the story of the apocrypha

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< oo .

THE STORYOP THE . . ,

APOCRYPHA

ReV, S, N. Sed-gtoick. M.A


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FROM-THE- LIBRARY OF

WN1TYCOLLEGETORDNTO

PRESENTED A.D.Apr,...1966

Francis Powell 1T9


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THE STORY OF THEAPOCRYPHA.


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THE STORY OF THEAPOCRYPHA.A SERIES OF LECTURES ON THE BOOKS AND

TIMES OF THE APOCRYPHA.

BY THE

REV. S. N. SEDGWICK, M.A.

PUBLISHED UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE TRACT COMMITTEE.

LONDON:SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE,

NORTHUMBERLAND AVENUE, W.C.j43, QUEEN VICTORIA STREET, E.G.

BRIGHTON : 129, NORTH STREET.NEW YORK: E. S. GORHAM.

1908,


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CO

PRINTED BY

WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED,LONDON AND BECCLES.

72591.APR 2 8 1966


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DEDICATED TO

MR. AND MRS. C. F. HOWELL,IN WHOSE HOUSE, AND THROUGH

WHOSE KINDNESSTHESE LECTURES

WERE

FIRST DELIVERED.

Lent, 1905.


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PREFACE.

Tins small book lays no possible claim to any

originality, except it be in the attempt to place the

books of the Apocrypha in a historic setting ;

otherwise, it is little else than a compilation from

the works of well-known scholars, named below.

The Apocrypha is to all intents and purposesan unknown literature to most people, even to

those who study their Bibles ; but traces of an

awakened interest may be found to-day, and thefact that there has sprung into existence actually

whilst these lectures were in writing," An Inter

national Society of the Apocrypha," whose presidentis the Bishop of Winchester, is a sufficient proof of

the newer attitude of the Christian World towards

this neglected portion of sacred literature.

These papers were read in Lent, 1905, in ac

cordance with an invitation extended to me to givea series of lectures on some subject not generallystudied ; and the perusal of a sermon by the Bishop


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VI II PREFACE.

of Winchester on the subject (to which lecture oneis indebted), suggested the subject.

To the Bishop I owe a personal debt of gratitudefor help given, directing me to the best books uponthe subject.

Thepapers

are not other thanpopular,

andonly

aim at presenting in a concise form results that are

otherwise only to be found in scattered and much

more voluminous works, and the plan in vogue

during their delivery was to read through, before

each lecture, the books of the Apocrypha which

were to be dealt with.

The following books are those from which the

material was derived : Hastings"

Dictionary of

the Bible," Edersheim s" Life of Christ," West-

cott s "Introduction to the Gospels," Stanley s

"Jewish Church," vol. iii, "The Apocrypha" in the"

Speaker s Commentary," "The Cambridge Com

panion to the Bible," The Works of Josephus,"The XXXIX Articles," by Harold Brown, "TheHoly Scripture and Criticism," by Bishop Ryle, etc.


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CONTENTS.

LECTURE I.

GENERAL INTRODUCTION.

PAGETHE Apocrypha A new book The Merchant of Venice MiltonOld-fashioned Christian names The gap between Old

and New Testament Apocrypha part of English BibleArticle VI. Lessons for All Saints Day The LXXEnglish translations Puritan objections John BunyanThe incomplete Bible of to-day S. P. C.K. Meaning of"Apocrypha" The Canon of Old Testament Allusionsto Apocrypha in New Testament Lessons taught byApocrypha 13

LECTURE II.

AFTER THE CAPTIVITY.

The progress of Revelation Malachi The Persian periodJewish settlers in East Development of Jewish thought"The Dispersion" Love of Jerusalem Grecian JewsOrigin of the Targums The "Traditions of the Elders"

Alexander the Great Daniel viii. 5 Syria and EgyptPtolemy Philadelphia Antiochus the Great Enter theRomans The sons of Tobiah Simon the Just (Ecclus. 50)

The son of Sirach Ecclesiasticus Discovery of Hebrewtext Popular estimation "Wisdom" In Old Testament

In Ecclesiasticus The teaching of the book 31


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X CONTENTS.

LECTURE III.THE WESTERN DISPERSION.

PAGEThe Book of Tobit Use in Prayer-book Sketch of book The

date Tobias "Doctrine of Angels" The Jews of Alexandria contact with Greek world The city of Alexandria

The temple at Leontopolis First Book of Esdras"The contest of wits" The Rest of the Book of Esther" Mordecai s Day

"

Jew v. Greek Interpretation of ScriptureThe story of the LXX The purpose of Apocryphalliterature Aristobulus The Sibylline Oracles Pseudepi-graphic writings ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 56

LECTURE IV.THE MACCAB/EAN STRUGGLE.

The Book of Daniel The Book of Judith Its teaching Its

literary style The Books of the Maccabees \n\\oc\\\\s theGreat The Liberal Party in Palestine Seleucus EpiphanesThe profanation of the Temple Psalms 74, 79 MattathiasThe war of Liberty Death of Judas Maccabees The belief

in a Resurrection ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 83

LECTURE V.

AFTER THE DEATH OF JUDAS.

