Lost Books of the Bible (2 page)

In the case of those books named in the Bible, one can set a list as the titles are named. The list is lengthier than one might at first suspect. Most of these works have not been found. Some have been unearthed but their authenticity is questioned. Others have been found and the link between scripture and scroll is generally accepted. Following is a list of books mentioned in the Holy Bible.

The Book of Jasher:   There are two references to the book in the Old Testament:

2 Samuel 1:18
-   Behold, it is written in the Book of Jasher. "So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, until the nations avenged themselves of their enemies.”

Joshua 10:13 -   Is it not written in the Book of Jasher? And the sun stopped in the middle of the sky and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day.

There are several books which have come to us entitled, “Book of Jasher.” One is an ethical treatise from the Middle Ages. It begins with a section on the Mystery of the Creation of the World: It is clearly unrelated to the Biblical Book of Jasher.

Another was published in 1829 supposedly translated by Flaccus Albinus Alcuinus. It opens with the Chapter 1 Verse 1 reading: "While it was the beginning, darkness overspread the face of nature."  It is now considered a fake.

The third and most important is by Midrash, first translated into English in 1840.  It opens with Chapter 1 Verse 1 reading: "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and God created man in his own image."  A comparison of Joshua 10:13 with Jasher 88:63-64 and 2Sam. 1:18 with Jasher 56:9 makes it clear that this Book of Jasher at least follows close enough with the Bible to be the Book of Jasher mentioned in the Bible.

The Book of Wars of the Lord: "Therefore it is said in the Book of the Wars of the Lord."  Num. 21:14

The Annals of Jehu: "Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, first to last, behold, they are written in the annals of Jehu the son of Hanani, which is recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel." 2 Chronicles 20:34

The treatise of the Book of the Kings: "As to his sons and the many oracles against him and the rebuilding of the house of God, behold, they are written in the treatise of the Book of the Kings. Then Amaziah his son became king in his place." 2 Chronicles 24:27

The Book of Records, Book of the Chronicles of Ahasuerus: "Now when the plot was investigated and found to be so, they were both hanged on a gallows; and it was written in the Book of the Chronicles in the king’s presence." ... "During that night the king could not sleep so he gave an order to bring the book of records, the chronicles, and they were read before the king." Esther 2:23; 6:1

The Acts of Solomon: "Now the rest of the acts of Solomon and whatever he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the Acts of Solomon?" 1 Kings 11:41

The Sayings of Hozai: "His prayer also and how God was entreated by him, and all his sin, his unfaithfulness, and the sites on which he built high places and erected the Asherim and the carved images, before he humbled himself, behold, they are written in the records of the Hozai." 2 Chronicles 33:19

The Chronicles of David: "Joab the son of Zeruiah had begun to count them, but did not finish; and because of this, wrath came upon Israel, and the number was not included in the account of the Chronicles of King David." 1 Chronicles 27:24

The Chronicles of Samuel, Nathan, Gad: "Now the acts of King David, from first to last, are written in the Chronicles of Samuel the seer, in the Chronicles of Nathan the prophet and in the Chronicles of Gad the seer." 1 Chronicles 29:29

Samuel’s book: "Then Samuel told the people the ordinances of the kingdom, and wrote them in the book and placed it before the Lord." 1 Samuel 10:25

The Records of Nathan the prophet: "Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, from first to last, are they not written in the Records of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer concerning Jeroboam the son of Nebat?" 2 Chronicles 9:29

The Prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite: "Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, from first to last, are they not written in the Records of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer concerning Jeroboam the son of Nebat?" 2 Chronicles 9:29

The Treatise of the Prophet Iddo: "Now the rest of the acts of Abijah, and his ways and his words are written in the treatise of the prophet Iddo." 2 Chronicles 13:22

The Book Of Jasher: “Is it not written in the book of Jasher?  2 Samuel 1:18 and      Joshua 10:13

The existence of a book can be inferred as well, this is clearly seen with several missing epistles.
Paul’s letter to the church at Laodicea: "When this letter is read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and you, for your part read my letter that is coming from Laodicea." Colossians 4:16 (Since three earlier manuscripts do not contain the words "at Ephesus" in Eph 1:1, some have speculated that the letter coming from Laodicea was in fact the letter of Ephesians. Apostolic fathers also debated this possibility.) In Paul’s first letter to Corinth, he predated that letter by saying: "I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people" (1 Corinthians 5:9) (This could merely be a reference to the present letter of 1 Corinthians.)

Many books have been written containing the lost or apocryphal books. Thus, it is the purpose of this work to bring into light the treasures of books attributed to the Old Testament and New Testament. Here are those books written in the most ancient of times.

