Definition of Terms:
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The history of the Old Testament canon is complex, marked by gradual development, varying community traditions, and differing theological priorities among ancient Jewish sects and early Christians. While contemporary readers often assume a fixed canon existed from antiquity, the formation of the Hebrew Scriptures—what Christians call the Old Testament—was an evolving process deeply intertwined with the liturgical, linguistic, and doctrinal life of the Jewish people and the early Church.
Formation and Diversity of the Hebrew Scriptures
The Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) is traditionally divided into three sections: the Torah (“Law”), the Nevi’im (“Prophets”), and the Ketuvim (“Writings”). This tripartite structure was not universally accepted among all Jewish groups in antiquity. The Samaritans and Sadducees acknowledged only the Torah, rejecting the Prophets and Writings. In contrast, the Pharisees, who came to dominate post-Temple Judaism, recognized all three divisions. The Essenes, associated with the Dead Sea Scrolls, present yet another canon variant. According to Scribes and Schools: The Canonization of the Hebrew Scriptures (ed. Philip Davies), the Essenes apparently excluded Esther, yet included works like Tobit, Sirach, and 1 Enoch, suggesting a fluid and expansive concept of sacred Scripture.
The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls (dated from the 3rd century BCE to the 1st century CE) underscores the diversity of sacred texts in use during the Second Temple period. These scrolls include not only books now found in the Masoretic Text but also others later deemed apocryphal or non-canonical in Rabbinic Judaism.
The Septuagint and Greek-Speaking Judaism
The Septuagint (LXX), the earliest extant Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures, emerged in the 3rd–2nd centuries BCE in Alexandria, a center of Jewish diaspora. As Timothy Michael Law notes in When God Spoke Greek, the Septuagint predates the final form of the Hebrew Masoretic Text (MT), which was standardized by Jewish scribes (the Masoretes) in the 6th to 10th centuries CE. In fact, extant Septuagint manuscripts, like Codex Vaticanus and Codex Sinaiticus, date to the 4th century, while the oldest full Masoretic codices (e.g., Aleppo Codex, Leningrad Codex) are from the 10th century. The Septuagint included several books not found in the later Masoretic canon, such as Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), Tobit, Judith, 1–2 Maccabees, Baruch, and additions to Daniel and Esther.
Greek-speaking Jews throughout the Roman Empire, who made up the majority of the Jewish population by the time of Christ, favored the Septuagint for both private devotion and synagogue reading. This translation became a central scriptural source not only for diaspora Jews but, more significantly, for early Christians.
New Testament and Early Church Use of the Septuagint
The authors of the New Testament, writing in Greek, overwhelmingly quoted from the Septuagint rather than the Hebrew text. Of the approximately 300 Old Testament quotations in the New Testament, the majority align more closely with the Septuagint than with the Masoretic Text. Examples include:
- Hebrews 10:5 quotes Psalm 40:6 as “a body you prepared for me” (Septuagint), differing from the Hebrew “ears you have dug for me.”
- Matthew 1:23 cites Isaiah 7:14: “A virgin shall conceive,” which follows the Septuagint rendering of almah as parthenos (“virgin”), whereas the Hebrew term can also mean “young woman.”
- Acts 7:14, Romans 9:25–26, and 1 Peter 2:6–8 likewise rely on Septuagint readings.
The early Church Fathers—such as Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, Clement of Alexandria, and Origen—treated the Septuagint as authoritative Scripture. The Septuagint was seen not merely as a translation, but as a divinely guided rendering suitable for the new covenant Church.
Closure of the Jewish Canon
There was no universally agreed-upon “Jewish canon” during the first century CE. While some scholars argue that the canon was closed at the Council of Jamnia (Yavneh) around 90 CE, many contest this view. Jamnia was more likely a center of rabbinic discussion than a formal council, and debates about the status of books like Esther, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs continued well into the second century CE.
Eventually, Rabbinic Judaism adopted a canon that included 24 books, equivalent to the Protestant Old Testament’s 39 books (though ordered and counted differently), excluding the Deuterocanonical books accepted in the Septuagint.
