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1 Enoch

About this book
Chapter 13

1 Enoch went and said: 'Azâzêl, you will have no peace. A severe sentence has gone out against you, to put you in chains. 2 You will not be tolerated, nor will your requests be granted, because of the unrighteousness you have taught, and because of all the godlessness, unrighteousness, and sin you have shown to men.'⁠ 3 Then I went and spoke to them all together, and they were all afraid, and fear and trembling seized them. 4 They begged me to write a petition for them so that they might find forgiveness, and to read their petition in the presence of the Lord of heaven.⁠ 5 For from then on they could not speak or lift up their eyes to heaven because of the shame of the sins for which they had been condemned.⁠ 6 Then I wrote out their petition and the prayer for their spirits and their deeds, along with their requests for forgiveness and for a longer lifespan. 7 I went off and sat down by the waters of Dan, in the land of Dan, to the southwest of Hermon, and I read their petition until I fell asleep. 8 Then a dream came to me, and visions fell upon me. I saw visions of punishment, and a voice commanded me to tell it to the sons of heaven and to reprimand them. 9 When I awoke, I came to them, and they were all sitting gathered together, weeping in 'Abelsjâîl, which is between Lebanon and Sênêsêr, with their faces covered. 10 I recounted to them all the visions I had seen in my sleep, and I began to speak words of righteousness and to reprimand the heavenly Watchers.

Texts in conversation

Compare 1 Enoch 13:4 and James 5:16

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses · New Testament

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Summary

In 1 Enoch, the fallen Watchers ask Enoch to intercede for them, believing his righteousness might gain them mercy, though their request fails. James echoes this, teaching that a righteous person's prayer for another is effective.

Passages

1 Enoch 13:4

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses
3 Then I went and spoke to them all together, and they were all afraid, and fear and trembling seized them. 4 They begged me to write a petition for them so that they might find forgiveness, and to read their petition in the presence of the Lord of heaven. 5 For from then on they could not speak or lift up their eyes to heaven because of the shame of the sins for which they had been condemned.
300 BCE – 100 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 1 Enoch

James 5:16

New Testament
15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick and the Lord will raise him up—and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 So confess your sins to one another and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great effectiveness. 17 Elijah was a human being like us, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain and there was no rain on the land for three years and six months!
80–90 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in James

References

"... The watchers make a twofold request of Enoch: that he write up their petition, and that he offer it on behalf of them. The first of these requests is related to his role as scribe. In the present context, his scribal function is to write a copy of the watchers’ petition and to recite it. A little later, he will make a copy of the heavenly response to this petition and read it to the watchers. The watchers’ second request, that he pray the petition, is based on their own unworthiness to approach God (verse 5). It may also presume the theory that the prayer of a righteous man is especially effective. Compare Proverbs 15:29: 3 Maccabees 6:1-21; 2 Baruch 2:2; James 5:16-18 ..."
George W. E. Nickelsburg, A Commentary on the Book of 1 Enoch Chapters 1-36, 81-108 (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2001), 237.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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1 Enoch 13:4 and James 5:16

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