A Companion to the Book of Enoch: A Reader’s Commentary, Vol I: The Book of the Watchers

by Michael S. Heiser

The Book of Enoch was read and revered across the spectrum of Second Temple Judaism--those forms of Judaism that thrived in the Intertestamental period (ca. 500 B.C. to 100 A. D.). The book is more properly referred to as 1 Enoch in order to distinguish it from other books that bore the name Enoch which were composed later than this period (e.g., 2 Enoch, 3 Enoch). Though 1 Enoch was and is not considered canonical Scripture by the majority of Jewish and Christian authorities in antiquity, the book had a very wide readership, including the authors of New Testament books. This fact is well known to scholars who work in the original languages of both the New Testament and 1 Enoch. The content of 1 Enoch can be found in a number of passages in the New Testament as well as certain of its theological conceptions. Though the scholarly literature on 1 Enoch is plentiful, no commentary for the interested lay person exists--until now. A Companion to the Book of A Reader's Commentary, Volume 1: The Book of the Watchers (1 Enoch 1-36) was written to fill this void and help students of the Bible understand and appreciate this important and influential ancient book. This reader's commentary; does not require original language facility on the part of its user. Rather, the purpose of a Reader's Commentary is to help readers of 1 Enoch comprehend what the book's content with greater insight and clarity. Consequently, this Reader's Commentary on 1 Enoch is not written for scholars. Anyone who has decided to devote the time to reading 1 Enoch, perhaps for the first time, will find this resource eminently useful. A Companion to the Book of A Reader's Commentary is based on the translation of 1 Enoch by R. H. Charles (1917). Important original language insights and differences in manuscripts of 1 Enoch are noted and explained as are theological concepts.

Genres: Theology, Christianity, Spirituality, Nonfiction, Reference, Christian, Biblical Studies

244 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2019

About the author

Mike Heiser is a scholar in the fields of biblical studies and the ancient Near East. He is the Academic Editor of Logos Bible Software. Mike earned the M.A. and Ph.D. in Hebrew Bible and Semitic Languages at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2004. He has also earned an M.A. in Ancient History from the University of Pennsylvania (major fields: Ancient Israel and Egyptology). His main research interests are Israelite religion (especially Israel’s divine council), biblical theology, ancient Near Eastern religion, biblical & ancient Semitic languages, and ancient Jewish binitarian monotheism.

Mike blogs about biblical studies at The Naked Bible, and fringe beliefs about the ancient world at PaleoBabble. He offers courses to the public in Old Testament, biblical theology, Israelite religion, ancient languages, the Book of Enoch through his online institute, MEMRA.

Mike's other academic interests include the paranormal and the occult. His UFO Religions blog discusses how the pop cultural belief in aliens shape religious worldviews. Mike has been a frequent guest on a number of radio programs such as Coast to Coast AM. He is best known for his critique of the ancient astronaut theories of Zecharia Sitchin and his paranormal thriller, The Facade, which intertwines many of his interests.

Reviews

[Wes Van Fleet · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great introduction to the book of Enoch for me. Heiser does a great job blending good scholarship with readability. I enjoyed and was drawn into the historical usage of Enoch in Scripture as well as how that book shaped Second Temple Judaism and well as NT authors and the early church fathers.

[Anne Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's difficult to rate this book objectively, because I kept mentally comparing it to other books by Heiser that I've been wowed by: The Unseen Realm and Supernatural: What the Bible Teaches about the Unseen World - And Why It Matters and Angels: What the Bible Really Says About God’s Heavenly Host and, most especially since it's in the same arena of study, Reversing Hermon: Enoch, the Watchers, and the Forgotten Mission of Jesus Christ.

It's a great book and an important contribution to Enoch studies but it didn't, for me, have the "wow" factor of the others that Heiser has written. Except maybe the bit almost at the end about the stars and their numbers and names. But then I love astronomy, I love names and I love the promises of God. That was a wrap-up I found almost irresistible.

[Steve McHenry · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Kindle edition needs some serious work!

