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01 - The Book of Enoch · Wisdom of the Ages Library

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Section one editor's preface. The object of this series of translations is primarily to
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furnish students with short, cheap and handy textbooks, which it is hoped will
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facilitate the study of the particular texts in class under competent teachers. But it
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is also hoped that the volumes will be acceptable to the general reader, who
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may be interested in the subjects with which they deal. It has been thought
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advisable as a general rule to restrict the notes and comments to a small compass,
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more especially as in most cases excellent works of a more elaborate character are
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available. Indeed, it is much to be desired that these translations may have
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the effect of inducing readers to study the larger works. Our principal aim,
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in a word, is to make some difficult texts important for the study of
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Christian origins more generally accessible in faithful and scholarly translations. In most cases,
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these texts are not available in a cheap and handy form. In one or
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two cases, texts have been included of books which are available in the official
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Apocrypha, But in every such case reasons exist for putting forth these texts in
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a new translation with an introduction in this series Woe Oasterly gh Box introduction the
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apocalyptic literature. As the Book of Enoch is, in some respects the most
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notable extant apocalyptic work outside the canonical scriptures, it will not be inappropriate to
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offer a few remarks here on the apocalyptic literature generally. In writing about the
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books which belong to this literature, Professor Burkett says very pointedly that they are
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the most characteristic survival of what I will venture to call, with all its
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narrowness and its incoherence, the Heroic Age of Jewish history, the age when
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the nation attempted to realize in action the part of the peculiar people of God.
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It ended in catastrophe, but the nation left two successors, the Christian
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Church and the Rabbinical schools, each of which carried on some of the old
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national aims. And of the two, it was the Christian Church that was
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most faithful to the ideas enshrined in the apocalypses, and it did consider itself,
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not without some reason, the fulfillment of those ideas. What is wanted.
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Therefore, in studying the apocalypses is above all sympathy with the ideas that
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underlie them, and especially with the belief in the New Age, and those
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who believe that in Christianity a new era really did dawn for us, ought,
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I think, to have that sympathy, we study the Apocalypses to learn
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how our spiritual ancestors hoped again that God would make all right in the end,
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and that we their children are here today. Studying them is an indication
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that their hope was not wholly unfounded. Hope is indeed the main underlying motive
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power which the writers of the apocalypses, and this hope is the more intensive
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and ardent in that it shines forth from a background which is dark with despair.
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For the apocalyptists despaired of the world in which they lived, a world
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in which the godly were of no account, while the wicked seem too often
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triumphant and prosperous, with evil everywhere around. The Apocalyptus saw no hope for
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the world as it was. For such a world, there was no remedy,
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only destruction. If the good were ever to triumph, it must be
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in a new world. Despairing therefore of the world around them, the Apocalyptus
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centered their hope upon a world to come where the righteous would come to their
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own and evil would find no place. It is this thought which underlies the
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opening words of the Book of Enoch, the words of the Blessing of Enoch,
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wherewith he blessed the elect and righteous, who will be living in the
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day of Tribulation, when all the wicked and godless are to be removed.
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Nowhere in this book is the essence of this hope more beautifully expressed than in
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a short metrical peace in the first chapter. But with the righteous, he
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will make peace and will protect the elect, and mercy shall be upon them,
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and they shall all belong to God, and they shall all be prospered,
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and they shall all be blessed, and He will help them all,
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and light shall appear unto them, and He will make peace with them first
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Enoch one eight. In all the books belonging to this literature which have come
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down to us, this hope is expressed more or less vividly. Nor is
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the dark background wanting with prophecies of coming wrath. It will therefore be realized
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that the apocalyptic literature is almost wholly concerned with the future. It is true
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that again and again the apocalyptist glances at the contemporary history of the world around
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him, to which many a cryptic reference is made, a fact which necessitates
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some knowledge of the history of this period circa. Two hundred b c.
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Through a d. One hundred for a full understanding of the books in question.
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But these references are only made with a view to comforting the oppressed and
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afflicted, with the thought that even the most mighty of earthly powers are shortly
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to be overthrown by the advent of the new and glorious era, when every
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injustice and all the incongruities of life will be done away with, so that
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every reference to the present is merely a position taken up from which to point
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to the future. Now, since, as we have seen, the apocalyptusts
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despair of any bettering of the present world, and therefore contemplate its destruction as
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the preliminary of the new order things, they look away from this world.
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In their visions of the future, they conceive of other worldly forces coming into
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play in the reconstitution of things and of society generally. And since these are
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other worldly forces, the supernatural plays a great part in the apocalyptic literature.
