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THE THIRD BOOK OF ESDRAS.
THE FOURTH BOOK OF ESDRAS.
THE BOOK OF TOBIAS.

THE BOOK OF JUDITH.

THE REST OF THE BOOKS OF ESTHER.

THE BOOK OF WISDOM.

JESUS THE SON OF SIRACH.

BARUCH THE PROPHET.

THE SONG OF THE THREE CHILDREN.
THE STORY OF SUSANNA.

OF BEL AND THE DRAGON.

THE PRAYER OF MANASSES.

THE FIRST BOOK OF MACCABEES.
THE SECOND BOOK OF MACCABEES.

ALL THE BOOKS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT, AS THEY ARE
COMMONLY RECEIVED, WE DO RECEIVE AND ACCOUNT

THEM CANONICAL.

After Israel's return from Bablylon, Ezra, with other prophets and holy men, being met in the Great Council (of which in the foregoing part of this article) after they had gathered together the several books that were written

That it was Esdras or Ezra, that gathered together the books of the Old Testament after the captivity had scattered them about, Chrysostom expressly, Καὶ ὁρᾶτε ἄνωθεν ἵνα μάθητε τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν ἄφατον φιλανθρωπίαν· Ἐνέπνευσε τῷ μακαρίῳ Μωυσεῖ, τὰς πλάκας ἐκόλαψε, κατέσχων αὐτὸν τεσσαράκοντα ἡμέρας ἐπὶ τοῦ ὅρους Καὶ πάλιν τοσάυτας ἑτέρας ὥστε δοῦναι τὸν νόμον· μετὰ δὲ ταυτα προφήτας ἔπεμψε μυρία παθόντας δεινὰ. Ἐπῆλθε πόλεμος. ̓Ανεῖλον πάντας, κατέκοψαν, ένεπρήσθησαν αι βιβλοι. Ετέρῳ πάλιν ἀνδρὶ θαυμαστῷ ἐνέπνευσεν ὥστε ἀντὰς ἐκθεθαι, τῷ Εσδρα λέγω, ἀπὸ λειψάνων συντεθῆναι ἐπόιησε. - Chrysost. in Epist. ad Heb. Hom. 8. tom. iv. p. 478. Ed. Savil. And before him Tertullian, Quemadmodum et Hierosolymis Babyloniâ expugnatione deletis omne instrumentum Judaicæ literaturæ per Esdram constat restauratum. Tertul. de Cult. Famin. lib. i. p. 151. B. Ed. Par. 1664. Vide Iren. lib. i. c. 25. Aug. de Mirabil. S. Script. lib. ii. c. 33.

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כי לאהיו הכר טפרים מחברים יחד והם חברים ועשו מהסג חלקים : So Elias Levita

D'aını O'ra) 7, i. e. For the four-and-twenty books were not bound together, but they, (viz. Ezra, and the other that were of the Great Synagogue), bound them together, and made of them three parts, the Law, and the Prophets, and the Hagiographa.'—Elias Levita in Praf. ad 1. Masoreth. This division is frequently to be met withal in the Talmud, as

Prophets, and the Hagiographa, bound up together?'—Bava Bathra, f. 13. 2.

i. e. They brought before us the Law, the תורה נביאים וכתובים מדובקים כאחד

.ועטיק בעשרים וארבעה טפרין דאוריתא ופתגמי נבואה וכתיבי : And in the Targum too

'And he exercised himself in the books of the Law, the Words of Prophecy, and Hagiographa.'-Cant. 5. 10. Edit. Ven.

תנו רבבן טדרץ של נביאים יהושע שופטים שמואל ומלכים ירמיה ויחזקל ישעיה ושנים עשר

i. e. Our Rabbins have taught us that the order of the Prophets is Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Isaiah, and the twelve lesser

טדרן של כתובים רות טפר תהלים איוב משלי קהלת שיר השירים איכה prophets. But ,i. e. The order of the Hagiographa דניאל מגילת אסתר עזרא דברי הימים

Ruth, the Book of Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Canticles, Lamentations, Daniel, the Book of Esther, Ezra, the Words of Days, or the Chronicles.'-Bava Bathra, cap. 1. f. 14,