The Shadow of Rome Jewish Independence Simon, the last ofthe Maccabees Epistle of Jeremy The new Era JohnHyrcanus Josephus The "Pharisees" The Book ofEnoch Jude 14, 15

" Sadducees and Essenes" The San-heclrin Queen Alexandra Simeon ben Shetach TheHistory of Susanna ... ... ... ... ... ... icS

LECTURE VI.

THE LAST OF THE JEWS.Antipater Pompey the Great Siege of the Temple "Judsea"

The Church at Rome Julius Ccesar Herod the Great"

King of the Jews" Mariamne The end of Herod TheBirth of Jesus Christ Herod s work in Palestine TheTemple The Scribes Hillel Jerusalem The last siegeof Jerusalem Book of Baruch The Wisdom of SolomonII. Esdras Conclusion ... ... ... ... ... ... 130


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CHRONOLOGY OF THEAPOCRYPHA.

(The dates of the books of tlu Apocrypha can only le a

JEWISH EVENTS.

B.C.

537. First Return of the Jewsfrom Babylon.

432. Nehemiah s second mission to Jerusalem.

BOOK.

DANIEL (according totraditional view).

MALACHI S prophecy.

EXTERNAL HISIX.KV,

B.C.

429. Plato born.

i. PERIOD OF SILENT GROWTH AND SUBJECTION.332. Jaddua, high priest, goes

out to meet Alexander.[After Alexander s death,

very disturbed condition : many Jews emi

grateto

Egypt, etc.]

320." Observance of Sab

bath"

brings about

capture of Jerusalemby Ptolemy Soter.

300. Simon the Just, highpriest.

280. Ptolemy Philadelphus,King of Egypt, favours

the jewisii subjects.

iSo. Ariatobulus allegorisesthe Old Testament.

The SEPTUAGINT VERSION of Hebrew

Scripture commencedin Alexandri i, not

completed for a century afterwards, i

The WISDOMSlRACH.

OF

the23. AlexanderGreat dies.

(After his deathPalestine subjectin turns to Egyptand

Syria.)

320. Thousands of Jdvcaptives taken toAlexandria.

2. THE MACCABEAN RULE.

175. Antiochus EpiphanesKing of Syria. Greatattempt to break downJewish exclusiveness.

168. The "Abomination ofDesolation

"

in Jerusalem.

170-100. ist BOOK OFESDRAS, ESTHER,TOUIT, PRAYEK OFMANASSES written.

" DANIEL " (writtenaccording to modernview).(THK THREE CHILDREN : BEL AND THEDRAGON.)


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JEWISH EVENTS.

B.C.

167. Mattathias the Macca-bee revolts.

166. Battle of Emmaus, Victory of Judas Macca-bseus.

165. Re-dedication of Temple.

160. Onias V. builds Templefor Jews at Leontopolisin E K ypt.

142. Simon "Prince of theJews." Jews allowedto coin money.

J 3S- John Hyrcanus, highpriest.

106. Aristobulus, his Son,first King of the Jews.

60. Queen Alexandra dies.

3. THE HERODIAN DYNASTY.

63. Jerusalem taken byPontp.-y

41. Herod tetrarch of Judaea

(with Ph^sael).

37. Herod captures Jerusalem

10

4. Jesus Christ born.

A.D.

30. Crucifixion.

66. Jew ish War commences.

70. Destruction of Jerusalemunder Titus.

too. Council of Jamnia. OldTestament Canonclosed.

ist part of BARUCHwritten.

PSALMS OF SOLOMONwritten.

2nd pnrt of BARUCHwritten.

II. MACCABEES writtenin Egypt.

WISDOM OF SOLOMONwritten at Alexandria.

PSALMS OF SOLOMONtranslated.

II. ESDRAS written inPalestine.

BARUCH edited in present form.

66. Hillel the Babylonian born.

44.Assassination of

Julius Casar.


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THE STORY OF THEAPOCRYPHA.

LECTURE I.

GENERAL INTRODUCTION.

T ET us suppose, for a moment, that the BibleI v was an unknown book to us, and that having

learnt of the gospel through missionaries byword of mouth, we were presented for the first timewith copies of the New Testament, which they toldus contained the story of the life and work of Christ.Can you imagine the intense, the amazing interestthe books would have to us, and with what a realenthusiasm we should read their pages ? You willremember how, within the last few years, from timeto time certain ancient manuscripts have been discovered, containing writings on Christianity, suchas, e.g., the Syriac Gospels, found on Mount Sinai,or "The Gospel of Peter," and "The Words ofChrist," found in one of the mounds in Egypt.No sooner are they discovered, than they are scrutinized to find what new light they throw upon thegospel story ; the conditions, historical or geographical, of -the setting of the gospel at that time;the directions they point to in regard to the


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14 THE STORY OF THE APOCRYPHA.

treatment of the Old Testament among the livingcontemporaries of the author. Even our dailypapers print the discovery in large type, and discuss the contents with all the gravity or assuranceof theologians.

