The Origin of Evil Spirits: The Reception of Genesis 6:1-4 in Early Jewish Literature, Revised Edition
Archie T. Wright
Language: English
Pages: 280
ISBN: 1451490321
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
How do we account for the explosion of demonic activity in the New Testament? Archie T. Wright's work traces the development of the concept of evil spirits from the Hebrew Bible through postbiblical Jewish literature. Wright is concerned with the reception history of Genesis 6:1-4 (the source of the "Watchers" traditions) in early Enochic and Philonic Judaism during the Second Temple Period. He suggests that the nonspecificity inherent in the biblical text of Genesis 6:1-4 opened the basis for the later emergence of an etiology of evil spirits as Jewish authors engaged with the text. As a result, Genesis 6:1-4 played an important part in the development of demonology in Second Temple Judaism. Chapters examine 1 Enoch 1-36 (the Book of the Watchers) and the reception of the Watchers tradition in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Philo of Alexandria and draw conclusions about the background of the New Testament conceptions of demons and demon possession.
suggests the function of BW is to encourage the people that despite the presence of a spiritual evil, for the removal of which there appears to be no solution, there is help coming from God.i43 Nickelsburg's understanding of the message and function of BW leads him to find a historical setting for the book. He places BW at the end of the Nickelsburg, "Apocalyptic and Myth," 388. It is not so apparent that the humans did not share in the blame in I Enoch d l I . There is, after all, a law at work
but more interesting is what follows in verses 5-10. In this passage (v.7 in the Greek text), he describes those who have been punished by God for their disobedience; of particular interest is the mention of "the ancient giants who revolted in their might."m The verb 31(5)also provides a means of interpreting the passage as an attempt by the author to introduce the Flood. According to Schwarzbaum, the multiplication of humanity was leading to a problem of overpopulation of the earth and thus God
Nephilim, the soas of Anak from the Nephilim." The sons of Anak arc also translated as yiyav~ovin Deut 1.28. It may be suggested that the antecedent of ;TDR is nephilim. Thrs would then identify the nephilim as the heroic figures "the mighty men who were of old, men of renown," thus removing the "positive" image from the offspring of the sons of God and the women. I" Julian Morgenstern suggests that the verb l R 3 ' expresses the ides of frequency of visits. If this were the case, then this would
night demons found in Assyrian town of Hadattu; see H. Torczyner, "A Hebrew Incantation Against Night-Demons From Biblical Times," JNES 6 ( 1947): 18-29. "' Reception of the "Sons of God"in the Book of Watchers 125 be inconsequential compared to the act of intercourse.132 In the charge against Shemihazah and the others in 10.11, their teachings are not identified as a reason for their punishment. In 9.7, the author notes the issue of the teaching of spells,''' but this is only from the
Israel, 'You shall not eat blood of any flesh for [the] life of all flesh is its blood; anyone who eats of it shall be cut off."' First, we should perhaps ask if there is any significance in why the giants drank the blood of the animals. One possible answer is that they were seeking immortality through the drinking of blood. Second, were the 148 Chapter 5 eating (or drinking) the blood of an animal, an injunction which is broken by the giants in I Enoch 7.5." The punishment for this sin,