Journal: Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
Volume: JETS 68:4 (Dec 2025)
Article: Method In The Compilation Of The Old Testament Canon
Author: Gregory Goswell

JETS 68:4 (December 2025) p. 689

Method In The Compilation Of The Old Testament Canon

Gregory Goswell

Gregory Goswell is Honorary Research Fellow in Biblical Studies at Christ College Sydney, Australia. He can be contacted at [email protected].

Abstract: Several books are found in more than one position in the various Old Testament canonical arrangements, including Nahum, Ruth, and Chronicles. These are a test case for the possibility that their authors modified their texts with a view to ensuring that the books would occupy a set position in the canon. There is, however, no evidence of the presence of compilational features in the texts of Nahum and Ruth, nor can it be established that Chronicles was written with a specific canonical position in mind. The contours of canons were the result of the efforts of early readers, and authors had no involvement in this process.

Key words: canon, compilation, book order, Nahum, Ruth, Chronicles

A necessary starting point in discussing the order of the Old Testament books is to establish a methodological basis for analyzing their compilation. According to Casey Croy, “While the authors of compilational studies may advocate for a specific approach to these issues, there has been little interaction among these authors concerning the best methodological approach to these issues.”1 I take this evaluation of the status quaestionis of studies in biblical book order as an invitation to interact with Cory’s method and an opportunity to refine my own approach. A key aspect of the methodology adopted by Croy is his belief—and he is not alone in arguing for this—that some biblical authors had input into where their books should be placed in the sequence of books in the different historic canons. Those responsible for the final form of these books left indicators or prompts embedded in the text as to where they wished their works to be placed relative to other books. It is especially this claim that I desire to examine and challenge.

JETS 68:4 (December 2025) p. 690

I. Book Order And Reception History

My approach is to view the order of the biblical books as a paratextual phenomenon that is not to be put on the same level of authority as the text itself, for book order results from the activities of readers, and authors did not have a hand in this process. Canonical book order is a postauthorial feature of the biblical canon, albeit an unavoidable one when texts of different origin are later aggregated in a corpus, for the books must be put in some kind of order. Where a biblical book is placed relative to other books reflects the evaluations of ancient readers and also influences the...