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Reaction
to Enoch and The Growth of an Apocalyptic Tradition |
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for Prof. Carol Newsom As in my previous reaction paper, I will hit the points I found particularly interesting in this text: VanderKam, James C. Enoch and The Growth of an Apocalyptic Tradition. Washington, DC: The Catholic Biblical Association of America, 1984. Biblical Material About Enoch The author compares the Jahwist's Cainite toledoth and Priestly redactor's Sethite listings of the "heads of humanity" (Gen 4:17-24 and Gen 5:21-24 respectively). He concludes that P expanded the list, since there are several instances of similarity: 1 adam 1 'adam 3 hanok 7 hanok 4 `irad 6 yered 5 mehuya'el 5 mahalal'el 6 metusa'el 8 metuselah 7 lemek 9 lemek (25). Significant for this study are the facts that (1) (a) Enoch (hanok) appears in symbolic positions in both lists, and that (b) P's listing includes 10 members, concluding with the flood hero, and (2) that P has promoted Enoch from the symbolic third to seventh position, thus calling attention to him within the list. (1) Berossus, the priest of Marduk, wrote and account of the culture and antiquities of the Babylonians expressly for Greek readers circa 280 B.C.E. (Babyloniaca). Included was a listing of 10 kings who ruled "from the beginning of kingship until the flood." Berossus claimed that his sources were very ancient; the claim has been substantiated (page 26, note 12). Although opinion is divided, many scholars see parallels between the Priestly list and Berossus, based on the number, and some superficial similarities in the translated meanings of some of the names. Enmeduranki, the seventh member on Berossus' list, also shows up as the seventh member on some manuscripts of the (so-called) Sumerian King List, and is considered by scholars to be the Mesopotamian model for the biblical Enoch based on (a) the shared 7th position, (b) the exceeding long "reign" of the king (21,000 years) to the longetivity of Enoch ("God took him"), and (c) the similarity to the king's association with the city of the sun god (Shamash of Sippar) and the life of Enoch before God took him - 365 years - the solar year. (2) The literal translation of Gen 5:24a, "Enoch walked with the gods," according to P. Skinner, may be a vestige of the pagan source overlooked by the redactor. Yet "the gods" need not refer to a plurality of gods, but can be interpreted as "angels," as the Hebrew scripture does at times (like Ps 97:7). One of the prime features of the Enochan literature is that the hero walks with angels, and is the intermediary between God and angels. Von Rad comments, The passage, to be sure, gives the impression of being only a brief reference to a much more extensive tradition. It is an open question, therefore, whether much of the apocalyptic Enoch tradition is not really very old and precedes in time (not follows) the Priestly narrative. Indeed Milik, in his controversial theory, contends that the Visions of Enoch (chapters 6 - 19) antedates the version found in Genesis 6:1-4; that the latter story, "when the sons of God went in to the daughters of humans," is a summary of the former. I hope to study Milik's Enochan Pentateuch theory next. The Influence of Mantic Wisdom on Judaism Certain Akkadian texts have led the author to make the following one of his major theses: that "mantic wisdom was an important contributory factor in the evolution of Jewish apocalypticism as exemplified by the early Enochan literature" (71). Jewish sages, having been influenced by the mantic arts of their neighbors, used the apocalyptic genre to "press [them] into direct service toward the ends which they intended" (63). Thus Enoch, the counterpart of Enmeduranki (the king and seer), takes on the mantle of baru-diviner in esoteric Judaism, plying his trade not through illegal means (such as necromancy, heruspex, lecanomancy, libanomancy, as per Deuteronomy 18), but through oracles, dreams, visions, and prophesy (vaticinia ex eventu and prediction). Astronomical Revelations The Astronomical Book, chapters 72 - 82, is the oldest circulated under Enoch's name, writes VanderKam, antedating the Qumran community's solar-based calendrical system by at least 50 years, and furnishing us with the earliest reference to it in Jewish literature. Dated back at least as far as 600 B. C., one finds heavy borrowing from Babylon in matters of the calendar, including the names of months and calculation of new moons, additions of days to the end of years. Enoch and Balaam in the Book of the Watchers Balaam is a foreign diviner, as the Bible explains in Numbers 22 - 24. Yet, in a comparison between Enoch an Balaam, one finds a number of striking similarities. Both "took up his parable" (from the Aramaic, see 153), "eyes were opened by the Lord," "saw a vision of the holy one," heard everything from them," prophesied "not for this generation, but for a distant generation which will come" (find these fragments in Enoch 1:2). In addition, Balaam receives revelation at night, sought oracles, spoke of "divination." Most important is Balaam's