Pseudepigrapha

Pseudepigrapha, meaning “writings with false titles,” is a general term for a collection of Jewish works written between 200 BC and 200 AD. Some of these works were written under the names of famous figures like Adam, Enoch, Moses, and Ezra. The Pseudepigrapha present themselves in the form of traditional stories, apocalyptic visions, and dreams. Their purpose was to help Jews who were experiencing hardship hold fast to their faith. They also reflect a specific historical context and are therefore of significant value as historical sources. However, because some of their accounts are bizarre and contain theological errors, they were rejected by the Jews and never accepted into the Old Testament canon. They are not considered a basis for faith by the church.

There are many works of Pseudepigrapha from the Old Testament era, including:1 Enoch,2 Enoch, 3 Enoch, the Book of Jubilees, the Sibylline Oracles, the Psalms of Solomon, the Testament of Moses (also known as the Assumption of Moses), the Martyrdom of Isaiah, the War Scroll, the Life of Adam and Eve (also known as the Apocalypse of Moses), and the Testament of Abraham.

Due to the bizarre nature of some of the accounts and the incorrect doctrines they contain, the Jews refused to include them in the Old Testament canon. In addition to the Pseudepigrapha, there were also fourteen or fifteen books of the Apocrypha (also called Deuterocanonical books) circulating at the time. These were written between 200 BC and 100 AD and largely reflect the religious, political, and social conditions of the intertestamental period. However, because their interpretations differ from accepted doctrine, both Judaism and Protestant Christianity do not accept them as canonical.