Lost Books of the Bible (149 page)

               The apocalyptic literature presented here allows us a rare glimpse into the ancient mindset and visions of how mankind may end. Most writings of this kind took place between 200 B.C. and 200 A.D, although a few were later and dated to the third century. The common thread was the moral and spiritual decline of man leading to his destruction. One could argue that the annihilation of the human race was to be brought about by our own hands due to our evil and sinful ways; however,  it is the power unleashed by the wrath of God that gives way to the cleansing of the earth as all evil is destroyed and divine order is re-established. Only those who followed God and kept his laws would be spared.

               Books written by those claiming to be Abraham, Thomas, Ezra,  Baruch, and other giants of faith come down to us in ancient scrolls proclaiming the exact sequence of events leading to mankind’s termination. Every society possesses apocalyptic texts. Every race and every nation carries in its literature and religion the implicit reiterating and unrelenting question; is the end near?  The answer…yes, it is and here are its signs.

               Presented in this book are four great apocalyptic works. “The Apocalypse of Abraham,” “The Apocalypse Of Thomas” which is also called “The Revelation of Thomas,” 
2 Baruch, which is also known as the Syriac Apocalypse of Baruch,
 and
4 Ezra, sometimes also referred to as 2 Esdras or the Apocalypse of Ezra.

               These books represent the greatest among the apocalyptic writings of the era. Each gives its own unique insights into the End Of Days and yet, they all proclaim the same message; Follow God, turn from evil, or be destroyed.

                “The Apocalypse of Abraham” is part of a body of writings called “Abrahamic Writings,” which flourished around and just after the time of Christ.

              
The manuscript dates from A.D. 80-170 with most scholars placing it between 80 and 100 A.D. The original text was written in a Semitic language, however it
has survived only in Old Slavonic renditions.

               Many of the Jewish non-canonical and extra-biblical materials that circulated in the Slavic lands came from Byzantium. They greatly influenced the development of Slavic literature. Non-canonical books brought from Byzantium were translated and became sections (pieces) of various Slavonic traditions. The Eastern Orthodox church nurtured an environment in which the apocryphal texts were encouraged toward the view of providing additional information as a secondary source to the canonical mainstream texts. Pseudepigraphical (
certain writings other than the canonical books and the Apocrypha, professing to be Biblical in character)
texts attributed to Adam, Enoch, Noah, Jacob, Abraham, Moses, and other patriarchs survived in this environment and were incorporated in hagiographical (
the writing and critical study of the lives of the saints)
and historical volumes.

               An English translation of “The Apocalypse of Abraham” was produced by G. H. Box and J. I. Landsman in 1918 (The Apocalypse of Abraham, London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge) but that translation does not read well for the modern English audience. Thus arises the need to have the Box and other mainstream translations combined and updated into a more readable and accessible mode for today’s reader.

               It should be noted here that there are two versions of the “Apocalypse of Abraham,” a long and a short version. The text in the book before you contains a combination of these two versions. When the two versions agree, which was more often than not the case, the clearest and best wording was chosen to express both in a single phrase.

               When there were variations in meaning, alternate translations are shown in parentheses. When one version covered information not contained in the other translation, the additional lines were added, making this book the most complete body of information available as a single text.

              
“The Apocalypse of Abraham” is written in
an haggadic midrash tradition. (Haggadic -
embracing the interpretation of the non-legal portions of the Hebrew Bible. These midrashim are sometimes referred to as
haggadah
, a term that refers to all non-legal discourse in classical rabbinic literature).
(
Midrash – a Hebrew word referring to a method of exegesis of a Biblical text and teachings in the form of legal or exegetical commentaries on the Jewish Bible).

               As with much of the Haaadic literature, the writings are an expansion and detailed explanation of existent biblical texts. That is to say, the writer took a section of an Old Testament canonical text and expanded it into a larger, more detailed story in order to explain in further detail the moral and religious implications of the original text.

               Apocalyptic writings abound in the same time frame in the first century. It is thought they were spurred into creative existence by the utter destruction of the Jewish Temple in 70 A.D. and the attempted annihilation of Christians, many of whom were converted Jews, at the same time.

               “The Apocalypse of Abraham” is
based on Genesis 15:9-17 and concludes with the apocalypse. 
The book is of Jewish origin with features  which might suggest that it had its beginning in the Essene community. This is seen clearly in the references to the “Elect One,”  a term that also appears in the Lost Book Of Enoch.”
(See “The Lost Book Of Enoch” by Joseph Lumpkin.)

               Approximately one-third of the “Apocalypse of Abraham” contains an account of Abraham’s conversion from polytheism to henotheism. Whereas polytheism believes in and worships many gods, each according to his or her dominion and special power; monotheism is the belief in one god; and henotheism focuses on one god but does not deny the existence of the other gods. The Amarna period of Egyptian history is an example a society that held to the henotheistic belief system.

