Saturday 25 February 2012

The Second Coming in the Book of Enoch


The Ascension of Enoch, by Gerard Hoet


The first Book of Enoch, also contains some imagery in line with the end-time judgment described in the Old Testament texts that we have discussed in earlier posts. Composed over several stages of development between 300BC and the 1st century AD, the first Book of Enoch is a pseudepigraphal work outside of the Christian canon, with its major claim to authority being the fact that it is quoted in the Epistle of St. Jude in the New Testament (vv14-15). At the opening of the book, it describes God descending to earth at the end-time, along with the associated theophanic phenomena of the throwing down of mountains and enormous earthquakes:

The Holy Great One will come forth from His dwelling,
And the eternal God will tread upon the earth, (even) on Mount Sinai,
And appear from His camp
And appear in the strength of His might from the heaven of heavens.
And all shall be smitten with fear
And the Watchers shall quake,
And great fear and trembling shall seize them unto the ends of the earth.
And the high mountains shall be shaken,
And the high hills shall be made low,
And shall melt like wax before the flame
And the earth shall be wholly rent in sunder,
And all that is upon the earth shall perish,
And there shall be a judgement upon all (men). (1Enoch 1:3-7)

This portion of the Book of Enoch is based on a passage in the Book of Deuteronomy which concerns the theophany at Mt. Sinai after the escape of the Israelites from bondage in Egypt:

 “The LORD came from Sinai and dawned from Seir upon us; he shone forth from Mount Paran;
 he came from the ten thousands of holy ones, with flaming fire at his right hand."

 (Deut 33:2)

It also reflects a passage in the Book of Habakkuk which appears to connect these events with a great disturbance of the sea (as we noted in the earlier post Parousia, Eschatological Earthquake and Mega-tsunami Connections in Habakkuk?):

God came from Teman, and the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah. His splendor covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. His brightness was like the light; rays flashed from his hand; and there he veiled his power. Before him went pestilence, and plague followed at his heels.
He stood and measured the earth; he looked and shook the nations; then the eternal mountains were scattered; the everlasting hills sank low. His were the everlasting ways. I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction; the curtains of the land of Midian did tremble. Was your wrath against the rivers, O LORD?
Was your anger against the rivers, or your indignation against the sea, when you rode on your horses, on your chariot of salvation? You stripped the sheath from your bow, calling for many arrows. Selah You split the earth with rivers. The mountains saw you and writhed; the raging waters swept on; the deep gave forth its voice; it lifted its hands on high...

...You trampled the sea with your horses, the surging of mighty waters.

(Hab 3:3-10; 15)

As we have already shown in the post King David's Vision of the End-time?, the events of the exodus on which these passages are modelled, appear to have been caused by the eruption of the volcano Santorini around 3,500 years ago. During this eruption, the explosion generated a huge tsunami which, as well as destroying the Minoan civilisation on Crete, swept across the Egyptian coast. So by alluding to the events of the exodus, these passages seem to be describing a future volcanic collapse and subsequent catastrophic tsunami. This would perhaps explain why one of the Two Witnesses of the Book of Revelation is expected to be a "Second Moses" type figure, and why the bowl plagues of Rev 16 are directly based on the plagues of Egypt.
While the portion of the Book of Enoch quoted above is based on Deut 33 and Hab 3, it also has some clear eschatological overtones, such as the mention of a final judgement: "And all that is upon the earth shall perish, And there shall be a judgement upon all (men)."
So once again, we have a prophetic text which links the Second Coming of Christ with the eschatological earthquake, and the casting down of mountains (see the earlier posts The Eschatological Earthquake parts one and two, for an explanation as to how this "Great Shaking" may be related to the future collapse of Cumbre Vieja). This explains the Apocalypse's depiction of Christ at his Second Coming as a reaper, casting his sickle across the earth to reap the eschatological harvest. The events that unfold as a result of the Parousia of Christ will ultimately bring about the final harvest of the earth:

Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped.   (Rev 14:14-16)

See also the related posts:

The Second Coming (Part I)
The Second Coming (Part II): Rapture
The Second Coming (Part III): The Day of the Lord


10 comments:

  1. Perhaps related to the "mountains shall be shaken", one of the Kibeho seers, Anathalie had a vision of mountains crashing into each other and stones coming out of the earth as though angry:

    http://www.spiritdaily.net/kibehoanatalie.htm

    Anathalie's vision may be symbolic of some spiritual reality of the end times or could perhaps even be related to a flip of the worlds axis that some seers have prophesied.

