Answers to Objections Regarding

The Apocrypha:
No apocryphal book is referred to in the New
Testament, whereas the Old Testament is
referred to hundreds of times.
by Gary Hoge
For some reason, those who repeat this objection assume that if a book is not quoted in the New
Testament, it must not be inspired. Protestant author Josh McDowell wrote,
The New Testament writers may allude to the apocrypha, but they never quote from it as
holy Scripture or give the slightest hint that any of the books are inspired. If the
Septuagint in the first century contained these books, which is by no means a proven fact,
Jesus and His disciples completely ignored them.1
True, but they also completely ignored Judges, 1 Chronicles, Esther, Ruth, Ecclesiastes, Song
of Songs, Ezra, Lamentations, Nehemiah, Obadiah, Nahum, and Zephaniah. The New Testament
writers never quote these as holy Scripture or give the slightest hint that any of them are inspired.
So if their failure to quote from the deuterocanonical books indicates that those books are not
inspired, then neither are these.
Further torpedoing the quotation equals canonicity argument is the fact that the New Testament
authors not only completely ignored some inspired writings, but they also quoted from some
non-inspired writings. For example, Jude quoted from the book of Enoch (14Enoch, the seventh
from Adam, prophesied about these men: See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon
thousands of his holy ones 15to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly
acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken
against him.', CAPTION, 'Jude 14, 15')" href="javascript:void(0);"Jude 14, 15), and referred to
the Assumption of Moses (Jude 9). The Ascension of Isaiah is alluded to in
[According to the Ascension of Isaiah, Isaiah was martyred by being sawed in two.]', CAPTION,
'Hebrews 11:37')" href="javascript:void(0);"Hebrews 11:37. Paul quoted from the Cretan poet
Epimenides (De Oraculis] As some of your own poets have said, We are his offspring. [Aratus,
The Phenomena]', CAPTION, 'Acts 17:28')" href="javascript:void(0);"Acts 17:28; De Oraculis,
by Epimenides]', CAPTION, 'Titus 1:12')" href="javascript:void(0);"Tit. 1:12), and from the
Cilician poet Aratus (De Oraculis] As some of your own poets have said, We are his offspring.
[Aratus, The Phenomena]', CAPTION, 'Acts 17:28')" href="javascript:void(0);"Acts 17:28), and
from the Athenian poet Menander (1 Cor. 15:33). Even Jesus Himself quoted from the play
Agamemnon, by Aeschylus, in It is hard for you to kick against the goads.', CAPTION, 'Acts
26:14')" href="javascript:void(0);"Acts 26:14. It should be obvious, then, that quotation, or non-
quotation, is irrelevant to the issue of inspiration.
However, although the New Testament writers did not directly quote from the deuterocanonical
books, it is not true that they never referred to any of them. For example, when Paul writes,
Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel
for honorable use, and another for common use? (Rom. 9:21).
he may very well be referring to this passage from the book of Wisdom:
A potter kneads the soft earth and laboriously molds each vessel for our service,
fashioning out of the same clay both the vessels that serve clean uses and those for
contrary uses, making all alike (Wis. 15:7).
Or, when Paul writes,
No, but I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, and
not to God; and I do not want you to become sharers in demons (1 Cor. 10:20).
he could be referring to this passage:
For you provoked the one who made you by sacrificing to demons and not to God
(Baruch 4:7).
In the book of Hebrews, we are told that by faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see
death; and he was not found because God took him up; for he obtained the witness that before his
being taken up he was pleasing to God (Heb. 11:5). Where is this witness that Enoch was
pleasing to God? The entire Genesis account of the life of Enoch is this:
And Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah. Then Enoch
walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he
had other sons and daughters. So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five
years. And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him (Gen. 5:21-24).
We are not told here why God took Enoch. The Scriptural witness that Enoch was pleasing to
God is not found here, it is found in the book of Sirach:
Enoch pleased the Lord and was taken up, an example of repentance to all generations
(Sirach 44:16).
When Jesus said,
Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust destroy, and
where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where
neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal (Matt 6:19-20,
NASB).
I wonder if he had in mind this passage from Sirach:
Lose your silver for the sake of a brother or a friend, and do not let it rust under a stone
and be lost. Lay up your treasure according to the commands of the Most High, and it
will profit you more than gold (Sirach 29:10-11).
But I think that the clearest reference to the deuterocanonical books is found in the book of
Hebrews. In chapter 11, verse 35, we read, Women received back their dead, raised to life again.
Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection.
