Worship in Jubilees and Enochin the heavenly tablets about celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles an addi
tional day (32:28). Information was also passed on by word of mouth. Abra
ham gives detailed instruction to Isaac before he dies about how to worship
God (21:5-20).
This leads us to consider the people who are fit to offer up worship. In
Jubilees a shift takes place with the giving of the covenant to Abraham. Up
until that time, the sacrifice of Abel is acceptable and Enosh can call upon
the name of the Lord. But the lack of enthusiasm that the author has for
these figures is clear when seen in comparison with his descriptions of the
worship of Adam, Enoch, and especially Noah.
With the appearance of Abraham, a special effort is made to separate
and distinguish the religious practice of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob from
that of all others. As mentioned, when Abraham gives his farewell address to
Isaac, it is full of instruction about sacrificial ritual. But it is noteworthy that
when he similarly addresses for the last time Ishmael and Keturah's sons, he
gives them commands about avoiding immorality and idolatry, but nothing
about sacrifice (21:1-10). They don't need to know. When Ishmael and Isaac
celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles with their father, Jubilees is very careful to
say that Isaac offered the sacrifice and prepared the meal. The story of the
rape of Dinah is used as an opportunity for the angel of the presence to
break in and warn against intermarriage, which will defile the sanctuary and
invalidate its sacrifices.
With this determined writing out of the Gentiles beginning in the time
of Abraham, it would be of greatest interest to know what the author of Jubi
lees made of the enigmatic Melchizedek. Unfortunately, textual corruption
has robbed us of the ability to know as much as we would like. Immediately
after a lacuna of uncertain length, Abraham gives Melchizedek the tithe. But
the terms and conditions under which Abraham does this are unknown. The
fact that the patriarchs never refer to Melchizedek as one of their sources of
priestly knowledge is telling.
So far we have limited our review to sacrifice and related matters. But
what about the less formal approach to God through prayer, praise, and
blessing? Here too there is a significant difference between the stories told in
Genesis and those told in Jubilees. In Genesis, the blessing of God occurs
only two times, and both are done by the same person — the unnamed ser
vant of Abraham who finds Isaac a bride (Gen 24:27, 48). While all mention
of this servant is omitted from Jubilees, God is still blessed eighteen times.
Only now it is by Noah (Jub 7:20), Abraham (13:7; 13:15; 16:26-27; !7:2"3; 22:4-
6; 23:1), Rebekah (25:11-15), Jacob (29:4; 31:31; 32:7; 45:3-5), Levi (32:1), and the