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by the inspiration of God, seeing the spirit of prophecy was now to cease, and so no more books afterwards to be added to the canon of the Scriptures; they determined the number of them, dividing them into three general parts, Moses, the Prophets, and the Hagiographa,' or Holy Writings; which division our Saviour himself doth afterwards take notice of, saying to his disciples, that " All things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms," Luke, xxiv. 44. where the psalms being part of the holy writings are put for them all. These three general parts were afterwards subdivided into particular books. The law of Moses into five books, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. The Prophets, (as we find in the Talmud) were divided into eight parts, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Isaiah, and the twelve lesser Prophets, which all made up but one part. The Holy Writings, or Hagiographa,' they divided into eleven parts, Ruth, the Book of Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Canticles, Lamentations, Daniel, Esther, Ezra, and Chronicles. And so in all they reckoned four-andtwenty books. But afterwards Ruth being added to Judges, and the Lamentations of Jeremiah to the prophecy of Jeremiah their writer, the number was brought back to two-andtwenty, the exact number of the Hebrew letters. Thus

y That the twenty-four books were reduced to twenty-two, appears from Josephus himself, who tells us, Οὐ μυριάδες βιβλίων εισι παρ' ἡμῖν ἀσυμφώνων καὶ μαχομένων, δύο δὲ μόνα πρὸς τοῖς εἴκοσι βιβλία τοῦ παντῶς ἔχοντα χρόνου τὴν ἀναγραφὴν, τὰ δικάιως πεπιστευμένα· Καὶ τούτων πέντε μὲν ἐστι Μωϋσέως, ἁ τους γενομένους περιέχει καὶ τὴν ἀπ ̓ ἀνθρωπογονίας παράδωσιν, μέχρι τῆς ἀυτοῦ τελευτῆς· ὅντος ὁ χρόνος ἀπολείπει τρισχιλίων ὁλίγῳ ἐτῶν· ἀπὸ δὲ τῆς Μωϋσέως τελευτῆς μέχρι τῆς τοῦ ̓Αρταξέρξου τοῦ μετὰ Ξέρξην Περσῶν βασιλέως ἀρχῆς οι μετὰ Μωϋσήν προφήται τὰ κατ' αυτοῦς πραχθέντα συνέγραψαν, ἐν τρισὶ καὶ δέκα βιβλίοις· ὡς δὲ λοιποὶ τέσσαρες ὕμνους εις τὸν Θεὸν καὶ τοῖς ἀνθρωποῖς ὑποθήκας τοῦ βίου περιέχουσιν. -Joseph. contra Apion. lib. i. p. 1036. Ed. Gen. 1611. And Origenes, Oux àyvotéov sïvai ràs évdiaOńnovç Βίβλους, ὡς Εβραίοι παραδιδόασιν δύο καί ἔικοσιν, ὅσος ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῶν παρ' ἀυτοῖς στοιχείων Tiv. Apud Euseb. Hist. Eccl. lib. vi. cap. 25. And that they numbered these two-and-twenty, by putting Ruth to Judges, and the Lamentations to Jeremiah, appears from Hilary. Et ea causa est ut in viginti duos libros lex Testamenti Veteris deputetur, ut cum literarum numero convenirent. Qui ita secundùm traditiones veterum deputantur, ut Mosi sint libri quinque, Jesu Nave sextus, Judicum et Ruth septimus: primus et secundus Regnorum in octavum, tertius et quartus in nonum, Paralipomenon duo in decimum sint: Sermones Dierum est Esdræ in undecimum, liber Psalmorum in duodecimum, Salomonis Proverbia, Ecclesiastes, Canticum

reckoned, 1. Genesis. 2. Exodus. 3. Leviticus. 4. Numbers. 5. Deuteronomy. 6. Joshua. 7. Judges and Ruth. 8. The first and second Book of Samuel. 9. The first and second Book of Kings. 10. The first and second Book of Chronicles. 11. The first and second Book of Esdras. 12. The Book of Esther. 13. The Book of Job. 14. The Psalms. 15. The Proverbs. 16. Ecclesiastes. 17. The Song of Solomon. 18. Isaiah. 19. Jeremiah and Lamentations. 20. Ezekiel. 21. Daniel. 22. The twelve lesser Prophets,

Now, besides these here mentioned, there are other writings that pretend to the same authority, and are received by some into the canon of the Scriptures as well as they. Such are, 1. The third and fourth Book of Esdras. 2. The Book of Tobias. 3. The Book of Judith. 4. The rest of the Books of Esther, viz. whatsoever is added to the ten chapters of Esther, commonly received both by Jews and Christians as a continuation of the history therein contained. 5. The Book of Wisdom, ascribed, indeed, to Solomon by some, but by others to Philo2 the Jew, that lived in the

Canticorum in tertium decimum, quartum decimum, et quintum decimum, duodecim autem Prophetæ in sextum decimum. Esaias deinde, et Hieremias cum Lamentatione et Epistola, (al. cum Lamentationibus), sed et Daniel, et Ezechiel, et Job, et Hester, viginti et duûm librorum numerum consument.-Hilar. in Prolog. in Psalm. 638. Ed. Par. 1652. And hence it is that Origen leaves these two books out in his enumeration of the books of the Old Testament, v. 3. because comprehended under the other two Judges and Jeremiah, (apud Euseb. Hist. Eccles. lib. vi. cap. 25.) and so doth Melito leave out Lamentations upon that account, (ibid. lib. iv. cap. 26.)