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This supernatural coloring will often strike the reader of this literature as fantastic and at
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times bizarre, but this should not be permitted to obscure the reality which often
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lies behind these weird shadows. Mental visions are not always easily expressed in words.
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The seer, who in a vision has received a message in some fantastic
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guise, necessarily has the impress upon his mind of what he has seen when
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giving his message, and when he describes his vision, the picture he presents
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is, in the nature of the case, more fantastic to the ear of
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the hearer than to the eye of him who saw it. Allowance should be
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made for this, especially by US Westerns, who are so lacking in the
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rich imaginativeness of the Oriental. Our love of literalness hinders the play of the
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imagination because we are so apt to materialize a mental picture presented by another.
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The apocalypses were written by and for Orientals, and we cannot do justice to
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them unless we remember this. But it would be best if we could get
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into the Oriental mind and look at things from that point of view. Another
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thing which the reader of the apocalyptic literature must be prepared for is the frequent
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inconsistency of thought to be found there together with variableness of teaching, often involving
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contradiction. The reason of this is not to be sought simply in the fact
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that in the apocalypses the hand of more than one author is frequently to be
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discerned, a fact which would easily account for divergence of views in one and
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the same book. No, the chief reason is that, on the one
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hand, the minds of the apocalyptus were saturated with the traditional thoughts and ideas
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of the Old Testament, and on the other they were eagerly absorbing the newer
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conceptions which the spirit of the Age had brought into being. This occasioned a
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continual conflict of thought in their minds. The endeavor to harmonize the old and
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the new would not always succeed, and in consequence there often resulted a compromise
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which was illogical and which presented contradictions. Inconsistency of teaching on certain points is
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therefore not surprising under the circumstances. Again, to realize the significance of much
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that is found in these apocalypses, one has to reckon with a rigid predestinarianism,
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which was characteristic of the Apocalyptus as a whole. They started with the
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absolute conviction that the whole course of the world, from beginning to end,
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both as regards to its physical changes, and also in all that concerns the
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history of nations, their growth and decline, and of every single individual,
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was in every respect predetermined by God Almighty before all time. This belief of
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the Apocalyptus is well illustrated in one of the later Apocalypses by these words.
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For he hath weighed the age and the balance, and by number hath he
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numbered the seasons. Neither will he move nor stir things till the measure appointed
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be fulfilled Second Ezras four thirty six and thirty seven. Thus the times and
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periods of the course of the world's history have been predetermined by God. The
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numbers of the years have been exactly fixed. This was a fundamental postulate of
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the Apocalyptists, who devoted much of their energy to calculations based upon a close
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study of prophecy as to the exact period when history should reach its consummation.
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The underlying idea is predestinarian. But all these things, according to the Apocalyptus,
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were divine secrets hidden from the beginning of the world, but revealed to
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God fearing men, to whom was accorded the faculty of peering into the hidden
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things of God and of understanding them. Upon these men was laid the privilege
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and duty of revealing the divine secrets to others. Hence their name of apocalyptus
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or revealers. It was because the Apocalyptusts believe so firmly in this power which
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they possessed of looking int to the deep things of God, that they claimed
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to be able to measure the significance of what had happened in the past and
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of what was happening in the present. And upon the basis of this knowledge,
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they believed that they also had the power given them by God of foreseeing
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the march of future events, above all, of knowing when the end of
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the world would come, a consummation towards which the whole history of the world
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had been tending from the beginning. In spite of all the mysticism, sometimes
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of a rather fantastic kind, and of frequently super mundane vision, with which
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the apocalyptic literature abounds, the apocalyptists fully realized the need of practical religion.
