Structure of the Old Testament Canon

Although it was not humanly planned this way, the order in which the canonical books of the Old Testament have come down to us, fit into a very clear and memorable structure. This structure consists of an Apostolic* stream at the start of the Old Testament, a Prophetic stream at the end of the Old Testament both joined by a Wisdom stream at the heart of the Old Testament. The Apostolic and Prophetic Streams further breakdown into a section representing the Major Apostle and Prophets, plus a section representing the Minor Apostles and Prophets. In both streams the sections representing the Minor Apostles and Prophets break into sub-sections representing the pre-exilic period and the post-exilic period. When represented graphically as below the structure can be clearly seen.

* Note Apostles are understood to be those sent by God who primarily bring structural and legal order to His people, Prophets primarily bring spiritual and religious order.

Conclusion: given …

• The New Testament revelation, that the Church is built on the foundation of the Apostles and the Prophets;
• The identification of Jesus both by his biographers and by himself with "Wisdom";

It is difficult not to see the evidence of the Holy Spirit not just in the authoring of the each OT book but also in their eventual inclusion and position in the overall Canon.