Now, the study of the Apocrypha has for mostof us this peculiar charm. It is for most peoplea new book an actual part of the Bible, whichhas lain hidden from them all their lives, and theyopen its pages with a feeling that they are plunginginto something that has utterly escaped them before,but which is intimately connected with all that wehold best and highest in life our religion. At

any rate,it fs that

feelingof adventurous

expectation that I should like to think would be arousedin us as we open the pages of the Apocrypha ; forit is, we must admit, almost an unknown part of ourreligious literature. When Shylock stands in theDuke s court of justice in Venice, and hears Portia,in her disguise as doctor of laws, say gravely,"

There is no power in Venice can alter a decreeestablished," he cries, "A Daniel come to judgment !Yea, a Daniel! O wise young judge, how I do honourthee !

" Who can explain Shylock s allusion here ?No one to-day sees any particular point in thereference to Daniel, because the reference is to the

Story of Susanna, never read nowadays.Or, again, most people need a commentary to

enable them to grasp the meaning of Milton s lines" Asmodeus with the fishy fume

That drove him, though enamoured, from the spouseOf Tobit s son"

because the Book of Tobit is unknown to them.Or, once more, when people quote the well-kncwn


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GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 15

Latin tag,"

Magna est veritas et prsevalet," withsome dim idea that it is either in the Bible or inCicero (!), they little realize that the words comefrom the First Book of Esdras.

Susan, Toby, Judith, are old-fashioned EnglishChristian names, bearing witness to the influence

the books of the Apocrypha once had upon English thought ; but these names have little or noconnection in our minds with it now, because ofits unfamiliarity.

Nevertheless, the English Bible is not completewithout the Apocrypha. It is not complete, inthe first place, because, between the times of theOld Testament and the

New,there is a

gapof

some four hundred years, and in the pages of theNew Testament we come upon completely new conditions of life and thought and doctrine amongst the

Jews, whom (in the Old Testament) we left emerging in a broken condition from a captivity whichhad come upon them as a punishment for idolatry.

In the New Testament we find the people, freedfor ever from the temptation to idolatry, rigidlyinsistent upon a strict monotheism ; we find them,no longer in danger of losing their national characteristics by intermarriage with other nations,but living with an open contempt for

"

Gentiles,"

and a most rigid exclusiveness. Whence has comesuch a change as this ? We find them, again, worshipping the Law, dealing with it as something so

important and so vital, that it is hedged roundwith minute observances and detailed restrictions,which are said to be derived from " the traditionsof the elders" traditions about which our Lord


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l6 THE STORY OF THE APOCRYPHA.

does not hesitate to say that the Word of Godhas been rendered of none effect by them (Markvii. 13). We find them speaking a language unknown when the Old Testament times closed-Greek ; we find them differentiating between

" the

Grecians and the Hebrews"

(Grecians, mind you,meaning Jews, not Gentiles). We find new sectsand parties, Pharisees and Sadducees and Essenes,with varying dogmas ; we find them poring overthe pages of their Law, and Psalms, and Prophets,and looking below the surface of the mere words toa hidden meaning below them. We find them witha definite expectation of a Divine King, a Messiah,who shall rid them of their

temporalenemies.

Wefind them with a new system of worship " Synagogues" and a new ecclesiastical vocabulary, inwhich "angels," and "the Son of Man," and "the

Judgment," and "the Restoration" have becomeused as technical terms. Yet, with all these strikingnovelties, there is little in the pages of the Old and

New Testaments to explain how this came about.You see why. There is this great gap of fourhundred years, in which all this wonderful de

velopment took place ; development in thoughtand creed, and treatment of the outside nations,and relation to the world. The Apocrypha atany rate, the chief part of it is the literature of

this gap, and is therefore of great value to us, inseeing how the Jewish race was preparing in itsdevelopment the ground upon which Christianitycould take root and grow. The Apocrypha, then,helps to make the story of the revelation of Godto the world through the Jews a complete whole.


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GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 17

Then, secondly, the Apocrypha is a real part ofthe English Bible, because, speaking generally, until

eighty years ago, there were practically no Biblesin England without that section ; and by the formularies of the English Church, the Bible consistsof three parts Old Testament, Apocrypha, andNew Testament. You will remember, for instance,that when the King was crowned, a Bible was oneof the things presented to him, as part of the ceremonial of coronation. The British and ForeignBible Society had an elaborate edition printed and

bound, and presented to him for this purpose ; buthe refused it on the ground that it was not complete,since it lacked the

Apocrypha.So far back as the year 1571, when the Thirty-nine Articles which are bound up with the Prayer-book were issued in their present form, we readin Article VI., that whilst distinguishing betweenthe Apocrypha and the books of the Old and NewTestament, the Church of England agrees that the

Apocryphais

to be read"

for example of life andinstruction of manners, but it doth not applythe books to establish any doctrine." They areregarded, in fact, as being part of the Bible of thattime. The Church did indeed use the Apocryphain this way during the sixteenth century. In theMarriage Service, for instance, in the prayer of

Benediction, the words originally ran, "And asThou didst send Thy angel Raphael to Thobie andSara, the daughter of Raguel, to their great comfort,so vouchsafe to send Thy blessing upon these Thyservants." The Homilies quote frequently fromit. Hugh Latimer in his sermons appeals without

B


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