First Enoch is an ancient Judean work that inaugurated the genre of apocalypse. Chapters 1-36 tell the story of the descent of angels called "Watchers" from heaven to earth to marry human women before the time of the flood, the chaos that ensued, and God's response. They also relate the journeying of the righteous scribe Enoch through the cosmos, guided by angels. Heaven, including the place and those who dwell there (God, the angels, and Enoch), plays a central role in the narrative. But how should heaven be understood? Existing scholarship, which presupposes "Judaism" as the appropriate framework, views the Enochic heaven as reflecting the temple in Jerusalem, with God's house replicating its architecture and the angels and Enoch functioning like priests. Yet recent research shows the Judeans constituted an ethnic group, and this view encourages a fresh examination of 1 Enoch 1-36. The actual model for heaven proves to be a king in his court surrounded by his courtiers. The major textual features are explicable in this perspective, whereas the temple-and-priests model is unconvincing. The author was a member of a nontemple, scribal group in Judea that possessed distinctive astronomical knowledge, promoted Enoch as its exemplar, and was involved in the wider sociopolitical world of their time.
Among the first seven scrolls discovered in the caves of Qumran at the Dead Sea is a scroll given the name, "The Book of Giants." It is thought to have been based on the Book of Enoch, a pseudepigraphical Jewish work from the 3rd century BCE. The Book of Giants, like the Book of Enoch, concerns itself with the Nephilim, which are the offspring of fallen angels, who are called the Watchers. Two main versions of the text exist. The Dead Sea version is written in Aramaic. Another version has been found written in middle Persian, adapted from the Aramaic to fit into the Manichean religion. Both versions will be examined.Following theories speculating that the Book of Giants was once part of the Book of Enoch, we will attempt to place the two texts back together to render the complete story of the Watchers and the Nephilim. We will discover the history and contributions of these ancient scrolls and look carefully at their content and meaning. Throughout the combined texts of the Book of Giants and the Book of Enoch we will examine all the biblical and apocryphal references and parallels within the text.The result is an in-depth and panoramic view of the Angels, the Watchers, and the Nephilim, and how one of the giants of the Nephilim race may have survived the flood intended to cleanse the Earth of their horror.
Reversing Hermon is a groundbreaking work. It unveils what most in the modern Church have never heard regarding how the story of the sin of the Watchers in 1 Enoch 6-16 helped frame the mission of Jesus, the messiah. Jews of the first century expected the messiah to reverse the impact of the Watchers' transgression. For Jews of Jesus' day, the Watchers were part of the explanation for why the world was so profoundly depraved. The messiah would not just revoke the claim of Satan on human souls and estrangement from God, solving the predicament of the Fall. He would also not only bring the nations back into relationship with the true God by defeating the principalities and powers that governed them. Jews also believed that the messiah would rescue humanity from self-destruction, the catalyst for which was the sin of the Watchers and the influence of what they had taught humankind. The role of Enoch's retelling of Genesis 6:1-4 in how New Testament writers wrote of Jesus and the cross has been largely lost to a modern audience. Reversing Hermon rectifies that situation. Topics include:* How the ancient Mesopotamian story of the apkallu aligns with Gen 6:1-4, was preserved in 1 Enoch, and sets the stage for the theme of reversing the evil of the Watchers* How the theme of reversing the transgression of the Watchers colors the gospel accounts of the birth of Jesus, his genealogy, and his ministry.* How the writings of Peter and Paul allude to the sin of the Watchers and present Jesus as overturning the disastrous effects of their sins against humanity.* How the descriptions of the antichrist, the end-times Day of the Lord, and the final judgment connect to Genesis 6 and the nephilim.Though every topic addressed in Reversing Hermon can be found in scholarly academic literature, Reversing Hermon is the first book to gather this information and make it accessible to Bible students everywhere.
