Includes index

Part one: Introduction -- 1 Holy Scripture -- 2 The law and the prophets -- 3. The Greek Old Testament -- 4 The Old Testament becomes a new book -- 5 The Christian canon of the Old Testament: A. In the East -- 6 The Christian canon of the Old Testament: B. In the Latin West -- 7 Before and after the reformation -- Part three: New Testament -- 8 Writings of the New Era -- 9 Marcion -- 10 Valentinus and His school -- 11 The Catholic response - 12 The muratorian fragment -- 13 Irenaeus, Hippolytus, Novatian -- 14 Tertullian, Cyprian and others -- The Alexandrian fathers -- Eusebius of Caesarea -- Athanasius and after -- The West in the fourth century to Jerome -- Augustine to the end of the middle ages -- The New Testament Canon in the age of printing -- Part four: Conclusion -- Criteria of Canonicity -- A Canon within the Canon? -- Canon, criticism and interpretation