Why were certain books removed from the bible? Some texts were only known to select groups of people. They were therefore not applicable to the general population. Others simply did not fit into the narrative of the ancient texts. In other words, books were removed from the Bible because they were not accurate or did not have a place in the biblical narrative. In this article, we’ll discuss the Epistles of Jeremiah, Esther, and Soloman.
Baruch book
It was not a consensus in the early church that the Baruch book was an actual part of the Bible. Several scholars have suggested that the book was written by different people and a later editor united parts of it and attributed Baruch’s name to it. The controversy is not over yet, however. It is not known what happened to the original Hebrew manuscripts. In any case, Baruch is not an original book, so its removal from the Bible would be an extremely unfortunate development.
Protestants also rejected the Baruch book, which included chapters from the books of Tobit, Judith, Sirach, and Enoch. Some Protestants also rejected the book because it included a portion of the Book of Judith (Psalm 139:4), but did not mention it explicitly. The Synod of Hippo and Council of Carthage did not specifically mention Baruch, but cited his book in the psalm.
Epistle of Jeremiah
The Letter of Jeremiah is an Old Testament book that purports to be written by the prophet Jeremiah. The letter addresses the Jews who are about to be carried off to Babylon. It has been included in the Bibles of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox denominations as Baruch 6, and in the Authorized Version as Apocrypha. Scholars are divided on whether the letter is an authentic piece of writing or not.
This letter is believed to be pseudonymous, but the early church still refers to it as such, which gives it more credibility. It is essentially a treatise on idol worship, which has plagued Israel from the very beginning. The book of Baruch is often printed as chapter 6, and it is regarded as little more than a literary device. It is also a satirical tract against pagan idolatry.
Epistle of Esther
The Septuagint, the Greek version of the Bible, has two separate versions of the Book of Esther. The later chapters are often referred to as A-F in the Bible. However, the Septuagint version is not the Bible we use today. In fact, some modern Catholic English Bibles restore the Septuagint order to the Book of Esther. If you want to read the original Hebrew text, here are some links:
While the text does not mention God directly, Jewish tradition claims the author was Mordecai, a Jewish nobleman who served under King Ahasuerus. This may have been written in a polytheistic environment in the ancient country of Susa. It would have protected Mordecai from enemies and the king and, in turn, the book may have conveyed God’s work to Esther.
Epistle of Soloman
The Wisdom of Solomon was removed from the Bible in 1684. Many people disagreed with this decision. Others believed it was in the best interests of the Jews. There is no definitive evidence for either side, but the book was considered “worthy of reading,” a term used for works written in Greek within the Jewish community before Christ. However, some scholars believe that the Epistle of Soloman is an important source of information and wisdom.
In the past, it was widely accepted that the Wisdom of Solomon was written by King Solomon, but there is no evidence that he actually did write it. It was rejected by the early church, but a fragment from the Muratorian library referring to the wisdom of Solomon as “written by Solomon’s friends” is now accepted by the Catholic Church. Its date ranges from the 1st to the second century BC, which makes it an important piece of Christian and Jewish history.
