Jeffrey Johnson Supporter

What is the Book of Jashar?

The Book of Jashar (or Jasher), meaning "Book of the Upright," is a lost, ancient Hebrew text mentioned in the Bible (Joshua 10:13, 2 Samuel 1:18). It is believed to have been a collection of national poems and songs honouring Israelite heroes. Modern versions claiming to be this book are considered forgeries. 

Content and Nature: Scholars believe it was a, likely poetic, anthology rather than a single narrative, potentially containing ancient songs from early Israelite history.

Lost Work: The original book is not in the biblical canon and is considered lost.

Meaning: The title is often interpreted as "Book of the Upright" or "Book of the Just One" (Sefer haYashar). 

Joshua 10:13: It is cited during the battle of Gibeon, recording the miracle where the sun and moon stood still.

2 Samuel 1:18: It is cited as containing the "Song of the Bow" (or "Lament of the Bow"), a mournful poem composed by David following the deaths of Saul and Jonathan.

The expression "book of Jashar" is a translation of two Hebrew words that mean "book of the upright" or "book of the righteous one."

Apparently, it was an ancient Hebrew hymnbook containing nationalistic songs. The Syriac translation of the text in Joshua calls it the "book of praises," or "book of hymns."

The references in the books of Joshua and 2 Samuel suggest that this collection of songs was composed to celebrate great battles and notable characters in Israel's illustrative history as the nation prepared for the coming of the Messiah.

"The Book of Jashar" and "The Book of the Wars of Jehovah"—​they seem to have been existing documents that were not inspired. 

One Bible encyclopedia suggests that the contents of those books may have been "the familiar oral repertoire of professional singers in ancient Israel who preserved Israel's epic and lyric traditions." 

The question is, if the Book of Jasher is mentioned in the Bible, why was it left out of the canon of Scripture? We know that God directed the authors of the Scriptures to use passages from many and various extra-biblical sources in composing His Word. The passage recorded in Joshua 10:13 is a good example. In recording this battle, Joshua included passages from the Book of Jasher not because it was his only source of what occurred; instead, he was stating, in effect," If you don't believe what I'm saying, then go read it in the Book of Jasher. Even that book has a record of this event."

The point is that the divine Author of the Bible used materials chosen from many different sources, fitting them into His grand design for the Scriptures. We must understand that history as recorded in the Bible did not occur in isolation. 

In the end, we must conclude that the Book of Jasher mentioned in the Bible was lost and has not survived to modern times. All we really know about it is found in the two Scripture quotations mentioned earlier. The other books by that title are mere fictions or Jewish moral treatises.

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