The Angels that Sinned
“Slandering Celestial Beings”
Steven Cox
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The
subjects of this booklet are the "Angels that sinned" of 2 Peter 2:4
and Jude 6. The subtitle "slandering celestial beings" is taken from
the following verses in 2 Peter 2:10 and Jude 8, where false teachers who were
troubling the early church are condemned. To slander means to falsely accuse.
The "angels that sinned" and those teachers who accused "celestial
beings" (in other words, they falsely accused angels) are closely related.
This booklet examines that relationship.
Before starting
However,
before starting on this subject, a word of caution to the reader:
Many
Christians believe a tradition that the evil in this world is due to ‘rebel
angels’, and that the ‘devil’ of the New Testament is also a ‘fallen angel’ -
although the Bible never says so. Therefore the two mentions of "angels
that sinned" in 2 Peter and Jude, which are unique in the whole Bible, have
become popular as evidence for belief in a supernatural devil and demons.
It
needs to be said that evil, the devil, and demons, are complicated subjects.
They may in fact be among the last subjects which a student of the Bible comes
to understand. This is because the New Testament (where almost all references
to ‘the devil’ and ‘demons’ occur) expects that the reader already has an
understanding of God and man, good and evil, life and death built on the
foundation of the Old Testament. Too often readers of the New Testament take
references to ‘devil’ and ‘demons’ on their own terms - according to what the
words mean in their own local culture - and then read backwards into the Old
Testament. In this way they mix their own ideas with the teachings of the
Bible.
A better
method is to first gain a thorough understanding of Old Testament teaching, and
only then start to study secondary subjects such as the devil.
Even
when the time comes to make a study of the devil and demons, this booklet,
which only deals with two exceptional verses in 2 Peter and Jude, is not the
place to start. It would be better to first read more general material about
the subject of the devil.
The
reader may well feel that he or she knows the subject of the devil very well,
and has no need to re-examine the subject, but if you are not so sure then try
answering the following questions:
1. When
did Satan fall from heaven? Christians are often very sure that Satan did fall
but very unsure if asked to answer exactly when. The usual answer is that it was
in the Garden of Eden, but thousands of years after Eden, Satan was still
apparently serving as an obedient courtier in the heavenly court in Job 1.
So when did Satan fall, if he fell at all.
2. 2
Samuel 24:1 records that God tempted David, but 1 Chronicles 21:1 says that it
was Satan. How can these both be correct?
3. In
Exodus 4:11 God tells Moses that he is the one who makes men mute, but in Luke
11:14 muteness appears to be caused by a demon. Did God lie to Moses?
4. In
Isaiah 45:7 God says that "I form the light and create darkness, I bring
prosperity and create disaster, I the Lord do all
these things". This in opposition to dualistic Babylonian belief in two
gods: one god of good, and one god of evil - the Babylonians’ Satan. So who was
right - Isaiah, or the priests of Babylon?
5. In
Psalm 78:49 God sent a band of "evil angels" against Egypt. In some
modern Bible versions this has been changed to "destroying angels"
but it is "evil angels" in the older Bibles such as the English King
James, and original Hebrew. Do evil angels obey God?
If
you are not sure of the answer to any of these questions then you are invited
to first write to the address on the back cover for other booklets on The Devil
and Demon Possession. When those booklets are read it is hoped that this little
booklet will be a useful appendix.
Part 1: Popular beliefs in Peter
and Jude’s day
The
modern Christian idea of the devil largely developed out of an interpretation
of Isaiah 14:12 which was taken as a description of the fall of Satan from heaven.
In the English King James Bible the word is Lucifer, which means ‘Morning Star’
- a name for the planet Venus as it is visible at daybreak. In recent years
many Christian churches have stopped using Isaiah 14:12 in this way, as others
(including Christadelphians) have pointed out that Isaiah is describing
"the King of Babylon" (14:4), "a man" (14:16), but the
tradition is still strong and ‘Lucifer’ is still behind many peoples’
understanding of the devil.
However,
at the time Peter and Jude wrote, ‘Lucifer’ was never used as a name for the
devil. In fact Peter’s own "day star" (2 Peter 1:19, meaning Christ)
was rendered ‘Lucifer’ in Latin Bibles, and as a result in the early church
‘Lucifer’ was considered as a title of Christ, sung to in early hymns, and
taken as a personal name by several bishops.
