An ancient Christian legend of what happened after Eden: the Cave of Treasures, Satan in disguise, the first murder, and Seth's children on the holy mountain.
Vivid, surprising and often moving, but repetitive and sermon-heavy, and a legend rather than scripture. Three and a half out of five.
Every guide comes as a video and a full written article. Pick the one you need: the review is spoiler-free, the ending explained is not.
The whole story of The First and Second Books of Adam and Eve in one video: the Cave of Treasures, Satan's disguises, gold, incense and myrrh, Cain and Abel, Seth, Adam's death, Jared's test and the fall of Seth's children before the Flood.
Is The First and Second Books of Adam and Eve (The Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan) worth reading? An honest review of the ancient Christian legend: what it is, Satan in disguise, what works, what doesn't and my score.
Is The Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan a lost book of the Bible? Where the text really comes from (Ge'ez, Arabic, the Syriac Cave of Treasures), how it reached English, and what it adds to Genesis, from Adam's daughters to the sons of God.
Is The First and Second Books of Adam and Eve by Edward Hammond worth reading? A one-minute, spoiler-free review: the setup, the catch, and my score.
The First and Second Books of Adam and Eve, also called The Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan, is a Christian text from around the sixth century, preserved in Ge’ez, the classical language of the Ethiopian church. This edition is Edward Hammond’s modern English version. The first book follows Adam and Eve from the garden to the death of Abel; the second follows Seth’s descendants down to Noah.
Below you’ll find a spoiler-free review, a full summary of both books, and a fact check on where the text comes from and how it differs from Genesis.
The first book begins the moment Adam and Eve leave the garden. They move into a cave, called the Cave of Treasures, and they're terrified of everything: the dark, the sun, the animals, even food.
The second book follows their descendants, from Seth down to Noah, and a slow slide into sin before the Flood.
Today I'm walking you through the whole story of The First and Second Books of Adam and Eve, the ancient text also called The Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan.
The first book begins the moment Adam and Eve leave the garden. They move into a cave, called the Cave of Treasures, and they're terrified of everything: the dark, the sun, the animals, even food.
Vivid, surprising and often moving, but repetitive and sermon-heavy, and a legend rather than scripture. Three and a half out of five. Read it if: you love ancient texts; the 'lost books of the bible' intrigue you; you've wondered what came after eden. Skip it if: you want a fast story; you're looking for scripture rather than legend. Review: The First and Second Books of Adam and Eve →
The whole story of The First and Second Books of Adam and Eve in one video: the Cave of Treasures, Satan's disguises, gold, incense and myrrh, Cain and Abel, Seth, Adam's death, Jared's test and the fall of Seth's children before the Flood. Summary: The First and Second Books of Adam and Eve →
No. It's a Christian text from around the sixth century, preserved in Ge'ez, and scholars classify it as pseudepigrapha rather than scripture.
His twin sister Luluwa. Abel's twin is Aklemia, and Seth later marries Aklia.
It survives in Ge'ez and is thought to come from an Arabic original drawing on the Syriac Cave of Treasures. August Dillmann translated it into German in 1853, and S. C. Malan into English in 1882.
