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1 Enoch

About this book
Chapter 47

1 And in those days, the prayers of the righteous and the blood of the righteous shall ascend from the earth before the Lord of Spirits. 2 In those days, the holy ones who dwell above in the heavens shall unite with one voice to plead, pray, praise, give thanks, and bless the name of the Lord of Spirits on behalf of the blood of the righteous that has been shed, so that the prayers of the righteous may not be in vain before the Lord of Spirits, so that justice may be done for them, and that they may not suffer forever. 3 In those days, I saw the Head of Days when He seated himself upon the throne of His glory, and the books of the living were opened before Him; and all His army which is in heaven above and His counselors stood before Him.⁠ 4 And the hearts of the holy were filled with joy⁠ because the number of the righteous had been offered, the prayer of the righteous had been heard, and the blood of the righteous had been required before the Lord of Spirits.⁠

Texts in conversation

Compare Isaiah 65:14 and 1 Enoch 47:4

Hebrew Bible · Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses

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Summary

1 Enoch 47 describes the prayers and blood of the righteous being acknowledged as their vindication leads to joy, a theme that echoes Isaiah’s vision of the faithful rejoicing while their opponents mourn.

Passages

Isaiah 65:14

Hebrew Bible
13 So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “Look, my servants will eat, but you will be hungry. Look, my servants will drink, but you will be thirsty. Look, my servants will rejoice, but you will be humiliated. 14 Look, my servants will shout for joy as happiness fills their hearts. But you will cry out as sorrow fills your hearts; you will wail because your spirits will be crushed. 15 Your names will live on in the curse formulas of my chosen ones. The Sovereign Lord will kill you, but he will give his servants another name.
740–450 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Isaiah

1 Enoch 47:4

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses
3 In those days, I saw the Head of Days when He seated himself upon the throne of His glory, and the books of the living were opened before Him; and all His army which is in heaven above and His counselors stood before Him. 4 And the hearts of the holy were filled with joy because the number of the righteous had been offered, the prayer of the righteous had been heard, and the blood of the righteous had been required before the Lord of Spirits.
300 BCE – 100 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 1 Enoch

References

"... The allusion to the Daniel 7:9 theophany shows a further connection with chapter 46, since the same theophany scene is found in 46:1, although there are some differences in the two portrayals. In 47:3 is seen the divine response to the petitions of verses 1-2. Whereas in Daniel 7:10 "books" symbolize the forensic judgment of the eschatological beast, here they have become merged with the book of life mentioned in Daniel 12:1-2. The books still have a forensic sense, but now indicate specifically that God's judgment is being passed in favor of the saints and against their persecutors. It is appropriate that the book idea should also be brought in since it is directly associated with the deliverance of righteous Israel from their persecutors in the end-time, as well as with the implied judgment of these persecutors. 1 Enoch 47:4 concludes the chapter with an expression of thanks to God for the decision of vindication which He has made ..."
G. K. Beale, The Use of Daniel in Jewish Apocalyptic Literature and in the Revelation of St. John (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2010), 103.

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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Isaiah 65:14 and 1 Enoch 47:4

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