What are Biblically-Endorsed, Extra-Scriptural Texts? They're ancient documents to which the Bible refers or quotes directly. In at least two places, the Biblical author appeals to one of these texts to validate what he says. Generally, these texts were part of the Hebrew Historical Record. Some of them, in times past, were part of the Christian Canon, that is, the collection of books we include in our Bible today. For various reasons, they were removed from the Canon.
I’ll not be one to say that Biblically-Endorsed, Extra-Scriptural Texts are to be regarded as Scripture. However, the fact that the Holy Spirit inspired Old and New Testament writers to refer to, quote, and acknowledge these external documents as reliable sources should not be discounted.
Paul refers to Jannes and Jambres as opposing Moses in 2 Timothy 3:8a
[8] “Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, ...”
There is no book in the Bible that gives us this information.
It’s found in the Book of Jasher.
Paul writes it to Timothy as if it were common knowledge.
The book of Jasher (also spelled Jashar) is referenced twice in the Old Testament as validation of what was being said: Joshua 10:13 and 2 Samuel 1:18.
Joshua 10:13
So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped,
Until the nation avenged themselves of their enemies.
Is it not written in the book of Jashar? And the sun
stopped in the middle of the sky and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day.
2 Samuel 1:18
and he told them to teach the sons of Judah the song of the bow; behold, it is written in the book of Jashar.
The Book of Enoch is still part of the Ethiopian Coptic Bible.
Jude 14-15 is taken right from the book of Enoch. We know it wasn’t the other way around because manuscripts found for the book of Enoch were written before the book of Jude was written. At the very least, it tells us Jude was aware of the book of Enoch, he had read the book of Enoch, and he considered it a reliable source to quote.
The book of Enoch indicates Cain killed Abel using an iron instrument. Cain was a tiller of the ground (Genesis 4:2), and it would be essential for him to have plowing and tilling tools.
It’s not that the book of Enoch is inconsistent with the Bible, but that it’s inconsistent with the assumptions we’ve applied to the Bible. The book of Enoch, in this case, doesn’t conflict with the Bible. It conflicts with the romanticized version of Cain killing Abel. A lot of people keep saying Cain killed Abel with a rock, clearly adding their own ideas to the account.
Similarly, when I was taught the account as a kid, I thought they were teenagers and they were the only born people on earth. Clearly, not likely.
The phrase in 1 Corinthians 11:10 "because of the angels" only has meaning in the context of the book of Enoch.
[10] “Therefore the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.”
It’s a reference to the Book of Enoch and the “fallen angels” tradition. In other words, with her head uncovered, she’s a temptation to angels.
There is no place in the Bible that indicates why angels would care about women’s heads being covered.
Likewise, the Book of Enoch provides detail regarding the mention in Jude 6 of angels being punished, which is related to the event previously indicated.
[6] And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their proper abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day,
The Book of Jubilees is quoted in Romans 2:29, 9:24, 4:13.
Book of the Wars of the Lord (Numbers 21:14),
[14] Therefore it is said in the Book of the Wars of the LORD,
“Waheb in Suphah,
And the wadis of the Arnon,
The Chronicles of Samuel the Seer (1 Chronicles 29:29)
The Chronicles of Nathan the Prophet (1 Chronicles 29:29)
The Chronicles of Gad the Seer (1 Chronicles 29:29)
1 Chronicles 29:29
[29] “Now the acts of King David, from first to last, are written in the chronicles of Samuel the seer, in the chronicles of Nathan the prophet and in the chronicles of Gad the seer,”
The book of Shemaiah and the records of Iddo the Seer:
2 Chronicles 12:15
[15] “Now the acts of Rehoboam, from first to last, are they not written in the records of Shemaiah the prophet and of Iddo the seer, according to genealogical enrollment? And there were wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually.”
The Bible even tells us in 2 Chronicles 27:7 that other acts of Jotham can be read in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah. The Bible never claims to contain all knowledge and all history. And it’s clear that the Israelites were aware of these other historical books.
-2 Chronicles 27:7
[7] “Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars, and his ways, lo, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.”
Also, according to 1 Kings 14:29, other acts of Rehoboam can be found in the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah
[29] ”Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?”
We also know that Solomon composed more than a thousand songs (1 Kings 4:32),
[32] “He also spoke 3,000 proverbs, and his songs were 1,005.”
Yet only two “songs” are preserved in the book of Psalms (72 and 127).
In addition, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament, Paul included a quotation from the Cretan poet Epimenides (Titus 1:12) and quoted from the poets Epimenides and Aratus in his speech at Athens (Acts 17:28).”
These are just some of the places where extra-scriptural texts are referenced by the Bible, and as such, are indicated to be reliable sources of history.
There are many places in the Scriptures where a statement is made that leaves you wondering, “What does that mean?” or “Why did he say that?”
What was Moses saying? Why didn’t he go into more detail? The reason he just drops that little tidbit of information without further explanation is that his audience knew all about it. It was recorded in the Hebrew Historical books available at the time. I believe the Book of Enoch was well known and well read by his audience.
