How did the 27 books of the New Testament become canon?

The New Testament canon is the agreed-upon collection of 27 books that modern Christians regard as divinely inspired scripture. Initially, lists of books considered suitable for church liturgies and doctrine differed among geographically separated ancient churches. Over time, through debate and agreement by religious authorities, a widespread consensus emerged around these specific 27 texts.

What we know

• The New Testament canon consists of 27 books, including the Gospels, Acts, apostolic letters, and Revelation. [2, 3]
• Initially, the lists of books deemed suitable for church reading and doctrine differed among geographically separated ancient communities. [2]
• Some early Christian writings, known as the New Testament apocrypha, were cited as scripture by early Christians before a widespread consensus limited the canon. [4]
• Since the fifth century, a widespread consensus has emerged limiting the official New Testament to the 27 modern canonical books. [4]

Where to go next

• a case in pointWhat writings make up the New Testament apocrypha?
• compared withHow did the Old Testament canon develop?
• how it workedWhat does the word canon mean in a biblical context?
• whoWhich church historian documented early differences in book lists?
• the bigger pictureWhat is a biblical canon?
• an unexpected connectionHow do Old Testament translations relate to New Testament texts?New Testament authors drew their scriptural quotations directly from the Greek Septuagint version of the Old Testament.

Sources

• [1]the development of the New Testament canon (Wikidata Q1290800) · CC0 1.0
• [2]Development of the New Testament canon · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [3]Biblical canon · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [4]New Testament apocrypha · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [5]Development of the Old Testament canon · CC BY-SA 4.0