When
Peter and Jude wrote, belief in fallen angels did not centre around Isaiah
14:12 but on this verse:
"The sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful
and they married any of them they chose" (Genesis 6:2)
The
context of Genesis 4 and 5 suggests that ‘sons of God’ here means the same as
it means in the New Testament - human believers. The famous 5th Century
Catholic theologian Augustine wrote at length about Genesis 6:2 in his
book City of God and concluded that the ‘sons of God’ were the
sons of Seth who "began to call on the name of the Lord" (Genesis
4:26), but were enticed away from worship of the Lord by the godless ‘daughters
of men’ - meaning that they intermarried with the descendants of Cain - until
only Noah and his family remained faithful. This is also the interpretation
followed by the Jewish Rabbis writing on Genesis 6:2.
However,
in the days of Peter and Jude many myths had grown up among Jews as a result of
influence by Babylonian and Greek traditions.
We
might think of ‘myths’ as being something found more among Greeks and Romans,
but Paul warned Titus to "pay no attention to Jewish myths" (Titus
1:14). Many of these Jewish myths are fantastic fiction about Old Testament
figures, such as Seth, Enoch, Abraham, Moses, Solomon and Ezra.
Examples
of Jewish myths are found in the Apocrypha of Roman Catholic Bibles (Tobit, Bel
and the Dragon), and in other surviving Pseudepigrapha
- meaning ‘false writings’. Jewish myths about angels and demons are also found
inscribed on papyrus and pottery fragments dug up by archaeologists, and in the
Dead Sea Scrolls which were discovered in Israel in 1948. They had lain hidden
since around AD70 - exactly the time at which Peter and Jude were writing.
1 Enoch and the angels that sinned
Frequent
among these Jewish myths is the myth of fallen angels. The most complete
version of the myth is found in the so-called Book of Enoch, which
is an imaginative expansion on the Sons of God and Daughters of Men in Genesis
6.
The
key event, the fall of the rebel angels, is described as follows:
"And it came to pass when the children of men had multiplied,
that in those days were born unto them beautiful and comely daughters. And the
angels, the children of heaven, saw and lusted after them, and said to one
another: ‘Come, let us choose us wives from among the children of men and beget
us children.’ And Shemihazah, who was their leader,
said unto them: ‘I fear you will not agree to do this deed, and I alone shall
have to pay the penalty of a great sin.’ And they all answered him and said:
‘Let us all swear an oath, and all bind ourselves by mutual imprecations not to
abandon this plan but to do this thing.’ Then they all swore together and bound
themselves by mutual imprecations upon it. And they were in all two hundred who
descended on the earth in the days of Jared." (Enoch 6:1-6)
The
story continues with the fallen angels fathering a race of giants. But the
angels are accused by the archangel Michael, and bound in Tartarus to await
judgment for 70 generations. The angels ask Enoch to mediate with God on their
behalf, but Enoch’s requests are refused. The giants also cause havoc on the
earth, Michael appeals to God again, and they are drowned in the flood. In
the Book of the Giants these children of the angels, led by
their leaders Ohiyah and Mahawi, also ask Enoch to
mediate for them. God decrees that the spirits of the giants shall survive to
torment mankind and they become a new class of beings, the demons (one of the
most powerful of whom was the same Asmodeus mentioned
in the Book of Tobit). The giants’ human mothers also survive and
become Sirens.
In
the 1st Century the Book of Enoch was a best-seller. The book was so popular
that it would have been known to all the Jewish Christians addressed by Peter
and Jude - even if they, like many educated Jews, did not accept it as fact. We
know, for example, that it was rejected by the 1st Century Pharisee known as
Pseudo-Philo (Book of Antiquities 3:1), by Rabbi Simeon Ben Yohai
(Genesis Rabbah 26:5), and by Trypho,
the Jew who debated with Justin Martyr (Dialogue 1:79:1). Not to mention by the
Lord Jesus himself (Mark 12:25).
Nevertheless
despite Paul’s warning (Titus 1:14) some of the converts from Judaism to
Christianity brought with them these Jewish myths - including the Book of Enoch
and the legend of the fallen angels - and the documents of the early church
indicate that these myths were later taken up by the Gnostics.
