This collection includes content from both canonical and apocryphal writings about the lives of the apostles, including Paul. Some claimed that Abdias, who may have been bishop of Babylon during the first or second century AD, wrote this history. However, it was probably compiled from various sources in sixth-century France. This apocryphal work is divided into ten books. At first, the stories circulated in Greek as separate writings. Later, when they were translated into Latin, they were combined into a single book. Although most of the stories are considered folk tales or legends, some parts mention details that do not appear anywhere else and may have historical value.
According to later tradition, Abdias lived during the time of the apostles and might have seen Christ. He was said to have traveled often with the apostles Simon and Jude. The preface to the Latin version claims he originally wrote the work in Hebrew. His disciple Eutropius then translated it into Greek, and the historian Africanus translated the Greek text into Latin. However, there is no historical evidence to support any of these claims.
See also Apocrypha.