Guide
What Are the Pseudepigrapha?
ca. 200 BCE–200 CE
The term pseudepigrapha denotes writing falsely attributed to a known figure. Though a text may be an example of pseudepigrapha in a general sense, Pseudepigrapha (capitalized) is also the designation for a body of Jewish writings from approximately 200 BCE to 200 CE that are not included in the Bibles of most Jewish and Christian communities, such as the books of Enoch, 2–4 Baruch, and Jubilees. Most of the Pseudepigrapha were preserved by Christians, and many include Christian revisions and additions. Earlier versions of several of these works have also been found among the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Related Primary Sources
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Jewish War Captives Settle in Alexandria
Letter of Aristeas 12–15, 34b–40
But I thought that there was an opportune moment concerning matters about which I frequently asked Sosibius of Tarentum and Andreas, the head…
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Scribe of Righteousness
1 Enoch 12:3–4; 92:1
And I, Enoch, began to bless the Lord of the mighty ones and the King of the universe. At that moment the Watchers were calling me. And they said to me, “Enoch, scribe of righteousness, go…
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Scribes as Descendants of Levi
Testament of Levi 8:11–19
And they said to me, “Levi, your posterity shall be divided into three offices as a sign of the glory of the Lord who is coming. The first lot shall be great; no other shall be greater than it.
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Storing Scrolls in Earthenware Jars
Testament of Moses 1:15–18
Therefore, I shall speak plainly to you. The years of my life have come to an end and, in the presence of the entire community, I am going to sleep with my fathers. But [you] take this writing so…
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The Priestly Service
Letter of Aristeas 92–95
Now the service of the priests is not to be surpassed by anything in physical strength or in its state of decorum and silence. For all, of their own accord, work diligently at a greatly laborious…
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The Origin of the Levitical Priesthood
Testament of Levi 8:1–10
There I again saw the vision as formerly, after we had been there seventy days. And I saw seven men in white clothing, who were saying to me, “Arise, put on the vestments of the priesthood, the…
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The Corruption of the Priests
Testament of Levi 14:1–18:13
And now, my children, I know from the writings of Enoch that in the end-time you will act impiously against the Lord, setting your hands to every evil deed; because of you, your brothers…
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The Priests as False Stewards
2 Baruch 10:18
You, priests, take the keys of the sanctuary,
and cast them to the highest heaven,
and give them to the Lord and say,…
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The Temple Vessels Are Buried
4 Baruch 3:8–11, 17–20; 4:4
And Jeremiah said, “Behold, Lord, we know now that you are delivering the city into the hands of its enemies, and they will carry the people off into Babylon. What do you want me to do with…
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The Eschatological Temple
2 Baruch 4:1–5; 59:4
And the Lord said to me:
This city will be delivered up for a time,…
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Prayer of Confession
Psalms of Solomon 9:1–11
When Israel was taken into exile to a foreign country,when they neglected the Lord, who had redeemed them,they were expelled from the inheritancewhich the Lord had given them.The dispersion of…
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The Seven Spirits
Testament of Reuben 2:1–9
And now give heed to me, my children, concerning the things which I saw during my time of penitence, concerning the seven spirits of deceit. For seven spirits are established against mankind, and they…
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Mastering the Emotions
4 Maccabees 2:15–24
It is evident that reason rules even the more violent emotions: lust for power, vainglory, boasting, arrogance, and malice. For the temperate mind repels all these malicious emotions, just as it…
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The Martyrdom of the Eldest Son
4 Maccabees 9:10–25
When they had said these things, the tyrant was not only indignant, as at those who are disobedient, but also infuriated, as at those who are ungrateful. Then at his command the guards brought…
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The State of Agriculture
Letter of Aristeas 107–108, 112–115
It was not without reason that the first settlers constructed the city with fitting proportions, and they planned wisely. For the country is broad and beautiful, and some parts are flat, such as…
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The Festivals and the Calendar Controversy
Jubilees 6–50 (selections)
Amid advocating for a solar calendar, this text offers alternative explanations for the biblical holidays.
