Quick Answer
The Bible references many books it does not contain. Most, like the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel or the Book of Nathan, are genuinely lost with no surviving copy, so you can find the reference but not the book. A few, most famously the Book of Enoch, do survive and can be read today. These are not the same as the Apocrypha.
Old Testament: the 22 lost books
These are named in the Hebrew scriptures, most as court records or prophetic journals the biblical writers pointed to for more detail. Every one of them is lost.
📜 The Book of Jasher
- Referenced in
- Joshua 10:13; 2 Samuel 1:18
- About
- Cited for the sun standing still over Gibeon and for David's lament over Saul and Jonathan. The original is gone; later books carrying the name are not the same text.
📜 The Book of the Wars of the Lord
- Referenced in
- Numbers 21:14
- About
- Quoted once, for a fragment of ancient poetry about Israel's battles in the wilderness. Nothing else of it remains.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel
- Referenced in
- 1 Kings 14:19 (and dozens more)
- About
- The royal court record the writers of Kings pointed readers to again and again for more detail. This is not the biblical books of Chronicles.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah
- Referenced in
- 1 Kings 14:29 (and many more)
- About
- The southern kingdom's parallel court annals, referenced the same way. The source itself did not survive.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Book of Samuel the Seer
- Referenced in
- 1 Chronicles 29:29
- About
- One of three prophetic records named as sources for the acts of King David.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Book of Nathan the Prophet
- Referenced in
- 1 Chronicles 29:29; 2 Chronicles 9:29
- About
- Named as a source for the reigns of both David and Solomon. Lost to history.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Book of Gad the Seer
- Referenced in
- 1 Chronicles 29:29
- About
- The third of David's prophetic chroniclers. No copy is known to exist.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 9:29
- About
- Cited as a record of Solomon's reign. Only the reference remains.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Visions of Iddo the Seer
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 9:29; 12:15; 13:22
- About
- A prophet's writings named three times as a source for the kings of Judah.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Book of Shemaiah the Prophet
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 12:15
- About
- Recorded alongside Iddo as a source for Rehoboam's reign. Not preserved.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Acts of Solomon
- Referenced in
- 1 Kings 11:41
- About
- The book the writer of Kings sent readers to for the rest of Solomon's deeds and wisdom.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Book of Jehu son of Hanani
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 20:34
- About
- A prophet's record said to be folded into the book of the kings of Israel. Lost.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Acts of Uzziah (by Isaiah)
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 26:22
- About
- A separate account of King Uzziah credited to the prophet Isaiah, distinct from the book of Isaiah we have.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Sayings of the Seers
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 33:19
- About
- Referenced for the reign of Manasseh. The collection did not survive.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Manner of the Kingdom
- Referenced in
- 1 Samuel 10:25
- About
- Written by Samuel to set out the rights and duties of Israel's new monarchy, then laid up before the Lord. Its contents are unknown.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Annals of King David
- Referenced in
- 1 Chronicles 27:24
- About
- A royal record whose count was said to be left unfinished. Lost.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 16:11; 27:7; 32:32
- About
- A combined chronicle of both kingdoms named as a source. Gone.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Story of the Book of the Kings
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 24:27
- About
- A commentary or midrash on the kings, cited for the reign of Joash. Not preserved.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Vision of Isaiah
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 32:32
- About
- Named as a source for Hezekiah, listed in the book of the kings. Distinct from surviving Isaiah.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Acts of the Kings of Israel
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 33:18
- About
- Cited for Manasseh's prayer and history. The source is lost.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Laments for Josiah
- Referenced in
- 2 Chronicles 35:25
- About
- A collection of laments Jeremiah and others sang for the fallen king Josiah. Not the same as the book of Lamentations.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Chronicles of King Ahasuerus
- Referenced in
- Esther 2:23; 6:1; 10:2
- About
- The Persian royal record read to the sleepless king, where Mordecai's deed was written down. A real archive, long gone.
- Status
- Lost
New Testament references
The New Testament also quotes or points to books outside the canon, including one that Jude quotes word for word.
📜 The Book of Enoch
- Referenced in
- Jude 1:14-15
- About
- Jude directly quotes a prophecy of Enoch. The full book survives in the Ethiopian tradition and can be read today.
📜 Paul's Earlier Letter to Corinth
- Referenced in
- 1 Corinthians 5:9
- About
- Paul refers to a previous letter he wrote to the Corinthians, before the one we call First Corinthians. That earlier letter is lost.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Epistle to the Laodiceans
- Referenced in
- Colossians 4:16
- About
- Paul tells the Colossians to also read his letter from Laodicea. No authentic copy survives.
- Status
- Lost
📜 The Assumption of Moses
- Referenced in
- Jude 1:9
- About
- Jude's account of the archangel disputing over the body of Moses points to this work, which survives only in part.
- Status
- Survives
A note on the sources. Every book above is drawn from a real citation in the King James text, and each entry gives you the verse so you can look it up yourself. Where a book is marked "Lost," no manuscript is known to survive, so the reference is all we have. Where it is marked "Survives," the linked text may differ in authenticity, and is offered so you can read and weigh it for yourself.
Frequently asked
How many books does the Bible mention but not include?
The Old Testament alone names more than twenty lost books, and the New Testament references several more. This page lists the twenty-two best-known Old Testament ones plus the notable New Testament references.
Can I actually read these missing books?
Most cannot be read, because they are genuinely lost with no surviving manuscript. A few do survive, most famously the Book of Enoch, which is quoted in Jude and available in full online.
Are these the same as the Apocrypha?
No. The Apocrypha are the fourteen extra books that appeared in the original 1611 King James Bible between the Old and New Testaments. The books on this page are different: they are works the Bible names or quotes but never included.
Why were these books left out?
In most cases they were court records, prophetic journals, or source material the biblical writers pointed to for more detail, never treated as scripture themselves. Others simply did not survive the centuries.