Why Does the Catholic Bible Have More Books? – 5 Facts

I remember when I had the question, why does the Catholic Bible have more books than the King James Bible with which I am familiar?

This occurred when I was just a small child. I was going through some of my books in the house where my parents lived, and I found a book that I immediately recognized as a Bible, but when I started to look through it, I realized that it had “extra” books. When I questioned this, my parents told me that it was a Roman Catholic Bible.

They also told me that my grandmother came from a Roman Catholic background, and the extra books that the Catholic Bible contained were not “inspired.” While I accepted this explanation, and believed it to be the truth, here is a longer and more complete reasoning to answer the question, “Why does the Catholic Bible have more books?”  

Before delving into answering this question about Roman Catholic Bibles versus the “Protestant Bible,” let me explain that I am not a Catholic, but neither am I Protestant.

I have not protested against the Catholic church, nor have I ever aligned myself with any denomination that historically has its roots in the Catholic church, i.e., Lutheran, Episcopalian, or Presbyterian. I am simply a Bible believing Christian.

No, I don’t use the Catholic Bible, but I know that God’s wonderful plan of salvation is found in the Catholic Bible as well as the non-Catholic Bible. God reaches out to mankind through His Word, regardless of their association with any denomination, or even no religious affiliation.

Apocryphal Or Deuterocanonical Books

The canon of Scriptures is a set of texts, more commonly called “books.” Many of the Catholic Bible include 73 books in their canon, while the Protestant bibles holds 66 books. The main seven disputed books are Tobias, Judith, Baruch, Ecclesiasticus, Wisdom, and First and Second Maccabees, along with some additions to the books of Esther and Daniel.

So the valid question many people ask is, “Why does the Catholic Bible have more books?” Actually, even some Catholic scholars are divided and disagree as to which specific books should be included in the Apocrypha, citing as many as fourteen extra books.

The “extra” books of the Catholic Bible are called “the Apocrypha,” which means “hidden.” However, Catholics refer to these as deuterocanonical books that mean “belonging to the second canon.”

The very definition of these words indicates the questionable nature of these particular books. This collection of ancient books was most likely written between 200 B.C. and 400 A.D.

Today, the Bible used by the Catholic and Orthodox churches include some or all of these texts in the canon of their Bible. These extra books are usually placed in the middle of their Bible, between the Old and New testaments.

To understand the differences in the number of books, one must trace the history of the present Bible. Over the centuries, the Holy Spirit inspired holy men of God to write portions of Scripture, and God made sure that all of His words were and are preserved. The Apostle Peter wrote to us on how our Bible came to be.

2 Peter 1:21

“For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” (KJV)

God Himself never handed anyone a Bible and said, “Here, this is my word. Now go make copies.”

There have been many books written throughout the centuries, and some of them by holy men of God. But not all of the writings that the holy men of God wrote were inspired, i.e., God-breathed.

Therefore, today there are copies of ancient manuscripts that did not make the final “cut” in the canon of Scripture. This was not by chance. The words of God, the ones that He wanted His people to read and understand, have been preserved by Him in the canon of Scripture.

Psalm 12:6-7

“The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.” (KJV)

God keeps His promises. From the generation that the above verse was written, to this present time, and into all of eternity, God’s words will endure. The Bible is both a physical and a spiritual book.

Psalm 119:89

“For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven.” (KJV)

God preserved His words, but the question arose: Is the Apocrypha God’s words?

History of the Disputed Apocrypha

The books of the Old Testament were originally written in Hebrew on manuscripts. Bible scholars date these collective writings at between 1000 and 100 B.C. However, none of the apocryphal books were originally written in the Hebrew language, like all of the other books of the Old Testament, and therefore, were not accepted as part of the Jewish canon of Scripture.

The Hebrew Bible, also called the Tanakh, contained three distinct parts: the Torah (Pentateuch); Nevi’im (Prophets); and Ketuvim (writings). The Tanakh did not include the Apocrypha.

Greek Septuagint

In the third century B.C., the Hebrew Bible was translated into the common Greek language. The ancient Hebrew manuscripts from which the translators used were taken from the Codex alexandrinus, which contained the apocryphal books. This was the first instance of apocryphal books appearing in Scripture. This translation of the Old Testament was called the Greek Septuagint. In the Septuagint, these extra books were scattered throughout the other books.

The Council of Jamnia

The Jewish leaders generally rejected the Apocrypha since they used the Tanakh. According to some historians, there were Jewish rabbis who formed a council held in the late first century A.D. to finalize the canon of the Hebrew Old Testament and to decide whether or not the deuterocanonical books should be included.

This meeting was the Jewish Council of Jamnia. The historical accuracy of this convention’s very existence is murky since both the Temple and Jerusalem itself were destroyed in 70 A.D.

