Matthias HenzeThe passage is also telling in that it provides a fictitious account of
how Jubilees was composed. In the verse following the excerpt quoted above,
God tells the angel of the presence to dictate to Moses the divine lore (1:27).
However, from 2:1 on it is Moses who records what the angel reads to him. In
either case, the author makes the claim that the book as a whole is a revela
tion that Moses received on Mount Sinai. Unlike Daniel, Moses does not
have any visions, but the mode of revelation that led to the composition of
the two books is the same. In both cases the revelatory accounts amount to
powerful claims to authority.
In the introductory chapter of Jubilees God promises Moses that God
will show him all of human history. There are several eschatological passages
in the book, the longest and most explicit of which is found in chap. 23. The
notice of the death of Abraham (23:1-8) provides the author with an oppor
tunity to reflect on the life spans of humans, "from now [i.e., the time of
Abraham] until the great day of judgment" (23:11). The prophecy that fol
lows the account of Abraham's death describes how the ages of individuals
will initially be diminished as part of a divine punishment until they reach a
certain low during a generation simply referred to as "the evil generation"
(23:14) ,^14 Then that generation's children will repent, and after many tribula
tions, human life spans will increase again until they reach close to one
thousand years (23:27-29). Like the eschatological outlook at the end of the
book of Daniel, the chapter culminates in the promise of the resurrection of
the dead, a passage immediately reminiscent of Dan 12. "Then the Lord will
heal his servants. They will rise and see great peace. He will expel his ene
mies. The righteous will see (this), offer praise, and be very happy forever
and ever. They will see all their punishments and curses on their enemies.
Their bones will rest in the earth and their spirits will be very happy. They
will know that the Lord is one who executes judgment but shows kindness to
hundreds and thousands and to all who love him" (23:30-31). Both Dan 12:1-3
and Jub 23:30-31 describe an eschatological scene in which resurrection and
judgment are closely intertwined (see also 1 En 27:1-4, which may well have
served as the Vorlage for both). The text does not necessarily imply that the
resurrection is universal and affects all who have died. It is certain, however,
that not all who are resurrected will gain life eternal. Built into the account
in Dan 12:1-3 is the special promise to "the wise" that they will be brought to
life and shine like the stars. Similarly in Jub 23, "the righteous" — they are
- J. Kugel, "The Jubilees Apocalypse," DSD 1 (1994): 322-37; some scholars have
found here an allusion to the Maccabean period.