The Bible also mentions Nephilim in Numbers 13:29 in Caleb's report after spying on Canaan.
[33] “There also we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”
[18] Now the sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem and Ham and Japheth; and Ham was the father of Canaan.
Why do you suppose God chose to tell us right off the ark who was the son of Ham, when he didn’t specify sons of Shem or Japheth in this verse? There was something noteworthy about Canaan which is not specifically mentioned in the account. I believe it was because Canaan’s line brought Nephilim genetics through the flood. This produced giants in the land of Canaan. These people, not all of whom were giants, but all of whom carried Nephilim genetics to varying degrees, are those whom God led to destroy in the “Conquest of Canaan.”
Some have asked, “How can God claim to be a God of love” in the New Testament when He instructed the Israelites to completely rout the Canaanites, killing men, women, and children. Killing all their animals, destroying all their artwork and altars, and even prohibiting the Israelites from eating plants grown in the region for the first several years (Leviticus 19:23-25). What would have caused God to be so Angry at these people? If you’ll recall, when Abram (not yet Abraham) came through Canaan 500 years before the Israelites were brought out of Egypt, God indicated he should steer clear of the Amorites as “their iniquity is not yet complete” (Genesis 15:12-16)
So, why was God so against the Canaanites? They were Nephilim. Not humans. (Numbers 13:30-33) Many of them were Giants (Numbers 13:33). They even used “angel knowledge” to do many things that opposed God's order, such as how to deceive other humans, how to abort unborn children, the worship and summoning of demons, and so on. They were even making human/animal hybrids using this knowledge. The Darby New Translation, makes this implication in Genesis 6:12b by translating it as "all flesh had corrupted its way on the earth." This is a primary reason God destroyed all Nephesh, or "air-breathing animals" along with the humans.
"'Fallen Angels taught men the use of magical incantations that would force demons to obey man…. This became ingrained into the Egyptians, Persians, and Babylonians.
Nimrod, called Ninus by the Greeks, was handed this knowledge and by it caused men to go away from the worship of God and to into diverse and erratic superstitions and they began to be governed by the signs in the stars and motions of the planets.' —Recognitions of Clement 4.26-29" —Mythology and the Coming Great Deception, Rob Skiba
One of the more benign uses of this knowledge was to grow giant food (Numbers 13:23). If you're a giant, you need giant-sized food.
Canaan was cursed, and his line became the Canaanites, among whom many giants were born. Genesis 10:15-19 The “ites” that the Children of Israel had to kill in the “Conquest of Canaan.”
Read more about post-flood Giants in Nephilim: Archon Invasion.
All post-flood giants described in the Bible are the offspring of other giants in the lineage of Canaan, Mizriam, Cush, and possibly Japheth (Gog and Magog).
Josephus also describes giants: (Antiquities of the Jews 5.2.3) Having bodies so large and countenances so totally different from other men that they were surprising to the sight and terrible to the hearing. Josephus also says that (at the time of his writing) bones of these men are still on display.
Canaan is not to be confused with Shem’s grandson, Kainam, who is not mentioned in the Bible. Post flood accounts, the most well-known of which is the Book of Jubilees, documents the account of Arphaxad’s (Shem’s son) son, Kainam, finding and learning from the pre-flood writings of the Watchers.
Jubilees 8:1-5
“finds a writing that former generations had carved on a rock and he read thereon.” “And he translated it and sinned owing to it for it contained the teaching of the Watchers…”
However, we don’t find Kainam in the lineage of Genesis 10, but perhaps this account is why.
The Bible doesn’t tell us. The Book of Enoch does. Did God create demons and evil spirits? No. They are the offspring of fallen angels and Nephilim mating with human women. God never intended this hybrid to exist. (Genesis 6:1-4) The moment a man and a woman cause the fertilization of a human egg, a human spirit is generated or created. When an angel mates with a human woman, a hybrid, non-human spirit is generated. When a person dies, the soul/spirit goes to God. When the angel-nephilim/woman hybrid soul dies, the soul/spirit is rejected by God and is confined to this dimension for the remainder of its existence. This is similar to what Satan is recorded as doing in Job 1:7 and 2:2
Job 1:7
[7] The LORD said to Satan, “From where do you come?” Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.”
Job 2:2
[2] The LORD said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.”
Out of the blue, in Revelation 9:14, the sixth angel reveals that four angels are to be released from bondage at the river Euphrates. This is a clear indication the Bible does note contain all the events that have happened since creation. So many things have happened the Bible doesn't explain. This is one clear situation where the Bible is silent. John almost certainly knew the back-story of these four angels.
Revelation 9:14
[14] Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.
The Book of Enoch explains this extraneous statement.
Genesis 9:3-4
[3] “Every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you; I give all to you, as I gave the green plant. [4] “Only you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.
[This question is still unanswered to me. Nevertheless, it's a directive I don't understand.]
Whenever we read an obscure statement that seems to have no context or background, it’s likely the writer’s audience knew of the topic from other Hebrew Historical books.