If you’re like me, you’re probably asking–who is Baruch? While the name is likely familiar, not many of us have ever read much of what is attributed to him. In the Bible, Baruch is the scribe and friend of the prophet Jeremiah. Due to his faithfulness in this relationship, he was well recognized and many later Jewish writings were attributed to him. This week, in my Apocalyptic Literature class, we looked at the writing entitled 3 Baruch, or The Greek Apocalypse of Baruch. You can read the full text here.
3 Baruch is a rather odd little piece. It is thought to have been written by Jewish authors sometime after the destruction of the temple in 70 AD, and then redone by Christian writers (due to the apparent Christian interpolations). We have Greek and Slavonic versions–substantial differences between the two (multiple versions of each). It was rediscovered and published in late 19th century, but has still has been largely ignored–many commenters don’t like it. One of the problems is that it is structured like an apocalyptic text, but it has many, many differences from what we would read in a text like 1 or 2 Enoch. For example, Baruch is lead by an angelic guide up through different levels of heaven, but what he finds on each and the total numbers of heaven–5–are much different.
Because of some of these differences, our professor, Dr. Orlov, suggested that this text may have been written as a Rabbinic polemic against the body of Enochic literature that became so popular among the Christians. Hence the title of my post–”Baruch, the Anti-Enoch.”
Baruch vs. Enoch
As mentioned, Baruch was very likely written as polemic against the Enochic literature. Unlike the Enoch texts, in 3 Baruch we see no heavenly temple, no chariot-throne vision, no transformation of the visionary. These were all very important themes, not only in the Enochic literature, but in many texts during the Second Temple period (see my last post on Testament of Levi).
Why are these elements missing in 3 Baruch? Why is there no mention of the temple, no eschatalogical renewing of the temple? Perhaps this was actually written to minimize importance of the fall of the temple. There were some Jews who felt that they did not need the temple at all. Jean-Claude Picard believes that this was written by Jews in Egypt (which would explain the text’s use of the Phoenix image).
In 3 Baruch, there is also no entry into the highest heaven where God dwells. Michael is only one that can go into God’s presence–the only one permitted to pass beyond the curtain. Michael is the intermediary between all creatures and God. Of course, this is much different from the Enoch texts, where Enoch actually becomes the Michael figure, being allowed to stand in the presence of God, or even sit on a throne beside him!
Baruch obviously does not see the glory of God (kavod). He is promised many times that he would see the glory of God, but never has the vision of God described in other texts. 3 Baruch seems to portray the vision of the glory to be God’s creations, the sun, Michael, and the righteous in their final resting place, etc.
Baruch often sees things that we would not expect to see ino a heavenly ascent. The heavens are usually described as being populated by angels of increasing degrees of glory. 3 Baruch, however, has the first heaven as the abode of those who built the “Tower of Strife” (likely Babel); the second heaven houses those who enforced the building of the tower (the same one?), and who now appear as dogs; the third heaven seems to depict the Garden of Eden, with the serpent and tree, and also a man on a chariot that seems to be equated with the Phoenix bird and also the sun; the fourth heaven contains a pool of water where the righteous (depicted as birds) gather and praise God.
Baruch never goes into or past the 5th heaven–God’s dwelling place is usually seen as being in the 7th heaven. In fact, in Baruch’s vision, it is not even clear if there is any higher heaven than the 5th, unless the higher levels lie beyond the gate that Baruch cannot pass. This narrative seems to be informed by Zadokite tradition–that there could be no entry into 6th heaven, no passing of that boundary, no real encounter with the Divine. Dr. Orlov mentioned that, on the other hand, some groups such as the Manicheans had the number five as sacred–they actually believed in 5 heavens–perhaps referring to the five books of Torah (the Torah was transformed into a temple motif in Rabbinic writings).
Some Other Interesting Items
Despite the likelihood of this theory of the polemical nature of 3 Baruch, there are still a number of items that are important or interesting.
