Introduction to Latin Esdras

Latin Esdras aka 4+5+6 Ezra, 2 Esdras, 3 Esdras, the Prophecy of Ezra, the Apocalypse of Ezra, The Prophet Ezra, The Apocalyptic Esdras

Eric Mao

Remarks about Latin Esdras “Of all the Jewish apocalypses this is the sublimest and most pleading.”

Orr, James, M.A., D.D. General Editor. "Entry for 'ESDRAS, THE SECOND (FOURTH) BOOK OF; APOCALYPTIC ESDRAS'".

"International Standard Bible Encyclopedia". 1915. Accessed from Esdras, The Second (Fourth) Book Of; Apocalyptic Esdras International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (biblestudytools.com)

“The book which they name is, we may be sure, that known as 4 Esdras, or 2 Esdras of the Apocrypha, which, with Enoch, is the most famous of all apocryphal Apocalypses [...]”

James, M. R. (1920). The Lost Apocrypha of the Old Testament. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Lost_Apocrypha_of_the_Old_Testament/Ezra.

Some Background -

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“Esdras” is the Greek/Latin version of the Hebrew name “Ezra” Latin Esdras has 3 sections (4 Ezra, 5 Ezra, and 6 Ezra) Pseudepigraphical (unknown authors) - For chapters 3-14 (4 Ezra): most likely a Palestinian Jew - For chapters 1-2 (5 Ezra): unknown Christian - For chapters 15-16 (6 Ezra): unknown Christian Apocalyptic (genre is related to describing end times) Composed in about A.D. 100, scholars have differed in a range between 81 - 120 A.D.

How can we estimate the date it was written?

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Opening verses of 3:1-2 - Refers to the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 (3:2; 6:19; 10:48) The Three-Headed Eagle - “If the ‘three heads’ in Ezra’s eagle vision (12:22-28), that appear immediately before a description of the ‘end’ (12:29-36), are coded references to Vespasian and his two sons titus and Domitian, the book will have been composed during the reign of Domitian (81-96 A.D.).

This corresponds to the reference to ‘the thirtieth year after the destruction of the city’ in 3:1, although this date may simply recall Ezek 1:1 (cf. Stone, 4 Ezra, 9-10; Schürer III.1, 299-300)” (Wong, with Penner and Miller, “4 Ezra”).

- “By locating the point at which the author moves from recounting actual past history as future prophecy to real future prediction, when the author’s ‘prediction’ moves beyond the course of history he knows, we may discover the author’s date. In the case of 4 Ezra, the identification of the eagle’s heads in the Eagle Vision (chaps. 11-12) as the Flavian emperors leads us to the conclusion that the work was composed in the time of the Roman emperor Domitian (81-96 CE) and most likely during the latter part of his reign” (Stone, M.E., “Introduction”).

The Three-Headed Eagle - 2 Esdras 12:22-30, NRSV 22 “As for your seeing three heads at rest, this is the interpretation: 23 In its last days the Most High will raise up three kings,[f] and they[g] shall renew many things in it, and shall rule the earth 24 and its inhabitants more oppressively than all who were before them. Therefore they are called the heads of the eagle, 25 because it is they who shall sum up his wickedness and perform his last actions. 26 As for your seeing that the large head disappeared, one of the kings [h] shall die in his bed, but in agonies. 27 But as for the two who remained, the sword shall devour them. 28 For the sword of one shall devour him who was with him; but he also shall fall by the sword in the last days.

29 “As for your seeing two little wings[i] passing over to[j] the head which was on the right side, 30 this is the interpretation: It is these whom the Most High has kept for the eagle’s[k] end; this was the reign which was brief and full of tumult, as you have seen.

How can we estimate the date it was written? (cont.)

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Earliest definite quotation from Latin Esdras (4 Ezra part) is in Clement of Alexandria’s Stromateis, which is dated to the end of the 2nd century A.D. So, “4 Ezra must have been written and translated into Greek no later than the end of the 2nd century. If the possible reference in Barnabas 12:1 is accepted as a quotation, 4 Ezra will have been composed by the end of the first century.” (Wong, with Penner and Miller, “4 Ezra”).

Provenance (Place of Origin) -

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Some scholars thought that the reference to Babylon in 3:1 and 3:29 was a cryptic/symbolic reference to Rome But “obviously Semitic coloration of the work rather suggests Palestine as the place of writing and publication of the Hebrew original. There is no trace of any influence from Egyptian Judaism or from the Qumran community” (Metzger, The Fourth Book of Ezra).

