The Original King James Bible Had 14 Extra Books
Did you know the original 1611 King James Bible included 14 apocryphal books between the Old and New Testaments? Modern KJV Bibles have removed them — not for canonical reasons, but for printing costs starting in the 1820s. This is basic bibliographic history, but many KJV-only advocates today don't know it.
The 14 Books in the 1611 KJV:
Placed in a SEPARATE section between the Old and New Testaments (not interwoven with the OT as in Catholic Bibles):
— 1 Esdras
— 2 Esdras
— Tobit
— Judith
— Additions to Esther
— Wisdom of Solomon
— Sirach (also called Ecclesiasticus)
— Baruch
— Letter of Jeremiah
— Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Young Men
— Susanna
— Bel and the Dragon
— Prayer of Manasseh
— 1 Maccabees
— 2 Maccabees
(Some count this as 15 books, depending on how the additions to Esther and Daniel are counted.)
The Historical Framing:
The 1611 KJV translators followed the Reformation pattern set by:
— Luther's German Bible (1534) — included the Apocrypha in a separate section, marked as "useful and good to read" but not equal to Scripture.
— The Geneva Bible (1560) — same pattern.
— The Bishops' Bible (1568) — same pattern.
The KJV title page and preface distinguished the Apocrypha from the canonical books. It was included for edification, NOT as authoritative Scripture.
When and Why the Apocrypha Was Removed:
1826 — The British and Foreign Bible Society decided to stop publishing Bibles that included the Apocrypha. Reasons: cost (14 extra books added significantly per Bible), anti-Catholic differentiation, and streamlined missionary distribution.
1827 — The American Bible Society did the same.
Since then, virtually all Protestant KJV Bibles have omitted the Apocrypha.
The Historical Fact vs. KJV-Only Claims:
Many KJV-only advocates argue for continuity and providential preservation of "the King James Bible." But the 1611 they cite included 14 books modern KJV Bibles have removed. The removal was economic, publisher-driven, and post-Reformation — not a new canonical judgment.
The Reformed Position — Westminster Confession 1:3:
"The books commonly called Apocrypha, not being of divine inspiration, are no part of the canon of the Scripture; and therefore are of no authority in the church of God, nor to be any otherwise approved, or made use of, than other human writings."
This is the definitive Reformed position. The Apocrypha is NOT Scripture. It is human writing.
But: the Reformers READ the Apocrypha as edifying and historically valuable.
Why Reformed Christians Should Know These Books:
1 and 2 Maccabees document the Maccabean revolt (166-160 BC) against Antiochus IV Epiphanes — the intertestamental world Jesus was born into. Hanukkah comes from 1 Maccabees 4. John 10:22 references the Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah), and Jesus attended it.
Sirach and Wisdom of Solomon are wisdom-literature parallels to Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. Some scholars think Paul echoes Wisdom of Solomon in Romans and Hebrews.
The Roman Catholic and Orthodox Positions:
The Roman Catholic Church officially added the Apocrypha (they call it "deuterocanonical") to the canon at the Council of Trent (1546). Eastern Orthodox churches include them. Protestants never have.
The Pastoral Implication:
This episode is not arguing the Apocrypha should be canonical. It IS pointing out that the 1611 KJV included them for edification, modern KJV Bibles have removed them for printing costs, and the Reformers read them as useful historical and wisdom literature.
Your Bible is smaller than the 1611. Not because Scripture was subtracted. Because printing was cheaper.
📖 Passages: John 10:22 (references Hanukkah / Feast of Dedication from 1 Maccabees 4), Hebrews 11:35 (may allude to 2 Maccabees 7), various NT wisdom echoes