Development of the Christian Old Testament Canon
The early Church inherited the Septuagint as its Old Testament. For the first several centuries, Christians made little distinction between the books later called “canonical” and those eventually labeled “deuterocanonical” or “apocryphal.” In fact, the earliest Christian Old Testaments included the broader Septuagintal canon.
Over time, Christian thinkers began to distinguish between protocanonical books (those accepted by all) and deuterocanonical books (those accepted by most, but debated). Importantly, early Christians did not use the term “apocrypha” pejoratively; it originally referred to esoteric or hidden writings. In contrast, “deuterocanon” (literally, “second canon”) is a term later employed by Catholics to refer to books accepted as canonical but whose status was disputed.
Canonical Differences Among Christian Traditions
Different Christian communions developed slightly different Old Testament canons, reflecting their geographical, linguistic, and theological contexts:
- Catholic Church (Council of Trent, 1546): Recognizes 46 Old Testament books, including the deuterocanonical books (e.g., Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, 1–2 Maccabees, additions to Esther and Daniel).
- Eastern Orthodox Churches: Include a broader canon, often accepting 1 Esdras, 3 Maccabees, Psalm 151, and Prayer of Manasseh.
- Oriental Orthodox Churches (e.g., Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church): Include even more books, such as 1 Enoch, Jubilees, and others preserved in Geʽez.
- Assyrian Church of the East: Traditionally uses the Peshitta and tends toward a narrower canon closer to the Hebrew Bible but is flexible depending on regional practice.
- Protestant Reformers (16th century): Rejected the deuterocanonical books as apocryphal, affirming only those books in the Hebrew canon (thus 39 books).
Conclusion
The Old Testament canon was not handed down as a fixed set of books but emerged gradually in dialogue with the liturgical life, theological reflections, and historical experiences of Jewish and Christian communities. The Septuagint played a pivotal role in shaping early Christian Scripture, and its expanded canon influenced the canon lists of most Christian traditions outside of Protestantism. The debates over the canon reveal deeper theological commitments about authority, tradition, and the role of the Church in discerning the voice of God through Scripture.
Bible Verses:
Hebrews 11:35 and 2 Maccabees 7
Matthew 27:39-43 and Wisdom 2:17-22
Luke 6:31 and Tobit 4:15
Luke 14:13 and Tobit 4:7
John 10:22 and 1 Maccabees 4:59
Romans 9:20-22 and Wisdom 15:7
Romans 11:34 and Wisdom 9:13
Church Father Quotes:
The Didache (ca. 50-70 A.D.)
“You shall not waver with regard to your decisions [Sir. 1:28].” “Do not be someone who stretches out his hands to receive but withdraws them when it comes to giving [Sir. 4:31]” (Didache 4:5 [A.D. 70]).
The Letter of Barnabas ( ca. 50 A.D.)
“Since, therefore, [Christ] was about to be manifested and to suffer in the flesh, his suffering was foreshown. For the prophet speaks against evil, ‘Woe to their soul, because they have counseled an evil counsel against themselves’ [Isa. 3:9], saying, ‘Let us bind the righteous man because he is displeasing to us’ [Wis. 2:12.]” (Letter of Barnabas 6:7 [A.D. 74]).
Clement of Rome (martyred 96 A.D.)
“By the word of his might [God] established all things, and by his word he can overthrow them. ‘Who shall say to him, “What have you done?” or who shall resist the power of his strength?’ [Wis. 12:12]” (Letter to the Corinthians 27:5 [ca. A.D. 80]).
Polycarp of Smyrna (66-155 A.D.)
“When you can do good, defer it not, because ‘alms delivers from death’ [Tob. 4:10, 12:9]” (Letter to the Philadelphians 10 [A.D. 135]).
Justin Martyr (100-165 A.D.)