    Jamey

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  2. Thanks Jamey - I missed that one! I've found another recent private revelation that seems to foretell this threat, and which specifically relates it to the crime of abortion (which you highlighted yourself by pointing to Ned Dougherty's suggestion in his book).
    This event seems to crop up in a huge number of private revelations. And the thing is, it seems that they've all converged on this independantly. I find the prophecies of this event before the threat posed by Cumbre Vieja was discovered at the turn of the millennium of particular interest. Since it could be argued that any alleged private revelations that fits this event that were made after it was already widely publicised in the media, could simply be alligning their "prophecies" to meet with current scientific hypotheses. I purposefully tried to avoid contemporary non-Church approved private revelations while writing the book. But now that I'm actively researching private revelations that have yet to be approved, the amount of them that all seem to predict the same thing constantly amazes me. It's also bizarre that no one else seems to have picked up on this...
    Let me know if you come across any more...

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  3. Your posts and book have given me so much more of an appreciation of the Bible,-I thank the Good Lord for it and you, Dear Emmett for being an intercessory in bringing the urgency of His messages and signs to the forefront.

    The biblical saying which states 'there is nothing new under the sun' still holds firm for us, yesterday, today and tomorrow. We have seen what is happening in the world here before, its all in God's Book. Nature abors a vacumn it will not tolerate continuous offences and defiant assaults by man against its creator who has lovingly called us into existance to be with Him happily forever. The only difference is that we are dealing with vastly more people in the world than in biblical times, so therefore more souls are at stake here.

    Your posts are alarming but also consoling because our liberation is close at hand!

    Christus Vincit, Christus Regnat, Christus Imperat!

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  4. Anne, I hear where you are coming from, the truth sets us free and having some knowledge of what is going on in these times is liberating. How long will God continue to put up with all these evils? The way young girls are allowing their bodies to be treated is very sad and the young are very lost atm.

    When I go out at night I am shocked by what I see. I have 2 young girls, aged 4 and 7, and I dont want them growing up in this society, I constantly have to be on guard on what is on television, what people are talking about in their presence, etc. Please say a prayer for them.

    Fulton Sheen in one of his books quotes an ancient historian who states you know a civilisation is in trouble when vices become virtues and virtues become vices. For example adultery is glorified and celebrated in many tv shows/movies.

    Fr Bill Casey of the Fathers of Mercy, an excellent fire and brimstone preacher who is also very intelligent, mentions that the family home has had to become the family monastery to keep the barbarians out. I recommend anyone listen to his presentations some of which are available via download for little cost from Catholic Lighthouse media.

    Jamey

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  5. Thanks Anne!

    You're right - it can be a bit scary all this stuff! But as you say, judgment always looms for grave offences.
    My main hope is that the Second Pentecost will arrive sooner rather than later, so that the Bride can "clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure” (Rev 19:8), in preparation for the coming of the Groom.
    In the words of St Pio of Pietrelcina, "Pray, Hope, and Don't Worry"...

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  6. It's extremely difficult out there for parents, given that modern culture has become immersed in the glorification of evil. And it's hard to shelter them from being influenced by this culture through the media and their peers. That's why many Catholic parents are turning to home-schooling. But this isn't an option for everyone of course.
    Modern society seems to be progressively spiralling downward, and it's very sad to see. I pity the vast majority of people caught up in this, since they aren't even aware of the extent that they are influenced by their immediate environment.
    The main problem is the widening separation between Church and State, and the purposeful secularisation of culture via the media to feed corporate greed. Things would dramatically change if the media were to actively promote the Church, instead of presenting a one-sided atheistic/agnostic worldview pandering to base human desires.

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  7. Emmett,

    Which private revelation links chastisement to abortion?

    In regard to the second pentecost I personally can't see it happening unless there is a major change in the liturgy. I can't see this happening soon within the church unless there is some form of divine revelation/intervention.

    Our Holy Father Pope Benedict himself has said the novus ordo liturgy is banal and fabricated and yet with all the forces operating in the church even he can't replace the liturgical experiment with the old which he celebrates privately.

    Saying that he has installed some great measures to help bring back the celebration and awareness of the Tridentine Mass. Anything more will probably produce a mass schism in the church. There were priests in Australia who were enraged by the recent minute amendments to the Novus ordo and I dont think the current changes will amount to much.

    An excerpt from the good Jesuit Fr Vincent Miceli who saw the liturgical changes in the late 60s as being influenced by diabolical elements and in a way a precursor for the end times.

    http://www.marys-touch.com/truth/detente.htm

    Please note I am not saying the novus ordo is invalid and I have met some holy people in novus ordo parishes but on a wider scale I think it has been damaging for the faith to say the least.

    Jamey

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  8. Thank you Emmett and Jamey.
    I would be more than happy to pray for your children. I don't have children myself, I have two small nephews 2 and 4 and I dearly would like them to grow in a society Blessed by God's Laws.

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  9. Just put up a post on the connection between the chastisement and abortion in a yet-to-be-approved private revelation, supposedly given to Nancy Fowler at Conyers, Georgia.
    I agree that the liturgy has been improvished in the Novus ordo, but as you say, it doesn't invalidate the Mass.

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  10. Emmett and Anne thank you for your kind responses and God bless!

    Jamey

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