12 h 14 minAudiobook13 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 12 h 14 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · 416 pagesHardcover · 6 × 9 in · 416 pagesAbout this book
What stories of Mary, Jesus, and early Christian life lie outside the New Testament?
The Lost Books of the Bible gathers early Christian writings by many hands. Its infancy gospels tell stories of Mary and the boy Jesus, while the Gospel of Nicodemus recounts his trial before Pontius Pilate and his descent to the dead. These texts offer stories beyond the familiar biblical accounts.
Letters associated with Clement, Polycarp, and Barnabas sit alongside the visionary teaching of The Shepherd of Hermas. Together, these writings reveal how early Christians teach their communities and debate what belongs in worship. Despite the collection’s title, most of these works remain known through centuries of copying, quotation, and argument.
What you’ll discover
- Mary and the boy Jesus Explore the Protevangelium of James and infancy stories that imagine lives beyond the canonical accounts.
- The trial before Pilate Read how the Gospel of Nicodemus retells the trial and describes a descent to the dead.
- Letters to early communities Encounter teachings associated with Clement, Polycarp, and Barnabas, among the collection’s many Christian voices.
- The visions of Hermas Step into The Shepherd of Hermas, a striking work of visions and teaching.
- Beyond the biblical canon Discover writings that churches quote, copy, and debate without including them in most Bibles.
Who will love it
Readers drawn to early church history, Bible background and stories about Mary, Jesus and the apostles will love this collection. It also suits those curious about visions, martyr tales and the first bishops.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- The canon formed slowly, and many books stayed outside
- Mary's birth is told as a miracle after sorrow
- Jesus is born while all creation stands still
- Washing water and swaddling cloths heal many in Egypt
- The boy Jesus works wonders and sometimes wrath
- Short letters tie Jesus, Paul and Rome together
- Pilate's court, the risen witnesses, and hell's gates
- Thecla leaves her betrothal and survives the arena
- Early bishops write to hold churches together
- Hermas sees a tower rising on the water
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The Lost Books of the Bible
by Various early Christian authors
A boy shapes clay sparrows that fly, a woman survives her trials, and Hermas watches young men build a tower.
Challenging10–20 hours to readDeutsch
Excellent
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In short
What happens when the church is still deciding which books count? You get a shelf of writings stranger, warmer and more varied than a tidy Bible suggests.
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Listen freeOr hold it in print: paperback, hardcover or large print, at costFrom the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
The canon formed slowly, and many books stayed outside
The writings here were composed over about three centuries, mostly in Greek. Some are letters, some are stories, and some are visions. Paul wrote his letters as pastoral mail and never planned them as Scripture. Other books, such as the Shepherd of Hermas and the First Epistle of Clement, circulated beside the gospels.
Pressure to choose came from two sides. Around 140 Marcion arrived in Rome with a short canon of his own. Teachers produced many new gospels. Around 180 Irenaeus argued for exactly four gospels, and in 367 Athanasius of Alexandria listed the twenty-seven books of the New Testament.
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A boy shapes clay sparrows that fly, a woman survives her trials, and Hermas watches young men build a tower.
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- Level
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- Paperback
- 416 pages · 6 × 9 in
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- 416 pages · 6 × 9 in
- Large print paperback
- 678 pages · 8.5 × 11 in
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Cite this edition
The Lost Books of the Bible. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-the-lost-books-of-the-bible.
The lost books of the Bible. (2026). Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-the-lost-books-of-the-bible
The Lost Books of the Bible. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-the-lost-books-of-the-bible.
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title = {The Lost Books of the Bible},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-the-lost-books-of-the-bible}
}
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What is The Lost Books of the Bible about?
It gathers early Christian writings that are not in most Bibles. They include infancy stories of Mary and Jesus, letters, Jesus' trial before Pilate, the story of Thecla, letters of early bishops and the visions of Hermas.
Why were these books left out of the Bible?
The canon formed over several centuries through use in worship, debates with teachers such as Marcion and lists such as Athanasius's in 367. Many of these books were valued locally but were not chosen for the final list.
Who wrote the Protevangelium of James?
The text names James, the brother of the Lord, as its author. Scholars generally think it was written in the second century by someone else. It gave Mary's parents the names Joachim and Anna and shaped devotion to her.
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