The Book of Enoch

The Book of Enoch (also 1 Enoch;^[a] Hebrew: סֵפֶר חֲנוֹךְ, Sēfer Ḥănōḵ; Ge'ez: መጽሐፈ ሄኖክ, Maṣḥafa Hēnok) is an ancient Jewish apocalyptic religious text, ascribed by tradition to the patriarch Enoch who was the father of Methuselah and the great-grandfather of Noah.

The Book of Enoch contains unique material on the origins of demons and Nephilim, why some angels fell from heaven, an explanation of why the Genesis flood was morally necessary, and a prophetic exposition of the thousand-year reign of the Messiah. Three books are traditionally attributed to Enoch, including the distinct works 2 Enoch and 3 Enoch. None of the three are considered to be canonical scripture by most Jewish or Christian church bodies.

The older sections of 1 Enoch are estimated to date from about 300–200 BC, and the latest part (Book of Parables) is probably from around 100 BC.

Scholars believe Enoch was originally written in either Aramaic or Hebrew, the languages first used for Jewish texts. Ephraim Isaac suggests that the Book of Enoch, like the Book of Daniel, was composed partially in Aramaic and partially in Hebrew. No Hebrew version is known to have survived.

Copies of the earlier sections of 1 Enoch were preserved among the Dead Sea Scrolls in the Qumran Caves. They were kept by a Judaic splinter group not aligned with the mainstream Jewish sect of Pharisees. The Book of Enoch, alongside numerous other texts discovered in the caves, is recognized for its substantial variance from Rabbinic Judaism.

Authors of the New Testament were also familiar with some content of the book. A short section of 1 Enoch is cited in the New Testament Epistle of Jude, Jude 1:14–15, and attributed there to "Enoch the Seventh from Adam" (1 Enoch 60:8), although this section of 1 Enoch is a midrash on Deuteronomy 33:2, which was written long after the supposed time of Enoch. The full Book of Enoch only survives in its entirety in Ge'ez (Ethiopic) translation. It is part of the biblical canon used by the Ethiopian Jewish community Beta Israel, as well as the Christian Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Other Jewish and Christian groups regard it as non-canonical or non-inspired, but may accept it as having historical or theological interest.

Based on the number of copies found in the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Book of Enoch was widely read during the Second Temple period. Today, the Ethiopic Beta Israel community of Haymanot Jews is the only Jewish group that accepts the Book of Enoch as canonical and still preserves it in its liturgical language of Geʽez, where it plays a central role in worship. Apart from this community, the Book of Enoch was excluded from both the formal canon of the Tanakh and the Septuagint and therefore, also from the writings known today as the Deuterocanon.

The main reason for Jewish rejection of the book is that it is inconsistent with the teachings of the Torah. From the standpoint of Rabbinic Judaism, the book is considered to be heretical. For example, in 1 Enoch 40:1–10, the angel Phanuel presides over those who repent of sin and are granted eternal life. Some claim that this refers to Jesus Christ, as "Phanuel" translates to "the Face of God".

Another reason for the exclusion of the texts might be the textual nature of several early sections of the book that make use of material from the Torah; for example, 1 En 1 is a midrash of Deuteronomy 33.

The content, particularly detailed descriptions of fallen angels, would also be a reason for rejection from the Hebrew canon at this period – as illustrated by the comments of Trypho the Jew when debating with Justin Martyr on this subject: "The utterances of God are holy, but your expositions are mere contrivances, as is plain from what has been explained by you; nay, even blasphemies, for you assert that angels sinned and revolted from God."

By the fifth century, the Book of Enoch was mostly excluded from Christian biblical canons, and it is now regarded as scripture only by the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church.

"Enoch, the seventh from Adam" is quoted in Jude 1:14–15:

And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convict all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.

Compare this with Enoch 1:9, translated from the Ethiopic (found also in Qumran scroll 4Q204=4QEnoch^c ar, col I 16–18):

And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His Saints to execute judgment upon all, and to destroy all the ungodly: And to convict all flesh of all the works of their ungodliness which they have ungodly committed, and of all the hard things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.

Compare this also with what may be the original source of 1 Enoch 1:9 in Deuteronomy 33:2: In "He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones" the text reproduces the Masoretic of Deuteronomy 33 in reading אָתָא‎ = ἔρκεται, whereas the three Targums, the Syriac and Vulgate read אִתֹּה‎, = μετ' αὐτοῦ. Here the Septuagint diverges wholly. The reading אתא‎ is recognized as original. The writer of 1–5 therefore used the Hebrew text and presumably wrote in Hebrew.

The Lord came from Sinai and dawned from Seir upon us; he shone forth from Mount Paran; he came from the ten thousands of Saints, with flaming fire at his right hand.

Under the heading of canonicity, it is not enough to merely demonstrate that something is quoted. Instead, it is necessary to demonstrate the nature of the quotation.

In the case of the Jude 1:14 quotation of 1 Enoch 1:9, it would be difficult to argue that Jude does not quote Enoch as a historical prophet, since he cites Enoch by name. However, there remains a question as to whether the author of Jude attributed the quotation believing the source to be the historical Enoch before the flood, or as a midrash of Deut 33:2–3.

The Greek text might seem unusual in stating that "Enoch the Seventh from Adam" prophesied "to" (dative case) not "of" (genitive case) the men, however, this Greek grammar might indicate meaning "against them" – the dative τούτοις as a dative of disadvantage (dativus incommodi).^[f]

Davids (2006) points to Dead Sea Scrolls evidence but leaves it open as to whether Jude viewed 1 Enoch as canon, deuterocanon, or otherwise: "Did Jude, then, consider this scripture to be like Genesis or Isaiah? Certainly he did consider it authoritative, a true word from God. We cannot tell whether he ranked it alongside other prophetic books such as Isaiah and Jeremiah. What we do know is, first, that other Jewish groups, most notably those living in Qumran near the Dead Sea, also used and valued 1 Enoch, but we do not find it grouped with the scriptural scrolls."

The attribution "Enoch the Seventh from Adam" is apparently itself a section heading taken from 1 Enoch (1 Enoch 60:8, Jude 1:14a) and not from Genesis.^{[23][full citation needed]}

Enoch is referred to directly in the Epistle to the Hebrews. The epistle mentions that Enoch received testimony from God before his translation,(Hebrews 11:5) which may be a reference to 1 Enoch.

It has also been alleged that the First Epistle of Peter (1 Peter 3:19–20) and the Second Epistle of Peter (2 Peter 2:4–5) make reference to some Enochian material.^[29]

The Book of Enoch was considered as scripture in the Epistle of Barnabas (4:3)^[30] and by some of the early Church Fathers, such as Athenagoras,^[31] Clement of Alexandria,^[32] and Tertullian,^[33] who wrote c. 200 that the Book of Enoch had been rejected by the Jews because it purportedly contained prophecies pertaining to Christ.^[34]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not consider 1 Enoch to be part of its standard canon, although it believes that a purported "original" Book of Enoch was an inspired book. The Mormon Book of Moses, first published in the 1830s, is part of the standard works of the Church, and has a section which claims to contain extracts from the "original" Book of Enoch. This section has many similarities to 1 Enoch and other Enoch texts, including 2 Enoch, 3 Enoch, and The Book of Giants.^[36] The Enoch section of the Book of Moses is believed by the Church to contain extracts from "the ministry, teachings, and visions of Enoch", though it does not contain the entire Book of Enoch itself. The Church considers the portions of the other texts which match its Enoch excerpts to be inspired, while not rejecting but withholding judgment on the remainder.

By: Aafreen Ghorbani

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