“But I am far from putting reliance in your teachers, who refuse to admit that the interpretation made by the seventy elders [the Septuagint] who were with Ptolemy [king] of the Egyptians is a correct one; and they attempt to frame another. And I wish you to observe, that they have altogether taken away many Scriptures from the translations effected by those seventy elders who were with Ptolemy [the Deuterocanon] and by which this very man who was crucified is proved to have been set forth expressly as God, and man, and as being crucified, and as dying; but since I am aware that this is denied by all of your nation, I do not address myself to these points, but I proceed to carry on my discussions by means of those passages which are still admitted by you. For you assent to those which I have brought before your attention, except that you contradict the statement, ‘Behold, the virgin shall conceive,’ and say it ought to be read, ‘Behold, the young woman shall conceive.’” -Dialogue with Trypho the Jew Chapter 71.
“From the statements, then, which Esdras made in reference to the law of the passover, they have taken away the following: ‘And Esdras said to the people, This passover is our Saviour and our refuge. And if you have understood, and your heart has taken it in, that we shall humble Him on a standard, and thereafter hope in Him, then this place shall not be forsaken for ever, says the God of hosts. But if you will not believe Him, and will not listen to His declaration, you shall be a laughing-stock to the nations.’ And from the sayings of Jeremiah they have cut out the following: ‘I was like a lamb that is brought to the slaughter: they devised a device against me, saying, Come, let us lay on wood on His bread, and let us blot Him out from the land of the living; and His name shall no more be remembered’ [Jeremiah 11:19]. And since this passage from the sayings of Jeremiah is still written in some copies of the Scriptures in the synagogues of the Jews for it is only a short time since they were cut out, and since from these words it is demonstrated that the Jews deliberated about the Christ Himself. . .” -Dialogue with Trypho the Jew Chapter 72.
Irenaeus of Lyons (130-202 A.D.)
“Those . . . who are believed to be presbyters by many, but serve their own lusts and do not place the fear of God supreme in their hearts, but conduct themselves with contempt toward others and are puffed up with the pride of holding the chief seat [Matt. 23:6] and work evil deeds in secret, saying ‘No man sees us,’ shall be convicted by the Word, who does not judge after outward appearance, nor looks upon the countenance, but the heart; and they shall hear those words to be found in Daniel the prophet: ‘O you seed of Canaan and not of Judah, beauty has deceived you and lust perverted your heart’ [Dan. 13:56]. You that have grown old in wicked days, now your sins which you have committed before have come to light, for you have pronounced false judgments and have been accustomed to condemn the innocent and to let the guilty go free, although the Lord says, ‘You shall not slay the innocent and the righteous’ [Dan. 13:52, citing Ex. 23:7]” (Against Heresies 4:26:3 [A.D. 189]; Daniel 13 is not in the Protestant Bible).
“Jeremiah the prophet has pointed out that as many believers as God has prepared for this purpose, to multiply those left on the earth, should both be under the rule of the saints and to minister to this [new] Jerusalem and that [his] kingdom shall be in it, saying, ‘Look around Jerusalem toward the east and behold the joy which comes to you from God himself. Behold, your sons whom you have sent forth shall come: They shall come in a band from the east to the west. . . . God shall go before with you in the light of his splendor, with the mercy and righteousness which proceed from him’ [Bar. 4:36—5:9]” (ibid., 5:35:1; Baruch was often considered part of Jeremiah, as it is here).
Clement of Alexandria (150-215 A.D.)
“And very clearly He calls to goodness by Solomon, when He says, ‘Blessed is the man who has found wisdom, and the mortal who has found understanding’ (Proverbs 3:13). ‘For the good is found by him who seeks it, and is wont to be seen by him who has found it.’ By Jeremiah, too, He sets forth prudence, when he says, ‘Blessed are we, Israel; for what is pleasing to God is known by us;’ (Baruch 4:4) – and it is known by the Word, by whom we are blessed and wise. For wisdom and knowledge are mentioned by the same prophet, when he says, ‘Hear, O Israel, the commandments of life, and give ear to know understanding’ (Baruch 3:9). By Moses, too, by reason of the love He has to man, He promises a gift to those who hasten to salvation. For He says, ‘And I will bring you into the good land, which the Lord swore to your fathers’ (Deuteronomy 31:20). And further, ‘And I will bring you into the holy mountain, and make you glad,’ (Isaiah 56:7) He says by Isaiah.” -The Instructor 1:10
“This Scripture has briefly showed, when it says, ‘What you hate you shall not do to another’ [Tobit 4:15].” -Stromata 2:23
Hippolytus of Rome (170-235 A.D.)