The theme of the angelic guide coming to share the “mysteries of God” by taking the visionary on a heavenly ascent is, of course, present. It is notable that at entrance to each of the heavens is a large door that must be passed through. When they arrive at the fifth heaven, the door is closed. Here is the actual text:
And the angel took me and led me thence to a fifth heaven, And the gate was closed. And I said, Lord, is not this gate-way open that we may enter ? And the angel said to me, We cannot enter until Michael comes, who holds the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven; but wait and thou shalt see 3 the gIory of God. And there was a great sound, as thunder. And I said, Lord, what is this sound? 4 And he said to me, Even now Michael, the commander of the angels, comes down to receive the 5 prayers of men. And behold a voice came, Let the gates be opened. And they opened them, and 6 there was a roar as of thunder. And Michael came, and the angel who was with me came face to 7 face with him and said, Hail, my commander, and that of all our order. And the commander Michael said, Hail thou also, our brother, and the interpreter of the revelations to those who pass through life 8 virtuously. And having saluted one another thus, they stood still.
Interestingly, Baruch’s angelic guide cannot open this door (the door is often the equivalent of the veil) by himself. The have to wait for Michael (who, in these texts, is often the equivalent of Jesus), who holds the keys of the kingdom, to let them in. They then hear a voice, presumably from the other side of the door, that commands that the door be opened. Baruch is never let in, but they see Michael and converse with him, after the angelic guide and Michael “salute” each other. Pretty neat stuff!
Another theme that I wanted to mention is that of a possible reference to Christ and his resurrection. As I mentioned earlier, in the third heaven Baruch sees a man with a crown riding on a chariot that is being pulled by angelic beings. Apparently, this man is the sun, as the sun is later described as the one that is wearing the crown. This imagery fits well with ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian beliefs that the sun was a god who rode on a chariot. Closely related, in our texts, to the sun-man is the Phoenix, who flies with the sun and protects the earth from its rays. It appears that the Phoenix is also wearing the crown. The Phoenix is traditionally equated with the sun, and it likewise flies across the sky, dies, and then is resurrected in the morning. These images are presented in 3 Baruch soon after the name of Jesus Christ is mentioned. It seems obvious that they are equating the the crowned rider of the chariot, the Sun, and the Phoenix, with Jesus Christ.
Another Word on the Number of Heavens
The number of heavens in 3 Baruch takes us back to this interesting discussion of how many heavens the ancients believed in. This is a rather complicated issue. In my last post, I recorded the following from our class discussion:
[W]hy do we have 3 heavens in some material and sometimes 7? It is because the Heavenly Temple is reflecting the earthly temple (or vice versa)-thus, we have a three-fold structure in heaven. So the heavenly temple was envisioned as being similar in structure to the earthly temple. Sometimes, however, there are 7 heavens-possibly making a parallel to the outer gates and courts of the temple. There is also a likely parallel here to the 7 days of Creation.
That there could be five heavens is a rather rare position to take–the only other mention of five (that I know of) is in the Manichean tradition, as I noted earlier. But why the ambiguity between three and seven? Which was the original belief? As I noted in my previous post, I think the LDS position on this is comprehensive enough to allow for three or seven or five or any number of heavens, really.
I did happen to read, since then, an interesting article by C.R.A Morray-Jones that dealt with this issue. It is entitled “The Temple Within: The Embodied Divine Image and its Worship in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Other Early Jewish and Christian Sources”, published in the SBL 1998 Seminar Papers. According to Morray-Jones, the three-tiered heaven was the earliest form, which was then expanded to seven.
I have argued elsewhere that the threefold structure of the temple in 1 Enoch 14 reflects a cosmology of three heavens, which is also attested in other parts of the early Enoch literature. According to the majority of commentators, an early form of The Testament of Levi employed a similar three-tier cosmology, although the number of heavens was increased to seven in later versions. Here, again, the highest heaven…is called “the Holy of Holies.” As observed by Himmelfarb, in the extended version of the text the chambers of the temple are identical with the higher celestial levels.
In the later apocalypses, the three-tier cosmology is largely displaced by a more complex model of seven heavens…
Another interesting point, mentioned in class, is that the Christian theologian, Origen, seems to quote from a version of 3 Baruch that mentions seven heavens instead of five.