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They were upholders of the law, the loyal observance of which they regard as
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a necessity for all god vearing men. In this the Apocalyptus were one in
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principle with Parisism, but their conception of what constituted loyal observance of the law
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differed from that of the Pharisees. For unlike that these, the Apocalyptus laid
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all stress on the spirit of its observance, rather than upon the letter,
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characteristic of their attitude. Here are the words in Firstynik, chapter five,
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verse four. But ye ye have not been steadfast, nor done the commandments
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of the Lord. But ye have turned away and have spoken proud and hard
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words with your impure mouths against his greatness. Oh ye hard hearted, ye
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shall find no peace. And again in ninety nine two, woe to them
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that pervert the words of uprightness and transgress the eternal law. We do not
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find in this literature that insistence on the literal carrying out of the minutest precepts
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of the law, which was characteristic of Phariseeism. Veneration. For the law
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is wholehearted. It is the real guide of life. Punishment awaits those who
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ignore its guidance, But the Pharisaic interpretation of the law and its requirements is
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alien to the spirit of the apocalyptists as a whole. The apocalyptic literature presents
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an universalistic attitude, very different from the nationalistic narrowness of the Pharisees. It
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is true the apocalyptists are not always consistent in this, but normally they embrace
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the gentiles equally with the men of their own nation in the divine scheme of
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salvation, and in the same way the wicked, who are excluded are not
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restricted to the gentiles, but the Jews equally with them, shall suffer torment
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hereafter according to their deserts. The apocalyptic literature, as distinct from the apocalyptic
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movement owing to which it took its rise, began to come into existence about
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the period of two hundred to one hundred and fifty BC. At any rate,
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the earliest extant example of this literature, the earliest portions of the Book
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of Enoch, belongs to this period. Works of an apocalyptic characture continued to
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be written for about three centuries. The second fourth Book of Estras, one
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of the most remarkable apocalypses, belongs to the end of the first Christian century,
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approximately. There are apocalypses of later date. Some of subordinate interests are
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of much later date, but the real period of the apocalyptic literature is from
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about two hundred BC to about a d one hundred. Its beginnings date therefore
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from a time prior to that great landmark in Jewish history, the Maccabean Era.
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The Book of Enoch, its component parts, and their dates. The
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Book of Enoch is now usually designated First Enoch to distinguish it from the later
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Apocalypse the Secrets of Enoch, known as Second Enuch. The former is also
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called the Ethiopic Enuch, the latter the Slavonic Enoch. After the languages of
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the earliest versions extant of each, respectively. No manuscript of the original language
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of either is known to be in existence. According to Canon Charles, the
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various elements of which our book in its present form is made up belong to
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different dates. The following table will show the dates of the different parts of
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the book. Canon Charles believes that these are approximately correct, without committing himself
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to the certainty of this. In each case, chapters twelve through thirty six,
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forty two, and ninety one twelve through seventeen, The Apocalypse of Weeks,
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the oldest pre Maccabean portions chapters six through eleven, fifty four, seven
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through fifty five, two sixty, sixty five through sixty nine, twenty five,
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one O six through one O seven. Fragments of the Book of Noah
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pre Maccabean at the latest chapters eighty three to ninety The dream dush Visions one
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sixty five to one sixty one BC, seventy two to eighty two. The
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Book of the Heavenly Luminaries before one hundred and ten BC, chapters thirty seven
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to seventy one, ninety one one to eleven, eighteen nineteen through one hundred
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and four, The Parables or Similitudes circle one hundred and five to sixty four
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BC, chapters one through five the latest portion but pre Christian chapter one hundred
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and five, which consists of only two verses, cannot be dated, while
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chapter one hundred and eight is in the nature of an appendix, probably added
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subsequently to the whole work. While these dates may be regarded as approximately correct,
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it should be pointed out that differences of opinion exist among scholars on the
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subject. Surer holds for example, that, with the exception of chapters thirty
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seven through seventy one the Parables or Similitudes, the entire book belongs to the
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period of one hundred thirty to one hundred BC. The Parables he assigns to
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a time not earlier than Herod the Great. Bier thinks that the dream visions
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chapters eighty three through ninety belonged to the time of John Hercanus one thirty five
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to one hundred and five BC, and he includes under the pre Macabean portions
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only ninety one twelve through seventeen, ninety two, ninety three one through fourteen,
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and holds that the rest of the book was written before sixty four BC.
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Delman maintains that it cannot be proved that the important sections thirty seven through
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seventy one the Similitudes is the product of the pre Christian period, though he
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fully recognizes its Jewish character. Burkett regards the writer as almost contemporary with the
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philosopher Posidonius one thirty five to fifty one BC. There is thus some diversity
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of opinion as to the date of the book, among leading a thord that
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it is as a whole pre Christian may be regarded as definitely established. More
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difficult is the question whether any portions of it are pre Maccabean. Charles gives
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various reasons for his belief that considerable parts are pre Maccabean. We are inclined
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to agree with him, though it may be questioned whether the last word on
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the subject has been spoken authorship, as the various parts of the book clearly
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belong to different dates, diversity of authorship is what one is naturally led to
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expect, and of this there can indeed be no shadow of doubt. The
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author of the earliest portions was a Jew who lived, as burkettis shown in
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northern Palestine, in the land of Dan, southwest of the Herman Range,
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near the headwaters of the Jordan. This is important as it tends to show
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that the book or books is really Palestinian and one which therefore circulated among Jews
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in Palestine. If moreover the author came from the North, that helps to
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explain the influence the book had upon the religion that was cradled in Galilee.
