Apocrypha in Biblical History

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Schaff's Bible Dictionary

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What is the Apocrypha?
APOC'RYPHA
(hidden), the name applied most commonly to the uncanonical books that have been added to the Old Testament. 1. Old Testament Apocrypha. -- They are fourteen in number. I. 1 Esdras; II. 2 Esdras; III. Tobit; IV. Judith; V. The rest of the chapters of the book of Esther, which are found neither in the Hebrew nor in the Chaldee; VI. The Wisdom of Solomon; VII. Ecclesiasticus, or the Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach; VIII. Baruch; IX. The Song of the Three Holy Children; X. The History of Susanna; XI. The History of the Destruction of Bel and the Dragon; XII. The Prayer of Manasses, King of Judah; XIII. 1 Maccabees; XIV. 2 Maccabees. They do not exist in Hebrew, but were written in Greek, mostly in Alexandria. Though often quoted by the fathers, they were not esteemed as highly as the Scriptures. They are of great value as conveying historical information and containing many instructive sayings and examples. They fill up the gap between the Old and New Testaments. But they are without divine authority, and cannot be used in support of any doctrine or practice. They are found in the Septuagint, the Vulgate, and all Roman Catholic Bibles, since all but the two books of Esdras and the Prayer of Manasses were pronounced by the Council of Trent a part of the canonical Scriptures. They were likewise printed in Protestant Bibles and by the British and Foreign Bible Society until 1826, when, after a long controversy, it resolved to omit them from all future editions. The American Bible Society followed its example. 1. New Testament Apocrypha. -- These are various spurious gospels, histories, biographies, and epistles. They are never printed in Bibles. They are immensely inferior to the genuine books. Many of them are pious frauds, perpetrated with the design of enhancing the glory of Christ and his apostles, but by their nonsensical stories they not only utterly fail of their object, but rather bring their heroes into contempt. They confirm, however, the canonical Gospels, as counterfeits presuppose the genuine coins. See Canon.

Bibliography Information
Schaff, Philip, Dr. "Biblical Definition for 'apocrypha' in Schaffs Bible Dictionary".
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