Suppose that you became a Christian in the second century A.D. You’ve heard the story of a divine being who died on a cross and rose from the dead. Through baptism, you’ve openly identified yourself with his followers. Now, you want to learn more about this deity. Yet you quickly realize that some people who call themselves “Christians” understand Jesus very differently from the Christians in your congregation. In fact, one nearby group that claims the name “Christian” also says that Jesus wasn’t actually a human being—he was a spirit that only seemed human! How would you decide who was right?
As a twenty-first century Christian, the most reasonable reply seems to be, “Read your New Testament!” The problem is, most Christians in the second century couldn’t read. Even if you were one of the privileged few that possessed the capacity to read and write, you wouldn’t personally own a Bible. Your only “Bible” would have been found in an armarion—a specially-constructed cabinet with niched shelves for scrolls and codices—that stayed in the house where your congregation most often gathered. The armarion would likely have sheltered a copy of the Greek Old Testament and perhaps a couple dozen other sacred scrolls or codices. But it’s possible that not all of these texts would have been identical to the twenty-seven books that you find in New Testaments today.
To be sure, the four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, Paul’s letters, and probably John’s first letter would have had a place in the armarion. But the cabinet could lack a few writings that your New Testament includes—the letter to the Hebrews and maybe the second epistle that’s ascribed to Peter, for example, or a couple of John’s letters. A quirky allegory entitled The Shepherd might have made an appearance in your armarion. You might even find a letter or two from a Roman pastor named Clement.
Do you sense the dilemma that faced first- and second-century Christians? How did they maintain a clear and consistent faith in the shadow of so many competing claims? And who decided on the texts that we call the New Testament today?
The answer highlighted in the final book of scripture, Revelation, shows the answer to the question of the legitimate extent of divine inspiration, known as the Canon of Scripture. In Revelation 22:18-19 we can see the 1) Pondering of the Words (Revelation 22:18a), 2) Proliferation of the Words (Revelation 22:18b), 3) Purging of the Words (Revelation 22:19)
1) Pondering of the Words (Revelation 22:18a)
Revelation 22:18a [18]I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: (if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book,) (ESV)
There is debate regarding the speaker, with some thinking it is Jesus (Swete, R. Charles, Schüssler Fiorenza, Mounce, Giesen, Michaels) but others believing it is John (Moffatt, Lohmeyer, Caird, Kraft, Roloff, Krodel). Yet the presence of ἐγώ (egō, I) along with the verb μαρτυρῶ (martyrō, I warn/am testifying) parallels 22:16, where “I, Jesus,” sends the angel “to testify,” as well as 22:20, “The one who testifies regarding these things says, ‘Yes, I am going to come soon.’ ” Since Jesus is the speaker in both verses 16 and 20, it is likely that he is the speaker here as well (Osborne, G. R. (2002). Revelation (p. 794). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.).
The speaker who testifies to the authority and finality of the words of the prophecy of this book is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. v. 20). The question arises about how we received the New Testament? In the 39th Festal Letter of Athanasius (A.D. 367) we find an undisputed 27-book list that matches our own. Later church councils recognized this canon in official decrees (Hippo Regius, A.D. 393, and Carthage, A.D. 397). But there is a difference between the inspiration, inerrancy, and sufficiency of Scripture and recognition. Scripture was seen as authorative and divinely inspired both by the human authors and audiences well before the general affirmation of these facts. (http://thegospelcoalition.org/book-reviews/review/the_question_of_canon)
Scholars speak of the Old and New Testament books as belonging to the canon of Scripture. The word canon comes from the Greek word kanon, which referred to a reed or cane used as a measuring rod. The canon is thus the “measuring rod” or standard we use to judge a work’s inspiration, authenticity, and veracity (McDowell, J. (1997). Josh McDowell’s handbook on apologetics (electronic ed.). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.).
Christ’s solemn warning against tampering with Scripture applies first of all to the prophecy of the book of Revelation (cf. 1:3). Its stern rebukes of Jezebel and her followers (2:20–23), those who had embraced the “deep things of Satan” (2:24), and those of the “synagogue of Satan” (3:9) would have prompted them to assault it. Down through the centuries there have been others who have both attacked Revelation and seriously misinterpreted it (Nicolatians). They are applied not to anyone making a clerical error in copying the manuscript but to the one deliberately distorting the text. Copyists who unintentionally made errors of the eye or ear are not addressed. If this were the case, I venture to say that no one would have dared to make a copy of the Apocalypse (Kistemaker, S. J., & Hendriksen, W. (1953–2001). Exposition of the Book of Revelation (Vol. 20, p. 594). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.).