The first part of the verse is an obvious reference to the story of Elijah raising the widows son
from the dead in 1 Kings 17. But who were these people who were tortured and refused to be
released, so that they might gain a better resurrection? Well, you can read the entire Protestant
Old Testament, from Genesis to Malachi, but you wont find them.
The reason you cant find any mention of these great heroes of the faith is because their story is
found in one of the Old Testament books that the Protestant Reformers rejected. The inspired
author of Hebrews was referring to the book of 2 Maccabees, chapter 7, where we read:
1
It also happened that seven brothers with their mother were arrested and tortured with
whips and scourges by the king, to force them to eat pork in violation of Gods law.
2
One of the brothers, speaking for the others, said: What do you expect to achieve by
questioning us? We are ready to die rather than transgress the laws of our ancestors.
3
At that the king, in a fury, gave orders to have pans and caldrons heated.
4
While they were being quickly heated, he commanded his executioners to cut out the
tongue of the one who had spoken for the others, to scalp him and cut off his hands and
feet, while the rest of his brothers and his mother looked on.
5
When he was completely maimed but still breathing, the king ordered them to carry him
to the fire and fry him. As a cloud of smoke spread from the pan, the brothers and their
mother encouraged one another to die bravely, saying such words as these:
6
The Lord God is looking on, and he truly has compassion on us, as Moses declared in
his canticle, when he protested openly with the words, And he will have pity on his
servants.
7
When the first brother had died in this manner, they brought the second to be made sport
of. After tearing off the skin and hair of his head, they asked him, Will you eat the pork
rather than have your body tortured limb by limb?
8
Answering in the language of his forefathers, he said, Never! So he too in turn
suffered the same tortures as the first.
9
At the point of death he said: You accursed fiend, you are depriving us of this present
life, but the King of the world will raise us up to live again forever. It is for his laws that
we are dying.
10
After him the third suffered their cruel sport. He put out his tongue at once when told to
do so, and bravely held out his hands,
11
as he spoke these noble words: It was from Heaven that I received these; for the sake
of his laws I disdain them; from him I hope to receive them again.
12
Even the king and his attendants marveled at the young mans courage, because he
regarded his sufferings as nothing.
13
After he had died, they tortured and maltreated the fourth brother in the same way.
14
When he was near death, he said, It is my choice to die at the hands of men with the
God-given hope of being restored to life by him; but for you, there will be no resurrection
to life.
15
They next brought forward the fifth brother and maltreated him. Looking at the king,
16
he said: Since you have power among men, mortal though you are, do what you
please. But do not think that our nation is forsaken by God.
17
Only wait, and you will see how his great power will torment you and your
descendants.
18
After him they brought the sixth brother. When he was about to die, he said: Have no
vain illusions. We suffer these things on our own account, because we have sinned
against our God; that is why such astonishing things have happened to us.
19
Do not think, then, that you will go unpunished for having dared to fight against God.
20
Most admirable and worthy of everlasting remembrance was the mother, who saw her
seven sons perish in a single day, yet bore it courageously because of her hope in the
Lord.
21
Filled with a noble spirit that stirred her womanly heart with manly courage, she
exhorted each of them in the language of their forefathers with these words:
22
I do not know how you came into existence in my womb; it was not I who gave you
the breath of life, nor was it I who set in order the elements of which each of you is
composed.
23
Therefore, since it is the Creator of the universe who shapes each mans beginning, as
he brings about the origin of everything, he, in his mercy, will give you back both breath
and life, because you now disregard yourselves for the sake of his law.
24
Antiochus, suspecting insult in her words, thought he was being ridiculed. As the
youngest brother was still alive, the king appealed to him, not with mere words, but with
promises on oath, to make him rich and happy if he would abandon his ancestral customs:
he would make him his Friend and entrust him with high office.
25
When the youth paid no attention to him at all, the king appealed to the mother, urging
her to advise her boy to save his life.
26
After he had urged her for a long time, she went through the motions of persuading her
son.
27
In derision of the cruel tyrant, she leaned over close to her son and said in their native
language: Son, have pity on me, who carried you in my womb for nine months, nursed
you for three years, brought you up, educated and supported you to your present age.
28
I beg you, child, to look at the heavens and the earth and see all that is in them; then
you will know that God did not make them out of existing things; and in the same way
the human race came into existence.
29
Do not be afraid of this executioner, but be worthy of your brothers and accept death, so
that in the time of mercy I may receive you again with them.
30
She had scarcely finished speaking when the youth said: What are you waiting for? I
will not obey the kings command. I obey the command of the law given to our
forefathers through Moses.
31
But you, who have contrived every kind of affliction for the Hebrews, will not escape
the hands of God.
32
We, indeed, are suffering because of our sins.
