Introduction

The Ethiopian Bible, written in the ancient South Semitic language of Ge'ez, is one of the oldest and most complete Bibles in the world. It is distinct from other Christian bibles in several key aspects, primarily due to its broader canon of sacred texts, which includes several books not found in the Protestant or even the broader Roman Catholic compilations. The Ethiopian Bible's roots can be traced back to the Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, completed between 300 to 200 BC. It is considered one of the most important translations of the Bible, as it predates the King James Version (KJV) by nearly 800 years. The Septuagint was used as a source text for the translation of the Ethiopian Bible, and many of the books in the Ethiopian Bible are identical to those found in the Septuagint. However, the Ethiopian Bible also includes additional books that are not found in the Septuagint, considered Pseudepigraphal/Apocryphal, such as the 1 Enoch, 2 Enoch, Jubilees, 2 Esdras (Ezra Sutu’el), 4 Baruch and 1 Clement. Moreover, unique to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church are the books of Meqabyan I-III (not to be confused with the 1-4 Maccabees). The translation of Meqabyan by the author from Iyaric (a liturgical term occasionally used to refer to Rastafarian dialectical expressions) into English involves careful attention to both linguistic detail and the preservation of original meanings and connotations, ensuring that both the style and substance of the sacred texts are respected. The following books are recognized as Deuterocanonical by the Roman Catholic, Greek, and Russian Orthodox Churches: Tobit, Judith, Esther from the Greek Septuagint, The Wisdom of Solomon, Ecclesiasticus (also called The Wisdom of Jesus Son of Sirach), Baruch, The Song of the Three Holy Children, Susanna, and Bel and the Dragon, 1 Maccabees, 2 Maccabees. As for The Letter of Jeremiah, it is included as chapter 6 of Baruch. The following books are recognized as Deuterocanonical by the Greek and Russian Orthodox Churches, but not the Roman Catholic Church: 1 Esdras (Ezra Kali), The Prayer of Manasses, Psalm 151, and 3 Maccabees. An appendix to the Greek Septuagint contains 4 Maccabees, considered Pseudepigraphal. It is included for its historical value.

The canon of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church is significantly larger than the Protocanonical 66 books of the Protestant Bible. The divergence stems largely from the inclusion of various texts categorized under the labels of the Deuterocanon, Apocrypha, and Pseudepigrapha. These texts offer additional insights and narratives that are considered canonical in the Ethiopian tradition but are non-canonical or apocryphal in others.