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Neglect of Circumcision
Jubilees 15:33–34
I am now telling you that the Israelites will prove false to this ordinance. They will not circumcise their sons in accord with this entire law because they will leave some of the flesh of their…
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The Soul’s Holding Pattern
1 Enoch 22:1–4
Then I went to another place, and he showed me on the west side a great and high mountain of hard rock and inside it four beautiful corners; it had [in it] a deep, wide, and smooth (thing) which was…
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Abel and the Twelve Tribes
Testament of Abraham 13:1–14
And Abraham said, “My lord Commander-in-chief, who is this all-wondrous judge? And who are the angels who are recording? And who is the sunlike angel who holds the balance? And who is the fiery angel…
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Son of Man
1 Enoch 46:1–3; 49:4; 51:1–4
At that place, I saw the One to whom belongs the time before time. [ . . . ] And I asked the one—from among the angels—who was going with me, and who had revealed to me all the secrets…
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Baskets of Flowers
3 Baruch 11–15
And the angel of power took me and led me to the fifth heaven. And he showed me large gates, and names of men were written (on them), and they were closed. And I said, “Lord, will these…
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Trial by Ordeal
Sibylline Oracles 2.214–283
Then the imperishable angels of immortal God, Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, and Uriel, who know what evils anyone did previously, lead all the souls of men from the…
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A Heavenly Messiah
1 Enoch 46–69 (selections)
And I saw there one who was Ancient of Days [lit., Head of Days], and his head was white like wool, and with him was another whose face had the appearance of a man. His face was full of…
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Immortality Is the Reward for Martyrdom
4 Maccabees 17:11–16
Truly the contest in which they were engaged was divine, for on that day virtue gave the awards and tested them for their endurance. The prize was immortality in endless life. Eleazar was the…
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Eternal Agony in the Accursed Valley
1 Enoch 27:1–2
At that moment, I said, “For what purpose does this blessed land, entirely filled with trees, (have) in its midst this accursed valley?” Then, Uriel, one of the holy angels, who was with me…
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An Abyss of Fire
1 Enoch 90:23–27
Behold, I saw all of them bound; and they all stood before him. Then his judgment took place. First among the stars, they received their judgment and were found guilty, and they went to the place…
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Description of Hell
2 Enoch 10:1–6
[Here they showed Enoch the frightful place and various tortures. Word “9.”]And those men carried me to the northern region; and they showed me there a very frightful place; and all kinds of…
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Satan’s Rebellion and Expulsion from Heaven
Life of Adam and Eve 12–16
And the devil sighed and said, “O Adam, all my enmity and envy and sorrow concern you, since because of you I was expelled and deprived of my glory which I had in the heavens in the midst of angels…
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Division of the Earth’s Portions to Noah’s Sons
Jubilees 8–9 (selections)
At the beginning of the thirty-third jubilee [1569–1617] they divided the earth into three parts—for Shem, Ham, and Japheth—each in his own inheritance. [This happened] in the first year of…
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Noah’s Daughters-in-Law
Jubilees 7:14–16
He [Ham—Ed.] built himself a city and named it after his wife Neelatamauk. When Japheth saw [this], he was jealous of his brother. He, too, built himself a city and named it after his wife…
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Rebekah’s Dying Wishes
Jubilees 35:6–27
She said to him [Jacob—Ed.], “My son, throughout my entire lifetime I have noticed no improper act in you but only proper one[s]. However, I will tell you the truth, my son: I will die during this…
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Dinah and Bilhah
Jubilees 34:15–17
That day Bilhah heard that Joseph had perished. While she was mourning for him, she died. She had been living in Qafratefa. His daughter Dinah, too, died after Joseph had perished. These three…
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Aseneth Succumbs to Joseph’s Charm
Joseph and Aseneth 2–11, 14–15, 19
Aseneth [ . . . ] despised and rejected all the men who courted her, and she was arrogant and superior to everyone. Indeed, no man had ever seen her, because she resided in a tower which adjoined…
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Job’s Daughters
Testament of Job 46–50
His [Job’s] property was brought forth and divided among his seven sons, but he did not give anything to his three daughters. Very…
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David’s Praise for Deliverance
Psalm 153
Spoken by David After Receiving God’s Grace When He Delivered Him from the Lion and the Wolf and Those Two He Killed by His Hands.
