Who Wrote the Apocrypha? (Deuterocanon)

Buy the summary chart:
usefulcharts.c...
Complete series in one video:
• Introduction to the Bi...
Individual episodes:
1. Torah - • Who Wrote the Torah? (...
2. Prophets - • Who Wrote the Nevi'im?...
3. Writings - • Who Wrote the Ketuvim?...
4. Apocrypha - • Who Wrote the Apocryph...
5. Gospels & Acts - • Who Wrote the Gospels?
6. Epistles - • Who Wrote the Epistles?
7. Daniel & Revelation - • Who Wrote the Book of ...
8: Summary Chart - • When Was the Bible Wri...
Recommended Reading:
Alter, Robert (2011). The Art of Biblical Narrative. Basic Books.
Baden, Joel (2012). The Composition of the Pentateuch: Renewing the Documentary Hypothesis. Yale University Press.
Coogan, Michael (2001) The Oxford History of the Biblical World. Oxford University Press
Finkelstein, Israel & Neil Asher Silberman (2001). The Bible Unearthed. Free Press.
Kugel, James (2007). How to Read the Bible. Free Press.
Stein, Robert H. (2001). Studying the Synoptic Gospels: Origin and Interpretation. Baker Academic.
Credits:
Charts & Narration by Matt Baker, PhD
Animation by Syawish Rehman
Audio by Jack Rackam
Intro music "Lord of the Land" by Kevin MacLeod and licensed under Creative Commons Attribution license 4.0. Available from incompetech.com

[@UsefulCharts]

UPDATE: A summary chart is now available: usefulcharts.com/collections/religion/products/timeline-of-the-bible Complete Series: 1. Torah - kzbin.info/www/bejne/hIqQnWOObN56j5I 2. Prophets - kzbin.info/www/bejne/f3Ksmn-JgrSaabM 3. Writings - kzbin.info/www/bejne/haXSYYisfJuUjNU 4. Apocrypha - kzbin.info/www/bejne/forPi55qfdtge5o 5. Gospels & Acts - kzbin.info/www/bejne/kGezo6WknaZ-fLM 6. Epistles - kzbin.info/www/bejne/aIawnYijodKAotE 7. Daniel & Revelation - kzbin.info/www/bejne/nIW4g5eMZchsgJI 8: Summary Chart - kzbin.info/www/bejne/b6asia2Letylhck

[@adenjones1802]

I here a lot that monotheism is a later development of Judaism but am never given consistent dates on when this happend. Do you know any good sources that could help me know when about it was introduced.

[@jstephenhurst9835]

1j

[@andrewferg8737]

The Book of Job c.2100 - 1500 BC (Gerard Gertoux, The Book of Job: Chronological, Historical and Archaeological Evidence, 2015)

[@andrewferg8737]

@@adenjones1802"monotheism"--- "I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, as God Almighty; but by my name "יהוה‎ " I was not known to them" (Exodus 6) "God Almighty" indicates greatest among many. The later Hebrew theonym יהוה‎ however is derived from the existential verb "to be" indicating God as being or existence in and of Himself, or as Aquinas later writes: ipsum esse subsistens. Both are correct. The former indicates many god-like beings of whom God is the greatest and creator. The later is a more insightful understanding of God as the singularly self-evident axiom from which all else is derived, god-like or mundane. The Greek to English transliteration of the name "Jesus" is thus rendered “יהוה‎ - saves” or "I AM He that Saves" or “y'shua”. This term appears throughout the OT both as a proper name (Joshua) and as a term indicating salvation or savior. It is the name announced by the angel in the NT to be ascribed to God Incarnate as Jesus Christ: "and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins" (Matthew 1). The divine implication of the angel's message was clear to the Hebrew gospel author familiar with the OT: "I, even I, Am the LORD (יהוה‎) and apart from Me there is no Savior" (Isaiah 43)

[@Robespierre-lI]

Any chance of doing a video on the New Testament apocrypha? I know you did Thomas ... But it would be such a great service to talk about the others. After all, there's a lot of history of them being crudely dismissed by Christians despite the fact that they can tell us quite a bit about the first few centuries of Christianity. Just a thought.

[@z-beeblebrox]

You SAY the different Maccabees aren't sequels of each other, but they sure sound like how sequels work in modern horror movie franchises. "So the second one just the first one with different characters, the third one is a completely unrelated story, and the fourth one is a soft reboot" If they'd gone on one more book, it'd be called "Maccabees: Origins" probably

[@besacciaesteban]

Maccabees 9: The Family Goes to Space

[@YLLPal]

2 Macca 2 bees

[@itsJPhere]

"Meccabeans: Maccabees in Mecca"

[@ThePlayfarer]

"Maccabees: With a Vengeance"

[@davestevens6283]

Maccabees XXL: Judah's Hammer

[@UsefulCharts]

CORRECTION: The timeline near the end should show BCE dates (except for the destruction of the Second Temple, which was CE)

[@joshygoldiem_j2799]

I'm sure we were all able figure that out, I wouldn't worry too much about it

[@marilynwoolford-chandler1161]

Not me, @ Joshy , so thanks for being scrupulously honest

[@ruthanneseven]

I was confused too, and was about to ask about that. I am pleased to be in good company. 😉✌

[@philipzghaib6013]

More Daniel slander as usual

[@TheEnderknight]

How much does the Samaritan version differ from the Jewish version of the torah?

