The Book of Jasher Paperback – December 3, 2010

5 stars

The Book of Jasher, or "The Upright Record" is mentioned in the Old Testament twice (See Joshua 10:13 and 2 Samuel 1:18). Incidentally, "Jasher" is not a person's name but is the Hebrew word for "Upright." Like the Book of Jubilees, the Upright Record is a retelling of the Genesis story from a different person's perspective other than Moses'. It also contains a wealth of detail missing from Moses' abbreviated account. For those who wish to read this book, you should know that there are two books circulating that are entitled "The Book of Jasher." The one that is supposedly a ninth century translation by Flaccus Albinus Alcuinus (the Abbot of Canterbury and the religious tutor of Charlemagne) is an obvious forgery.The books of Joshua and 2 Samuel in the Old Testament mention the Book of Jasher or "Upright Record" as a source of information for two historical events that the Bible covers briefly. These two stories are contained in the thirteenth century translation, but the incident in 2 Samuel is not covered in the ninth century edition at all. Furthermore, the thirteenth century translation appears to have been made from a Hebrew original. Besides the claim that it came from a Hebrew original, the thirteenth century copy of the Book of Jasher has the sound of an authentic historical document written by someone with a Semitic background who actually witnessed some of the recorded events. This thirteenth century edition is far longer than the ninth century edition and contains too many authentic cultural descriptions of Near Eastern and Semitic life to have been invented. Furthermore, none of the more vivid and colorful historical and cultural recollections in the thirteenth century edition that give it such a ring of authenticity appear in the supposedly older manuscript by Alcuinus.Since the Book of Jasher is not considered a religious document but a historical narrative, however, some of its stories may have been embellished or may contain inaccuracies. In addition, the Book of Jasher 's chronology for certain events differs in some cases from the abbreviated Genesis account of this time period in the Bible. I always trust that the Bible is more accurate in these cases. Nevertheless, the Book of Jasher has great value as a history since it offers a wealth of details the Genesis account by Moses lacks. In many cases, it can help us to understand difficult passages or situations recorded too briefly in the Bible. Unfortunately, it is currently impossible to prove whether or not the thirteenth century copy of the Book of Jasher available to us today is a legitimate Bible history or not until a much older manuscript is found. Someday, I hope this will happen. In the meantime, however, I am allowing the Holy Spirit to guide my choices and I believe that there is enough internal evidence in the Book of Jasher to prove that it is authentic.

I was disappointed in the ad for this book, because it said it was published in 1863, implying it was an old addition from that year. That is why I chose this seller's site. It was published in 1963, a year that other sellers truthfully posted. It was really a reprint, from 1863, which should have been clearly stated.I enjoyed this book immensely. It added a huge amount of new information about corresponding stories from the King James Bible. For example: in the King James it simply states that, Sarah died. In the Book of Jasher it gave details of how, and why she died. There are other stores like that one, that really opened up other Bible stories that were vague in the Bible.Another example: The Bible may say that, "Jacob went into the city." The Book of Jasher will say, why he went into the city, and what he did there.I highly recommend the Book of Jasher for all those who want more details then the Bible gives in the same stories.

I purchased this book just for another book to compare with the scriptures and I find it interesting. However, when reading this keep in mind the authorship is questionable and that the Original Book Of Jasher (that is referred to in the Bible) is a lost book along with the other lost books of the bible: Book of the Wars of the Lord, the Book of Samuel the Seer, the Book of Nathan the Prophet and the Book of Gad the Seer. Many original writings were lost as well.I read other comments saying this should have been included in the Bible: No, it should not as the original book was lost, which puts into question the reliability of this translation. Another book by this same name, called by many “Pseudo-Jasher,” while written in Hebrew, is also not the “Book of Jasher” mentioned in Scripture. It is a book of Jewish legends from the creation to the conquest of Canaan under Joshua, but scholars hold that it did not exist before A.D. 1625. In addition, there are several other theological works by Jewish rabbis and scholars called “Sefer ha Yashar,” but none of these claim to be the originalI advise caution when reading this book and keep in mind the original was lost which puts into serious question as to where did this Book of Jasher come from and which Jasher did they translate this from???

I cannot say enough good things about this book. It has seriously caused the people in the bible to become three dimensional to me. I don't know how exact it is in it's information but the thing that I love about it is that this book has made me think and put myself into the stories in the old testament of the bible and for that reason the bible has become more real to me than it was before I read this book. I have yet to find a place where this book and the bible differ in accounts....more like this book fills in some gaps. Since I also love history I have researched some of the things this book shares about someone like Joseph and Jacob and everything seems to align. I recommend this to anyone who has an open mind.....who always wants to learn and to grow and wants to see the patriarchs in the bible as three dimensional people who loved and lived and messed up and yet God has used whatever messes and makes them part of His story.

This is a reference book

Half way through the book, I think this book is beneficial reading for Christians. It follows the first few books of the Bible, often adding lot of detail not mentioned in the Bible, makes it easier to understand the Biblical stories.

Wow! This book was an excellent read, I was confounded and confused a few times but it gave me a greater understanding of the first couple of books of the bible

An excellent read. This helps put the canonical books of the law in context and aids understanding of those periods.Well worth reading.

used for reference as it predates the Old Testament

I've not finished reading it yet...First few chapters seem to line up with the scripture's..it could be another great read👍