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Of the authors of the other three books of which Enoch is made up viz.
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The Dream Dush Visions, the Book of the heavenly luminaries and the Similitudes.
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We know nothing save what can be gathered from their writings. As to
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their religious standpoint, Charles holds that though there is not unity of authorship,
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there is nonetheless uniformity, for according to him, all the books were written
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by Chasdam or by their successors, the Pharisees. This contention has been strongly
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assailed and much weakened by Lozinski in a recent work on the Sadducees. While
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frankly recognizing the composite character of the book, Lozinsky holds that the original portions
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of it emanate from sadduce in circles, and that the special object of the
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book originally was the bringing about of a reform of the calendar. He points
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to the description of the book to Enoch as supporting his contention. For Enoch
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lived three hundred and sixty five years i e. Is years correspond to the
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number of days in the solar year. The basis of reckoning time was one
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of the fundamental points of difference between the Pharisees and Sadducees. For whereas the
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former reckoned time by the lunar year, three hundred and sixty days, the
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latter did so by the solar year. Here a significant remark of Burkett's is
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worth recalling. In writing about the false titles given to all the apocalyptic books,
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he says, there is another aspect of pseudonymous authorship to which I venture
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to think sufficient attention has not been given. It is this that the names
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were not chosen out of mere caprice. They indicated, to a certain extent
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what subjects would be treated and the point of view of the writer. Further,
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the fact that Enoch walked with God, and he was not for God
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took him, i e. That he ascended into the heavens is also significant,
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for he would thereby I be just the one to know all about the
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heavenly luminaries. He was just the most appropriate author of a book which was
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to deal with astronomical questions. The satistated character of the original work, says
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Lizinski, is seen most clearly in the discussion regarding the calendar. Chapter seventy
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two through eighty two are rightly called the Book of Astronomy, the Book of
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the courses of the luminaries of the heaven, the relations of each according to
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their classes, their dominion, and their seasons according to their names and places
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of origin, and according to their months, with regard to all the years
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of the world, and unto eternity, till the new creation is accomplished,
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which endureth till all eternity seventy two. One. That sounds almost as though
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the author of the Book of Jubilees had written it. That it is not
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a merely scientific interest which impels the writer to give expression to his astronomical theories,
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may be seen from the words of the God inclusion of the section Blessed
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are all the righteous. Blessed are all those who walk in the way of
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righteousness, and sin not as the sinners in the reckoning of all their days,
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in which the sun traverseth the heaven, entering into and departing from the
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portals for thirty days eighty two, Verses four through seven. Herein one can
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discern quite clearly the tendency of the writer. He desires the adoption of the
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solar year, while his contemporary strongly followed a different reckoning and therefore celebrated the
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feasts at the wrong time. The sinners who sin in the reckoning of the
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year are the Pharisees, and the righteous ones who are blessed, the zedikam
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who walk upon the paths of righteousness zedek, as the name is made to
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imply, are the Sadducees. The point may appear small to us, but
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we may compare it with the Quarterdescimine controversy in the Church during the second century.
