THE APOCRYAPHA

Star (Christchurch), Issue 6377, 24 October 1888, Page 4

THE APOCRYAPHA

« There are few general readers who know how eclectic a volume the Bible is. ■ As most schoolboys, however, do know * the Old Testament is a translation of the i j Jewish and Chaldeac Scriptures, or sacred i writings, while, the New Testament is a i collection of the translations of a number | of Greek and .Hebrew manuscripts relati j ing to Christ and his labours. Both Old '• and New Testaments were translated into ! a Latin edition called the Vulgate— that ; now used by the Soman Catholics — | which, in its turn was done into English ' by Tyndal, Luther, and others,, and finally i into the well-known form used in i Protestant churches, under the especial | ! patronage of James I. of England. But . ■ that Bible with which we are so familiar by do means represents the entire collec- \ tion of sacred writings ; indeed, so vast, i are thedoubtfol, rejected, and_osfc"book_***° that were they all included the Bible '. would be so bulky a work that it would. tax a strong man to carry it. i There are some books cited in the Old Testament which are generally considered . and spoken of as lost. These are the : " Book of the Wars of the Lord," to which reference is made in the fourteenth verse of the twenty-first chapter of Numbers; the "Book of the Bighteous, or Jasher," referred to both in tbe tenth chapter of Joshua, and the first chapter in the second book of Samuel ; snd the "Chronicles, or Annals of the Kings of Judah and Israel," referred to in the fourteenth ohapter of the first book of Kings. A vast amount * of curious speculation had been made con- , cerning these books, bnt the result is neither valuable nor useful. These is doubt, too, whether the Bible contains anything like the whole of Solomon's writings, for its statement is that he wrote 3000 proverbs, 1005 songs, and extensively on natural history, whereas this tale is by no means completed in the 1 Scriptures. In the thirty-fifth chapter of Chronicles, too, reference is made to the Lamentations composed by Jeremiah on the death of Josiah, King of Judah, whereas the only Lamentations in the Bible are those on the subjects of the taking of Jerusalem, and the destruction of that city by Nebuchadnezzar, so that this portion of the sorrowful laureate's work appears to be also missing. The doubtful and rejected writings are almost without end. Of these apocryphal books, as they are called, there are many degrees. Some, like the Epistle of Barnabas, are thought to ba the work of eminent or sacred authors ; while others, like the Gospel of St Thomas, the Gospel of the Valentiniaus, and the Gospel of the Gnostics, are held to be absolutely false and dangerous. Concerning others there are some authorities that receive them as canonical, while others look upon them as doubtful — such as the titles to the Psalms, the: preface of Jeremiah, Ecclesiasticus or the wisdom of Sirach and the additions to Esther and Daniel. One very considerable class of apochryphal writings is that the books falsely or doubtfully attributed to distinguised individuals — to Adam, Noah, Abraham, the twelve patriarchs, &c. The largest number of all, however, are those that were written after the time of Christ, but concerning whose divine inspiration the fathers apparently had grave doubts. They are mostly of a legendary character, among them being no less than twentyfour Gospels, of which the most important are those of the Egyptians, of the twelve Apostles, of Cryinthus, of tiie Ebioaites, of Marcion, of Thomas, and the Gospel of the Infancy of Jesus. There are also ten different Books of Acts, and six Epistles, or rather correspondence, including the letters said to have passed between Paul and Seneca, an epistle of Paul to the Laodiceans, one from the Corinthians to Paul and his reply. Nor is the Apocalypse the only book of that name claiming to be divine, nor did it get its position within the covers of the Bible without much dissension and adverse criticism. There are no less than nine other Bevalations, ascribed to St Peter, St Paul, Cerinthus, St Thomas, Adam, Abraham, Moses, Elias and a different version of 3t John's, all describing a vision of a hew heaven and anew earth. Two other doubtful, but decidedly interesting books, are the correspondence of Jesas Christ with Abgar, King of Edessa, and the Epistle of Lentulus to the Senate of Borne, describing the person of Christ. But the doubtful books with which this article has particularly to deal is that much-debated collection wbich iB to be found in some old Bibles inserted between the Old and New Testaments, and specifically known as the Apocrypha. These were additions