Volume 1

The Jewish encyclopedia : a descriptive record of the history, religion, literature, and customs of the Jewish people from the earliest times to the present day / prepared ... under the direction of ... Cyrus Adler [and others] Isidore Singer ... managing editor.

Date:: 1901-1906

Credit: The Jewish encyclopedia : a descriptive record of the history, religion, literature, and customs of the Jewish people from the earliest times to the present day / prepared ... under the direction of ... Cyrus Adler [and others] Isidore Singer ... managing editor. Source: Wellcome Collection.

731/752 (page 673)

$Levi.viii,; Rev.viii.l, etc.; compare Hennas,“ Simil.” ix. 6, 12; the “ watcliers ” {eypr/yopoi, pi'j;), Dan. iv. 14, 20(Masoretic text); Enocli, i. 5, xii. 2, etc.; Slav. Enoch, xviii. 3; Testament Naphtali, iii.; the great beasts whicli “ came iij) out of the sea, ” Dan. vii. 3; H Esd. xi. 1; Rev. xiii. 1; the traditional employment of such monsters to sjunbolize the heathen world- powers, successive rulers being represented by a se- ries of heads, horns, or wings, and so on. In point of theological teaching, also, there is to be observed the same noteworthy transmission of material (see the examples in § HI.). It is plain that the fixitj' of this “apocalyptic tradition” is due to the nature of the subject-matter. The writer of such visions of the fu- ture was obliged to deal to some extent with definite things—persons, events, times, and places. The end of the world, for example, could take jdace in but one way; and after the scene had once been described, a subsequent writer on this theme could not disre- gard or contradict the former description without throwing discredit upon his own work. In no other branch of literature is it .so indispensable—and so easy —to have the support of tradition. It was this desire for authenticity, chiefly, that caused the most of these writings to be put forth under the names of former great men of Israel. Only in the case of the Chris- tian “ Shepherd ” of Hernias does the author write in his own name. In spite of this uniformity of tradition, the books of this group exhibit very considerable diversity. In the development of Jewish apoca- Controlling' h'ptic literature two controlling mo- Motives. tives may be especiall}’ observed; in- terest in the future — especially the future of the true Israel—and interest in the secrets of the universe. The two oldest apocalypses that have been preserved—Daniel and Enoch—may serve to represent these two main divisions. The Book of Daniel is the most strongly patriotic of all the apoc- alypses. Very little attention is paid in it to the unseen world; no great interest in the current myth- ology is apparent; here alone among all the wri- tings of this class there is no reference to the ancient Hebrew history. The eschatolog}^ of the book—im- mensely important as it is, and strongly emphasized by the author himself—is crowded into the briefest possible space, vii. 13 et scq., 27, xii. 1-3. Angels are made prominent only for the purpose of empha- sizing the fact that God and His hosts are in direct control of all that has come upon the Jews. That to which everything else is subordinated is the j^re- diction of the immediate future. The Jews are soon to be delivered from their oppressors, and the faithful will triumph forever. Another book, to be associated with Daniel in the above classification, but of a very different character, is II Esdras. In this another and most important line of develop- ment is exemplified. Theological interests are in the foreground. Questions concerning the dealing of God with His people, and His ultimate purposes for them, are asked and answered. The doctrine of the IVIessiah is plainly set forth. In all these re- spects, the (Syriac) Apocalypse of Baruch is the counterpart of H Esdras. The Book of Enoch, representing the other main division of this literature, is chiefly concerned with the heavens above, and the mysteries of the uni- verse. Interest in the future of Israel is by no means wanting, but it occupies a very subordinate place. Angels and demons, the heavenl} bodies, the places and conditions of departed spirits, are among the subjects which receive most attention. The book is composite, consisting, in fact, of several independent books of different dates; its national 1,-43 apocalyptic ])ortion belongs in time near the Book of Daniel. A number of apocalypses, generally of minor religious value, follow in this track. The most noteworthy example of degeneration along this line is furnished by the Greek Apocalyi)sc Baruch. Both of these varieties of apocalyi)tic exercised a i)rofound influence on the nation. Such doctrines, common to both of them, as tho.se of the resurrec- tion, the millennium, and the Messianic kingdom, were soon given an assured place in the common belief. The elaborate m3'tholog}'and occult science of the Enoch literature were inherited by the Jew- ish IMidrash and the earlv Christian writings. As for the more distinctl,y patriotic apocalyi)ses, espe- cially Daniel and 11 Esdras, there is abundant evi- dence that thej gave in full measure what thej' were designed to give: encouragement, and anew religious impulse to the pious in Israel. For the de- tailed evidence of their great influence on the devel- opment of both Jewish and Christian theolog}', see the articles devoted to the separate books. The Jewish apocalyptic writings were not the property of anj' sect or school. Their point of view was in general that of Palestinian orthodoxy, of the type of wliich the Pharisees were the best represent- atives. Most of them, but probabl} not all, were written in Palestine. Most of them, but not all, were composed in the Hebrew language. It is a mistake to regard the writers as men of a pessimistic turn of mind, or to contrast them sharplj-, as a class, with the prophets. So far as religious teaching is concerned, it is not possible to draw anv distinct line between proiihecj' and Apocalypse. The devel- opment in this regard was continuous, as some, at least, of the writers them.selves felt; see the use of TTpo(j>r/Tda, Rev. i. 3, xxii. 7 et seq. The appearance of the successive apocalypses did not mark succes- sive periods of persecution, or unusual distress, as has sometimes been assumed. After the Book of Daniel, there is no evidence that anj writing of this kind was called forth bj' the immediate circum- stances of the people. From the Jews this t3’pe of composition passed over to the Christians, who both wrote books of their own on this model, and still oftener appropri- ated existing Jewish books in their entiret3' or in- terpolated them. The additions to H Esdras (chaps, i., ii., XV., xvi.; called also “5 Ezra”) are perhaps the most striking illustration of the last-named pro- cess. Other examples will be mentioned below. § V. The Jewish Apocal3rpses. The following is a list of the chief representatives of Jewish apoca- lyptic. As the several books are treated at length elsewhere, onl3' the briefest description of them is given here, the aim being to present in each case such particulars as will best illustrate the histoiy of the growth of this literature. 1. Daniel. The latter part of this book (written probabl3 165 b.c.) is the oldest Jewish Apocal3-i)se known to us. Cliaps. i., iii.-vi. have little or none of the “ apocal3'ptic ” character. For a characteriza- tion of chaps, vii.-xii., see above, § IV. 2. Enoch. Oldest portion written about 120 B.c.; the remainder within a period of perhaps flft3' 3'ears. Original language was certainl3' Semitic, probably Hebrew. For the most part it is typically apocalyp- tic, and a mine of characteristic material; see § tV. Especiall3 prominent features are angelology, secrets of the unseen world, explanation of natural phenom- ena, the history of the world, arranged in its succes- sive “ periods,” and the Messianic kingdom. 3. Slavonic Enoch (or Book of the Secrets of Enoch). Written probably in the former half of the first centur3 of the comnion era. Original language$