“The original text [...] shows considerable textual and theological relationship with 2 Baruch and (less evidently) with Pseudo-Philo and the Apocalypse of Abraham (despite some notable differences), all of which are almost certain to be located within Judea” (Bruce W. Longenecker, 2 Esdras).

Provenance (cont.)

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Longenecker believes that the reference to Babylon are pseudepigrahic devices reinforcing the identity of the main character as Ezra, the priestly scribe in Ezra-Nehemiah.

- This Ezra was the person “who left Babylon after the exile and established the Torah as the rule of life for the people of God in their own land.” (Longenecker, 2 Esdras).

- He thinks that it’s possible that the author of Latin Esdras felt that the experience of living in the time after the second Temple was destroyed was similar to the experience of living in exile in Babylon (far from the Presence of God dwelling in the Temple).

Who is Ezra-Salathiel?

2 Esdras 1:1 The book[a] of the prophet Ezra son of Seraiah, son of Azariah, son of Hilkiah, son of Shallum, son of Zadok, son of Ahitub, 2 son of Ahijah, son of Phinehas, son of Eli, son of Amariah, son of Azariah, son of Meraimoth, son of Arna, son of Uzzi, son of Borith, son of Abishua, son of Phinehas, son of Eleazar, 3 son of Aaron, of the tribe of Levi, who was a captive in the country of the Medes in the reign of Artaxerxes, king of the Persians.[b]

2 Esdras 3:1 In the thirtieth year after the destruction of the city, I was in Babylon—I, Salathiel, who am also called Ezra.

I was troubled as I lay on my bed, and my thoughts welled up in my heart, 2 because I saw the desolation of Zion and the wealth of those who lived in Babylon.

Ezra in Latin Esdras -

Supposed to be the Ezra of Ezra-Nehemiah (after 1st Temple was destroyed), as if this Ezra was speaking Some traditions connect the Ezra of Latin Esdras to the same Ezra of Ezra-Nehemiah

But what about the Salathiel part?

- 1 Chronicles 3:17 - Matthew 1:12 Very confusing and many different opinions. We will not get into this now.

History of the Text Itself -

Chapters 3-14 is the main bulk of the text. Referred to as 4 Ezra.

- The semitic original is lost, as well as the Greek translation of it - However, we have eight daughter translations of the Greek translation, in: Latin, Syriac, Ethiopic, Georgian, Armenian, and two different ones in Arabic. Fragments of a Coptic version in the Sahidic dialect also have been discovered.

- “Likewise the internal evidence of versions often suggest dependance upon an underlying Greek text. For example, the Latin sometimes reproduces Greek constructions (e.g. the genitive absolute) or Greek genders that are unknown to Latin grammar. Furthermore, quotations of 4 Ezra included in Greek patristic and apocryphal documents presuppose knowledge of a Greek version of the book. In modern times Hilgenfeld, with the assistance of Lagarde and H. Rönsch, reconstructed the lost Greek text from the Latin version. There remain, however, many other phenomena that suggest a Semitic original lying behind the lost Greek text. Several scholars have argued that this was Aramaic. On the other hand, the presence of instances of notable Hebraisms (such as the infinitive absolute construction) has led most modern scholars to postulate a Hebrew original underlying the Greek” (Metzger, The Fourth Book of Ezra)

History of the Text Itself (cont.)

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Chapters 1-2 is one of the two Christian additions. Referred to as 5 Ezra.

- We only have evidence of these chapters in Latin. Latin is probably the original language of these chapters, although a Greek template for these chapters is possible.

- Written probably in the second or third century A.D.

History of the Text Itself (cont.)

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Chapters 15-16 is the other Christian addition. Referred to as 6 Ezra.

- For these chapters, we currently only have a fragment containing 3 verses in Greek that was found at Oxyrhynchus.

- Fun fact: the Oxyrhynchus papyri “are a group of manuscripts discovered during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries by papyrologists Bernard Pyne Grenfell and Arthur Surridge Hunt at an ancient rubbish dump near Oxyrhynchus in Egypt (28°32′N 30°40′E, modern el-Bahnasa)” (Wikipedia).

- Another fun fact: “The Oxyrhynchus hymn (or P. Oxy. XV 1786) is the earliest known manuscript of a Christian Greek hymn to contain both lyrics and musical notation” (Wikipedia).”

- It was most likely originally composed in Greek.

- However, sometime before the mid-sixth century, it was translated completely into Latin, the only language in which it survives completely.

- Written probably during the second to third century A.D.

Why referred to as “Latin Esdras”?

