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Irenaeus of Lyon (c. 130 – 202) was one of the first supporters of the canonicity of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John: «The number of the Gospels cannot be more or less than what it is. For since there are four cardinal directions, the four winds, and since the Church is scattered all over the earth, and since the Gospel and the Spirit of life are the pillar and ground of the Church, the Church should have four pillars, spreading the fragrance of incorruptibility everywhere and reviving all men» (Against Heresies, 3.11.8). He criticized those who rejected the Gospel of John (the Alogi) or accepted only the Gospel of Luke (the Marcionites), as well as those who accepted or composed apocryphal hagiographies of Jesus (Gnostics for the most part).

Around the same time, a list of New Testament books, later called the Muratorian Canon, was compiled. The most probable author of the list, Hippolytus of Rome (c. 170 – c. 235), recognized only four Gospels as canonical.

This view was also shared by Origen (c. 185 – 254), Eusebius of Caesarea (c. 263 – 340), Athanasius the Great (296 – 372/373), Cyril of Jerusalem (315 – 386), Gregory the Theologian (329 – 389), Amphilochius of Iconium (c. 340 – after 394) and other early Christian writers.

The Council of Laodicea (343/363) decreed: «Rule 59. Let no psalm composed by a private person or any non-canonical book be read in the Church but only the canonical books of the New and Old Testaments». Later, after 363, the 60th rule was added to the acts of the Council with a list of the canonical books: "…these are the books of the New Testament: the four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John…».

The first Council to adopt the present-day canon of New Testament books was the Council of Hippo that took place in North Africa in 393. However, the decrees of this Council have been lost. Their summary was read and adopted by the Council of Carthage in 397: «Rule 47. Apart from the canonical books, nothing else is to be read in the Church under the name of divine Scripture. The canonical books are as follows: …of the New Testament: the Gospels, four books…».