[@beverlyfranco]

I'm the chaplain at a retirement community and we LOVE your videos. You speak so slowly and clearly and your charts are excellent. Looking forward to covering the New Testament too!

[@herzkine]

Respect to the elderly, i am a 40 year old Akademic with onlyone major stroke and have trouble keeping up, as well as it is done .

[@ahsanmohammed1]

Can you please do a chart on the original languages of the books, and how those languages have evolved over time to today. Thank you.

[@SamAronow]

I'll be doing a Hebrew evolution series on my channel.

[@comb528491]

@@SamAronow awesome

[@asmrnaturecat984]

@@SamAronow Nice

[@ahsanmohammed1]

@@SamAronow Sorry, I meant, original language of each book. Then the next language of that same book. And the next of the same book. To the most popular current language of that exact same book. One rewrite to another over time. Sorry.

[@nevertrusasmurf]

@@ahsanmohammed1 the Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic texts still exist largely in their original form. That's exactly why we can date and differentiate them. So not really copies of copies per se unless if you either talk about the development of these stories before their final cut or about Bible translations such as the Septuagint, the Vulgate and stuff based on those.

[@Nikalette100]

I am just for the first time working my way through the Old Testament. I am Christian Catholic. I learned so much about Jewish history from this content, which is actually kind of mind blowing. It really helps to learn history to understand the OT. I love the Jewish faith. Some of the prayers are so beautiful. In order to understand the OT, I am doing a lot of supplemental reading, and now I have found your channel, it is part of my studies. Thank you.

[@beebarfthebard]

same ❤️ except I guess I'm protestant and kinda new. God bless!

[@Matthew-307]

With all due respect, I would encourage you to study all of the issues between catholic doctrines and what the Bible teaches. Catholic doctrine is very different from what the Bible teaches.

[@elibonham4388]

How does one get a hold of the apocrypha

[@iammaxhailme]

The real question is, who wrote this video? I haven't seen Matt Baker and Josephus in the same room at the same time...

[@siklabbaga]

Have you cross-check on how Josephus uses charts?

[@galerinha]

This video was probably made much later after the post temple period by a single author named Matt, also known as useful charts.

[@Benni777]

Lol “Josephus” 😂

[@maxuno8524]

😂🤣 the comments are also lit

[@OHYS]

I’m so happy you’re covering this topic.

[@metabee6539]

I would buy YOUR Bible Edition, in the historical order, with your chats and historical explanation, NRSV. i would TOTALLY buy it.

[@aaronharris1592]

Get it printed for us please Mr usefulcharts

[@ThePlayfarer]

As someone who gets confused by bible stuff easily, this would be so cool.

[@lucasbonhommevazquez]

Same here

[@Questionablexfun]

Yuuup same

[@Tupadre97]

same

[@rockingthemike]

this has been an incredibly interesting series; thank you matt!

[@JAlanne]

Bonus episode idea, the books that didn't make it into the bible, like some of the dead see scrolls/naghamadi library/Gospel of Judas.

[@steinerwin]

I would be in for this!

[@MonsieurMaskedMan]

In the description it says the bonus episode will cover about the Quran

[@Vmac1394]

I still can't get past the hunch that the Gnostic gospels were part of a giant scam. "So unlike what the rest of the New Testament which says that faith, acts, and generally being a good person are the keys to salvation, I got these special bootleg gospels that show that the Old Testament God is actually an evil demiurge and that you need special secret knowledge to achieve salvation." It's like fanfiction, except fanfiction doesn't tend to have a sections that make it easy to sell so called secret knowledge necessary for salvation to the naive.

[@JAlanne]

I think they are massivly interesting. they really describe the conserns of some early christians, and their solutions. If we're talking about confirmed scams, about half of the pauline epistles are pseudoepigrpahs. literal forgeries. Also, peter probably couldn't write for what that is worth. certainly not in greek mind you. But documents aren't extremely valuable.

[@ddt0889]

@@JAlanne No, all of the Pauline epistles contained in the NT were written by Paul, and there is mountains of textual evidence to prove it.

[@MythologywithMike]

Thank you for letting me guest voice! These videos are like chips, once I finish one I just keep going until I realize the bag is empty and I gotta wait for more

[@shivjain]

Thanks!

[@curtisdaniel9294]

This Whole Series is simply fascinating and Very Well Done! Thanks for all your Hard Work!

[@krystal6901]

I AM HOOOKEEEDDD!!! I've been wanting to study the Bible but get so overwhelmed. I'm a visual learner too, you present this so clearly and concise, thank you!