Based on scholars’ evaluations of all the manuscripts that we have related to Latin Esdras, it seems most likely that Ezra 4, 5, 6 were connected in the Latin tradition.

R. Blake’s stemma Stone, M. E. (1990). Fourth Ezra: A Commentary on The Book of Fourth Ezra. (F. M. Cross, Ed.)The Internet Archive. Augsburg Fortress. Retrieved October 12, 2021, from https://archive.org/details/fourthezracommen0000ston/page/n7/mo de/2up. Fourth Ezra : a commentary on the book of Fourth Ezra : Stone, Michael E., 1938- : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, volume 1, Apocalyptic Literature and Testaments (lampuntomyfeetministries .church)

The Fourth Book of Ezra (Late First Century A.D.) With the Four Additional Chapters: A New Translation and Introduction

By B.M. Metzger

The “Missing” Section “In the Latin language tradition that prevailed in Europe and the Western world, a large section of 4 Ezra (7:36-106a) was unknown from the Middle Ages throughout the nineteenth century because it was missing in all the known manuscripts.

Around 1870, Robert Bensly discovered a Latin manuscript in the Bibliothèque Municipale in Amiens, France, that contained the ‘missing section.’”

Stone, M. E. (1990). Fourth Ezra: A Commentary on The Book of Fourth Ezra. (F. M. Cross, Ed.)The Internet Archive.

Augsburg Fortress. Retrieved October 12, 2021, from https://archive.org/details/fourthezracommen0000ston/page/n7/mode/2up.

Fourth Ezra : a commentary on the book of Fourth Ezra : Stone, Michael E., 1938- : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, volume 1, Apocalyptic Literature and Testaments (lampuntomyfeetministries .church)

The Fourth Book of Ezra (Late First Century A.D.) With the Four Additional Chapters: A New Translation and Introduction

By B.M. Metzger

Orthodox-Old-Testament-Holy-Bible-Septuagint.pdf (pc-freak.net) (PDF) The Vision of the Old Testament Canon in the Russian Orthodox Church | Andrei Desnitsky - Academia.edu The New Oxford Annotated Bible - 2 Esdras - Introduction - Oxford Biblical Studies Online II Esdras - The Septuagint: LXX Biblical canon - Wikipedia History in the Bible Podcast | Canons of the Old Testament: A Comparison

Roman Catholicism

Protestantism*

Eastern Orthodoxy* (Greek)

Eastern Orthodoxy* (Slavonic/Russian)

1 Esdras

Ezra

2 Esdras (or Esdras B) (or 2 Esdras chs. 1-10)

1 Esdras

2 Esdras

Nehemiah

Nehemiah (or Esdras Γ) (or 2 Esdras chs. 11-23)

Nehemiah

3 Esdras (appendix)

1 Esdras (apocrypha)

1 Esdras (or Esdras A)

2 Esdras

4 Esdras (appendix)

2 Esdras chs. 3-14 (apocrypha)

N/A

3 Esdras chs. 3-14

5 Esdras (appendix)

2 Esdras chs. 1-2 (apocrypha)

N/A

3 Esdras chs. 1-2

6 Esdras (appendix)

2 Esdras chs. 15-16 (apocrypha)

N/A

3 Esdras chs. 15-16

History in the Bible Podcast | The Ezra Muddle by Garry Stevens

Additional note on the King James Bible “The apocrypha is a selection of books which were published in the original 1611 King James Bible. These apocryphal books were positioned between the Old and New Testament (it also contained maps and geneologies). The apocrypha was a part of the KJV for 274 years until being removed in 1885 A.D. A portion of these books were called deuterocanonical books by some entities, such as the Catholic church.”

From: APOCRYPHA KJV (kingjamesbibleonline.org)

Why So Much Nomenclature Confusion “Regarding the title of the text, the various texts associated with the Prophet Ezra were enumerated by Second Temple Judaism and the ancient church in various ways. In most English Bibles, one will find the books of Ezra and Nehemiah in the Old Testament representing this material. Originally, what are now known as Ezra and Nehemiah were originally contained and preserved in one scroll. These were later divided into 1 and 2 Ezra, with the latter later being renamed Nehemiah. Within the Greek Old Testament tradition, there is another text, 1 Esdras, which represents an earlier stage in the development of the Ezra-Nehemiah text. 1 Esdras in the Greek tradition reproduces the last two chapters of 2 Chronicles, followed by the majority of the text of Ezra, though in a different order. In the traditional Greek numbering, then, 1 Ezra is this composite book, 2 Ezra is what we now call Ezra, 3 Ezra is what we now call Nehemiah, and 4 Ezra is the text that we are now preparing to discuss. In the Latin numbering, St. Jerome translated Ezra-Nehemiah as one book, entitled 1 Esdras, and the book we now prepare to discuss he entitled 2 Esdras. The remainder of this posting will utilize the 4 Ezra title for this book.”

