The Apocrypha Controversy: Why Christian Bibles Have Different Books

Pick up a Protestant Bible and you will count 66 books. A Catholic Bible has 73. An Eastern Orthodox Bible may have a few more again, and the Ethiopian Orthodox Church recognises a still broader collection. Many Christians discover this for the first time and wonder: Who added books? Who removed them? Which Bible is right?

The honest answer is more interesting than "Catholics added books" or "Protestants removed them." This article explains what the Apocrypha is, how the different collections developed, what each Christian tradition believes and why, and how Christians can approach these books today. I write as a Protestant pastor, but I have tried to explain every tradition fairly, the way its own members would recognise.

What Is the Apocrypha?

The quick answer: "The Apocrypha" usually refers to a group of Jewish writings from the centuries around the time of Christ that appear in Catholic and Orthodox Bibles but not in the Protestant Old Testament. Christians disagree about whether these books are inspired Scripture.

The words used for these books differ, and the words themselves reflect the disagreement:

• Apocrypha (Greek for "hidden things") is the common Protestant term. Its meaning has shifted over church history; today it usually just means "books outside the Protestant canon," not "secret" or "false" books.
• Deuterocanonical books ("second canon") is the Catholic term. It does not mean "second-class"; it means books whose place in the canon was settled later or debated longer.
• Anagignoskomena ("books to be read") is a term some Orthodox Christians use for these writings.

The canon simply means the list of books a church recognises as Scripture. So the real question is not "Which Bible has the right number?" but "Which writings carry the authority of God's Word, and how did the church come to recognise them?"

Which Books Are Considered Apocrypha?

Here is a simplified comparison:

*The names of the Esdras books differ between Greek, Latin and English traditions, so the same book can appear under different names in different Bibles. Orthodox practice also varies between churches and editions.

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church has a broader canon, often counted as 81 books, which includes writings such as 1 Enoch and Jubilees.

When Were the Apocryphal Books Written?

Many of the books now called the Apocrypha or deuterocanonical books were written during the final centuries before Christ. Sirach, for example, was written in Hebrew around 180 BC and later translated into Greek by the author's grandson. 1 Maccabees tells the story of the Jewish revolt against the Greek king Antiochus IV in the 160s BC. Other writings have more complex histories, and some writings included in broader Apocrypha collections are later. For example, the central Jewish apocalypse within the book commonly called 2 Esdras in English editions is usually dated to the late first century AD, while other sections were added later.

These books circulated among Jewish and early Christian communities. Several were preserved in Greek biblical collections associated with the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Jewish Scriptures. That translation began with the Torah, traditionally linked with Alexandria in the third century BC, and other writings were translated or composed in Greek over time. However, the Septuagint was not one fixed collection. The great Greek Bible manuscripts of the fourth and fifth centuries contain different selections of books.

This matters because many early Christians, who mostly read the Old Testament in Greek, encountered these books alongside the books of the Hebrew Bible.

How Did the Biblical Canon Develop?

Jesus and the Scriptures of Israel

After His resurrection, Jesus told His disciples that "everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled" (Luke 24:44, ESV). This shows Jesus' recognition of Israel's Scriptures, grouped in a way that resembles the traditional Jewish divisions. It does not give a complete list of books, so on its own it does not settle the status of every disputed writing.

The Hebrew Bible used by Jews today contains the same content as the Protestant Old Testament, arranged and counted differently (24 books instead of 39). The first-century Jewish historian Josephus refers to a collection of twenty-two authoritative books. His description is often understood as broadly corresponding to the books of the later Hebrew Bible, although he does not provide a complete list identifying each book by name.

Early Christian lists

• Melito of Sardis (around AD 170) travelled to the East to learn the exact list of Old Testament books. His list is close to the Hebrew canon.
• Athanasius of Alexandria, in his Festal Letter 39 (AD 367), listed the canonical books and then named other books, including Wisdom, Sirach, Judith and Tobit, as not canonical but appointed to be read by new believers. His categories do not map perfectly onto later Catholic or Protestant lists: for example, he counted Baruch with Jeremiah but placed Esther among the books for reading.
• The regional Councils of Hippo (393) and Carthage (397) in North Africa recognised a broader Old Testament list that included these books.

