Extra-Biblical Books? Part 4A: Other “Ancient” Books

Extra-Biblical Books? Part 4A: Other “Ancient” Books
Friday, July 3, 2026 by Dr. James W. Walraven

Categories: Contemporary issues / Scripture discussion / Spiritual warfare / The church / Thought for Today

What other books are commonly touted as providing “special” knowledge that the Bible has supposedly suppressed?

Other key books that have been suggested include the “Book of Jasher,” the “Book of the Giants,” the “Book of Jubilees,” and especially the “Book of Enoch.” We will look at each one in turn, starting with Jasher.

Jasher is a supposed retelling of the early history of Israel, starting with the creation of man and ending with the conquest of Canaan under Joshua. It is marketed as providing much more detail for the early days of Israel, filling in and expanding on the events recorded in Scripture from Genesis to Joshua, giving “truths” that the Bible does not.

We do find references to Jasher in Joshua 10:13 and 2 Samuel 1:18. The trouble is, the original Jasher that Scripture refers to has long since been lost. The most commonly available “authentic” version, the one referenced here, is a seventeenth century forgery. It consists of various Jewish legends and the retelling of extra-biblical Jewish midrashic writings.

We will look at one example from it in detail, the story of Abram’s conflict with king Nimrod.

When Abram (Abraham) was born, astrologers saw a sign that Abram would grow up and one day destroy the kingdom of the evil king Nimrod. Nimrod therefore demands the right to kill baby Abram. Abram’s father, Terah, substitutes a slave girl’s baby, a baby that Nimrod kills, believing it to be Abram. Later, Nimrod discovers that Terah had lied and that Abram was still alive.

As a result, Abram is thrown into a fire for three days. God keeps Abram alive, and Nimrod orders him to come out. Unfortunately, that is not the end of the story. Nimrod then has a dream that indicates Abram’s descendants will destroy the kingdom when Nimrod’s successors are in power.

Nimrod seeks to kill Abram again after he refuses to worship idols and thereby come under Nimrod’s authority. He flees to Shem and Noah’s house, where he is taught by Noah for a month. After that, he flees with Terah to Haran, and after Terah’s death, leaves for Canaan.

There are numerous problems with the tale as Jasher tells it. Biblically, while Shem is alive at the time of Abram’s birth, Noah is already dead. It is therefore not possible for Abram to have come under Noah’s tutelage. In addition, although the Bible does not provide precise dates, it is fairly clear that Nimrod lived a few generations before Abram.

If Jasher was a movie, it would be labeled: “inspired by Scripture.” Is it in any way truly biblical? No. Is it a fanciful fictional retelling of Israel’s early history? Yes. That is the nature of Jasher. To cite another example: Cain’s killing of Abel becomes another long, drawn-out fanciful tale.

Sadly, some will gravitate towards Jasher. Although biblically false, the claim that Jasher provides information the Bible omits, gives it a type of credence for those who seek to disparage and reject the Bible.

Bluntly, there is nothing in Jasher to recommend it. It is, after all, a forgery. As a forgery, which means by definition it is a lie, why would we be surprised when ads for it misrepresent the importance of its contents?

In the next post, we will look at Giants.

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