JUDE AND THE BOOK OF ENOCH

All throughout history, the Epistle of Jude was considered one of the most disputed books of the Bible. Many questioned this book for several reasons. Some question the identity of the writer, others point out the author’s use of uninspired writings in his letter. Verses 8–9 were said to come from the Assumption of Moses (also called Testament of Moses), and verses 14–15 were a direct quotation “probably” from 1 Enoch 1:9.

Today we will focus more on verses 14–15:
“It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, ‘Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.’”

The prophecy of Enoch that Jude mentioned cannot be found in the Old Testament (OT). Some say Jude made a mistake in what he wrote (therefore his letter is not infallible and inerrant) because he supposedly drew from questionable writings that the Jews themselves did not consider as the inspired Word of God. The Book of Enoch is a collection of writings that serve as an example of “pseudepigraphical books” circulating in their time. In other words, it was not truly written by the biblical patriarch Enoch (see Gen. 4:21–24), but the writer(s) attributed it to him (in a sense, it’s like “fan-fiction”). How do we deal with these issues? Thankfully, we have several valid explanations regarding this matter. This is going to be a long read—so hold on tight.

ORAL TRADITION

Inspired biblical authors were not limited to the written Scriptures for all the information of the past. The Jews also held to oral tradition aside from the written Scriptures. This means that the writers could draw valid information about certain biblical events in their history not only from the OT. Jude was quoting a statement of Enoch which was not recorded in the OT yet was familiar to his original readers at that time. Since Jude was under the guidance of the Holy Spirit as he wrote, we can be assured that he recorded the correct detail in his letter. By observing the insights of the writer of Hebrews, we can also assume that they knew details about Enoch that were not recorded in the OT (see Heb. 11:15).

Paul did the same thing when he named Pharaoh’s magicians who opposed Moses as “Janes and Jambres” in 2 Tim. 3:8. The OT never gave their names (Ex. 7:11, 22; 8:7), so we can assume Paul knew this from their oral tradition. Paul, being an expert in Jewish Scriptures and practices, was very unlikely to be wrong about such details. We can say the same thing regarding the story about Moses’s body that Jude referred to in verses 8–9.

Because oral tradition could also serve as a source of information, we cannot close the possibility that Jude did not really take his citation from the Book of Enoch, but rather he simply mentioned a known statement from the real historical Enoch—which just happened to also be recorded in the Book of Enoch. In other words, Jude may not have drawn verses 14–15 directly from 1 Enoch 1:9; it just so happened that what he quoted was also found there. The writers of apocryphal and pseudepigraphal books also used valid information regarding biblical events (from oral tradition and Scripture) before expanding their accounts into myths. Our knowledge of Jewish oral tradition is very limited simply because they were not written down like the Scriptures. Most of the time, we only learn of them when they end up being recorded—like the words of Enoch in Jude’s letter or the names of Pharaoh’s magicians in 2 Timothy.

WHAT IF...?

But what if Jude really did draw from the Book of Enoch? Does this mean the book itself was inspired? Not at all. Just because Jude is an inspired book does not mean that every one of its sources must also be inspired. Rather, it only guarantees that the particular cited information is true. Notice also that Jude did not use the usual formula when quoting inspired Scripture such as “It is written” or “The Scriptures say.” This shows that he never considered the Book of Enoch to be equal to Scripture. Also, there is no proof that Jude believed Enoch actually wrote the book. If Jude did draw from the Book of Enoch, which was very well known in his time, then it only means he believed that portion to be authentic though mixed in with myth.

Remember, even Paul quoted from pagan writings—that is, works outside Scripture. Acts 17:28 draws from Aratus, and Titus 1:12 from Epimenides. There is no evidence that Paul regarded their writings as inspired. Also, just because something is not part of the canon (the “official list of Scripture”) does not mean every part of it is false. Yes, the majority of the Book of Enoch may be fictional, but we cannot conclude that it contains no “items of truth.” Being both knowledgeable in Jewish oral tradition and guided by the Spirit, Jude knew whether a certain portion contained God’s truth or not.

NOT REALLY THE ISSUE

We cannot also dismiss the view that maybe Jude was neither affirming nor denying the validity of Enoch’s prophecy in his letter; he just used it to make a point. In other words, it was not his concern whether Enoch really said it or not—he only cited it to drive his point across. Jude wrote his letter to oppose the immoral false teachers of his time (vv. 4, 8, 18–19). It is reasonable to believe that Jude intentionally used the writings (Assumption of Moses and Book of Enoch) that these false teachers themselves were using, just to rebuke them. Jude wanted to show that even in the very writings they used, they were condemned for their sinfulness (vv. 14–16). Whether Jude and his readers believed that Enoch’s prophecy was authentic or not was not the point—the letter only used it to highlight the issue. This means that even if the prophecy truly only came from the Book of Enoch and not Enoch himself, Jude did nothing wrong because his readers understood exactly what he meant to say.

Even if we assume that it did not really come from Enoch, the prophecy in verses 14–15 is biblical in its message. Scripture is consistent (through God’s prophets) in proclaiming judgment against wickedness (see Zech. 14:1–5; Zeph. 1:2–18; etc.).

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Though the Epistle of Jude is still criticized by some, we have more reasons to believe that it is indeed part of the inspired Word of God. Whether Jude borrowed from the Book of Enoch or not does not diminish the timeless truths contained in his letter. The message of this epistle is fully aligned with the rest of Scripture. Therefore, to doubt its inspiration and authenticity (or its author) just because we cannot provide the “final and best explanation” for certain details is unreasonable. After all, it is not Jude’s problem if we cannot fully understand parts of what he wrote. In reality, we are simply reading someone else’s letter. So, let us just remain curious about this matter. Stay Curious.

Sources and Studies

Walton J. and Keener, C. (2016). “𝘚𝘦𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘑𝘶𝘥𝘦 14”. NIV Cultural Study Bible

Zondervan Publishing
Rhodes, R. (2010). “𝘐𝘯 𝘰𝘳 𝘖𝘶𝘵?” 5-Minutes Apologetics for Today. Harvest House Publishing
Akin D. (2007). “𝘑𝘶𝘥𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘺 𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘴”. Apologetics Study Bible. Holman Christian Standard Bible
Archer, G. (1982). “𝘋𝘪𝘥 𝘑𝘶𝘥𝘦 𝘦𝘳𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘴?”. Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties. Zondervan Publishing
Geisler, N. and Howe, T. (1992). “𝘑𝘜𝘋𝘌 14 —𝘋𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘑𝘶𝘥𝘦 𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘌𝘯𝘰𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘴 𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦?” When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties”. Victor Books