Will only a few be saved? A Look at 2 Esdras

While 2 Esdras isn't included in the Jewish canon, Jesus appears to have quoted from it in Matthew 23:37-39:

In 2 Esdras 7, God rejoices at the few who are saved, while not grieving over the multitude who perish:

Please compare the above to Matthew 7:13-14.

Please compare the above to Matthew 22:14.

2 Esdras (also confusingly called 4 Esdras) might have been excluded from the Catholic canon because it forbids praying for the dead:

 

This is considered to be a Christian interpolation of 2 Esdras, which says that an innumerable group of people who confessed the Son of God will be saved:

2 Esdras 2
42 I Esdras saw upon the mount Sion a great people, whom I could not number, and they all praised the Lord with songs.
43 And in the midst of them there was a young man of a high stature, taller than all the rest, and upon every one of their heads he set crowns, and was more exalted; which I marvelled at greatly.
44 So I asked the angel, and said, Sir, what are these?
45 He answered and said unto me, These be they that have put off the mortal clothing, and put on the immortal, and have confessed the name of God: now are they crowned, and receive palms.
46 Then said I unto the angel, What young person is it that crowneth them, and giveth them palms in their hands?
47 So he answered and said unto me, It is the Son of God, whom they have confessed in the world. Then began I greatly to commend them that stood so stiffly for the name of the Lord.

I don't know why the first two chapters should be doubted just because their language appears to be Christian, but the fact that they were not included in the Greek version is worth mentioning.

 

2 Esdras was included in the King James Bible.

 

The same God who calls His elect while letting the rest of humanity perish is the same God who chose Noah and his family while flooding the entire earth, and the same God who chose Israel while commanding the slaughter of entire Gentile villages. We should be thankful that, out of His grace, God has chosen anyone unto salvation.

On the other hand, God promised Abraham that his descendants would be innumerable as the stars (Genesis 15:5, Galatians 3:7). “A great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages” will ultimately by saved, by God’s calling His elect unto Himself. (Revelation 7:9-10)

While the number of Noah’s family and of the nation of Israel was indeed small, the number of God’s elect, by the time the world ends, will be innumerable. You can bank on it. Some of the greatest missionaries and evangelists have been Calvinists, due to their assurance that God would use their preaching to draw His elect unto Himself.

 

While 2 Esdras might not have the same authority as sacred scripture, it's nonetheless edifying to read, especially since Jesus Himself quoted from it.

Here is proof that 2 Esdras was of Jewish, rather than Christian authorship:

The Book of Revelation was written as a corrective of 2 Edras, since 2 Esdras was written with the mistaken belief that Christ's kingdom on earth would reign for four hundred years, rather than a thousand years. The number of four hundred was based on the length of Israel's captivity in Egypt.

While it might seem like only a few will be saved, it will end up being a vast multitude at the end of history:

Please also keep in mind that 2 Esdras was excluded from the Catholic canon, likely because it taught against praying for the dead.