“What is narrated here [in the story of Susannah] happened at a later time, although it is placed at the front of the book [of Daniel], for it was a custom with the writers to narrate many things in an inverted order in their writings. . . . [W]e ought to give heed, beloved, fearing lest anyone be overtaken in any transgression and risk the loss of his soul, knowing as we do that God is the judge of all and the Word himself is the eye which nothing that is done in the world escapes. Therefore, always watchful in heart and pure in life, let us imitate Susannah” (Commentary on Daniel [A.D. 204]; the story of Susannah [Dan. 13] is not in the Protestant Bible).
“Thus they say they prove that God is one. And then they answer in this manner: ‘If therefore I acknowledge Christ to be God, He is the Father Himself, if He is indeed God; and Christ suffered, being Himself God; and consequently the Father suffered, for He was the Father Himself.’
But the case stands not thus; for the Scriptures do not set forth the matter in this manner. But they make use also of other testimonies, and say, Thus it is written: ‘This is our God, and there shall none other be accounted of in comparison of Him. He has found out all the way of knowledge, and has given it unto Jacob His servant (son), and to Israel His beloved. Afterward did He show Himself upon earth, and conversed with men’ [Baruch 3:35]” -Against the Heresy of Noetus, Chapter 2.
Origen of Alexandria (184-253 A.D.)
“But surely it is not without honour for the body to suffer for the sake of godliness, and to choose afflictions on account of virtue: the dishonourable thing would be for it to waste its powers in vicious indulgence. For the divine word says: ‘What is an honourable seed? The seed of man. What is a dishonourable seed? The seed of man’ [Ecclesiasticus or Sirach10:19].” -Contra Celsum, 8.50
Cyprian of Carthage (200-258 A.D.)
“In Genesis [it says], ‘And God tested Abraham and said to him, “Take your only son whom you love, Isaac, and go to the high land and offer him there as a burnt offering”’ [Gen. 22:1–2]. . . . Of this same thing in the Wisdom of Solomon [it says], ‘Although in the sight of men they suffered torments, their hope is full of immortality’ [Wis. 3:4]. Of this same thing in the Maccabees [it says], ‘Was not Abraham found faithful when tested, and it was reckoned to him for righteousness’ [1 Macc. 2:52; see Jas. 2:21–23]” (Treatises 7:3:15 [A.D. 248]).
“So Daniel, too, when he was required to worship the idol Bel, which the people and the king then worshipped, in asserting the honor of his God, broke forth with full faith and freedom, saying, ‘I worship nothing but the Lord my God, who created the heaven and the earth’ [Dan. 14:5]” (Letters 55:5 [A.D. 253]; Daniel 14 is not in the Protestant Bible).
“But, dearest brother, ecclesiastical discipline is not on that account to be forsaken, nor priestly censure to be relaxed, because we are disturbed with reproaches or are shaken with terrors; since Holy Scripture meets and warns us, saying, ‘But he who presumes and is haughty, the man who boasts of himself, who has enlarged his soul as hell, shall accomplish nothing’ [Habakkuk 2:5]. And again: ‘And fear not the words of a sinful man, for his glory shall be dung and worms. Today he is lifted up, and tomorrow he shall not be found, because he is turned into his earth, and his thought shall perish’ [1 Maccabbees 2:62-63].” – Letter To Cornelius 54:3.
“Concerning which matters, since you have desired our advice, know that we do not depart from the traditions of the Gospel and of the apostles, but with constancy and firmness take counsel for our brethren and sisters, and maintain the discipline of the Church by all the ways of usefulness and safety, since the Lord speaks, saying, ‘And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, and they shall feed you with discipline’ [Jeremiah 3:15]. And again it is written; ‘Whoever despises discipline is miserable’ [Wisdom 3:11].” -Letter 61:1.