Jerome and Augustine

Jerome, who translated the Bible into Latin (the Vulgate) around AD 400, distinguished the books found in the Hebrew Scriptures from other writings read by the church. He generally argued that the latter could be read for edification but should not be used independently to establish doctrine. Nevertheless, his work on the Latin Bible and his treatment of individual disputed books were more complicated than a simple acceptance or rejection of the Apocrypha.

Augustine, his contemporary, accepted the broader collection, and his view became the common position in the Western church for the next thousand years.

The Council of Florence (1442) included the broader list in a statement on the canon.

What Happened During the Reformation?

During the Reformation, questions about authority came to the centre. The Reformers argued that doctrine must rest on Scripture, so the question of which books are Scripture became urgent.

Martin Luther's complete German Bible of 1534 did not delete these books. He placed them in a separate section between the Testaments with the heading that they were "not held equal to Holy Scripture, but useful and good to read." Many early Protestant Bibles did the same. The King James Version of 1611 also included the Apocrypha between the Testaments. Over time, especially in the nineteenth century, many Protestant publishers began printing Bibles without them.

The Council of Trent (1546) responded by formally defining the Catholic canon, including the deuterocanonical books, as Scripture. Trent did not introduce these books into Christian Bibles for the first time. It formally reaffirmed a canon with substantial earlier precedent in the Western church, in the setting of the Reformation disputes.

So neither "Catholics added books" nor "Protestants removed books" fully explains the history. Both sides were making competing judgments about which writings possess canonical authority, drawing on different parts of the church's earlier tradition.

What Do Catholics, Orthodox and Protestants Believe?

Roman Catholic Church. The deuterocanonical books are fully inspired Scripture, equal in authority to the rest of the Old Testament, as defined by the Council of Trent.

Eastern Orthodox churches. These books are read in church and highly valued. Orthodox churches generally include them in their Bibles, though they have not defined the canon as precisely as Trent did, and views on their exact authority vary between churches and theologians.

Oriental Orthodox churches. Some, especially the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, recognise a broader collection that includes books such as 1 Enoch and Jubilees.

Protestant churches. These books are not inspired Scripture and should not be used to establish doctrine. Views differ on their usefulness:

• The Anglican Thirty-Nine Articles (Article VI) say the church reads them "for example of life and instruction of manners; but yet doth it not apply them to establish any doctrine."
• Lutherans have traditionally followed Luther's view that they are "useful and good to read."
• The Westminster Confession (Reformed and Presbyterian) states that they are not of divine inspiration and carry no authority in the church beyond other human writings.

Most Pentecostal and evangelical churches hold the Protestant 66-book canon.

Why Does the Apocrypha Matter for Christian Doctrine?

The controversy is not only about the number of books. It affects how some teachings are supported. A few examples:

• 2 Maccabees 12:38–46 describes Judas Maccabeus arranging prayers and a sin offering for Jewish soldiers who had died. Catholic interpreters see this passage as relevant to prayer for the dead and the doctrine of purgatory, understood alongside wider Catholic teaching and tradition; the doctrine is not built on this passage alone. Most Protestants do not accept the passage as a basis for binding doctrine because they do not recognise 2 Maccabees as Scripture. Orthodox Christians pray for the dead but do not share the Catholic doctrine of purgatory.
• Tobit speaks of almsgiving as delivering from death (Tobit 12:9). Protestants have often questioned how this fits with salvation by grace through faith, while Catholic readers understand it within a wider teaching on grace and good works.
• Wisdom 2:12–20 describes the righteous man who is mocked, tested and condemned to a shameful death. Many Christians, including Protestants, have found it a striking picture that points towards Christ.
• Sirach contains extensive teaching on wisdom, family, work and friendship, much like Proverbs.

Does the New Testament Quote the Apocrypha?

This question needs careful distinctions between a quotation, a possible echo and recognition as Scripture.