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Tempore apostolorum surrexit quidam sapientissimus, Athenis nutritus, et in lingua Græca et Chaldaica peritissimus, vocatus Philon, qui multa dicta alia Salomonis reperit, per diversa loca dispersa, et in lingua Græca scripta, prout diversi sapientes audierant à Salomone, et in suis bibliothecis reposuerant; quæ quidem dicta ipse Philo sub uno volumine omnia redegit et congregavit, et redolenti eloquentiâ Græcâ conscripsit, quem librum Sapientiam Salomonis appellavit.-Jacob. de Valentia in præf. ad Cant. Cant. Licèt Philo disertissimus Judæorum hunc librum Græcè scripserit ut communiter dicunt doctores et historiographi, tamen ipsum compilavit ex sententiis.— Salomonis Lyran. in Sapient. cap. 1. And so Bonaventura: Prima causa efficiens per modum complicationis fuit Philo sapientissimus Judæorum qui temporibus apostolorum fuit. Bonavent. in L. Sap. Indeed Jerome himself saith of his book, Quin et ipse stylus Græcam eloquentiam redolet, et nonnulli scriptorum veterum hunc esse Judæi Philonis affirmant. Hieron. in Lib. Salom. Of this book,

apostles' times. 6. The Book of Jesus, the son of Sirach, Ecclesiasticus. 7. Baruch the prophet. 8. The Four A dditions to the Prophecy of Daniel:-1. The Song of the Three Children. 2. The Story of Susanna. 3. Of Bel and the Dragon. 4. The Prayers of Manasseh or Azarias. Lastly; The first and second Book of Maccabees. Now these books, though they do contain many excellent things in them, and, therefore, may be read for the instruction of people in their duty, and the stirring of them up to piety by the example of persons and histories therein recorded, yet they are not of the same authority with the other before-mentioned, and so no certain and sure foundation to ground any truth upon. So that whatsoever doctrine hath no more divine authority to establish it than what it picks out of any of these books, is not looked upon as a Scripture or divine truth. And though we be bound to believe whatsoever the Scripture saith, whether we be able to comprehend it by reason or no, yet towards the belief of any thing that is revealed in any of these books, we are not bound to go any further, or rather, we are bound to go no further than reason guides us.

But though these books last mentioned be not of the same authority with the other, yet there be some that be, viz. certain books written since the Son of God's becoming Man, and they are, I. The History of the Doctrine, Life, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension of the Son of God when made Flesh; written by four several persons, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. II. The History of the Acts of the Apostles; written by St. Luke. III. Several Epistles written, (1.) by St. Paul, 14; viz. these following: 1. To the Romans, one; 2. To the Corinthians, two; 3. To the Galatians, one; 4. To the Ephesians, one; 5. To the Philippians, one; 6. To the Colossians, one; 7. To the Thessalonians, two; 8. To Timothy, two; 9. To Titus, one; 10. To Philemon, one; 11. To the Hebrews, one. (2.) By St. James, one. (3.) By St. Peter, two. (4.) By St. Jolin, three. (5.) By St. Jude, one. All which epistles are called Rupertus says, Hæc scriptura neque de canone est, neque de canonica Scriptura sumpta est sententia hæc. Quod ergo illuc dictum est majori facilitate parvi penditur quam suscipitur.-Rupert. in Gen. lib. iii. cap. 34.

General or Catholic Epistles, because not written to particular churches or persons, as St. Paul's are, but to the Catholic Church, or to the professors of Christianity in general. IV. The Revelations of St. John. And all these being written by the same Spirit that the books of the Old Testament before named were, we account them to have the same authority that they have. And though some would obtrude Hermes's Pastor, and Clemens's Epistle to the Corinthians, upon us, as part of the New Testament, as they do the other before-mentioned for part of the Old; yet what we said of them, we say of these, that though they have good instructions in them, and so may be read, yet they have not the stamp of divine authority upon them, and, therefore, may not be received as parts of the Holy Scriptures. Neither, indeed, have these additions to the New so many abettors as the apocryphal additions to the Old have. Neither are they mentioned in these articles, and therefore I need take no notice of them. But the great and only question here is, about the number of the books of the Old Testament, viz. whether the apocryphal books, as the first and second Book of Esdras, the Book of Tobias, and the rest, be of the same authority with these two-and-twenty that Ezra gathered as canonical Scripture. And it is here determined in the negative that they are not; that though they may be read for the instruction of the people, that they cannot be applied for the confirmation of any doctrine; which appears both from Scripture, reason, and fathers.

1. Confirmation from SCRIPTURE. - First; From the Scripture, even from such places wherein the Most High God is pleased to acquaint us with what kind of persons he made use of as his amanuenses or scribes, to write down his will and pleasure, even such as himself calls prophets; it was by the "prophets that God at sundry times and in divers manners spoke in time past to the fathers," Heb. i. 1. Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation, for the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man," 2 Pet. i. 20, 21. and the apostle St. Paul tells the Ephesians," they were built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets," Ephes. ii. 20.

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