Texts in Conversation
The opening of 1 Enoch echoes Judith and other texts from the Hebrew bible that describe mountains melting when God appears. These follow older Near Eastern traditions that used volcanic imagery to describe dramatic divine encounters.
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Judith 16:15
Deuterocanon
14 Let all your creatures serve you, for you spoke, and they were made. You sent forth your spirit, and it formed them; there is none that can resist your voice. 15 For the mountains shall be shaken to their foundations with the waters; before your glance the rocks shall melt like wax. But to those who fear you you show mercy. 16 For every sacrifice as a fragrant offering is a small thing, and the fat of all whole burnt offerings to you is a very little thing; but whoever fears the Lord is great forever.
Date: 150-100 B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
1 Enoch 1:6
Pseudepigrapha
5 Everyone will be struck with fear and the Watchers will tremble, and great fear and trembling will grip them to the ends of the earth. 6 The high mountains will shake, the hills will be leveled, and they will melt like wax before the fire 7 The earth will be completely torn apart, and everything on it will perish, and there will be judgment upon all people.
Date: 200-50 B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... 1 Enoch 1:6-7 ... These verses depict the total distortion and disintegration of the earth in the presence of the divine Judge. Verse 6 reflects a traditional element in the descriptions of the events associated with a theophany: the mountains quake, fall, and break apart. The picture is enhanced by the simile of the mountains melting like wax before the fire. This image, which suggests an erupting volcano, probably derives from Micah 1:3-4, whose motifs were temporarily abandoned after verse 4. The image appears also in Psalm 97:5; Isaiah 64:1 LXX; Judith 16:15; compare Nahum 1:5. The text describes the mightiest structures on earth - the everlasting mountains and hills - disintegrating helplessly before the presence of 'the Great Holy One' ..."
Nickelsburg, George W. E.
A Commentary on the Book of 1 Enoch Chapters 1-36, 81-108
(p. 146) Fortress Press, 2001
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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