Apocrypha
Testament of Isaac
Pseudepigraphon
13 chapters · read and listen
Reading note
An apocryphal or pseudepigraphal text — outside the canon of the Western churches, yet widely circulated among ancient Jews and Christians. Published here from a public-domain translation, edited for continuous reading.
Chapters
Dossier
Isaac's death in the same pattern as his father's: the angel who comes to warn him, the resistance, the journey through the beyond and the final instructions to those who remain.
Where this text comes from
Coptic, 2nd to 3rd century AD, also transmitted in Arabic and Ge'ez. It clearly depends on the Testament of Abraham and was read liturgically in the Coptic tradition.
Why it is not in the Bible
Outside every canon.
What you will find
- The vision of the punishments, harsher than in the Testament of Abraham.
- Instructions on fasting and charity addressed directly to the community that read the text.
- Isaac and Abraham appear together at the end, closing the cycle of the three testaments.
Frequently asked questions
- Do the Testaments of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob form one work?
- They are three distinct texts that came to circulate together in the Coptic tradition, sharing the same basic plot: the patriarch is warned of his death and shown the beyond before departing.