[@stphnmrrs3982]

I think a timeline of the Jewish Diaspora post second temple would be really interesting

[@jaygreider4753]

Was raised a Spanish Roman Catholic. Altar boy for 8 years. Grammar, Jr High, HS, University (and grad school) all Catholic. Majored in Literature - with a focus on Catholicism and it's relationship to Judism and Islam. You do a very good job at showing how it developed. Keep it up!!

[@acaciaj5378]

as a secular ashkenazi jew who never really got to learn our beliefs due to assimilationism and interfaith family, this is fascinating! thank you!

[@guydreamr]

Must be very interesting discussions around your dinner table.

[@maezzologymedia14]

These videos are so well put together. On point, great information, really interesting and well paced.

[@sleepingchaser]

Growing up Catholic, I actually enjoyed many of the deuterocanonical books more than many of the regular canon ones… in particular Tobit always resonated with me, and Maccabees was exciting…. The Book of Daniel always feels incomplete without the Prayer of Azariah, which was sometimes used as a prayer all by itself in different services. When I eventually discovered Enoch, I became fascinated and have read it many times over the years! Even though I no longer believe, I still go back to many of these on a regular basis just for fun! Absolutely loved this video!

[@peterlongan]

Even though I no longer believe - lol

[@brendaknauss4295]

@@peterlongan believe Enoch or any of it? Curious

[@peterlongan]

@@brendaknauss4295 Haven't read it yet. It's much less readily available than other Bible books. I mean, have you?

[@marilynwoolford-chandler1161]

Superb. I didn't even know of Ethiopian Christianity until I had an Ethiopian lady looking after me for four years. Your charts are amazing

[@Ugly_German_Truths]

it's part of what we have to thank for "Rastafarianism" as haile Selassie as Emperor of Abyssinia was one of the last great leaders of that church too... There is not much semblance between the Rasta beliefs and the traditional ethiopian church though, but there was a reason why there was a suspicion the Ark of the Covenant might have been hidden there, which connects the Empress of Saba story with these early Christian roots in a mostly NON Christian Africa...

[@marilynwoolford-chandler1161]

@@Ugly_German_Truths goodness. I am in past. My depth with your reply! Thanks Ill come back

[@PurpleAmharicCoffee]

And Rastafarians ban coffee... and I believe coffee ceremonies are a large part of Ethiopian culture.

[@Henok_T]

Ethiopia is the first Christian nation

[@Henok_T]

@@Snowfox23 how?

[@crimson90]

I think it would be cool to own a physical "Master Bible" with all books of all sects of Christianity.

[@alm9322]

Considering also the book of Mormon?

[@nevertrusasmurf]

A translation like the Septuagint! Make it happen!

[@chrisdovrik2894]

Isn’t that just the Ethiopian version + Macabes.

[@DoctorCyan]

That would be totally wicked but would also require a single consistent translation AND a need to draw the line between what Christian sects are allowed to bring in what books. I find it hard to believe that many would be chill with the Mormons and what is practically a third testament

[@russellmiles2861]

There are too many variations. Eg some modern North American churches like the Seventh Day Adventist have added completely new books. There are over 400 different versions in Germanic and Latin languages alone with significant changes to reflect ideology. Eg, Roman Catholic Churches interpret certain wards to be “church” inferring one true church - then. And others use communion to reflects various churches. There are Bibles with gender neutral pronouns for god, others with male and few alternating - the original in Hebrew was gender neutral and became male as a language convention not meaning to imply gender. In the USA there have been more versions published in the last two generation than published in history Regardless, you can readily down load on line Bibles where you can look at various translations side by side with explanatory texts, cometary on Greek and Hebrew, history of changes, etc. The advent of online publishing has accelerated the number of versions available with individual faith communities published their own particular version.

[@jakeaurod]

I'm creating religions for a story and these videos help understand how culture, language, demographics and politics shift doctrines, interpretations and reinterpretations over time. Thanks.

[@mikeharrison1868]

Also applies to schools of philosophy. I'm idly creating a world where the nearest thing to religion is something akin to Buddhism.

[@noahwinberry2475]

That's what originally led me to this channel. This history has been absolutely inspiring

[@lfn3536]

O....M....G.... It is so interesting how it all came about. I've taught religion but not as deep as this. Thank you for teaching me :)

[@ruthanneseven]

There is a channel called Religion for Breakfast that you might find helpful.

[@lfn3536]

@@ruthanneseven Thank you very much, but I know that and sub. it :)

[@ruthanneseven]

@@lfn3536 From your name, Lady of the Labyrinth would also be awesome for you. She clarifies a lot of things from your own heritage.

[@jaynajuly2140]

One of the sequels to A Wrinkle in Time, called Many Waters, draws heavy inspiration on the Book of Enoch for some fun angel/demon drama :)

[@markstahl1464]

I used to have that book. Not sure if I still do or not. I was thinking about that series the other day, probably because of these videos. Is that the one based on the twins that’s set in biblical times?

[@jaynajuly2140]

@@markstahl1464 That's the one!

