had a fleet of 3,000 galleys in its heyday.—Isa. 43:14.

The canal system being the means of communication between towns, business offices were set up along the riverbanks in the cities. From these the conducting of business was controlled and rates of exchange, and so forth, were regulated. The river Chebar may have been a part of a canal system in the area of the Euphrates with the Tigris. (Ezek. 1:1) The river Ahava mentioned at Ezra 8:21 may also have been a canal.

The remains of an aqueduct built by King Sennacherib of Assyria demonstrates the concern of rulers for a water supply for their cities. This canal was part of Sennacherib’s great irrigation project for conveying water from the northern mountains to Nineveh, a distance of thirty miles (48 kilometers). In one place it was elevated like a bridge to cross a small river, the valley of which was about 1,000 feet (305 meters) wide.

CANANAEAN

(Ca·na·naeʹan) [jealous one, zealot].

A designation distinguishing the apostle Simon from the apostle Simon Peter. (Matt. 10:4; Mark 3:18) The term “Cananaean” is thought to be of Aramaic origin and apparently corresponds to the Greek word ze·lo·tesʹ meaning “zealot; enthusiast.”—Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13.

CANDACE

(Can·daʹce) [perhaps, queen].

A queen of Ethiopia whose treasurer became a Christian. (Acts 8:27) Rather than being a specific personal name, “Candace,” like “Pharaoh” and “Caesar,” is considered to be a title. Ancient writers, including Strabo, Pliny the Elder and Eusebius, used this designation in referring to queens of Ethiopia. Pliny the Elder (c. 23-79 C.E.), in his Natural History, writes: “The edifices of the city [Meroe, capital of ancient Ethiopia] were few; a woman reigned there of the name of Candace, which name had been transmitted to these queens for many years.”

CANE

See CALAMUS, CANE.

CANNEH

(Canʹneh).

A place mentioned between Haran and Eden as among the traders of ancient Tyre. (Ezek. 27:23) Its association with Haran and Eden would seem to place it in northern Mesopotamia, along the middle course of the Euphrates River. Many authorities view the name as a contracted form of Calneh.

CANON

Canon (of the Bible) [Heb. qa·nehʹ, “reed”; Gr., ka·nonʹ, “reed, measuring rod, straightedge”].

Originally the reed served as a rule or measuring device. (Ezek. 40:3-8; 41:8; 42:16-19) The apostle Paul applied ka·nonʹ to the “boundary” of territory measured out as his assignment, and again to the “rule of conduct” by which Christians were to measure how they acted, the “routine” according to which they were to walk orderly. (2 Cor. 10:13-16; Gal. 6:16; compare Philippians 3:16.) The “Bible canon” came to denote the catalog of inspired books worthy of being used as a straightedge in measuring faith, doctrine and conduct.—See BIBLE.

The mere writing of a religious book, its preservation for hundreds of years, and its esteem by millions, do not mean it is of divine origin or canonical. It must bear credentials of Divine Authorship demonstrating that it was inspired by God. The apostle Peter states: “Prophecy was at no time brought by man’s will, but men spoke from God as they were borne along by holy spirit.” (2 Pet. 1:21) An examination of the Bible canon shows that its contents measure up to this criterion in every respect.

HEBREW SCRIPTURES

The Bible began with the writings of Moses, 1513 B.C.E. In these are preserved God’s commandments and precepts to Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and the regulations of the Law covenant. What is called the Pentateuch includes the five books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. Job, likely written also by Moses, fills in history after the death of Joseph (1657 B.C.E.) and before the birth of Moses (1593 B.C.E.), a time when there was “no one like [Job] in the earth.” (Job 1:8; 2:3) Moses, it is believed, also wrote Psalms 90 and 91.

That these writings of Moses were of divine origin, inspired of God, canonical and a safe guideline for pure worship, there can be no doubt, in the light of internal evidence. It was not through Moses’ initiative that he became the leader and commander of the Israelites; at first Moses drew back at the suggestion. (Ex. 3:10, 11; 4:10-14) Rather, God raised Moses up and invested in him such miraculous powers that even Pharaoh’s magic-practicing priests were compelled to acknowledge that what Moses did originated with God. (Ex. 4:1-9; 8:16-19) So it was not Moses’ personal ambition to be an orator and writer. Rather, in obedience to God’s command, and with the divine credentials of holy spirit, Moses was moved first to speak and then to write down part of the Bible canon.—Ex. 17:14.

Jehovah himself set the precedent for having laws and commandments written down. After speaking to Moses in Mount Sinai Jehovah “proceeded to give Moses two tablets of the Testimony, tablets of stone written on by God’s finger.” (Ex. 31:18) Later we read, “And Jehovah went on to say to Moses: ‘Write down for yourself these words.’” (Ex. 34:27) Jehovah, therefore, was the one who communicated with Moses and instructed him to write down and preserve the first five books of the Bible canon. No council of men made them canonical; from their inception they had divine approval.

“As soon as Moses had finished writing the words of this law in a book,” he commanded the Levites, saying: “Taking this book of the law, you must place it at the side of the ark of the covenant of Jehovah your God, and it must serve as a witness there against you.” (Deut. 31:9, 24-26) It is noteworthy that Israel acknowledged this record of God’s dealings and did not deny these facts as historical. Since the contents of the books in many instances were a discredit to the nation generally, the people might well have been expected to reject them if possible, but this never seems to have been an issue.

Like Moses, the priestly class were used by God both to preserve these written commandments and to teach them to the people. When the Ark was brought into Solomon’s temple (1027 B.C.E.), nearly five hundred years after Moses began writing the Pentateuch, the two stone tablets were still in the Ark (1 Ki. 8:9), and 385 years after that, when “the very book of the law” was found in the house of Jehovah during Josiah’s eighteenth year (642 B.C.E), the same high regard for it was still shown. (2 Ki. 22:3, 8-20) Similarly, there was “great rejoicing” when, after the return from Babylonian exile, Ezra read from the book of the law during an eight-day assembly.—Neh. 8:5-18.

Following Moses’ death, the writings of Joshua, Samuel, Gad and Nathan (Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 and 2 Samuel) were added. Kings David and Solomon also made contributions to the growing canon of Holy Writings. Then came the prophets from Jonah to Malachi, each contributing to the Bible canon, each endowed with miraculous prophetic ability from God, each in turn meeting the requirements of true prophets as outlined by Jehovah, namely, they spoke in the name of Jehovah, their prophecy came true, and they turned the people toward God. (Deut. 13:1-3; 18:20-22) When Hananiah and Jeremiah were tested on the last two points (both spoke in Jehovah’s name), only the words of Jeremiah came to pass. Thus Jeremiah proved to be Jehovah’s prophet.—Jer. 28:10-17.

Just as Jehovah inspired men to write, it logically follows that he would direct and watch over the