Esdras, Books of. Various Jewish biblical books. ‘Esdras’ is the Gk. and Lat. form of Ezra. Confusion results from the differences between the books of this title in the Septuagint, Vulgate (and hence some Catholic Bibles) and Apocrypha in English Bibles. These correspond as follows:

2 Esdras, and specifically chs. 3–14, is also known as the ‘Ezra Apocalypse’. It describes seven visions: the first three concern the destruction of Jerusalem and the problem of evil; the sixth (ch. 13) is of the victorious Messiah, described as ‘son of man’. It is usually dated toward the end of the 1st cent. CE.

Esdras either of two books of the Apocrypha. The first is mainly a compilation from Chronicles, Nehemiah, and Ezra; the second is a record of angelic revelation.