• Possible echoes. Some New Testament passages may echo these books. Hebrews 11:35 speaks of believers who "were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life," which many scholars connect with the martyrs of 2 Maccabees 7. Paul's description of idolatry in Romans 1 has similarities with Wisdom 13–14. These are possible literary connections, not direct quotations introduced as Scripture.
• A Jewish festival. John 10:22 mentions Jesus at the Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah), which commemorates events recorded in 1 Maccabees 4.
• Jude and 1 Enoch. Jude 14–15 quotes a prophecy also found in 1 Enoch 1:9, and Jude 9 refers to a tradition about Michael and the devil found in Jewish writings outside the Old Testament.

Quoting a source does not automatically mean the whole source is inspired Scripture. Paul quotes Greek poets in Acts 17:28 and Titus 1:12 without treating their writings as Scripture. And 1 Enoch is not part of the Catholic, mainstream Orthodox or Protestant canon, although it has a recognised place in the Ethiopian Orthodox tradition.

Should Christians Read the Apocrypha?

If you are Catholic or Orthodox, these books are already part of your Bible and your church's worship.

If you are Protestant, you are free to read them, and many Protestants find them valuable, while recognising that they are not Scripture. Here is some practical guidance:

1. Read them as history and background. 1 Maccabees is one of the best sources for Jewish history between the Old and New Testaments, and it helps you understand the world Jesus was born into.
2. Read them as wisdom literature. Sirach and Wisdom contain much practical and devotional insight.
3. Test everything by the canonical Scriptures. From a Protestant perspective, these books can be read for historical understanding and moral instruction, but doctrines binding on the church should be established from the recognised canonical Scriptures. Catholic and Orthodox Christians approach these writings differently because they recognise a broader biblical canon.
4. Use a reliable edition. Many study Bibles and translations, such as the NRSV with Apocrypha or the ESV with Apocrypha, include these books with helpful notes. Check the edition, because most standard Protestant editions do not include them.
5. Read with humility and charity. Christians who sincerely love God's Word have reached different conclusions here. This is an area for honest conviction, not contempt.

Frequently Asked Questions About the Apocrypha

Why did Protestants remove books from the Bible?

The Reformers did not so much remove books as judge that they did not carry the authority of Scripture. They followed the Hebrew canon and earlier voices such as Jerome. Early Protestant Bibles, including Luther's Bible and the 1611 King James Version, still printed these books in a separate section. Many later Protestant editions left them out.

Did the Catholic Church add books to the Bible?

No, not in the sense of inventing them. These books had been read in the church for centuries and appeared in many early Christian Bibles. The Council of Trent in 1546 formally defined them as Scripture, reaffirming a broader canon accepted by earlier councils such as Hippo, Carthage and Florence.

Is the Apocrypha inspired?

The Roman Catholic Church recognises the deuterocanonical books as inspired Scripture. Eastern Orthodox churches also receive and use a broader Old Testament collection, although their approaches to the exact boundaries and authority of particular books are not identical. Most Protestant churches do not recognise these writings as canonical Scripture, though many value them as historical and devotional writings. The difference comes from different judgments about the canon, not from different levels of respect for the Bible.

Is the Book of Enoch in the Bible?

1 Enoch is part of the Bible in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, but it is not in Catholic, mainstream Orthodox or Protestant Bibles. Jude 14–15 quotes a prophecy also found in 1 Enoch, but quoting a book does not make the whole book Scripture.

What is the difference between the Apocrypha and the Book of Enoch?

"The Apocrypha" usually refers to the books found in Catholic and Orthodox Bibles but not in Protestant ones, such as Tobit, Sirach and Maccabees. 1 Enoch belongs to a different, wider group of ancient Jewish writings that are not in most Christian Bibles, although the Ethiopian church includes it.

Did the King James Version include the Apocrypha?

Yes. The original 1611 King James Version included the Apocrypha in a separate section between the Old and New Testaments. Many later printings, especially from the nineteenth century onward, left it out.

Further Reading and Christian Resources

If questions about the Bible, its history or difficult passages are affecting your faith, you do not have to work through them alone. You can book a conversation with me through Talk to a Pastor, or explore more Bible teaching on the articles page.

A Closing Prayer for Wisdom and Understanding

Lord, thank You for speaking to us through Your Word. Give me a hunger to know the Scriptures and the humility to learn from Christians who have studied them before me. Where Your people disagree, give us charity towards one another and a deeper love for Christ, who is the centre of all Scripture. Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Your law (Psalm 119:18). Amen.