[@dylan37373]

I can't even begin to tell you how awesome and informative your videos are. This series has incredible visualizations that make digesting content like this a lot easier. I look forward to your video on the Quran and separating out when different Suras were orated during Muhammad's life. I have a great interest in all religious literature and movements, I'd love to see a timeline of different Gnostic movements and texts, which seem to spring up just about everywhere during every time period. The Dharmic faiths have been a hard approach for me but I love the fact you got some Sikhism representation on your channel. Keep up the great work!!

[@erikatamayo8919]

My maternal granddaddy was pastor and editor of the Arkansas Baptist Newsmagazine for 20 years. He had a PhD in theology, and was well known nationwide from what I understand. My grandma was a Sunday school teacher, and both my grandparents were pastors children. I love learning about all cultures and religions, but I find the Abrahamic religions and their similarities fascinating. I love your series. Religion is how I feel close to my grandparents, and learning about all religions and cultures, especially ones tied to Abrahamic religions feels like a big hug from them if that makes sense. I have considered going back to college and majoring in anthropology and theology. However, until I can afford that, I learn as much as I can where I can.

[@heavenlancaster20]

❤

[@called2voyage]

I really appreciate the focus on Enoch. It's always been one of my favorites for exactly the reasons you mention it being so interesting.

[@STho205]

It is an interesting read, but one caution. It is a current fad and popular amongst fantasy pagan youth. Most faddish things tend to have little substance. As it was written centuries after Genesis, which it porports to be a revelation within... It may have less merit. It was at least read by some Christians of the first century, with references making it into the apostletic letters. I'm not saying it is bogus or not. You do you on that subject. However current its popularity is often due to a resurgent of mythological comic book movies and the Russel Crowe "Noah" which was made in that style, crossed with Enoch and several current Hollywood cause celebs.

[@called2voyage]

@@STho205 Like Matt, I don't believe any of the books are literal history so "more merit" is not really a concept to me. It's a younger book than Genesis, yes, but it's still a legitimate religious work, though not canonical, and interesting for what it captures about the views of the community that composed it.

[@called2voyage]

@@STho205 It's also noteworthy from a Christian history perspective since it's quoted within the canonical New Testament

[@STho205]

@@called2voyage which gives more credence that the Christians were a subset of the Essenes sect. I believe his inference is likely correct. A christian scholar or reader should pay great heed to the macabean split in religious leadership in the 1st century. The Sadducee tended to believe there is only free will in the realm of Man. They only revered the Five books of Moses as binding Jews to Law. The rest being scriptural elaborations of historic parables. Afterlife is not part of their teachings. Man is neutral. There is no original sin. People simply choose good or evil, day by day. The Essenes were fatalist and strong in afterlife and the spirit world. Free will is less than apparent. There were some Greek exposure. They had some similar tendencies to that of Socrates Cave Metaphor, original sin and the Plato's postulate of the pious man in the second book of The Republic (now there's a surprising read from 385BC). The Pharasees (teachers and religious lawyers) were somewhere in between. Hilel was a Pharasee and many of his teachings lined up with that listed for the Nazareen... But without the ascension, transcendence aspect. Take those ideas of the situation in Judea in the reign of Tiberius and Herod ...and reread Mark and Luke tonight.

[@tzvi7989]

@@STho205 tbf tho it seems inspired by the works that inspired genesis originally too like the enuma elish for example (possibly less so the ancient Egyptian influences tho)

[@enivaldobonelli]

These lectures have been amazingly good for me. Lots of information I did not know, presented in a beautiful way. Thanks!

[@11kravitzn]

These are fantastic. I can't wait for the video on Daniel.

[@tillposer]

Watching this video I remembered that I have two books that my grandfather must have bought in 1921, a second edition of a two-volume monography "Die Apokryphen und Pseudoepigraphen des Alten Testaments" by Professor E. Kaußsch of the University of Halle from 1900, much perused and commented. They're in black letters and extensively annotated. Time for a little exploration, methinks.

[@DK-tv6rk]

German?

[@wingless2224]

Dude. I love your videos so much. I have totally been reading more from the Old Testament after getting into your content.

[@sdastoryteller3381]

Always a pleasure to dive into history with you! Thanks for another informative Video!

[@rahuls9269]

Thanks

[@graham9454]

Thanks for the great series and for explaining when and where these books originated. It certainly make it easier to understand why different groups were more or less likely to include these books!

[@darabumdarabum]

I am just here to thank you greatly for transforming all this complex material into something that is easy to digest. You've put some really great effort into this, and presented different perspectives in a just manner. I am on video 4 of the series and will probably watch your whole channel. I am also glad you included pieces of 'yourself' in this video sequence, and didn't treat your personal faith or perpective as something that is to be kept on the side.

[@auburnt_amaranth]

Really a great series, entertaining and teaching. U put a lot of effort into making it easily understandable. Thank you.

[@generalkenobi5533]

Ooooh, I've been looking forward to this. The history of the apocrypha is fascinating!

[@kaarlimakela3413]

I love this particular pursuit of these very early writings as literature and history with the ancients' subjective POVs factored in of course

[@adamberthold5941]

This series is your best content so far and i have been a fan for some years. Cannot wait for part 5 :)

[@ahsanmohammed1]

Thank you. Very nicely illustrated and articulated. Appreciated.

