John S. Bergsma
showed Enoch everything in heaven and earth. He witnessed
against the Watchers, was taken to Eden, and now resides there,
recording and condemning the sins of humanity until the day of
judgment.
5:1-11 Paraphrases 1 En 6:1-10:16, with modification. The Watchers de
scend to earth and take wives. Violent giants are born, who op
press and corrupt both man and beast. God punishes the
Watchers by binding them under the earth, and the giants are
condemned to kill one another by the sword.
7:21-8:4 Noah recaps Jub 5:1-11 (cf. 1 En 6:1-10:16), the basic Watchers
story, while warning his sons about the demons who will mislead
them (cf. 1 En 15:8-16:3). Cainan son of Arpachshad finds a stone
engraved with the Watchers' astrological lore, and sins by copying
it and (apparently) learning to practice astrological divination.
This is the origin of the astrology of Cainan's descendants the
Chaldeans (cf. Jub 11:8), which Abram eventually rejects (cf. Jub
12:16-18).
10:1-17 Concerning the evil spirits that came forth from the bodies of the
slain giants (cf. 1 En 15:8—16:3), Noah pleads to God that they be
bound in the underworld. The prince of the demons, Mastema,
pleads to the contrary, that he be allowed some servants to do his
will on earth. God binds nine-tenths of the demons but leaves
one-tenth to carry out Mastema's will.
11:4-6 Mastema and the remnant of demons left to him are mentioned
as contributing to the evil activities of Noah's descendants.
After chap. 11 the Watchers fade from view in the narrative of Jubilees, and
with them the influence of BW, with the exception of a brief mention of the
giants in Jub 20:5.
Jubilees accepts and endorses the basic narrative of BW. The two works
can be said to agree on the following points:
- The "Sons of God" of Gen 6:1-4 are fallen angels (Watchers) who copu
lated with women and produced giants. - The Watchers taught illicit mysteries to mankind.
- The giants are at least partially responsible for the violence and evil
that brought God's judgment in the form of the flood. - Enoch rebuked and issued judgment against the Watchers and their
offspring. - The Watchers were bound under the earth, the giants killed each other
off, but demons came forth from the dead giants.