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Fr. Stephen De Young, The Whole Counsel Blog

4 Ezra: A Biblical Book You've Probably Never Read - The Whole Counsel Blog (ancientfaith.com)

Further Clarification on Orthodoxy “Though there is clear agreement on a certain set of books and their authority across all of Orthodox tradition, the exact list of books found in a published Orthodox Bible will largely be a function of the language tradition from which that Bible comes. Many of the books of the Old Testament which all of the local churches agree are authoritative are not read from publicly in our present liturgical life, which further complicates the issue of the canonicity of certain of those books.”

Referring to 4 Ezra: “It is likewise found in Ethiopian and Armenian Old Testaments, and importantly for the Orthodox Church, in the Georgian, through which the text found its way into the Slavonic Biblical tradition. It has been included in every approved Slavonic and Russian printed Bible. 4 Ezra is therefore a text at the fringe of the Old Testament tradition, either just in or just out depending upon the linguistic tradition of Orthodoxy in which one is located.”

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Fr. Stephen De Young, The Whole Counsel Blog

4 Ezra: A Biblical Book You've Probably Never Read - The Whole Counsel Blog (ancientfaith.com)

Would Have Been Lost “4 Ezra was not preserved in Jewish circles. Like other apocalypses of the same general period, such as 2 Baruch and the Apocalypse of Abraham, 4 Ezra fell into disuse among Jews. Instead, its afterlife is due to Christian adoption and preservation. It was read and quoted most extensively by Ambrose (ca. 340-397), but it was also cited by Jerome, Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, Cyprian, Commodianus, and the Apostolic Constitutions. Among the myriad [of] ideas found within 4 Ezra that are compatible with late first-/early second-century Christianities are its eschatology, its understanding of Adam’s sin/evil heart as the origin of human sin, and its redefinition of who constitutes Israel.”

Oegema, G. S., & Sheinfeld, S. (2021). Chapter 15: 2 Esdras. In The Oxford Handbook of the Apocrypha (pp. 253–267). essay, Oxford University Press. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=JuEsEAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA253&dq=2+Esdras&ots=xAUwhNbbo5&sig= FnthRD3TgcCVNZzEBzPLz-uSuxw#v=onepage&q&f=false.

The Oxford Handbook of the Apocrypha - Google Books

Quotations from Church Fathers Stone, M. E. (1990). Fourth Ezra: A Commentary on The Book of Fourth Ezra. (F. M. Cross, Ed.)The Internet Archive. Augsburg Fortress. Retrieved October 12, 2021, from https://archive.org/details/fourthezracommen0000ston/page/n7/mo de/2up. Fourth Ezra : a commentary on the book of Fourth Ezra : Stone, Michael E., 1938- : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

Interesting Passages (hope you’re not asleep)

Notable Passage: Creation Account - 2 Esdras 6:38-54, NRSV God’s Work in Creation 38 I said, “O Lord, you spoke at the beginning of creation, and said on the first day, ‘Let heaven and earth be made,’ and your word accomplished the work. 39 Then the spirit was blowing, and darkness and silence embraced everything; the sound of human voices was not yet there.[k] 40 Then you commanded a ray of light to be brought out from your store-chambers, so that your works could be seen.

41 “Again, on the second day, you created the spirit of the firmament, and commanded it to divide and separate the waters, so that one part might move upward and the other part remain beneath.

42 “On the third day you commanded the waters to be gathered together in a seventh part of the earth; six parts you dried up and kept so that some of them might be planted and cultivated and be of service before you. 43 For your word went forth, and at once the work was done. 44 Immediately fruit came forth in endless abundance and of varied appeal to the taste, and flowers of inimitable color, and odors of inexpressible fragrance. These were made on the third day.

45 “On the fourth day you commanded the brightness of the sun, the light of the moon, and the arrangement of the stars to come into being; 46 and you commanded them to serve humankind, about to be formed.

47 “On the fifth day you commanded the seventh part, where the water had been gathered together, to bring forth living creatures, birds, and fishes; and so it was done. 48 The dumb and lifeless water produced living creatures, as it was commanded, so that therefore the nations might declare your wondrous works.

