Is JASHER Scripture? 20 Considerations
Should the Book of Jasher be in the Bible or at least considered historically authentic?
Is Jasher Scripture? Is it a divinely inspired book that has been hidden from the Bible and suppressed by the church? Or is it at the very least, helpful and historical?
The Book of Jasher (also spelt Jashar) is referenced in Joshua 10:13 and 2 Samuel 1:18–27 (as per below). Moreover, Paul in 2 Timothy 3:8 refers to Jannes and Jambres who oppose Moses. Jannes and Jambres play a role in chapter 79 of the Book of Jasher.
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Our 20 considerations we’ll be covering are:
1. No findings of Jasher in the Dead Sea Scrolls
2. We have no manuscripts of Jasher
3. The Song of the Bow that cites Jasher from 2 Samuel 1:18–27 involving Jonathan, David and Saul is not found in the Book of Jasher
4. The fact a book is cited in the Bible does not make it Scripture
5. Wartime epic- Jasher was likely wartime epic literature ranging from the Conquest to David’s reign- nothing like what we have in our hands today
6. Likely dates back to 11th or 12th century AD- Jasher contains Medieval place names, Spanish, Arabic and Italian names
7. Too late- Jasher was written in Rabbinical Hebrew
8. Cainan has wisdom to rule over spirits and demons
9. Enoch rules over the sons of God when this is a role for God
10. Jasher downplays the spiritual nature of the beings who slept with the daughters of men before the flood
11. Joseph practices necromancy in Jasher which goes against his portrayal in the Bible
12. When did Abram leave Haran?
13. Confusion over the plagues in Egypt- a very different story
14. Red Sea split into 12 or 2?
15. Cain is killed in Jasher without a sevenfold vengeance on Lamech who kills him
16. Where did Jacob flee to in order to escape Esau?
17. Was Moses 18 or 40 when he killed the Egyptian?
18. Moses- Alien in Midian at age 40 or King in Cush from age 27 to 67?
19. Strange tales- Satan as a humble old man or handsome young man and half human half animal creatures inhabiting the earth
20. Jacob Ilive was imprisoned for his forgery of Jasher and had a questionable motivation behind his forgery
Conclusion
Passages citing Jasher
Joshua 10:13 ESV
And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped,
until the nation took vengeance on their enemies.
Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? The sun stopped in the midst of heaven and did not hurry to set for about a whole day.
2 Samuel 1:17–18 ESV
And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and Jonathan his son, 18 and he said it should be taught to the people of Judah; behold, it is written in the Book of Jashar. He said:
Different versions of Jasher
The Cepher Bible contains a book called Book of Jasher made up of 91 chapters. This traces back to a 1625 Hebrew edition from Joseph ben Samuel printed in Venice, which can likely be traced back further to several hundred years beforehand in Medieval times.
There are various translations of this 91-chapter version in circulation today.
Jacob Ilive in 1751 created a forgery called the Book of Jasher that contained 37 chapters.
When people today claim Jasher is part of the Bible or conduct Bible studies on Jasher they are basically always referring to the Cepher Bible version of Jasher (or similar). This 91-chapter version of Jasher is what we will largely be referring to today.
Book of the Upright
Book of Jasher means the Book of the Upright. The Book of Jasher claims to be written by Jasher, son of Caleb, who was one of Moses’ lieutenants.
What do we make of Jasher?
Here’s 20 quick reasons why Jasher does not belong in the Bible and is not a historically authentic piece of literature to read.
1. No findings of Jasher in the Dead Sea Scrolls
Jasher is not found in the Dead Sea Scrolls. This is highly problematic as the Dead Sea Scrolls included fragments of every Old Testament book with the exception of the Book of Esther (although some Dead Sea Scroll writings indicate strong awareness of Esther).
Obviously the Dead Sea Scrolls contained much that wasn’t Scripture but Jasher still couldn’t make it.
2. We have no manuscripts of Jasher
To add to point 1, as Hebrew scholar, Dr. Michael Brown notes, we have no manuscripts or fragments of Jasher. Nothing even outside the Dead Sea scrolls.
You can’t include something in the Bible that does not exist in our possession! Brown adds that not a single scholar of antiquity in the world believes what today is called the Book of Jasher is what was referenced in Joshua 10.
