REVELATIONS, SPURIOUS [APocRvmal. The Apocalyptic character, which is occupied in describing the future splendour of the Messianic kingdom and its historical relations, presents itself for the first time in the book of Daniel, which is thus characteristically distinguished from the former prophetical books. In the only prophetical book of the N. T., the Apocalypse of St. John, this idea is fully developed, and the several apocry phal revelations are mere imitations, more or less happy, of these two canonical books, which fur nished ideas to a numerous class of writers in the first ages of the Christian church. The principal spurious revelations extant have been published by Fabricius in his Cod. Psena'ep. V. T., and Cod. Apoc. N. T. ; and their character has been still more critically examined in recent times by Arch bishop Laurence (who has added to their number), by Nitzsche, Bleek, and others ; and especially by Dr. Liicke, in his Einleitung in die 016a:barring 7ohan. lend die gesammte apocalyplische Litteratur. To this interesting work we are in a great measure in debted for much of the information contained in the present article.
I. We shall first treat of the apocryphal reve lations no longer extant, which are the following, viz.— '. The Apocalypse of Elias. 2. The Apoca lypse of Zephaniah. 3. The Apocalypse of Ze chariah. 4. The Apocalypse of Adam. 5. The Apocalypse of Abraham. 6. The Apocalypse of Moses. 7. The Prophecies of Hystaspes. 8. The Apocalypse of Peter. 9. The Apocalypse of Paul. ro. The Apocalypse of Cerinthus. 1. The Apo calypse of Thomas. 12. The Apocalypse of the proto-martyr Stephen.
The first three are referred to by St. Jerome (Eft. ad Pammach.), and cited as lost apocryphal books in an ancient MS. of the Scriptures in the Coislinian Collection (ed. Montfaucon, p. 194). The Apocalypse of Adam, and that of Abraham, are cited by Epiphanius (Hares. xxxi. 8) as Gnostic productions. The d4pocalypse of Moses, mentioned by Syncellus (Chronog.) and Cedrenus (comp. Hist.), fragments of which have been published by Fabricius (ut supra), is conjectured by Grotius to have been a forgery of one of the ancient Chris tians.
The Prophecies of Hystaspes were in use among the Christians in the 2d century. This was ap parently a pagan production, but is cited by Justin Martyr, in his Apology, as agreeing with the Si bylline oracles in predicting the destruction of the world by fire. Clemens Alexandrinus (Strom. vi.) and Lactantius (Add. vii. 15) also cite passages from these prophecies, which bear a decidedly Christian character.
The Apocalypse of Peter is mentioned by Euse bins (Hist. Eccles., 3. 25), and was cited by Clement of Alexandria, in his Adumbrations, now lost (Euseb. /. c., vi. NI. Some fragments of it have, however, been preserved by Clement, in his Selections from the lost Prophecus of Themiotus the Gnostic, and are published in Grabe's Spicilegium (vol. p. 74, seq.) From these we can barely collect that this Apocalypse contained some melan choly prognostications, which seem to be directed against the Jews, and to refer to the destruction of their city and nation. This work is cited as extant in the ancient fragment of the canon published by Muratori, with this proviso, 'Apocalypsis Johannis et Petri tantum recipimus; quam quidam ex nostris legi in ecclesia nolunt.' Eusebius designates it at one time as spurious,' and at another as here tical.' From a circumstance mentioned by Sozo men (Hist. Eccles., vii. 19)—viz., that it was read in some churches in Palestine on all Fridays in the year down to the 5th century—Liicke infers that it was a Jewish-Christian production (of the 2d century), and of the same family with the Preaching of Peter. It is uncertain whether this work is the same that is read by the Copts among what they call the apocryphal books of Peter. There was also a work under the name of the Apocalypse of Peter by his Disciple Clement, an account of which was transmitted to Pope Honorius by Jacob, bishop of Acre in the t3th century, written in the Sara cenic language ; but this has been conjectured to be a later work, originating in the time of the Crusades.