33
Though our living Lord treats us harshly for a little while to correct us with
chastisements, he will again be reconciled with his servants.
34
But you, wretch, vilest of all men! do not, in your insolence, concern yourself with
unfounded hopes, as you raise your hand against the children of Heaven.
35
You have not yet escaped the judgment of the almighty and all-seeing God.
36
My brothers, after enduring brief pain, have drunk of never-failing life, under Gods
covenant, but you, by the judgment of God, shall receive just punishments for your
arrogance.
37
Like my brothers, I offer up my body and my life for our ancestral laws, imploring God
to show mercy soon to our nation, and by afflictions and blows to make you confess that
he alone is God.
38
Through me and my brothers, may there be an end to the wrath of the Almighty that has
justly fallen on our whole nation.
39
At that, the king became enraged and treated him even worse than the others, since he
bitterly resented the boys contempt.
40
Thus he too died undefiled, putting all his trust in the Lord.
41
The mother was last to die, after her sons (2 Macc. 7:1-41).
These brothers and their mother were tortured to death, one by one. But they all stood firm
because they had their eyes fixed on the resurrection of the just. They are the ones about whom
the inspired author says, [they] were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain
a better resurrection. And that isnt just my opinion, as the following three Protestant sources
confirm:
They bore the torture, and would not accept of deliverance upon such vile terms; and that
which animated them thus to suffer was the hope they had of obtaining a better
resurrection, and deliverance upon more honourable terms. This is thought to refer to that
memorable story, 2 Macc. ch. 7, etc.2
It is quite likely that the background for much of this concluding summary comes from 2
Mac. 6:18-7:42. The writer considers the men and women mentioned there to rank with
Gideon, Barak, Samson, David, etc., in witnessing to the meaning of faith.3
Heb. 10:35 is no doubt an echo of [2 Macc.] 6:18-7:42 and shows that the unknown
author of Hebrews had 2 Maccabees before him.4
Consider also the fact that Jesus and the disciples celebrated the feast of Hanukkah (22Then
came the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem. . . . 34Jesus answered them, Is it not written in
your Law, I have said you are gods? 35If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came
- and the Scripture cannot be broken - 36what about the one whom the Father set apart as his
very own and sent into the world?', CAPTION, 'John 10:22, 34-36')"
href="javascript:void(0);"John 10:22, 34-36). The significance of this is explained by Mark
Shea:
[T]he divine establishment of this key feast day is recorded only in the deuterocanonical
books of 1 and 2 Maccabees. It is nowhere discussed in any other book of the Old
Testament. In light of this, consider the importance of Christs words on the occasion of
this feast: Is it not written in your Law, I have said you are gods? If he called them
gods, to whom the word of God came - and the Scripture cannot be broken - what about
the One Whom the Father set apart as His very own and sent into the world? Jesus,
standing near the Temple during the feast of Hanukkah, speaks of His being set apart,
just as Judas Maccabeus set apart (i.e., consecrated) the Temple in 1 Maccabees 4:36-
59 and 2 Maccabees 10:1-8. In other words, our Lord made a connection that was
unmistakable to His Jewish hearers by treating the Feast of Hanukkah and the account of
it in the books of the Maccabees as an image or type of His own consecration by the
Father. That is, He treats the Feast of Hanukkah from the so-called apocryphal books of
1 and 2 Maccabees exactly as He treats accounts of the manna (32Jesus said to them, I
tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my
Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33For the bread of God is he who
comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.', CAPTION, 'John 6:32-33')"
href="javascript:void(0);"John 6:32-33; Exodus 16:4), the Bronze Serpent (John 3:14;
4They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But
the people grew impatient on the way; 5they spoke against God and against Moses, and
said, Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread!
There is no water! And we detest this miserable food! 6Then the LORD sent venomous
snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 7The people came to
Moses and said, We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that
 the LORD will take the snakes away from us. So Moses prayed for the people. 8The
LORD said to Moses, Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can
look at it and live. 9So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when
anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.', CAPTION,
'Numbers 21:4-9')" href="javascript:void(0);"Numbers 21:4-9), and Jacobs Ladder (John
1:51; Genesis 28:12) - as inspired, prophetic, scriptural images of Himself.5
End Notes
1
Josh McDowell and Don Stewart, Answers to Tough Questions Skeptics Ask About the
Christian Faith, (San Bernardino, CA: Heres Life Publishers, Inc., 1980), 36-37.
2
Matthew Henrys Commentary.
3
Gerald F. Hawthorne, Hebrews, International Bible Commentary, ed. F.F. Bruce, (Grand
Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1986), 1528.
