David A. deSilva - Introducing the Apocrypha: Message, Context, and Significance

Bending the Knee of the Heart in an Apocryphon: A High-Water Mark in Jewish Theology

J A M E S H. C H A R L E S W O R T H

One of my close colleagues at Duke University for over twenty years was the dean of the chapel, Dr. James Cleland. Pondering whether he was a Christian Jew or a Jewish Christian, Dr. Cleland liked to refer to the Prayer of Manasseh. He would frequently tell the story of a Southern Baptist minister who opened the pulpit Bible and read from this early Jewish prayer. The members of the congregation were amazed at the Christian character of the prayer and told him that it was one of the most insightful and meaningful prayers they had ever heard. They confessed, however, that they could not find the text in their Bibles. He told them it was in their pulpit Bible.

The Prayer of Manasseh is indeed one of the greatest penitential prayers ever composed. Samuel Sandmel once told me that it should have been canonized within the liturgy of the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). We do not have the fluid liturgy of Yom Kippur that was directed by the high priest and the Levites in the Jerusalem temple before 70 CE, yet I can imagine the Prayer of Manasseh being read at that time of yearnot only privately but also publicly in synagogues, both in the land and in the Diaspora. Perhaps some in the temple read it, calling on God as they confessed their sins and asked forgiveness.

Those who have focused their lives on the study of prayers frequently tell me that the most deeply spiritual prayers are those composed by early Jews. Subsequently, I often hear the Prayer of Manasseh cited. Once, when I thought my interlocutor was only superficially informed about early Jewish prayers, I was startled to hear the following answer: Well, I do not memorize the titles of prayers you scholars give them. My interest is in the spirituality in a prayer. The individual then quoted the Prayer of Manasseh from memory:

And now behold I am bending the knees of my heart before you;

and I am beseeching your kindness.

I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned;

and I certainly know my sins.

I beseech you:

forgive me, O Lord, forgive me! (Pr. Man. 1113)

Despite what may be heard in sermons and published in books, Jews during the time of Jesus did acknowledge their sinfulness and confess their sins. In fact, in the temple they established a yearly liturgy and ritual for confessing sins and seeking Gods forgiveness. During this ritual, Yom Kippur, even the high priest, having immersed himself in purifying waters and put on elegant and expensive garments, openly confessed his sins. Centuries later Jews remembered his words:

O Lord, I have committed iniquity, transgressed, and sinned before you, I and my house.

O Lord, forgive the iniquities, transgressions, and sins, which I have done by committing iniquity, transgression, and sin before you, I and my house. ( m. Yoma 3:8)

Manasseh was ancient Israels most wicked king. The Prayer of Manasseh assumes that he recognized and acknowledged his sin. Most scholars, however, conclude that a Jew shortly before the time of Jesus composed this prayer and placed it on the lips of Manasseh. The work is thus both apocryphal (not contained in the canon represented by the Hebrew Bible) and pseudepigraphical (attributed to an ancient Israelite or Jew). Hence, the Prayer of Manasseh has been included in collections of the Old Testament Apocrypha and in the larger corpus of early Jewish religious texts called the Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. The Prayer of Manasseh is included in the Greek Orthodox and Slavonic Orthodox Bibles andof coursewidely available to Roman Catholics since it is deuterocanonical. As we ponder the borders of the canon and the texts that contain Gods Word in the words of Scripture, we hear the cry from the heart of the human who prayed the Prayer of Manasseh, someone so distraught and in need of Gods healing forgiveness that he bent the knees of his heart.

Jews and Christians who wish to learn about their ancient roots need to know aboutindeed readthe so-called apocryphal books. All of the Old Testament Apocrypha are now included in the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible. David deSilvas Introducing the Apocrypha is the best introduction to this ancient corpus. He wisely refuses the glib pronouncement of some professors that the Old Testament Apocrypha are the books added in the Septuagint. This claim fails to observe that such a list varies according to the contents of the ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint. DeSilva thus opts for an inclusive definition of the Apocrypha. He helps the interested reader to comprehend the message, context, and significance of these ancient Jewish compositions. With living and captivating prose, and with erudition and insight, he leads the reader into the thoughts of some great Jewish minds that were imbued with revelation from above. As deSilva makes clear, the Apocrypha are not a threat to faith; they are a vital witness to faith, specifically the faith of Jewish people living in the period between the third century BCE and the first century CE.