If there was such an event, there are no remaining documents recording that it took place. But many who believe that it did also believe that one of the important decisions this religious meeting decided upon was the rejecting the apocryphal books as part of the canon of the Old Testament.

St. Athanasius

St. Athanasius, one of the early Roman Catholic Church fathers of the fourth century, rejected the apocryphal books as non-Scripture, but still having value. He said in part “the books termed apocryphal, and to mix them up with the divinely inspired Scripture” .

The Latin Vulgate

The Roman Catholic Church father St. Jerome translated the Bible into Latin in 400 A.D. This translation of the Bible into Latin was called the Latin Vulgate. Jerome strenuously rejected the inclusion of the Apocrypha with Scripture since he believed these extra books were not inspired by God.

But since he was commissioned by the Roman Catholic Church, specifically, Pope Damasus, he was compelled to include it against his personal beliefs. Jerome was the first to declare that these extra Old Testament books were of doubtful authenticity.

After this translation, the Bible, including the Apocrypha, were accepted as part of the Bible by the average Catholic clergyman until the time of the Reformation.

Council of Trent

Martin Luther, one of the main voices, and perhaps the most well-known of the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century, rejected the Old Testament Apocrypha as part of sacred Scripture. As a response to the Reformation, the Roman Catholic Church formed the Council of Trent to decide whether or not the apocryphal books should be considered as part of Scripture.

The apocryphal books support some Catholic doctrines, such as purgatory, prayers for the dead, salvation through good works, the use of magical incantation, and sinless perfection. The Council of Trent affirmed that the Apocrypha was, indeed, part of sacred Scripture, but the Reformers rejected these books from the Protestant canon of the Bible.

The 1611 King James Version of the Bible — with the Apocrypha

In 1611, the King James translation of the Bible was completed. When it was first introduced to the public it contained the Apocrypha, which was placed between the Old and the New testaments. The original 1611 King James translation also included maps and genealogies as study help for the readers, but by 1666, the King James Bible was starting to be printed excluding the apocryphal books.

Doctrines of the Apocrypha

The apocryphal writings are interesting and give a glimpse of the silent years between the end of Malachi and the beginning of Matthew. But many of the teachings found in the Apocrypha do not align with the rest of Scripture, even while they seem to support Roman Catholic doctrine. Here are two examples:

Purgatory and Prayers for the Dead

This passage from the Apocrypha from the Book of 2 Maccabees tells of Godly Jews praying for the dead, which is a Catholic teaching. The valiant Jewish leader, Judas Maccabeus, and his men were collecting the dead bodies of their comrades and found idols sewn into the coats of some of them.

For the someone reading these verses who has a Roman Catholic mindset, this passage seems to fit the pattern of the Catholic doctrine of purgatory, a place where the righteous dead go to be purged from their sins before they are allowed to enter heaven. While this is an interesting tidbit of history, no place in Scripture is it written to pray for the dead.

2 Maccabees 12:39-45:

39 And upon the day following, as the use had been, Judas and his company came to take up the bodies of them that were slain, and to bury them with their kinsmen in their fathers' graves.

40 Now under the coats of every one that was slain they found things consecrated to the idols of the Jamnites, which is forbidden the Jews by the law. Then every man saw that this was the cause wherefore they were slain.

41 All men therefore praising the Lord, the righteous Judge, who had opened the things that were hid,

42 Betook themselves unto prayer, and besought him that the sin committed might wholly be put out of remembrance. Besides, that noble Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves from sin, forsomuch as they saw before their eyes the things that came to pass for the sins of those that were slain.

43 And when he had made a gathering throughout the company to the sum of two thousand drachms of silver, he sent it to Jerusalem to offer a sin offering, doing therein very well and honestly, in that he was mindful of the resurrection:

44 For if he had not hoped that they that were slain should have risen again, it had been superfluous and vain to pray for the dead.

45 And also in that he perceived that there was great favour laid up for those that died godly, it was an holy and good thought. Whereupon he made a reconciliation for the dead, that they might be deliver

This incident also gives validity to the Catholic teaching to pray for the dead and supports the idea of giving money for the benefit of their souls. What Judas did contradicts Scripture, since Hebrews 9:27 says “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” (KJV)

Good Works to Erase Sin

Another teaching of the Catholic church is doing good deeds as a way to gain God’s forgiveness of sin, and even eternal life. The apocryphal Tobit 12:9 states: “For alms doth deliver from death, and shall purge away all sin. Those that exercise alms and righteousness shall be filled with life”

The reasoning that good works can gain salvation, a free gift from God, is against the teaching of God’s Word.

Galatians 2:16 says, “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.” (KJV)

Once someone has received this free gift of forgiveness of sins, they should give evidence of it by their good works out of gratitude to the God Who saved them from hell and granted them eternal life.