               The apocalyptic section of the Abraham text begins with the search for the God that made all things and the rejection of god’s (idols) made by men. He (Abraham) reasons that if man made the gods with his own hands that man must therefore be greater than the gods he made.

               Abraham’s prayers are answered and he is told how to sacrifice to God. The preparation and sacrifice follows the biblical account, except that instead of birds of prey appearing and consuming the sacrifice, it is Azazel who does so. The angel Jaoel (Iaoel or Joel), guides Abraham into heaven and teaches him a song that is to be sung only on that realm or sphere of heaven.

               While in heaven, Abraham sees a vision of the sin and degradation of  his own progeny. As their sin increases, God withdraws his protection and the great temple is overrun by “heathen nations” and the progeny is killed and enslaved.

               The five main characters in the book are El (God), Jaoel, Azazel, Abraham, and a powerful figure simply known as “The Man.”  There are also minor characters such as Abraham’s father and merchants who travel in the area in which Abraham lived.

               We learn in the first chapter of the Apocalypse of Abraham that Abraham is the son of Terah and the brother of Nahor.

Chapter 1

1. I was standing guard one day over the gods of my father Terah and my brother Nahor…

               We also know Abraham’s family were polytheists who worshipped idols that their father made. We learn that Terah sold his idols to others as well. Abraham is depicted as a precocious and sassy youth who questions things taken for granted by others.

               He asked a question that seems most insightful for its time; If you carve an idol to worship as a god, does not that make you greater than the god you made? If that is true, why worship that which is lesser? This simple question puts him on the path of searching for the God who made all things including man.

               Jaoel is the angel assigned to guide Abraham on his search. Jaoel takes him to heaven and leads him into visions, instructing him along the way.

               Since Jaoel is allowed to come and go from the seventh heaven, we must assume him to be an angel of very high rank, though not found mentioned by this name elsewhere.

               The name Jaoel consists of two parts, Jah and El both names of God in the Old Testament. Jaoel shows and explains a universal duality.

               The duality of the universe is seen in the “right handed” and “left handed” principle. The Lord Himself used this principle when speaking of the ‘sheep and the goats” in Matthew 25.

               Here in the Abrahamic writings there are people coming out of a temple on the left side and on the right side. The deities in the story are the God El, who in this writing assumes the name of Azazel, a name that appears a great deal in the Books of Enoch, and is used in the Old Testament in the account of the Day of Atonement, where one goat is slain in the Tabernacle, whilst the other is set free, and the Hebrew text reads it is “for Azazel.”

               Azazel is portrayed as an unclean bird which came down upon the sacrifice Abraham, the Biblical patriarch, prepared. This is in reference to Genesis 15:11 Birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away.

               Azazel is also associated with Hell. Abraham tells Azazel he will burn in hell and be in the underworld or Hades.

               Azazel appears four times in Old Testament: Leviticus 16 :8, 10, and 26, where the ritual for the Day of Atonement is described. After the priest has made atonement for himself, he is to take two goats on behalf of Israel. One is to be a sacrifice to the Lord, the other is to be the ‘scape goat,’ which is the goat for Azazel.

               This word has been understood to mean the "goat that departs," considering it to be derived from two Hebrew words: “ez" (goat) and “azal” (turn off).  It is also associated with the Arabic word, “azala” (banish), or (remove),  It has been rendered "for entire removal."  Refer to Leviticus 16:22.  However, in I Chronicles 5:8, the father of Bela, a Reubenite, is named "Azaz," which means strong.

               This name comes from the Hebrew verb “azaz”, a which means "to be strong."  Azazel is also seen as an evil spirit in Enoch 8:1; 10:4; II Chroncicles 11:15; Isaiah 34:14; and Revelations 18:2. In this way Azazel can be seen as the opponent or antithesis to the Lord and a precursor to Satan.

               The figure of “The Man” is rather ambiguous. He is not fully messianic, yet he is endowed with power from God.

               He may have come from the Essene idea of the Teacher of Righteousness and his connection with the coming, expected messiah.

               Another explanation of the figure may come from an early Christian idea originating in a Judeo-Christian sect, which saw Jesus as precursor of the real and awaited Messiah, or it may simply be a Jewish text being badly interpreted and biased by an early Christian editor.

               The evolution of El and his origin has drawn debate and acrimony since the beginning of theological study.

               The people of Aramean and Canaanite origin seem to have contributed to the religion of El. Both religions place El as the highest god of a pantheon.  Yet, because there is a pantheon of gods there is polytheism.

               The clearest example of this adoption of the Israelite Elism comes from Deuteronomy 32 and related texts. El rules over his sons, and assigns each of them a people or tribe to govern. Here, to our surprise, we find Yahweh (the Lord) portrayed as one of El Elyon’s divine sons.

               Psalm 29 shows Yahweh as one of the sons of El, but a powerful god who is less subordinate than the others and more like an elder son.

               Psalm 29 introduces the Canaanite cosmology which was more simple and familial; El being the father  image and king.