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A review by elcilor
The Complete Apocrypha: Collection of all the Deuterocanonical Books of the Bible by Holy Studies
After Martin Luther sought to make the church more orthodox, he also chose to simplify the Bible somewhat. The Christian Bible included several stories in the Old Testament that were not part of the Hebrew Bible. This book contains these apocryphal stories that were put in a separate section by Martin Luther, considering them useful, but not equal to Holy Scripture. Some of the texts are not even considered canonical in Catholicism or Eastern Orthodox Christianity, but are included in the Ethiopian Bible. It has to be said that 3 and 4 Maccabees, as well as Psalm 151 are Eastern Orthodox canon, but not included in this book, so you could say it's not entirely complete.
Unfortunately, I can't say I greatly enjoyed the reading experience this time. It was mostly a struggle. This was not so much due to the content itself but rather the archaic way the text is written. Consider this quote from the Second Book of Esdras:
A single quote like this may still be understandable, but since the entire book is written in this style, a lot of meaning was lost on me. Quotes like the following, from the Second Book of Maccabees, show that the average reader probably had a much longer attention span in the past than we have today:
As a non-native English speaker, texts like these are barely comprehensible to me. When I researched the text, I discovered that this is a direct copy from the apocryphal section of the King James Bible from 1769. And this version was only a minor update from the 1611 version! Luckily, I had online tools available to help me keep track of the context while reading this book.
What can be said about the content? Like the Hebrew Bible, it is a mix of different types of texts: letters, historical writings, stories that, to a non-believer, feel more like myths, hymns of praise to the Lord, and advice on how to be a devout Jewish believer (although these texts are considered canonical only by certain Christian denominations, their origins are primarily Jewish).
The most enjoyable stories were the additions to the Book of Daniel and the Book of Esther. However, the additions to the Book of Esther contain some anachronisms. For example, they mention Ptolemy and Cleopatra, even though these names only appeared in history long after the setting of this story (the Persian Empire during the time of Artaxerxes I or II, at the latest 358 BC). Another 'anachronism' appears in 2 Esdras, which describes the visions of the prophet Ezra during the Babylonian exile (the late 6th century BC). In it, the coming of Jesus Christ is predicted by name.
What I found interesting is that 1 and 2 Maccabees describe the period between the youngest book of the Protestant Old Testament (Malachi, in the 5th century BC) and the New Testament. These books detail the many wars between the Jews and the surrounding peoples in the second century BC, especially conflicts with the Greek rulers. They discuss Jewish beliefs such as resurrection from the dead and the origins of the Hanukkah festival.
All in all, I did gain some new insights into Christianity and Judaism from this book, but this was certainly also because I consulted additional sources. If I ever decide to read many of these texts again, it will likely be through a more recent Catholic Bible.
Unfortunately, I can't say I greatly enjoyed the reading experience this time. It was mostly a struggle. This was not so much due to the content itself but rather the archaic way the text is written. Consider this quote from the Second Book of Esdras:
"9:28 And I opened my mouth, and began to talk before the most High, and said, 9:29 O Lord, thou that shewest thyself unto us, thou wast shewed unto our fathers in the wilderness, in a place where no man treadeth, in a barren place, when they came out of Egypt. 9:30 And thou spakest saying, Hear me, O Israel; and mark my words, thou seed of Jacob. 9:31 For, behold, I sow my law in you, and it shall bring fruit in you, and ye shall be honoured in it for ever."
A single quote like this may still be understandable, but since the entire book is written in this style, a lot of meaning was lost on me. Quotes like the following, from the Second Book of Maccabees, show that the average reader probably had a much longer attention span in the past than we have today:
"4:34 Wherefore Menelaus, taking Andronicus apart, prayed him to get Onias into his hands; who being persuaded thereunto, and coming to Onias in deceit, gave him his right hand with oaths; and though he were suspected by him, yet persuaded he him to come forth of the sanctuary: whom forthwith he shut up without regard of justice."
As a non-native English speaker, texts like these are barely comprehensible to me. When I researched the text, I discovered that this is a direct copy from the apocryphal section of the King James Bible from 1769. And this version was only a minor update from the 1611 version! Luckily, I had online tools available to help me keep track of the context while reading this book.
What can be said about the content? Like the Hebrew Bible, it is a mix of different types of texts: letters, historical writings, stories that, to a non-believer, feel more like myths, hymns of praise to the Lord, and advice on how to be a devout Jewish believer (although these texts are considered canonical only by certain Christian denominations, their origins are primarily Jewish).
The most enjoyable stories were the additions to the Book of Daniel and the Book of Esther. However, the additions to the Book of Esther contain some anachronisms. For example, they mention Ptolemy and Cleopatra, even though these names only appeared in history long after the setting of this story (the Persian Empire during the time of Artaxerxes I or II, at the latest 358 BC). Another 'anachronism' appears in 2 Esdras, which describes the visions of the prophet Ezra during the Babylonian exile (the late 6th century BC). In it, the coming of Jesus Christ is predicted by name.
What I found interesting is that 1 and 2 Maccabees describe the period between the youngest book of the Protestant Old Testament (Malachi, in the 5th century BC) and the New Testament. These books detail the many wars between the Jews and the surrounding peoples in the second century BC, especially conflicts with the Greek rulers. They discuss Jewish beliefs such as resurrection from the dead and the origins of the Hanukkah festival.
All in all, I did gain some new insights into Christianity and Judaism from this book, but this was certainly also because I consulted additional sources. If I ever decide to read many of these texts again, it will likely be through a more recent Catholic Bible.