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Ausgabe: | 1985 |
Spalte: | 110-111 |
Kategorie: | Neues Testament |
Autor/Hrsg.: | Religion (vorkonstantinisches Christentum, Leben und Umwelt Jesu |
Titel/Untertitel: | Neues Testament [Kanonische Schriften und Apokryphen]) 1985 |
Rezensent: | H., T. |
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109
Theologische Literaturzeitung 1 10. Jahrgang 1985 Nr. 2
1 10
Atter an Introduction (1) on the Enoch apocalyptic tradition, the
First Part The Textual History oj En. 22 consists of a detailed textual
(11) and literary-critical (III) study of ch. 22, based on the Cireek text, a
Single Ethiopic 'Standard text' ms (Ge'ez text with aecompanying
translation), and the extant Aramaic fragments of vs. 3-7,13 in the
Milik text and translation. The result is a translation of the text
thereby adopted (p. 95). The Second Part Tradition and Interpretation
(IV) traces the Old Testament background of En 22, discusses
materials for comparison from the history of religions and aspects of
its tradition-history in Egyptian and Babylonian sourees, concluding
with (V) an analysis of motifs and ideas in the chapter itsclf, the four
compartments of the dead etc. This leads (VI) to the linked tradition of
the Last Judgement in Jerusalem at 26-27, and a section (VII) on the
Problem of the resurrection at En 22. A Schluß (VIII) deals with some
general aspects of the theme of Weltordnung und Gericht.
lt must be said at once that the book, though possessed of some of
the less attractive features ofa dissertation (we could have been spared
a good deal of secondary literature), has the great merit over so many
Enoch studies of tackling the problems of interpretation at their
source in a rebarbative textual tradition, and seeking, with painstaking
thoroughness, to arrive at the mcaning of the original text. Not that
M/s Wacker would make such a claim for her adopted text and translation
. but the latter is sound, and as near to the intention of the original
as textual or litcrary critical studies will allow. The Ethiopic and
Greek versions are handled well: the book is perhaps too dependent
on Milik for the Aramaic (below) (except in reading 'anina for Milik's
correct aninah, 'lamentation', and then explaining it by an etymolo-
gical tour de forec. as a derivative of the word for 'answer'. [p. 56])
The litcrary and tradition-historical links between the 'duplicate'
versions of the vision of the mountain-thronc of God at ch. 18 and 24
are well-known. Fresh insights, however, of a similar growth of tradi-
tions are the comparison of the judgement motif at ch. 22 with the
judgement scenc in Jerusalem at ch. 26-27 (which has been made the
subject of a separate but not, therefore, unrclated study), or of the
similar connections of 22.5.6,7.12, the cries and petitions of the spirit
of Abel and of those who suffered a similar fate with the cries and
pleadings of mankind at their slaughter by the Giants.
On the well-known crux, the number of the abodes of the dead and
the identity and fate of their occupants M/s Wacker rightly, in my
opinion, considers that the number 'four' is original, and attributes
the 'intrusion' of'three', not to textual error or the interpolation of a
fourth compartment for the righteous into an original three-compart-
ment division for sinners, but to atlempts to conform the text to later
'deas of a three-fold division of Sheol (1080- But is such an
explanation neecssary? At v. 2a distinetion is already made between
three compartments which are dark, and one, the fourth, which is
'ight. This fourth promptuarium is unmistakably the one to reeeive
the righteous; the three are for all the other souls of men. Had v. 9
mentioned the compartment for the righteous llrst. then spoken of the
three others. therc would have been no confusion, since vs. 10-13
describe three distinet classes of spirits. But the order at v. 9 follows
that of v. 2; and it is left to the reader to recognise that 9a refers to
vs- 10-13, 9b to the class of the righteous. (Conceivably 9b and 9a
were originally reversed and the order altercd to agree with v. 2). M/s
Wacker, again rightly, recognises that the categorics of the 'righteous'
and 'sinners' in Enoch are soeiological and not only ethical, and in
this part of Enoch she identifies the former with members of the
Jewish middle classes of about the first half of the 2nd C. B. C, steeped
m their own traditions but not unaware or even unsympathetic to
hcllenistic culturc; the latter are the godless hellenisers (3130- One
ean perhaps be more precise: the 'righteous' could well be a grouping
such as the Maccabaean Hasidim , and the 'sinners' or 'lawless' their
oppressors, the Selcucids or antagonistic hcllenising fcllow-country;
the plaintitTs in their own murder suits are all who suffered violent
death, but they need not exclude the Hasidaean martyrs; and the
'lesser sinners' of the fourth class are unmistakably the Jewish
aeeomplices of the enemies of the 'righteous', 'the fellow-travellers'
with the Seleucidsand the extreme hellenisers.