There are other immoral practices taught in the apocrypha, including, but not limited to, such things as lying, suicide, assassinations, and the use of magical incantations.

Clues to the Canon of Scripture

God did preserve His Word, so the questions arises if the Apocrypha is not part of Holy Scripture, what is? God, the ultimate Author, weighs in on this since He wants His people to have His Holy Book. God made sure that the Bible itself has something to say about it contains. Here are some clues to the canon of the Old Testament.

The Shewbread

The first clue is the arrangement of the shewbread on the table in the Old Testament Tabernacle. God directed this particular arrangement to be observed by those who look.

There was a total of twelve loaves, arranged in two rows, each row with six loaves, according to Leviticus 24: 5-6 “And thou shalt take fine flour, and bake twelve cakes thereof: two tenth deals shall be in one cake. And thou shalt set them in two rows, six on a row, upon the pure table before the LORD.” (KJV)

Looking at the table the with the two rows of six shows 6 and 6 — 66. The Bible has 66 books. Jesus connected physical bread with His word in Luke 4:4 when He said to Satan, “It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.” (KJV)

The Book of Isaiah

Another clue is found in the Book of Isaiah. Bible scholars say that Isaiah is a “mini Bible,” because it has 66 books. Bible scholars also say that each chapter of Isaiah corresponds with the order of the books of the canon of the Bible. While this is a very deep subject, there is also a distinct break in the tone of the Book of Isaiah.

Isaiah 40:3 reads “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”

Matthew is the fortieth book of the Bible and this verse in Isaiah corresponds exactly to Matthew 3:3: “For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.”

The New Testament Writers

The writers of the New Testament very often referred to both the Old Testament verses and/or the people of the Old Testament. But nowhere in the New Testament is there any reference to any of the Apocrypha books or even the characters referred to in the Apocrypha.

Jesus and the Canon of Scripture

Jesus Himself gave a clue to the canon of Scripture in Luke 11:51, “From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.”

Jesus, since He was God, knew all about the events described in the Apocrypha, including those who died there. Yet, in His subtle mention of the Old Testament canon, He did not acknowledge the people, their deeds, or the books written about them.

The Value of the Apocrypha

While the apocryphal books are not inspired by God, that is, they are not sacred Scripture, these additional books have value to the reader, but as historical documents. Usually, these books, when they are included in a printed copy of the Bible, are placed between the two testaments.

These extra books give a glimpse of life and events that occurred during the 400 silent years between the end of Malachi and the beginning of Matthew. Understanding the events that occurred before the Gospels sheds light on God’s Word and has historical, theological, and even spiritual benefits.

Messianic Desire

The apocryphal books, especial Maccabees, described the events of Jewish good guys Judas Macabee against a very wicked anti-Jewish ruler who was described, but not named in the Book of Daniel.

This was Antiochus IV. Judas and his men rebelled against the rule of Antiochus, took back, and rededicated their Temple that Antiochus had profaned. Needless to say, the Jews hated their Gentile rulers. By the first century A.D., the Jewish people had a desire for a powerful, military, Judas Maccabee-like ruler, who would free them from the Roman rule.

They thought Jesus was going to be it.

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem, the people cried “Hosanna!” which means “Save us now,” and they paved His way with branches of palm trees, as recorded in

John 12:12-13

“On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.” (KJV)

These actions were a repeat, a throwback, to the historical fact of the victorious celebration of Judas Maccabees many years earlier as related in

2 Maccabees 10:6-7

“And they kept eight days with joy, after the manner of the feast of the tabernacles, remembering that not long before they had kept the feast of the tabernacles when they were in the mountains, and in dens like wild beasts. Therefore they now, carried boughs, and green branches, and palms for Him that had given them good success in cleansing his place.” (KJV)

In the first century A.D., the Jewish people had a desire for a ruler greater than Judas Maccabees — their Messiah who would crush their Roman rulers. Prior to His entry into Jerusalem, the people had tried to make Him king in John 6:15, but He would not acquiesce.

When Jesus tried to tell His disciples of His coming death, they rebuked Him, possibly comparing Him with the life and actions of Judas Maccabees.

Mark 8:31-32

“And he [Jesus] began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. And he spake that saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him.” (KJV)

A Messiah who would give Himself to be crucified was not the supreme, powerful, military conqueror the Disciples, or even the Jewish people, imagined. The Disciples did not understand Christ’ s victory had to be accomplished through His death and His subsequent resurrection, and that His kingdom would be far greater and more glorious than what they could ever imagine.

God’s wonderful plan of salvation is written in God’s Word, in the books that are not disputed by either the Roman Catholic or Protestant churches. Our spiritual focus needs to be on what is contained in those books.

If you desire a more consistent and deeper prayer life, check out My Prayer Journal Notebook.

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