Enoch, Book of

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The '''Book of Enoch''' is an apocraphal and pseudopigraphal collection of second century [[Judaism|Jewish]] texts attributed to [[Enoch]], the great-grandfather of [[Noah]] ({{bibleverse||Genesis|5:18|NIV}}), which describes a group of fallen [[angel]]s (called "the [[Grigori]]" -"Watchers") mating with humans to produce a race of giants (called "the [[Nephilim]]")  (cf. {{bibleverse||Genesis|6:1-2|NRSV}}). While the ''Book of Enoch'' does not form part of the [[Canon]] of Scripture for the larger [[Christianity|Christian]] Churches, various groups, including the [[Ethiopian Orthodox Church]], regard parts or all of ''1 Enoch'' to be inspired scripture. The currently known texts of this work are usually dated to [[Maccabees|Maccabean]] times (ca. 160s B.C.E.). Most commonly, the phrase "Book of Enoch" refers to ''1 Enoch,'' which is wholly extant only in the Ethiopic language. There are two other books named "Enoch": ''2 Enoch'' (surviving only in Old Slavonic, c. first century; Eng. trans. by Richard H. Charles (1896)<ref>[http://www.earlyjewishwritings.com/2enoch.html]''earlyjewishwritings.com''. [http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/~www_sd/enoch.html] ''St Andrews'' Retrieved October 31, 2008.</ref>; and ''3 Enoch'' (surviving in [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]], c. fifth-sixth century<ref>[http://www.earlyjewishwritings.com/3enoch.html]) ''earlyjewishwritings.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008.</ref>. The numbering of these texts has been applied by scholars to distinguish the texts from one another.
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These texts describe the fall of the Watchers ([[angel]]s) who fathered the Nephilim (cf. {{bibleverse||Genesis|6:1-2|NRSV}}). These angels went to Enoch to intercede on their behalf with God after he declared to them their doom. The remainder of the book describes Enoch's visit to Heaven in the form of a vision, and his revelations. It also contains descriptions of the movement of heavenly bodies, and some parts of the book have been speculated about as containing instructions for the construction of a solar declinometer.
  
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The '''Book of Enoch''' is any of several [[Pseudepigraphy|pseudepigraphal]] works that attribute themselves to [[Enoch, ancestor of Noah|Enoch]], the great-grandfather of [[Noah]]; that is, Enoch son of [[Jared (ancestor of Noah)|Jared]] ({{bibleverse||Genesis|5:18|NIV}}).
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==History, Origins, and Dating==
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Traditionally, the Book of Enoch was dated to the second century B.C.E. during the [[Maccabees]] times. According to some scholars,<ref>''1 Enoch: A New Translation.'' by George W. E. Nickelsburg and J.C. Vanderkam.'' (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress Press, 2004), p1ff (ie. preface summary)</ref><ref>G.W. Nickelsburg. ''Hermeneia: 1 Enoch 1.'' (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004), 7-8</ref> however, the five distinct sections of the Book of Enoch were originally independent works, themselves a product of much editorial arrangement, and were only later [[redaction|redacted]] into what we now call ''1 Enoch. 1 Enoch'' 6–11, part of the ''Book of Watchers,'' is thought to have been the original core of that Book, around which the remainder was later added, albeit this view is opposed by those scholars who maintain the literary integrity of the ''Book of Enoch.''<ref>For example, see Wossenie Yifru (1990) (in Ethiopian).</ref>
  
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Most commonly, the phrase "Book of Enoch" refers to 1 Enoch, which is wholly extant only in the Ethiopic language. There are two other books named "Enoch": [[2 Enoch]] (surviving only in [[Old Church Slavonic|Old Slavonic]], c. [[first century AD|first century]]; Eng. trans. by [[R. H. Charles]] ([[1896]]) [http://www.earlyjewishwritings.com/2enoch.html][http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/~www_sd/enoch.html]); and [[3 Enoch]] (surviving in [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]], c. [[fifth century AD|fifth]]-[[sixth century AD|sixth]] century[http://www.earlyjewishwritings.com/3enoch.html]). The numbering of these texts has been applied by scholars to distinguish the texts from one another. The remainder of this article deals with 1 Enoch only.
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According to internal textual analysis, the ''Book of Parables'' appears to be based on the ''Book of Watchers,'' and presents a later development of the idea of final judgement<ref>Rather than being a final judgement of the fallen angels, the ''Book of Parables'' instead presents a final judgement of earthly kings.</ref> Since the ''Book of Parables'' contains several references to a ''[[Son of Man]],'' as well as messianic themes, several scholars have taken the view that this section dates from Christian times. However, since the term "Son of Man" was also just a Jewish way of saying ''human,'' and since the [[Book of Daniel]] also refers to a ''Son of Man,'' the work may be earlier, and a number of academics have proposed that the ''Book of Parables'' may be as early as the late 1st century B.C.E.
  
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Whilst this book does not form part of the Canon of Scripture for the larger Christian Churches, various groups, including the [[Ethiopian Orthodox Church]], regard parts or all of 1 Enoch to be inspired Scripture.  The currently known texts of this work are usually dated to [[Maccabean]] times (ca. [[160s B.C.E.]]).
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The ''Book of Dreams'' contains a ''vision'' of a history of Israel all the way down to what the majority have interpreted as the revolt of the Maccabees, leading scholars to date it to Maccabean times.
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==History==
 
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The book consists of five quite distinct major sections:
 
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*The ''Book of Watchers'' (1 Enoch 1 – 36)
 
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*The ''Book of Parables'' (1 Enoch 37 – 71) (Also called the ''Similitudes of Enoch'')
 
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*The ''Book of the Heavenly Luminaries'' (1 Enoch 72 – 82) (Usually abbreviated to ''The Book of Luminaries''. Also called the ''Astronomical Book'')
 
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*The ''Dream Visions'' (1 Enoch 83 – 90) (Also called the ''Book of Dreams'')
 
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*The ''Epistle of Enoch'' (1 Enoch 91 – 108)
 
  
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According to some recent scholars,<ref>{{cite book | title=1 Enoch: A New Translation | last=Vanderkam | first=JC. | publisher=Minneapolis:Fortress | year=2004 | pages=p1ff (ie. preface summary)}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | title=Hermeneia: 1 Enoch 1 | last=Nickelsburg| first=GW. | publisher=Minneapolis:Fortress | year=2004 | pages=p7-8}}</ref> these five sections were originally independent works, themselves a product of much editorial arrangement, and were only later [[redaction|redacted]] into what we now call 1 Enoch. However, this view is opposed by many scholars who maintain the literary integrity of the Book of Enoch, one of the most recent (1990) being Wossenie Yifru.
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Before the discovery at [[Qumran]] of fragments from 1 Enoch among the [[Dead Sea scrolls]], there was some dispute about whether the Greek text was an original Christian production, or whether it was a translation from an [[Aramaic]] text redacted in Jewish circles. The chief argument for a Christian author was the occurrence of references to the [[Messiah]] as the Son of Man, however such references also appeared in Jewish texts around the turn of the era.  
  
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A great deal of the undercurrent to the narrative of the sections has been claimed to be concerned with the era of the [[Maccabees]] and it is for that reason that these western scholars date the sections as having originated during (or after) the 2nd century B.C.E., although these assertions have not proved convincing to all concerned, for what they say is lack of any legitimate evidence of Maccabean-era authorship. 1 Enoch 6–11, part of the ''Book of Watchers'', is thought to have been the original core of that Book, around which the remainder was later added, not least because Enoch is not mentioned in it.
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The Ethiopian Church considers its Ethiopic version to be the original, since it is the only complete version, while the other languages merely have different fragments of the work. Despite this, the majority of western scholars now claim a third century B.C.E. Jewish authorship for its earliest parts.  
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The ''Book of Parables'' appears to be based on the ''Book of Watchers'', but presenting a later development of the idea of final judgement – rather than being a final judgement of the fallen angels, the ''Book of Parables'' instead presents a final judgement of earthly kings- or ''the Book of Parables'' is merely concerned with the kings of the Earth, which seem to have a rather important role in the Book of Enoch's [[eschatology]]. The ''Book of Parables'' contains several references to a ''[[Son of Man]]'', as well as messianic themes; so several scholars have taken the view that this section dates from more Christian times. However, since the term was also just a Jewish way of saying ''human'', and since [[the Book of Daniel]] also refers to a ''Son of Man'', the work may be earlier, and a number of academics have proposed that the ''Book of Parables'' may be as early as the late 1st century BC.
 
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The ''Book of Dreams'' contains a ''vision'' of a history of Israel all the way down to what the majority have interpreted as the revolt of the Maccabees, leading scholars to date it to Maccabean times.
 
  
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Before the discovery at [[Qumran]] (among the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]]) of fragments from 1 Enoch, there was some dispute about whether the Greek text was an original Christian production, or whether it was a translation from an [[Aramaic]] text redacted in Jewish circles. The chief argument for a Christian author was the occurrence of references to the [[Messiah]] as the [[Son of man|Son of Man]], however such references can also appear in Jewish texts around the turn of the era. The Ethiopian Church considers its Ethiopic version to be the original, since it is the only complete version, while the other languages only have different fragments of the work. Despite this, the majority of western scholars now claim a [[3rd century B.C.E.]] Jewish authorship for its earliest parts. Before the Qumran discovery, scholars had been unwilling to date it any earlier than the next earliest known reference.
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Bible scholars such as Lucke (1832), Hofman (1852), Wiesse (1856), Phillippe (1868) and J.T. Milik (1950) once believed that the ''Book of Enoch'' was written in the second century C.E. by a Jewish Christian to enhance Christian beliefs with Enoch's authoritative name. However, James H. Charlesworth argued that in recent years:
  
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As for 2 Enoch, almost all scholars that deal with this book believe it was translated into Old Church Slavonic from a Greek edition, perhaps by Saints [[Cyril]] and [[Methodius]]
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<blockquote>"Repeatedly the specialists on I Enoch have come out in favor of the Jewish nature and its first century CE origin, and probable pre-70 date. The list of specialists on I Enoch arguing for this position has become overwhelmingly impressive: Isaac, Nickelsburg, Stone, Knibb, Anderson, Black, VanderKam, Greenfield and Sutter. The ''consensus communis'' is unparalleled in almost any other area of research; no specialists now argue that I Enoch 37-71 … postdates the first century."<ref>James H. Charlesworth. ''The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha and the New Testament.'' (Philadelphia: Trinity Press International, New Ed., 1998), 89.</ref></blockquote>
  
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[[Józef Milik]] has suggested that the "[[Book of Giants]]" found amongst the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]] should be part of the collection, appearing after the Book of Watchers.  But for various reasons, this theory has not been widely accepted.
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===Canonicity===
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From the time of the [[Council of Jamnia]] (c. 90 C.E.), the book has not been part of the [[Jewish Scriptures]].  
  
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==Canonicity==
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The early Christian father [[Tertullian]] wrote c. 200 that the ''Book of Enoch'' had been rejected by the [[Jews]] because it contained [[prophecy|prophecies]] pertaining to [[Christ]].<ref>''The Ante-Nicene Fathers,'' edited be Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, et al. vol 4.16 (Hendrickson Publishers, 1994)</ref> The book is referred to, and quoted, in {{bibleverse||Jude|1:14-15|KJV}}:
  
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The book is referred to, and quoted, in {{bibleverse||Jude|1:14-15|KJV}}:
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<blockquote>"And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these [men], saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince 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."</blockquote>
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<blockquote>And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these [men], saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince 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.</blockquote>
 
  
 
Compare this with Enoch 1:9, translated from the Ethiopian:  
 
Compare this with Enoch 1:9, translated from the Ethiopian:  
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<blockquote>And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones To execute judgement 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.</blockquote>
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<blockquote>"And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones To execute judgement 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."<ref>''The Book of Enoch.'' [http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles, 1917]''sacred-texts.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008. </ref></blockquote>
  
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From the time of the [[Council of Jamnia]] (c. [[90]]), the book has not been part of the Jewish Scriptures.  
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The [[Greek language]] text was known to, and quoted by nearly all, [[Church Father]]s. A number of the Church Fathers thought it to be an inspired work, particularly [[Justin Martyr]], [[Irenaeus]], [[Origen]], [[Clement of Alexandria]] and Tertullian, based on its quotation in Jude.  
  
