Most people think the Bible fell out of the sky as a single, leather-bound volume. It didn't. Honestly, the process of choosing which texts became "The Bible" and which became other books of the bible that ended up on the cutting room floor was messy, political, and took centuries. You’ve probably heard of the Gospel of Thomas or the Book of Enoch. Maybe you saw a TikTok about "lost scriptures" and wondered if there’s a secret conspiracy afoot.
The truth is usually a bit more academic, but no less fascinating.
When we talk about other books of the bible, we are usually talking about two specific groups: the Deuterocanon (or Apocrypha) and the Pseudepigrapha. The first group is actually in the Bible for about 1.3 billion Catholics and Orthodox Christians. The second group is the wild stuff—the books almost nobody accepted as scripture, full of talking crosses and baby Jesus performing magic tricks that would make a modern parent’s hair stand on end.
Why the "Other Books of the Bible" Were Left Out
Ever wonder who decided what stayed? It wasn't one guy in a dark room. It was a slow-burn consensus of early church leaders like Athanasius of Alexandria, who sent out a "Festal Letter" in 367 AD listing the 27 books of the New Testament we use today. But before that, things were a bit of a Wild West.
The criteria for keeping a book were pretty strict. Was it written by an Apostle? Was it being used by most churches? Did the theology actually match up with what everyone already believed? If a book claimed Jesus turned his playmates into goats—which actually happens in the Infancy Gospel of Thomas—it usually got the boot. People weren't just looking for "holy" vibes; they wanted historical grounding.
Many of these other books of the bible weren't "banned" so much as they were just ignored into oblivion. If a manuscript was expensive to copy by hand, and nobody in your local church wanted to hear it read on Sunday, it eventually vanished. Or it sat in a jar in the Egyptian desert for 1,600 years, like the Nag Hammadi library discovered in 1945.
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The Book of Enoch: The Weirdest Book You’ve Never Read
If you want to understand the New Testament, you actually have to look at Enoch. It’s the ultimate "other" book. While it isn't in most Bibles, the New Testament book of Jude literally quotes it. Like, word for word.
Enoch is wild. It talks about "The Watchers"—angels who came down to Earth, married human women, and sired a race of giants called the Nephilim. It’s basically the plot of a high-fantasy novel. While the mainstream Jewish and Christian canons eventually rejected it, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church kept it. For them, it isn't an "other" book; it's just the Bible.
This highlights a key point: "The Bible" depends entirely on who you ask.
The Gospel of Mary and the Gnostic Struggle
Then there's the Gospel of Mary. It’s not about Mary, the mother of Jesus, but Mary Magdalene. This text is a massive deal for historians because it suggests a version of early Christianity where women held significantly more spiritual authority than later traditions allowed.
In this text, Mary is the one comforting the other disciples after the crucifixion. She's the one who "gets" it. Peter is depicted as jealous and skeptical, asking, "Did he really speak privately with a woman and not openly to us?" It’s a power struggle captured in ink. Most Gnostic texts like this were rejected because they taught that the physical world was evil and created by a lesser, bumbling god—a concept that didn't sit well with the "God saw that it was good" crowd.
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The Apocrypha: The Books That Are Only Sorta Out
If you pick up a Catholic Bible, you'll find Tobit, Judith, 1 and 2 Maccabees, Wisdom, Sirach, and Baruch. These are the "other" books that Protestants removed during the Reformation. Martin Luther liked them for history but didn't think they were "God-breathed" on the same level as the rest.
1 Maccabees is actually why we have Hanukkah. It tells the story of the Jewish revolt against the Greek king Antiochus IV Epiphanes. If you’re a history buff, this book is indispensable. Without it, there’s a massive 400-year gap in your knowledge of what happened between the Old and New Testaments.
Protestants usually call these "good to read but not law."
The Shepherd of Hermas: The Almost-Winner
For a long time, the Shepherd of Hermas was a frontrunner for the New Testament. It’s an allegory about a guy named Hermas who gets visions from an angel dressed as a shepherd. It’s basically the Pilgrim's Progress of the second century.
Early heavyweights like Irenaeus and Clement of Alexandria loved it. They thought it was essential reading. But as the "canon" solidified, it was pushed to the sidelines because it was written a bit too late to be considered apostolic. It’s a gentle, moralistic book, very different from the cosmic weirdness of Enoch or the secret knowledge of the Gnostic gospels.
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The Real Impact of These "Lost" Texts
Why does any of this matter in 2026? Because these other books of the bible provide the context for everything Jesus said. When Jesus talks about "the Son of Man" or "the fires of Gehenna," he’s often using language and concepts that were popular in the books that didn't make the cut.
You can’t fully understand the atmosphere of first-century Judea by only reading the "official" books. It’s like trying to understand 1960s culture by only listening to the #1 hits. You need the underground records to see the whole picture.
- The Infancy Gospel of Thomas: Features a young Jesus who is, frankly, a bit terrifying. He strikes people down for bumping into him and brings clay birds to life. It’s a fascinating look at how early Christians tried to fill in the "silent years" of Jesus’ childhood.
- The Gospel of Judas: Found in the 1970s and authenticated in the early 2000s. It portrays Judas not as a traitor, but as the only disciple who truly understood Jesus' mission. It’s a complete 180 from the traditional narrative.
- The Acts of Paul and Thecla: A story about a woman named Thecla who hears Paul preach, cancels her wedding, and survives being thrown to the lions (who actually protect her). It was a bestseller in the early church.
Practical Steps for the Curious
If you’re tired of just hearing snippets, you can actually read this stuff. It’s not illegal or "satanic" to look at them; even the most conservative scholars study them to understand history.
- Get a "Common English Bible" with Apocrypha. This is the easiest way to read the books that Catholics and Orthodox Christians use. They are integrated right into the text.
- Look up the Nag Hammadi Library. If you want the "secret" Gnostic stuff, this is the definitive collection. It includes the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Philip.
- Read "The Apocryphal New Testament" by J.K. Elliott. This is the gold standard for scholars. It’s a massive collection of non-canonical gospels, acts, and epistles with academic introductions that explain where they came from.
- Compare the tone. When you read the Gospel of Thomas side-by-side with the Gospel of Mark, the difference in "voice" is jarring. Mark is a fast-paced narrative; Thomas is just a list of 114 sayings. Doing this comparison helps you see why the early church felt they were different animals entirely.
Understanding these other books of the bible doesn't have to change your faith, but it will definitely change your perspective on how the most influential book in history came to be. It was a process of filtering, arguing, and deciding what was "true" in a world where everyone had a story to tell.
Next Steps for Exploration
Start by reading the Book of Tobit. It’s short, it’s a great story (involving a giant fish and a demon), and it provides a perfect bridge into the world of the Deuterocanon. If you want something more "out there," find a translation of the Gospel of Thomas and try to find the parallels between its sayings and the Sermon on the Mount. This will give you a firsthand look at the "sayings tradition" that scholars like Bart Ehrman and Elaine Pagels have spent their careers analyzing. Finally, check out the Dead Sea Scrolls archives online to see how many of these "other" books were found alongside the traditional ones, proving they were all part of the same messy, vibrant religious library.