The Forgotten Books of Eden: The Psalms of Solomon and the Odes of Solomon (ePub)

One of the Pseudepigrapha, the Psalms of Solomon is a group of eighteen “war” psalms that are not part of any scriptural canon. They are, however, found in copies of the Peshitta and the Septuagint. The Psalms of Solomon were referenced in Early Christian writings, but lost to modern scholars until a Greek manuscript was rediscovered in the 17th century. Written in response to the capture (but not destruction) of Jerusalem. They are filled with historical allusions, and implicitly call for revolution against Rome.

Some of the psalms are messianic, in the Jewish sense (clearly referring to a mortal that happens to be divinely assisted, much like Moses), but the majority are concerned less with the world at large, and more with individual behaviour, expressing a belief that repentance for unintended sins will return us to God's favour.

The Odes of Solomon, also part of the Pseudepigrapha, are found together with the similar Psalms of Solomon, and have been ascribed to the same author. The earliest extant manuscripts of the Odes of Solomon date from around the end of the 3rd and the beginning of the 4th century. Technically the 42 Odes are anonymous, but attributed to Solomon and the original language of the Odes is thought to have been either Greek or Syriac.

Unlike the Psalms of Solomon, however, the Odes are much less clearly Jewish, and much more Christian in appearance. They explicitly refer not only to Jesus, but also to the ideas of virgin birth, harrowing of hell, and the Trinity. Adolf von Harnack [1851 – 1930] suggested the work of a Christian interpolator, adjusting an originally Jewish text.