49 “Then you kept in existence two living creatures;[l] the one you called Behemoth[m] and the name of the other Leviathan. 50 And you separated one from the other, for the seventh part where the water had been gathered together could not hold them both. 51 And you gave Behemoth[n] one of the parts that had been dried up on the third day, to live in it, where there are a thousand mountains; 52 but to Leviathan you gave the seventh part, the watery part; and you have kept them to be eaten by whom you wish, and when you wish.

53 “On the sixth day you commanded the earth to bring forth before you cattle, wild animals, and creeping things; 54 and over these you placed Adam, as ruler over all the works that you had made; and from him we have all come, the people whom you have chosen.

Fun Fact: Columbus “Columbus estimated the size of the Atlantic Ocean partially from reading his Bible. He had read in the Second Book of Esdras (in the Apocrypha) that God created the world in seven parts, six of them dry land and the seventh water. He thus calculated that the ocean separating Portugal from Cipangu (Japan) was one-seventh of the earth’s circumference, or about 2,400 miles. He figured that by sailing 100 miles per day, he could reach the Indies in 30 days.”

“Columbus also read the seer Salathiel-Ezra in the books of Esdras, from the Apocrypha (especially 2 Esdras 6:42, in which the prophet states that the Earth is six parts land to one of water), thus reinforcing these ideas of the proportion of land- to sea-crossing.”

Columbus and Christianity: Did You Know? | Christian History | Christianity Today Christopher Columbus - Principal evidence of travels | Britannica

Fun Fact: Columbus (cont.)

“Christopher Columbus cited 4 Ezra 6:2 as one of his proofs of the world’s composition in his appeal to the Catholic Monarchs for funding.

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Fr. Stephen De Young, The Whole Counsel Blog

4 Ezra: A Biblical Book You've Probably Never Read - The Whole Counsel Blog (ancientfaith.com)

Notable Passage: Adam’s Sin/Evil Heart - 2 Esdras 4:30-32, NRSV 30 For a grain of evil seed was sown in Adam’s heart from the beginning, and how much ungodliness it has produced until now—and will produce until the time of threshing comes! 31 Consider now for yourself how much fruit of ungodliness a grain of evil seed has produced. 32 When heads of grain without number are sown, how great a threshing floor they will fill!”

Notable Passage: Adam’s Sin/Evil Heart - 2 Esdras 7:46-56/116-126, NRSV 46 116 I answered and said, “This is my first and last comment: it would have been better if the earth had not produced Adam, or else, when it had produced him, had restrained him from sinning. 47 117 For what good is it to all that they live in sorrow now and expect punishment after death? 48 118 O Adam, what have you done? For though it was you who sinned, the fall was not yours alone, but ours also who are your descendants. 49 119 For what good is it to us, if an immortal time has been promised to us, but we have done deeds that bring death? 50 120 And what good is it that an everlasting hope has been promised to us, but we have miserably failed? 51 121 Or that safe and healthful habitations have been reserved for us, but we have lived wickedly? 52 122 Or that the glory of the Most High will defend those who have led a pure life, but we have walked in the most wicked ways? 53 123 Or that a paradise shall be revealed, whose fruit remains unspoiled and in which are abundance and healing, but we shall not enter it 54 124 because we have lived in perverse ways?[ah] 55 125 Or that the faces of those who practiced self-control shall shine more than the stars, but our faces shall be blacker than darkness? 56 126 For while we lived and committed iniquity we did not consider what we should suffer after death.”

Notable Passage: Adam’s Sin/Evil Heart - 2 Esdras 7:57-61/127-131, NRSV 57 127 He [the angel Uriel] answered and said, “This is the significance of the contest that all who are born on earth shall wage: 58 128 if they are defeated they shall suffer what you have said, but if they are victorious they shall receive what I have said.[ai] 59 129 For this is the way of which Moses, while he was alive, spoke to the people, saying, ‘Choose life for yourself, so that you may live!’ 60 130 But they did not believe him or the prophets after him, or even myself who have spoken to them. 61 131 Therefore there shall not be[aj] grief at their destruction, so much as joy over those to whom salvation is assured.”

Dr. Miryan Brand’s Podcast Podcast: Understanding Sin and Evil Episode: “Fourth Ezra and the Tragedy of the Evil Heart” -

How would you respond to this episode from a Christian perspective?

Notable Passage: Jesus Giving Crowns - 2 Esdras 2:42-48, NRSV Ezra Sees the Son of God 42 I, Ezra, saw on Mount Zion a great multitude that I could not number, and they all were praising the Lord with songs. 43 In their midst was a young man of great stature, taller than any of the others, and on the head of each of them he placed a crown, but he was more exalted than they. And I was held spellbound. 44 Then I asked an angel, “Who are these, my lord?”

