books not admitted into the sacred canon, being either
spurious, or at least not acknowledged to be divine. The word Apocrypha
is of Greek origin, and is either derived from the words ἀπὸ τῆς
κρύπτῆς, because the books in question were removed _from the crypt_,
chest, ark, or other receptacle in which the sacred books were deposited
whose authority was never doubted, or more probably from the verb
ἀποκρύπτω, _to hide_ or _conceal_, because they were concealed from the
generality of readers, their authority not being recognised by the
church, and because they are books which are destitute of proper
testimonials, their original being obscure, their authors unknown, and
their character either heretical or suspected. The advocates of the
church of Rome, indeed, affirm that some of these books are divinely
inspired; but it is easy to account for this: the apocryphal writings
serve to countenance some of the corrupt practices of that church. The
Protestant churches not only account those books to be apocryphal and
merely human compositions which are esteemed such by the church of Rome,
as the Prayer of Manasseh, the third and fourth books of Esdras, the
addition at the end of Job, and the hundred and fifty-first Psalm; but
also the books of Tobit, Judith, the additions to the book of Esther,
Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus, Baruch the Prophet, with the Epistle of
Jeremiah, the Song of the Three Children, the Story of Susanna, the
Story of Bel and the Dragon, and the first and second books of
Maccabees. The books here enumerated are unanimously rejected by
Protestants for the following reasons:--
1. They possess no authority whatever, either external or internal, to
procure their admission into the sacred canon. None of them are extant
in Hebrew; all of them are in the Greek language, except the fourth book
of Esdras, which is only extant in Latin. They were written for the most
part by Alexandrian Jews, subsequently to the cessation of the prophetic
spirit, though before the promulgation of the Gospel. Not one of the
writers in direct terms advances a claim to inspiration; nor were they
ever received into the sacred canon by the Jewish church, and therefore
they were not sanctioned by our Saviour. No part of the apocrypha is
quoted, or even alluded to, by him or by any of his Apostles; and both
Philo and Josephus, who flourished in the first century of the Christian
æra, are totally silent concerning them.
2. The apocryphal books were not admitted into the canon of Scripture
during the first four centuries of the Christian church. They are not
mentioned in the catalogue of inspired writings made by Melito bishop of
Sardis, who flourished in the second century, nor in those of Origen in
the third century, of Athanasius, Hilary, Cyril of Jerusalem,
Epiphanius, Gregory Nazianzen, Amphilochius, Jerom, Rufinus, and others
of the fourth century; nor in the catalogue of canonical books
recognised by the council of Laodicea, held in the same century, whose
canons were received by the catholic church; so that as Bishop Burnet
well observes, we have the concurring sense of the whole church of God
in this matter. To this decisive evidence against the canonical
authority of the apocryphal books, we may add that they were never read
in the Christian church until the fourth century; when, as Jerom informs
us, they were read “for example of life, and instruction of planners;
but were not applied to establish any doctrine.” And contemporary
writers state, that although they were not approved as canonical or
inspired writings, yet some of them, particularly Judith, Wisdom, and
Ecclesiasticus, were allowed to be perused by catechumens. As a proof
that they were not regarded as canonical in the fifth century, Augustine
relates, that when the book of Wisdom and other writings of the same
class were publicly read in the church, they were given to the readers
or inferior ecclesiastical officers, who read them in a lower place than
those which were universally acknowledged to be canonical, which were
read by the bishops and presbyters in a more eminent and conspicuous
manner. To conclude: notwithstanding the veneration in which these books
were held by the western church, it is evident that the same authority
was never ascribed to them as to the Old and New Testament until the
last council of Trent, at its fourth session, presumed to place them all
(except the Prayer of Manasseh and the third and fourth books of Esdras)
in the same rank with the inspired writings of Moses and the Prophets.
spurious, or at least not acknowledged to be divine. The word Apocrypha
is of Greek origin, and is either derived from the words ἀπὸ τῆς
κρύπτῆς, because the books in question were removed _from the crypt_,
chest, ark, or other receptacle in which the sacred books were deposited
whose authority was never doubted, or more probably from the verb
ἀποκρύπτω, _to hide_ or _conceal_, because they were concealed from the
generality of readers, their authority not being recognised by the
church, and because they are books which are destitute of proper
testimonials, their original being obscure, their authors unknown, and
their character either heretical or suspected. The advocates of the
church of Rome, indeed, affirm that some of these books are divinely
inspired; but it is easy to account for this: the apocryphal writings
serve to countenance some of the corrupt practices of that church. The
Protestant churches not only account those books to be apocryphal and
merely human compositions which are esteemed such by the church of Rome,
as the Prayer of Manasseh, the third and fourth books of Esdras, the
addition at the end of Job, and the hundred and fifty-first Psalm; but
also the books of Tobit, Judith, the additions to the book of Esther,
Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus, Baruch the Prophet, with the Epistle of
Jeremiah, the Song of the Three Children, the Story of Susanna, the
Story of Bel and the Dragon, and the first and second books of
Maccabees. The books here enumerated are unanimously rejected by
Protestants for the following reasons:--
1. They possess no authority whatever, either external or internal, to
procure their admission into the sacred canon. None of them are extant
in Hebrew; all of them are in the Greek language, except the fourth book
of Esdras, which is only extant in Latin. They were written for the most
part by Alexandrian Jews, subsequently to the cessation of the prophetic
spirit, though before the promulgation of the Gospel. Not one of the
writers in direct terms advances a claim to inspiration; nor were they
ever received into the sacred canon by the Jewish church, and therefore
they were not sanctioned by our Saviour. No part of the apocrypha is
quoted, or even alluded to, by him or by any of his Apostles; and both
Philo and Josephus, who flourished in the first century of the Christian
æra, are totally silent concerning them.
2. The apocryphal books were not admitted into the canon of Scripture
during the first four centuries of the Christian church. They are not
mentioned in the catalogue of inspired writings made by Melito bishop of
Sardis, who flourished in the second century, nor in those of Origen in
the third century, of Athanasius, Hilary, Cyril of Jerusalem,
Epiphanius, Gregory Nazianzen, Amphilochius, Jerom, Rufinus, and others
of the fourth century; nor in the catalogue of canonical books
recognised by the council of Laodicea, held in the same century, whose
canons were received by the catholic church; so that as Bishop Burnet
well observes, we have the concurring sense of the whole church of God
in this matter. To this decisive evidence against the canonical
authority of the apocryphal books, we may add that they were never read
in the Christian church until the fourth century; when, as Jerom informs
us, they were read “for example of life, and instruction of planners;
but were not applied to establish any doctrine.” And contemporary
writers state, that although they were not approved as canonical or
inspired writings, yet some of them, particularly Judith, Wisdom, and
Ecclesiasticus, were allowed to be perused by catechumens. As a proof
that they were not regarded as canonical in the fifth century, Augustine
relates, that when the book of Wisdom and other writings of the same
class were publicly read in the church, they were given to the readers
or inferior ecclesiastical officers, who read them in a lower place than
those which were universally acknowledged to be canonical, which were
read by the bishops and presbyters in a more eminent and conspicuous
manner. To conclude: notwithstanding the veneration in which these books
were held by the western church, it is evident that the same authority
was never ascribed to them as to the Old and New Testament until the
last council of Trent, at its fourth session, presumed to place them all
(except the Prayer of Manasseh and the third and fourth books of Esdras)
in the same rank with the inspired writings of Moses and the Prophets.