Please turn to Deuteronomy 4
After 40 years of persistent rebellion, there is a need to present the authority and sufficiency of God’s word. The statutes and rules are there to govern all aspects of life. The command to listen and obey God’s word is presented with the proper motive to encourage that behavior. Success as a people is shown not to result in military strategy, or ingenuity, but doing God’s things, God’s way.
Deuteronomy 4:1-9 [4:1]"And now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the rules that I am teaching you, and do them, that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you. [2]You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you. [3]Your eyes have seen what the LORD did at Baal-peor, for the LORD your God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Baal of Peor. [4]But you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive today. [5]See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the LORD my God commanded me, that you should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. [6]Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, 'Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.' [7]For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? [8]And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today? [9]"Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children's children-- (ESV)
• Pointing to a result of faithfulness, God is showing how those who are obedient to covenant, live. This blessing is missiological in purpose, as a light to the other nations. The word of God is to show the presence of God in the midst of His people.
Quote: Because Revelation describes the entire sweep of history from the close of the apostolic age to the eternal state, any alteration of it would be an alteration of Scripture, as Robert L. Thomas notes: “The predictive portions project from John’s lifetime all the way into the eternal state. Any type of prophetic utterance would intrude into the domain of this coverage and constitute either an addition to or subtraction from Revelation’s content. So the final book of the Bible is also the concluding product of NT prophecy. It also marks the close of the NT canon since the prophetic gift was the divinely chosen means for communicating the inspired books of the canon”. (Revelation 8–22: An Exegetical Commentary [Chicago: Moody, 1995], 517)
• No more gift of revelation, prophecy. We have the full word of God.
• To add to it, is to incur its judgments’
2) Proliferation to the Words (Revelation 22:18b)
Revelation 22:18b [18]I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: ) if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, (ESV)
The canon of Scripture was closed at the end of the first century when Revelation was finished. Thus, any false prophet, fraud, or charlatan who adds alleged new revelations to it will face divine vengeance. So, whether it is Roman Catholics, who add the Apocrypha (a collection of fourteen Jewish books written between the close of the Old Testament period and the beginning of the New) and a whole host of their own human ideas and traditions like purgatory, prayers for the dead, the perpetual virginity and the heavenly ‘assumption’ of Mary, the infallibility of the pope and so on; or whether it is the cults, who add their own books and writings and place them alongside the Scriptures, such as the Mormons, with The Book of Mormon, Doctrines and Covenants and The Pearl of Great Price, or the Christian Scientists with Mary Baker Eddy’s Science and Health; or whether it is the charismatics who urge that God makes available ‘new truths’ and ‘fresh revelations’ by means of prophecy, tongues and visions—nothing is to be added to Scripture.(Brooks, R. (1986). The Lamb Is All the Glory (p. 203). Darlington, England: Evangelical Press.)
• Even without suggesting a formal addition to scripture, people can informally add to scripture. Every time we insist on something that is not mandated in scripture, we perform this addition. There are legitimate inferences that we can make from scriptural directives, but we must always be cautious to mandate an action for which scripture is silent.
• Have you ever heard someone say that “God’s told me to do something”. I believe it is one of the most dangerous things I hear. If someone means that they believe they should do something, or the Holy Spirit is prompting action, they received godly counsel etc, that is fine. But the phrase “God told me” is used specifically in scripture for direct revelation. In essence it amounts today to adding to scripture, which is not something one should throw around.
God will add to such people the plagues which are described/written in the book of Revelation. The warnings in 22:18–19 are directed not primarily to those outside the church but to all in the church community, as the warnings of Deuteronomy were addressed to all Israelites. Those who do not heed the warnings profess to be Christian, but their allegiance to other gods betrays their confession. As a result, the inheritance they lay claim to by their apparent testimony will be withheld because they deny by their actions the faith they profess. Not only will they not receive their purported inheritance at the end of the age, but they will also suffer “the plagues which are described/written in this book” (v 19). These “plagues” include not merely the suffering of the last judgment in the “lake of fire,” as v 19 implies, but penal inflictions incurred by the ungodly throughout the time prior to that judgment (Beale, G. K. (1999). The book of Revelation: a commentary on the Greek text (p. 1152). Grand Rapids, MI; Carlisle, Cumbria: W.B. Eerdmans; Paternoster Press.).