…
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Laments of Baruch for the Destruction of Jerusalem
2 Baruch 10:5–11:7; 35:1–4
[ . . . ] I, Baruch, came back and sat in front of the doors of the Temple, and I raised the following lamentation over Zion and said:Blessed is he who was not born,or he who was born and…
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Laments of Eliphas and Nereus for Job
Testament of Job 31:7–32:12; 53:1–4
And so, after he [Eliphas] had wept with a loud wailing, he called out a royal lament while both the other kings and their troops sang in response.Hear then the lament of Eliphas…
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Enoch’s Prayer before the Flood
1 Enoch 84:1–6
Then I raised up my hands in righteousness and blessed the Holy and Great One; and I spoke with the breath of my mouth and the tongue of flesh which God has made for the children of the flesh, the…
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Noah’s Prayer for His Sons
Jubilees 10:1–6
During the third week of this jubilee [1583–1589], impure demons began to mislead Noah’s grandchildren, to make them act foolishly and to destroy them. Then Noah’s sons came to their father Noah and…
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Abraham’s Prayer for Protection and Good Counsel
Jubilees 12:19–21
That night he prayed and said:My God, my God, God Most High,You alone are my God.You have created everything:Everything that was and has been is the product of your hands.You and your lordship I…
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Baruch’s Prayer for Enlightenment
2 Baruch 54
And I asked the Mighty One and said:
You alone, O Lord, knew the heights of the world beforehand and that which will happen in the times which you bring about by your word. And…
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David’s Prayer for Deliverance
Psalm 152
Spoken by David After Fighting Against the Lion and the Wolf Which Took Sheep from His Flocks.
O God, O God, come to my…
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Moses’ Prayer for Israel’s Future Well-Being
Jubilees 1:19–21
Then Moses fell prostrate and prayed and said: “Lord my God, do not allow your people and your heritage to go along in the error of their minds, and do not deliver them into the control of the…
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Baruch’s Prayers for Divine Mercy on Israel
2 Baruch 48:1–24; 75:1–8
And it happened after seven days that I prayed before the Mighty One and said:
O Lord, you summon the coming of the times,and they…
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Terah Blesses Abraham
Jubilees 12:28–29
In the seventh year of the sixth week, he spoke with his father and told him that he was leaving Haran to go to the land of Canaan to see it and return to him. His father Terah said to him:
“Go in…
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Abraham Blesses Jacob
Jubilees 19:26–29
Then he summoned Jacob into the presence of his mother Rebekah, kissed him, blessed him, and said, “My dear son Jacob whom I myself love, may God bless you from above the firmament. May he give…
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Isaac Blesses Jacob and Esau
Jubilees 26:21–24, 33–34
[Jacob’s—Ed.] father Isaac said to him, “Come close and kiss me, my son.” He came close and kissed him. When he smelled the fragrant aroma of his clothes, he blessed him and said, “Indeed the…
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Isaac Blesses Levi and Judah
Jubilees 31:13–20
He turned to Levi first and began to bless him first. He said to him, “May the Lord of everything—he is the Lord of all ages—bless you and your sons throughout all ages.May the Lord give you and…
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Isaac Blesses Jacob and His Sons
Jubilees 36:15–16
Isaac then said, “May a blessing rest on you, my sons, and on your descendants today because you have given me rest. My mind is not sad regarding the birthright—lest you do something evil about it.…
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Joseph Blesses Aseneth
Joseph and Aseneth 8
Raising his right hand, he placed it upon her head, and said:
O Lord, God of my father Israel,Most High, Mighty One of Jacob,Who gave life to all things,And summoned them out of the darkness into…
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Lament for Sitis, Job’s Wife
Testament of Job 25:1–8
Who is not amazed that this is Sitis, the wife of Job?
Who used to have fourteen draperies sheltering her chamber and a door within doors, so that one was considered quite worthy merely to gain…
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Aseneth’s Prayer of Confession
Joseph and Aseneth 21
She then began her confession to the Lord God and gave thanks, praying for all those who were deemed acceptable by the Lord:
I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned!I have committed many sins in your…
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Rebekah Blesses Jacob
Jubilees 25:11–22
Then she lifted her face to heaven, extended her fingers, and opened her mouth. She blessed the Most High God who had created the heavens and the earth and gave him thanks and praise. She said,…
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The Ten “Weeks” of History
1 Enoch 93:3–10; 91:11–17
Then Enoch took up his discourse and said: I was born the seventh of the First Week, while justice and righteousness still endured. And thereafter in the Second Week great wickedness shall…
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Israel’s Future and the Coming Kingdom
Testament of Moses 6:1–9; 10:1–10
Then powerful kings will rise over them, and they will be called priests of the Most High God. They will perform great impiety in the Holy…
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A Sacred Race of Pious Men
