The Celestial Ascent in Jewish Traditions

Some Ascents from the Hebrew Bible

Enoch (Gen 5:18-24; Heb 11:5; Jude 1:14-5=1 Enoch 1:9)

Jacob (28:12-22)

Moses (Ex 3, 19:3-25, 24:9-18, 33-34)

Elijah (1 Kg 19:11-18; 2 Kgs 2:1-15; Mal. 3:23-4 cf. 1 Macc 2:58; Sirach 48:9-10

Isaiah (Is 6)

Ezekiel (1,10)

"Storming Heaven" Motif in the Old Testament

King of Babylon (Isa 14:3-21, esp. 12-14)

Nimrod (Gen 10:8-12)

Tower of Babel (Gen 11:1-9)

King of Tyre (Ez 28:1-19)

Other Judeo-Christian Traditions

Adam

Life of Adam and Eve, 25-29 [OTP 2:266-8]

Enoch

Sirach 44:16, 49:14; W. Sol. 4:10-11 (Apocrypha)

Enoch Pseudepigrapha

1 Enoch [OTP 1:13-89]

1. Book of the Watchers = 1 Enoch 1-36 (OTP 1:13-29)

2. Book of Similatudes (Parables) = 1 Enoch 37-71 (OTP 1:29-50)

3. Book of the Heavenly Luminaries = 1 Enoch 72-82 (OTP 1:50-61)

4. Book of DreamVisions = 1 Enoch 83-90 (OTP 1:61-72)

5. Book of the Two Ways = 1 Enoch 91-104 (OTP 1:72-88)

2 Enoch [OTP 1:102-221; esp. 1:102-4, 1:110-61, 1:194-7]

3 Enoch [OTP 255-315] (Merkavah text)

cf. 1 Clem 9:3 [LCLG 24:23]

[See Enoch bibliography below]

Abraham

Apocalypse of Abraham 9-32 [OTP 1:693-705];

Testament of Abraham 10-15 [OTP 1:887-93]

Moses:

Assumption of Moses [Charles APOT 407-24]

3 Enoch 15B:2-5 [OTP 1:303-4]

Christian

Clement, Strom. 4.15

Eusebius, Preparation of the Gospel 9.28, citing Ezekiel the Tragedian

Hellenistic

Josephus, Ant 4.8.48 (325-6);

Philo, Life of Moses 2.51 (288-92);

New Testament References

Mk 9:2-10=Mr 17:1-9=Lk 9:28-36 (Moses at Transfiguration);

Rev 11:1-13 (Two Witnesses, cf. Apoc. of Elijah 4:7-19 = OTP 1:747-8)

Jude 1:9 (= Assumption of Moses)

Rabbinic

Burning Bush [LJ 2:303-16] = Gedullat Mosheh

Revelation of the Torah [LJ 3:90-94]

Revelation of the Messiah [LJ 3:446-8]

Death/Assumption [LJ 3:471-3]

Orphica (Moses or someone else?) [OTP 2:799-800]

Levi:

Testament of Levi, 2-8 [OTP 1:788-91]

Elijah:

New Testament

Mk 9:2-10=Mr 17:1-9=Lk 9:28-36 (Moses at Transfiguration);

Rev 11:1-13 (Two Witnesses)

Stone, M. E., and J. Strugnell. The Books of Elijah. (Society of Biblical Literature, 1979)

Isaiah:

Ascension of Isaiah 6-11 [OTP 2:164-76]

Zephaniah:

Apocalypse of Zephaniah [OTP 1:508-516]

Baruch:

3 Baruch [OTP 1:662-79]

Ezra

Greek Apocalypse of Ezra [OTP 1:571-9]

Vision of Ezra [OTP 1:587-90, esp. 590]

Questions of Ezra [OTP 1:596-9]

General Bibliography

For general background see

Himmelfarb, Martha. Ascent to heaven in Jewish and Christian apocalypses (Oxford, 1993) [BS 1705 .H56 1993]

For translations of the texts noted above, see:

APOT = Charles, R. The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament in English. (Oxford, 1913) [BS 1692 1913 + ASR + 4 Ref + Course Reserve]

OTP = Charlesworth, James. Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. 2 vols. (Doubleday, 1983) [BS 1830 .A3 1983 + ASR + 4 Ref + Course Reserve]

LJ = Ginzberg, Louis. Legends of the Jews. (Jewish Publication Society, 1911)

Introductory Enoch Bibliography

Barker, Margaret. The Lost Prophet: The Book of Enoch and Its Influence on Christianity. (Abingdon, 1988)

Milik, J. T. The Books of Enoch: Aramaic Fragmetns of Qumran Cave 4 (Oxford, 1976).

Nibley, Hugh W. Enoch the Prophet. CWHN 2, (FARMS, 1986)

Vanderkam, James C. Enoch and the Growith of an Apocalyptic Tradition. (Catholic Biblical Association, 1984), pp. 33-51.

Vanderkam, James C. Enoch: A Man for all Generations. (U. South Carolina, 1995), pp. 6-14.

General Reference Works

ABD = Freedman, David Noel. The Anchor Bible Dictionary. (Doubleday, 1992)

IBD = Buttrick, George Arthur. The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible. (Baingdon, 1962)

Philo on the mystical or contemplative ascent

Philo, Spec. Leg. 1-6 = LCL 7:475.

Segal, "Heavenly Ascent," 1353-5

L. K. K. Dey, The Intermediary World and Patters of Perfection in Philo and Hebrews, [Missoula: Scholars Press, 1975])

Smith, Morton. Clement of Alexandria and a Secret Gospel of Mark, (Cambridge UP 1973), for additional discussion.