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The early Christian father [[Tertullian]] wrote c. 200 that the ''Book of Enoch'' had been rejected by the Jews because it contained prophecies pertaining to [[Christ]].<ref>''The Ante-Nicene Fathers'' (ed. Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson; vol 4.16)</ref>
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However, some later Fathers denied the canonicity of the book and some even considered the letter of [[Jude]] uncanonical because it refers to an "apocryphal" work. By the fourth century it was mostly excluded from Christian lists of the [[Biblical canon]], and it was eventually entirely omitted from the [[canon]] by most of the Christian church (except the Ethiopian Orthodox Church).
  
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The [[Greek language]] text was known to, and quoted by nearly all, [[Church Father]]s.  A number of the Church Fathers thought it to be an inspired work, particularly [[Justin Martyr]], [[Irenaeus]], [[Origen]], [[Clement of Alexandria]] and [[Tertullian]], based on its quotation in Jude.
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===Rediscovery===
  
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However, some later Fathers denied the canonicity of the book and some even considered the letter of Jude uncanonical because it refers to an "apocryphal" work (Cf. Gerome, Catal. Script. Eccles. 4.). By the fourth century it was mostly excluded from Christian lists of the [[Biblical canon]], and it was omitted from the canon by most of the Christian church (the Ethiopian Orthodox Church being an exception).  
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Outside of [[Ethiopia]], the text of the ''Book of Enoch'' was considered lost until the beginning of the seventeenth century, when the learned Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc bought a book that was claimed to be identical to the one quoted by the ''[[Epistle of Jude]]'' (and the ''[[Epistle of Barnabas]]'' - Epistle xvi. 5) and by the [[Church Father]]s [[Justin Martyr]], [[Irenaeus]], [[Origen]] and [[Clement of Alexandria]]. Although these quotes come exclusively from the first five chapters of 1 Enoch, many suggest that only these five were written by Enoch and the rest were written during the time of the Maccabees. Hiob Ludolf, the great Ethiopic scholar of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, soon claimed it to be a [[forgery]] produced by Abba Bahaila Michael.<ref>Ludolf, "Commentarius in Hist. Aethip." 347</ref>
  
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Some excerpts are given by the [[8th century]] monk [[George Syncellus]] in his chronography, which are published in [[August Dillmann]]'s translation, pp. 82-86. In the 9th century it is listed as an [[apocryphon]] of the New Testament by Patriarch [[Nicephorus]] Cf. Niceph. (ed. Dindorf), I. 787.
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Later, the famous Scottish traveller James Bruce returned to Europe in 1773 from six years in [[Abyssinia]] with three copies of a Ge'ez version.<ref>Bruce, Travels, vol 2, 422</ref> One is preserved in the [[Bodleian Library]], another was presented to the Royal Library of France (the nucleus of the Bibliothèque Nationale), whilst the third was kept by Bruce. The copies remained unused until the 1800s, Silvestre de Sacy, in "Notices sur le livre d'Enoch" in the ''Magazine Encyclopédique'', an vi. tome I, p. 382 included extracts of the books with Latin translations (Enoch chap 1, 2, 5-16, 22, 32). From this point, a German translation was made by Rink in 1801.  
  
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==Manuscript tradition==
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European scholars and academics consider the Ethiopic version to be translated from Greek, which was in turn translated from the Aramaic (possibly Hebrew for chapters 37-71).<ref> James C. Vanderkam. ''Enoch: A Man for All Generations. (Studies on Personalities of the Old Testament)'', 20. cf. Milik: 70-78.</ref> However, this hypothesis is vehemently disputed by Ethiopian scholars and clergy, who insist that, since the only complete text of Enoch to surface so far is in Ethiopic, whereas the Aramaic and Greek copies exist only in separate and incomplete fragments, in their view proving their claim that this was the original language written by Enoch himself. In the Ethiopian Orthodox view, the following opening sentence of Enoch is the first and oldest sentence written in any human language, since Enoch was the first to write letters:
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===Ethiopic===
 
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The most extensive witnesses to the Book of Enoch exist in the [[Ge'ez language|Ge'ez dialect]] of the [[Ethiopic language]].  (See Richard H. Charles’ critical edition of 1906.)
 
  
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===Aramaic===
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<blockquote>"Word of blessing of Henok, wherewith he blessed the chosen and righteous who would be alive in the day of tribulation for the removal of all wrongdoers and backsliders."<ref>''The Book of Enoch'' [http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles 1917]''sacred-texts.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008.</ref></blockquote>
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Eleven [[Aramaic]]-language fragments of the Book of Enoch were found in cave 4 of [[manuscripts of Qumran|Qumran]] in 1948.[http://ocp.acadiau.ca/1Enoch.html], and are in the care of the [[Israel Antiquities Authority]]. They were translated and discussed by Józef Milik and Matthew Black in ''The Books of Enoch'' (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1976).  Another translation has been released by Vermes and Garcia-Martinez (Vermes 513-515; Garcia- Martinez 246-259).  Milik described the documents as being white or cream in color, blackened in areas, made of leather which was smooth, thick and stiff. It was also partly damaged with the ink blurred and faint.
 
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*[http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/deadsea.scrolls.exhibit/Library/enoch.html 4Q201] = 4QEnoch <sup>a</sup> ar, Enoch 2,1-5,6; 6,4-8,1; 8,3-9,3.6-8
 
  
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Also at Qumran (cave 1) have been discovered 3 tiny fragments in [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] (8,4-9,4; 106).
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In the early period of Ethiopian literature, there was considerable translation activity of much Greek literature into Ge'ez by Ethiopian theologians. Because of this, there are many texts for which both the Ge'ez translation and the Greek original are known; however, in this case, the language and thought of Ge'ez Enoch are thoroughly Semitic, and show no indication of having been transmitted through Greek.
  
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===Greek===
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The first translation of the Bodleian/Ethiopic MS was published in 1821 by Professor Richard Laurence, afterwards archbishop of Cashel. Titled ''The Book of Enoch, the prophet: an apocryphal production, supposed to have been lost for ages; but discovered at the close of the last century in Abyssinia; now first translated from an Ethiopic MS in the Bodleian Library. Oxford, 1821.'' A second edition was released in 1833 and a third edition in 1838.
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The 8th century work ''Chronographia Universalis'' by the Byzantine historian [[Giorgio Sincello]] preserved some passages of the Book of Enoch in Greek (6,1-9,4; 15,8-16,1). 
 
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* Cairo Papyrus 10759 consists of fragments of [[papyrus|papyri]] containing portions of chapters 1-32, recovered by a [[France|French]] archeological team at [[Akhmim]] in Egypt, and published five years later in [[1892]].
 
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* V. 1809:  89,42-49
 
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* P. Oxy. 2069:  77,7-78,1; 78,1-3; 78,8; 85,10-86,2
 
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* CB185:  97,6-107,3
 
  
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In addition, several small fragments in Greek have been found at Qumran (7QEnoch), dating from the first century B.C.E. or CE. Comprising 103:3-4 and 103:7-8, they are written on papyrus with gridlines across them.[http://pweb.netcom.com/%7eEmuro/7qenoch/article1.html].  
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Professor A. G. Hoffmann released a translation in 1833 but due to the use at least in part of Laurence's later work, there were a number of mistakes that were prevalent. Two other translations came out around the same time: one in 1836 called ''Enoch Retitutus, or an Attempt'' (Rev. Edward Murray) and in 1840 ''Prophetae veteres Pseudepigraphi, partim ex Abyssinico vel Hebraico sermonibus Latine bersi'' (Gfrörer). However both were considered to be poor.<ref>A. G. Hoffmann. ''Zweiter Excurs,'' 917-965.</ref>
  
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===Other translations===
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The first reliable edition appeared in 1851 as ''Liber Henoch, Aethiopice, ad quinque codicum fidem editus, cum variis lectionibus,'' which is based on the Ethiopic text edited by A. Dillmann, with an accurate translation of the book with reliable notes released in 1853 titled ''Das Buch Henoch, übersetzt und erklärt,'' which was considered an impeccable edition until the 1900s. Another famous edition was published in 1912 by R.H. Charles.
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Since the 18th century an [[Old Church Slavonic language|Old Church Slavonic]] translation has been identified, as well as two separate fragments of a [[Latin]] translation.  
 
  
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==Rediscovery==
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==Contents==
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Outside of [[Ethiopia]], the text of the ''Book of Enoch'' was considered lost until the beginning of the 17th century, when it was confidently asserted that the book was found in an [[Ge'ez|Ethiopic]] translation there, and the learned [[Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc]] bought a book that was claimed to be identical to the one quoted by the ''[[Epistle of Jude]]'' (and the ''[[Epistle of Barnabas]]'' - Epistle xvi. 5) and by the [[Church Father]]s [[Justin Martyr]], [[Irenaeus]], [[Origen]] and [[Clement of Alexandria]]. Although these quotes come exclusively from the first 5 chapters of 1 Enoch. Many{{who}} suggest that only these 5 were written by Enoch and the rest were written during the time of the Maccabees. [[Hiob Ludolf]], the great Ethiopic scholar of the 17th and 18th centuries, soon claimed it to be a forgery produced by Abba Bahaila Michael (Ludolf, "Commentarius in Hist. Aethip." p. 347).
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The ''Book of Enoch'' consists of five quite distinct major sections:
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*The ''Book of Watchers'' (1 Enoch 1 – 36)
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Better success was achieved by the famous Scottish traveller [[James Bruce]], who in 1773 returned to Europe from six years in Abyssinia with three copies of a [[Ge'ez]] version (Bruce, Travels, vol 2, page 422). One is preserved in the [[Bodleian Library]], another was presented to the royal library of France (the nucleus of the [[Bibliothèque Nationale]]), whilst the third was kept by Bruce. The copies remained unused until the 1800s, Silvestre de Sacy, in "Notices sur le livre d'Enoch" in the ''Magazine Encyclopédique'', an vi. tome I, p. 382 included extracts of the books with Latin translations (Enoch chap 1 ,2 ,5-16 ,22 ,32). From this a German translation was made by Rink in 1801.
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*The ''Book of Parables'' (1 Enoch 37 – 71) (Also called the ''Similitudes of Enoch'')
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*The ''Book of the Heavenly Luminaries'' (1 Enoch 72 – 82) (Usually abbreviated to ''The Book of Luminaries.'' Also called the ''Astronomical Book'')
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The first translation of the Bodleian/Ethiopic MS was published in [[1821]] by Professor Richard Laurence, afterwards archbishop of Cashel. Titled ''The Book of Enoch, the prophet: an apocryphal production, supposed to have been lost for ages; but discovered at the close of the last century in Abyssinia; now first translated from an Ethiopic MS in the Bodleian Library. Oxford, 1821''. A second edition was released in 1833 and a third edition in 1838.
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*The ''Dream Visions'' (1 Enoch 83 – 90) (Also called the ''Book of Dreams'')
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*The ''Epistle of Enoch'' (1 Enoch 91 – 108)
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Laurence in 1838 also released an edited Ethiopic text named ''Libri Enoch Prophetae Versio Aethiopica''. The text divided into 105 chapters was even then considered unreliable as was published in ''The severe judgement on Laurence by Dillmann, Das Buch Henoch, p lvii''.
 