45 He answered and said to me, “These are they who have put off mortal clothing and have put on the immortal, and have confessed the name of God. Now they are being crowned, and receive palms.” 46 Then I said to the angel, “Who is that young man who is placing crowns on them and putting palms in their hands?” 47 He answered and said to me, “He is the Son of God, whom they confessed in the world.” So I began to praise those who had stood valiantly for the name of the Lord.[k] 48 Then the angel said to me, “Go, tell my people how great and how many are the wonders of the Lord God that you have seen.”

Notable Passage: The Lion of Judah 31 “And as for the lion whom you saw rousing up out of the forest and roaring and speaking to the eagle and reproving him for his unrighteousness, and as for all his words that you have heard, 32 this is the Messiah[l] whom the Most High has kept until the end of days, who will arise from the offspring of David, and will come and speak [m] with them. He will denounce them for their ungodliness and for their wickedness, and will display before them their contemptuous dealings. 33 For first he will bring them alive before his judgment seat, and when he has reproved them, then he will destroy them. 34 But in mercy he will set free the remnant of my people, those who have been saved throughout my borders, and he will make them joyful until the end comes, the day of judgment, of which I spoke to you at the beginning.

Notable Passage: Transfer of Promise - 2 Esdras 2:10-14, NRSV 10 Thus says the Lord to Ezra: “Tell my people that I will give them the kingdom of Jerusalem, which I was going to give to Israel. 11 Moreover, I will take back to myself their glory, and will give to these others the everlasting habitations, which I had prepared for Israel.[d] 12 The tree of life shall give them fragrant perfume, and they shall neither toil nor become weary. 13 Go[e] and you will receive; pray that your days may be few, that they may be shortened. The kingdom is already prepared for you; be on the watch! 14 Call, O call heaven and earth to witness: I set aside evil and created good; for I am the Living One, says the Lord.

Interesting Passage: 70 Secret Books - 2 Esdras 14:37-48, NRSV The Restoration of the Scriptures 37 So I took the five men, as he commanded me, and we proceeded to the field, and remained there. 38 And on the next day a voice called me, saying, “Ezra, open your mouth and drink what I give you to drink.” 39 So I opened my mouth, and a full cup was offered to me; it was full of something like water, but its color was like fire. 40 I took it and drank; and when I had drunk it, my heart poured forth understanding, and wisdom increased in my breast, for my spirit retained its memory, 41 and my mouth was opened and was no longer closed. 42 Moreover, the Most High gave understanding to the five men, and by turns they wrote what was dictated, using characters that they did not know. [j] They sat forty days; they wrote during the daytime, and ate their bread at night. 43 But as for me, I spoke in the daytime and was not silent at night. 44 So during the forty days, ninety-four[k] books were written. 45 And when the forty days were ended, the Most High spoke to me, saying, “Make public the twenty-four[l] books that you wrote first, and let the worthy and the unworthy read them; 46 but keep the seventy that were written last, in order to give them to the wise among your people. 47 For in them is the spring of understanding, the fountain of wisdom, and the river of knowledge.” 48 And I did so.[m]

Pitre, B. J. (2018). A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament. Amazon. Ignatius Press. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.amazon.com/Catholic-Introduction-Bible-Old-Testament-ebook/dp/B07H46F524/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Catholic+introduction+to+t he+old+testament&qid=1634174876&s=digital-text&sr=1-1.

A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament - Kindle edition by Pitre, Brant James . Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

Interesting Passage: Type for the Virgin Mary - 2 Esdras 5:24, NRSV Ezra’s Second Prayer of Complaint 21 After seven days the thoughts of my heart were very grievous to me again. 22 Then my soul recovered the spirit of understanding, and I began once more to speak words in the presence of the Most High. 23 I said, “O sovereign Lord, from every forest of the earth and from all its trees you have chosen one vine, 24 and from all the lands of the world you have chosen for yourself one region,[f] and from all the flowers of the world you have chosen for yourself one lily, 25 and from all the depths of the sea you have filled for yourself one river, and from all the cities that have been built you have consecrated Zion for yourself, 26 and from all the birds that have been created you have named for yourself one dove, and from all the flocks that have been made you have provided for yourself one sheep, 27 and from all the multitude of peoples you have gotten for yourself one people; and to this people, whom you have loved, you have given the law that is approved by all. 28 And now, O Lord, why have you handed the one over to the many, and dishonored [g] the one root beyond the others, and scattered your only one among the many? 29 And those who opposed your promises have trampled on those who believed your covenants. 30 If you really hate your people, they should be punished at your own hands.”