Part 2: Three books.
The relationship of 2 Peter, Jude, and 1 Enoch
Jude
18 is the only quote of one letter by another in the New Testament; of 2 Peter
3:3. The proof that Jude quotes Peter, and not the other way round, is shown by
comparing the following:
"But there were false prophets also among the (Jewish) people,
just as there will be false teachers among you. They shall secretly
bring in destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who
bought them." (2 Peter 2:1-2)
"I felt I had to write to you ... for certain men ... have
secretly slipped in among you ... denying Jesus Christ our only
sovereign and Lord." (Jude 3-4)
Peter
and Jude are obviously addressing the same problem but with one difference;
when Peter wrote the false teachers were coming, but when Jude wrote they had
arrived. Jude is a continuation of 2 Peter.
Jude quotes from the Book of Enoch:
"See the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his
holy ones to judge everyone and to convict the ungodly of all the ungodly acts
they have done" (1 Enoch 1:9)
"Enoch the Seventh from Adam prophesied ... ‘See the Lord is
coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone and
convict the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done’." (Jude 14-15)
Some
will react strongly to the suggestion that Jude quoted from a Jewish myth and
point out that he identifies Enoch as "Enoch the Seventh from Adam".
Normally
this would be a fair objection. The Bible does not generally quote from such
profane sources, and certainly never treats such books as authoritative.
However in this case the phrase "the seventh from Adam" does not come
from Genesis but from 1 Enoch 60:8. So we are not dealing with one quote of
Enoch here, but two. In fact there are as many as 30 references to the Book of
Enoch in 2 Peter and Jude.
It
cannot be argued that the similarity of 1 Enoch 1:9 and Jude 14 is mere
coincidence. It also cannot be argued that the Book of Enoch quotes Jude,
because the oldest manuscript of the Book of Enoch is at least 100 years before
Christ.
It
may be argued that these are the genuine words of Enoch which survived as an
oral tradition, were preserved in the Book of Enoch, and then used selectively
by Jude. But this is impossible for 4 reasons:
1. Firstly
how did an oral tradition from before the flood survive without ever having
been written down?
2. Secondly
because the origin of 1 Enoch 1:9 is not a mystery. It is an integral part of 1
Enoch 1:3-9, which is an expansion of Deuteronomy 33:2, and which was, of
course, written by Moses, not Enoch.
3. Thirdly,
as mentioned above, there are up to 30 references to the Book of Enoch in Peter
and Jude.
So even if we argue that 1 Enoch
1:9 contains some lost words of the real Enoch then how do we explain the
origin of the 29 other references?
4. Fourthly,
because (despite the mistake in the English translation) in the Greek original
text of Jude 13-14 "Enoch the Seventh from Adam" did not prophesy
"regarding" the wandering stars, but "to them". This fits
with 1 Enoch 21 where the fictional Enoch prophesies to the fallen angels who
were previously stars in the night sky.
In
Jude 13 the "wandering stars" applies not to the 200 fallen stars as
found in Enoch but is reapplied by Jude to those false teachers using the Book.
In
Jude 14 the apostle carefully uses "to" (see note on the Greek text
at the end of this booklet), rather than "concerning" (NIV follows
the traditional but incorrect reading found in the KJV, which is itself
following the Latin text of Jude 14 not the Greek).
Here
Jude makes it clear that this particular "Enoch" (i.e. the Book, not
the Genesis patriarch) did not prophesy "concerning" these false
teachers "to" Jude himself, nor "to" the faithful, but only
prophesied "to" the false teachers. This is Jude's way of making it
clear that the quote that follows is not from the real Enoch of Genesis, but
from the Jewish author who styled himself "Enoch the Seventh from
Adam" and who only prophesied to those that were taken in by his book.
Exposing the Book of Enoch's inconsistencies
Consider
a modern Christian who wished to expose some of the fanciful stories found in
the Book of Mormon (a modern equivalent to the 1st Century Book of Enoch). How
would he do this? Probably first by claiming the superiority of the Bible -
which is exactly what Peter does in 2 Peter 1:19-20.
