The Story of the Watchers as a Counter Narrative: Enochic Responses to the Authority of Mesopotamian Sages (original) (raw)
Related papers
Journal of Biblical Literature, 2021
This article suggests that the Codex Panopolitanus Book of the Watchers attests a new arrangement of the work, one organized around a Genesis-style biography of Enoch. I argue that the two scribes of the Book of the Watchers in Codex Panopolitanus are pursuing radically different literary goals and produce different narrative progressions. The first, Scribe 1, begins with an Enochic tour of the cosmos (corresponding to 1 En. 19–21), smoothly transitions to Enoch's earthly life (1 En. 1–11), then addresses his final period of angelic companionship and ascent to heaven (1 En 12–14). This narrative progression has been universally overlooked because the initial tour of the cosmos has been classed as a mistake in transmission (duplicate material), being so deviant from the expected version of the text. Here, in contrast, Scribe 1's text is read as a thoughtful composition, corresponding to the progression of Enoch's life and culminating in an ascent to heaven. The observed practices of textual arrangement in service of biography are further contextualized alongside an analogous transformation of the Ascension of Isaiah into the Greek Legend of Isaiah. I identify the Codex Panopolitanus Book of the Watchers as a complex site of both reception and transmission, emphasizing the crucial role of reception history in the text criticism of ancient Jewish and Christian works.
Journal for The Study of The Pseudepigrapha, 2010
In the article, it is argued that the origin of Watchers derives from the Mesopotamian mythology of the antediluvian sages (apkallus). More precisely, it is proposed that the mythology of Watchers and their sons the giants derived from inverted versions of various Mesopotamian myths and beliefs about apkallus. On some layers of Mesopotamian mythology and ritual practices, the sages were already regarded as dangerous and potentially malicious creatures, upon which the Jewish authors could build their parody. Among other associations, the apkallus had strong ties to Mesopotamian demonology, and they were occasionally counted as evil beings, capable of witchcraft. This shows that the wickedness of antediluvian teachers of humankind in Jewish sources was not wholly an inversion of the Mesopotamian traditions by Jewish scholars, but was partly taken from already existing trends in Mesopotamian demonology.
The 'Animal Apocalypse' in the Ethiopic Book of Enoch (1 Enoch) presents a fascinating rendition of human history, and Israelite history in particular, entirely in an extended metaphor of animals. This article argues that the author's animal symbols are systematically applied, based on his ethical understanding of the Law regarding clean and unclean animals. Under its symbolic imagery the 'Animal Apocalypse' offers an alternative view on human history which combines both the earthly and the cosmic realms. The animal symbolism reveals the author's worldview and carries a depth of meaning which otherwise would be lost in a story told in a literal sense.
The Heavenly Counterparts of Adapa and Enoch in Babylonia and Israel
Pp. 65-82 in: Fröhlich, I. (ed.), Science in Qumran Aramaic Texts. Tübinger: Mohr Siebeck, 2022
The ancient Mesopotamian tradition refers to “son of Oannes”, who sits on the throne of heaven (Tintir II 2). The otherworldly locality of this throne is called the “place of Tilmun”, making a connection with the domicile of flood hero. This “son of Oannes” should be understood as the heavenly counterpart of Adapa. During heavenly ascent the mythical sage became identified with his celestial double. This primordial event served as the mythical background for the cultic activities of Babylonian exorcist priests and their identity. The ideological connection between certain priests and the flood hero is also found in the Jewish pseudepigraphic accounts, where Enoch and Noah share their identities and have similar functions. Some Jewish writings give account of the heavenly counterparts of authorities, whose appearances are described as youthful characters, resembling the “son” of Adapa in the Babylonian material. The seeing of one’s double during heavenly ascent can be explained as an autoscopic experience from the point of view of neuroscience.