“And again, where the sacred Scripture speaks of the tortures which consecrate God’s martyrs, and sanctify them in the very trial of suffering: ‘And if they have suffered torments in the sight of men, yet is their hope full of immortality; and having been a little chastised, they shall be greatly rewarded: for God proved them, and found them worthy of Himself. As gold in the furnace has He tried them, and received them as a sacrifice of a burnt-offering, and in due time regard shall be had unto them. The righteous shall shine, and shall run to and fro like sparks among the stubble. They shall judge the nations, and have dominion over the people; and their Lord shall reign forever’ [Wisdom 3:4-8].” -Letter 80:2.
“Moreover, if the Christian know and keep fast under what condition and what law he has believed, he will be aware that he must suffer more than others in the world, since he must struggle more with the attacks of the devil. Holy Scripture teaches and forewarns, saying, ‘My son, when you come to the service of God, stand in righteousness and fear, and prepare your soul for temptation.’ And again: ‘In pain endure, and in your humility have patience; for gold and silver is tried in the fire, but acceptable men in the furnace of humiliation’ [Sirach 2:5].” -Treatise 7: On Morality 9.
“The remedies for propitiating God are given in the words of God Himself; the divine instructions have taught what sinners ought to do, that by works of righteousness God is satisfied, that with the deserts of mercy sins are cleansed. And in Solomon we read, ‘Shut up alms in the heart of the poor, and these shall intercede for you from all evil’ [Sirach 22:12]. And again: ‘Whoever stops his ears that he may not hear the weak, he also shall call upon God, and there will be none to hear him’ [Proverbs 21:13].” -Treatise 8: On Works & Alms 5.
“In Deuteronomy; ‘The Lord your God proves you, that He may know if you love the Lord. your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength [Deuteronomy 13:3].” And again, Solomon: ‘The furnace proves the potter’s vessel, and righteous men the trial of tribulation’ [Sirach 27:5]. Paul also testifies similar things, and speaks, saying: ‘We glory in the hope of the glory of God. And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also;’ [Romans 5:2-5].” -Treatise 11: Exhortation to Martyrdom, Chapter 9.
“In the Epistle of Paul to the Romans: ‘The sufferings of this present time are not worthy of comparison with the glory that is to come after, which shall be revealed in us.’ Of this same thing in the Maccabees: ‘O Lord, who hast the holy knowledge, it is manifest that while I might be delivered from death, I am suffering most cruel pains of body, being beaten with whips; yet in spirit I suffer these things willingly, because of the fear of your own self.’” -Treatise 12: Against the Jews, Book 3, Chapter 17.
“Be rather such a father to your children as was Tobias. Give useful and saving precepts to your pledges, such as he gave to his son; command your children what he also commanded his son, saying: ‘And now, my son, I command you, serve God in truth, and do before Him that which pleases Him; and command your sons, that they exercise righteousness and alms, and be mindful of God, and bless His name always’ [Tobit 14:10-11].” -Treatise 8: On Works & Alms 20.
“In Genesis: ‘And God, tempted Abraham, and said to him, Take your only son whom you love, Isaac, and go into the high land, and offer him there as a burnt-offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you.’ . . . Of this same thing in the Maccabees: ‘Was not Abraham found faithful in temptation, and it was accounted unto him for righteousness.’” -Treatise 12: Against the Jews, Book 3, Chapter 15.
