The Deuterocanonical Books
Caravaggio. Saint Jerome Writing (oil on canvas), c. 1605-1606. Galleria Borghese, Rome.
Course Description
The Deuterocanonical books are those books of Scripture written (for the most part) in Greek that are accepted by Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches as inspired, but they are not among the 39 books written in Hebrew accepted by Jews, nor are they accepted as Scripture by most Protestant denominations. The deuterocanonical books include:
Tobit
Judith
1 Maccabees
2 Maccabees
Wisdom (also called the Wisdom of Solomon)
Sirach (also called Ecclesiasticus)
Baruch, (including the Letter of Jeremiah)
Additions to Daniel
“Prayer of Azariah” and the “Song of the Three Holy Children” (Vulgate Daniel 3: 24-90)
Suzanna (Daniel 13)
Bel and the Dragon (Daniel 14)
Additions to Esther
Eastern Orthodox churches also include: 3 Maccabees, 4 Maccabees, 1 Esdras, Odes (which include the “Prayer of Manasseh”) and Psalm 151. Thus, in the Jewish and Protestant “Old Testament” there are 39 books; in the Roman Catholic, 46 books; and in the Eastern Orthodox, 51 books.
The word “deuterocanonical” means “belonging to the second canon,” the “protocanonical” books being the 39 books written in Hebrew and accepted by Jews and Protestants. Protestants often follow Martin Luther, calling the Deuterocanonical books “Apocrypha” [Greek = ajpovkrufoß], which means “hidden” or “obscure.”
This course completes our verse-by-verse study of the Hebrew Scriptures, or the “Old Testament.”
Congratulations, friends!
Syllabus
Sample Lesson