So… Evaluation?

“Because of its position on the margins of the canon, 2 Esdras has not received a great deal of interpretive attention. Traditional exegetes generally interpreted 2 Esdras as a genuine prophecy of future events by the biblical figure Ezra. Modern scholars, however, tend to regard it as prophecy formulated after the fact, or as inspired by historical exigencies of the periods in which the book’s components were written. All three parts draw heavily on earlier biblical sources, as the references in the annotations make clear.”

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Theodore A. Bergren

Coogan, M., Brettler, M., Newsom, C., & Perkins, P. (2018). The New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocrypha: New Revised Standard Version.

Opgehaal van https://books.google.com/books?id=UnpVDwAAQBAJ

Thank You!

References References:

Orr, James, M.A., D.D. General Editor. "Entry for 'ESDRAS, THE SECOND (FOURTH) BOOK OF; APOCALYPTIC ESDRAS'". "International Standard Bible Encyclopedia". 1915. Accessed from Esdras, The Second (Fourth) Book Of; Apocalyptic Esdras - International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (biblestudytools.com)

James, M. R. (1920). The Lost Apocrypha of the Old Testament. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Lost_Apocrypha_of_the_Old_Testament/Ezra.

The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, volume 1, Apocalyptic Literature and Testaments (lampuntomyfeetministries.church)

The Fourth Book of Ezra (Late First Century A.D.) With the Four Additional Chapters: A New Translation and Introduction by B.M. Metzger The Society for Old Testament Study. (n.d.). 2 Esdras. The Society for Old Testament Study (SOTS). Retrieved October 14, 2021, from https://www.sots.ac.uk/wiki/2-esdras/.

Bergren, T. A. (2019). 5 Ezra 2:10–14: Its place in the book’s structure and in Christian supersessionism. Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha, 29(1), 54–76. https://doi.org/10.1177/0951820719860655

Metzger, B. M., & Murphy, R. E. (Eds.). (1994). The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books. Oxford University Press.

Stone, M. E., & Henze, M. (n.d.). Introduction. Augsburg Fortress. http://ms.augsburgfortress.org/downloads/9780800699680Intro.pdf?redirected=true

Longenecker, B. W. (1995). 2 Esdras. Google Books. Sheffield Academic Press. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=Lx5vj2RD3WoC&oi=fnd&pg=PA7&dq=2+Esdras&ots=ofZuy-DEBW&sig=oL0ELJgTXIADLNTuglZ0we-WP_A#v=onepage&q=2%20Esdras&f=false.

Two Esdras - Bruce W. Longenecker - Google Books

References (cont.)

Wong, Andy, with Ken M. Penner and David M. Miller, eds. "4 Ezra." Edition 1.0. No pages. In The Online Critical Pseudepigrapha. Edited by Ken M. Penner and Ian W. Scott. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2010. Online: http://www.purl.org/net/ocp/4Ezra.

Bergren, T. A. (1998). Sixth Ezra : The Text and Origin. The Internet Archive. Oxford University Press. Retrieved October 12, 2021, from https://archive.org/details/sixthezratextori0000berg/page/n7/mode/2up. Sixth Ezra : the text and origin : Bergren, Theodore A., author : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive Stone, M. E. (1990). Fourth Ezra: A Commentary on The Book of Fourth Ezra. (F. M. Cross, Ed.)The Internet Archive. Augsburg Fortress. Retrieved October 12, 2021, from https://archive.org/details/fourthezracommen0000ston/page/n7/mode/2up. Fourth Ezra : a commentary on the book of Fourth Ezra : Stone, Michael E., 1938- : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive Desnitsky, A. (2006, April). The Vision of the Old Testament Canon in the Russian Orthodox Church. [S.l.] : United Bible Societies ; [Istanbul : Bible Society in Turkey], c2006./Academia.

THE ORTHODOX CHURCH OF GREECE’S APOSTOLIKI DIAKONIA. (n.d.). THE OLD TESTAMENT - ACCORDING TO THE SEPTUAGINT - A TRANSLATION INTO ENGLISH OF THE GREEK TEXT - PUBLISHED BY THE ORTHODOX CHURCH OF GREECE’S APOSTOLIKI DIAKONIA. Coogan, Michael D. . "2 Esdras." In The New Oxford Annotated Bible. Oxford Biblical Studies Online, http://www.oxfordbiblicalstudies.com/article/book/obso-9780195288803/obso-9780195288803-chapterFrontMatter-56 (accessed 14-Oct-2021).

Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. (n.d.). II Esdras - the Septuagint: LXX. II Esdras - The Septuagint: LXX. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from https://www.septuagint.bible/2-esdras#.

Canons of the old testament: A comparison. History in the Bible Podcast | Canons of the Old Testament: A Comparison. (n.d.). Retrieved October 14, 2021, from https://www.historyinthebible.com/supplementary_pages/books-of-the-bible.html.

Wikimedia Foundation. (2021, October 10). Biblical canon. Wikipedia. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biblical_canon.

King James Bible Online. (n.d.). Apocrypha KJV (king James Version). APOCRYPHA KJV. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Apocrypha-Books/.

References (cont.)

Young, F. S. D. (2018, September 27). 4 ezra: A biblical book you've probably never read. The Whole Counsel Blog. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from https://blogs.ancientfaith.com/wholecounsel/2018/09/26/4-ezra-a-biblical-book-youve-probably-never-read/.

Oegema, G. S., & Sheinfeld, S. (2021). Chapter 15: 2 Esdras. In The Oxford Handbook of the Apocrypha (pp. 253–267). essay, Oxford University Press.

Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=JuEsEAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA253&dq=2+Esdras&ots=xAUwhNbbo5&sig=FnthRD3TgcCVNZzEBzPL z-uSuxw#v=onepage&q&f=false.

Giles, T. S. (1992, July 1). Columbus and Christianity: Did you know? Christian History | Learn the History of Christianity & the Church. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from https://www.christianitytoday.com/history/issues/issue-35/columbus-and-christianity-did-you-know.html.

Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Principal evidence of travels of Christopher Columbus. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Christopher-Columbus/Principal-evidence-of-travels.

Pitre, B. J. (2018). A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament. Amazon. Ignatius Press. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.amazon.com/Catholic-Introduction-Bible-Old-Testament-ebook/dp/B07H46F524/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Catholic+introduction+to+t he+old+testament&qid=1634174876&s=digital-text&sr=1-1.

Coogan, M., Brettler, M., Newsom, C., & Perkins, P. (2018). The New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocrypha: New Revised Standard Version. Opgehaal van https://books.google.com/books?id=UnpVDwAAQBAJ

Iconography Bavaria ca. 1730 (Germany → Ainertshofen → St. Mariae Verkündigung → Chancel) WI-ID record 48396 (sas.ac.uk) Search the Collection | The Metropolitan Museum of Art (metmuseum.org)

Maerten de Vos ca. 1579 First vision of Ezra: The son of God crowns the crowd; Visions of Ezra; Thesaurus Sacrarum historiarum Veteris Testamenti (...). Ezra is in the foreground on the right and is pointed to a vision by an angel. Ezra sees the Son of God on the mountain Zion, which the people crowns crown and their palm branches. Under the show a reference in Latin to the Apocrypha Bible text in 4 Ezra 2 Stock Photo - Alamy

Maerten de Vos ca. 1579 Second vision of Ezra: Ezra comforted by the angel; Visions of Ezra; Thesaurus Sacrarum historiarum Veteris Testamenti (...). The angel Uriël comfort Ezra and helps him up. In addition to Ezra his vision of the radiant woman Zion. If she disappears, Ezra's city built in the background. Under the show a reference in Latin to the apocryphal Bible text in 4 Ezra 10 Stock Photo - Alamy

Maerten de Vos ca. 1579 Third vision of Ezra: The crowd fights against the man from the sea; Visions of Ezra; Thesaurus Sacrarum historiarum Veteris Testamenti (...). The third vision of Ezra. He sees a crowd of people fighting against a winged man, who fled on a mountain. Under the show a reference in Latin to the apocryphal Bible text in 4 Ezra 13 Stock Photo - Alamy

Nicolaes de Bruyn, 1613 File:Vijfde visioen van Ezra, RP-P-1886-A-11112.jpg - Wikimedia Commons

Maerten de Vos ca. 1579 Ezra drinks the cup of knowledge and wisdom; Visions of Ezra; Theatrum Biblicum (...). Ezra went to the pitch with five men and will be offered a fiery cup from God from God from which he drinks. This is the cup of knowledge and wisdom. The five men write the words that says Ezra. Under the show a reference in Latin to the apocryphal Bible text in 4 Ezra 14 Stock Photo - Alamy