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1 Enoch

About this book
Chapter 62

1 The Lord commanded the kings, the mighty, the exalted, and those who dwell on the earth, saying: 'Open your eyes and lift up your horns if you are able to recognize the Chosen One.'⁠ 2 The Lord of Spirits seated him on the throne of His glory,⁠ and the spirit of righteousness was poured out upon him. The words from his mouth slay all sinners, and all the unrighteous are destroyed from his presence.⁠ 3 On that day, all the kings, the mighty, the exalted, and those who hold the earth will stand, and they shall see and recognize how he sits on the throne of his glory, and how righteousness is judged before him, and no false word is spoken before him.⁠ 4 Pain will come upon them as upon a woman in childbirth,⁠ when her child enters the birth canal, and she feels the agony of delivery.⁠ 5 One group will look at another in terror, their faces will fall, and pain will seize them when they see the Son of Man sitting on the throne of his glory.⁠ 6 The kings, the mighty, and all who possess the earth shall bless, glorify, and exalt him who reigns over all, who was hidden. 7 From the beginning, the Son of Man was hidden, and the Most High preserved him in the presence of His power, and revealed him to the chosen. 8 The congregation of the chosen and holy shall be sown, and all the chosen shall stand before him on that day.⁠ 9 All the kings, the mighty, the exalted, and those who rule the earth will fall down before him on their faces, worship him, place their hopes in the Son of Man,⁠ and ask for mercy from him. 10 Yet the Lord of Spirits will compel them to leave His presence quickly, their faces filled with shame, and darkness will deepen upon their faces. 11 He will deliver them to the angels for punishment, to exact vengeance on them for oppressing His children and His chosen. 12 They will be a spectacle for the righteous and for His chosen: they will rejoice over them, because the anger of the Lord of Spirits rests upon them, and His sword is drunk with their blood. 13 The righteous and chosen will be saved on that day, and they will never again see the face of the sinners and unrighteous. 14 The Lord of Spirits will remain over them, and with the Son of Man, they will eat, lie down, and rise up forever and ever.⁠ 15 The righteous and chosen will rise from the earth, and no longer wear downcast expressions. They will be clothed in garments of glory. 16 These are the garments of life from the Lord of Spirits: your garments will not wear out, nor will your glory fade in the presence of the Lord of Spirits.⁠

Texts in conversation

Compare Isaiah 13:8 and 1 Enoch 62:4

Hebrew Bible · Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses

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Summary

Isaiah compares the terror of judgment to birth pains seizing a woman in labor, an image of helplessness and inevitability. 1 Enoch echoes this, linking the nations’ distress in the face of judgment to traditional language of labor.

Passages

Isaiah 13:8

Hebrew Bible
6 Wail, for the Lord’s day of judgment is near; it comes with all the destructive power of the Sovereign One. 7 For this reason all hands hang limp, every human heart loses its courage. 8 They panic—cramps and pain seize hold of them like those of a woman who is straining to give birth. They look at one another in astonishment; their faces are flushed red. 9 Look, the Lord’s day of judgment is coming; it is a day of cruelty and savage, raging anger, destroying the earth and annihilating its sinners.
740–450 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Isaiah

1 Enoch 62:4

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses
3 On that day, all the kings, the mighty, the exalted, and those who hold the earth will stand, and they shall see and recognize how he sits on the throne of his glory, and how righteousness is judged before him, and no false word is spoken before him. 4 Pain will come upon them as upon a woman in childbirth, when her child enters the birth canal, and she feels the agony of delivery. 5 One group will look at another in terror, their faces will fall, and pain will seize them when they see the Son of Man sitting on the throne of his glory.
300 BCE – 100 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 1 Enoch

References

"... “She was pregnant and cried out in labor, in the throes of childbirth.” ἐν γαστρὶ ἔχουσα is a technical phrase for a pregnant woman (Matthew 1:18, 23 [citing Isaiah 7:14]; Mark 13:17; 1 Thessalonians 5:3) ... Israel in distress is frequently compared to a woman suffering birth pains (Isaiah 21:3; 26:17–18; 37:3; Jeremiah 4:31; 6:24; 13:21; 22:23; 30:6; Micah 4:9; 1 Enoch 62:4; 1QH 3:8–9), and various Hebrew phrases meaning “like a woman in labor” occur frequently in the Old Testament and in ancient Near Eastern literature (Isaiah 13:8; 21:3; 42:14; Jeremiah 4:31; 6:24; 13:21; 22:23; 30:6; 49:24; 50:43; Micah 4:9, 10; Psalm 48:7). Isaiah 66:7 uses the metaphor of Israel bearing a male child to indicate the arrival of the period of salvation. Isaiah 26:17 also compares Israel’s helplessness before her enemies to “a woman with child who writhes and cries out in her pangs, when she is near her time” ..."
David Aune, Word Biblical Commentary: Revelation 6-16 (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2017), 688.

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 13:8 and 1 Enoch 62:4

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