BARUCH, APOCALYPSE OF

in full The Book Of The Apocalypse Of Baruch The Son Of Neriah, a pseudepigraphal work (not in any canon of scripture), whose primary theme is whether or not God's relationship with man is just. The book is also called The Syriac Apocalypse of Baruch because it was preserved only in the 6th-century Syriac Vulgate. It was originally composed in Hebrew and ascribed to Baruch, a popular legendary figure among Hellenistic Jews, who was secretary to Jeremiah, the biblical prophet. Passages in the book indicate that it was written after the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, probably around 100. Textual conflicts suggest possible multiple authorship but may be due to inaccurate translations and to the use of traditional materials from different historical periods that are not easily harmonized. The question of divine justice that preoccupied the Jews after the fall of Jerusalem is discussed in the Apocalypse in a series of prayers and visions. The apparently unjust sufferings of the righteous are explained as God's method of sanctifying his chosen people.