Bible Question:

I just found your page in which you made as if Enoch and Jude were not in agreement and I find that disingenuous of you. The comparison shows they do say the same, for Jude is quoting Enoch as much as all New Testament writers quote any passage using their own words - sometimes loosely. Enoch chapter 1: 9 reads, “And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones to execute judgment upon all, and to destroy all the ungodly: and to convict all flesh of all the works of their ungodliness which the ungodly have committed, and of all the hard things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” Jude reads, “And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard [speeches] which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” Jesus quoted Enoch many times and Enoch is where the doctrine of the Son of Man is found. As to the canon, the Holy Spirit did not decide in the 4th century in the west that Enoch was to be banned as Scripture. Men did. Augustine is not the foundation of the church and Augustine was the one responsible for Enoch's banning.

Bible Answer:

Some wonder did Jude copy from the book of Enoch? The purpose of this article is to answer that question.

Did Jude copy from the book of Enoch?

Jude 14-15 English Translation

The English translation of the Greek text of Jude 14-15 reads,

It was also about these men that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” Jude 14-15 (NASB)

The New International Version (NIV) changes the phrase “with many thousands” to “with thousands upon thousands” and the English Standard Version (ESV) translates it as “with ten thousands.” The Greek word for the phrase is myrias.

Enoch 1:9 has been translated by James H. Charlesworth and is available in The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. It reads as follows,

Behold, he will arrive with millions of the holy ones in order to execute judgment upon all. He will destroy the wicked ones and censure all flesh on account of everything that they have done, that which the sinners and the wicked ones committed against him.[1]

A quick comparison of Jude 14 with this translation reveals that the passages are similar but not exact. For example, the Greek word that is used in Jude 14-15, myrias, is the same word that occurs in Enoch 1:9. That is the differences in this phrase are due to the translators. That would seem to suggest that Jude copied Enoch.

Did Jude Copy From the Book of Enoch?

But that is not true. This becomes clear if we examine Jude 14-15 and Enoch 1:9 closely. Here are some differences:

1) Note that Jude says “the Lord came” but Enoch reads, “he will arrive” or “He cometh.” The Greek text of Jude says the “Lord” is performing a past event while Enoch a) does not refer to the Lord and b) refers to a future action. This is a major difference between the two quotes.

2) Second, Jude says the Lord will “execute judgment and to convict all the ungodly,” but Enoch says that “he” will “execute judgment upon all and to destroy all the ungodly. And to convict all flesh.” The reason for the difference is that Jude uses the Greek elencho for “convict,” but Enoch uses apolesei. This is another major difference between the two quotes.

3) Third, Enoch contains the phrase “destroy all the ungodly” which Jude does not include. The Greek word for “destroy” in Enoch is apolesei.

4) Fourth in Enoch we find the statement,  “and censure all flesh” or convict all flesh.” But in Jude that statement is “and to convict all the ungodly.” The Greek word for “flesh” is sarka, but in Jude the word for “ungodly” is asebeis. That is, the Greek words are different. This is another difference.

5) Fifth, Enoch contains the Greek word  katelalesan, which means  “slander,” but Jude does not include the word. This is a major difference between the two passages.

A comparison of the two passages reveals that the Greek text of Jude has 29 words but the text of Enoch was supplied by R. H. Charles and has 36 words.[2] Other Greek texts include 45 words.[3] The assumption that Jude quoted the book of Enoch ignores two important points. First, the passages have significant differences both in phrases, words, and length.

The second major point is that our God is the author of Jude. That is, Jude was inspired. It is written by God, and not Enoch. In Jude, God records the correct wording of the prophet Enoch’s ancient prophecy. Note that Jude says Enoch prophesied. Jude quotes him. Jude records the prophecy accurately. We cannot trust the book of Enoch which is not inspired. One’s perspective is all important.

Conclusion:

Jude accurately recorded Enoch’s prophecy. The book of Enoch is an inaccurate quote since it apparently depended upon oral traditions that had been handed down. It is understandable that the quote in Enoch would be inaccurate given the passage of time and the inaccuracies that can occur with the passage of time. But since God has promised to keep His Word accurate, we must conclude that Jude is accurate. The information in Enoch is inaccurate. Jude has the correct wording.

References:

1. James H. Charlesworth. The Book of Enoch, Section 1, chap. 1, para. 9. The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. Doubleday Publishing. 1983. vol.1, p. 14.
2. Ibid.
3. Book of Enoch. Interlinear (enoksbok.se/cgi-bin/interlinear_greek.cgi)

Suggested Links:

Why is the book of Enoch not included in the Bible?
How Accurate Is the Bible?
Should the Deuterocanon be included in the Holy Bible?
Is the book of Enoch inspired?
What Is The Bible?
Did Jesus quote the book of Enoch in Matthew 22:29-30?