We believe that Christ is about to set up His Kingdom and we know that to be found in it, we must be among the "wise." In knowing this, we freely pass on this information concerning the "wise of these last days."

"I then saw the Word of God, pure and unadulterated, and that we must answer for the way we received the truth proclaimed from that Word. I saw that it had been a manner to break the flinty heart in pieces, and a fire to consume the dross and tin, that the heart might be pure and holy. I saw that the Apocrypha was the hidden book, and that the wise of these last days should understand it. I saw that the Bible was the standard Book, that will judge us at the last day. I saw that heaven would be cheap enough, and that nothing was too dear to sacrifice for Jesus, and that we must give all to enter the kingdom. I heard an angel say, "think ye God will place His seal where there is an idol? No, no.'"16 Manuscript Release Page 34

We see from the above quote "that the Apocrypha was the hidden book and that the wise of these last days should understand it." In the Review and Herald dated Feb. 2, 1886 page 75 we are given a definition of what is contained in the Apocrypha under the section titled Scripture Questions, Answers By G. W. Morse:

"The books of the Apocrypha form a part of the sacred literature that was held in high esteem by the Alexandrian Jews. They were written subsequent to the captivity, and during the last three centuries B.C., when prophecy had ceased. They form the historical link between the Old and New Testaments, and are valuable because of the historical facts given. To this extent are they valuable in the study of the Bible. It is not known who wrote the books of the Apocrypha."

We have all heard of Sr. White holding up her family Bible while she was in vision. The following quotes tell us about that Bible:

Ellen G. White: The Early Years Volume 1-1827-1862 Page 92

The Large Family Bible

"The 'large' Bible Ellen called for after this vision in her home in Portland was, presumably, the 'big Bible' now in the White Estate vault with the names of Robert and Eunice Harmon stamped in gold on the spine, or back-a Bible eighteen inches long, eleven inches wide, four inches thick, and weighing 18.5 pounds. It was printed in Boston by Joseph Teal in the year 1822 and is illustrated with twenty-six beautiful steel engravings. Between the Old and the New Testaments a sheet bears the family record, filled in by James White. It also contains, between the Testaments, the books of the Old Testament Apocrypha.

The Bible Held in Vision

"It is also the large Bible held in vision in the Harmon home early in 1845. On that occasion, during family prayers, she stepped over to a bureau upon which this large volume rested, and picked it up. Placing it on her left hand, she easily held it at arm's length for an estimated half hour. During the vision she referred, in short exclamations, to the value of the Word of God. Although in frail health, she was in no way fatigued by the experience."

15 Manuscript Release Page 66
The Hidden Book
"In a report signed by three early believers reference is made to the hidden book as Ellen White uttered certain words in vision. Here is the account:

'"At another time at a meeting held at Brother Curtis' in Topsham, Maine, she was taken off in vision, and arose to her feet, took the large family Bible from the table, and held it on her hand some time at an angle of forty-five degrees, and said THE HIDDEN BOOK WAS NOT THERE. When someone asked if THE APOCRYPHA was not in the Bible, Brother Curtis remarked it was not. She talked sometime about THE HIDDEN BOOK. No one knew but Bro. Curtis Family that THE APOCRYPHA (APOCRYPHA) was not there.

James White quoted from the Apocrypha many times in "A Word to the 'Little Flock.'" We see quotes used on pages 3,15,17,19,20, and 23. In the Review and Herald dated Feb. 2, 1869 page 48 we see where James White stated "The Association will probably issue an edition of the Apocrypha with references soon, which, well bound, can be sold for about seventy-five cents a copy." Also in the Review and Herald dated Aug. 5, 1858 page 96 in a response "To Correspondents" we read "Concerning the Apocrypha, we regard portions of it as containing much light and instruction. If we were asked to specify, we should mention 2 Esdras, Wisdom of Solomon, and 1 Maccabees. Concerning the Wisdom of Solomon, Sears' History of the Bible thus speaks: "Although the fathers of the church, and particularly Jerome, uniformly considered this book apocryphal, yet they recommended the perusal of it, in consideration of the excellence of its style. The third Council of Carthage, held in the year 397 , pronounced it to be a canonical book under the name of "The Fourth Book of Solomon," and the famous Council of Trent confirmed this decision.' Concerning the first book of Maccabees, it also states, 'The first book of Maccabees is a very valuable historical monument, written with great accuracy and fidelity, on which even more reliance may be placed than on the writings of Josephus.' The question of the inspiration of these books - the reason that might be adduced in favor of such an opinion, and the objections that might lie against it, we have never made a subject of particular study, and are not therefore prepared to discuss."

