Introduction
The Apocrypha, a term indicating ‘hidden’, is a collection of Jewish historical and theological works written in Greek (rather than Hebrew) from the 200s BC onwards. They were well known to the Apostles, and Jesus quoted from them. They fell from favour in Western Europe after the Reformation in the sixteenth century, but when the Authorized Version was translated they were still regarded as Scriptures of a ‘secondary canon’, and included in the Bible.
1
How the Temple at Jerusalem was restored by Ezra, after the end of the Babylonian captivity.
2
How Ezra was taught by the angel Uriel, concerning the Temple, the history of Israel, and the hidden things of the God of Israel.
3
Tobit tells his own story, how he fell blind, and was healed by the angel Raphael; and how his son Tobias found his wife.
4
How the rich and beautiful widow Judith saved Israel from the mad raging of the King of Nineveh and his wicked general Holofernes, using all her womanly wiles.
5
The Rest of Esther
The Rest of the Chapters of the Book of Esther which are found neither in the Hebrew nor the Chaldee
Additional chapters to be read following the Book of Esther in the Old Testament.
6
Wisdom
The Wisdom of Solomon
A collection of wise sayings attributed to King Solomon, in which he explored profoundly the Wisdom by whom God made all things, and promised that the souls of the righteous dead are safe in God’s hands.
7
Ecclesiasticus
The Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach, or Ecclesiasticus
A book of wise sayings by a man named Jesus, son of Sirach, in which he speaks of God’s Wisdom as the giver of the Law of Moses and the presence of God in his Temple.
8
The words of the prophet Baruch, after the fall of Jerusalem to the king of Babylon; which includes also a letter by Jeremiah.
9
Song of the Three
The Song of The Three Holy Children
An addition to the Book of Daniel, containing the song of praise sung by the three young men when they were thrust into a burning furnace, and lived.
10
Susanna
The History of Susanna
An addition to the Book of Daniel, which tells how a beautiful Jewish maiden was wrongly accused by two Babylonian men whom she had refused, and how Daniel saved her from death by proving their testimony was a lie.
11
Bel and the Dragon
The History of the Destruction of Bel and the Dragon
An addition to the Book of Daniel, telling how Daniel revealed the secret of the idol god who seemed to eat the food sacrifice to him.
12
Manasseh
The Prayer of Manasseh King of Judah When He was Held Captive in Babylon
A prayer written by Manasseh, King of Judah, which he made while he was being held captive in Babylon following the destruction of Jerusalem in the early 6th century BC.
13
1 Maccabees
The First Book of the Maccabees
How the Maccabee family led Israel to independence from the Syrian Empire, and rededicated the Temple after King Antiochus defiled it.
14
2 Maccabees
The Second Book of the Maccabees
How Judas Maccabaeus continued to lead in Jerusalem, against the desecrations and violations by the idolatrous Greek empire in Syria.