The formatting of the Kindle edition is a mess. It needs to be completely redone. Should not have been released.

[John Gedeon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Introduction for 1 Enoch 1-36

This book certainly put into perspective many things I didn’t know about the Book of 1 Enoch and also it gave me the proper framework to think about the materials. This framework also leaked into my understanding of the Old Testament and New Testament, making the Torah & Bible more accessible. They’re certain ancient cosmological thought patterns and Near East thought pattern that is honestly necessary to understand the nuts and bolts of the Torah & Bible. Dr. Michael S. Heiser did a great job at making this information accessible to anyone even those without an academic background.

[Becca Farrer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Learned many new insights

Enjoyed the scholarly insights & documentation to consider various sources & conclusions. It helped explain Enoch as I hadn't achieved before. Husband here

[Zachary Bemrose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Heiser delivers a nice commentary to “The Book of The Watchers (1 Enoch 1-36).” The back of the book instructs readers that this commentary is for the layman and for those approaching 1 Enoch for the first or second time. He makes it clear that this is not for the scholar. I would be interested to find out how the scholarly version of this would read. I am curious because this was quite thick! Heiser gives the reader a brief history of the book and where it has been found and the various languages that have surviving texts. It was very helpful and interesting to find out all the translation corruption and detailed nuances between the Ethiopian, Greek, and Arabic translations. As a second time reader I can say that I have much more clarity and understanding of 1 Enoch after reading Dr. Heiser’s commentary. This is a fascinating read and study. Enoch is an intriguing character in the canonical Bible being 1 of 2 persons not to experience death but to be taken up into Heaven to be with God. The other being the prophet Elijah. Quite the honor! From the canon Bible, not much can be learned of Enoch’s life other than he was a righteous man that “walked faithfully with God.” 1 Enoch (which is not considered canonical but is found in our oldest Bible, The Ethiopic Text) tells us his wild story and takes us along for Enoch’s celestial journey and his visit to the throne room of The Most High, The Ancient of Days, The God of gods, Lord of lords, Creator of All, The Alpha and Omega, The Great One, The I AM, YHWY! It also introduces several archangels, fallen angels, and provides greater depth to the story of The Men of Renown (The Nephilim). 1 Enoch has a lot of similarities to The Book of Isaiah, The Book of Ezekiel, and The book of Job (which are all canonical). There is a lot of disagreement and controversy over this ancient book but what is fascinating is that Enoch is referenced in the New Testament by Peter, and is even directly quoted by Jude. The book of Hebrews also mentions Enoch as a man of great faith. There are certainly a lot of truths contained in this work but Biblical scholars encourage readers to approach Enoch with a sense of discernment and with a grain of salt.

Godspeed on your study.

Peace, Peace!

[Alan Fuller · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book includes a translation of 1 Enoch and footnotes. The footnotes consist of scholarly details and speculation. The Kindle formatting was a mess in the file I downloaded. 

"...the tour is designed to convey the authoritative, heavenly nature of the revelation given to Enoch and relayed in the book that bears his name." Loc: 615

Heiser seems undecided on whether the view is simply "enchanted," or if it has another basis.

"While the idea (verse 1) that the beasts and birds may refer to mythical monsters has merit, it must also be acknowledged, in light of the passage’s connections to the Book of the Luminaries (1 Enoch 72–82), that the references to these beasts and birds might be rooted in ancient astronomical/astrological symbols and constellations." Loc: 3791

[Dominic Strevett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dr. Heiser has done numerous work regarding Enoch and other pseudepigrapha, but in his last years, he gave the world a gift in the form of a complete commentary on the first 71 chapters of Enoch. For anyone interested in comprehending Enoch, it doesn't get better than Heiser's book

[JonM · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well done, Dr Heiser.
This is an accessible commentary for those interested in the paradigms proposed within other works by Heiser.
Highly recommended.

[Nathan Pyles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent resource to help a layperson, such as myself, understand this important 2nd temple book that influenced the worldview of Jesus, John, Peter, Paul and Jude!