which were introduced into the Septuagint translation of the Old Testament and thence transferred to the Vulgate and many subsequent translations. The reformers separated the Apocrypha from the Old Testament, and Luther placed them between the Old and New Covenants, giving them their present title with the sub-line that they were " books [ which are not esteemed equal to the Holy Scriptures, but are Btill profitable to the reader." In opposition to the reformers the Apocrypha were declared to be canonical by the Council of Trent, hence all translations which follow the Vulgate have the Apocrypha interspersed with the other ' writings, which are admitted by all orthodox Christians to be canonical. These doubtful books are the editions to 1 Esdras, the Book of Tobit, Judith, the ; Book of Esther, Wisdom of Solomon, EccleBiasticus, Baruch, with the epistle of Jere--1 miah, the Song of the Three Children, Susanna, Bel and the Dragon, the Prayer of ; Mannasseh and the books of the Maccabees. ' Erza or Esdras was a famous Jewish high ' priest or reformer, and while the books — | that named after himself and that called | Nehemiah in the Protestant Bible — have been accepted aa correot, the other two havebeen rejected. The first of the two books called after him in the Apocrypha is the same in substance as that with which we are supposed to be familiar, i that is the return of the Israelites to Jeru- * salem in the reign of Cyrus and Artaxerxes; i while the third relates how Ezra restored , ororather re-wrote the book of the law. i The story of Tobit deserves a place in i the Arabian Nightß, so rich is it in Ori- , ental fancy and surprising adventures. Tobit, who tells his own story, was a i native of Thisbe, in Galilee, who had an i only son called Tobias. He accompanied s the Israelites to Nineveh in their captivity, and, being a shrewd and presentable man, , gained honour with the King. Having, ! however, buried some Israelites whom the I King had slain, he was disgraced by the ; furious monarch and declared polluted. ■ Not daring to enter his house, he slept in , , the courtyard, where some sparrows, by > > their too great familiarity, caused hia blind- . ness. Sightless and disgraced, Tobit soon i fell into poverty, and remembering that ■ there was a man in Media who owed him : some money hesenthis son Tobias to collect i it. On his journey Tobias was accompanied i by an angel in the disguise of an Israelite, ■ and when in the course of crossing the Tigris , Tobias caught a fish, his angel friend ads vised him to keep the heart, fiver, aud gall. i It proved a lucky thing for Tobias that he l did so. Arrived at a place called Ecbai tana, Tobias rested with a kinsman called s Banguel, and, falling in love with his . pretty cousin, married her. Pretty as Bhe i was, the damsel appeared to be a regular; r terror, she having already married seven > husbands, all of whom had been mysteri--3 ouely killed by an evil spirit on the wedb ding nigrht. Tobias determined to brave the fatality, however, and when the demon appeared threw the Uver and heart of the * fish, into a brazier, when the murderous l demon flew yelling to Egypt. Pursuing r their journey to Media, they were fortunate - enough to get the .borrowed money, tea 3 talents, and then returning to Nineveh, - Tobias put the coin in his father's hands, I and then rubbing his eye with the fish's s gall, restored hiß sight. Tobit continued I to live happily tiß the time of his death, l which didnot take place until he was 158 J : years old, and then Tobias, who had cvi- - 31 dently taken a liking for Ecabatana, went . j back there with his wife, and lived* to be . 127 years old himself. n I The story told in the Book of Judith is j quite epic. Briefly related, it is as follows: 3 Nebuchadnezzar being at war with the 1 j TCing of Media, defeats him, and -then 1 sends -his-^enpr^M?^

chastise those tribes that had refused him their support. Judsea is among these and one of their strongholds called Bethulia is besieged. The investment lasts forty days and the famished garrison is about to surrender, when Judith, a beautiful widow, comes forward with a plan of deliverance.. Clad in rich attire, and accompanied by her maid, she goes over to the hostile camp, where she is at once conducted to the General, to whom Bhe tells a "specious tale." After four days Holof ernes, smitten with her charms, ata sumptuous entertainment invites her to remain within his tent over night. No sooner is he overcome with sleep than Judith, seizing his sword, Btrikes off his head. Judith aad her maid then quietly leave the camp, and return to Bethulia, where the trophy is displayed amid^ great rejoicings. At the instance of Judith