Go to Related Reading
About this book

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 48:7 and John 6:44

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses · New Testament

Share:

Summary

1 Enoch and the gospel of John share a tradition that describes God acting first to bring knowledge. The Enochic Son of Man stays hidden until God’s wisdom reveals him, and no one comes to Jesus unless the Father draws and teaches them.

Passages

1 Enoch 48:7

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses
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.
300 BCE – 100 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 1 Enoch

John 6:44

New Testament
43 Jesus replied, “Do not complain about me to one another. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who hears and learns from the Father comes to me. 46 (Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God—he has seen the Father.)
90–110 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in John

References

“... This figure, the Chosen Son of Man, is portrayed as both the subject and the object of the revelatory act. In 51:3, the reader is told that at the time of the judgement, the Chosen one will sit upon the throne and “all the secrets of wisdom will go forth from his mouth.” He is undoubtedly here a revealer figure. Elsewhere, though, he is portrayed as the thing revealed by God. Thus, in 48:6–7, the Son of Man was: chosen and hidden in his [God’s] presence before the world was created and forever. And the wisdom of the Lord of Spirits has revealed him to the holy and the righteous. Some kind of trust and knowledge of the Son of Man is a trait of the righteous, but such knowledge requires divine enlightenment: without such divine enabling, humans are blind to the truth of the Son of Man, a fact seen also in the confession of the kings in 63:3–4, where they acknowledge the depth of God’s secrets and the splendour of his righteousness. ...”
Grant Macaskill, Revealed Wisdom and Inaugurated Eschatology in Ancient Judaism and Early Christianity (Leiden: Brill, 2007), 66.
“... Jesus in the Gospel of John is known as the revealer, the one who brings revelation from God (John 1:18; 14:6-8). As the Son of Man, he reveals heavenly things, and he grounds his ability and authority to reveal heavenly things in his origin from heaven (John 3:12-13). Just as the Enochic Son of Man is given the secrets of wisdom by the Lord of Spirits, so Jesus as the Son of Man receives information from the Father. Jesus says, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I Am and that I do nothing on my own, but just as the Father teaches me, these things I speak” (John 8:28; compare John 5:19-23). ...”
Benjamin E. Reynolds, “The Enochic Son of Man and the Apocalyptic Background of the Son of Man Sayings in John’s Gospel,” in Parables of Enoch: A Paradigm Shift, ed. James H. Charlesworth and Darrell L. Bock (London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2013), 304.

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

Your feedback

1 Enoch 48:7 and John 6:44

Leave a comment

Your questions and comments are welcome!

Comments

Glossary

Search the Library