4
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 1915.
5
Mark Shea, 5 Myths about 7 Books, Envoy Magazine, March/April, 1997.
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Copyright 2000 by Gary Hoge

Answers to Objections Regarding

The Apocrypha:
These books lack the distinctive elements which
give genuine Scripture their divine character,
such as prophetic power and poetic and religious
feeling.
by Gary Hoge
One thing Ive noticed about genuine Scripture is that it really doesnt have any distinctive
elements that give it an obviously divine character. On the contrary, the canonical books display
an amazing range of style and content. Some parts are beautifully written and deeply moving, but
others are about as exciting to read as the white pages of the phone book. About the only thing
these books have in common is the fact that theyre inspired. But, unfortunately, inspiration is an
invisible quality, and there really are no objective literary characteristics that make inspiration
obvious. Therefore, its pointless to arbitrarily establish poetic and religious feeling as the
litmus test of inspiration because 1) its extremely subjective; 2) theres no indication anywhere
in Scripture that these are characteristics all inspired books must display; and 3) many of the
books Protestants accept as inspired also dont have much in the way of poetic and religious
feeling.
Consider the book of Esther, for example. Its a great story, but it never mentions God at all, not
even once. Its hard to see, then, how it could stir up a lot of religious feeling. Other than the
fact that its in the Bible, theres nothing overtly religious about it. And what about the dark
nihilism of Ecclesiastes? What sort of warm religious feelings are we supposed to get when we
read, Meaningless! Meaningless! says the Teacher. Utterly meaningless! Everything is
meaningless (Eccl. 1:2)? And how are our passions stirred toward the contemplation of our
eternal destiny in Christ when we read, Mans fate is like that of the animals; the same fate
awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; man has no advantage
over the animal. Everything is meaningless (Eccl. 3:19). Sorry, but that is one book that
definitely fails the religious feelings test. In fact, if it werent already in the Bible, I doubt if it
would ever occur to me to put it there.
Read the first eight chapters of 1 Chronicles sometime (I dare you!), then tell me how poetic
those eye-glazing genealogies were. Or read Leviticus 13:47-14:57, which tells you more than
you ever wanted to know about how to handle mildew, and tell me how your heart was strangely
warmed by it. Please dont misunderstand me: Im not mocking the Word of God. Im simply
pointing out that its wrong to equate being inspiring with being inspired. Just because a passage
doesn't stir the emotions, that doesn't mean it's not genuine Scripture, and its not disrespectful to
admit that some parts of the Bible are quite dull. The deuterocanonical books are much like the
rest of the Old Testament in this respect. Some parts are exciting and moving, others are less so.
Moving on to something a bit more substantive, the author of this objection also feels that the
deuterocanonical books must not be genuine Scripture because they lack prophetic power.
But, it should be obvious that the absence of prophecy does not indicate that a book is not
inspired, because many of the biblical books contain no prophecy at all. In fact, most of them
dont. What prophetic power does 3 John have? Or Pauls private letter to Philemon?
Although the absence of prophecy doesnt prove anything, I do think that the presence of
genuine prophecy is a strong indication that a book is inspired, for where else can prophecy
come from, except from God? For example, consider Isaiah 53, or Psalm 22, where it says:
1
7 All who see me mock me; they
4 I am poured out like water, and
hurl insults, all my bones are out of joint.
shaking their heads: My heart has turned to wax; it has
8 He trusts in the LORD; let the melted away within me.
1
LORD rescue him. 5 My strength is dried up like a
Let him deliver him, since he potsherd, and my tongue
delights in him. sticks to the roof of my mouth;
9 Yet you brought me out of the you lay me in the dust of
womb; you made me trust
death.
in
1
you even at my mothers breast. 6 Dogs have surrounded me; a
1
0 From birth I was cast upon you; band of evil men has
from my mothers womb encircled me, they have pierced
you have been my God. my hands and my feet.
1
11Do not be far from me, for I can count all my bones; people
7
trouble is near and there
stare and gloat over me.
is
1
no one to help. 8 They divide my garments among
1
2 Many bulls surround me; strong them and cast lots for my
bulls of Bashan encircle clothing.
me.
1
3 Roaring lions tearing their prey
open their mouths wide
against me.

Isnt it obvious that thats a description of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ? Yet, that psalm was
written centuries before Jesus was born, which means that its uncanny similarity to the
crucifixion of Jesus is either the most amazing coincidence in the history of the world, or a
genuine example of divinely inspired prophetic writing.