[@saraparks222]

Wonderful resource! Thanks so much. Sharing the Gospels and Acts video with two of my undergrad classes this week: an upper-level Gospels class and a fresher Intro to NT class. Beautiful, cautious, fair, clear work.

[@ThisLiberalPopulist]

2 Baruch (w/ Letter of Baruch) has actually been included in Syriac canons, largely used by Syriac Orthodoxy (Oriental not Eastern; same branch that Ethiopian Tewahedo Orthodoxy is a part of), as well as the (“Nestorian”) Churches of the East.

[@captmick2278]

Thank you so very much for sharing your hard work. As a retired prof. I really appreciate the simplicity of your visuals and straightforward explanations. God bless you & yours MBM

[@ReneOlivaresJ]

A lot of information in a very clear way. Thanks a lot!

[@weirdkitty07]

This is a very well done concise series with just the facts and no extra evangelical politics tossed in. Recommended.

[@arimermelstein9167]

Despite learning about the apocrypha in Jewish history class, I never looked into them until I studied the last chapter of tractate Sanhedrin in the Talmud. Rabbi Akiva says that anyone who studies the Apocrypha has no share in the afterlife. So that’s when I read a book about what it is and where it came from and then I understood. Thank you for presenting it so wonderfully.

[@marilynwoolford-chandler1161]

For a school prize when I was 15or 16 I asked for the Apocrypha. Forbidden knowledge. We did not have readings from it at Church, Sunday School or Bible Class so how did I even learn it existed? If it was as dangerous as your Rabbi implied Ari Merlstein....

[@arimermelstein9167]

@@marilynwoolford-chandler1161 not my rabbi. This is Rabbi Akiva, a rabbi who is quoted in the Talmud. He lived around 100AD or so.

[@tylergilleland5515]

What was the book called?

[@arimermelstein9167]

@@tylergilleland5515 Ecclesiasticus Aka Ben sirah.

[@AI-hx3fx]

Thank you for this VERY simple, straightforward explanation that is not clouded by any religious preferences.

[@parthkelkar959]

I'm glad this is my first exposure to this topic

[@scmac5155]

Thanks very much! That was well done and I certainly know more about the “apocryphal” writings now than I did before watching - I don’t always agree with the reasons where some writings are dated in time, but having a general idea when the books were written in relation to each other overall is a big help

[@tempulus9228]

Hey Cee Mac, if you like history please consider checking out my timeline of the 150+ most important people in history :)

[@kaushiksheshnagraj7176]

Wow this video is fantastic. Every line is a point. Your channel deserve more subscriber. According to my account your channel is the best channel on KZbin I liked your channel very much. Your channel is my favourite .I liked your all videos. Please keep up this type of work in future please. Your all videos are stunning. I am your old subscriber from 5k subs But can you please make a video on Skanderbeg?

[@bobbyolarte88]

If there is a category for genius chartist, you are it. In the meantime, you are the world’s clearest, most engaging historian. Your explanation of the timelines of the most obscure books of the bible caught me as if I am watching a thrilling action movie. Thanks!

[@SamAronow]

Meqabyan is one of those mysteries that I really wish there was more contemporary context for. Historians are pretty sure now that Jews arrived in Ethiopia in the 1st century CE, yet not only is the actual history of the Maccabees missing, but there's...like...a Maccabees fanfic borrowing elements from the First Temple Period? And we don't know how much the Jews influenced early Ethiopian Christianity or vice-versa. It's endlessly frustrating.

[@ikr9358]

I'm really curious as to how historians determined when Jews arrived in Ethiopia. As far as I know, Ethiopian Jews followed something closer to First Temple Judaism rather than Second Temple Judaism, which seems strange if they immigrated so late.

[@Zeyede_Seyum]

*Can you send me the link?*

[@ruthanneseven]

It may be due to Solomon's son. Just a thought, since he fathered a son on the Queen of Sheba.

[@SamAronow]

@@ruthanneseven That's actually the legendary origin story of the Solomonic Dynasty, not really related to the Beta Israel, who probably crossed over from Yemen around the same time Jews were also arriving in India.

[@SamAronow]

@@ikr9358 Oh goodness no; the minhag of the Beta Israel is *way* more consistent with Second Temple Judaism; it just never got the Talmud or subsequent consensus writings (why they were so isolated when the Indian Ocean trade was right there is something I hope to research). First Temple Judaism wasn't even technically monotheist.

[@johnfleming7879]

I would score fairly high on a scripture test- but-WOW- this class really taught me-I need to listen again with my notebook

[@KathaofSants]

Finally the king returns

[@BOSprodz]

This series is incredible, I'm glued to the screen Just one thing for me, as a Hebrew speaker I wish all books mentioned would include the original Hebrew name as well, as I constantly have to Google which book we're talking about for many of the books in the Tanakh. The English(?) names are very different from the Hebrew ones

[@Lewa263]

What about the Armenian and Syriac Bibles? I know those churches are old and separate in a sense from the four strains of Christianity that you included here. Do they use the same collection of books as the Eastern Orthodox church?