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It is, at any rate, a strong point in favor of the
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Saddace and authorship of the Book of the Heavenly Luminaries. The pre Maccabean portions,
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assuming that some portions of it are pre Maccabean of the Book of Enoch,
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must certainly be ascribed to the chastadem, but it is not on that
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account necessary to ascribe all the later portions to the Pharisees. Three points especially
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militate against this some of the teaching concerning the Messiah, the generally speaking universalistic
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spirit, which is quite unparsaic, and the attitude towards the Law, which
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is not that of the Pharisees. It is not to be denied that some
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portions e g. One hundred and two, six and following are from the
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hands of Pharisees, nor can it be doubted that the whole collection in its
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present form has been worked over by a Pharisee or Pharisees, but that all
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the post Maccabean portions in their original form emanated from Phariseics Circles does not appear
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to have been proved. It seems more likely that, with the exceptions already
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referred to, the various component parts of the book were written by Apocalyptus,
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who belonged neither to Fariseic nor yet to Sadducean Circles language. The Book of
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Enoch exists only in the Ethiopic version. This was translated from the Greek version,
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of which only a few portions are extant. The Latin version, which
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was also made from the Greek, is not extant, with the exception of
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one nine and one hundred and six one through eighteen. The fragment containing these
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two passages was discovered by the Reverend Al R. James of King's College,
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Cambridge in the British Museum. The book was originally written either in Hebrew or
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Aramaic. Charles thinks that chapters six through thirty six fifty eight through ninety were
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Aramaic, the rest Hebrew. It is, however, very difficult to say
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for certain which of these two languages was really the original, because, as
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Burget says, most of the most convincing proofs that the Greek text of Enoch
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is a translation from a Semitic language fit equally well with a Hebrew or an
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Aramaic original. His opinion is that Aramaic was the original language, but that
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a few passages do seem to suggest a Hebrew origin, yet not decisively general
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contents. The reader who comes to peruse the Book of Enoch for the first
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time will find much that appears to him strange and unattractive. He must not,
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however, be repelled by this, for in due time he will come
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to the other arts of the book, which he will soon see to be
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of real value from many points of view. But even regarding the less attractive
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parts, he will find that when these are carefully studied, they contain more
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that is of interest than appears upon the surface. Unfortunately, the opening portion
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one through thirty six, which is naturally read first, contains a good deal
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of the least important parts of the whole book. Some passages are even repellent.
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It is well to remember the point already referred to that there are at
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least four quite independent books included in the Book of Enoch, exclusive of certain
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Noah fragments and other pieces see below. The student is therefore advised to treat
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these as separate works, and to read them as such. There is no
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reason to begin with the book which happens to come first, especially as the
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first thirty six chapters do not all belong together. But in any case,
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it will be found most useful to have some general idea of the contents of
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each of the different books before beginning to read them. For this purpose,
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a brief resume of each is given here. One the Book of Enoch,
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chapters twelve through thirty six. The book begins with a dream dash vision of
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Enoch. In this dream, Enoch is asked to intercede for the watchers of
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Heaven i e. The angels who had left their heavenly home to commit iniquity
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with the daughters of men. He writes out the petition c P, the
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title Enuch the scribe the fallen angels make, and then retires to await the
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answer, which comes to him in a series of visions. These visions are
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not quite easy to follow. They are evidently incomplete and somewhat confused. In
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all probability, the text has suffered in transmission. At any rate, the
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petition is refused. Enoch declares to the fallen angels the doom which, as
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he has been taught in the visions, is to be their lot. The
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final words of the message which he is bidden to give them are you have
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no peace. Twelve through sixteen. There follow then accounts of the different journeys
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which Enoch makes, being conducted by angels of light, through certain parts of
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the earth and through Shiel. After the account of the first journey seventeen through
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nineteen, a short enumeration is made of the archangels, seven in number,
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and their functions. Twenty In the second journey is described the place of final
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punishment of the fallen angels. This place is the prison of the angels,
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and here they will be imprisoned forever. From thence, Enoch is taken to
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Schiol, then to the west, where he sees the luminaries of Heaven.
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After that the angels show him seven magnificent mountains, upon one of which is
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the Throne of God. He sees also the Tree of life, which is
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to be given to the Holy and Righteous after the Great Judgment. From thence
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he comes back to the center of the earth, and sees the blessed Place,
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Jerusalem, and the Accursed Valley twenty one through twenty seven. The book
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concludes with what appear to be fragments of other journeys to the east, to
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the north, and to the south. Of special interest here is the mention
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of the Garden of Righteousness and the Tree of Wisdom, chapters twenty eight through
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thirty six. Much that is written in these chapters may appear pointless and uninspiring,
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but we must bear in mind the purpose that lies behind it. All
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the fallen angels were believed to have brought sin onto the earth. All the
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wickedness of the world the Apocalyptis traces back to them. This cause of sin
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must be wholly destroyed before righteousness can come truly to its own. Therefore,
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the Apocalyptist has a practical aim in view when describing in much detail the final
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place of punishment of the fallen angels, For here too are to come all
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those who by sin are the offspring of this race. No less does he
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delight in telling of the abode of joy prepared for the righteous. That all
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these descriptions were constructed out of the imagination of the apocalyptist, based largely no
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doubt upon popular tradition, did not detract from their practical vs value for the
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people of his day. He was a preacher of righteousness who looked forward in
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absolute conviction to the final overthrow of sin, and all his visions have as
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their motive power the yearning for and belief in the triumph of righteousness over sin.
