A deep dive into a mysterious Biblical character.

1. We begin in Genesis, where we first learn of Enoch.

Enoch was a man who walked closely with God. So much so, that God chose to take him to heaven before his death.

“22 Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters. 23 Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. 24 Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.” (Genesis 5:22-24)

2. Then we find Enoch mentioned in a couple of the Biblical Genealogies.

According 1 Chronicles, Enoch was a forefather of Abraham.

“1 Adam, Seth, Enosh; 2 Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared; 3 Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech; 4 Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth…25 Eber, Peleg, Reu; 26 Serug, Nahor, Terah; 27 Abram, that is, Abraham.” (1 Chronicles 1:1-27)

According to Luke’s Gospel, Enoch was a forefather of Jesus.

“23 Jesus, when he began his ministry, was about thirty years of age, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli…37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, 38 the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.” (Luke 3:23-38)

3. Moving into the New Testament, Enoch is mentioned in two of the Epistles (Church Letters).

According to Hebrews 11, Enoch was a Hero of Faith.

“5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” (Hebrews 11:5-6)

According to Jude, Enoch MAY HAVE BEEN a prophet.

“14 It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, ‘Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, 15 to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.'” (Jude 1:14-15)

May have been a prophet…wait, what?

Yes, this post is going to take a mysterious and controversial turn into a topic that has been heavily debated for centuries. We’re going down a rabbit hole to understand who Enoch is or might have been.

In Jude’s text, he’s giving the Church a warning, because it has been infiltrated and perverted with false teaching. Jude then uses Enoch’s words as authoritative, as prophecies. But where did these prophecies come from, if we don’t have them in our Bibles?

They’re from an apocalyptic set of writings called “The Book of Enoch” that has excluded from our canon of Scripture. However, they have been included in some Ethiopian and Orthodox Bibles. Here’s the passage that Jude quoted.

“And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones to excite judgement upon all, and to destroy all the ungodly: And to convict all flesh of all the works of their ungodliness which they have ungodly committed, and of all the hard things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” (1 Enoch 1:9, The Book of Enoch, Seedbed Press, 2015)

Sounds valid since it matches closely with Jude’s quotation. Why doesn’t that appear in our Bible? If Jude (Jesus’ younger brother) quoted it, shouldn’t that be enough?

Let’s dig into the debate!

Here are a few quote from experts on The Book of Enoch.

“Currently the Book of Enoch is in the Bibles of Christians who belong to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and Eritrean Orthodox Church. The apostle Mark founded these churches when he traveled to northern Africa at the time of the Acts of the Apostles. According to church tradition, he brought the Book of Enoch with his other scriptures that currently make up their Bibles.” (“The Book of Enoch – MIV” by Christopher Coutant)

“Many ancient sources referred to the Book of Enoch, but it was not until 1773 that the Scottish traveler, James Bruce, returned to Europe with three copies of what we know call the First Book of Enoch in Ethiopia. There are three Books of Enoch, all unrelated to each other, and by different authors of different times and languages…However, no manuscripts of any books of Enoch in their original language have been discovered…Scholars cannot agree about the author of The First Book of Enoch, although it is generally accepted that several authors were responsible for The First Book of Enoch. The First Book of Enoch was excluded from the Christian Bible Canon, despite the fact that Jude quotes a passage from First Book of Enoch. Early Christians objected upon Jude’s inclusion in the New Testament canon on this basis.” (“Complete Books of Enoch” by Dr A. Nyland)

How should we respond to this revelation?

Full disclosure, it’s above my pay-grade to make a definitive answer. So instead, here are a few widely recognized commentaries to give you a wider perspective on how theologians are working through the topic of Enoch’s supposed prophetic writings.

“Since Jude’s statement is similar to a passage in the apocryphal Book of Enoch (1:9) — written prior to 110 B.C. and thus probably known by the early Christians — many assume that Jude is quoting from that book…If Jude quoted the apocryphal book, he was affirming only the truth of that prophecy and not endorsing the book in its entirety.” (The Bible Knowledge Commentary)

“Modern-day scholarship recognizes both the fluidity and diversity of early Christian thinking about a ‘canon’ of inspired Scripture as well as the ubiquitous use of sources…the canon that is now used by Christians, whether in its Roman Catholic or Protestant form, is only a consensus; what ‘canon’ Jude operated with is beyond our knowledge. It is possible that Jude himself, in company with others in the ancient world, considered 1 Enoch Scripture.” (Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible)

“Jude seeks an ancient authority to back up his argument. We would have expected him to cite the Hebrew Scriptures, but instead he cites the work of 1 Enoch…Jude obviously believes that 1 Enoch is authoritative in that he cities it as a prophecy (“prophesied”). Given the frequency of prophecy in the Old Testament and, for that matter in the New Testament Jesus movement, such language indicates Jude believes that this is divinely inspired speech.” (Pillar New Testament Commentary)

So, have you formed your opinion on The Book of Enoch? Do you feel like you know who Enoch is? Or are you left with more questions than answers?

Join the Conversation; Share Your Thoughts

• How authority should we (the church) give The Book of Enoch?
• Should it be included in our western ‘canon’ or not?