The first time I really thought about this was in my university library while working on a paper for a religion class. I decided to compare my Protestant King James Bible with a Catholic Bible. When I looked at the table of contents in the Catholic Bible, I was shocked. It had books I had never heard of, like Tobit, Judith, and Sirach. Honestly, it felt like a different book, not just a different translation. I felt curious but also worried. Was my Bible missing books? It was a scary thought. That day started my search to learn one thing: why is Sirach not in the bible?
This is not a strange question; in fact, it is a real and important one that gets to the heart of what Christians believe about their holy book. For over a billion Catholics in the world, Sirach is a loved part of God’s Word. For most of the nearly one billion Protestants, however, it is not known at all. This big difference has caused confusion and arguments, leading many to ask Why Is Sirach Not in the Bible.
If you have ever wondered about this, then you are in the right place. We will look deep into the real history of this split. Furthermore, there is no dark secret or hidden plan to find. The “hidden truth” is really a cool story about old libraries, debates between smart people, and a big turn in history that changed the world. So, let’s start.
More in Bible Category
Why Was the Book of Eli Removed from the Bible
Why Was the Geneva Bible Banned
The Main Reason Why Sirach Is Not in Some Bibles: A Tale of Two Canons
To find out why Sirach is not in every Bible, we must talk about the “biblical canon.” This might sound hard, but the idea is easy. The canon is the official list of Bible books that people consider to be God’s Word. For many years, there was a debate about which books belonged in the Old Testament. The main problem was that in the old world, there were two Old Testament lists, not just one.
This is perhaps the most important part of the whole story. In fact, knowing this historical fact for Why Is Sirach Not in the Bible? makes most of the mystery go away right away.
Why Is Sirach Not in the Bible? It Depends on Which Old Testament You Mean
The first list is the Hebrew canon. This was the set of holy books, written in Hebrew, that the Jewish people in and near Jerusalem saw as the Word of God. This list is the one that modern Jewish people use today, and it also forms the base for the Protestant Old Testament.
But there was another popular Old Testament called the Septuagint. This was a Greek version of the Hebrew holy books. Scholars created it a few hundred years before Jesus was born for the many Jewish people who lived outside Israel and spoke Greek. The Septuagint, however, had some extra books that were not in the Hebrew list. Sirach was one of these books.
So, the first Christians had a choice to make. Most of them spoke Greek, so they used the Septuagint as their main Bible. In fact, many New Testament writers quoted Old Testament passages directly from this Greek version. But some early Christian leaders, like the smart translator St. Jerome, knew about the difference. He argued that the church should use the shorter Hebrew list. Consequently, this started a long, quiet debate that went on for hundreds of years.
The Apocrypha: Why Is Sirach Not in the Bible Because of This Disputed Group?
People call the group of books in the Greek Septuagint but not in the Hebrew canon the Apocrypha. This group includes Sirach, Tobit, Judith, Wisdom of Solomon, 1 and 2 Maccabees, and Baruch. For hundreds of years, these books were in most Christian Bibles. People read them, studied them, and loved them.
But their exact place was not clear. Were they God’s Word, on the same level as Genesis and Isaiah? Or were they just good books for learning? This was the real question, and it is key to understanding why is Sirach not in the Bible for Protestants. For a good, fair look at how these lists were made, you can check out sites like the University of Pennsylvania. It explains the history of these texts.
How the Protestant Reformation Forced a Final Decision and Why Is Sirach Not in the Bible for Protestants
This quiet debate went on for over a thousand years. Then, in the 1500s, a German monk named Martin Luther started the Protestant Reformation, and everything changed. Luther’s big idea was Sola Scriptura, which is Latin for “Scripture Alone.” He taught that the Bible should be the only final guide for faith and life, more important than any church rule or leader.
This strong idea led to another big question: “Okay, but what exactly is the Bible?” If the Bible alone is the guide, you must be sure which books are in it. As a great scholar, Luther went back to the first sources to find out.
Martin Luther’s Choice and Why Is Sirach Not in the Bible He Translated?
Luther, like St. Jerome, believed the Christian Old Testament should match the Hebrew canon, which was the Bible of the Jewish people from Jesus’s time. His reason was simple: these were the holy books the apostles would have called their Bible. Since the Hebrew list did not include Sirach, Luther felt it should not be equal to the rest of the Old Testament for making beliefs.
But here is where the story is often told wrong. Luther did not just throw Sirach away; that is not true. When he translated the Bible into German, he took Sirach and the other Apocryphal books and made a new section for them. He put this section between the Old and New Testaments and wrote a note to explain why. He said these books were “not considered equal to the Holy Scriptures, but are useful and good to read.” He saw good things in them, just not the same power as the other books. This act, more than any other, is the answer to why is Sirach not in the Bible that most Protestants use today.
From a Separate Section to Total Absence: Why did the books finally disappear?
So if Luther kept Sirach in his Bible, why is it not on my shelf? For many years after the Reformation, most Protestant Bibles were like Luther’s. The famous King James Version of 1611, for example, first had the Apocrypha in its own section.
