How We Got the Bible

The Lost Gospels and the Apocrypha

Two different things get lumped under 'lost gospels.' The Apocrypha (deuterocanonical books) are Jewish writings like Tobit and 1 Maccabees, included in Catholic and Orthodox Bibles and set apart by Protestants. The Gnostic writings, like the Gospel of Thomas, are later texts (mostly second century and after) that the church did not receive because they were late, not apostolic, and taught a different theology. Neither group was secretly suppressed; the reasons were openly discussed.

The Apocrypha (deuterocanonical books)

The Apocrypha are Jewish books written mostly in the centuries before Christ, including Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, and 1 and 2 Maccabees, along with additions to Daniel and Esther. They appear in the Greek Septuagint and have long been valued in the church. Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Bibles include them as Scripture (the Catholic Church affirmed this at the Council of Trent in 1546). Protestant Bibles, following the Hebrew canon, regard them as useful and edifying but not part of Scripture. This is a genuine, long-standing difference among Christians, not a conspiracy, and it is discussed further on the canon page.

The Gnostic gospels

The so-called lost gospels, like the Gospel of Thomas, the Gospel of Judas, the Gospel of Mary, and the Gospel of Philip, are a different matter. Many were found in 1945 at Nag Hammadi in Egypt. Most scholars date them to the second century or later, well after the four Gospels, and they carry the names of apostles who did not write them. They generally reflect Gnosticism, a movement teaching secret knowledge and a lower, material world, a theology quite different from the apostolic faith.

The Gospel of Thomas is a collection of sayings rather than a narrative; a few of its sayings echo the canonical Gospels, while others are distinctly Gnostic. Scholars debate whether any of its material is early, but the consensus is that as a document it is later than Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Why the church distinguished them

The church did not receive these writings for reasons it stated plainly: they were too late to be apostolic, they were pseudonymous, and they taught a different gospel. Far from being hidden, they were named and answered by early Christian writers. Treating their exclusion as a dark secret makes a better thriller than history.

What Christians hold

Christians hold that the four Gospels are the early, apostolic witness to Jesus, and that the Gnostic writings, whatever their historical interest, present a later and different picture. The honest reader can compare them; the four canonical Gospels are earlier, are rooted in the world of first-century Judaism, and were received across the whole church.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between the Apocrypha and the lost gospels?

The Apocrypha (deuterocanonical books) are pre-Christian Jewish writings included in Catholic and Orthodox Bibles and set apart by Protestants. The so-called lost gospels are later Gnostic texts like the Gospel of Thomas, which the church did not receive as Scripture. They are two different categories.

Why was the Gospel of Thomas left out of the Bible?

Most scholars date it to the second century, later than the four Gospels, and it carries an apostle's name without being written by him. As a sayings collection it reflects Gnostic ideas foreign to the apostolic faith. The church excluded it openly for these reasons, not by secret suppression.

Did the church hide the lost gospels?

No. Early Christian writers named and argued against these texts in the open. Their exclusion followed stated criteria of apostolic origin, early date, and agreement with the faith handed down. The idea of a conspiracy to hide them is not supported by the history.