Lost Books of the Bible and the Forgotten Books of Eden

Rating:
Summary: Essential Christian documents for study and contemplation.
Review: First of all, I took off a star for the very poor print quality of this book. It is poorly organized, hard to read, sometimes too small and crammed on the page. The type needs to be reset in a modern font and format to make it easier to read and comprehend the works in this volume.

As far as the actual content in this book goes, it is very good and useful. Most commentators and critics disparage and denigrate the "Pseudepigrahpa" because they were written at a much later time and by anomymous scribes who credited thier work to a hero or patriarch of the Bible, such as Enoch, Adam, Solomon, The Twelve Patriarchs, etc.

The editor makes a lot of excellent points in his INTRODUCTION to THE LOST BOOKS OF EDEN: "Writers sought to SHELTER THEMSELVES behind the names of the great dead. In this THEY WERE GUILTY OF NO FRAUD. They imagined what Solomon or Enoch would say upon a particular theme under given circumstances. It was NOT REALLY THEY THEMSELVES, but THIER Enoch, Solomon, or Enoch IN THEM, who uttered the new prophesies or temple praises... that body of literature, called by modern scholars 'PSEUDEPIGRAPHA' that is, writings erronously, un-historically, YET SINCERELY ascribed to heroic figures summed up from the vasty deep by a SELF-DENYING imagination, eager to ALTER MAN'S BELIEF OR CUSTOM, to interpret his hope or sorrow, WITHOUT PERSONAL GAIN OR FAME, and also, may one add, WITHOUT THE DETERRENT OF PERSECUTION OT ARREST FREE UTTERANCE!"

"NOW IT IS A FOOLISH MODERN PREDJUDICE AGAINST AN ANCIENT PIECE OF LITERATURE THAT ITS AUTHOR VEILED HIS PERSON IN THIS FASHION. The ONLY question is: Was the writing of INHERENT VALUE? DID IT EXERCISE INFLUENCE?

Some of these books are boring and a pain to get through, and some are innacurate to traditional Christain doctrine (THE ACTS OF PAUL AND THECLA as an example). Some, like HERMAS are not worth reading.

But I will take the words of "Enoch" in THE BOOK OF THE SECRETS OF ENOCH (the best work in this collection) literally:

"For the BOOKS ARE MANY and in them you will LEARN ALL THE LORD'S WORKS, all that has been from the beginning of Creation and will be to the end of time. And if you OBSERVE MY HANDWRITING, you WILL NOT SIN AGAINST THE LORD, because there is no other except the Lord..."
"And DISTRIBUTE THE BOOKS...amoungst the nations that have the sense to fear God, let them recieve them and MAY THEY COME TO LOVE THEM more than any food or EARTHLY SWEETS, and READ THEM and apply themselves to them. And those who understand not the Lord, who fear not God, who ACCEPT NOT, but reject, who do not receive them (sc. THE BOOKS), A TERRIBLE JUDGEMENT AWAITS THESE.
"BLESSED is the man who shall BEAR THIER YOKE and shall DRAG THEM ALONG, for he shall be released on the day of the great judgement."

Rating:
Summary: Essential Christian documents for study and contemplation.
Review: First of all, I took off a star for the very poor print quality of this book. It is poorly organized, hard to read, sometimes too small and crammed on the page. The type needs to be reset in a modern font and format to make it easier to read and comprehend the works in this volume.

As far as the actual content in this book goes, it is very good and useful. Most commentators and critics disparage and denigrate the "Pseudepigrahpa" because they were written at a much later time and by anomymous scribes who credited thier work to a hero or patriarch of the Bible, such as Enoch, Adam, Solomon, The Twelve Patriarchs, etc.

The editor makes a lot of excellent points in his INTRODUCTION to THE LOST BOOKS OF EDEN: "Writers sought to SHELTER THEMSELVES behind the names of the great dead. In this THEY WERE GUILTY OF NO FRAUD. They imagined what Solomon or Enoch would say upon a particular theme under given circumstances. It was NOT REALLY THEY THEMSELVES, but THIER Enoch, Solomon, or Enoch IN THEM, who uttered the new prophesies or temple praises... that body of literature, called by modern scholars 'PSEUDEPIGRAPHA' that is, writings erronously, un-historically, YET SINCERELY ascribed to heroic figures summed up from the vasty deep by a SELF-DENYING imagination, eager to ALTER MAN'S BELIEF OR CUSTOM, to interpret his hope or sorrow, WITHOUT PERSONAL GAIN OR FAME, and also, may one add, WITHOUT THE DETERRENT OF PERSECUTION OT ARREST FREE UTTERANCE!"

