Purpose and Motifs of the Similitudes of Enoch
There is a dualism that pervades Similitudes of Enoch. Again and again one reads of the "righteous ones," "holy ones," and "elect ones." But these essentially form the background to the work. The author has painted as prominent figures on his literary canvas "the sinners," "the wicked ones," and "those who deny the Lord of the Spirits." Their prominence is in the light of their coming judgment. This appears to be the purpose of Similitudes of Enoch. The blessing of the righteous is certainly a motif that courses throughout the work, but the dominant refrain is eschatological judgment in the face of the Son of Man.
The structure of the work consists of three parables as told by the Enoch figure. As Stone observes, these three parables are marked by common terminology and interests and all three maintain the dominant refrain of eschatological judgment.1 The very first verse of the document begins with a temporal marker: "The vision which Enoch saw the second time" (37:1). This is apparently designed to link this work with the Book of Watchers (chapters 1-37) of 1 Enoch. He then declares that "three things" were imparted to him (37:5). These three things are the three parables. The first parable (chapters 38-44) is the briefest of the three and aside from the eschatological judgment refrain, its distinctive is marked by the refrain of final accountability. Below are some representative examples:
Final rewards for the righteous:
39:1 And it shall come to pass in those days that the children of the elect and the holy ones will descend from the high heaven and their seed will become one with the children of the people.
39:4-5 There I saw other dwelling places of the holy ones and their resting places too. So there my eyes saw their dwelling places with the holy angels, and their resting places with the holy ones, and they interceded and petitioned and prayed on behalf of the children of the people, and righteousness flowed before them like water, and mercy like dew upon the earth, and thus it is in their midst forever and ever.
39:7-8 And I saw a dwelling place underneath the wings of the Lord of the Spirits; and all the righteous and the elect before him shall be as intense as the light of fire. Their mouth shall be full of blessing; and their lips will praise the name of the Lord of the Spirits, and righteousness before him will have no end; and uprightness before him will not cease. There underneath his wings I wanted to dwell; and my soul desired that dwelling place. Already my portion is there; for thus has it been reserved for me before the Lord of the Spirits.
Final punishment of the wicked
38:1-2 When the congregation of the righteous shall appear, sinners shall be judged for their sins, they shall be driven from the face of the earth. And when the Righteous One shall appear before the face of the righteous, those elect ones, their deeds are hung upon the Lord of the Spirits, he shall reveal light to the righteous and the elect who dwell upon the earth. Where will the dwelling of the sinners be, and where the resting place of those who denied the name of the Lord of the Spirits? It would have been better for them not to have been born.
38:3-6 When the secrets of the righteous One are revealed, he shall judge the sinners; and the wicked ones will be driven from the presence of the righteous and the elect, and from that time, those who possess the earth will neither be rulers nor princes, they shall not be able to behold the faces of the holy ones, for the light of the Lord of the Spirits has shined upon the face of the holy, the righteous, and the elect. At that moment, kings and rulers shall perish, they shall be delivered into the hands of the righteous and holy ones, and from thenceforth no one shall be able to induce the Lord of the Spirits to show them mercy, for their life is annihilated.
39:2 And in those days Enoch received the books of zeal and wrath as well as the books of haste and whirlwind. The Lord of the Spirits says that mercy shall not be upon them.
41:1-2 And after that, I saw all the secrets in heaven, and how a kingdom breaks up, and how the actions of the people are weighed in the balance. And there I saw the dwelling place of the sinners and the company of the holy ones; and my eyes saw the sinners--those who deny the name of the Lord of the Spirits--being expelled from there and being dragged off; and they could not stand still because of the plague which proceeds forth from the Lord of the Spirits.
41:8-9 Surely the many changes of the sun have (both) a blessing and a curse, and the course of the moon's path is light to the righteous (on the one hand) and darkness to the sinners (on the other), ? for there is a judge to all of them, he will glance, and all of them are before him, he is the judge.
As noted above, the judgment of the sinners is far more dominant than the reward of the holy ones. What is notable about these "sinners" is that the author also identifies them with the equivalent terms of "rulers," "princes," and "kings." Apparently, the author's mindset was that it was indicative of those in power to abuse their positions. Thus, they were among the most sinful in that they neglected (and often trampled) the needy and less privileged. It is characteristic of this first parable that in the day of final accountability, there will be reversal of fortune.
The text of the second parable (chapters 45-57) is about a third longer than the first, yet only half as long as the final parable. Though it is not the longest of the three parables, perhaps its central position is by design to be of central importance. Whether this is so or not cannot be proven, but it is certain that of the three parables the second has gathered more attention than the remaining two. The reason for this is its distinctive characteristics. It is in this parable that the phrase "son of man" (or more accurately, "that son of man") is employed repeatedly. In addition to that theologically-weighted term, the author utilizes the terms "Elect One," and "Messiah." These terms, in themselves, are enough to garner the attention of New Testament exegetes. The person described by these terms is a "pre-created redeemer figure who is to be an eschatological judge."2 Some excerpts are provided below to illustrate this observation.
45:3-6 On that day [of judgment of sinners], my Elect One shall sit on the seat of glory and make a selection of their deeds, their resting places will be without number, their souls shall be firm within them when they see my Elect One, those who have appealed to my glorious name. On that day, I shall cause my Elect One to dwell among them, I shall transform heaven and make it a blessing of light forever. I shall (also) transform the earth and make it a blessing, and cause my Elect One to dwell in her. Then those who have committed sin and crime shall not set foot in her. For in peace I have looked (with favor) upon my righteous ones and given them mercy, and have caused them to dwell before me. But sinners have come before me so that by judgment I shall destroy them from before the face of the earth.