This is one of many texts that were removed from the Bible, centuries ago, and dates to around 200 BC. The narrative of the Book of the Watchers is told from the point of view of Enoch and not surprisingly focuses on a class of angels known as the Watchers. Watchers are featured in the fourth chapter of the Book of Daniel as well as some of the other apocryphal books that have Enoch's name attached to them. Included here are some opening remarks, which examine the text itself.
Take a journey with the artist and writer Petar Meseldzija, who tells how he was allowed unparalleled access through the Invisible Curtain and into the land of giants. A year in the making, this book's sixteen paintings and nearly ninety drawings bring to life Petar's experiences on this journey and secrets uncovered, going back to ancient times. He shares stories of new discoveries that free giants from the murky abyss of myth and a forgotten past. Told in three stages, The Book of Giants includes the illustrated stories The Giants Are Coming, recounting a dynamic clash that lasted one hundred years; The Little Kingdom, where a giant befriends a nation of humans and becomes their adamant protector against ferocious invaders; The Northern Giants, who embrace the warrior spirit through countless battles; Giant Velles, the story of ignorance and how the strength of goodness perseveres; and The Great Forest, wherein the author discovers little creatures called the keppetz and relates his experiences spent with ogres while on his quest to meet the Golden One and to determine the purpose of his journey. Through the strength of his own power, he discovers his blessings, his limitations and finally his personal myth. Furthermore, you will discover why giants made a push into the underground, followed by their exodus and deliverance to a new land. You'll also learn why the myth of giants is still alive, why their time spent with humans remains elusive and why giants prefer to remain hidden in their world. Join Petar Meseldzija on his journey of discovery.
Leading scholars explore the tradition, rooted in Genesis 6, of “the Watchers,” mysterious heavenly beings who became the focus of rich cosmological and theological speculation in early Judaism. Chapters trace the development of the Watchers through the Enoch literature, Jubilees, and other early Jewish and Christian writings.
Found in the Qumran caves of the Dead Sea Scrolls (Qumran Cave 4) and presumed to be written before 170 BC, chapters 1-36 of 1 Enoch are also referred to as 'The Book of the Watchers.' These passages are also known to incorporate portions of the 'Book of Noah.' The theme of the Watchers is final judgment and incorporates the expository background of one of the most spectacularly glossed-over, overlooked, and misunderstood Scriptures in the Bible - Genesis 6:1-4. The "sons of God" referred to in Genesis 6:2 are explained in detail in The Book of the Watchers. These Watchers were supposed to be "watching' the earth as part of their heavenly ministry, but instead they transgressed and became fallen angels. How did they become fallen angels? They saw that women on earth were pleasant to look at and schemed/colluded to somehow incarnate themselves (literally celestial or, dare we say, 'extraterrestrial' beings manifesting in some kind of physical form) in order to impregnate women and corrupt the bloodline of humans.
Buy the Paperback, get the Kindle version for free!Many of the Book of Enoch books available are in fact public domain (the R. H. Charles version of 1917) which means they can be given away to anyone for free, by anyone. This book is NOT one of those. What is the problem with public domain versions? They are full of errors, as they are around 100 years old and out-dated scholarship. Sure, they might be cheap, but most of the information is wrong.World renowned scholar Dr. A. Nyland has a doctorate in ancient languages and word meaning. She was a college professor at the University of New England, Australia, lecturing in ancient languages. She has appeared on television and radio numerous times speaking about ancient languages and ancient peoples.These days, many non-translators (some of whom actually claim to be translators) sell the public domain version of 1917 by R.H. Charles (both as is, and also disguised by slight rewording) as a commercial venture. This version reflects the knowledge of The Book of Enoch as it was back in 1917. Great advances have been made since then. This (all 3 Books of Enoch) is a NEW (2010) and easy-to-read translation by ancient languages scholar Dr. A. Nyland and is NOT the 1917 R.H. Charles Public Domain translation of The Book of Enoch.The Book of Enoch is of importance to theosophy, mysticism and angelology and demonology.This book is an easy-to-read translation with cross references, copious background notes, and notes. This new translation by Dr. A. Nyland contains all 3 Books of Enoch: 1) 1 Book of Enoch (Also called The Ethiopic Book of Enoch) 2) 2 Book of Enoch (Also called The Slavonic Book of Enoch, The Secrets of Enoch). Also contains the extended version of 2 The Book of Enoch, The Exaltation of Melchizedek. 3) 3 Book of Enoch (Also called The Hebrew Book of Enoch) The Books of Enoch are of interest to a wide audience: theosophy, mysticism. 1 Book of Enoch tells of the Watchers, a class of angel, who taught humans weapons, spell potions, root cuttings, astrology, astronomy, and alchemy. The Watchers also had sex with human women and produced the Nephilim. For this, they were imprisoned and cast into Tartarus. This is also mentioned in the New Testament. In 2 Book of Enoch, two angels take Enoch through the 7 heavens. This volume contains the extended version of 2 Book of Enoch, The Exaltation of Melchizedek. In 3 Book of Enoch, Enoch ascends to heaven and is transformed into the angel Metatron. This is about the Merkabah and is of interest to those who study mysticism and magic, and Kabbalah. People interested in theosophy or mysticism will find this book invaluable, as will Rosicrucians.
