NOW THAT WE HAVE THE BOOK OF ENOCH
Now that we have the Book of Enoch and have every reason to believe the Jews of the first century had it too, what does it tell us about the Messiah? It is clear that they believed a person existed already in heaven who was a great mystery. “When Messiah comes nobody will know where He is from” they said (John 7:27). The spy stories about MI6 tell how the head of the organisation is mysteriously called simply C. The idea is (at least in the fantasy characterisation) that nobody would know who C was. Much like Charlie in Charlie’s Angels. Well this Messiah was going to be mysterious like that. The main identifications of Him were in the Book of Enoch and the Book of Daniel which identified Him as simply The Son of Man. Isaiah had alluded (Isaiah 8) to someone who might have a name signified by Isaiah’s name but even that allusion was heavily veiled in the prophecy. Why all this mystery? Well Enoch tells how the Son of Man was hidden away to be revealed very carefully by God. Clearly it would be very important to percieve Him in a certain way. That way was later clouded by Roman Christologies and unresolved disputes. Now with the Book of Enoch and Messiah’s words in John’s Gospel we get a picture of several vitally important points to understand about Him. Firstly He was there in heaven when Enoch went alive into heaven around 3000 BC. This is clear in the Book of Enoch and also confirmed by Messiah saying (John 8) “Before Abraham was born I am”. The prophecy of Malachi confirmed that His “goings forth were from of old, from everlasting”. Then we see that He is to ever live into the future too. Enoch shows Him in prophecy about the distant future at the end of the age and beyond. The Son of Man made clear (John 8) He would always keep from slavery to sin those who follow His teachings and believe in Him. This is vital because sons of God have to permanently worthy of that position. Only an eternal High Priest can be a completely effective Deliverer from sin. The resurrection shows this is true because death itself no longer marks any end for Him. He came a mortal in the flesh but left this world immortal having risen from the dead never to die again. For that He had to die once. This came as a shock to His followers. Enoch’s prophecy alluded to it only darkly by alluding to His resurrection. Finally the nature of His Sonship was clarified in Enoch’s prophecies (chapter 105 in the RH Charles chapter numbering). This iwas subject of Roman theologians’ and philosophers’ unresolved disputes and obfuscating doctrines since Roman times. God and His Son are distinct in Enoch’s prophecies and this would have been clear in Messiah’s time. All this presents a renewed view of Messiah lost in history but resurfacing in our times by the Holy Spirit’s revelatios. Thanks be to God.