We don’t have a scrap.. we don’t have a fragment, we don’t have an inscription on a stone.. We simply do not have it. There’s not a scholar of antiquity in the world that believes that that’s the original book that was being quoted from in Joshua. — Hebrew scholar, Dr. Michael Brown
In fact, as Chiel notes, it’s hard to find any Hebrew copies of Jasher earlier than 1625.
There was purportedly a copy printed in Naples in 1552 but everything we have today traces back to the editions printed in 1625 (2013 Cepher Bible preface).
Interestingly, a 2013 preface to the Cepher Bible includes some comments about Jasher not being given to the world as a work of Divine Inspiration (though not clearly uninspired either they claimed) despite containing some authentic traditions.
It also quotes, Shemu’el, the translator of the 1840 edition, claiming that the book contained “some doubtful parts.”
3. The Song of the Bow that cites Jasher from 2 Samuel 1:18–27 involving Jonathan, David and Saul is not found in the Book of Jasher.
Jasher ends with the death of Joshua in chapter 91. The book does not even touch on the lives of Jonathan, David and Saul.
Therefore, the book we today call Jasher does not even include what the Bible claims is in Jasher!
4. The fact a book is cited in the Bible does not make it Scripture
The Bible quotes or references the following works that are not included in the canon (this is far from a comprehensive list!):
- the “Book of the Wars of the Lord” (Numbers 21:14)
- the “Book of the Acts of Solomon” (1 Kings 11:41)
- the “Visions of Iddo the Seer” (2 Chronicles 9:29)
- the “History of Nathan the Prophet” (2 Chronicles 9:29)
- the “Prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite” (2 Chronicles 9:29)
Also some pagan works:
- the Persian “Book of the Annals” (Esther 2:23)
- The works of Greek poets and prophets (Acts 17:28; Titus 1:12)
Therefore, for someone to claim Jasher should be in the Bible because it is referenced in the Bible is fallacious reasoning.
5. Wartime epic- Jasher was likely wartime epic literature ranging from the Conquest to David’s reign- nothing like what we have in our hands today
Cyrus Gordon in Ugarit as Link between Greek and Hebrew Literature contends:
That the Hebrews had an epic literature, of which only fragments are preserved in the Bible, cannot be questioned. Perhaps the most important epic, celebrating the achievement of nationhood, was the Book of Jashar, cited in Joshua 10:12–13 and 2 Sam 1:17–27, showing that it covered from at least the Conquest through the establishment of the Davidic Dynasty. It is significant that both of these quotations have striking extrabiblical parallels in East Mediterranean epic.
Jason Gaines in The Poetic Priestly Source (p.13), contends Jasher likely contained poetic descriptions of battles like Judges 5 and that the whole of Jasher was poetic narratives of Israel’s battles and accomplishments.
Note, this is not what we find in what today is called the Book of Jasher! The Book of Jasher doesn’t even culminate in David’s reign.
6. Likely dates back to 11th or 12th century AD- Jasher contains Medieval place names, Spanish, Arabic and Italian names
As Hebrew scholar Michael Heiser explains:
“To date, then, there is no reason to think that any Book of Jasher one finds for sale on the internet is authentic, either in Hebrew or English. At best the Hebrew text originated in the eleventh or twelfth century AD and is thus medieval. The English translation was created in 1751.
The lost Book of Jasher is still lost.”
We can see evidence for this 11th or 12th-century dating in the Medieval names found in chapter 10 of Jasher.
Jasher 10:15 refers to the people of Lumbardi who conquered Italia. Yet, this did not occur until the 6th century AD.
Moreover, many names found in the book of Jasher that are not biblical are Arabic, Spanish, or Italian.
7. Too late- Jasher was written in Rabbinical Hebrew
Hebrew Professor George Bush, who was involved in reviewing the Book of Jasher we have today, claimed:
The work itself is evidently composed in the purest Rabbinical Hebrew.
However, Rabbinical Hebrew is a much later form of Hebrew than what existed during Old Testament biblical times!
8. Cainan has wisdom to rule over spirits and demons
In Jasher 2:11, Cainan, son of Enosh, rules over spirits and demons. The idea of a fallen human being reigning over spirits and demons without the name of God or association with Christ is completely foreign to the Bible.
