As regarding the Apocrypha, how does one know that Tobit, for example, is not a God inspired book? In the story, "Tobit" was accidentally blinded by sparrow dung (2:10); he goes about with "Raphael", an angel traveling incognito, who lies about his name, lineage, and identity (3:16-17, 5:4-5, 12, cp. 6:6). Azarias (Raphael's assumed name) teaches that: the smoke derived from burning the heart and liver of a fish will repulse and/or exorcise demonic spirits (6:6-7, 16-17); a fish's gall will heal blindness (6:8); and that alms (good works) "purge away all sins" (12:9).
The Word of God, however, teaches that Jesus accomplished that by His once for all finished work in His atoning death and resurrection for the sins and sin of all of Adam's offspring. It affirms that man is saved by God's grace (unmerited favor) through faith in Christ Jesus as a free gift (Eph.2:8), and not by works of righteousness which we have done (Titus 3:5)! Furthermore, in the Holy Scriptures exorcism is attained and secured simply by the power and authority found in the Name of Jesus. Yet according to Origen, Tobit is "inspired" in the same sense as were the four gospels.
The spurious nature of the Apocryphal book "The Shepherd of Hermas" is readily seen when compared to the Holy Scripture. For example in the third book of Hermas (Similitude IX, verse 121-124) we are told by an Angel (the Shepherd) that no man can enter the kingdom of God unless he is clothed by the garments of the four virgin women mentioned in this similitude. Furthermore, these four women are called "the holy spirits" and their garments are their names. We are informed that it will avail a man nothing to only take up the name of the Son of God unless he also receives the garment of the four virgins as even the Son of God bears their names. Thus the story adds to and contradicts the Gospel of Jesus. Now the most subtle form of heresy offered to man has always been that of "Jesus and ... ". When dealing with the subject of Salvation, anything that is added to Jesus and Him alone is not merely error - it is heresy. The power of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus is found in its simplicity. When man embellishes the Gospel by adding religious "strings" he always diminishes its force.
The only books of value among any of these books are those of First and Second Maccabees. Although they do not belong to the O.T. canon, unlike the mythological, spurious Bible contradicting material found in the other extra-biblical books, the data found in Maccabees does seem to be a fairly reliable historical account of the Selucid oppression of the Jews and the revolt lead by the Maccabean priesthood against that tyranny and persecution (171-37 B.C.).
Over the years much has been said concerning the fact that the first edition of the King James Bible contained the Apocrypha. It is true that the publisher of the 1611 edition did insert the Apocrypha between the Testaments, but it was never included within the Old Testament text as was so done in the Hexapla, in Vaticanus and Sinaiticus. The Apocrypha section from the Cambridge Group of the 1611 translators rendered the entire work into English but for historical purposes only - not as inspired Scripture.1 The Apocrypha was removed even from the space between the Testaments in the second edition; meanwhile, it in no way affected the accuracy of the texts of the Old or New Testaments.2
2 Hills, The King James Version Defended, op. cit., p. 230.