“Thus Job, after the loss of his wealth, after the death of his children, grievously afflicted, moreover, with sores and worms, was not overcome, but proved; since in his very struggles and anguish, showing forth the patience of a religious mind, he says, ‘Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, naked also I shall go under the earth: the Lord gave, the Lord has taken away; as it seemed fit to the Lord, so it has been done. Blessed be the name of the Lord.’ And when his wife also urged him, in his impatience at the acuteness of his pain, to speak something against God with a complaining and envious voice, he answered and said, ‘You speak as one of the foolish women. If we have received good from the hand of the Lord, why shall we not suffer evil? In all these things which befell him, Job sinned not with his lips in the sight of the Lord’ [Job 1:8].”. . . And Tobias, after his excellent works, after the many and glorious illustrations of his merciful spirit, having suffered the loss of his sight, fearing and blessing God in his adversity, by his very bodily affliction increased in praise; and even him also his wife tried to pervert, saying, ‘Where are your righteousnesses? Behold what you suffer’ [Tobit 2:14]. But he, steadfast and firm in respect of the fear of God, and armed by the faith of his religion to all endurance of suffering, yielded not to the temptation of his weak wife in his trouble, but rather deserved better from God by his greater patience; and afterwards Raphael the angel praises him, saying, ‘It is honourable to show forth and to confess the works of God. For when you prayed, and Sara your daughter-in-law, I did offer the remembrance of your prayer in the presence of the glory of God. . . ’ [Tobit 12:11-15].” -Treatise 7: On Morality 10
Methodius of Olympus (martyred 311 A.D.)
“If, however, any one should venture to find fault with our argument as destitute of Scripture proof, we will bring forward the writings of the prophets, and more fully demonstrate the truth of the statements already made. . . and from the times of the prophets the contracting of marriage with several wives has been done away with; for we read, ‘Go not after your lusts, but refrain yourself from your appetites’ [Sirach 18:30] for ‘wine and women will make men of understanding to fall away’; [Sirach 19:2] and in another place, ‘Let your fountain be blessed; and rejoice with the wife of your youth,’ [Proverbs 5:18] manifestly forbidding a plurality of wives. And Jeremiah clearly gives the name of ‘fed horses’ [Jeremiah 5:8] to those who lust after other women; and we read, ‘The multiplying brood of the ungodly shall not thrive, nor take deep rooting from bastard slips, nor lay any fast foundation’ [Wisdom 4:3].” -Methodius of Olympus, Banquet of the Ten Virgins; Discourse I, Chapter 3
“And that you may not take refuge behind a safe wall, bringing forward the Scripture which says, ‘As for the children of the adulterers, they shall not come to their perfection,’ [Wisdom 3:16] he will answer you easily, that we often see those who are unlawfully begotten coming to perfection like ripe fruit.” -Methodius of Olympus, Banquet of the Ten Virgins; Discourse II, Chapter 3
Aphrahat the Sage (280-345 A.D.)
“For Daniel said:— ‘I was considering the ten horns that were upon the head of the beast. For the ten horns were ten kings’ (Daniel 7:8, 24) who arose at that time until Antiochus. And he said:— ‘A little horn arose from between those ten and three fell before it’ (Daniel 7:8). For when Antiochus arose in the kingdom, he humbled three kings, and he exalted himself against the saints of the Most High and against Jerusalem. And he defiled the sanctuary (2 Maccabbees 6:2-4). And he caused the sacrifice and the offerings to cease for a week and half a week, namely, for ten and a-half years. And he brought in fornicators into the house of the Lord, and he caused the observances of the Law to cease (2 Maccabbees 5:26). And he slew righteous men and gave them to the birds of heaven and to the beasts of the earth. For in his days was fulfilled the word that David spoke: — ‘O God, the Gentiles have come into your inheritance, and have defiled Your holy temple. They have made Jerusalem desolate. They have given the dead bodies of Your servants as food to the birds of heaven, and the flesh of Your righteous ones to the beasts of the earth. They have poured out their blood like water round about Jerusalem, and there is none to bury them.’ For this was accomplished at that time, when the venerable and aged Eleazar was slain, and the sons of the blessed Samuna, seven in number, and when Judas (Maccabeus) and his brethren were struggling on behalf of their people, when they were dwelling in hiding-places (2 Maccabbees 5:27). At that time the horn made war with the saints, (Daniel 7:21) and their power prevailed. And the wicked Antiochus spoke words against the Most High, and changed the times and the seasons (Daniel 7:25). And he made to cease the covenant of Abraham, and abolished the Sabbath of rest (2 Maccabbees 6:10-11). For he commanded the Jews that they should not circumcise. Therefore, (the Prophet) said concerning him —‘He shall think to change the times and the seasons and the laws, and they were given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time’ (Daniel 7:25). Now the time and half a time is the week and a half, which is ten years and a half. Again he said:— ‘The judgment was set and they took away his authority from him, to injure and destroy him until the end of the kingdom’ (Daniel 7:26). For the judgment came upon Antiochus, a judgment from heaven; (2 Maccabbees 9:5-12) and he became sick with a grievous and evil sickness, and on account of the smell of him as he rotted, no man could approach him, for worms were crawling and falling from him and eating his flesh because he oppressed the worm Jacob (Isaiah 41:14).” -Demonstrations 5:20
Athanasius of Alexandria (295-373 A.D.)