Leaving the issue of how many heavens aside, the content of the heavens can also be useful in light of our understanding of the afterlife. It is interesting that Baruch sees that the lower heavens are inhabited by those who displeased God or were disobedient in some way. This fits Joseph Smith’s description of the lower heavens/degrees of glory quite well. The upper three levels–perhaps we can compare the three levels of the celestial kingdom in Joseph Smith’s visions–contain Paradise, the Sun, the righteous dead, and the heavenly abode of God. While they are not exact matches by any means, I think we can still sift through the details to find some enlightening parallels.
Finally, for your further edification I would like to post a link to an article written by Andrei Orlov on the topic of 3 Baruch: http://www.mu.edu/maqom/SBQArboretums.pdf
Baruch, the Anti-Enoch
If you’re like me, you’re probably asking–who is Baruch? While the name is likely familiar, not many of us have ever read much of what is attributed to him. In the Bible, Baruch is the scribe and friend of the prophet Jeremiah. Due to his faithfulness in this relationship, he was well recognized and many later Jewish writings were attributed to him. This week, in my Apocalyptic Literature class, we looked at the writing entitled 3 Baruch, or The Greek Apocalypse of Baruch. You can read the full text here.
3 Baruch is a rather odd little piece. It is thought to have been written by Jewish authors sometime after the destruction of the temple in 70 AD, and then redone by Christian writers (due to the apparent Christian interpolations). We have Greek and Slavonic versions–substantial differences between the two (multiple versions of each). It was rediscovered and published in late 19th century, but has still has been largely ignored–many commenters don’t like it. One of the problems is that it is structured like an apocalyptic text, but it has many, many differences from what we would read in a text like 1 or 2 Enoch. For example, Baruch is lead by an angelic guide up through different levels of heaven, but what he finds on each and the total numbers of heaven–5–are much different.
Because of some of these differences, our professor, Dr. Orlov, suggested that this text may have been written as a Rabbinic polemic against the body of Enochic literature that became so popular among the Christians. Hence the title of my post–”Baruch, the Anti-Enoch.”
Baruch vs. Enoch
As mentioned, Baruch was very likely written as polemic against the Enochic literature. Unlike the Enoch texts, in 3 Baruch we see no heavenly temple, no chariot-throne vision, no transformation of the visionary. These were all very important themes, not only in the Enochic literature, but in many texts during the Second Temple period (see my last post on Testament of Levi).
Why are these elements missing in 3 Baruch? Why is there no mention of the temple, no eschatalogical renewing of the temple? Perhaps this was actually written to minimize importance of the fall of the temple. There were some Jews who felt that they did not need the temple at all. Jean-Claude Picard believes that this was written by Jews in Egypt (which would explain the text’s use of the Phoenix image).
In 3 Baruch, there is also no entry into the highest heaven where God dwells. Michael is only one that can go into God’s presence–the only one permitted to pass beyond the curtain. Michael is the intermediary between all creatures and God. Of course, this is much different from the Enoch texts, where Enoch actually becomes the Michael figure, being allowed to stand in the presence of God, or even sit on a throne beside him!
Baruch obviously does not see the glory of God (kavod). He is promised many times that he would see the glory of God, but never has the vision of God described in other texts. 3 Baruch seems to portray the vision of the glory to be God’s creations, the sun, Michael, and the righteous in their final resting place, etc.
Baruch often sees things that we would not expect to see ino a heavenly ascent. The heavens are usually described as being populated by angels of increasing degrees of glory. 3 Baruch, however, has the first heaven as the abode of those who built the “Tower of Strife” (likely Babel); the second heaven houses those who enforced the building of the tower (the same one?), and who now appear as dogs; the third heaven seems to depict the Garden of Eden, with the serpent and tree, and also a man on a chariot that seems to be equated with the Phoenix bird and also the sun; the fourth heaven contains a pool of water where the righteous (depicted as birds) gather and praise God.
Baruch never goes into or past the 5th heaven–God’s dwelling place is usually seen as being in the 7th heaven. In fact, in Baruch’s vision, it is not even clear if there is any higher heaven than the 5th, unless the higher levels lie beyond the gate that Baruch cannot pass. This narrative seems to be informed by Zadokite tradition–that there could be no entry into 6th heaven, no passing of that boundary, no real encounter with the Divine. Dr. Orlov mentioned that, on the other hand, some groups such as the Manicheans had the number five as sacred–they actually believed in 5 heavens–perhaps referring to the five books of Torah (the Torah was transformed into a temple motif in Rabbinic writings).