The Book of Enoch (also 1 Enoch) is an ancient Jewish religious work, traditionally ascribed to Enoch, the great-grandfather of Noah. It is not part of the biblical canon as used by Jews, apart from Beta Israel. It is regarded as canonical by the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church, but no other Christian group.
Imagine that you could really understand the Bible...that you could read, analyze, and discuss the book of Genesis not as a compositional mystery, a cultural relic, or a linguistic puzzle palace, or even as religious doctrine, but as a philosophical classic, precisely in the same way that a truth-seeking reader would study Plato or Nietzsche. Imagine that you could be led in your study by one of America's preeminent intellectuals and that he would help you to an understanding of the book that is deeper than you'd ever dreamed possible, that he would reveal line by line, verse by verse the incredible riches of this illuminating text -- one of the very few that actually deserve to be called seminal. Imagine that you could get, from Genesis, the beginning of wisdom. The Beginning of Wisdom is a hugely learned book that, like Genesis itself, falls naturally into two sections. The first shows how the universal history described in the first eleven chapters of Genesis, from creation to the tower of Babel, conveys, in the words of Leon Kass, "a coherent anthropology" -- a general teaching about human nature -- that "rivals anything produced by the great philosophers." Serving also as a mirror for the reader's self-discovery, these stories offer profound insights into the problematic character of human reason, speech, freedom, sexual desire, the love of the beautiful, pride, shame, anger, guilt, and death. Something as seemingly innocuous as the monotonous recounting of the ten generations from Adam to Noah yields a powerful lesson in the way in which humanity encounters its own mortality. In the story of the tower of Babel are deep understandings of the ambiguous power of speech, reason, and the arts; the hazards of unity and aloneness; the meaning of the city and its quest for self-sufficiency; and man's desire for fame, immortality, and apotheosis -- and the disasters these necessarily cause. Against this background of human failure, Part Two of The Beginning of Wisdom explores the struggles to launch a new human way, informed by the special Abrahamic covenant with the divine, that might address the problems and avoid the disasters of humankind's natural propensities. Close, eloquent, and brilliant readings of the lives and educations of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Jacob's sons reveal eternal wisdom about marriage, parenting, brotherhood, education, justice, political and moral leadership, and of course the ultimate question: How to live a good life? Connecting the two "parts" is the book's overarching philosophical and pedagogical structure: how understanding the dangers and accepting the limits of human powers can open the door to a superior way of life, not only for a solitary man of virtue but for an entire community -- a life devoted to righteousness and holiness. This extraordinary book finally shows Genesis as a coherent whole, beginning with the creation of the natural world and ending with the creation of a nation that hearkens to the awe-inspiring summons to godliness. A unique and ambitious commentary, a remarkably readable literary exegesis and philosophical companion, The Beginning of Wisdom is one of the most important books in decades on perhaps the most important -- and surely the most frequently read -- book of all time.