advise to Balak concerning the fate of his people at the hands of the Israelites "in the latter days," which might refer to the eschaton (117). Two Versions of the Defiled Angels in Book of the Watchers The story, basically: The Watchers, abiding in the heavens, lusted after women, and descended, defiled themselves then married. They taught the women all manner of divination. There were giants born who ate ravenously, exhausting the regular food supply, finally consuming each other and drinking blood. Human survivors cried to God for help, and righteous angels petitioned God on behalf of humanity. God judged the lot, and punished the Watchers by slaying their gigantic offspring and confining them until fiery judgment. Our text proposes that two versions of the story have been inter woven, much in the way of the Noah's Ark story. Into the longer, Shemihazah version (named for the main Watcher), has been spliced the shorter, Asael version. Asael, the tenth Archon of Shemihazah's brigade, is describes as having taught "heavenly secrets" such as the making of weapons and cosmetics; such were forbidden and previously unknown. Gabriel has the task of bringing Asael to justice, and casts Asael into a pit of sharp rocks. Enoch 10:6 has the Lord alluding to a fuller version of the story of Asael (125). As I mentioned before, general opinion regards the interwoven stories as an expansion of the Genesis 6 story I recounted above. Our Text's author points out "remarkable affinities" to the Greek story of Prometheus the Titan. This is an important point of intersection between the cultures (and one of the few in Enoch), but I can't read German well enough to make out but one or two similarities from Bartelmus' quote (127). Enoch is, of course, the advocate of the defiled Watchers before God - the Shemihazah/Asael myth is expanded to include Enoch's intermediacy in chapters 12 - 16. Through his efforts, Enoch, the "scribe of righteousness" (132), attains the status of an angel (but does not become one), and is granted the privilege to enter into "luminous divine presence." Dating Game The author defines the apocalyptic method: One can learn about God and divine his plan by studying nature with the requisite insight, [just as] one can discern the pattern and goal of the divine governance of history through inspired scrutiny of the Scriptures (142). The historical apocalyses offer the informed reader a somewhat precise rendering of historical events, as seen through the eyes of the mystic. Precise dating is accomplished when the reader discerns the chronological juncture between vaticinia ex eventu and eschatological forecasting. Case in point: In the Apocalypse of Weeks, two major factions are prominent - sinners and saints. In the matter of dating, the author (J. C. V.) demonstrates the importance of attributing the correct historical parties to the cryptic "saints and sinners" in determining correct dating of this pericope. By plugging in Pharisees and Sadducees, Charles deduced a date of somewhere between 95 and 64 B. C. E., since, within this window of time, "the Pharisees were oppressed by both the rulers and the Sadducees" (143). But our author warns us that the designation "saints and sinners" is so general, that it could apply to any number of groups, but it is his opinion that it more suitably applies to Maccabees and Jewish Hellenizers. If so, the date would certainly antecede Charles' date by nearly a century (175 - 176) (149). This date is confirmed by Milik's paleography of the Aramaic fragment from Qumran. The Animal Apocalypse has a similar dating history, described by our author on pages 162 - 3. The Animal Apocalypse The A. A., the second apocalypse in the "Book of Dreams," is a most curious piece of work, and gives even the casual reader a shot at successfully interpreting the overt symbolism (to some degree), since Enoch follows the central biblical story line from Adam to the exile (164). After the exile, extra-biblical sources come into play with the author's introduction of the 70 shepherds, the sinful prelude to the flood, another interpretation of the Genesis 6 story, and the final judgment. Nations, angels, and individuals are represented by animals and heavenly bodies - sheep, bovines of different colors, stars, wild asses, etc. The imagery of shepherd/flock and the 70 are traced back to Jeremiah 25, which a "sceptic (sic) living in the 2nd century would have condemned ... as failed prediction." But for the writer of the A. A., the biblical text was only looking for a correct interpretation. VanderKam includes a very nice analysis of the Jeremiah text as it serves as a model to the apocalypticist, who decoded it "much as a Babylonian baru would read the marks of a liver" (!) (167). Final Notes VanderKam does not cover Milik's Book of Giants, the Similitudes, or the other Enochan literature. He does summarize Enoch's relationship to the Jubilees. Also, he touches on citations of the Enochan legend found in Philo, Syriac literature, etc. I hope to read Milik next, then take time to refamiliarize myself with the text, since I have a some critical resources and reading behind me. |