Inspired Bible :66 Book (protestant), 73 Books (catholic), or More (Orthodox traditions)?
1) Direct Answer
The inspired canon is the 66 books—Genesis to Revelation. Nothing to add and nothing to take away.
2) Scriptural Explanation
- The Bible says all Scripture is God-breathed and sufficient to thoroughly furnish the believer (2 Timothy 3:16–17). That speaks of a complete body of writings that fully equips.
- Jesus identified the Old Testament as “the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms” (Luke 24:44). He also marked its bounds “from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zacharias” (Luke 11:51), which covers the full Hebrew canon.
- The oracles of God were committed to the Jews (Romans 3:2). Jesus affirmed their Scriptures; He never placed other writings on equal footing.
- God then spoke in the Son and through those He sent (Hebrews 1:1–2; John 14:26; John 16:13). The New Testament came through apostles and their close associates, confirmed by God (Hebrews 2:3–4).
- We are told the faith was once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 3). And the Word warns not to add to or take from what God has given (Deuteronomy 4:2; Proverbs 30:5–6; Revelation 22:18–19).
3) Simple Clarifying Logic
- Jesus endorsed the recognized Scriptures of Israel; the apostles, led by the Holy Spirit, gave the New Testament. That forms a complete, Spirit-sealed witness.
- The extra books can be historical or moral in places, but they were not received by Jesus and the apostles as Scripture, nor do they carry the “It is written” authority in the New Testament.
- Since God warns against adding to His Word, we hold to the closed canon He vindicated: the 66 books.
Short reinforcement
You see, God keeps His Word pure. The Bible is complete—one Book, from Genesis to Revelation, perfectly in step, without the need of additions.
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
Christ is revealed in His own Word
65-0822M §38
Now, notice this Bible. Some of them said, "Oh, well, it's done this, it's done that." But let me tell you something... Let's go into the history of the Bible just a minute and see where it come from. It was written by forty different writers. Forty men wrote the Bible over a space of sixteen hundred years apart and at different times, predicting the most important events that ever happened in world's history, and many times hundreds of years before it happened. And there is not one error in the entire sixty-six bo...
Church Ages, part 1: Revelation Chapter 1
60-1204M §94
But take the Foxe's "Book of the Martyrs." There's a good authentic... Foxe's "Book of Martyrs." How many ever read it? Sure. The ... Pemberman's "Early Ages," or Hislop's "Two Babylons," or some great authentic, or... The most greatest we have is the Nicene Council---the Pre-Nicene Council, and the Nicene Council. And you find out there that was never mentioned, no persons. Take the Holy Scriptures, and see if there ever was anybody in the Bible ever baptized using those titles named Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. I...
Conferences
63-0608 §50
...Christ. But then when this man was lost... Today, when man is showed, by the Word, that he shouldn't do these things, sometimes he's loyal to a church. If there's any of my Catholic friends here this morning, pardon this just a moment. My people are all Catholic too, you know, Roman Catholic. Now notice. When this priest come to me, about many great healings, and he said, "Your background is Catholic. Why is it you're not Catholic?" I said, "I am catholic." And he said, "Oh, I can't believe that." I said, "Don't yo...
The Token
64-0308 §6
God is going to judge the world some day. If I asked the Catholic people, who will He judge, what will He judge the world by, they'd say the church. What church? The Catholic church. Which Catholic church? There's several of them. The Methodists will say by the Methodist. The Baptist then is out of it. Then if you judge it by the Baptist church, all the rest of them's out. The Pentecost will say by the Pentecost; then the rest of them's out, see. It would be too (confusion), too much confusion, too confusing to the...
The Comforter
61-1001E §72
Recently I was talking to a priest. He said, "Why, you just are a Bible teacher." Said, "You just stay with the Bible." Said, "That's the history of the Catholic church." I said, "Then today you claim to be greater?" He said, "Sure, we change what we wish, you see, because it's done by the church, authority given to the church." I said, "Something happened, because in the early days you had signs and wonders and miracles, that the Holy Spirit was with you." The early Catholic church spoke in tongues. The early Cath...