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Professor A. G. Hoffmann released a translation in 1833 based on this work called ''Das Buch Henoch in vollständiger Uebersetzung, mit fortlauzendem Kommentar, ausführlicher Einleitung und erläuternden Excursen'' but due to the use at least in part of Laurence's later work there where a number of mistakes that are prevalent. Two other translations came out around the same time one in 1836 called ''Enoch Retitutus, or an Attempt'' (Rev Edward Murray) and in 1840 ''Prophetae veteres Pseudepigraphi, partim ex Abyssinico vel Hebraico sermonibus Latine bersi'' (Gfrörer). However both are considered to be poor - the 1836 translation most of all and is discussed in Hoffmann, Zweiter Excurs, pages 917-965.
 
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The first reliable edition appeared in [[1851]] as ''Liber Henoch, Aethiopice, ad quinque codicum fidem editus, cum variis lectionibus'' which is based on the Ethiopic text edited by A. Dillmann, with an accurate translation of the book with reliable notes released in 1853 titled ''Das Buch Henoch, übersetzt und erklärt'' which was considered an impeccable edition until the 1900s. A famous edition was published in 1912 by R.H. Charles.
 
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European scholars and academics consider the Ethiopic version to be translated from Greek which was in turn translated from the Aramaic (possibly Hebrew for chapters 37-71){{Fact|date=February 2007}}. This is vehemently disputed by Ethiopian scholars and clergy, who insist that, since the only complete text of Enoch to surface so far is in Ethiopic, whereas the Aramaic and Greek copies exist only in separate and incomplete fragments, in their view proving their claim that this was the original language written by Enoch himself. In the Ethiopian Orthodox view, the following opening sentence of Enoch is the first and oldest sentence written in any human language, since Enoch was the first to write letters:
 
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:{{lang|gez|ቃለ፡ በረከት፡ ዘሄኖክ፡ ዘከመ፡ ባረከ፡ ኅሩያነ፡ ወጻድቃነ፡ እለ፡ ሀለው፡ ይኩኑ}}
 
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:{{lang|gez|በዕለተ፡ ምንዳቤ፡ ለአሰስሎ፡ ኲሉ፡ እኩያን፡ ወረሲዓን።}}
 
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:''{{IPA|Qāla barakat za-Hēnōk zakama bārraka ḫirūyāna wa-ṣādḳāna 'ila halaw yikūnū}}''
 
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:''{{IPA|baʿilata mindābē la'asaslō kʷilū 'ikūyān wa-rasīʿān}}''
 
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:"Word of blessing of Henok, wherewith he blessed the chosen and righteous who would be alive in the day of tribulation for the removal of all wrongdoers and backsliders."
 
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: (''To see the Ge'ez font above, you need to have [ftp://ftp.ethiopic.org/pub/fonts/TrueType/gfzemenu.ttf GF Zemen True Type] font in your computer's font folder'')
 
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In the early period of Ethiopian literature, there was considerable translation activity of much Greek literature into Ge'ez by Ethiopian theologians. Because of this, there are many texts for which both the Ge'ez translation and the Greek original are known; however, in this case, the language and thought of Ge'ez Enoch are thoroughly Semitic, and show no indication of having been transmitted through Greek.
 
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==Content==
 
  
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The Book of Enoch describes the fall of the [[Grigori|Watchers]], the [[angel]]s who fathered the [[Nephilim]] (cf. the '''''b<sup>e</sup>ne Elohim''''', {{bibleverse||Genesis|6:1-2|NRSV}}). The [[fallen angel]]s went to Enoch to intercede on their behalf with God after he declared to them their doom. The remainder of the book describes Enoch's visit to Heaven in the form of a [[vision (religion)|vision]], and his revelations.
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The contents of each major section are briefly described below:
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The book contains descriptions of the movement of heavenly bodies (in connection with Enoch's trip to Heaven), and some parts of the book have been speculated about as containing instructions for the construction of a solar [[declinometer]] (the [[Uriel's machine]] theory).
 
  
 
===The Book of the Watchers===
 
===The Book of the Watchers===
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Dated: Parts of the work were composed no later than the [[3rd century B.C.E.]], but the work must have reached its present form by the middle of the [[2nd century B.C.E.]]
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The ''Book of Watchers'' describes the fall of the [[angel]]s who fathered the [[Nephilim]] (cf. {{bibleverse||Genesis|6:1-2|NRSV}}). These angels went to Enoch to intercede on their behalf with God after he declared to them their doom. The remainder of the book describes Enoch's visit to Heaven in the form of a [[vision (religion)|vision]], and his [[revelation]]s.  
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I-V. Parable of Enoch on the Future Lot of the Wicked and the Righteous.
 
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VI-XI. The Fall of the Angels: the Demoralization of Mankind: the Intercession of the Angels on behalf of Mankind. The Dooms pronounced by God on the Angels of the Messianic Kingdom.
 
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XII-XVI. Dream-Vision of Enoch: his Intercession for [[Azazel]] and the fallen angels: and his Announcement of their first and final Doom.
 
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XVII-XXXVI. Enoch's Journeys through the Earth and Sheol.
 
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* XVII-XIX. The First Journey.
 
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* XX. Names and Functions of the Seven Archangels.
 
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* XXI. Preliminary and final Place of Punishment of the fallen Angels (stars).
 
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* XXII. Sheol or the Underworld.
 
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* XXIII. The fire that deals with the Luminaries of Heaven.
 
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* XXIV-XXV. The Seven Mountains in the North-West and the Tree of Life.
 
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* XXVI. Jerusalem and the Mountains, Ravines, and Streams.
 
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* XXVII. The Purpose of the Accursed Valley.
 
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* XXVIII-XXXIII. Further Journey to the East.
 
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*    IV-XXXV. Enoch's Journey to the North.
 
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*    VI. The Journey to the South.  
 
  
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This introduction to the Book of Enoch tells us that Enoch is "a just man, whose eyes were opened by God so that he saw vision of the Holy One in the heavens, which the sons of God showed to me, and from them I heard everything, and I knew what I saw, but [these things that I saw will] not [come to pass] for this generation, but for a generation that has yet to come."
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Dated: Parts of the work were composed no later than the third century B.C.E., but the work must have reached its present form by the middle of the second century B.C.E..
  
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It discusses [[God]] coming to [[Earth]] on [[Mount Sinai]] with his hosts to pass judgement on mankind. It also tells us about the [[luminaries]] rising and setting in the order and in their own time and never change.
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The first section of the book depicts the interaction of the fallen angels with mankind; Samyaza compels the other 199 fallen angels to take human wives to "''beget us children''."
  
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:"Observe and see how (in the winter) all the trees seem as though they had withered and
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<blockquote>"And Semjâzâ, who was their leader, said unto them: 'I fear ye will not indeed agree to do this deed, and I alone shall have to pay the penalty of a great sin.' And they all answered him and said: 'Let us all swear an oath, and all bind ourselves by mutual imprecations not to abandon this plan but to do this thing.'. Then sware they all together and bound themselves by mutual imprecations upon it. And they were in all two hundred; who descended in the days of Jared on the summit of Mount Hermon, and they called it Mount Hermon, because they had sworn and bound themselves by mutual imprecations upon it."<ref>''Book of Enoch'' [http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles 1917]''sacred-texts.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008.</ref></blockquote>
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shed all their leaves, except fourteen trees, which do not lose their foliage but retain the old foliage from two to three years till the new comes."
 
  
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How all things are ordained by God and take place in his own time. The sinners shall perish and the great and the good shall live on in light, joy and peace.
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This results in the creation of the Nephilim ([[Genesis]]) or Anakim/Anak (Giants) as they are described in the book:
  
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:"And all His works go on thus from year to year for ever, and all the tasks
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<blockquote>"And they became pregnant, and they bare great giants, whose height was three thousand ells [the Ethiopian text gives 300 cubits (135 meters), which is probably a corruption of 30 cubits (13.5 meters)]: Who consumed all the acquisitions of men. And when men could no longer sustain them, the giants turned against them and devoured mankind. And they began to sin against birds, and beasts, and reptiles, and fish, and to devour one another's flesh, and drink the blood."<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles 1917] ''sacred-texts.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008.</ref></blockquote>
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which they accomplish for Him, and their tasks change not, but according as
 
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God hath ordained so is it done."
 
  
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The first section of the book depicts the interaction of the fallen angels with mankind; [[Samyaza|Sêmîazâz]] compels the other 199 fallen angels to take human wives to "''beget us children''".
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It also discusses the teaching of humans by the fallen angels chiefly [[Azazel]]:
  
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:"And Semjâzâ, who was their leader, said unto them: 'I fear ye will not indeed agree to do this deed, and I alone shall have to pay the penalty of a great sin.' And they all answered him and said: 'Let us all swear an oath, and all bind ourselves by mutual imprecations not to abandon this plan but to do this thing.'. Then sware they all together and bound themselves by mutual imprecations upon it. And they were in all two hundred; who descended in the days of Jared on the summit of [[Mount Hermon]], and they called it Mount Hermon, because they had sworn and bound themselves by mutual imprecations upon it."
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<blockquote>"And Azâzêl taught men to make swords, and knives, and shields, and breastplates, and made known to them the metals of the earth and the art of working them, and bracelets, and ornaments, and the use of antimony, and the beautifying of the eyelids, and all kinds of costly stones, and all colouring tinctures. And there arose much godlessness, and they committed fornication, and they were led astray, and became corrupt in all their ways. Semjâzâ taught enchantments, and root-cuttings, Armârôs the resolving of enchantments, Barâqîjâl, taught astrology, Kôkabêl the constellations, Ezêqêêl the knowledge of the clouds, Araqiêl the signs of the earth, Shamsiêl the signs of the sun, and Sariêl the course of the moon.''"<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles 1917]''sacred-texts.com''. </ref></blockquote>
  
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The names of the leaders are given as "[[Samyaza]] (Shemyazaz), their leader, [[Araqiel]], [[Azazel|Râmêêl]], [[Kokabiel]], [[Tamiel]], [[Ramiel]], [[Daniel]], [[Chazaqiel]], [[Baraqiel]], [[Asael]], [[Armaros]], [[Batariel]], [[Ananiel]], [[Zaqiel]], [[Shamsiel]], [[Satariel]], [[Turiel]], [[Yomiel]], [[Sariel]]."
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[[Michael (archangel)|Michael]], [[Uriel]], [[Raphael (archangel)|Raphael]], and [[Gabriel]] appeal to God to judge the inhabitants of the world and the fallen angels. Uriel is then sent by God to tell Noah of the coming [[apocalypse]] and what he needs to do:
  
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This results in the creation of the [[Nephilim]] ([[Genesis]]) or Anakim/Anak (Giants) as they are described in the book:
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<blockquote>"Then said the Most High, the Holy and Great One spoke, and sent Uriel to the son of Lamech, and said to him: Go to [[Noah]] and tell him in my name "Hide thyself!" and reveal to him the end that is approaching: that the whole earth will be destroyed, and a deluge is about to come upon the whole earth, and will destroy all that is on it. And now instruct him that he may escape and his seed may be preserved for all the generations of the world."<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles 1917] ''sacred-texts.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008.</ref></blockquote>
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:"And they became pregnant, and they bare great giants, whose height was three thousand ells'' [the Ethiopian text gives 300 [[cubits]] (135 meters), which is probably a corruption of 30 cubits (13.5 meters)]: Who consumed all the acquisitions of men. And when men could no longer sustain them, the giants turned against them and devoured mankind. And they began to sin against birds, and beasts, and reptiles, and fish, and to devour one another's flesh, and drink the blood."
 
