1 Enoch

About this book

Chapter 48

1 In that place, I saw the fountain of righteousness which was inexhaustible; around it were many fountains of wisdom. All the thirsty drank from them, were filled with wisdom, and their dwellings were with the righteous, holy, and elect.⁠ 2 At that time, the Son of Man was named in the presence of the Lord of Spirits, and his name was acknowledged before the Head of Days. 3 Yes, before the sun and the signs were created, before the stars of heaven were made, his name was known before the Lord of Spirits. 4 He will be a staff for the righteous to lean on and not fall, and he will be the light of the Gentiles, and the hope for those who are troubled of heart.⁠ 5 All who dwell on earth shall bow and worship before him, and will praise, bless, and sing to celebrate the Lord of Spirits.⁠ 6 For this reason, he has been chosen and hidden before Him, before the creation of the world⁠ and forever.⁠ 7 The wisdom of the Lord of Spirits has revealed him to the holy and righteous; for he has preserved all of the righteous because they have hated and despised this world of unrighteousness,⁠ and have hated all its works and ways in the name of the Lord of Spirits:⁠ for in his name they are saved, and it has been according to his good pleasure in regard to their life.⁠ 8 In these days, the kings of the earth who own the land will look downcast because of the works of their hands; for on the day of their trouble and affliction, they will not be able to save themselves.⁠ 9 And I will hand them over to the hands of my elect: as straw in the fire, they shall burn before the face of the holy; as lead in the water, they shall sink before the face of the righteous,⁠ and no trace of them shall be found anymore.⁠ 10 On the day of their affliction, there shall be peace on the earth. They shall fall before them and not rise again; and there shall be no one to help them up, for they have denied the Lord of Spirits and His Anointed.⁠ Blessed be the name of the Lord of Spirits.

Texts in conversation

Compare 1 Enoch 48:4 and Luke 2:32

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses · New Testament

Summary

1 Enoch describes the Son of Man existing before creation and chosen to be the light of the Gentiles, and Luke similarly describes the child Jesus as a messianic figure who will be a light to the Gentiles. Both are based on the language of Isaiah.

Passages

1 Enoch 48:4

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses

2 At that time, the Son of Man was named in the presence of the Lord of Spirits, and his name was acknowledged before the Head of Days. 3 Yes, before the sun and the signs were created, before the stars of heaven were made, his name was known before the Lord of Spirits. 4 He will be a staff for the righteous to lean on and not fall, and he will be the light of the Gentiles, and the hope for those who are troubled of heart. 5 All who dwell on earth shall bow and worship before him, and will praise, bless, and sing to celebrate the Lord of Spirits. 6 For this reason, he has been chosen and hidden before Him, before the creation of the world and forever.

300 BCE – 100 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 1 Enoch

Luke 2:32

New Testament

27 So Simeon, directed by the Spirit, came into the temple courts, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what was customary according to the law, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and blessed God, saying, 29 “Now, according to your word, Sovereign Lord, permit your servant to depart in peace. 30 For my eyes have seen your salvation 31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples: 32 a light, for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.” 33 So the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “Listen carefully: This child is destined to be the cause of the falling and rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be rejected.

75–85 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Luke

References

"... The ‘Similitudes’ or ‘Parables of Enoch’ (1 Enoch 37–71) are entirely absent from the Qumran manuscripts, but its archetype is widely held to be Jewish. This still leaves the question how to distinguish Jewish original from Christian elaboration ... the singular eschatological role of the ‘Elect One of righteousness’ and the ‘Righteous One’ (1 Enoch 38:2–3, 39:6, 40:6 appears to stand in contrast to the plural concept ‘elect ones of righteousness’ (1 Enoch 93:10; compare 1 Enoch 1:1; 4Q215a 1 II 3, 4Q299 72 2). It could be that this is a Christian redactional element, with a view to a kind of prefiguration of Christ in Enoch’s vision, since 1 Enoch 46:2–5, 48:1–10 and 71:10.12–17 also speaks of the ‘Antecedent of Time’, a prefiguration of eschatological and messianic events. In 1 Enoch 48:2–4, ‘that Son of Man’ is given a name, while his significance is described as, among other things, ‘the light of the gentiles’. (Luke 2:32 and Acts 13:47) It should further be noted that the epithet ‘Lord of the Spirits’, which recurs in the ‘Similitudes’ but does not occur in the other books of 1 Enoch, contrasts with the epithet ‘Lord of Glory’ quite common in the preceding ‘Book of the Watchers’ (1 Enoch 22:14, 25:3, 27:5, 36:4). The reference to eschatological judgment of those who “have denied the Lord of the Spirits and his Messiah” in 1 Enoch 48:10 appears to be a Christian polemical formulation against unbelievers ..."

Albert L. A. Hogeterp, Expectations of the End: A Comparative Traditio-Historical Study of Eschatological, Apocalyptic, and Messianic Ideas in the Dead Sea Scrolls and the New Testament, STDJ 83 (Leiden: Brill, 2009), 79–81.

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

1 Enoch108 chapters

Compare 1 Enoch 48:4 and Luke 2:32

Summary

Passages

1 Enoch 48:4

Luke 2:32

References

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