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One of the like mind wrote later on, in a kind of preface
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to his book, these significant words which sum up the essence of the teaching
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of this book. And destroy all the spirits of the reprobate and the children
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of the watchers, because they have wronged mankind. Destroy all wrong from the
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face of the earth. And let every evil work come to an end,
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And let the plant of righteousness and truth appear, and it shall prove a
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blessing. The works of righteousness and truth shall be planted in truth and joy
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forevermore. Two the Parables, Chapters thirty seven through seventy one. There are
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three parables or similitudes, and they all have as their underlying thought the destruction
29:59
of evil and the triumph of righteousness, as in the preceding book, but
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here some new and important elements are introduced which give special value to this book.
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The first parable thirty eight through ninety four is a prophecy of coming judgment
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upon the wicked, and especially the kings and mighty ones on the earth.
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On the other hand, the apocalyptist sees in his vision the abode and resting
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places of the righteous, who are continually praising the Lord of Spirits. This
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is the usual title given to God in this book. Here occurs the first
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mention of the elect one Luke twenty three, verse thirty five. In the
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presence of the Lord of Spirits. There are also the four archangels and innumerable
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companies of other angels. Here he learns many secrets of the heavens. A
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fragment on wisdom forty two, which recalls some passages in Ecclose twenty four,
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comes in the middle of the secrets and is clearly out of place. The
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second parable forty five through fifty seven continues the same theme and further develops it.
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Of special importance is the sitting of the elect One on the throne of
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Glory as judge chapter forty five, verse three, and the mention of his
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title son of Man chapter forty six. Verse two. The thought of the
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vindication of the righteous is marred by their joy at vengeance upon the wicked.
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A particularly striking passage is chapter forty eight one through seven, which speaks of
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the inexhaustible fountain of righteousness reserved for the holy inelect in the presence of the
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Son of Man and of the Lord of spirits. The apocalyptist prophesies further of
31:44
the repentance of the gentiles chapter one and universalistic note of significance, and speaks
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of the resurrection of the dead in a notable passage. And in those days
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shall the earth also give back that which has been entrusted to it, and
31:59
Shiole shall also give back that which it has received, and Hell shall give
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back that which it owes. The Parable ends with an account of the Judgment,
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followed by two short passages on the last struggle of the Heathen powers against
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Israel fifty six five through eight and the Return from the Dispersion fifty seven,
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which do not appear to be in their original place. The third parable fifty
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eight through seventy one, has clearly suffered largely from the intrusion of alien matter,
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and is probably incomplete. Its main theme is the final judgment upon all
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flesh, and especially upon the great ones of the earth. The judge is
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the son of Man. Some of the passages which speak of the future reward
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of the righteous are full of beauty. The following is well worth quoting.
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And the righteous and elect shall have risen from the earth and ceased to be
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of downcast countenance, and they shall have been clothed with garments of glory,
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and they shall be garments of life the Lord of Spirits, And your garments
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shall not grow old, nor your glory pass away Before the Lord of Spirits.
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A large Noah fragment comes in the middle of the parable see page twenty
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six below. The close of this parable is contained in sixty nine twenty six
33:17
through twenty nine the Account of Enux Final Translation. Seventy and two of Enox's
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visions seventy one are out of place three the Book of the Courses of the
33:29
Heavenly Luminaries, chapters seventy two through eighty two. In seventy four to twelve,
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it says, and the Sun and the stars bring in all the years
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exactly so that they do not advance or delay their position by a single day,
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unto eternity, but complete the years with perfect justice in three hundred and
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sixty four days. This gives the keynote of this book, viz. That
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time is to be reckoned by the sun, not by the moon. See
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further on this section on authorship above. Until we come to chapter eighty,
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this book is uninteresting in the extreme. It purports to tell in detail of
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the laws by which the sun, moon, stars, and the winds are
34:10
governed. They are described by Uriel, the Holy Angel to the apocalyptist.
34:16
The four quarters of the world, the seven mountains, and the seven rivers
34:21
are also dealt with. The author has no other interests save a scientific one
34:25
colored by Jewish conceptions and beliefs. It is, however, different when we
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come to chapter eighty, verse two through eight. The whole tone alters in
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these verses, in which it is said that, owing to the sin of
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men, the moon and the Sun will mislead them. An ethical thought is
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thus brought in, which is wholly lacking in the previous chapters of this book.
34:47
This is also true of chapter eighty one. It is probable that neither
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of these chapters stood here originally. Regarding the point of three hundred and sixty
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four days to the year, which the writer of this book makes. Charles
35:01
says that he did this only through sheer incapacity for appreciating and thing better,
35:07
for he must have been acquainted with the solar year of three hundred and sixty
35:10
five and a fourth days. His acquaintance with the Greek cycles shows this.
