M.R. James 
Old Testament Legends 
Illustrated

Old Testament Legends – Illustrated by HJ Ford



If you read the title-page of this book, you will see that it contains stories taken ‘out of some of the less-known apocryphal books of the Old Testament.’

The word apocryphal is specially used in connection with the Bible. Nearly all of these books have been at some time or another read in church and treated as Scripture. Nearly all of them are now treated as Scripture by the Roman Church, but not by most of the Protestant, or Reformed, Churches. They are on the borderland of the Bible.

In this present book, I am only concerned with the apocryphal stories; with the prophecies and visions and psalms I have nothing to do.

I have now said enough to show of what sort the tales are that are told in this book—some of them told for the first time in English. They are not true, but they are very old; some of them, I think, are beautiful, and all of them seem to me interesting.



Table of Contents :



1. Adam

2. The Death of Adam and Eve

3. Abraham

4. The Story of Aseneth, Joseph’s Wife

5. Job 

6. Solomon and the Demons

7. The Story of Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, and of the Death of Jeremiah

8. Ahikar