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It also discusses the teaching of humans by the fallen angels chiefly [[Azazel|Azâzêl]]:
 
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:"And Azâzêl taught men to make swords, and knives, and shields, and breastplates, and made known to them the metals of the earth and the art of working them, and bracelets, and ornaments, and the use of antimony, and the beautifying of the eyelids, and all kinds of costly stones, and all colouring tinctures. And there arose much godlessness, and they committed fornication, and they were led astray, and became corrupt in all their ways. Semjâzâ taught enchantments, and root-cuttings, Armârôs the resolving of enchantments, Barâqîjâl, taught astrology, Kôkabêl the constellations, Ezêqêêl the knowledge of the clouds, Araqiêl the signs of the earth, Shamsiêl the signs of the sun, and Sariêl the course of the moon.''"
 
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[[Michael (archangel)|Michael]], [[Uriel]], [[Raphael (archangel)|Raphael]], and [[Gabriel]] appeal to God to judge the inhabitants of the world and the fallen angels. Uriel is then sent by God to tell Noah of the coming [[apocalypse]] and what he needs to do.
 
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:"Then said the Most High, the Holy and Great One spoke, and sent Uriel to the son of Lamech, and said to him: Go to [[Noah]] and tell him in my name "Hide thyself!" and reveal to him the end that is approaching: that the whole earth will be destroyed, and a deluge is about to come upon the whole earth, and will destroy all that is on it. And now instruct him that he may escape and his seed may be preserved for all the generations of the world."
 
  
 
God commands Raphael to imprison Azâzêl:
 
God commands Raphael to imprison Azâzêl:
  
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:"the Lord said to Raphael: 'Bind Azâzêl hand and foot, and cast him into the darkness: and make an opening in the desert, which is in Dûdâêl (Gods Kettle/Crucible/Cauldron), and cast him therein. And place upon him rough and jagged rocks, and cover him with darkness, and let him abide there for ever, and cover his face that he may not see light. And on the day of the great judgement he shall be cast into the fire. And heal the earth which the angels have corrupted, and proclaim the healing of the earth, that they may heal the plague, and that all the children of men may not perish through all the secret things that the Watchers have disclosed and have taught their sons. And the whole earth has been corrupted through the works that were taught by Azâzêl: to him ascribe all sin."
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<blockquote>"The Lord said to Raphael: 'Bind Azâzêl hand and foot, and cast him into the darkness: and make an opening in the desert, which is in Dûdâêl (Gods Kettle/Crucible/Cauldron), and cast him therein. And place upon him rough and jagged rocks, and cover him with darkness, and let him abide there for ever, and cover his face that he may not see light. And on the day of the great judgement he shall be cast into the fire. And heal the earth which the angels have corrupted, and proclaim the healing of the earth, that they may heal the plague, and that all the children of men may not perish through all the secret things that the Watchers have disclosed and have taught their sons. And the whole earth has been corrupted through the works that were taught by Azâzêl: to him ascribe all sin."<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles 1917] ''sacred-texts.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008.</ref></blockquote>
  
 
God gave Gabriel instructions concerning the Nephilim and the imprisonment of the fallen angels:  
 
God gave Gabriel instructions concerning the Nephilim and the imprisonment of the fallen angels:  
  
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:"And to Gabriel said the Lord: 'Proceed against the biters and the reprobates, and against the children of fornication: and destroy [the children of fornication and] the children of the Watchers from amongst men [and cause them to go forth]: send them one against the other that they may destroy each other in battle"
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:"And to Gabriel said the Lord: 'Proceed against the biters and the reprobates, and against the children of fornication: and destroy [the children of fornication and] the children of the Watchers from amongst men [and cause them to go forth]: send them one against the other that they may destroy each other in battle"<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles 1917] ''sacred-texts.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008.</ref>
  
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Some suggest that 'biters' should read '      s' but the name is so unusual that some believe that the implication that's made by the reading of 'biters' is more or less correct. The biters may also be the [[Anunnaki]].
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Some suggest that 'biters' may also be the [[Anunnaki]] (a group of Sumerian and Akkadian deities).
  
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The Lord commands Michael to bind the fallen angels.  
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Then the Lord commands Michael to bind the fallen angels.  
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:"And the Lord said unto Michael: 'Go, bind Semjâzâ and his associates who have united themselves with women so as to have defiled themselves with them in all their uncleanness. 12. And when their sons have slain one another, and they have seen the destruction of their beloved ones, bind them fast for seventy generations in the valleys of the earth, till the day of their judgement and of their consummation, till the judgement that is for ever and ever is consummated. 13. In those days they shall be led off to the abyss of fire: (and) to the torment and the prison in which they shall be confined for ever. And whosoever shall be condemned and destroyed will from thenceforth be bound together with them to the end of all generations."
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:"And the Lord said unto Michael: 'Go, bind Semjâzâ and his associates who have united themselves with women so as to have defiled themselves with them in all their uncleanness. 12. And when their sons have slain one another, and they have seen the destruction of their beloved ones, bind them fast for seventy generations in the valleys of the earth, till the day of their judgement and of their consummation, till the judgement that is for ever and ever is consummated. 13. In those days they shall be led off to the abyss of fire: (and) to the torment and the prison in which they shall be confined for ever. And whosoever shall be condemned and destroyed will from thenceforth be bound together with them to the end of all generations."<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles 1917] ''sacred-texts.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008.</ref>
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Thereafter the book describes the Demoralization of humankind: the Intercession of the Angels on behalf of Mankind. The Dooms pronounced by God on the Angels of the Messianic Kingdom. Dream-Vision of Enoch: his Intercession for [[Azazel]] and the fallen angels: and his Announcement of their first and final Doom. Enoch's Journeys through the Earth and Sheol. Names and Functions of the Seven Archangels. Preliminary and final Place of Punishment of the fallen Angels (stars). Sheol or the Underworld. This introduction to the Book of Enoch tells us that Enoch is "a just man, whose eyes were opened by God so that he saw vision of the Holy One in the heavens, which the sons of God showed to me, and from them I heard everything, and I knew what I saw, but [these things that I saw will] not [come to pass] for this generation, but for a generation that has yet to come."<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles 1917] ''sacred-texts.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008.</ref>
  
 
===Book of Parables===
 
===Book of Parables===
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Dated : presumed by many scholars to be written during [[1st century BCE]]
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This section of the book is presumed by many scholars to be written during first century B.C.E.
  
 
===The Book of the Heavenly Luminaries===
 
===The Book of the Heavenly Luminaries===
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Dated: presumed by some scholars to have been written in [[200 BCE]] to [[100 BCE]]
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This section of the book is presumed by some scholars to have been written in 200 B.C.E. to 100 B.C.E. The section uses the same calendar as that described in the ''[[Jubilees, Book of|Book of Jubilees]].''<ref> For a great in-detail description of the information of the Enoch calendar try going to: [http://www.johnpratt.com/items/docs/lds/meridian/2001/enoch_cal.html Enoch Calendar Testifies of Christ by John P. Pratt] Reprinted from ''Meridian Magazine'' (Sept. 11, 2001) ''johnpratt.com''. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
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</ref>
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This section uses the same calendar as that described in the ''[[Book of Jubilees]]'' and that was used by the Dead Sea sect. For a great in-detail description of the information of the Enoch calendar try going to: [http://www.johnpratt.com/items/docs/lds/meridian/2001/enoch_cal.html Enoch Calendar Testifies of Christ by John P. Pratt]
 
  
 
===The Dream Visions===
 
===The Dream Visions===
  
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Dated: presumed to by some scholars, but not all, to have been written in [[140 BC]] to [[37 BC]]
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This section of the book is presumed to by some scholars, but not all, to have been written in 140 B.C.E. to 37 B.C.E.
  
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This book mentions the last assault of [[Gentiles]] and the [[Messianic]] period; many western scholars propose it was likely written in the early [[Hasmonean]] period (140 BC to 37 BC), after the date the [[Book of Daniel]] was written.  
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It mentions the last assault of [[Gentiles]] and the [[Messianic]] period; many western scholars propose it was likely written in the early [[Hasmonean]] period (140 B.C.E. to 37 B.C.E.), after the date the [[Book of Daniel]] was written.  
  
 
There are a great many links between the first book and this one, including the outline of the story and the imprisonment of the leaders and destruction of the Nephilim. The dream includes sections relating to the book of Watchers:
 
There are a great many links between the first book and this one, including the outline of the story and the imprisonment of the leaders and destruction of the Nephilim. The dream includes sections relating to the book of Watchers:
Line 186: Line 115:
 
"''And those seventy shepherds were judged and found guilty, and they were cast into that fiery abyss. And I saw at that time how a like abyss was opened in the midst of the earth, full of fire, and they brought those blinded sheep.''" - The fall of the evil ones
 
"''And those seventy shepherds were judged and found guilty, and they were cast into that fiery abyss. And I saw at that time how a like abyss was opened in the midst of the earth, full of fire, and they brought those blinded sheep.''" - The fall of the evil ones
  
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"And all the oxen feared them and were affrighted at them, and began to bite with their teeth and to devour, and to gore with their horns. And they began, moreover, to devour those oxen; and behold all the children of the earth began to tremble and quake before them and to flee from them." - The creation of the Nephilim et al.
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Chapters 86:4, 87:3, 88:2, and 89:6 all describe the types of Nephilim that are created during the times outlined in The Book of Watchers, though this does not mean that the authors of both books are the same. Similar references exist in {{bibleverse||Jubilees|7:21-22|NRSV}}.
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86:4, 87:3, 88:2, and 89:6 all describe the types of Nephilim that are created during the times described in The Book of Watchers, though this doesn't mean that the authors of both books are the same. Similar references exist in {{bibleverse||Jubilees|7:21-22|NRSV}}.
 
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The book describes their release from the Ark along with three bulls white, red and black which are Shem, Japheth, and Ham in 90:9. It also covers the death of Noah described as the white bull and the creation of many nations:
 
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"And they began to bring forth beasts of the field and birds, so that there arose different genera: lions, tigers, wolves, dogs, hyenas, wild boars, foxes, squirrels, swine, falcons, vultures, kites, eagles, and ravens" 90:10
 
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It then describes the story of Moses and Aaron (90:13-15) including the miracle of the river splitting in two for them to pass, and the creation of the stone commandments. Eventually arriving at a "pleasant and glorious land" (90:40) where attacked by dogs (Philistines), foxes (Ammonites, Moabites) and wild boars (Esau).
 
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"And that sheep whose eyes were opened saw that ram, which was amongst the sheep, till it †forsook its glory† and began to butt those sheep, and trampled upon them, and behaved itself unseemly. 45. And the Lord of the sheep sent the lamb to another lamb and raised it to being a ram and leader of the sheep instead of that ram which had †forsaken its glory†." - David replacing Saul as leader of Israel
 
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The creation of [[Solomon's temple]] it also describes the house which may be the [[tabernacle]] "And that house became great and broad, and it was built for those sheep: (and) a tower lofty and great was built on the house for the Lord of the sheep, and that house was low, but the tower was elevated and lofty, and the Lord of the sheep stood on that tower and they offered a full table before Him". This interpretation is accepted by Dillmann p 262, Vernes p 89, and Schodde p. 107. It also describes the escape of [[Elijah]] the prophet, In 1 Kings 17:2-24 he is fed by 'ravens' so if Kings uses a similar analogy he may have been fed by the Seleucids.
 