"NOW IT IS A FOOLISH MODERN PREDJUDICE AGAINST AN ANCIENT PIECE OF LITERATURE THAT ITS AUTHOR VEILED HIS PERSON IN THIS FASHION. The ONLY question is: Was the writing of INHERENT VALUE? DID IT EXERCISE INFLUENCE?

Some of these books are boring and a pain to get through, and some are innacurate to traditional Christain doctrine (THE ACTS OF PAUL AND THECLA as an example). Some, like HERMAS are not worth reading.

But I will take the words of "Enoch" in THE BOOK OF THE SECRETS OF ENOCH (the best work in this collection) literally:

"For the BOOKS ARE MANY and in them you will LEARN ALL THE LORD'S WORKS, all that has been from the beginning of Creation and will be to the end of time. And if you OBSERVE MY HANDWRITING, you WILL NOT SIN AGAINST THE LORD, because there is no other except the Lord..."
"And DISTRIBUTE THE BOOKS...amoungst the nations that have the sense to fear God, let them recieve them and MAY THEY COME TO LOVE THEM more than any food or EARTHLY SWEETS, and READ THEM and apply themselves to them. And those who understand not the Lord, who fear not God, who ACCEPT NOT, but reject, who do not receive them (sc. THE BOOKS), A TERRIBLE JUDGEMENT AWAITS THESE.
"BLESSED is the man who shall BEAR THIER YOKE and shall DRAG THEM ALONG, for he shall be released on the day of the great judgement."

Rating:
Summary: Not in the Canon, this book offers insight...
Review: Having read this book and seeing why it is not in the Canon, I must admit it was worth getting into the mind of these writers. It's like the people who say "I saw Elvis..." only in the first few centuries of Christianity and early Judaism. The Star,Globe and Enquirer entertain our fantasies in 1998. In much the same way you will find this book fascinating.Good for a rainy day with nothing much to do.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting, but get a better translation of these books
Review: The Lost Books of the Bible is a very interesting book, albeit one which uses very outdated translations and is far from being complete. If you are intrigued by the Da Vinci Code or Gnosticism and want to know more about those books that were not picked for the Bible, this book would not be a bad place to start if the translations were not so antiquated. There are many newer books with more up-to-date translations of these "lost books" that are more useful today, such as The Nag Hammadi Library in English by James Robinson, which contains a different selection of works but gives a better overview of the Gnostic Gospels. The original translations in this book date from approximately a century ago, long before the discoveries of the Dead Sea Scrolls and at Nag Hammadi, so do not expect to find any of that stuff in here.
The Lost Books of the Bible contains some very interesting books, particularly the very unorthodox Gospel of Thomas, which portrays Jesus as somewhat of a nasty boy growing up. Still, I found some of the books more readable than others, with the Books of Eden being a chore to get through due to the translation. My bottom line is that there are better books than The Lost Books of the Bible for those interested in Gnosticism and its related works.

Rating:
Summary: Are you ready for the next level of Bible wisdom? Read this.
Review: This book is full of knowlege wisdom and understanding. It is a must read for anyone that loves the Word of God. These books should have never been left out of the Bible. Being in the place in time that we are now I think we should reread these books to see if they should be a part of our Christian experience. There is more than forty books in this collection. Hermas would have to be the best. Don't miss it.

Rating:
Summary: provides additional insight
Review: You'll find information here on topics not addressed directly or in much detail in the Bible. For example, additional (probably fictional) details about the early life of Jesus and the perpetual virginity of Mary. Also, you'll find one early church father's discussion of the importance of the three-fold ministry of bishop/priest/deacon, and you'll read why this same author is willing to die for his faith. Even the topic of abortion is addressed by one of the early Christian writers (an associate of Paul). I didn't find the section partaining to the "old testament" quite as interesting, but maybe others will. Of course, the authorship of many of these books is questionable, but these days you could say that of many of the books of the Bible as well.