Secondly
he would probably quote examples from the Book of Mormon and show how they
contradict the Bible. This is exactly what the two apostles do. In the Book of
Enoch Michael accuses the 200 heavenly beings of sin, yet Peter contradicts
this: "angels do not bring slanderous accusations against such beings in
the presence of the Lord" (2 Peter 2:11), and Jude even specifies the name
"Michael" (Jude 9).
Thirdly
he would seek to show that the Book of Mormon is not logical or consistent in
itself. And this is exactly why Jude quotes 1 Enoch 1:9 (Jude 14-15). While the
book shows a man (Enoch) judging sinful angels, 1:9 speaks of angels coming to
judge sinful man. In this way Jude exposes an inconsistency in the message of
the Book of Enoch.
In
Part 1 we saw the background of Jewish myths, and the conclusion of this
section. Part 2, is that Peter and Jude wrote their letters to combat false
teachers teaching (as one of these myths) the Book of Enoch. This will be
demonstrated as we go through 2 Peter verse by verse in Part 3.
Part 3: Reading 2 Peter 1:16 to 3:2 verse by verse
2 Peter 1:16-18 - Cleverly invented myths
When Peter says: "we did not follow cleverly invented
stories" (2 Peter 1:16) the word 'stories', as in Titus 1:14, is myths he
implies that there were others who did "follow
cleverly invented stories" and this sets the scene for the references
which follow in 2 Peter 2. That Peter recounts the events of the
Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8) is a deliberate contrast of his real
experience as a witness of Christ's glory and hearer of God's words "on
the mountain", with the visions of the fictional Enoch on "the
mountain the point of whose summit reached to heaven" (Enoch 17:1).
2 Peter 1:19-21 - More certain than what?
Peter's claim "We have the word of the prophets made more
certain" (1:19) begs the question "More certain than what?". It shows that other teachers with a 'less certain
word' of prophecy were also circulating. We will see that Peter's references in
the next chapter (2:1-22) indicate that the 'less certain word of prophecy' was
the so-called Book of Enoch. The verse following "the more sure word of
prophecy" is also important:
"Above all you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture
came about by the prophet's own interpretation" (2 Peter 1:20).
Again the existence of rival teachings are implied. The Book of
Enoch does also contain what we understand as in modern English as 'prophecies'
about the future, but in Bible times prophecy was understood as also concerning
the past and the present. So Peter's comments are not limited to future
'prophecies' but include all areas of teaching. This means that his following
comment refers to all the Bible, not just the prophecy books:
"For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man but men
spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit." (2 Peter
1:21)
2 Peter 1:16-21 is the most extended defence of inspiration in the
New Testament. In total it suggests that Peter was facing a major challenge to
the inspiration of the scriptures and the authority of apostles. This is
confirmed as we enter the next chapter:
2 Peter 2:1-3 "Stories they have made up"
Where should we look for an
explanation of Peter and Jude’s mentions of "angels that sinned"?
Rule No.1 of good Bible study is ‘always read the context’. And yet most
Christian readers of the ‘angels that sinned’ passages read only the
angels-flood-Sodom sequence in 2 Peter 2:4-8 (or the Sinai-angels-Sodom
sequence in Jude 5-7) without noticing what precedes or follows. What precedes
is clear:
"In their greed
these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up" (2 Peter
2:3)
This alerts us that what
follows is related to these stories which are being spread by false teachers
‘among the church’ just as they had once been spread by false teachers
"among the people" of Israel. (This is confirmed in Jude’s parallel
example of apostasy at Sinai (Jude 4-5).
Peter refers here to Enoch
10:4 where the archangel Raphael chains the angels that sinned in Tartarus. But
note that Peter is using a hypothetical "if": "if the angels sinned....
then...". It does not mean that Peter is
presenting Enoch 10:4 as historical fact, only that he is presenting a logical
argument. His conclusion (the "then..." part) comes in 2:9.
2 Peter 2:5-8 Old
Testament examples
Some will say that because
Peter follows his reference to the chaining of the angels (Enoch 10:4) with the
Old Testament examples of Noah (Genesis 7-9), and Sodom (Genesis 19) that Peter
is granting Enoch the same authority as Genesis. But why should this be the
case? Wouldn’t it be more natural to think that Peter simply does not consider
that an example taken from the uninspired Book of Enoch is sufficient to prove
his point?
