The Satan: How God's Executioner Became the Enemy by Ryan E. Stokes

Author:Ryan E. Stokes [Stokes, Ryan E.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781467457156
Google: bEHcDwAAQBAJ
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Publisher: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Lawlessness Was Not Sent upon the Earth

The Epistle of Enoch does not typically figure into discussions of early Jewish beliefs about evil spirits. Its neglect in this regard is understandable. The Epistle mentions evil spirits only once and speaks of them as merely one item in a list of objects of illicit worship (1 En. 99:7). Given the more exciting teachings on malevolent spirits in the Book of the Watchers and Jubilees, the Epistle’s passing reference to these beings seems hardly worthy of mention. Nevertheless, there is much more to this work’s teaching on evil spirits than is obvious at first glance. Indeed, a closer look at the Epistle reveals a polemic directed against the teachings on evil spirits found in the Book of the Watchers and Jubilees.

The passage in which the Epistle of Enoch most clearly addresses the origin of human sin, though not explicitly evil spirits, is 98:4–5.

I swear to you, sinners,

that it was not ordained <for a man> to be a slave,

nor was <a decree> given for a woman to be a handmaid;

but it happened because of oppression.

Thus lawlessness was not sent upon the earth;

but men created it by themselves,

and those who do it will come to a great curse.

Likewise, neither is a woman created barren,

but because of the works of her hands she is disgraced with childlessness.22

These lines state unequivocally that the blame for human sin is not to be placed on any force outside humanity. Humans themselves created it, and (therefore) those who do it will justifiably be cursed. Commentators have rightly compared this passage with Sir 15:11–20, in which Ben Sira similarly addresses the question of sin’s source with statements like, “Do not say, ‘It was the Lord’s doing that I fell away’ ”; “Do not say, ‘It was he who led me astray’ ”; and, “[the Lord] has not commanded anyone to be wicked.” According to Ben Sira, humans are responsible for their own sin. The NT book of James also echoes this sentiment: “No one, when tempted, should say, ‘I am being tempted by God’ ” (Jas 1:13). Each of these passages expresses the concern that humans bear the responsibility for their actions. The guilty cannot escape judgment by shifting responsibility for their wrongdoing to God or to one of God’s superhuman agents.23

Although it is not impossible that the Epistle was influenced by Ben Sira’s teaching in this regard, one also perceives a difference between the Epistle’s remark, on the one hand, and those of Ben Sira and the later James, on the other. Ben Sira and James warn individuals not to think that God leads them to commit acts of sin. “Do not say, ‘It was the Lord’s doing that I fell away’ ” (Sir 15:11). “No one, when tempted, should say, ‘I am being tempted by God’ ” (Jas 1:13). According to these two authors, God does not instigate acts of sin. The Epistle of Enoch, on the other hand, appears to be addressing the origin of human sin more generally. “Lawlessness was not sent upon the earth; but men created it by themselves” (1 En.

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