So how do the deuterocanonical books stack up, prophecy-wise? Well, pretty much like the rest
of the Bible, actually. They dont contain much prophecy, but they do contain some. Consider
this passage from the second chapter of the book of Wisdom:
12 Let us lie in wait he calls the last
righteous man, righteous happy,
because he is and boasts that
and opposes our 17
Let us see if his
actions; words are true,
he reproaches us and let us test
the law, at the end of his life;
and accuses us 18 for if the
our training. child, he will help him,
13 He professes to and will deliver
of God, hand of his adversaries.
and calls himself 19 Let us test him
Lord. torture,
14 He became to us so that we may
our thoughts; gentle he is,
15 the very sight of and make trial of
to us, forbearance.
because his 20 Let us condemn
unlike that of others, shameful death,
and his ways are for, according to
16 We are he will be protected.
something base,
and he avoids
unclean;

This passage was written at least a hundred and fifty years before Jesus was born, which means,
once again, that its uncanny similarity to the life of Jesus is either an amazing coincidence, or
something that looks remarkably like divine inspiration. It seems clear to me that it is a prophetic
foretelling of the reaction of sinful men to the coming of Jesus, the righteous man (Luke
23:47) who calls himself a child of the Lord, and who says that God is his father (John 5:18).
They reject him because he reproaches them for their sins (John 7:7). The people conspire to kill
him (Matt. 12:14, Mark 3:6, 11:18), and verses 17-20 are eerily reminiscent of the taunts of the
crowd at the foot of the cross: He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he
said, I am the Son of God. (Matt. 27:44).
One of my Protestant friends, when he read this passage, wrote to me saying, Its got to be one
of the most clear-cut, obviously prophetic writings known to man, and it would have to be about
the most detailed and explicit prophecy showing Jesus is the Messiah. I agree. I think its right
up there with Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22. There are many things that convinced my mind that the
deuterocanonical books belong in the Bible, but this passage, more than any other, is what
convinced my heart. Since the book of Wisdom was written so long before the events it so eerily
foretells, can there be any doubt that it was inspired by God?
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Copyright 2000 by Gary Hoge

Answers to Objections Regarding

The Apocrypha:
Many of the great Fathers of the early Church
spoke out against the Apocrypha.
by Gary Hoge
Well, some did, but so what? Many of the great Fathers of the early church also spoke out against
some of the New Testament books. Justin Martyr, Polycarp, Clement of Alexandria, Irenaeus,
Origen, and Tertullian all rejected one or more of the canonical New Testament books. These
same Fathers also accepted books we now reject. For example, Irenaeus, Origen, Tertullian, and
Clement of Alexandria accepted The Shepherd as Scripture. Clement of Alexandria accepted The
Didache, and Origen accepted The Acts of Paul. The canonical books of Hebrews, James, Jude, 2
Peter, and 3 John were hotly contested, and were not generally accepted until the end of the
fourth century.
Also, although its true that some of the early Christians rejected the deuteros, most of them did
not. According to the Protestant International Bible Commentary:
Polycarp, Barnabas, Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, Cyprian, Origen
Greek and Latin Fathers alike quote both classes of books, those of the Hebrew canon
and the Apocrypha, without distinction. Augustine (A.D. 354-430) in his City of God
(18.42-43) argued for equal and identical divine inspiration for both the Jewish canon and
the Christian canon.1
This is confirmed by Protestant patristics scholar J.N.D. Kelley:
In the first two centuries . . . the Church seems to have accepted all, or most of, these
additional books as inspired and to have treated them without question as Scripture.
Quotations from Wisdom, for example, occur in 1 Clement and Barnabas . . . Polycarp
cites Tobit, and the Didache [cites] Ecclesiasticus. Irenaeus refers to Wisdom, the History
of Susannah, Bel and the Dragon, and Baruch. The use made of the Apocrypha by
Tertullian, Hippolytus, Cyprian and Clement of Alexandria is too frequent for detailed
references to be necessary.2
The fact that there was prolonged controversy over some of the biblical books (in both
testaments) certainly destroys John Calvins notion that Scripture is self-authenticating, but it
does not weigh against the inspiration of the deuteros any more than it weighs against the other
contested books that were eventually canonized. Remember, it was the Church, not individuals,
that decided which books belonged in the Bible. If I say that the book of James is not inspired (as
Martin Luther did) and the Church says it is, then Im the one thats wrong.
End Notes
1
Gerald F. Hawthorne, Canon and Apocrypha of the Old Testament, International Bible
Commentary, ed. F.F. Bruce, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1986), 35.
2
J.N.D. Kelly, Early Christian Doctrine, (New York: Harper & Row, 1960), 53-4.
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Copyright 2000 by Gary Hoge