SECTION ONE

LOST SCRIPTURES OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

The Conflict With Satan

The First Book of Adam and Eve is an apocryphal story, written in a midrash style, detailing the life of Adam and Eve from the time God planted the Garden of Eden to the time that Cain killed his brother, Abel.

               The story is a fanciful embellishment of the Genesis story up to the point of the cursing of Cain for the murder of Abel.

Of the numerous apocryphal works that were written regarding Adam and Eve this text seems to have most influenced early theologians.  This is evident in the widespread popularity of the book from the third to the thirteenth century.
Even though the book was widely read in the Middle Ages, and considered to shine light on what actually took place in the time of creation, today it is considered fiction and thus relegated to a collection of texts called the Pseudepigrapha,
or “false writings.”

The text shows some cobbling together of various works, combined into a single storyline.
Although the foundation of the text can be traced to combined oral traditions thousands of years old, the primary story was likely created around two or three hundred years before Christ. Additions and details were added over many years, leading to this version being penned around the 3
^rd
century A.D.

The text presented here is an embellishment of the Jewish storyline from Genesis that is “Christianized” by additions of allusions and references to the New Testament. Quite often the details of the story are made to foreshadow the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus. The result is the text before you.

The central part of the text focuses on the conflict between Good and Evil in the form of Satan’s endeavor to destroy God’s creations, Adam and Eve. The story begs the eternal question, how does one know whether God or Satan guides the opportunity, situation, or person confronting us. The fight between good and evil, as well as the question of who is influencing our surroundings, are eternal, and the story attempts to answer in metaphor.

               The creation story and the tale of Adam and Eve pervaded the thoughts of writers throughout the ancient world. Evidence is seen in the large number of versions that exist in various languages and cultures. Indeed, it is due to the amazing popularity of the text that it has survived in six languages: Greek, Latin, Armenian, Georgian, and Slavonic, as well as a fragment in Coptic. The stories may also be traced through the writings of Greeks, Syrians, Egyptians, Abyssinians, Hebrews, and other ancient peoples.

Most scholars agree that the text was written originally in Greek and that all of the six versions show evidence of Greek linguistic roots. Those Greek manuscripts we posses seem to be no more accurate to the original than any of the other translations, having been so many generations removed from the source document.

The foundation of our modern English translation began with the work of, Vicar of Broadwindsor, Dr. S. C. Malan, who worked from the Ethiopic edition edited by, Professor at the University of Munich. Dr. Trumpp, who had the advantage of having an older version at his disposal.

From an ancient oral tradition, to a 3
^rd
century codex, through the hands of Dr. E. Trumpp and Dr. S. C. Malan, to this modern English version, the First Book of Adam and Eve has survived, just as mankind has survived the struggles written of in the book itself.

The Malan translation of the text was penned in a rather stilted and formal style of English resembling that of the King James Bible.  The Malan translation was then taken and re-written with word choices and sentence structure altered to make it more palatable and understandable to the modern reader, while keeping the poetic flow of the text.

Notes and references are added in italicized font. Alternate words or phrases that may add more depth or possibilities in translation are place in parentheses.

Chapter I

1 On the third day, God planted the garden in the east of the earth, on the border of the world in the eastward direction toward and beyond the rising sun. There one finds nothing but water that encompasses the whole world and reaches to the borders of heaven. 2 And to the north of the garden there is a sea of water, clear and pure to the taste, unlike anything else; so that, through the clearness one may look into the depths of the earth. 3 And when a man washes himself in it, he becomes perfectly clean and perfectly white, even if he were dark. 4 And God created that sea of his own good pleasure, for He knew what would come of the man He would make; so that after he had left the garden, because of his transgression, men should be born in the earth. Among them are righteous ones who will die, whose souls God would raise at the last day when all of them will return to their flesh, bathe in the water of that sea, and repent of their sins. 5 But when God caused Adam go out of the garden, He did not place him on the border of it northward. This was so that he and Eve would not be able to go near to the sea of water where they could wash themselves in it and be cleansed from their sins and erase the transgression they had committed, so that they be no longer reminded of it in the thought of their punishment. 6 As to the southern side of the garden, God did not want Adam to live there either, because, when the wind blew from the north, it would bring to him, on that southern side, the delicious smell of the trees of the garden. 7 So God did not put Adam there. This was so that he would not be able to smell the sweet smell of those trees and forget his transgression, and find consolation for what he had done by taking delight in the smell of the trees and yet not be cleansed from his transgression. 8 Also, because God is merciful and of great pity, and governs all things in a way that He alone knows He made our father Adam to live in the western border of the garden because on that side the land is very wide. 9 And God commanded him to live there in a cave in a rock. This was the Cave of Treasures, which is below the garden.