“And this difference divine Scripture recognizes, saying concerning the creatures, ‘The earth is full of Your creation,’ and ‘the creation itself groans together and travails together;’ and in the Apocalypse it says, ‘And the third part of the creatures in the sea died which had life;’ as also Paul says, ‘Every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it be received with thanksgiving;’ and in the book of Wisdom it is written, ‘Having ordained man through Your wisdom, that he should have dominion over the creatures which You have made’ [Wisdom 9:2.]” -Four Discourses Against the Arians, 2:45
Hilary of Poitiers (310-367 A.D.)
“Since, therefore, the words of the apostle, one God the Father, from whom are all things, and one Jesus Christ, our Lord, through whom are all things, form an accurate and complete confession concerning God, let us see what Moses has to say of the beginning of the world. His words are, ‘And God said, let there be a firmament.’ If you deny it, you must tell us through whom it was that God’s work in Creation was done, or else point for your explanation to an obedience in things yet uncreated, which, when God said, ‘Let there be a firmament,’ impelled the firmament to establish itself. Such suggestions are inconsistent with the clear sense of Scripture. ‘For all things,’ as the prophet says, ‘were made out of nothing’ [2 Maccabees 7:28]; it was no transformation of existing things, but the creation into a perfect form of the non-existent.” -Hilary of Poitiers, On the Trinity, Book 4, 16.
Council of Rome (382 A.D.)
“Now indeed we must treat of the divine scriptures, what the universal Catholic Church accepts and what she ought to shun. The order of the Old Testament begins here: Genesis, one book; Exodus, one book; Leviticus, one book; Numbers, one book; Deuteronomy, one book; Joshua [Son of] Nave, one book; Judges, one book; Ruth, one book; Kings, four books [that is, 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings]; Paralipomenon [Chronicles], two books; Psalms, one book; Solomon, three books: Proverbs, one book, Ecclesiastes, one book, [and] Canticle of Canticles [Song of Songs], one book; likewise Wisdom, one book; Ecclesiasticus [Sirach], one book . . . . Likewise the order of the historical [books]: Job, one book; Tobit, one book; Esdras, two books [Ezra and Nehemiah]; Esther, one book; Judith, one book; Maccabees, two books” (Decree of Pope Damasus [A.D. 382]).
The Council of Hippo (393 A.D.)
“[It has been decided] that besides the canonical scriptures nothing be read in church under the name of divine Scripture. But the canonical scriptures are as follows: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua the Son of Nun, Judges, Ruth, the Kings, four books, the Chronicles, two books, Job, the Psalter, the five books of Solomon [Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Wisdom, and a portion of the Psalms], the twelve books of the prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Ezekiel, Tobit, Judith, Esther, Ezra, two books, Maccabees, two books . . .” (Canon 36 [A.D. 393]).
Council of Carthage III (397 A.D.)
“[It has been decided] that nothing except the canonical scriptures should be read in the Church under the name of the divine scriptures. But the canonical scriptures are: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, four books of Kings, Paralipomenon, two books, Job, the Psalter of David, five books of Solomon, twelve books of the prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Ezekiel, Tobit, Judith, Esther, two books of Esdras, two books of the Maccabees” (Canon 47 [A.D. 397]).
Jerome of Stridon (347-420 A.D.)