Please turn to Proverbs 30
Proverbs 30’s emphasis on every “word” underscores the truthfulness, trustworthiness, and reliability of Scripture, not just in its overall message, but in every detail. It also affirm the “Verbal, Plenary (full or complete) Inspiration of Scripture. God’s words are a proven foundation for one’s life. If someone said that God will do something, and it did not come to pass, they were to be regarded as a heretic or false teacher. A prophet who spoke without God’s authorization deserved death (Deut. 18:20–22) (Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (p. 2497). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.).
Proverbs 30:2-6 [2] Surely I am too stupid to be a man. I have not the understanding of a man. [3]I have not learned wisdom, nor have I knowledge of the Holy One.[4]Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in his fists? Who has wrapped up the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name? Surely you know! [5]Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. [6]Do not add to his words, lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar. (ESV)
• Proverbs 30:2-6, teach that human wisdom is limited, the wisest people recognize their ignorance, and that ultimate truth comes from God and resides in His word alone. Thus, no one should think he or she is able to enhance the wisdom that God has given through His word. Adding to God’s word would not only be the greatest presumption, but the greatest foolishness. It is in essence claiming divinity, and infallibility. It denies human depravity and is an exercise that proclaims that one does not need God. In such a statement, one rejects the only source of rescue from judgment, and therefore will eventually incur judgment.
Illustration: It was testimony that could be connected to eyewitnesses of the risen Lord was uniquely authoritative among early Christians. Even while the New Testament books were being written in the first century A.D., the words of people who had actually seen Jesus—especially the words and writings of the apostles—carried special authority in the churches (see Acts 1:21-26; 15:6—16:5; 1 Corinthians 4—5; 9:1-12; Galatians 1:1-12; 1 Thessalonians 5:26-27). After the apostles’ deaths, Christians continued to value the testimony of eyewitnesses and their associates.
Quote: In the first decade of the second century, Papias of Hierapolis put it this way: “I did not … take pleasure in those who spoke much, but in those who … recited the commandments given by the Lord. … So, if anyone who had served the elders came, I asked about their sayings in detail—what Andrew or Peter said, or what was said by Philip or Thomas or James or John or Matthew or any other of the Lord’s followers”.
About the same time, a church leader named Polycarp cited the words of the apostle Paul as “Scripture.”
Quote: A generation later, when someone in the Roman church wondered which Christian writings should be considered authoritative, this emphasis on the eyewitnesses persisted. After listing the books that he viewed as authoritative, here’s what one Christian leader wrote regarding a popular book known as The Shepherd that was circulating in the churches: “Hermas composed The Shepherd quite recently—in our times, in the city of Rome, while his brother Pius the overseer served as overseer of the city of Rome. So, while it should indeed be read, it cannot be read publicly for the people of the church—it is counted neither among the prophets (for their number has been completed) nor among the apostles (for it is after their time)”.
• Notice carefully this second-century writer’s reasons for not allowing The Shepherd of Hermas to serve as an authoritative text in the churches: This writing could not be added to the Old Testament prophets because the time of the Hebrew prophets had passed (“their number has been completed”), and—with the deaths of the apostles—the time of the apostolic eyewitnesses had also ended (“it is after their time”). This teacher didn’t forbid believers to read The Shepherd; he simply pointed out that the book should not serve as an authoritative text for Christian congregations (“it cannot be read publicly for the people of the church”).
Quote: Later church leaders such as Tertullian of Carthage and Serapion of Antioch echoed these sorts of standards, with Serapion clearly stating, “We, brothers and sisters, receive Peter and the rest of the apostles as we would receive Christ himself. But those writings that are falsely ascribed with their names, we carefully reject, knowing that no such writings have ever been handed down to us.” Again, Christians rooted their standard for determining which writings were authoritative in the testimony of eyewitnesses.
So, from the first century onward, Christians viewed testimony that could be connected to eyewitnesses of Jesus as uniquely authoritative. The logic of this standard was simple: The people most likely to know the truth about Jesus were either eyewitnesses who had encountered Jesus personally or close associates of these witnesses. So, although Christians wrangled for some time about the authority of certain writings, it was something far greater than political machinations that drove these decisions. Their goal was to determine which books could be clearly connected to eyewitnesses of Jesus. (http://www.timothypauljones.com/2012/05/10/who-chose-the-texts-that-made-it-into-the-new-testament/)
3) Purging the Words (Revelation 22:19)
Revelation 22:19 [19]and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. (ESV)
God’s judgment will be equally severe on anyone who takes away from the words of Scripture (as the heretic Marcion did in the early church and liberal higher critics (JEDP) etc. have done in modern times)—God will take away their share/part in/from the tree of life and in/from the holy city.