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"saw the Lord of the sheep how He wrought much slaughter amongst them in their herds until those sheep invited that slaughter and betrayed His place."
 
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This describes the various tribes of Israel 'inviting' in other nations 'betraying his place' i.e. the land promised to their ancestors by God.
 
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This part of the book can be taken to be the kingdom splitting into the northern and southern tribes. That is Israel and Judah eventually leading to Israel falling to the Assyrians in [[721 B.C.E.]] and Judah falling to the Babylonians a little over a century later [[587 B.C.E.]].
 
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"And He gave them over into the hands of the lions and tigers, and wolves and hyenas, and into the hand of the foxes, and to all the wild beasts, and those wild beasts began to tear in pieces those sheep." - God abandons Israel for they have abandoned him.
 
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There is also mention in fifty nine of seventy shepherds with their own seasons; there seems to be some debate on the meaning of this section some suggesting that it's a reference to the 70 appointed times in 25:11, 9:2, 1:12 KJV. Another interpretation is the seventy weeks in {{bibleverse||Daniel|9:24|NIV}}. However the general interpretation is that these are simply Angels. This section of the book and later near the end describes the appointment by God of the 70 angels to protect the Israelites from enduring too much harm from the 'beasts and birds'. The later section (110:14) describes how the 70 angels are judged for causing more harm to Israel than he desired finding them guilty and are "cast into an abyss, full of fire and flaming, and full of pillars of fire."
 
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"And the lions and tigers eat and devoured the greater part of those sheep, and the wild boars eat along with them; and they burnt that tower and demolished that house." The sacking of Solomon's temple and the tabernacle in Jerusalem by the Babylonians as they take Judah in [[587 B.C.E.]]/[[586 B.C.E.]] exiling the remaining Jews.
 
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"And forthwith I saw how the shepherds pastured for twelve hours, and behold three of those sheep turned back and came and entered and began to build up all that had fallen down of that house;"
 
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"Cyrus allowed [[Sheshbazzar]], a prince from the tribe of Judah, to bring the Jews from Babylon back to Jerusalem. Jews were allowed to return with the Temple vessels that the Babylonians had taken. Construction of the [[Second Temple]] began." - [[History of ancient Israel and Judah]] the temple is finished being built in [[515 B.C.E.]].
 
  
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The first part of this next section of the book seem to clearly describe the Maccabean revolt of [[167 B.C.E.]] against the [[Seleucids]].
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The book describes their release from the Ark along with three bulls white, red and black which are Shem, Japheth, and Ham (90:9). It also covers the death of Noah described as the white bull and the creation of many nations. The book is very metaphorical an uses symbolic langauge to convey its message.
  
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The following two quotes have been altered from their original form to make the meanings of the animal names clear.
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It chronicales the story of Moses and Aaron (90:13-15), the creation of the stone commandments, the creation of [[Temple of Jerusalem|Solomon's temple]], and the escape of [[Elijah]] the prophet. This section of the book and later near the end describes the appointment by God of the 70 angels to protect the Israelites from enduring too much harm from the 'beasts and birds'. The later section (110:14) describes how the 70 angels are judged for causing more harm to Israel than he desired finding them guilty and are "cast into an abyss, full of fire and flaming, and full of pillars of fire."<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm tr. by R.H. Charles 1917] ''sacred-texts.com''.</ref>
  
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"And I saw in the vision how the [Seleucids] flew upon those [faithful] and took one of those lambs, and dashed the sheep in pieces and devoured them. And I saw till horns grew upon those lambs, and the [Seleucids] cast down their horns; and I saw till there sprouted a great horn of one of those [faithful], and their eyes were opened. And it looked at them and their eyes opened, and it cried to the sheep, and the rams saw it and all ran to it. And notwithstanding all this those [Macedonians] and vultures and [Seleucids] and [Ptolemies] still kept tearing the sheep and swooping down upon them and devouring them: still the sheep remained silent, but the rams lamented and cried out. And those [Seleucids] fought and battled with it and sought to lay low its horn, but they had no power over it." 109:8-12
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The last chapters of this section are notly debated. Some think that this section refers to Maccabeus, while others think it simply refers to infamous battle of [[Armageddon]], where all of the nations of the world march against Israel. This interpretation is supported by the War Scroll, which describes what this epic battle may be like, according to the group(s) that existed at [[Qumran]].
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"All the [Macedonians] and vultures and [Seleucids] and [Ptolemies] were gathered together, and there came with them all the sheep of the field, yea, they all came together, and helped each other to break that horn of the ram." 110:16
 
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According to this theory, the first sentence is most likely the death of High Priest Onias III who is murdered which is described in {{bibleverse|1|Maccabees|3:33-35|NRSV}} (Dies aprox [[171 B.C.E.]]). The 'great horn' clearly isn't [[Mattathias]] the initiator of the rebellion as he dies a natural death as described in {{bibleverse|1|Maccabees|2:49|NRSV}}. It's also not Alexander the Great as the great horn is described as a warrior who has fought the Macedonians, Seleucids and Ptolemies. [[Judas Maccabeus]] ([[167 B.C.E.]]-[[160 B.C.E.]]) has fought all three of these, with a large number of winning battles against the Seleucids over a large period of time "''they had no power over it''". He is also described as "''one great horn among six others on the head of a lamb''" possibly pertaining to his five brothers and Mattathias. If you take this in context of the history from Maccabeus time Dillman Chrest Aethiop says verse 13 can find its explanation in:
 
−
* 1 Maccabees iii 7; vi. 52; v.
 
−
* 2 Maccabees vi. 8 sqq., 13, 14
 
−
* 1 Maccabees vii 41, 42
 
−
* 2 Maccabees x v, 8 sqq.
 
−
 
 
−
The evidence does seem to suggest that this is in fact the life and times of Judas Maccabeus.  He is eventually killed by the Seleucids at the Battle of Elasa where he faced "twenty thousand foot soldiers and two thousand cavalry".
 
−
 
 
−
At one time it was believed this passage possibly belonged to [[John Hyrcanus]]; the only reason for this was the time between Alexander the Great and John Maccabeus was too short. However it has been asserted that evidence shows this section does indeed discuss Maccabeus.
 
−
 
 
−
It then describes "And I saw till a great sword was given to the sheep, and the sheep proceeded against all the beasts of the field to slay them, and all the beasts and the birds of the heaven fled before their face." This might be simply the "power of God", God was with them to avenge the death. It may also be perhaps [[Jonathan Maccabaeus|Jonathan Apphus]] taking over command of the rebels to battle on after Judas death.
 
−
 
 
−
Other possible appearances are John Hyrcanus ([[Hyrcanus I]]) (Hasmonean dynasty) "And all that had been destroyed and dispersed, and all the beasts of the field, and all the birds of the heaven, assembled in that house, and the Lord of the sheep rejoiced with great joy because they were all good and had returned to His house." Possibly describing John's reign a time of great peace and prosperity. Certain scholars also claim [[Alexander Jannaeus]] of Judaea is alluded to in this book. The end of the book describes the new Jerusalem, culminating in the birth of a [[Messiah]]:
 
−
 
 
−
"And I saw that a white bull was born, with large horns and all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air feared him and made petition to him all the time. 38. And I saw till all their generations were transformed, and they all became white bulls; and the first among them became a lamb, and that lamb became a great animal and had great black horns on its head; and the Lord of the sheep rejoiced over it and over all the oxen."
 
−
 
 
−
Still another interpretation, which has just as much as credibility, is that the last chapters of this section simply refer to infamous battle of [[Armageddon]], where all of the nations of the world march against Israel; this interpretation is supported by the War Scroll, which describes what this epic battle may be like, according to the group(s) that existed at [[Qumram]].
 
  
 
===The Epistle of Enoch===
 
===The Epistle of Enoch===
−
Dated: some scholars propose a date somewhere between the [[1st century BC]] to [[170 B.C.E.]]
+
This section of the book is presumed by some scholars to date somewhere between the 1st century B.C.E. to 170 B.C.E.<ref>Some suppose that Chapter 105 may be a [[Christian]] addition and 108 many believe to be a later addition.</ref> It contains a text called the "Apocalypse of Weeks" which some scholars believe to have been written at about 167 B.C.E. A better title could be "the Instruction of Enoch" considering that these chapters are not written in the form of a letter, which can be found at 93:1-10 and 91:11-17.
  
−
XCII, XCI.1-10, 18-19. Enoch's Book of Admonition for his Children.
+
==Existing Manuscripts==
−
* XCI.1-10, 18-19. Enoch's Admonition to his Children.
+
===Ethiopic===
−
* XCIII, XCI.12-17. The Apocalypse of Weeks.
+
The most extensive witnesses to the Book of Enoch exist in the Ge'ez dialect of the Ethiopic language.<ref>See Richard H. Charles’ critical edition of 1906.</ref>
−
* XCI.12-17. The Last Three Weeks.
 
−
* XCIV.1-5. Admonitions to the Righteous.
 
−
* XCIV.6-11. Woes for the Sinners.
 
−
* XCV. Enoch's Grief: fresh Woes against the Sinners.
 
−
* XCVI. Grounds of Hopefulness for the Righteous: Woes for the Wicked.
 
−
* XCVII. The Evils in Store for Sinners and the Possessors of Unrighteous Wealth.
 
−
* XCVIII. Self-indulgence of Sinners: Sin originated by Man: all Sin recorded in Heaven: Woes for the Sinners.  
 
−
* XCIX. Woes pronounced on the Godless, the Lawbreakers: evil Plight of Sinners in The Last Days: further Woes.
 
−
* C. The Sinners destroy each other: Judgement of the Fallen Angels: the Safety of the Righteous: further Woes for the Sinners.
 
−
* CI. Exhortation to the fear of God: all Nature fears Him but not the Sinners.
 
−
* CII. Terrors of the Day of Judgement: the adverse Fortunes of the Righteous on the Earth.
 
−
* CIII. Different Destinies of the Righteous and the Sinners: fresh Objections of the Sinners.
 
−
* CIV. Assurances given to the Righteous: Admonitions to Sinners and the Falsifiers of the Words of Uprightness.
 
−
* CV. God and the Messiah to dwell with Man.  
 
−
* [Fragment of the Book of Noah]
 
  
−
This section contains a text called the "[[Apocalypse of Weeks]]" which some scholars believe to have been written at about [[167 B.C.E.]]. A better title could be "the Instruction of Enoch" considering that these chapters aren't written in the form of a letter, which can be found at 93:1-10 and 91:11-17.  
+
===Aramaic===
 +
Eleven [[Aramaic]]-language fragments of the Book of Enoch were found in cave 4 of [[Qumran]] in 1948.[http://ocp.acadiau.ca/1Enoch.html], and are in the care of the Israel Antiquities Authority. They were translated and discussed by Józef Milik and Matthew Black in ''The Books of Enoch'' (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1976). Another translation has been released by Vermes and Garcia-Martinez (Vermes 513-515; Garcia- Martinez 246-259).  
  
−
No parts of chapters 37-71 were found in Qumran where many of the oldest copies of the Books of Enoch where located. This once lead many experts (Lucke (1832), Hofman (1852), Wiesse (1856), Phillippe (1868) and J.T. Milik (1950)) to believe that those chapters where written in the [[2nd century AD|2 century 'AD']] by a Jewish Christian to enhance Christian beliefs with Enoch's authoritative name. However [[James H. Charlesworth]] in his book "The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha and the New Testament" says:
+
Also at Qumran (cave 1) have been discovered 3 tiny fragments in [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] (8,4-9,4; 106).
  
