Book excerpt: 'Apocrypha' means 'hidden things', and describes books which were not accepted into the Hebrew Canon, but which survive in the Greek Scriptures. They were written in the period between the Old and New Testaments. Though the Apocrypha were often included in the Bible, their inclusion declined in the seventeenth century as they were seen to be deuterocanonical. The Apocrypha still hold value for study and spiritual enrichment. This edition includes the same eighteen books as the RSV Apocrypha, including Tobit, 1-4 Maccabees, Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach, Judith, Baruch, Psalm 151, and additions to Esther and Daniel. Like the ESV Bible, the translation of these books strives for accuracy, providing an essentially literal word-for-word approach to the original texts. This attractive edition will be valuable for exploring these texts and enriching understanding of the history and thought of the Jewish people during the centuries leading up to the birth of Christ.