There are many ways practically and through Church history that the removal of scripture has played out. The Textus Receptus, on which the KJV rests, reads “the book” of life (ἀπὸ βίβλου, apo biblou) instead of “the tree” of life. When the Dutch humanist Desiderius Erasmus translated the NT he had access to no Greek MSS for the last six verses of Revelation. So he translated the Latin Vulgate back into Greek at this point. As a result he created seventeen textual variants which were not in any Greek MSS. The most notorious of these is this reading. It is thus decidedly inauthentic, while “the tree” of life, found in the best and virtually all Greek MSS, is clearly authentic. The confusion was most likely due to an intra-Latin switch: The form of the word for “tree” in Latin in this passage is ligno; the word for “book” is libro. The two-letter difference accounts for an accidental alteration in some Latin MSS; that “book of life” as well as “tree of life” is a common expression in the Apocalypse probably accounts for why this was not noticed by Erasmus or the KJV translators. (Biblical Studies Press. (2006). The NET Bible First Edition Notes (Re 22:19–20). Biblical Studies Press..)
Other practical subtractions from scripture would include the argument which says, ‘Science has disproved and discredited the opening chapters of Genesis, so they’ll have to go,’ or the whole attitude which urges that the Bible is all right on (some) doctrinal matters but has nothing to say on anything else; or whether it is unbelieving archbishops, bishops and other church leaders who deny vital truths like the virgin birth, literal physical resurrection and personal and visible second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, the reality of heaven and hell and all supernaturalism; or whether it is that liberal attitude to Scripture which says that God’s rules for marriage, family life and the sanctity of life no longer apply, sexual perversion condemned in Scripture is no longer sexual perversion, the church following God’s rules for its life and government is no longer necessary, and any method goes in evangelism—nothing is to be taken away from Scripture (Brooks, R. (1986). The Lamb Is All the Glory (pp. 203–204). Darlington, England: Evangelical Press.).
The warnings against adding or subtracting contain a play on words. Those who add to Scripture will have plagues added to them; those who take away from Scripture will have the blessings of heaven taken away from them.
• As with the informal additions, we can informally subtract from scripture. We can rationalize away mandates by claiming that we live in a radically different situation. Or we can unjustly isolate a text and exclusivize it for someone else. Rationalizing our sin often starts in rationalizing away scripture.
Please turn to Jeremiah 26
No true believer would ever deliberately tamper with Scripture. Those who know and love God will treat His Word with the utmost respect. They will say with the psalmist, “O how I love Your law!” (Ps. 119:97; cf. Pss. 119:113, 163, 167; John 14:23); and, “I delight in Your law” (Ps. 119:70; cf. Pss. 1:2; 119:77, 92, 174). That does not, of course, mean that believers will never make errors in judgment or mistakenly interpret Scripture incorrectly or inadequately. The Lord’s warning here is addressed to those who engage in deliberate falsification or misinterpretation of Scripture, those whom Paul denounces as peddlers of the Word of God (2 Cor. 2:17).
Jeremiah 26:1-6 [26:1]In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the LORD: [2]"Thus says the LORD: Stand in the court of the LORD's house, and speak to all the cities of Judah that come to worship in the house of the LORD all the words that I command you to speak to them; do not hold back a word. [3]It may be they will listen, and every one turn from his evil way, that I may relent of the disaster that I intend to do to them because of their evil deeds. [4]You shall say to them, 'Thus says the LORD: If you will not listen to me, to walk in my law that I have set before you, [5]and to listen to the words of my servants the prophets whom I send to you urgently, though you have not listened, [6]then I will make this house like Shiloh, and I will make this city a curse for all the nations of the earth.'" (ESV)
• The warning not to add or delete what God has commanded is found in the book of the law (Dt. 4:2), in the words of the prophets (Jer. 26:2), and it is found in the writing (Prov. 30:5). Therefore, every section in scripture has this warning. Thus, the prohibition against altering the Apocalypse by implication extends to all of Scripture.
• The world, the flesh and the devil will all cause us to withhold some of the words. It will be regarded in some company as impolite or even intolerant hate speech. Our personal fears, and a desire to be liked by people above all else will keep us form proclaiming the words. Satan would love nothing more than for us to have a private, personal “faith”. Such a belief system threatens nothing, and enables nothing.
• Speaking all the words that God intends us to speak will cause some to hate us. But this courageous faithfulness will also be the means by which God will use to rescue some from death.
(Format note: Outline & some base commentary from MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2000). Revelation 12–22 (p. 302). Chicago: Moody Press.)