There are no explicit cases of exorcisms in the Old Testament (although Psalm 91 was likely treated as exorcism Psalm), Jesus is the first person in the Bible with clear power over the demonic.
Christ’s followers can cast out demons in his name or through their union with him once he defeated principalities and powers at the cross (Col. 2:15).
It would appear Cainan is given a role that is not fit for a fallen human being according to the rest of Scripture, especially prior to the coming of Christ.
9. Enoch rules over the sons of God when this is a role for God
In Jasher 3:23, an angel calls to Enoch wishing for him to rule over the son of God as he ruled over the son of men!
Make no mistake about it. In Jasher 3:9, Enoch functions as king of earth. He is now called to be king of heaven!
Yet, it is YHWH alone who is feared by the holy ones in the heavenly council (Psalm 89:7). It is YHWH who has authority over the son of God or the heavenly beings in Job 1:6. Christ’s followers can reign with him only after his death and resurrection (2 Tim. 2:12).
10. Jasher downplays the spiritual nature of the beings who slept with the daughters of men before the flood
I’m not intending to get into a debate in this article as to the nature of the sons of God (human earthly rulers v fallen angels etc) who have sex with the daughters of men in Genesis 6.
What I will note, however, is that in Jasher 4:18, these sons of God are simply called judges and rulers.
I raise this because many people who today think Jasher is Scripture tend to have a large focus on the Nephilim and so forth, when Jasher itself downplays the spiritual nature of the beings having sex with women before the flood!
11. Joseph practices necromancy in Jasher which goes against his portrayal in the Bible
In Jasher 42:30–41, Joseph falls on his mother’s grave and cries out to her to speak to him. Necromancy is forbidden in the Torah (Deut. 18:11–12). Yet, in Jasher, Joseph, who has an impressive track record in Genesis as a godly man, is practising this abomination of necromancy.
That’s not to say godly men don’t fail, they fail many times in the Bible. However, Jasher paints a different view of Joseph to the Bible.
12. When did Abram leave Haran?
In Jasher 13:5, Abram leaves Haran at age 50 yet in Genesis he leaves at age 75 (Gen. 12:4).
13. Confusion over the plagues in Egypt- a very different story
The book of Exodus outlines 10 plagues that befall Egypt (Ex. 7–12). However, in Jasher, God sends 15 plagues on Egypt (Jasher 80:2–51).
Sulanuth
The plagues outlined in Jasher include some substantially different pieces of information. For example, in Jasher 80:19–22, God orders the Sulanuth that is in the sea to go into Egypt.
She has long arms, ten cubits in the length of the cubit of a man and goes into the Egyptian homes, removing locks and bolts so that swarms of animals can make their way into Egyptian homes!
In Jasher 80:8, under the second plague, the perspiration of the Egyptians, when they lie in their beds, breeds frogs!
14. Red Sea split into 12 or 2?
Jasher 81:38 claims the waters of the Red Sea were split into 12 parts while Exodus 14:22 shows the waters were split into 2, on the left and right of the Israelites!
15. Cain is killed in Jasher without a sevenfold vengeance on Lamech who kills him
In Genesis 4:15, God puts a mark on Cain so that no one will kill him. If anyone kills Cain they suffer a sevenfold vengeance!
However, in Jasher 2:28–29, Lamech kills Cain. Ironically, in Genesis 4:24, Lamech has greater protection over his life than Cain himself does (77 fold compared to Cain’s 7)!
It sounds more like Lamech has an 11 fold benefit over Cain than a seven-fold vengeance!
In Jasher, Lamech kills his son and then his wives try to kill him (Jasher 2:31–32) but eventually return to him.
Jubilees 4:31 which many Christians do not consider Scripture but may offer some historical benefit, has Cain dying by a stone house falling on him.
16. Where did Jacob flee to in order to escape Esau?
Jasher purports that Jacob fled to Eber’s home, where he subsequently spent 14 years, in order to escape Esau (Jasher 29:11).
However, Genesis claims Jacob went to Laban’s home (Gen. 28:5). Jacob subsequently served Laban for 14 years (Gen. 29:30).