46:3-5 This is the Son of Man, to whom belongs righteousness, and with whom righteousness dwells. And he will open all the hidden storerooms; for the Lord of the Spirits has chosen him, and he is destined to be victorious before the Lord of the Spirits in eternal uprightness. This Son of Man whom you have seen is the One who would remove the kings and the mighty ones from their comfortable seats and the strong ones from their thrones. He shall loosen the reins of the strong and crush the teeth of the sinners.
48:2-4 At that hour, that Son of Man was given a name, in the presence of the Lord of the Spirits, ? He will become a staff for the righteous ones in order that they may lean on him and not fall. He is the light of the gentiles and he will become the hope of those who are sick in their hearts.
48:6 For this purpose he became the Chosen One; he was concealed in the presence of (the Lord of the Spirits) prior to the creation of the world, and for eternity.
48:10 On the day of their weariness, there shall be an obstacle on the earth and they shall fall on their faces; ? for they have denied the Lord of the Spirits and his Messiah. Blessed be the name of the Lord of the Spirits!
It should be remembered that the overall motif of eschatological judgment continues throughout all three parables as the above citations amply illustrate.
The third and final parable (chapters 57-69) of the Similitudes of Enoch differs only in degree from the second parable. The eschatological judgment motif continues as does the sustained use of the term "Son of Man" and "Elect One." The emphasis, however, has shifted from the character of the Son of Man to the execution of his power and the fulfillment of his pre-ordained assignment. One key aspect of the execution of that power is the judgment by way of the flood. In fact, it is this judgment by way of flood, according to Nickelsburg, "toward which the whole book has been pointing."3 Consider the following excerpts as examples.
62:2-3 The Lord of the Spirits has sat down on the throne of his glory, and the spirit of righteousness has been poured out upon him. The word of his mouth will do the sinners in; and all the oppressors shall be eliminated from before his face. On the day of judgment, all the kings, the governors, the high officials, and the landlords shall see and recognize him--how he sits on the throne of his glory and righteousness is judged before him.
62:5 And pain shall seize them when they see that Son of Man sitting on the throne of his glory.
62:9-11 On that day, all the kings, the governors, the high officials, and those who rule the earth shall fall down before him on their faces, and worship and raise their hopes in that Son of Man; they shall beg and plead for mercy at his feet. But the Lord of the Spirits himself will cause them to be frantic, so that they shall rush and depart form his presence. Their faces shall be filled with shame, and their countenance shall be crowned with darkness. So he will deliver them to the angels for punishments in order that vengeance shall be executed on them.
66:1 After this he showed me the angels of punishment who are prepared to come and release all the powers of the waters which are underground to become judgment and destruction unto all who live and dwell upon the earth.
67:8, 13 Those waters shall become in those days a poisonous drug of the body and a punishment of the spirit unto the kings, rulers, and exalted ones, and those who dwell on the earth. ? For these waters of judgment are poison to the bodies of the angels as well as sensational to their flesh; (hence) they will neither see nor believe that these waters become transformed and become a fire that burns forever.
69:27-29 And they blessed, glorified, and extolled (the Lord) on account of the fact that the name of that (Son of Man) was revealed to them. He shall never pass away or perish from before the face of the earth. But those who have led the world astray shall be bound with chains; and their ruinous congregation shall be imprisoned; all their deeds shall vanish from before the face of the earth. Thenceforth nothing that is corruptible shall be found; for that Son of Man has appeared and has seated himself upon the throne of his glory; and all evil shall disappear from before his face.
These excerpts reveal that the author of the Similitudes of Enoch wants the readers to understand that a day of accounting is coming. The One who will call everyone into account is the Son of Man, who is a pre-existent one and is the Anointed One of the Lord of the Spirits (i.e. Messiah).
The final two chapters of the Similitudes of Enoch are basically epilogues. The first is a brief first-person account of Enoch's translation from earth to heaven. It is more prosaic with very little descriptive elaborations. The second continues in the first person, but is much more illustrative of the grandeur of the heavenly scene that Enoch experiences. Helyer's observation should be seriously considered when he says that in the second epilogue Enoch is transformed into the Son of Man.4 He undoubtedly bases this on the fact that after Enoch is transported to heaven, he reports these words: "You, son of man, who art born in righteousness and upon whom righteousness has dwelt, the righteousness of the Antecedent of Time will not forsake you. ? Everyone that will come to exist and walk shall (follow) your path. ? Together with you shall be their dwelling places; and together with you shall be their portion" (71:14, 16). Nickelsburg suggests that this second epilogue was probably added at a later time as a final conclusion to the entire literary work.5
Notes
1 Michael E. Stone, "Apocalyptic Literature," in Jewish Writings of the Second Temple Period: Apocrypha, Pseudepigrapha, Qumran Sectarian, Writings, Philo, Josephus, ed. Michael E. Stone (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1984): 401.
2Ibid., 402.
3George W. E. Nickelsburg, Jewish Literature Between the Bible and the Mishnah: A Historical and Literary Introduction (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1981): 219.
4Larry R. Helyer, Exploring Jewish Literature of the Second Temple Period (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2002): 387.
5Ibid., 221.
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