Many of the early pioneers of the SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST Church believed and quoted from the Apocrypha including O.R.L. Crosier, author of "The Sanctuary," which in WLF page 12, Sr. White states "that Brother Crosier had the true light, on the Sanctuary, & c: and that it was His will, that Brother C. should write out the view..." and she felt "fully authorized by the Lord" to recommend the reading "to every saint." Joseph Bates, whom introduced James & Ellen White to the Sabbath, also quoted from the Apocrypha many times including on pages 66 and 67 in his pamphlet "A Seal of the Living God - A Hundred Forty-Four Thousand:"

"The 2nd book of Esdras, contains very important truths for those that keep God's law and commandments; they will probably benefit no others, 12:37,38. I have refrained from quoting here while writing the Sealing Message, not because I did not believe; but because so much prejudice still exists, on account of its not being canonical scripture. There is abundant testimony in the Old and New Testament to satisfy all that honest minds require respecting the sealing message, being the present truth. I wish however, to quote a few passages to show the sealing, the law, and commandments, time of trouble, a&c. see 9:10, 11, 30-33, 36,37. All this may be objected to as under Moses' dispensation. Let 2:38-47, settle it. Carefully note 1st, the sealing; 2nd, the law; and 3rd, final redemption. Compare it with Rev. 14:1. Still further evidence, 13:31-38. Compare 38th verse with Rev. 17:14, and 19"15, 16. Also the commandments in 15:24, 25, 16:74-76.

"Time of trouble, 15:5,6, 11-27,57,58,62, 16:5,8, 14-24, 31, 37, 40, 67-78. Read the comforting promise for the time of trouble, 2:27. All this is now right before us; let us therefore carefully examine this prophecy. And let us carefully seek to know 'what manner or person we ought to be in all holy conversation and godliness,' seeing that we have now entered upon the last work or message, that God has marked out for his church before their final deliverance from this time of trouble, such as never was."

It is very evident that the early SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST Church used the Apocrypha and believed it to be of some importance. It was not until after 1888 that the Church started denouncing the Apocrypha and saying that it was from the Catholic Bible and of no value. (See Appended Quotes.)

Luther and King James translated the Apocrypha along with the Old and New Testaments. The Apocrypha was printed in most Bibles until the early 1800's when the Bible Societies decided to remove it. We have a Bible from the 1800's which contains the Apocrypha between the Old and New Testament, the translation is the same as the King James Version. Twelve books of the Apocrypha can be found in the Catholic Bible.

Prophets and Kings Pages 392 & 393

"The silent yet powerful influences set in operation by the messages of the prophets regarding the Babylonian Captivity did much to prepare the way for a reformation that took place in the eighteenth year of Josiah's reign. This reform movement, by which threatened judgments were averted for a season, was brought about in a wholly unexpected manner through the discovery and study of a portion of Holy Scripture that for many years had been strangely misplaced and lost.... The book abounded in assurances of God's willingness to save to the uttermost those who should place their trust fully in Him. As He has wrought in their deliverance from Egyptian bondage, so would He work mightily in establishing them in the Land of Promise and in placing them at the head of the nations of earth,."

Ezra 6:1,2 - "Then Darius the King made a decree, and search was made in the house of the rolls, where the treasures were laid up in Babylon. And there was found a Achmetha, in the palace that is in the province of the Medes, a roll, and therein was record thus written:"

God hid the Apocrypha in the Catholic Bible (Babylon) just as He had hid the ancient rolls. The finding of the ancient rolls was at the start of reformation and the rebuilding of the Temple. We also make note that the Apocrypha begins "In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josias..." 1 Esdras 1:22, the same year stated in Prophets and Kings page 392 when the scroll was found.

The Apocrypha contains valuable lessons regarding Wisdom, Faith, Courage, Action, and Reason. It shows God's disdain of idols, that He would have us cast them away so we can become close to Him, and that idols have always been what has stood between God and His people. It reveals the deliverance of the Saints and God's judgments in detail. It also illustrates many Types for death decrees, confederacies, and the Sunday laws.

It is evident that the Apocrypha is very closely tied to the other texts of the Bible for we see in Jeremiah 36 that Baruch, his scribe, is one of the authors of the Apocrypha. In fact, Jeremiah's "roll" which Baruch wrote and delivered to Israel is contained in the Apocrypha, and is a warning applicable to God's Church today. Ezra has writings in the Apocrypha which are under the title Esdras. The rest of Esther's writing are also included. A description is given of what the three men in the fiery furnace experienced. Even the location of the cave where God secreted the ark is revealed (See 2 Maccabees 2:4-7 & PK 453).

We also recommend reading 3 Maccabees and 4 Maccabees. They are not in the Apocrypha but are found in the Septuagint. 3 Maccabees describes an event very similar to the Sunday laws and 4 Maccabees discusses "reason."