17. Was Moses 18 or 40 when he killed the Egyptian?
Acts 7:23–24 suggests Moses was around 40 when he killed the Egyptian who was oppressing the Israelite. Yet, Jasher 71:1–3 suggests Moses was around 18 years old when he did this.
18. Moses- Alien in Midian at age 40 or King in Cush from age 27 to 67?
Acts 7:23–29, outlines how at age 40 when Moses kills the Egyptian he flees to Midian where he becomes a resident alien and eventually becomes a father of two sons.
However, according to Jasher 73:2, at age 27, Moses reigns over Cush as King and he continues ruling for 40 years.
The Jewish Bible Quarterly, refers to the story of Moses ruling in Cush as a legendary story that was incorporated into the midrashic corpus. The Midrash is a Jewish form of literature that interprets or elaborates on biblical texts and continues until the Medieval period (when Jasher was likely written).
The Zohar was published around the 1200s by a forger who presented it as an earlier Jewish work. This is similar to what we see with Jasher.
19. Strange tales- Satan as a humble old man or handsome young man and half human half animal creatures inhabiting the earth
Jasher contains narratives that are somewhat different in nature to what is found in the Old Testament.
Jasher contains some rather strange narratives concerning Satan and Abraham that are not included in Genesis and are different to anything found in the Bible.
At times, Jasher is somewhat like a science fiction novel.
Satan
Satan appears to Abraham, dressed as a humble old man in Jasher 23:25 after Satan has asked God to test Abraham.
Satan appears to Sarah as being very humble and meek, claiming Abraham had killed Isaac (Jasher 23:76–78).
Satan appears to Isaac as a handsome young man (Jasher 23:29).
While the Bible does say Satan can appear as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:4), these are quite substantial details to omit from Gensis.
Rebecca Gratz, as Chiel highlights, found these details concerning the active involvement of Satan in the life of Abraham shocking and a red flag for the book of Jasher.
Half human half animal beasts that humans can kill
120 animals come out from the wilderness that are as humans from the middle downward and as various animals from the middle upward. There are no such creatures mentioned in the Bible outside of apocalyptic imagery, nor is there any indication God created half animal half human creatures to live on the earth.
In Jasher 61:15- Zepho finds an animal devouring an ox. The animal was like a man from the middle upward and like an animal from the middle down. Zepho kills the animal.
Again, there is no indication in the Bible such creatures were created by God, physically present on earth or able to be killed by humans.
20. Jacob Ilive was imprisoned for his forgery of Jasher and had a questionable motivation behind his forgery
Ilive was a deist, rejecting orthodox Christianity and spreading pamphlets with unorthodox Christian messages. His forgery of Jasher contains 37 chapters (compared to the 91 in the Cepher Bible) and diminished the role of Moses, having Jethro as the founding father of Israel’s law code.
Chiel explains:
“Ilive’s The Book of Jasher consists of thirty-seven chapters which begin with the Creation story and extend to the rule of “Jasher, the son of Caleb who judged Israel in Shiloh.” Jasher is represented as an adjutant of Moses, along with Joshua. But even a casual reading of this work reveals the book’s real purpose: the rejection of Revelation.
Jethro emerges as the “founding father” of Israel’s law code. It is Jethro who convokes Moses and the seventy elders on Mt. Sinai where he instructs them about the governance of Israel. Here, then, was the real intent of The Book of Jasher: to challenge the credibility of the Pentateuch and to diminish altogether the role of Moses.”
-Rabbi Arthur Chiel, The Mysterious Book of Jasher (Judaism: A Quarterly Journal, Issue №103, Vol. 26,) p. 373
Ilive’s version of Jasher was quickly recognised as a fabrication and he was sentenced to three years in prison in 1756 for his fraudulent assertions.
Conclusion
The once-lost Book of Jasher is still lost today. What we have today doesn’t trace back early enough to be considered authentic.
It is different in nature from the wartime epic literature quoted as Jasher in the Bible. It excludes the time of David that 2 Samuel 1 purports was included in the Book of Jasher.
Jasher’s teachings are contrary to Scripture in terms of historical details, the character record of godly men like Joseph, and assign to the likes of Enoch a role only for God.
Further indicating its later date, Jasher includes Spanish, Arabic, and Italian names as well as Medieval place names.
The Book of Jasher should by no means be included in the Bible. It’s lost and what we have today are forgeries.
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