Helge S. Kvanvigsexuality, violence, and illegitimate knowledge. In structure the story follows
the flood story.^16 This story is again explicated in l En 12-16 and 1-5.^17 We
may call these two sections "alternative stories" if we concentrate on the nar
rative elements in 1-5. The stories are alternative in the way they both use the
Rebellion Story as master narrative, but utilize the basic elements of this
story in a new narrative design that does not contradict the master story.
1 En 12-16 carries the Rebellion Story further in its mythical realm. The
basic plot of the story is the penitence and the question of petition for the
Watchers and their offspring (13:4-5). The three basic codes from the Rebel
lion Story are present, but there is a clear emphasis on forbidden sexuality as
transgression of the divine order (12:4; 15:3-7).^18 This transgression resulted
in the origin of evil spirits on earth (15:8-16:1).^19
Suter said the Watcher Story was formed as a polemic against the Jeru
salem priesthood, because priests married women outside priestly fami
lies.^20 Nickelsburg has argued the same, but confined to the Enoch Story,
which seems more likely since the code of sexuality is more focused in this
section.^21 Nickelsburg has carried the argument further by pointing out sev
eral similarities between the Enoch Story and the last chapters in Ezra: both
Enoch and Ezra are titled "scribe" (1 En 12:3-4; Ezra 7:6), Enoch intercedes
for the Watchers using words similar to Ezra's prayer of confession (1 En
13:4-5; Ezra 9:6), the plot is similar in both, and both deal with the transgres
sion of marriage rules.^22
The parallels to Ezra have most bearing in relation to the temple. If the
- Cf. H. S. Kvanvig, "Cosmic Laws and Cosmic Imbalance: Wisdom, Myth and Es
chatology in the Early Enochic Writings," in The Early Enoch Tradition, ed. G. Boccaccini
(Leiden: Brill, 2007). - Cf. D. R. Jackson, Enochic Judaism: Three Defining Paradigm Exemplars (London:
Clark, 2004), 3iff. - Cf. A. Y. Reed, Fallen Angels and the History of Judaism and Christianity (Cam
bridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005), 44-49. - H. S. Kvanvig, "Gen 6,3 and the Watcher Story," Hen 25 (2003): 287-92.
- D. W. Suter, "Fallen Angels, Fallen Priests: The Problem of Family Purity in
1 Enoch," HUCA 50 (1979): 115-35; Suter, "Revisiting 'Fallen Angel, Fallen Priest,'" in The Ori
gins of Enochic Judaism, ed. G. Boccaccini, Henoch (Turin: Silvio Zamorani, 2002), 137-42. - G. W. E. Nickelsburg, "Enoch, Levi and Peter: Recipients of Revelation in Upper
Galilee," JBL 100 (1981): 575-600 (here 584f). Broader material to support the argument is
presented by M. Himmelfarb, "Levi, Phinehas, and the Problem of Intermarriage at the
Time of the Maccabean Revolt," JSQ 6 (1999): 1-24. - Nickelsburg, j Enoch 1, 23of. The same argument was presented by H. S. Kvanvig,
Roots of Apocalyptic, WMANT 61 (Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener, 1988), 101.