−
"It became obvious that Milik had not proved his position, as Fitzmyer pointed out as soon as The Book of Enoch had been published. Repeatedly the specialists on I Enoch have come out in favor of the Jewish nature and its first century AD origin, and probable pre-70 date. The list of specialists on I Enoch arguing for this position has become overwhelmingly impressive: Isaac, Nickelsburg, Stone, Knibb, Anderson, Black, VanderKam, Greenfield and Sutter. The consensus communis is unparalleled in almost any other area of research; no specialists now argues that I Enoch 37-71 is a Christian and postdates the first century." Page 89.
+
===Greek===
 +
The eighth century work ''Chronographia Universalis'' by the Byzantine historian Giorgio Sincello preserved some passages of the ''Book of Enoch'' in Greek (6,1-9,4; 15,8-16,1).  
 +
* ''Cairo Papyrus 10759'' consists of fragments of [[papyrus|papyri]] containing portions of chapters 1-32, recovered by a [[France|French]] archeological team at [[Akhmim]] in Egypt, and published five years later in 1892.
  
−
Chapter 105 some suppose that it may be a [[Christian]] addition and 108 many believe to be a later addition.  
+
In addition, several small fragments in Greek have been found at [[Qumran]] (7QEnoch), dating from the first century B.C.E. or C.E.  
  
−
Suffice it to say, many more texts are needed before we can adequately date ''any'' sections of the book.
+
===Other translations===
−
 
+
Since the eighteenth century an Old Church Slavonic translation has been identified, as well as two separate fragments of a [[Latin]] translation.  
−
==Miscellaneous==
 
−
===Names of the Fallen angels===
 
−
 
 
−
Some of the fallen angels that are given in 1 Enoch have other names such as Rameel ('morning of God'), who becomes Azazel and is also called Gadriel ('wall of God') in Chapter 69. Another example is that Araqiel ('Earth of God') becomes Aretstikapha ('world of distortion') in Chapter 69.
 
−
 
 
−
"''Azaz''" as in ''Azazel'' means strength, so the name Azazel can refer to ''strength of God''. But the sense in which it is used most-probably means ''impudent'' (showing strength towards) which comes out as ''arrogant to God''. This is also a key point to his being ''Satan'' in modern thought.
 
−
 
 
−
The suffix of the names 'el' means 'God' ([[List of names referring to El]]) which is used in the names of high ranking angels. The Archangels all include this such as Uriel (Flame of God) or Michael  "who is like God?".
 
−
 
 
−
===Ahiah===
 
−
 
 
−
''The Legends of the Jews'' by Rabbi [[Louis Ginzberg]] describes Ahiah as the son of the fallen angel Semjâzâ.
 
−
 
 
−
===Notes===
 
−
The quotes that are found on this article were taken from a revised form of Archbishop R.H. Charles' translation. This version includes the Ethiopic the Greek preserved In Syncellus which consists of two separate forms, and the Greek Version discovered at Akhmîm which is stored at Gizeh Museum, Cairo. The link is below in the External Links List.
 
−
 
 
−
If you include a quote from a later edition that you consider to be of better quality, such as Charlesworth, please list where it comes from here and if possible the source materials used.
 
  
 
==Notes==
 
==Notes==
Line 295: Line 148:
  
 
==References==
 
==References==
−
* ''The Book of Enoch'' compiled and edited by Ronald K. Brown ISBN 0-9675737-0-X
 
−
* ''1 Enoch: A New Translation'', translated by George W.E. Nichelsburg and James C. VanderKam. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004. ISBN 0-8006-3694-5
 
−
* ''The Books of Enoch: Aramaic Fragments of Qumran Cave 4'', Milik, Jozef. T.
 
−
* ''The Books of Enoch, Aramaic Fragments.'', Milik J. T., and Black Matthew. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1976.
 
−
* ''The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha and the New Testament'', James H. Charlesworth, Trinity Press International, ISBN 1-56338-257-1, Copyright 1998
 
−
* ''Qumran & Apocalyptic Studies on the Aramaic Texts from Qumran.'', Martinez, Garcia F., New York: E. J. Brill, 1992.
 
−
* ''The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English. Complete ed.'', Vermes, Geza, New York: Allen Lane/Penguin Press, 1997.
 
−
* ''Judaism Outside the Hebrew Canon'', ?, pp. 137-138
 
−
* ''The Ethiopic Book Of Enoch.'', Knibb,  Michael A., Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1978, repr. 1982.
 
−
* ''Histoire des Idees Messianiques'', Maurice Vernes, 1874
 
−
* ''De Apokalypse van Henoch en het Essenisme, Tijdschrift, Mei, 1875., Tideman
 
−
* ''Archiv II. 2, p. 163-246'', Gebhardt, Merx's (The 80 shepherds and their significance)
 
−
* ''The Book Of Enoch translated by R. H. Charles D.LITT., D.D. with an introduction by W. O. E. OESTERLEY, D.D.'', Charles. H. R, 1917
 
−
* ''The Book of Enoch translated from the Ethiopic with Introduction and notes by Rev George H Schodde Ph.D.'', Schodde. H. G., 1882, Andover Warren F Draper
 
−
* ''Henok: Beye`ametu yemmittatem ye'ItyoPPya T'inatinna mirrimir mets'het'' Vol. I, Wossene Yifru, Washington DC: 1990, Ethiopian Research Council
 
  
 +
*George W. E. Nickelsburg and J.C. Vanderkam ''1 Enoch: A New Translation; Based on the Hermeneia Commentary.'' Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress Press, 2004. ISBN 0800636945
 +
*Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, et al. (eds.). ''The Ante-Nicene Fathers.'' (10 Vols.) Hendrickson Publishers, 1994. ISBN 1565630823 
 +
* Brown, Ronald K. (trans.). ''The Book of Enoch.'' Guadalupe Baptist Theological Seminary Press, 2000. ISBN 096757370X
 +
* Charles, R.H. ''The Book of Enoch: Together with a Reprint of the Greek Fragments.'' reprint ed. Kessinger Publishing, LLC, 1995. ISBN 978-1564595232
 +
*Charlesworth, James H. ''The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha and the New Testament.'' Philadelphia; Trinity Press International, New Ed., 1998. ISBN 978-1563382574
 +
*''Henok: Beye`ametu yemmittatem ye'ItyoPPya T'inatinna mirrimir mets'het.'' Vol. I, Wossene Yifru, Washington DC: Ethiopian Research Council, 1990.
 +
* Knibb, Michael A. and Edward Ullendorff. ''The Ethiopic Book Of Enoch: A New Edition in the Light of the Aramaic Dead Sea Fragments (Vol. 1: Text and Apparatus & Vol. 2: Introduction, Translation and Commentary).'' Oxford University Press, 1979. ISBN 978-0198261636
 +
* Leonhard, Rost. ''Judaism Outside the Hebrew Canon.'' Abingdon Press, 1976. ISBN 978-0687206537
 +
* Martinez, Garcia, F. ''Qumran & Apocalyptic Studies on the Aramaic Texts from Qumran.'' New York: E. J. Brill Academic Publishers, 1992. ISBN 978-9004095861
 +
* Milik, J. T. ''The Books of Enoch: Aramaic Fragments of Qumran Cave 4.'' Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1976. ISBN 978-0198261612
 +
* Nickelsburg, George W. E. ''Hermeneia: 1 Enoch: A Commentary on the Book of 1 Enoch (Hermeneia: a Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible), Chapters 1-36, 81-108.'' Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004 (original 2001). ISBN 0800660749
 +
* Nichelsburg, George W.E. and James C. VanderKam (trans.). ''1 Enoch: A New Translation.'' Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004. ISBN 0800636945
 +
* Schodde, George Henry (trans.). ''The Book of Enoch translated from the Ethiopic with Introduction and notes.'' W.F. Draper, 1882. reprint ed. Kessinger Publishing, LLC, 2008. ISBN 1437105475
 +
* Vermes, Geza. ''The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English.'' New York: Penguin Press, 2004. ISBN 978-0140449525
  
 +
==External links==
 +
All links retrieved November 17, 2023.
  
−
==External links==
+
* [http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm "The Book of Enoch" translated by R H Charles, 1917 Online text] ''sacred-texts.com''.
−
* [http://geokerk.googlepages.com/enoch Ethiopic text Online : Book I The Book of Watchers]
+
* [http://heavennet.net/writings/the-book-of-enoch/ Online version of the Book of Enoch]
−
* [http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/index.htm "The Book of Enoch" translated by R H Charles, 1917 Online text]
+
* [http://www.reluctant-messenger.com/enoch.htm Online "Ethiopian Enoch" and "Secrets of Enoch"]  
−
* [http://www.heaven.net.nz/writings/thebookofenoch.htm Online version of the Book of Enoch]
+
* [http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/deadsea.scrolls.exhibit/Library/library.html The Qumran Library] ''ibiblio.org''.
−
* [http://www.hermetics.org/pdf/enoch.pdf Book of Enoch - Translated from the Ethiopic] 1882 edition by George H. Schodde ([[portable document format|PDF]] format).
+
* [http://www.johnpratt.com/items/docs/lds/meridian/2001/enoch_cal.html Enoch Calendar Testifies of Christ by John P. Pratt]  
−
* [http://www.reluctant-messenger.com/enoch.htm Online "Ethiopian Enoch" and "Secrets of Enoch"]
+
*[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=384&letter=E&search=Enoch Jewish Encyclopedia: ENOCH, BOOKS OF (Ethiopic and Slavonic)] ''Catholic Encyclopedia,'' 1907 ed.
−
* [http://www.heaven.net.nz/writings/enoch.htm Introduction to the Book of Enoch]
+
*[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01602a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: The Book of Henoch (Ethiopic)] ''newadvent.ort''.
−
* [http://www.mystae.com/restricted/streams/scripts/enoch.html A discussion of the Book of Enoch found in Cave IV at Qumran and its relationship to ancient literature]
 
−
* [http://www.marquette.edu/maqom/ Jewish Roots of Eastern Christian Mysticism: An interdisciplinary seminar at Marquette University]
 
−
* [http://pweb.netcom.com/~Emuro/7qenoch/article1.html The Greek Fragments of Enoch From Qumran Cave 7.], Muro, Ernest A. Jr., February 9, 1999.
 
−
* [http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/deadsea.scrolls.exhibit/Library/library.html The Qumran Library]
 
−
* [http://www.johnpratt.com/items/docs/lds/meridian/2001/enoch_cal.html Enoch Calendar Testifies of Christ by John P. Pratt]
 
−
* [http://www.timelessmyths.com/mirrors/index.php Dark Mirrors of Heaven] A look at the Biblical creation story from non-canonical literature.
 
