dystopia

The lost books of the bible are also known as the apocrypha. Unbeknownst to many a bible with the apocrypha can still be purchased. Just search for one on Barnes & Noble or ask for one at a local book store and you are sure to find a book with all the stories that have been left out of the normal King James Version or you can get a King James Version with the apocrypha in it.

Why are these books left out of most bibles? Perhaps one of the best kept secrets of the modern Protestant church is that the Bible used by that body is not the original King James Bible.  That translation, completed in 1611, and the Bibles published for the use of the clergy and the church members until late in the 19th Century, contained 80 books.  Although attempts to remove the 14 books known as the Apocrypha from the Bible began immediately after the King James translation was completed they remained in the Bible until the end of the 19th Century.  There is no doubt that the 14 books of the Apocrypha were controversial, but it cannot be denied they were included in the original King James Bible. There are 155,683 words and over 5,700 verses contained in 168 chapters now missing from the King James translation of the Bible due to the exclusion of the Apocrypha.  Although this only happened just over a hundred years ago, their existence as fully accepted scripture is virtually unknown. One person claimed that “The books commonly called Apocrypha, not being of divine inspiration, are no part of the Canon of Scripture; and therefore are of no authority in the Church of God, nor to be any otherwise approved, or made use of, than other human writings.” (Westminster Confession, 1647).  In 1880 the American Bible Society voted remove the “Apocrypha” Books from the King James Version. These 14 Books of  the Apocrypha had been part of the King’s bible since 1611.  The “Apocrypha” was officially removed from the English printings of the KJV by the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1885 leaving only 66 books.

Should people who are Christians be concerned that these books should be part of the bible? Or should these books be left out, like they have been? I’m not sure how important the missing books are to the Bible and word of God, but if it is the word of God and influenced by God then why isn’t it in most bibles that are now distributed today? Should this be disturbing to me as a Christian? Isn’t the last couple of lines in Revelation warning us against adding or taking away from the Bible, the word of God. “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from teh words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” Or, does that just mean taking away or adding to the book of revelation? Anyways, shouldn’t we be able to read these books even though they may have been thought of as not entirely genuine or from God’s word but from the people of the time?

If you’d like to find a bible that has the apocrypha in it still search for these bibles:
The Bible: Authorized King James Version with Apocrypha: Published by Oxford University Press; ISBN: 0192835254
KJV Standard Reference Edition With Apocrypha: Published by Cambridge Univ Pr (Bibles); ISBN: 0521509467
1611 Edition: a reprint of the 1611 KJV With Apocrypha, Published by Nelson Bible; ISBN: 0840700415
The Dake Annotated Reference Bible, Standard Edition: King James Version With Apocrypha, Published by Dake Publishing ISBN: 1558290699

Or to read the books online go to: www.notinthebible.com