Why wasn't the apocrypha included in the protestant bible?

Answer 1

"Halley's Bible Handbook" says:

"The Apocrypha

This is the name usually given to the 14 books contained in some of the Bibles between the Old and New Testaments. They originated in the 1st to 3rd centuries B.C., mostly of uncertain authorship, and were added to the Septuagint, which was a Greek translation of the Old Testament made in that period. They were not in the Hebrew Old Testament. They were written after Old Testament prophecy, oracles and direct revelation had ceased. Josephus rejected them as a whole. They were never recognized by the Jews as part of the Hebrew Scriptures. They were never quoted by Jesus, nor anywhere in the New Testament. They were not recognized by the Early Church as of canonical authority, nor as of divine inspiration. When the Bible was translated into Latin in the 2nd century A.D., its Old Testament was translated, not from the Hebrew Old Testament, but from the Greek Septuagint Old Testament. From the Septuagint these Apocryphal books were carried over into the Latin translation; and from thence into the Latin Vulgate, which became the common version in Western Europe till the time of the Reformation. Protestants, basing their movement on the Divine Authority of God's Word, at once rejected these Apocryphal books as being no part of God's Word, as the Early Church and the ancient Hebrews had done..."

(Halley's Bible Handbook: Classic Edition; ',The Apocrypha' pp 406-407)

Answer 2

There were probably hundreds of early Jewish books that dealt in some way with religion or, like Esther, celebrated Jewish national character, or, like Song of Solomon, appealed because of their eroticism, but which were not accepted into the canon. The Apocryphal books are just some of those that were not considered or which were rejected by the scribes who came together to consider these things.

The Council of Jamnia, meeting around 96 CE, selected those books that its members felt worthy of inclusion in the Hebrew Bible. Not all decisions were unanimous and some books were eventually included or excluded because of strong support or opposition by influential members.

By the time the Christian Church had become aware of the Hebrew canon, it had already established its own Old Testament canon, which included some books that the Council of Jamnia had rejected. With the coming of the Protestant Reformation, the Protestant leaders took the opportunity to remove these Apocryphal, or deuterocanonical, books from their Bible.

Answer 3

"The Apocrypha

This is the name usually given to the 14 books contained in SOME BIBLES [emphasis, mine] between the Old and New Testaments. They originated in the 1st to 3rd centuries B.C., mostly of uncertain authorship, and were added to the Septuagint, which was the Greek translation of the Old Testament made in that period. They were not in the Hebrew Old Testament. They were written after Old Testament prophecy, oracles and direct revelation had ceased. Josephus rejected them as a whole. They were never recognized by the Jews as part of the Hebrew Scriptures. They were never quoted by Jesus, nor anywhere in the New Testament. They were not recognized by the Early Church as of canonical authority, nor as of divine inspiration.

When The Bible was translated into Latin in the 2nd century A.D., its Old Testament was translated, not from the Hebrew Old Testament, but from the Greek Septuagint version of the Old Testament. From the Septuagint these Apocryphal books were carried over into the Latin translation; and from thence into the Latin Vulgate, which became the common version in Western Europe till the time of the Reformation.

Protestants, basing their movement on the Divine Authority of God's Word, at once rejected these Apocryphal books as being no part of God's Word, as the Early Church and ancient Hebrews had done.

Then the Roman Catholic Church, in the council of Trent, A.D. 1546, which was held to stop the Protestant movement, declared these books to be canonical, and they are still in the Douay Version (Roman Catholic Bible)..."

(Halley's Bible Handbook: Classic Edition; 'The Apocrypha,' pp 406-407)

Answer 4

the apocrypha was purposly tooken out the bible so that people could not no the truth. however it is very hard to do and find the apocrypha because it is almost like it never existed