−
*[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=384&letter=E&search=Enoch Jewish Encyclopedia: ENOCH, BOOKS OF (Ethiopic and Slavonic)]
 
−
*[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01602a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: The Book of Henoch (Ethiopic)]
 
−
*[http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Book_of_Enoch Encyclopedia Britannica: Book of Enoch]
 
−
*[http://rosetta.reltech.org/cgi-bin/Ebind2html/TC/SweteIntro?seq=297 ''An Introduction to the Old Testament in Greek''], [[Henry Barclay Swete]], Cambridge University Press, 1914, page 283
 
  
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{{Books of the Bible}}
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[[Category:Bible]]
 
[[Category: Philosophy and religion]]
 
[[Category: Philosophy and religion]]
 
[[Category: Religion]]
 
[[Category: Religion]]
  
 
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Latest revision as of 07:27, 17 November 2023

Books of the

Hebrew Bible

The Book of Enoch is an apocraphal and pseudopigraphal collection of second century Jewish texts attributed to Enoch, the great-grandfather of Noah (Genesis 5:18), which describes a group of fallen angels (called "the Grigori" -"Watchers") mating with humans to produce a race of giants (called "the Nephilim") (cf. Genesis 6:1-2). While the Book of Enoch does not form part of the Canon of Scripture for the larger Christian Churches, various groups, including the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, regard parts or all of 1 Enoch to be inspired scripture. The currently known texts of this work are usually dated to Maccabean times (ca. 160s B.C.E.). Most commonly, the phrase "Book of Enoch" refers to 1 Enoch, which is wholly extant only in the Ethiopic language. There are two other books named "Enoch": 2 Enoch (surviving only in Old Slavonic, c. first century; Eng. trans. by Richard H. Charles (1896)[1]; and 3 Enoch (surviving in Hebrew, c. fifth-sixth century[2]. The numbering of these texts has been applied by scholars to distinguish the texts from one another.

These texts describe the fall of the Watchers (angels) who fathered the Nephilim (cf. Genesis 6:1-2). These angels went to Enoch to intercede on their behalf with God after he declared to them their doom. The remainder of the book describes Enoch's visit to Heaven in the form of a vision, and his revelations. It also contains descriptions of the movement of heavenly bodies, and some parts of the book have been speculated about as containing instructions for the construction of a solar declinometer.

History, Origins, and Dating

Traditionally, the Book of Enoch was dated to the second century B.C.E. during the Maccabees times. According to some scholars,[3][4] however, the five distinct sections of the Book of Enoch were originally independent works, themselves a product of much editorial arrangement, and were only later redacted into what we now call 1 Enoch. 1 Enoch 6–11, part of the Book of Watchers, is thought to have been the original core of that Book, around which the remainder was later added, albeit this view is opposed by those scholars who maintain the literary integrity of the Book of Enoch.[5]

According to internal textual analysis, the Book of Parables appears to be based on the Book of Watchers, and presents a later development of the idea of final judgement[6] Since the Book of Parables contains several references to a Son of Man, as well as messianic themes, several scholars have taken the view that this section dates from Christian times. However, since the term "Son of Man" was also just a Jewish way of saying human, and since the Book of Daniel also refers to a Son of Man, the work may be earlier, and a number of academics have proposed that the Book of Parables may be as early as the late 1st century B.C.E.

The Book of Dreams contains a vision of a history of Israel all the way down to what the majority have interpreted as the revolt of the Maccabees, leading scholars to date it to Maccabean times.

Before the discovery at Qumran of fragments from 1 Enoch among the Dead Sea scrolls, there was some dispute about whether the Greek text was an original Christian production, or whether it was a translation from an Aramaic text redacted in Jewish circles. The chief argument for a Christian author was the occurrence of references to the Messiah as the Son of Man, however such references also appeared in Jewish texts around the turn of the era.

The Ethiopian Church considers its Ethiopic version to be the original, since it is the only complete version, while the other languages merely have different fragments of the work. Despite this, the majority of western scholars now claim a third century B.C.E. Jewish authorship for its earliest parts.

Bible scholars such as Lucke (1832), Hofman (1852), Wiesse (1856), Phillippe (1868) and J.T. Milik (1950) once believed that the Book of Enoch was written in the second century C.E. by a Jewish Christian to enhance Christian beliefs with Enoch's authoritative name. However, James H. Charlesworth argued that in recent years:

"Repeatedly the specialists on I Enoch have come out in favor of the Jewish nature and its first century CE origin, and probable pre-70 date. The list of specialists on I Enoch arguing for this position has become overwhelmingly impressive: Isaac, Nickelsburg, Stone, Knibb, Anderson, Black, VanderKam, Greenfield and Sutter. The consensus communis is unparalleled in almost any other area of research; no specialists now argue that I Enoch 37-71 … postdates the first century."[7]

Canonicity

From the time of the Council of Jamnia (c. 90 C.E.), the book has not been part of the Jewish Scriptures.

The early Christian father Tertullian wrote c. 200 that the Book of Enoch had been rejected by the Jews because it contained prophecies pertaining to Christ.[8] The book is referred to, and quoted, in Jude 1:14-15:

"And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these [men], saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince 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 Ethiopian:

"And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones To execute judgement 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."[9]

The Greek language text was known to, and quoted by nearly all, Church Fathers. A number of the Church Fathers thought it to be an inspired work, particularly Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Origen, Clement of Alexandria and Tertullian, based on its quotation in Jude.

However, some later Fathers denied the canonicity of the book and some even considered the letter of Jude uncanonical because it refers to an "apocryphal" work. By the fourth century it was mostly excluded from Christian lists of the Biblical canon, and it was eventually entirely omitted from the canon by most of the Christian church (except the Ethiopian Orthodox Church).

Rediscovery

Outside of Ethiopia, the text of the Book of Enoch was considered lost until the beginning of the seventeenth century, when the learned Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc bought a book that was claimed to be identical to the one quoted by the Epistle of Jude (and the Epistle of Barnabas - Epistle xvi. 5) and by the Church Fathers Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Origen and Clement of Alexandria. Although these quotes come exclusively from the first five chapters of 1 Enoch, many suggest that only these five were written by Enoch and the rest were written during the time of the Maccabees. Hiob Ludolf, the great Ethiopic scholar of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, soon claimed it to be a forgery produced by Abba Bahaila Michael.[10]

Later, the famous Scottish traveller James Bruce returned to Europe in 1773 from six years in Abyssinia with three copies of a Ge'ez version.[11] One is preserved in the Bodleian Library, another was presented to the Royal Library of France (the nucleus of the Bibliothèque Nationale), whilst the third was kept by Bruce. The copies remained unused until the 1800s, Silvestre de Sacy, in "Notices sur le livre d'Enoch" in the Magazine Encyclopédique, an vi. tome I, p. 382 included extracts of the books with Latin translations (Enoch chap 1, 2, 5-16, 22, 32). From this point, a German translation was made by Rink in 1801.

European scholars and academics consider the Ethiopic version to be translated from Greek, which was in turn translated from the Aramaic (possibly Hebrew for chapters 37-71).[12] However, this hypothesis is vehemently disputed by Ethiopian scholars and clergy, who insist that, since the only complete text of Enoch to surface so far is in Ethiopic, whereas the Aramaic and Greek copies exist only in separate and incomplete fragments, in their view proving their claim that this was the original language written by Enoch himself. In the Ethiopian Orthodox view, the following opening sentence of Enoch is the first and oldest sentence written in any human language, since Enoch was the first to write letters:

"Word of blessing of Henok, wherewith he blessed the chosen and righteous who would be alive in the day of tribulation for the removal of all wrongdoers and backsliders."[13]

In the early period of Ethiopian literature, there was considerable translation activity of much Greek literature into Ge'ez by Ethiopian theologians. Because of this, there are many texts for which both the Ge'ez translation and the Greek original are known; however, in this case, the language and thought of Ge'ez Enoch are thoroughly Semitic, and show no indication of having been transmitted through Greek.

The first translation of the Bodleian/Ethiopic MS was published in 1821 by Professor Richard Laurence, afterwards archbishop of Cashel. Titled The Book of Enoch, the prophet: an apocryphal production, supposed to have been lost for ages; but discovered at the close of the last century in Abyssinia; now first translated from an Ethiopic MS in the Bodleian Library. Oxford, 1821. A second edition was released in 1833 and a third edition in 1838.

Professor A. G. Hoffmann released a translation in 1833 but due to the use at least in part of Laurence's later work, there were a number of mistakes that were prevalent. Two other translations came out around the same time: one in 1836 called Enoch Retitutus, or an Attempt (Rev. Edward Murray) and in 1840 Prophetae veteres Pseudepigraphi, partim ex Abyssinico vel Hebraico sermonibus Latine bersi (Gfrörer). However both were considered to be poor.[14]

The first reliable edition appeared in 1851 as Liber Henoch, Aethiopice, ad quinque codicum fidem editus, cum variis lectionibus, which is based on the Ethiopic text edited by A. Dillmann, with an accurate translation of the book with reliable notes released in 1853 titled Das Buch Henoch, übersetzt und erklärt, which was considered an impeccable edition until the 1900s. Another famous edition was published in 1912 by R.H. Charles.

Contents

The Book of Enoch consists of five quite distinct major sections:

  • The Book of Watchers (1 Enoch 1 – 36)
  • The Book of Parables (1 Enoch 37 – 71) (Also called the Similitudes of Enoch)
  • The Book of the Heavenly Luminaries (1 Enoch 72 – 82) (Usually abbreviated to The Book of Luminaries. Also called the Astronomical Book)
  • The Dream Visions (1 Enoch 83 – 90) (Also called the Book of Dreams)
  • The Epistle of Enoch (1 Enoch 91 – 108)

The contents of each major section are briefly described below:

The Book of the Watchers

The Book of Watchers describes the fall of the angels who fathered the Nephilim (cf. Genesis 6:1-2). These angels went to Enoch to intercede on their behalf with God after he declared to them their doom. The remainder of the book describes Enoch's visit to Heaven in the form of a vision, and his revelations.

Dated: Parts of the work were composed no later than the third century B.C.E., but the work must have reached its present form by the middle of the second century B.C.E.

The first section of the book depicts the interaction of the fallen angels with mankind; Samyaza compels the other 199 fallen angels to take human wives to "beget us children."

"And Semjâzâ, who was their leader, said unto them: 'I fear ye will not indeed agree to do this deed, and I alone shall have to pay the penalty of a great sin.' And they all answered him and said: 'Let us all swear an oath, and all bind ourselves by mutual imprecations not to abandon this plan but to do this thing.'. Then sware they all together and bound themselves by mutual imprecations upon it. And they were in all two hundred; who descended in the days of Jared on the summit of Mount Hermon, and they called it Mount Hermon, because they had sworn and bound themselves by mutual imprecations upon it."[15]

This results in the creation of the Nephilim (Genesis) or Anakim/Anak (Giants) as they are described in the book:

"And they became pregnant, and they bare great giants, whose height was three thousand ells [the Ethiopian text gives 300 cubits (135 meters), which is probably a corruption of 30 cubits (13.5 meters)]: Who consumed all the acquisitions of men. And when men could no longer sustain them, the giants turned against them and devoured mankind. And they began to sin against birds, and beasts, and reptiles, and fish, and to devour one another's flesh, and drink the blood."[16]

It also discusses the teaching of humans by the fallen angels chiefly Azazel:

"And Azâzêl taught men to make swords, and knives, and shields, and breastplates, and made known to them the metals of the earth and the art of working them, and bracelets, and ornaments, and the use of antimony, and the beautifying of the eyelids, and all kinds of costly stones, and all colouring tinctures. And there arose much godlessness, and they committed fornication, and they were led astray, and became corrupt in all their ways. Semjâzâ taught enchantments, and root-cuttings, Armârôs the resolving of enchantments, Barâqîjâl, taught astrology, Kôkabêl the constellations, Ezêqêêl the knowledge of the clouds, Araqiêl the signs of the earth, Shamsiêl the signs of the sun, and Sariêl the course of the moon."[17]

Michael, Uriel, Raphael, and Gabriel appeal to God to judge the inhabitants of the world and the fallen angels. Uriel is then sent by God to tell Noah of the coming apocalypse and what he needs to do:

"Then said the Most High, the Holy and Great One spoke, and sent Uriel to the son of Lamech, and said to him: Go to Noah and tell him in my name "Hide thyself!" and reveal to him the end that is approaching: that the whole earth will be destroyed, and a deluge is about to come upon the whole earth, and will destroy all that is on it. And now instruct him that he may escape and his seed may be preserved for all the generations of the world."[18]

God commands Raphael to imprison Azâzêl:

"The Lord said to Raphael: 'Bind Azâzêl hand and foot, and cast him into the darkness: and make an opening in the desert, which is in Dûdâêl (Gods Kettle/Crucible/Cauldron), and cast him therein. And place upon him rough and jagged rocks, and cover him with darkness, and let him abide there for ever, and cover his face that he may not see light. And on the day of the great judgement he shall be cast into the fire. And heal the earth which the angels have corrupted, and proclaim the healing of the earth, that they may heal the plague, and that all the children of men may not perish through all the secret things that the Watchers have disclosed and have taught their sons. And the whole earth has been corrupted through the works that were taught by Azâzêl: to him ascribe all sin."[19]

God gave Gabriel instructions concerning the Nephilim and the imprisonment of the fallen angels:

"And to Gabriel said the Lord: 'Proceed against the biters and the reprobates, and against the children of fornication: and destroy [the children of fornication and] the children of the Watchers from amongst men [and cause them to go forth]: send them one against the other that they may destroy each other in battle"[20]

Some suggest that 'biters' may also be the Anunnaki (a group of Sumerian and Akkadian deities).