35:15
The author's reckoning of the year at three hundred and sixty four days may be
35:20
partly due to his opposition to Heathen systems, and partly to the fact that
35:24
three hundred and sixty four is divisible by seven and amounts to fifty two weeks
35:30
exactly. In any case, he is opposed to the lunar year the Pharisaic
35:35
way of reckoning time, and this is an important point in favor of Saddace
35:39
and authorship. It will be noted that this book was written in post Maccabean
35:44
times. It was after the Maccabean Struggle that the Sadducees and Pharisees appeared as
35:49
parties definitely opposed to one another. Four The Dream slash Vision Chapters eighty three
35:57
through ninety. This book consists of two dreams slash visions. The first deals
36:02
with the judgment brought upon the world by the deluge on account of sin.
36:07
The origin of sin is again traced to the angels who fell. It concludes
36:12
with a hymn of praise to God, in which a prayer is offered that
36:15
all flesh may not be destroyed eighty three through eighty four. The second dream
36:21
slash vision is much longer. It gives in brief outline the history of the
36:25
world to the founding of the Messianic Kingdom, first the patriarchs, symbolized by
36:31
bulls et cetera. Eighty five, then the fallen angels, also described in
36:37
symbolic language, and their punishment eighty six through eighty eight. The history then
36:44
proceeds to deal more specifically with Israel, from the time of Noah to the
36:47
Maccabeian revolt eighty nine through ninety verse nineteen. Throughout the dream dash vision,
36:55
symbolic language is used. The faithful in Israel are spoken Genovis sheep, while
37:00
the gentiles are symbolized by wild beasts and birds of prey. The dream slash
37:07
vision concludes with some familiar eschatological notes, the judgment and condemnation of the wicked,
37:14
the establishment of the New Jerusalem, the conversion of the Gentiles who become
37:19
subject to Israel, the gathering in of the dispersed Israelites, the resurrection of
37:23
the righteous dead, and the setting up of the Messianic Kingdom on the appearance
37:29
of the Messiah ninety twenty through thirty eight five the concluding section of the book
37:36
ninety two through one hundred and five ninety one, Verses ten, eighteen,
37:42
and nineteen also belong Here is a complete, though short work, but there
37:47
are some obvious interpolations, and it is quite possible that some parts of the
37:52
text are dislocated. This makes the understanding of the book difficult, but if
37:57
we follow Charles's guidance here, the difficult culties will disappear. He says that
38:01
this concluding piece has in some degree suffered at the hands of the final editor
38:07
of the book, both in the way of direct interpolation and of severe dislocations
38:12
of the text. The interpolations are ninety one, verse eleven, ninety three,
38:17
verses eleven to fourteen, ninety four, seventy ninety six, verse two.
38:23
The dislocations of the text are a more important feature of the book.
38:28
They are confined, with the exception of ninety three verses thirteen to fourteen,
38:34
and of one hundred and six verse seventeen a, which should be read immediately
38:39
after one hundred and six verse fourteen to ninety one through ninety three. All
38:46
critics are agreed as to the chief of these, ninety one, twelve through
38:51
seventeen should undoubtedly be read directly after ninety three. Taken together, ninety three
38:58
verse one through ten, ninety one, twelve through seventeen form an independent whole,
39:05
the Apocalypse of Weeks, which has been incorporated in ninety one through one
39:09
hundred and four. The remaining dislocations need only to be pointed out in order
39:15
to be acknowledged. On other grounds, we find that ninety one through one
39:21
hundred and four is a book of different authorship from that of the rest of
39:23
the sections. Now this being so, this section obviously begins with ninety two,
39:30
written by Enoch the Scribe et cetera. On ninety two follows ninety one
39:36
one through ten, eighteen and nineteen as a natural sequel, where Enix summons
39:42
his children to receive his parting words. Then comes the Apocalypse of Weeks ninety
39:47
three one through ten, ninety one, twelve through seventeen. The original order
39:52
of the text therefore was ninety two ninety one one through ten, eighteen teen,
40:00
nineteen ninety three, one through ten, ninety one, twelve through seventeen
40:06
ninety four. These dislocations were the work of the editor, who put the
40:10
different books of Enux together and added eighty and eighty one. The book is
40:16
concerned with the questions of the final reward of the righteous and the final punishment
40:21
of the wicked. But a new teaching of great importance is put forth here.
