mostly relating to church order.

The New Testament from Greek to English:

Originally written in Greek.

400 a.d. Jerome translated it into Latin, the Vulgate

600 a.d. Priests preached the gospel in England from Latin texts.

Translations were done from Latin to English

700 a.d. Caedman translated parts of Old and New Testament into English

750 a.d. Bede translated the gospels into English

871 a.d. King Alfred the Great translated most of the psalms

950 a.d. Lindesfarn translated the gospels

1000 a.d. Aelfrick translated most of the NT into English

1000 a.d. various translations, English words written between lines of Latin

1050 a.d. Abbot of Eynsham translated various parts, but very idiomatic

1300 a.d. William of Shoreham translated the psalms

1320 a.d. Richard Rolle psalms with commentary

1384 a.d. John Wycliffe First to translate entire Bible from Latin to English

1525-1535 a.d. William Tyndale, First to translate from Greek and Hebrew to English

(did not complete the Old Testament)

1535 a.d. Miles Coverdale finishes translating rest of Tyndale’s work. First entire bible to be published in English from original languages.

1537 a.d. The Great Bible, Put everyone’s translations together, First bible to be authorized for public use. (by the reformers and the King of England)

1568 a.d. The Bishop’s bible, a revised Great Bible, very Calvanistic

1611 a.d. The King James Version. First time a group of Scholars from different traditions... Calvinistic, Armenian, Etc, had worked together to produce a translation from original languages. They also used current English translations. Authorized for public use by King James.

(This was the best translation so far, but their earliest Greek and Hebrew Texts were from 10th century a.d.)

1600’s - 1700’s Older texts found, as early as 350 a.d.

1871 a.d. New Darby Translation. More idiomatic, less word for word.

1871 a.d. Revised King James Version, from earlier texts, did not gain public acceptance.

1900’s Discovery of Koine Greek, the common language of Greek. Changed the way people understood Greek.

1901 a.d. American Standard Version. Related to 1870 version, very literal but hard to read.

1902 a.d. 20th Century New Testament

1903 a.d. New Testament in Modern Speech

1913 a.d. A new Translation (based on flawed Greek texts)

1923 a.d. American Translation, One scholar’s work.

1946 a.d. New English Bible, Done in Scottland, very loose and idiomatic

1952 a.d. Revised American Standard. First strictly American translation

1966 a.d. Good News Bible, Idiomatic, lots of Dynamic Equivalent

1966 a.d. New Jerusalem Bible, First English translation approved by the Catholic Church

1971 a.d. The Living Bible, A paraphrase

1971 a.d. The New American Standard, word for word translation

1978 a.d. New International Version, International group of scholars, thought for thought

1990 a.d. New Revised Standard

1982 a.d. New King James Version, Smooths out language, based on earliest texts.

1986 a.d. New Jerusalem Bible revised edition

1986 a.d. New American Translation.