BARUCH

This book contains several minor writings, probably of the first century B.C., having no connection with each other, but joined together in the first century A.D. by a compiler who prefixed an historical introduction (1:1–14), attributing the whole work to Baruch the prophet. The first portion of the book, ending at 3:8, was in all probability originally written in Hebrew; the second portion (3:9–4:4) in Aramaic; the third portion (4:5–5:9) in Greek. The book of Baruch is the only work in the Apocrypha modelled on the prophetic utterances of the Old Testament.