Sibylline Oracles 3.573–623
There will again be a sacred race of pious men
who attend to the counsels and intention of the Most High,
who fully honor the…
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God’s Celestial Palace and Enoch’s Commission
1 Enoch 14:8–25
And in the vision thus it appeared to me: Behold, clouds called me in the vision, and mists summoned me. Shooting-stars and lightnings urged me on and whirled me along, and in my vision winds gave me…
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Bodily Ascent to Heaven
2 Enoch 22:5–23:2
And the Lord, with his own mouth, said to me, “Courage, Enoch, do not fear! Arise and stand before my face forever.” And Michael, the archistratege [highest archangel], lifted me up and…
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The Grapevine in the Garden of Eden
3 Baruch 4:7–17
And the angel said to me, “When God made the garden and commanded Michael to gather two hundred thousand and three angels so that they could plant the garden, Michael planted the olive and Gabriel…
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Phoenix, Guardian of the World
3 Baruch 6:1–16
And taking me, he led me where the sun goes forth. And he showed me a chariot drawn by four horses and fire underneath it. And upon the chariot sat a man wearing a fiery crown. The chariot was drawn…
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Vision of the Glory of God
Apocalypse of Abraham 15:1–17:21
And it came to pass when the sun was setting, and behold a smoke like that of a furnace, and the angels who had the divided portions of the…
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The Beauty of the Law
Letter of Aristeas 176–177
And they came with the gifts that had been sent and the remarkable parchments on which the legislation had been written in golden writing in Judean characters, the parchment being worked amazingly…
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The Circumstances of the Septuagint’s Translation
Letter of Aristeas 1–11, 32, 308–317 (selections)
Having composed a noteworthy narrative, O Philocrates, about the meeting that we had with Eleazar, the high priest of the Judeans, since you place a high value, as you constantly mention, on hearing…
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The Letter of Aristeas’ Description of the Temple
Letter of Aristeas 83–91, 96–104
An official from Hellenistic Egypt describes the Jerusalem Temple.
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The Temple Mount as the Navel of the World
Jubilees 8:19
He knew that the Garden of Eden is the holy of holies and is the residence of the Lord; [that] Mount Sinai is in the middle of the desert; and [that] Mount Zion is in the middle of the navel of the…
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Enoch’s Vision of the Rebuilt Temple
1 Enoch 90:28–30, 36
Then I stood still, looking at that ancient house being transformed: All the pillars and all the columns were pulled out; and the ornaments of that house were packed and taken out together with them…
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Confusion and War
2 Baruch 70:2–71:1; 72:2–73:1
Behold, the days are coming and it will happen when the time of the world has ripened and the harvest of the seed of the evil ones…
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The Transformation of the Wicked and the Righteous
2 Baruch 49–51
But further, I ask you, O Mighty One; and I shall ask grace from him who created all things. In which shape will the living live in your day? Or how will remain their splendor which will…
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Edni in Jubilees
Jubilees 4:20
During the twelfth jubilee, in its seventh week [582–588], he [Enoch—Ed.] took a wife for himself. Her name was Edni, the daughter of Daniel, the daughter of his father’s brother. In the sixth year of…
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Edni in 1 Enoch
1 Enoch 85:2–3
Then Enoch responded and said to his son, Methuselah: “I shall speak to you, my son, hear my words and incline your ears to the dream vision of your father. Before I married your mother, Edna, I was…
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Betanosh in Jubilees
Jubilees 4:28
In the fifteenth jubilee, in the third week [701–707], Lamech married a woman whose name was Betanosh, the daughter of Barakiel, the daughter of his father’s brother. During this week she gave birth…
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Emzara in Jubilees
Jubilees 4:33
In the twenty-fifth jubilee Noah married a woman whose name was Emzara, the daughter of Barakiel, the daughter of his father’s brother—during the first year in the fifth week [1205]. In its third year…
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Jacob and Esau Battle
Jubilees 37:1–38:14
On the day that Isaac, the father of Jacob and Esau, died, Esau’s sons heard that Isaac had given the birthright to his younger son Jacob. They became very angry. They quarreled with their…
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Jubilees on Pharaoh’s Daughter
Jubilees 47:5
At that time Tarmuth, Pharaoh’s daughter, went out to bathe in the river and heard you [Moses] crying. She told her slaves to bring you, so they brought you to her.
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Letter of Aristeas on Separation from Non-Jews
Letter of Aristeas 130–152 (selections)
“You observe,” he said, “what kind of result is produced by conduct and associations, since people who associate with evildoers become perverted, and they are miserable in the whole of life. But if…
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Jubilees on Israel as a Holy Progeny
Jubilees 16–30 (selections)
All the descendants of his [Abraham’s—Ed.] sons would become nations and be numbered with the nations. But one of Isaac’s sons…