Then the Lord commands Michael to bind the fallen angels.

"And the Lord said unto Michael: 'Go, bind Semjâzâ and his associates who have united themselves with women so as to have defiled themselves with them in all their uncleanness. 12. And when their sons have slain one another, and they have seen the destruction of their beloved ones, bind them fast for seventy generations in the valleys of the earth, till the day of their judgement and of their consummation, till the judgement that is for ever and ever is consummated. 13. In those days they shall be led off to the abyss of fire: (and) to the torment and the prison in which they shall be confined for ever. And whosoever shall be condemned and destroyed will from thenceforth be bound together with them to the end of all generations."[21]

Thereafter the book describes the Demoralization of humankind: the Intercession of the Angels on behalf of Mankind. The Dooms pronounced by God on the Angels of the Messianic Kingdom. Dream-Vision of Enoch: his Intercession for Azazel and the fallen angels: and his Announcement of their first and final Doom. Enoch's Journeys through the Earth and Sheol. Names and Functions of the Seven Archangels. Preliminary and final Place of Punishment of the fallen Angels (stars). Sheol or the Underworld. This introduction to the Book of Enoch tells us that Enoch is "a just man, whose eyes were opened by God so that he saw vision of the Holy One in the heavens, which the sons of God showed to me, and from them I heard everything, and I knew what I saw, but [these things that I saw will] not [come to pass] for this generation, but for a generation that has yet to come."[22]

Book of Parables

This section of the book is presumed by many scholars to be written during first century B.C.E.

The Book of the Heavenly Luminaries

This section of the book is presumed by some scholars to have been written in 200 B.C.E. to 100 B.C.E. The section uses the same calendar as that described in the Book of Jubilees.[23]

The Dream Visions

This section of the book is presumed to by some scholars, but not all, to have been written in 140 B.C.E. to 37 B.C.E.

It mentions the last assault of Gentiles and the Messianic period; many western scholars propose it was likely written in the early Hasmonean period (140 B.C.E. to 37 B.C.E.), after the date the Book of Daniel was written.

There are a great many links between the first book and this one, including the outline of the story and the imprisonment of the leaders and destruction of the Nephilim. The dream includes sections relating to the book of Watchers:

"And those seventy shepherds were judged and found guilty, and they were cast into that fiery abyss. And I saw at that time how a like abyss was opened in the midst of the earth, full of fire, and they brought those blinded sheep." - The fall of the evil ones

Chapters 86:4, 87:3, 88:2, and 89:6 all describe the types of Nephilim that are created during the times outlined in The Book of Watchers, though this does not mean that the authors of both books are the same. Similar references exist in Jubilees 7:21-22.

The book describes their release from the Ark along with three bulls white, red and black which are Shem, Japheth, and Ham (90:9). It also covers the death of Noah described as the white bull and the creation of many nations. The book is very metaphorical an uses symbolic langauge to convey its message.

It chronicales the story of Moses and Aaron (90:13-15), the creation of the stone commandments, the creation of Solomon's temple, and the escape of Elijah the prophet. This section of the book and later near the end describes the appointment by God of the 70 angels to protect the Israelites from enduring too much harm from the 'beasts and birds'. The later section (110:14) describes how the 70 angels are judged for causing more harm to Israel than he desired finding them guilty and are "cast into an abyss, full of fire and flaming, and full of pillars of fire."[24]

The last chapters of this section are notly debated. Some think that this section refers to Maccabeus, while others think it simply refers to infamous battle of Armageddon, where all of the nations of the world march against Israel. This interpretation is supported by the War Scroll, which describes what this epic battle may be like, according to the group(s) that existed at Qumran.

The Epistle of Enoch

This section of the book is presumed by some scholars to date somewhere between the 1st century B.C.E. to 170 B.C.E.[25] It contains a text called the "Apocalypse of Weeks" which some scholars believe to have been written at about 167 B.C.E. A better title could be "the Instruction of Enoch" considering that these chapters are not written in the form of a letter, which can be found at 93:1-10 and 91:11-17.

Existing Manuscripts

Ethiopic

The most extensive witnesses to the Book of Enoch exist in the Ge'ez dialect of the Ethiopic language.[26]

Aramaic

Eleven Aramaic-language fragments of the Book of Enoch were found in cave 4 of Qumran in 1948.[4], and are in the care of the Israel Antiquities Authority. They were translated and discussed by Józef Milik and Matthew Black in The Books of Enoch (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1976). Another translation has been released by Vermes and Garcia-Martinez (Vermes 513-515; Garcia- Martinez 246-259).

Also at Qumran (cave 1) have been discovered 3 tiny fragments in Hebrew (8,4-9,4; 106).

Greek

The eighth century work Chronographia Universalis by the Byzantine historian Giorgio Sincello preserved some passages of the Book of Enoch in Greek (6,1-9,4; 15,8-16,1).

  • Cairo Papyrus 10759 consists of fragments of papyri containing portions of chapters 1-32, recovered by a French archeological team at Akhmim in Egypt, and published five years later in 1892.

In addition, several small fragments in Greek have been found at Qumran (7QEnoch), dating from the first century B.C.E. or C.E.

Other translations

Since the eighteenth century an Old Church Slavonic translation has been identified, as well as two separate fragments of a Latin translation.

Notes

  1. ↑ [1]earlyjewishwritings.com. [2] St Andrews Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  2. ↑ [3]) earlyjewishwritings.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  3. ↑ 1 Enoch: A New Translation. by George W. E. Nickelsburg and J.C. Vanderkam. (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress Press, 2004), p1ff (ie. preface summary)
  4. ↑ G.W. Nickelsburg. Hermeneia: 1 Enoch 1. (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004), 7-8
  5. ↑ For example, see Wossenie Yifru (1990) (in Ethiopian).
  6. ↑ Rather than being a final judgement of the fallen angels, the Book of Parables instead presents a final judgement of earthly kings.
  7. ↑ James H. Charlesworth. The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha and the New Testament. (Philadelphia: Trinity Press International, New Ed., 1998), 89.
  8. ↑ The Ante-Nicene Fathers, edited be Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, et al. vol 4.16 (Hendrickson Publishers, 1994)
  9. ↑ The Book of Enoch. tr. by R.H. Charles, 1917sacred-texts.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  10. ↑ Ludolf, "Commentarius in Hist. Aethip." 347
  11. ↑ Bruce, Travels, vol 2, 422
  12. ↑ James C. Vanderkam. Enoch: A Man for All Generations. (Studies on Personalities of the Old Testament), 20. cf. Milik: 70-78.
  13. ↑ The Book of Enoch tr. by R.H. Charles 1917sacred-texts.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  14. ↑ A. G. Hoffmann. Zweiter Excurs, 917-965.
  15. ↑ Book of Enoch tr. by R.H. Charles 1917sacred-texts.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  16. ↑ tr. by R.H. Charles 1917 sacred-texts.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  17. ↑ tr. by R.H. Charles 1917sacred-texts.com.
  18. ↑ tr. by R.H. Charles 1917 sacred-texts.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  19. ↑ tr. by R.H. Charles 1917 sacred-texts.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  20. ↑ tr. by R.H. Charles 1917 sacred-texts.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  21. ↑ tr. by R.H. Charles 1917 sacred-texts.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  22. ↑ tr. by R.H. Charles 1917 sacred-texts.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  23. ↑ For a great in-detail description of the information of the Enoch calendar try going to: Enoch Calendar Testifies of Christ by John P. Pratt Reprinted from Meridian Magazine (Sept. 11, 2001) johnpratt.com. Retrieved October 31, 2008.
  24. ↑ tr. by R.H. Charles 1917 sacred-texts.com.
  25. ↑ Some suppose that Chapter 105 may be a Christian addition and 108 many believe to be a later addition.
  26. ↑ See Richard H. Charles’ critical edition of 1906.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • George W. E. Nickelsburg and J.C. Vanderkam 1 Enoch: A New Translation; Based on the Hermeneia Commentary. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress Press, 2004. ISBN 0800636945
  • Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, et al. (eds.). The Ante-Nicene Fathers. (10 Vols.) Hendrickson Publishers, 1994. ISBN 1565630823
  • Brown, Ronald K. (trans.). The Book of Enoch. Guadalupe Baptist Theological Seminary Press, 2000. ISBN 096757370X
  • Charles, R.H. The Book of Enoch: Together with a Reprint of the Greek Fragments. reprint ed. Kessinger Publishing, LLC, 1995. ISBN 978-1564595232
  • Charlesworth, James H. The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha and the New Testament. Philadelphia; Trinity Press International, New Ed., 1998. ISBN 978-1563382574
  • Henok: Beye`ametu yemmittatem ye'ItyoPPya T'inatinna mirrimir mets'het. Vol. I, Wossene Yifru, Washington DC: Ethiopian Research Council, 1990.
  • Knibb, Michael A. and Edward Ullendorff. The Ethiopic Book Of Enoch: A New Edition in the Light of the Aramaic Dead Sea Fragments (Vol. 1: Text and Apparatus & Vol. 2: Introduction, Translation and Commentary). Oxford University Press, 1979. ISBN 978-0198261636
  • Leonhard, Rost. Judaism Outside the Hebrew Canon. Abingdon Press, 1976. ISBN 978-0687206537
  • Martinez, Garcia, F. Qumran & Apocalyptic Studies on the Aramaic Texts from Qumran. New York: E. J. Brill Academic Publishers, 1992. ISBN 978-9004095861
  • Milik, J. T. The Books of Enoch: Aramaic Fragments of Qumran Cave 4. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1976. ISBN 978-0198261612
  • Nickelsburg, George W. E. Hermeneia: 1 Enoch: A Commentary on the Book of 1 Enoch (Hermeneia: a Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible), Chapters 1-36, 81-108. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004 (original 2001). ISBN 0800660749
  • Nichelsburg, George W.E. and James C. VanderKam (trans.). 1 Enoch: A New Translation. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004. ISBN 0800636945
  • Schodde, George Henry (trans.). The Book of Enoch translated from the Ethiopic with Introduction and notes. W.F. Draper, 1882. reprint ed. Kessinger Publishing, LLC, 2008. ISBN 1437105475
  • Vermes, Geza. The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English. New York: Penguin Press, 2004. ISBN 978-0140449525

External links

All links retrieved November 17, 2023.

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