the Israelites now make a sudden onslaught on the enemy, who at once give way. Judith now eings a song of praise, and all go up to Jerusalem to worship with sacrifice and thanksgiving. The book concludes with a brief notice of the closing years of the heroine, who, like all good people in properly constructed stories, returned to her native place, and lived long and happy. The addition to Esther found in the Apocrypha is not at all interesting and is a very unworthy addendum to the delightful picture of Persian manners given in the , main book. It is chiefly remarkable for a letter from Arta-_-r--.es which, by many authorities, is styled a "direct forgery." The " Wisdom* of ; Solomon " and *" Ecolesiasticus, or the v Wisdom of Jesus, the son of Siraoh," sira/Ly -reflect the conditions of livo and ..the shades of religious speculations at the time they were written, couched in proverbial form. Very lofty things are said by the author of Ecolesiasticus, but nothing to surpass or even equal what is said in the Old Testament. In the Wisdom of Solomon what ia implied in the Old Testament is stated with explicitness. For example: "God created man to be immortal, and made him to be an image of his own eternity ; nevertheless, through envy of the devil, came death into the world." Again : "Of the woman came the beginning of sin, and through her we all die." The references given above will suffice to indicate what lines of study may be pursued in these two books of the Apocrypha, and what advantages one may expect to derive from them. The Book of JBaruch is supposed to have been written by that personage himself, who was the friend and amanuensis of Jeremiah. After the temples at Jerusalem had been plundered by jNebuchadnezz&r, he wrote down Jeremiah's prophecies respecting the return of the Babylonians to destroy the State, and read them in the temple before the assembled people at the risk of his life. The roll having heen burned by the King's command, Jeremiah dictated them again. When the temple was destroyed Baruch went to Egypt with Jeremiah, having, been blamed as the prompter of the threatening prophecies uttered by the latter. From reproof the language of Baruch passes to hope and Messinmic happiness and it becomes livelier and more elevated. Tt was written five years after the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. To the five chapters forming the Book of Baruch there is appended a sixth, called the Epißtle of Jeremy. According to internal evidence, it was sent by the prophet, by God's command, from Egypt to the Jews, who were to be carried captive to Babylon. The writer describes the folly of idolatry in a declamatory way, with repetitions something after the fashion of refrains. The Song of the Three Children, Susanna and Bel and tho dragon are all apocryphal additions to the Book of Daniel. . The first is the hymn sung by Shadrach, Meshach-and Abednego, the three youthß who were thrown into the "burning, fiery furnace becauee they would not bow to the graven image which Nebuchaduezzar, the King, had set up." The second is the story of a beautiful but virtuous woman whom three lustful elders saw taking a bath, and who, because she would not yield to their desires, brought a false accusation of immoral conduct against her. Daniel defended her, and it was by his judgment that she was delivered. The third story*: is decidedly ingenious. Bel, who wae the Babylonian Baal, was in danger because of Daniel's, heavy onslaughts against him as a false god. One of the astonishing things about Bel, however, and upon which the priestslaid great stress, was that the meat and drink offerings which were put before the idol every night disappeared by the morning — either eaten up by Bel or his attendant dragon. Daniel determined to find out the trick, and so sprinkled the floor of the temple with fine powdered ashes. Next morning the offerings were gone, but there on the ashes were the imprints of the priests' bare feet leading to the altar from a secret staircase behind the great idol of BeL The first book of Maccabees — there are two— gives the history of the national movement in Judaea from the accession of Epiphanes (175 b. c) to the murder of Simon (135 b. c.) in a plain and honest style, and evidently from good information. The second book conveys the history from 176 b. c. to the victory over Nicanor, 160 b. c, is much inferior in value. It begins with two doubtful epistles, and then proceeds to the task of summarizing the five books Of a- certain Jason of Gyrene on the war of liberation againstthe Epiphanes, just mentioned. The narrative is a useful supplement to that in the first but is not generally looked upon as so trustworthy.