[@minamagdy4126]

As a Copt (the third such group), I only learned of the seven Catholic deuterocanonical books, although I can't answer your question with any certainty EDIT: I looked it up, and we also recognize the extra psalm, along with all of the Catholic deuterocannon. There is no word on the Prayer of Manasseh, though

[@jmannysantiago]

The Armenian, Syrian, and Coptic (among other Oriental Churches, both those in Communion with Rome and those which are autocephalous) all have the Septuagint as their canon, therefore usually making them follow the same list of books as the Roman Catholic Church (I mean, some of them *are* part of the Catholic Church, just not *Roman*.)

[@thekingofsomewhere]

@@minamagdy4126 Prayer of Manasseh is sometimes included in 2 Chronicles, as it is in the Orrhodox Study Bible

[@minamagdy4126]

@@thekingofsomewhere it probably is, I just haven't seen it explicitly validated like the others

[@kightsun]

The Armenian, Syriac, Coptic, and Ethiopian Churches are all Oriental Orthodox, rejecting the Council of Chalcedon. We do not have a single set canon: each synod sets its own. The Canon is simply the list of books to be read in Liturgy.

[@jennapecor]

Your charts and videos have been so helpful to me, in teaching Sunday school. Thank you!!!

[@HistoryandHeadlines]

Really interesting series! Which has been everyone's favorite episode so far?

[@kaushiksheshnagraj7176]

You are right. It is really interesting

[@SkywalkerWroc]

I guess this is the most interesting one. Primarily as it's dealing with books I have no idea about.

[@ruthanneseven]

All of them!

[@ZatannaZataraGrayson]

This one is, but I'm biased since I love the Book of Enoch

[@z-beeblebrox]

The first one and the exploration of ancient Judean history was really fascinating. I think it's really easy to take for granted that well-known civilizations must have their history set in stone, but so often this isn't true, and there's so much we still don't know and are force to speculate on

[@megster116]

I am loving this series!! Being Anglican (therefore Protestant), I grew up on the NIV bible. I knew the Old Testament was pretty similar to the Tankh, but I had no idea the catholic and orthodox bibles were so different, and I've never heard of the Ethiopian one!! Have you ever thought about doing a video on the Gospels that were not included in the New Testament? I understand there are many!!

[@z-beeblebrox]

Gospels not included in the New Testament would be a great followup series!

[@joshygoldiem_j2799]

You'd assume that Judah, closer to Egypt, would have the Moses origin story with ties from Egypt, and vice-versa. Can you explain why you think that it's the other way round?

[@UsefulCharts]

See the pinned comment on Episode 1.

[@seriliaykilel]

Awesome video series - no idea why this popped up on my feed back super glad it did. 4/4 episodes complete, now onto other useful charts =P

[@samuelllucena]

Amazing video. I would have just one objection: as for the apocryphal books, those of the Anglican Tradition (the third largest in Christianity) were missing, "The Apochrypha" of King James Bible, such as the Epistle of Jeremiah, Prayer of Manasseh, among others.

[@VincenzoRutiglianoDiaz]

Awesome video on the historical background of these books. The most complete one I have seen

[@DavidHewettA]

Great video! I'm still a little confused as to why Enoch didn't make the final cut of the Catholic canon. You explained why it isn't considered canonical for Rabbinical Judaism, but I'm wondering what issue the early Christians had with it. Is there anything I can read for more info on this?

[@UsefulCharts]

Not sure. Hopefully someone who knows more about Catholic history and theology will reply.

[@Conankun66YT]

the channel RelgionForBreakfast has a video about it

[@gideonjudges7]

@@UsefulCharts Short simple answer: while it was very popular in some circles (like the Qumran Community or St. Irenaeus), it wasn't read very universally. Most people would have books like Wisdom or Sirach in their collections of books (and by collections we literally mean which scrolls each individual community had and used), but the majority of the communities didn't have Enoch. In a similar vein, in the New Testament canon, this is why 1 Clement ultimately didn't make it into the Bible. Some communities collected it (and many Fathers quoted it as Scripture), but it wasn't collected in the majority of the communities. (And in a modern Catholic context, the 73 book canon can be considered, in a certain sense, as the "lower limit" of the canon. Various groups in the Catholic Communion have slightly different Bibles according to whichever tradition [for example, the Vulgate of the Latin speaking Church has the Greek Ezra, the Ezra Apocalypse, and Prayer of Manasseh; the Greek tradition generally uses 3 Maccabees, the Greek Ezra, the Prayer, and Psalm 151]. These books could probably be called "semi-Scriptural stuff"--not *The* canon, but related literature which can be used in the Liturgy [for two examples: the Prayer of Manasseh is prayed on Saturday Night Prayers in the Greek tradition, or the Ezra Apocalypse being quoted in the Latin tradition's prayer Requiem æternam.])

[@richardmorin5967]

@@gideonjudges7 Dear Anthony, Thank you so much for your information.