We could also ask why, if
Peter considered that the story of the fallen angels was true, he did not quote
Genesis 6:2 rather than Enoch 10:4? Although people who believe in fallen
angels often assert that the ‘sons of God’ in Genesis 6 are angels it is
striking that Peter and Jude will quote from Genesis on Noah and Sodom but
never, without exception, quote Genesis as the source of the
‘angels that sinned’ story. Because, of course, Genesis knows no
such story.
Likewise in the parallel
Jude 7 "punishment of eternal fire" Jude does not refer to the
Genesis sons of God, (who were destroyed with water not fire), but instead the
fallen stars who are chained "in a great fire that was burning and
flaming" (1 Enoch 21:7). This is another sign that the 200 angels are
mythical.
2 Peter 2:9 -
Nothing to fear from angels
Peter now comes to his
conclusion: if God has already reserved the angels "to the day of
judgment" (as in Enoch 10:4) then there is nothing to fear from
"angels that sinned".
"if God did not
spare angels when they sinned…if this is so then the Lord knows how to rescue
godly men from trials and hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment (2 Peter
2:4 . . . 9)"
Peter’s argument was picked
up by the Canadian Christadelphian author Ron Abel:
"Why bother to
chain these angels if, as one Jehovah’s Witnesses publication contends, ‘they
can still exercise dangerous power over men and women’?" (Wrested Scriptures, p.180)
This was the best answer to
the fallen angels myth in Peter’s time, and it is
still the best answer today. If the part of Book of Enoch about the angels
marrying is true, then why not the part about the angels having been chained in
Tartarus? If they are chained in Tartarus, then (as Peter argues in 2:9)
logically these angels aren’t a threat to anyone are they?
Of course people may claim
that there ‘must have been’ other falls, and other angels who ‘got away’. But
apart from the lack of any evidence for this (and the inconsistency that God
would chain 200 angels and then let another band of rebel angels escape!) such
a claim contradicts Peter’s fundamental point which is that, even if Enoch were
true, that book itself shows that "God knows how to deliver the godly from
temptation" (2:9).
This is one of the clearest
arguments against the existence of fallen angels in the whole Bible.
2 Peter 2:10-12 “Slandering
celestial beings”
Peter’s main argument
against Enoch is found in the sections immediately following the mentions of
the "angels that sinned". This often passes unnoticed by those
seeking in 2 Peter and Jude support for their own belief in fallen angels:
(A) 2 Peter 2:10
the false teachers slander celestial beings. |
Jude 8 |
(B) 2 Peter 2:11
but angels, although much greater (than the teachers), do not dare bring an
accusation against such (celestial) beings. |
Jude 9 |
(C) 2 Peter 2:12
so the false teachers slander things they do not understand (or beings they
do not know). |
Jude 10 |
2 Peter 2:10
Dominion and Glories
"This is
especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature
and despise authority. Bold and arrogant these men (false teachers)
are not afraid to slander celestial beings." (2 Peter 2:10)
"Authority"
(literally ‘dominion’) is elsewhere in the New Testament always associated with
heavenly ‘principalities and powers’ (Ephesians 1:21, Colossians 1:16)
"Celestial
beings" literally is ‘glories’ plural and is used in this sense only by
Peter and Jude in the New Testament. In 1 Peter 1:11 Peter speaks of the future
glories of Christ, but in the Old Testament the term describes the glories
surrounding God:
"Who is like
you among the gods O Lord? Who is like you, glorified in holiness, marvellous
in glories (plural), doing wonders?" (Exodus 15:11)
It is also used in this
sense in 1st Century Jewish literature:
"Moses said.. I am not able to bear the visible appearance of your form
but I ask you that I may behold the glories (plural) that are
around you". (Philo, On the
Special Laws 1:45)
"And the Lord
blessed Levi; the Angel of the Presence blessed me; the powers of glories (plural)
blessed Simeon, the heaven blessed Reuben; the earth blessed Issachar.." (Testament of Judah 25:2)
That ‘dominion’ and
‘glories’ mean more than just human government and dignities is confirmed by
Peter’s next verse, but also in Jude 8:
Jude 8: Humans
slandering celestial beings
These verses, parallel in 2
Peter and Jude, are key to explanation of both letters. Both writers state
(twice) that the false teachers were slandering celestial beings, namely
angels. "Slander" implies two conclusions; (a) that they were accusing
the glories of wrongdoing, (b) that their accusations were unfounded.