The books went away mostly for real-world reasons. Since paper was costly and printing was hard, the Bible was already a very big book. Over time, printers saw they could save money by leaving out the Apocrypha section. This made the Bibles smaller and cheaper. In the end, this money-saving choice became the normal way. Therefore, a church council did not remove the book; printers slowly left it out. You can find more on the history of English Bibles from good sources like the Christianity Today website.
The Catholic Response: The Council of Trent
The Catholic Church saw the Protestant Reformation as a big challenge, so it held meetings to give a formal answer. These meetings were called the Council of Trent (1545-1563). Facing the new Protestant view on the Bible, the Catholic Church chose to settle the canon question for good.
The Council of Trent officially said that Sirach and the other books of the Apocrypha were fully part of God’s inspired Word. (They call these the Deuterocanonical books, which means “second canon.”) This choice was based on the long history of these books in the Septuagint and their use in the church for over 1,500 years. This moment made the difference between the Catholic and Protestant Old Testaments clear. For Catholics, Sirach is in the Bible because the Church said so, confirming a practice that went back to the first centuries. You can read about the Council of Trent’s words from Catholic sources like the EWTN library.
So, What Is Sirach Actually About? Is It Worth Reading?
Now that we know the history, let’s look at the book itself. Sirach is a great work of “wisdom literature.” It is a collection of poems, proverbs, and useful lessons that teaches how to live a life that is both successful and godly. The author, a wise scribe named Jesus son of Sirach, wrote it to pass on his life’s learning to younger people. It’s full of timeless advice.
The main theme is that true wisdom starts with a deep respect for God. From there, the book talks about almost every topic you can think of, such as friendship, family, money, honesty, being humble, and the power of words. For example, on friendship, it has this lovely passage: “A faithful friend is a sturdy shelter; he who finds one finds a treasure. A faithful friend is beyond price, no amount can balance his worth” (Sirach 6:14-15).
The book also offers deep advice on being a parent, marriage, and how to treat poor people with respect. It is, in many ways, a useful guide for a good life. The practical wisdom here is a key reason many feel so strongly about this book, regardless of the debate over Why Is Sirach Not in the Bible.
The Hidden Truth Revealed: Why Is Sirach Not in the Bible?
So, let’s put Bible together. Why is sirach not in the bible? The simple answer is this: it depends on which Bible you hold. It is not in Protestant Bibles because the Protestant Reformers chose to base their Old Testament on the shorter Hebrew list of books, which does not have Sirach. This was a choice based on a belief (Sola Scriptura) and a scholarly method (Ad Fontes). It was not a plot to hide anything. In fact, for a long time, these books were still included for people to read.
In reality, the “hidden truth” is that there has been a real debate about these books for almost two thousand years. The Protestant and Catholic faiths just ended up on different sides of that old debate.
My discovery in the library that day started a cool journey, teaching me that the history of the Bible is not as simple as I thought. The story is a human one, with debates and choices made by people of deep faith trying to answer questions just like Why Is Sirach Not in the Bible. Knowing the real story of Sirach does not have to weaken your faith; on the contrary, it can make it richer. It opens up a new world of history and spiritual wisdom. Moreover, it helps us understand our Catholic and Orthodox friends and neighbors much better. The hidden truth is that this “missing” book is a treasure waiting for you to find it.
FAQ – Why Is Sirach Not in the Bible
What is the main theme of the book of Sirach and why is it valuable?
The main theme of Sirach is wisdom, emphasizing a respect for God and practical life advice. It offers timeless lessons on friendship, family, honesty, humility, and respect for others, making it a valuable resource for living a successful and God-centered life, regardless of its canonical status.
Was Sirach ever officially removed from the Bible?
Sirach was never officially removed from the Bible by a church council. Instead, it was gradually excluded from Protestant Bibles mainly for practical reasons, such as printing space and cost, and because Protestants based their canon on the Hebrew list of sacred books rather than the wider Septuagint.
How did the Council of Trent influence the status of Sirach in the Bible?
The Council of Trent (1545-1563) recognized Sirach and other books of the Apocrypha as fully inspired and part of the Bible for Catholics, calling them Deuterocanonical. This official declaration firmly established Sirach’s place in the Catholic canon, contrasting with the Protestant canon that excludes these books.
What is the difference between the Hebrew canon and the Septuagint in relation to Sirach?
The Hebrew canon is a list of sacred Hebrew books used by Jewish people, which does not include Sirach. The Septuagint, a Greek translation of these Hebrew texts, included additional books like Sirach. Early Christians who used the Septuagint included Sirach in their scriptures, but later, some leaders preferred the Hebrew canon, affecting whether Sirach was recognized as Scripture.
Why is Sirach not included in most Protestant Bibles?
Sirach is not included in most Protestant Bibles because Protestant reformers like Martin Luther chose to base their Old Testament on the Hebrew canon, which does not include Sirach. They considered these books useful but not equal to the Holy Scriptures, and over time, printers omitted the Apocryphal books to save space, leading to their absence in most Protestant editions.
