Sirach (Ecclesiasticus): Wisdom Rooted in Covenant. The Book of Sirach—also called Ecclesiasticus or The Wisdom of Jesus Son of Sirach—is one of the great treasures of the Bible of the Early Church. Written around 200–175 BC, it bridges the Hebrew wisdom tradition with the world of the New Testament. For centuries it was considered Scripture by Jews and Christians alike, though most Protestant Bibles now omit it.

The Apocrypha: Lost Books or Forgotten Scripture? The word “Apocrypha” means hidden in Greek. But in this context, it refers to a group of ancient Jewish writings included in the Greek Old Testament—the Septuagint (LXX)—but later excluded from the Hebrew Masoretic Text. These books are also known as the Deuterocanonical Books (literally, “second canon”), especially in Catholic and Orthodox circles, where they are considered fully inspired Scripture.