Surprisingly the obvious impact of the verses, that the false teachers allegations were lies, that the angels did not sin,
and that the whole story of angels that sinned is slander, is usually completely
ignored.
"In the very
same way these dreamers (the false teachers) pollute their own bodies, reject
authority and slander celestial beings." (Jude 8)
If the allegations
(specifically of angels having sex with women) were "slanderous
accusations" then it can hardly be used as proof that the accusations were
true. If the ‘slander’ consisted of allegations that angels rebelled, descended
to earth and fathered demons, then Peter and Jude’s evidence must be taken to
mean that no such thing happened, and that it is not acceptable to believe or
teach such things in the church.
2 Peter 2:11 Angels
themselves do not slander
Peter and Jude then repeat
the charge; that not only are the charges human slander against heavenly
beings, but that real angels would never make such an accusation.
"Yet even
angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not bring slanderous
accusations against such beings in the presence of the Lord." (2 Peter 2:11)
In Jude 9 the same is said
of Michael, yet according to Enoch Michael was the leader in bringing the
accusation against the fallen angels to God:
"And then
Michael, Uriel, Raphael, and Gabriel looked down from heaven and saw much blood
being shed upon the earth, and all lawlessness being wrought upon the earth. And
they said one to another: ‘The earth made without inhabitant cries the voice of
their crying up to the gates of heaven. And now to you, the holy ones of
heaven, the souls of men make their suit, saying, "Bring our cause before
the Most High."‘ And they said to the Lord of the ages: ‘Lord of lords,
God of gods, King of kings, and God of the ages, the throne of Thy glory stands
unto all the generations of the ages, and Thy name holy and glorious and
blessed unto all the ages! Thou hast made all things, and power over all things
hast Thou: and all things are naked and open in Thy sight, and Thou seest all things, and nothing can hide itself from Thee.
Thou seest what Azazel hath done, who hath taught all
unrighteousness on earth and revealed the eternal secrets which were preserved
in heaven, which men were striving to learn: And Shemihazah,
to whom Thou hast given authority to bear rule over his associates. And they
have gone to the daughters of men upon the earth, and have slept with the
women, and have defiled themselves, and revealed to them all kinds of sins. And
the women have born giants, and the whole earth has thereby been filled with
blood and unrighteousness. (1 Enoch 9:1-10)
Thus according to Enoch it
was Michael and three other archangels, who accused Shemihazah
and Azazel, but according to Peter angels (specifically Michael, Uriel, Raphael
and Gabriel) "do not bring slanderous accusations against such beings in
the presence of the Lord", and Jude adds that Michael would not accuse the
devil himself. In other words the story of Michael making an accusation against
the angels in Enoch 9 is false - and if the story of the accusation is false
then so is the story of the angels’ sin.
(A sobering thought here is
that if the teachings of Book of Enoch, and the false teachers, were considered
as "blaspheming glories" then what does that mean for modern churches
which have similar teaching on fallen angels?).
2 Peter 2:12 - 14
Consequences
Peter repeats again that
the teachers ‘blaspheme’ or slander in matters (the matter of angels) about
which they understand nothing. This is paralleled in Jude with the additional
comment "these are the very things that destroy them". This is a
serious comment. We might not see a direct relationship between incorrect ideas
on angels and the kind of behaviour described by Peter and Jude, but Jude
does: these things, their talking about things they do not understand,
"are the very things that destroy them" (Jude 10).
2 Peter 2:15-16 Rebukes from the Bible
Peter now takes the example
of Balaam (from Numbers 22-24). Jude expands this to include Cain (Genesis 4)
and Korah (Numbers 16) in Jude 11.
2 Peter 2:17 Rebukes taken from 1 Enoch
It is at this point that
Peter returns to 1 Enoch with three references to the false teachers as
"dry springs" (Hosea 13:15 but connected to Enoch 48:1, 96:6),
"waterless clouds" (Enoch 18:5,41:4-5,100:11-12)
and "reserved for blackest darkness" (Enoch 21:3).
