CHAPTER THREE

ENOCH IN JEWISH AND EARLY CHRISTIAN TRADITION

The enigmatic reference to Enoch in Gen 5:24 produced a welterof speculation about his person and a range of literature attributed to him.1 The reference in Genesis already suggests that at the time ofthe redaction of this chapter during the Exilic period speculation about Enoch was well established. The allusion to the 365 days of the yearin the number of years of his life hints at calendrical wisdom, which was to be such an important component of Enoch’s character in later Jew- ish tradition, as is evident in a late summary such as Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer (9a). The discovery of the Enoch fragments from Qumran have improved our insight in the wide range of speculation about the figure of Enoch in ancient Judaism.2 The literature attributed to Enoch is found in a variety offorms. Our knowledge of its early appearance has been transformed by the discovery of the fragments from Cave 4 at Qumran, many of which correspond to what we now know as 1 Enoch. The apocalypse—or better apocalypses, as there is a collection of different material from different dates—is extant in its complete version in Ethiopic. Thechap- ters 37–71 which speak of the Son of man and Enoch’s identification with this heavenly figure appear not to have been known at Qumran, while another Enochic work, the Book of the Giants,3 has been found among the manuscripts. The legend about Enoch’s righteousness, wisdom, and enigmatic end, are all used as convenient biblical pegs on which to hang a vast array of apocalyptic information about astronomy, eschatology and paraenesis. The Enochic apocalypse differs from many others inthe

1 For earlier discussions of the Enochic traditions see Nickelsburg I Enoch; Rowland, ‘Enoch’; Grelot, ‘legende d’Henoch’; Hirsch, ‘Enoch’; Jansen, Henochgestalt; Ginzberg, Legends, 5; Milik, Books of Enoch; Odeberg, ‘Enoch’; Pfeiffer, Exercitatio; VanderKam, Growth; idem, ‘Enoch Traditions’; Himmelfarb, ‘Report on Enoch’; Kvanvig, Roots; VanderKam and Adler, Jewish Apocalytic; Orlov, Enoch-Metatron Tradition. On the persistence of Enoch traditions in the Kabbala, see Idel, Messianic Mystics, 85–94. 2 Cf. Boccaccini, Origins. 3 See Stuckenbruck, Book of Giants. 34 chapter three extent of the speculative material which is related to the Enoch legend: astronomical, calendrical and heavenly matters. The material contained in 4 Ezra makes an interesting comparison as speculative interest is minimal with more questions raised about the human condition than answers given, even allowing for the eschatological visions in the later chapters. Of the other texts attributed to Enoch, the Slavonic Apocalypse (2 Enoch) consists of a heavenly ascent followed by a last testament from Enoch after his brief return to earth. In the much later (sixth century?) Hebrew Apocalypse of Enoch also called ‘Sefer Hekhalot’ (3 Enoch), the ascent to heaven and the transformation of Enoch into an exalted angel is followed by a plethora of complex angelological descriptions capped by various brief eschatological predictions. Much of the Enochic material has been preserved by Christian scribes—the Ethiopic Apocalypse forms part of the biblical canon of the Ethiopian Church—and reflects an ongoing interest in apocalyptic thought and literature in Christianity.

The Greek and Aramaic Interpretations of Genesis 5:24

What follows traces the contours of these traditions. The clear bifur- cation of the speculative interest will be outlined, using the targumic traditions as a guide to the contrasting opinions that emerged in Jew- ish traditions. We start with a comparison of the Hebrew and Greek versions of Gen 5:24:

MT LXX Καὶ εὐηρέστησεν Ενωχ ויתהלך חנוך τῷ θεῷ את האלהים καὶ οὐχ ηὑρίσκετο ואיננו ὅτι μετέθηκεν αὐτὸν ὁ θεός כי לקח אתו אלהים

A comparison between the Hebrew and Greek of Gen 5:24 already suggests a modicum of interpretation.4 Enoch’s walking with God has been ואיננו has become pleasing in God’s sight and the enigmatic expanded to indicate his ‘translation’. The author of Hebrews clearly

4 Cf. 2 Kgs 2:11; Wis 4:10; Heb 11:4–6.