We pray that this study will be of good use to you and that you will pass it along to others so that the "wise" may be educated in these "last days."

Adventist Heritage, Vol.12, No. 1 Winter 1987

That early Adventists should use the Apocrypha may seem odd to modern Adventists until the historical backgrounds of the practice are understood.

The "apocrypha" is a title applied to a collection of fourteen or fifteen books which once stood in English Bibles between the Old and New Testaments. These books included 1 and 2 Esdras, Tobit, Judith, the Wisdom of Solomon, Ecclesiasticus, Baruch, Bel and the Dragon, 1 and 2 Maccabees, and a number of others. Most of them had been included in the Septuagint, or Greek translation of the Old Testament, but were not a part of the Hebrew scriptures which were finally "canonized" in the councils of the early church.

The term "apocrypha" literally means "hidden (books)," but over the centuries it came to mean "spurious" or "heretical." Martin Luther included them at the end of the Old Testament in his German translation of the Bible, but he noted that they were "not held equal to the sacred scriptures." The Calvinist view, followed by most Protestant churches, including Seventh-day Adventists, is that these books should be rejected as of no authority in the church, and that they have no more value than any other human writings.

Back in the 1830s and 40s, however, many Bibles containing the Apocrypha were still in circulation. Up until 1827, Bibles distributed by the American Bible Society often contained the Apocrypha. In fact, the huge Bible in the Harmon family home, which the youthful Ellen held aloft in vision, contained the Apocrypha printed in smaller type between the Testaments. So the first reason early Adventists used the Apocrypha was because it was readily available to them.

The second reason early Adventists used the Apocrypha was because they were intrigued by the book of 2 Esdras. Why? Because 2 Esdras is an apocalyptic book like Daniel and Revelation, full of symbols and prophecies, promises and warnings. Almost all the references early Adventists make to the Apocrypha are references to 2 Esdras.

This fascination seems to have dated back at least as early as 1842, when a Millerite lecturer, T.F. Barry, of Portsmith, New Hampshire, came upon a striking vision in 2 Esdras 11. The vision depicted an eagle rising out of the sea, having three heads, twelve wings, eight other smaller wings, and various groups of feathers. At a Millerite conference in his home state, Barry expounded on the vision, especially 2 Esdras 12:20 where eight of the eagles's feathers are said to represent eight kings. Barry said this was "a view of our own country, with her eight kings [presidents], with 'time small and years swift.'"

This topic was given further attention in Seneca Falls, New York, a town later made famous by the first women's rights convention in 1848. There, in 1844, lived E.R. Pinney and O.R. Fassett. These two Millerite Adventists developed a more elaborate interpretation of the eagle and his feathers, and finally "obtained satisfactory evidence of the divine authenticity of the two books of Esdras." In the feathers of the triple-headed eagle, Pinney and Fassett also thought they saw a symbol of America.

Pinney and Fassett soon traveled to Rochester, New York, where they lectured on the vision of the eagle "to the satisfaction and joy of many." Joseph Marsh, editor of the local Millerite paper, The Voice of Truth, published these new views because he believed his readers ought to have the privilege of judging their merits for themselves.

Reactions soon poured in, and Marsh discovered that some Adventists were ready to accept the inspiration of 2 Esdras, but doubted the interpretation offered, and a third group stuck to the orthodox Protestant view that 2 Esdras was not even an authentic work, let alone an inspired one.

The most vigorous opposition came from Boston, where Joshua V. Himes was struggling to keep the disappointed Millerites from being strewn to the four winds by deviant doctrines. The Advent Herald, which represented the leaders of the Millerite movement, denounced Esdras, saying "it would seem hardly credible that anyone who has carefully perused this fiction, should have for a moment seriously believed it to be either a record of facts, or the result of inspiration."

As to Pinney and Fassett's interpretation, the editors of the Advent Herald found "so many objections, and so much fancy in the application, and such a lack of internal evidence in Esdras," that they had no confidence whatever that the triple-headed eagle had anything to offer Adventists.

Pinney and Fassett had not only been fanciful in their interpretation, they had made the fatal error of predicting the immediate future. It seems that the eagle had two feathers representing rulers. One of these feathers was set up to rule, "but shortly it appeared no more." Then the second "was sooner away than the first." To Pinney and Fassett, the first feather was President William Henry Harrison, who was "set up" as ruler when he was inaugurated in 1841. He "shortly appeared no more" because he died scarcely a month later. The second feather was James K. Polk who won the election of 1844 and was awaiting inauguration when Pinney and Fassett published their views in December. Essentially, the pair were predicting that Polk would be removed from office even sooner than Harrison had been.

Polk took office on March 4, 1845, and by mid-April he was still firmly installed in the White House. The Morning Watch was thus able to taunt: "Is Esdras a prophet? An inspired writer?"

