novels) in Judith and 3 Maccabees. The discourses include a wisdom instruction (Ecclesiasticus/Sirach), prophecies (Baruch), apocalypses (2 Esdras), prayers (Prayer of Manasseh and Psalm 151), and sermons or orations (Wisdom of Solomon, Letter of Jeremiah, and 4 Maccabees). It should also be noted that the narratives use discourse forms (dialogues, prayers, etc.), and the discourses use narrative forms (e.g., the catalogue of heroes in Sirach 44–50). Reading the Apocrypha as history involves attention
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