These rebukes are expanded
in much greater detail by Jude 12-13 taking language used in Enoch about false
shepherds of Israel: "trees without fruit" (Enoch 80:3),
"plucked up" (Enoch 83:4), "raging waves" (Enoch 101:3-5?).
And finally "wandering stars for whom blackest darkness has been reserved
for ever" (Enoch 21:3). In this Jude uses language about ‘angels that
sinned’ and applies it to the false teachers. This is a powerful way of
repeating his charge that "these are the very things that destroy
them" (Jude 10).
It might seem strange to us
that Peter and Jude describe those who taught from the Book of Enoch in
language drawn from the same false book, but Peter clearly states that this is
slander, “blaspheming”.
Turning back the language
of false teaching against false teachers is no different from what the Old
Testament prophets frequently did.
Conclusion
Our
conclusion is simple. It follows from the clear statement of the Lord Jesus that
angels do not marry:
“For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in
marriage, but are like angels in heaven.” (Matthew 22:30)
Hebrews
states that angels are without exception all ministering spirits:
"Are not all angels
ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation” (Hebrews
1:14)
Simple
enough.
Unfortunately
the two above verses tend to be overlooked by those who have already decided
that angels can marry, and can sin. Therefore there are those who will misread
the two above verses as follows:
"In the resurrection the
dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage, and they can no longer die,
for they are like those angels which do not marry, (but unlike those angels
which do marry)." – misreading of Matthew 22:30
"Are not all angels
ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation, (excepting
those angels who are not ministering spirits, and are sent to obstruct those
who will inherit salvation)?" – misreading of Hebrews 1:14
These
misreadings are not harmless. The effect of this misreading
on Christians’ lives in Christ then was evident to Peter and Jude. Remember
what Jude said about slandering celestial beings: "these are the very
things that destroy them" (Jude 10).
So here
in conclusion, having understood the 1 Enoch context to 2 Peter and Jude, we
can safely discard the Enoch myths, and keep to the consistent teaching of the
Bible, found in 288 references to angels, that angels really are all, meaning
all without exception, ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit
salvation:
"The angel of the Lord
encamps around those that fear him" (Psalm 34:7)
Steven Cox
If
Jude had wanted to say "prophesied ABOUT these men" (NIV) he would
have written __ (verb + preposition PERI +
genitive case pronoun plural), but instead what Jude actually wrote was
___ (verb + dative case pronoun plural) "prophesied TO these
men". The difference between these two constructions is always observed
elsewhere in the New Testament. (See F. Blass, A. Debrunner,
& R.W. Funk, A Greek Grammar of the New Testament, University of Chicago
1961, section 229 p.121).
The
minor but important grammatical error in this verse appears to have originated
with the Latin Bible (which reads "prophesied however concerning
them"), and unfortunately was then followed by Luther, Tyndale, the King
James Bible and, it appears, the translators of every English version since.
The
quote of Zechariah 3:5 in Jude 23 makes it virtually certain that Jude 9 is
connected to Zechariah. This is confirmed when we find that, in the Greek Old
Testament (Septuagint) used by Jude’s readers, Satan in Zechariah 3:1 is
rendered ‘diabolos’, devil.
We
can draw a comparison as follows:
Jude Michael Devil Body
of Moses Dirty
garments - |
Septuagint Angel Devil Jesus
the Priest Dirty
garments Dawn |
Zechariah Angel Satan Joshua
the Priest Dirty
garments Branch |
Ezra Ezra Rehum and Shimshai Priesthood Foreign
wives Zerubbabel |
Questions from Introduction
1. When
did Satan fall?
2. Who
tempted David to number Israel?
3. What
causes disabilities like muteness?
4. Explain
Isaiah 45:7.
5. What
are "evil angels" in Psalm 78:49?
Questions relating to this booklet:
6. Who
were the "Sons of God" in Genesis 6:2?
7. Who
were the "angels that sinned" of 2 Peter 2:4?
8. Who
were the "wandering stars" of Jude 13?
9. Where
does Peter mention "myths" or "fables"?
10.
Apart from Jude 14, where else is
Enoch described as "the Seventh from Adam"?
Minor corrections 15 April 2021.