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The Apocrypha
The Apocrypha
The Apocrypha refers to 15 specific books that were included in the original 1611 King James bible, and later removed. According to Britannica: apocrypha, (from Greek apokryptein, “to hide away”), in biblical literature, works outside an accepted canon of scripture. The history of the term’s usage indicates that it referred to a body of esoteric writings that were at first prized, later tolerated, and finally excluded.
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Huh? The original Greek word means to hide away? Prized, tolerated then excluded? I can't seem to find out WHY they were excluded but I'd sure like to know. How could they be scripture one day, and not the next. Seems strange. Either way, these 15 books are still considered "inspired," (whatever that means) by the Roman Catholic church, see below Q&A from www.catholic.com:
If you are interested in reading or listening to any of these books, the PDF and links to audio are below. The Apocrypha books are all pre-Messiah or writings that would be considered Old Testament books. The Cepher bible includes these books so I thought I would list them in the order they are listed in that bible. The full list of old testament Cepher books is included below in apocrypha PDF and audio.
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Disclaimer: Just as there are different versions of the bible, there are different versions of the apocrypha. I am not endorsing any one version including those listed below. Please do your own research.
Below is the order of the Old Testament books in the Cepher, the Apocrypha books are highlighted "blue":
(a) Jasher - I can't quite figure out where this book came from but it is referenced 3 times in our mainstream 66 book bible: Joshua 10:13; 2 Samuel 1:18; 2 Timothy 3:8. More on Jasher here.
(b) I think 3 and 4rth Macabees is considred "inspired" by those who put together the Cepher, I am unsure if the 4 books were orignally combined or if they were all included in original King James or just the first two Macabees. I don't think Macabees were among the books found in the Dead Sea caves.
* Apocrypha includes 15 books that according to www.catholic.com are considered "inspired" by the Roman Catholic Church.
**Jubilees and Enoch were found among the Dead Sea caves, knows as the "Dead Sea Scrolls," see list of books found by cave here.