[@richardmorin5967]

This is well thought-out explanation of how the Old Testament came to be. The narrator tells us the story in clear language and without any sectarian bias. It is a very useful tool in understanding who wrote it, when they wrote it, what relevant things were going on at that time, and how the books are related to each other. The information is simple and brief. I, for one, finally found out at what church council the Canon of the Old Testament was decided. I give it much praise for its straightforwardness.

[@rcambida]

This is simply amazing. Will you be making a full chart or book about this? It would be as cool as the World History one 😄

[@Thea_MojaveOutliersWhipmakers]

Haha! I got done listening to this and went to look for the next one! Then I realized you JUST posted this one. That's okay, I can wait! :)

[@TB-fm8kf]

the real question is, why did the protestants kick out 7 books that jesus himself believed and quoted.

[@jayglenn837]

Most interesting video yet! Thank you for your hard work & scholarship in pulling all of this together!

[@grahamrankin4725]

Very nice explanation. Both here and Religion for Breakfast brush aside the rest of Enoch and only talk about The Watchers. I would like to learn more about the other parts.

[@francinelieto8899]

This is quite helpful for my research. Thank you Useful Charts.

[@ianfitzpatrick2230]

It’s awesome learning how the books were changed or included or excluded. I grew up blindly evangelical Christian so I used to believe that the 1622 version of the Bible was the “holy infallible” work of God. What garbage haha but still have a measure of faith for the unseen in this world. Also love history which would include religious studies

[@poweroffmamakmamak8335]

Change???? Cannot change because that is word of God.if change its already corrupted..

[@IulianYT]

Yea, 1622 version is outdated, please use version 2020.3 with latest service pack and other security patches.

[@ianfitzpatrick2230]

@@poweroffmamakmamak8335 I mean you’d be bound by that logic if it were only true! If I tried showing my dad Maccabees and it’s similarity to Maccabean, he’d like to know what garbage bibles both those came from. Truly blind ignorance or as we Americans call it, Faith.

[@poweroffmamakmamak8335]

@Marlo2z Bro,I think better don't them them about our quran..because even we tell them,they don't know anything.they keep ignoring even they know something wrong about their own bible...

[@damek7471]

Really well done. Thanks very much for the outstanding work.

[@mynameisjeff605]

My coworker over heard me watching this and now he is interested in the other videos.

[@jazzuits]

Thanks for taking the time to study all this. Very helpful! 🙏🏻🙌🏻🎶

[@kanjid6780]

I know there are several more books in the Ethiopic New Testament which are not in the usual Catholic/Protestant/Eastern Orthodox NT. Do you plan on covering these at all?

[@graham9454]

I expect yes since this episode brought the Ethiopic OT up. The description lists these videos going forward: Episode 5: Gospels & Acts Coming Sep. 10, 2021 Episode 6: Epistles Coming Oct. 15, 2021 Episode 7: Daniel & Revelation Coming Nov. 12, 2021 Bonus Episode: The Quran Coming: Dec. 10, 2021

[@kanjid6780]

@@graham9454 See that list is why I asked, because nowhere there does there seem to be a place for the Ethiopic NT Apocrypha. I suppose Ethiopic Clement could go with the Epistles (though it's quite different) but the Sinodos, Covenant, and Ethiopic Didascalia have no place set aside. Might not be enough for a full episode, hence the omission, but they should probably be covered, perhaps alongside some of the never-canonized NT Apocrypha, such as the Gnostic works or some of the early Christian apocalyptic works.

[@jlupus8804]

It’s likely he did not realize there was an Ethiopian NT and he overlooked it I can’t blame him though, since so many of their OT books were actually written between 1st and 5th century AD.

[@graham9454]

@@kanjid6780 Given that the title for this video had zero mention of the Ethiopic OT, and it WAS included, I expect that he will not suddenly forget about their existence in the next video about the NT. Time will tell, but I'm gonna give him the benefit of the doubt due to its inclusion here.

[@kanjid6780]

@@graham9454 I'm not by any means saying they won't be included, I expect they will as well. But I'd certainly argue that the title encompasses the Ethiopic OT, which still falls under the category of Apocrypha, a term I have very often seen used to refer to any Christian text not considered scripture by the Protestant churches, not just those included in the Catholic OT.

[@swetaki1]

Hi, I really like your work. Can you do a similar video on Vedas

[@jlupus8804]

For anyone interested in a deeper dive into these books, I’d recommend The Bible Project

[@locacharliewong]

Can't wait every month. Just waiting for your clear explanation.

[@tau.r.u]

Do you think there is any deduceable reason why several of the more literary works seem more positive towards women or more focussed on women? (Ruth, Esther, Judith, Song of Solomon having a strong female voice expressing sexual desire) While there are certainly other instances of remarkable women in the older books (Deborah and Rachab being very obvious examples, but on occassion the matriarchs are quite active in their stories as well, Tamar and even Jezebel might also merit a mention), the bulk of the action seems male-centric. Could there have been a bit of a cultural shift, however slight, towards the stories of women or am I just overstating that reading through a 21st century lens?