Section VII of Part Two is devoted to the problem of the resurrection
at ch. 22. After a survey of the roots of the idea in the Old Testament
etc., particularly in Dan 12.1-2, the discussion focuses on
22.13b which seem to speak unequivocally (at least in the versions) of
a resurrection to be denied to the fourth group of spirits. Moreover,
since 1-36 (with the exception of the problcmatical 20.8) knows
nothing of resurrection. this, if original, would be the earliest evidence
for this coneept in the older Enoch tradition (p. 259). Unfortunately,
the Aramaic for the crucial verb is lost: Milik, who denics any refe-
rence to resurrection, restores yitaayyemun, rendering, somewhat
arbitrarily, 'nor will they be transferred permanently from there . .. to
another place in order to be condemned to a harsher and endless
punishment' (i. e. at the judgement). M/s Wacker takes a more tradi-
tional line while aeeepting Milik's Supplement but giving it the
mcaning 'will not have fullness of lifo", explaining the words still as a
denial of resurrection for this class of sinner. She gocs on to assume,
without Support in any text. that the resurrection is to be denied to all
sinners, and reserved for the righteous only (p. 2740- Apart from
reservations about the mcaning she gives to Milik's Aramaic verb, a
more appropriate restoration, in this context, would be 'will not be
awakened (yita'arun) from there', i. e. from the sleep of death, a
possible allusion to Dan 12.2 (cf. Isa 26-19, Job 14.12 and En 91.10).
There can be no question of'resurrection' in this verse or elsewhere in
the passage (that idea probably originally came from a Christian
appropriation of LXX Dan 12.2.). Neverthelcss, there could be the
implication of a Danielic eschatology (as M/s Wacker suspects
elsewhere in 1-36); for if one class of sinner is not to be 'awakened'
from the sleep of death for judgement. all the rest of men will be
awakened to be judged, 'some to everlasting life .. . some to ever-
lasting contempt .
The book draws on a number of specialist Heids (e. g. comparative
religion) which requirc an expert assessment. For its main subject. the
interpretation of En 22, it makes a serious contribution to inter-
tcstamental studies, even if its doctoral erudition and discursive style
make it less attractive to the general reader.
St. Andrews Matthew Black
1 So M. Hengel, Judaism and Hellcnism (London. 1973). Vol. I. p. I 76.
2 The punishment of the fourth class of 'lesser sinners' ist to consist of
perpelual incareeration in their prison in Sheol. They arc not to be awakened
and so spared further punishment at the judgement, but they are also therehy
denied, not the resurrection. but the chance of aequittal and so all hope of'everlasting
life'.
Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt. Geschichte und Kultur
Roms im Spiegel der neueren Forschung. Hrsg. von H. Temporini
u. W. Haasc. Teil II: Principat. Bd. 25 (2. Tcilbd.): Religion (vor-
konstantinisches Christentum: Leben und Umwelt Jesu; Neues
Testament. Forts. [Kanonische Schriften und Apokryphen], hrsg.
von W. Haase. Berlin-New York: de Gruyter 1984. X,
S. 891-1885, 1 Faltktcgr. 8-. Lw. DM 490,-.
Der zweite Teil des Bandes von ANRW, der dem neutestament-
lichen Bereich gewidmet ist (II, 25; s. die Anzeige von 11. 25.1 in
ThLZ 108, 1983 Sp. 673), hat ausschließlich sprachliche und literarische
Probleme zum Gegenstand. Die Beschäftigung mit den literarischen
Gattungen hat eine oft unterschätzte Bedeutung für das Verstehen
der neutcstamenllichen Schriften. Bemerkenswert ist das
starke Hervortreten des Versuchs, die neutestamentlichen Formen
von hellenistischen Voraussetzungen und Parallelen herzu erklären.
Auch die Gattung der Evangelien wird wieder stärker von der antiken
Biographic herzu erfassen versucht. Jedoch wird gerade mit Hinsicht
auf die Evangelien und ihre Entstehung die Breite der gegenwärtigen