40:25
Hitherto it had been taught that although much incongruity and apparent injustice were to
40:30
be found on this earth, owing to the suffering of the righteous and the
40:34
prosperity of the wicked, nevertheless all things would be righted in the world to
40:38
come, where the wicked would receive their deserts and the righteous would come to
40:43
their own. In this book it is taught that retribution will overtake the wicked,
40:47
and the righteous will have peace and prosperity even on this earth, with
40:52
the setting up of the Messianic Kingdom, and that at least there will come,
40:55
with the final judgment, the destruction of the former heaven and earth Earth,
41:00
and the creation of a New Heaven, then will follow the resurrection of
41:04
the spirits of the righteous dead, who will live forever in peace and joy,
41:07
while the wicked will perish everlastingly. The important point, which is a
41:13
development is the idea of the punishment of the wicked taking place on this earth,
41:17
the very scene of their unrighteous triumphs six the Noah fragments six through eleven,
41:24
fifty seven, seven through fifty five, two nine, sixty five through
41:30
sixty nine, verse twenty five, one hundred and six through one hundred and
41:35
seven. These fragments are not of much importance. The main topics touched upon
41:40
are the fall of the angels and sin among men, in consequence, judgments
41:45
on mankind i e. The Deluge, and the preservation of Noah. The
41:51
first five chapters are generally felt to be as late as any part of the
41:54
whole collection. They deal with the punishment hereafter of the wicked and the blood
42:00
of the righteous. Chapter one hundred and eight, which reads like a final
42:04
word to the whole collection, touches upon the same theme the importance of the
42:07
book for the study of Christian origins. This is a subject which cannot be
42:13
thoroughly appreciated without studying the book in detail, especially from its doctrinal standpoint,
42:19
and seeing in how many aspects it represents the doctrine and the popular conceptions of
42:23
the Jews during the two last pre Christian centuries. To do this here would
42:29
evolve a far too extended investigation. It must suffice to indicate a few of
42:34
the many points which should be studied. From these, it will be seen
42:38
how important the book is for study of Christian origins. Charles says that the
42:43
influence of First Denik on the New Testament has been greater than that of all
42:47
the other apocryphal and pseudopographical books put together, and he gives a formidable list
42:53
of passages in the New Testament which, either in phraseology or idea, directly
43:00
depend on or are illustrative of passages in First Enoch, as well as a
43:06
further list showing that various doctrines in First Enuch had an undoubted share in molding
43:12
the corresponding New Testament doctrines. These passages should be studied, and they will
43:17
be found to be a most interesting study in Charles's work, already referred to
43:22
several times, pages ninety five to one hundred and three, and with these
43:28
should be read the section on the theology of the Book of Enoch, pages
43:31
one hundred and three to one hundred and ten. Another book of great value
43:37
and interest already quoted is Burquette's Jewish and Christian Apocalypses. In dealing with the
43:43
subject of First Ench and the Gospels, this writer points out that the former
43:47
contains a serious attempt to account for the presence of evil in human history,
43:52
and this attempt claims our attention because it is, in essentials the view presupposed
43:58
in the Gospels, especially in the Synoptic Gospels. It is when you study
44:02
Matthew, Mark and Luke against the background of the Books of Enoch that you
44:07
see them in their true perspective. In saying this, I have no intention
44:10
of detracting from the importance of what the Gospels report to us. On the
44:15
contrary, it puts familiar words into their proper setting. Indeed, it seems
44:21
to me that some of the best known sayings of Jesus only appear in their
44:24
true light if regarded as midrash upon words and concepts that were familiar to those
44:30
who heard the prophet of Galilee, though now they have been forgotten by jew
44:35
and Christian Alike, page twenty one. He then gives an illustration of this
44:39
from Matthew twelve forty three through forty five Luke eleven twenty four through twenty six.
44:46
Of still greater interest are his remarks upon the relationship between First Enoch sixty
44:52
two and Matthew twenty five, verse thirty one through forty six. He believes
44:58
that the similitud of Enoch are presupposed in this scene from Matthew. The whole
45:04
of the discussion which follows should be read. The special points of interest that
45:07
should be studied in seeking to realize the importance of these books of Enoch for
45:12
the study of Christian origins are the problems of evil, including of course the
45:16
subjects of demonology and future judgment, the Messiah and the Messianic kingdom. The
45:23
title Son of Man is of special importance, and the Resurrection. There are,
45:29
of course other subjects which will suggest themselves in studying the book and of section one