“What sin have I committed if I follow the judgment of the churches? But he who brings charges against me for relating [in my preface to the book of Daniel] the objections that the Hebrews are wont to raise against the story of Susannah [Dan. 13], the Song of the Three Children [Dan. 3:29–68, RSV-CE], and the story of Bel and the Dragon [Dan. 14], which are not found in the Hebrew volume, proves that he is just a foolish sycophant” (Against Rufinius 11:33 [A.D. 401]).
Augustine of Hippo (354-430 A.D.)
“The whole canon of the scriptures, however, in which we say that consideration is to be applied, is contained in these books: the five of Moses . . . and one book of Joshua [Son of] Nave, one of Judges; one little book which is called Ruth . . . then the four of Kingdoms, and the two of Paralipomenon . . . . [T]here are also others too, of a different order . . . such as Job and Tobit and Esther and Judith and the two books of Maccabees, and the two of Esdras . . . . Then there are the prophets, in which there is one book of the Psalms of David, and three of Solomon. . . . But as to those two books, one of which is entitled Wisdom and the other of which is entitled Ecclesiasticus and which are called ‘of Solomon’ because of a certain similarity to his books, it is held most certainly that they were written by Jesus Sirach. They must, however, be accounted among the prophetic books, because of the authority which is deservedly accredited to them” (Christian Instruction 2:8:13 [A.D. 397]).
“We read in the books of the Maccabees [2 Macc. 12:43] that sacrifice was offered for the dead. But even if it were found nowhere in the Old Testament writings, the authority of the Catholic Church which is clear on this point is of no small weight, where in the prayers of the priest poured forth to the Lord God at his altar the commendation of the dead has its place” (The Care to be Had for the Dead 1:3 [A.D. 421]).
The Apostolic Constitutions (375-380 A.D.)
“Now women also prophesied. Of old, Miriam the sister of Moses and Aaron [Ex. 15:20], and after her, Deborah [Judges. 4:4], and after these Huldah [2 Kgs. 22:14] and Judith [Judith 8], the former under Josiah and the latter under Darius” (Apostolic Constitutions 8:2 [A.D. 400]).
Pope Innocent I (reign. 401-417 A.D.)
“A brief addition shows what books really are received in the canon. These are the things of which you desired to be informed verbally: of Moses, five books, that is, of Genesis, of Exodus, of Leviticus, of Numbers, of Deuteronomy, and Joshua, of Judges, one book, of Kings, four books, and also Ruth, of the prophets, sixteen books, of Solomon, five books, the Psalms. Likewise of the histories, Job, one book, of Tobit, one book, Esther, one, Judith, one, of the Maccabees, two, of Esdras, two, Paralipomenon, two books” (Letters 7 [A.D. 408]).
Non-Catholic Quotes:
J. N. D. Kelly (1909-1997), a Protestant & Early Church historian:
“It should be observed that the Old Testament thus admitted as authoritative in the Church was somewhat bulkier and more comprehensive [than the Protestant Bible]. . . . It always included, though with varying degrees of recognition, the so-called apocrypha or deuterocanonical books” –Early Christian Doctrines (5th Rev. Ed.), pg. 53
“the deuterocanonical writings ranked as Scripture in the fullest sense.” –Early Christian Doctrines (5th Rev. Ed.)
Bruce M. Metzger
”Nowhere in the New Testament is there a direct quotation from the canonical books of Joshua, Judges, Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Solomon, Obadiah, Zephaniah, and Nahum; and the New Testament allusions to them are few in number.” –An Introduction to the Apocrypha Revised ed.
Otto Kaiser
“the deuterocanonical books “presuppose the validity of the Law and the Prophets and also utilize the Ketubim, or ‘Writings’ collection, which was, at the time, still in the process of formation and not yet closed.” –The Old Testament Apocrypha: An Introduction
J.B. Lightfoot
“All which follow in this chapter shows a remarkable correspondence with Wisdom 13-15, a passage which St. Paul must have had in his mind.” –J.B. Lightfoot, Notes on the Epistles of St. Paul (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1995), 252.