ESV Apocrypha Text Edition, ES530:A

by Cambridge Bible

'Apocrypha' means 'hidden things', and describes books which were not accepted into the Hebrew Canon, but which survive in the Greek Scriptures. They were written in the period between the Old and New Testaments. Though the Apocrypha were often included in the Bible, their inclusion declined in the seventeenth century as they were seen to be deuterocanonical. The Apocrypha still hold value for study and spiritual enrichment. This edition includes the same eighteen books as the RSV Apocrypha, including Tobit, 1-4 Maccabees, Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach, Judith, Baruch, Psalm 151, and additions to Esther and Daniel. Like the ESV Bible, the translation of these books strives for accuracy, providing an essentially literal word-for-word approach to the original texts. This attractive edition will be valuable for exploring these texts and enriching understanding of the history and thought of the Jewish people during the centuries leading up to the birth of Christ.

288 pages, Hardcover

Published February 18, 2021

Reviews

[The Scribbling Man · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mixed bag but generally glad I read this. Already a fan of the main biblical canon of wisdom literature, so there's a fair bit here that appealed (Solomon, Sirach). Tobit gives some weird insight into developing demonology. Judith is like Judges meets Esther - loved it. In contrast, 3 Mac felt like a poor man's Esther. The actual additions to Esther itself are redundant, in my opinion. The book doesn't have a God shaped hole, but someone felt a need to fill it all the same. Daniel "the extended cut" now has dragons (cool story bro).

1 Esdras is Ezra and Nehemiah rejigged two translations deep, but worth it for the "tale of the three guardsmen". 2 Esdras is bleak, apocalyptic writing that sits at home with the likes of Ezekiel and Daniel, although it definitely contains language I would associate more with the new testament (including explicit references to hell).

1-2 Mac I found a bit dry and will probably need to revisit at some stage. 4 Mac is an interesting and brutal philosophical look at events from 2 Mac, albeit a bit preachy.

There's more to dig into, but not all of it is fresh in my mind.