[@Kali_Krause]

Women in ancient societies were powerful, espcially when it came to religious duties. In 325 AD, the Council of Nicea decided on not only what books went into the New Testiment but essentially erased most womanly aspects as well

[@gideonjudges7]

Quick thoughts: There are definitely more women active in the stories than we sometimes think. Sometimes it is our cultural reading of the story (for example, the story of Tamar in Genesis 38--"Victorian" reading of it: "Evil seductress, bad semen spilling guy [her 2nd husband Onan], just a bad 'icky' story"--more modern [and actually more ancient as well] interpretation of the story: "A Gentile woman abandoned and neglected by Judah [a hypocritical jerk derelict in his duty to provide for his family, who would also stand for the Nation of Judah] uses trickery to ensure that she would have justice. Judah even admits that 'she is more righteous than I'") Othertimes, it has been a change in our the interpretive lenses that we look at the Bible with (for example, there are many women in the OT who are described as "blessed among women" who are that because they attack the head of an enemy of Israel [Jael, Judith, the woman who killed Abimelekh, Esther, etc], which parallels "the woman" and "her seed" described in Genesis 3 as "striking at the head" of the evil serpent. Fits very well into a Catholic perspective [Mary is a blessed among women who is mother of the One Who would crush the snake on a hill called "skull". But, a Protestant perspective doesn't really like that imagery, so those OT examples of women being the prime fighter striking at the head of evil are often forgotten/not thought of as repeating the same themes)

[@SuppaflyZSM]

It would be nice if you'd make a video digging into the pre-monotheistic times.

[@rajendrakumarshivalingarad724]

You always provide an unbiased analysis 👍

[@daylematthews]

So clever and clear. Thanks you!

[@EldhjaertaZ]

I'd like to add, without any detail for now, that the Letter of Jeremiah was likely written in the 300s b.C., and the Prayer of Manasseh (though named for King Manasseh who lived in the 600s b.C.) was likely written as late as the first century b.C. - just for all y'all out there with those apocrypha in your Bibles

[@jasonrichards7230]

This is such a cool site. Keep up the great work!

[@ColleenJousma]

I was a religion major in undergrad and have a Masters in Religious Education. I'm an atheist now. I still love this religious history stuff. :)

[@UsefulCharts]

Such a common story - people who study religion more tend to believe it less. 🙂

[@rb5957]

love how this information is presented. Subscribed! thanks

[@YadinZedek777]

What about the Dead Sea Scrolls?

[@jasonwelle]

This has been a great series.

[@tempulus9228]

Hey Jason, if you like history please consider checking out my timeline of the 150+ most important people in history :)

[@lightningzeus1]

Interesting video, but I think you made a mistake when you mention 650 CE and 500 CE. I think you meant BCE.

[@graham9454]

Right you are! He just pinned a comment with that correction.

[@ashmirrahnashihinzahlan8786]

It’s been awhile since I learn basic bible in religious school (it’s been 3 years) so this helps me a lot!

[@andrenicolov4829]

I hope after the New Testament is done, you do one on the gnostic texts

[@sarahbethlauritzen5105]

It's amazing you can literally HEAR the story of the fight of heaven and earth in each segment.

[@Sunlight91]

As an Atheist my impartial judgement declares Orthodox as the best. 50 Books is simply a nice round number.

[@Kali_Krause]

I'm non religious but I find the Apocryphia very interesting. There are also books such as Bel and the Dragon, Gospel of Mary Magdalene, Gospel of Thomas, etc.

[@vivians9392]

As an atheist, you have no judgment, period.

[@ravilcn]

@@vivians9392 May I ask under what authority you state that as an Atheist he has no judgement period? You have no authority over him. His judgement is just as valid as yours.

[@viewer1Mbc]

I really like this series. It is quite informative. I recently purchased an English translation of the Septuagint and I notice it contains Apocrypha/Deuterocanonicals mentioned in various other versions of the old testament and wonder why it was not included.

[@dashiellgillingham4579]

I've never really comprehended why we're not allowed to study religious texts as literature. They are examples of literature, with history and authors and storytelling tropes and all the rest that goes into that. No-one would be so idiotic as to accuse Lord of the Rings of having no purpose just because it's events were not literally true. We tell these fantastic stories because they are internally true, "truth under imaginary circumstances." It should not effect your respect for these books that they are not exhaustively well-researched works of history. That is completely irrelevant in comparison to their importance as stories.

[@UsefulCharts]

Very well said!

[@hadriel1228]

We actually read the story of creation in my sophomore year.

[@stevetournay6103]

Enormously interesting. Boy do I ever not miss TV!

[@warlordofbritannia]

Tenahk: the beta version Catholic/Orthodox: release version Protestant: patched version Ethiopia: the “Game of the Year edition” with all the DLCs Dead Sea scrolls and other non-canonical books: cut content/mods

[@hermenvanlaar]

Very Thank Full for all your hard work that went into this. All tour video's for that matter. 🙏👌