With this embarrassment, Pinney and Fassett seem to have quietly withdrawn from the fray. Fassett returned to more orthodox endeavors and became a recording secretary at the Albany Conference in April, 1845, where the Millerite leaders tried to agree on their beliefs.

More radical Adventists were not about to give up on Esdras, however,. Into the gap leaped D.B. Gibbs of West Becket, Massachusetts. Not only did Gibbs defend the authenticity and inspiration of 2 Esdras. he had a new interpretation, one which ranged over world history from the Roman Emperors to the founding of the United States.

Gibbs play it safe on the two feathers, however. The first feather, he said, was George Washington who, unlike the kings of Europe who ruled for life, was in office only eight years. John Adams was even "sooner away" because he served only one term! Since Washington and Adams had both passed from the scene, Gibbs did not have to worry about Polk's tenure of office.

Joseph Bates, a reader and financial supporter of the Voice of Truth, in which Pinney and Fassett's article had appeared, made use of the Apocrypha in several of his pamphlets. In The Opening Heavens, he quotes 2 Esdras 7"26, then remarked: "But perhaps you do not believe that Esdras is a true prophet; well then, will you believe St. Paul?" Bates thus recognized that there were differences of opinion among his readers on the subject. Nevertheless, the next year he cited Esdras again, right along with Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, and Jeremiah.

In 1849 he suggested that while 2 Esdras contains "very important truths for those that keep God's las and commandments, they will probably benefit no others." Then he cited 2 Esdras 8"37, 38, in which the author of Esdras is instructed to "write all these things that thou has seen in a book, and hide them: And teach them to the wise of the people."

This text, about a hidden book to be revealed only to the wise, appears again in a rare Ellen White comment on the Apocrypha, a comment which neatly summarizes the early Adventist position: "I saw that the Apocrypha was the hidden book, and that the wise of these last days should understand it. I saw that the Bible was the standard book, that will judge us at the last day." She thus encouraged an understanding of the Apocrypha, while preserving the canonical Scriptures as the standard.

Given this attitude, it is not surprising that Ellen White would have been familiar enough with 2 Esdras as to have used its language in her early visions, nor that James White would provide footnote references to the passages from the Apocrypha which paralleled her account.

For instance, Mrs. White describes heaven, where she saw Mount Zion. and notices that "about it were seven other mountains, on which grew roses and lilies." At that point, James White's footnote pointed the reader to 2 Esdras 2:19, which describes "seven mighty mountains whereupon there grow roses and lilies."

There is even one phrase from the Apocrypha that James White did not note. Ellen White describes Jesus as welcoming the saints into the New Jerusalem with the words: "You have washed your robes in my blood, stood stiffly for my truth, enter in. 2 Esdras 2:47 says "Then I began greatly to commend them that stood so stiffly for the name of the Lord." The parallel phrase evidently became a common one among early Adventists, for as late as 1856, one believer writes the Review and Herald to say "We mean to be of that company that Esdras saw who stood stiffly for the truth."

In case Adventists did not have the Apocrypha in their Bibles, E.L.H. Chamberlain of Middletown, Connecticut, placed and ad in the Review in 1851 offering to sell copies of it for 15 cents. This practice of making the Apocrypha available to Seventh-day Adventists was revived again as late as 1869 when James White announced that the church's publishing association would be issuing an edition of the Apocrypha.

The topic cropped up in one article during the American Civil War, when J.H. Waggoner took it upon himself to refute the idea then circulating, that the eagle of 2 Esdras represents the United States because after one of its three heads was destroyed, the remaining two symbolized the North and the South. No, said Waggoner, the eagle refers to Rome, because 2 Esdras 12:11 says "The eagle whom thou sawest come up from the sea, is the kingdom which was seen in the vision of thy brother Daniel."

By 1869, D.M. Canright noted in the Review that "although the books of the Apocrypha are not commonly regarded as being inspired, yet their testimony is important as showing the belief of the Jews at the time they were written."

Yet in 1873, when a questioner asked whether a remark in the Apocryphal book of Ecclesiasticus applied to him, J.H. Waggoner simply interpreted the text rather than saying, as an Adventist minister would today, that the passage was not considered inspired.

As the years went by, however, references to the Apocrypha became less frequent and finally, in 1888, the Review editors stated flatly that the Apocryphal books were "not inspired." R.S. Webber wrote at length on the topic in 1894, saying "It is often asked if these books are inspired. I answer, NO: they are no part of the Word of God."

And so the Apocrypha, that had been looked upon by early Adventists as containing, at least in 2 Esdras, some worthwhile, if not inspired, information, passed out of Adventist consciousness almost entirely. In this, as in other ways, the church came more and more in harmony with standard Protestant belief as the years went by.