Canonization

The process of the canonization of the Bible has recently been intriguing to me. I have especially found the canonization of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) interesting due to a class that I am currently taking. The following quote compares the canon that Protestant Christians landed upon to the canon within Jusaism. The picture that follows the quote provides a visual representation of the differences. The subject is multi-layered and confusing, but well worth a close look.

“Another arrangement of the biblical books, apparently current in the ancient Jewish community of Alexandria, is preserved in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the [Hebrew] Bible. In this three-part division, the historical books are grouped together (Genesis through Kings with Ruth added after Judges, followed by Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther); the poetic books follow (Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs); and the prophetic books (here including Daniel) conclude the canon. This generic grouping fails to keep the Torah in a class by itself and identifies prophecy as the climax of the Bible. These two features may account for the acceptance of this division in the Christian world, since Christianity abrogated Torah law and saw its own gospel as the fulfillment of Old Testament messianic prophecies.”

Baruch J. Schwartz, “Bible,” in R.J. Z. Werblowksy and G. Wigoder (eds.), The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion (New York: Oxford University Press, 1997), p. 121.