Some Other Interesting Items
Despite the likelihood of this theory of the polemical nature of 3 Baruch, there are still a number of items that are important or interesting.
The theme of the angelic guide coming to share the “mysteries of God” by taking the visionary on a heavenly ascent is, of course, present. It is notable that at entrance to each of the heavens is a large door that must be passed through. When they arrive at the fifth heaven, the door is closed. Here is the actual text:
And the angel took me and led me thence to a fifth heaven, And the gate was closed. And I said, Lord, is not this gate-way open that we may enter ? And the angel said to me, We cannot enter until Michael comes, who holds the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven; but wait and thou shalt see 3 the gIory of God. And there was a great sound, as thunder. And I said, Lord, what is this sound? 4 And he said to me, Even now Michael, the commander of the angels, comes down to receive the 5 prayers of men. And behold a voice came, Let the gates be opened. And they opened them, and 6 there was a roar as of thunder. And Michael came, and the angel who was with me came face to 7 face with him and said, Hail, my commander, and that of all our order. And the commander Michael said, Hail thou also, our brother, and the interpreter of the revelations to those who pass through life 8 virtuously. And having saluted one another thus, they stood still.
Interestingly, Baruch’s angelic guide cannot open this door (the door is often the equivalent of the veil) by himself. The have to wait for Michael (who, in these texts, is often the equivalent of Jesus), who holds the keys of the kingdom, to let them in. They then hear a voice, presumably from the other side of the door, that commands that the door be opened. Baruch is never let in, but they see Michael and converse with him, after the angelic guide and Michael “salute” each other. Pretty neat stuff!
Another theme that I wanted to mention is that of a possible reference to Christ and his resurrection. As I mentioned earlier, in the third heaven Baruch sees a man with a crown riding on a chariot that is being pulled by angelic beings. Apparently, this man is the sun, as the sun is later described as the one that is wearing the crown. This imagery fits well with ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian beliefs that the sun was a god who rode on a chariot. Closely related, in our texts, to the sun-man is the Phoenix, who flies with the sun and protects the earth from its rays. It appears that the Phoenix is also wearing the crown. The Phoenix is traditionally equated with the sun, and it likewise flies across the sky, dies, and then is resurrected in the morning. These images are presented in 3 Baruch soon after the name of Jesus Christ is mentioned. It seems obvious that they are equating the the crowned rider of the chariot, the Sun, and the Phoenix, with Jesus Christ.
Another Word on the Number of Heavens
The number of heavens in 3 Baruch takes us back to this interesting discussion of how many heavens the ancients believed in. This is a rather complicated issue. In my last post, I recorded the following from our class discussion:
[W]hy do we have 3 heavens in some material and sometimes 7? It is because the Heavenly Temple is reflecting the earthly temple (or vice versa)-thus, we have a three-fold structure in heaven. So the heavenly temple was envisioned as being similar in structure to the earthly temple. Sometimes, however, there are 7 heavens-possibly making a parallel to the outer gates and courts of the temple. There is also a likely parallel here to the 7 days of Creation.
That there could be five heavens is a rather rare position to take–the only other mention of five (that I know of) is in the Manichean tradition, as I noted earlier. But why the ambiguity between three and seven? Which was the original belief? As I noted in my previous post, I think the LDS position on this is comprehensive enough to allow for three or seven or five or any number of heavens, really.
I did happen to read, since then, an interesting article by C.R.A Morray-Jones that dealt with this issue. It is entitled “The Temple Within: The Embodied Divine Image and its Worship in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Other Early Jewish and Christian Sources”, published in the SBL 1998 Seminar Papers. According to Morray-Jones, the three-tiered heaven was the earliest form, which was then expanded to seven.
I have argued elsewhere that the threefold structure of the temple in 1 Enoch 14 reflects a cosmology of three heavens, which is also attested in other parts of the early Enoch literature. According to the majority of commentators, an early form of The Testament of Levi employed a similar three-tier cosmology, although the number of heavens was increased to seven in later versions. Here, again, the highest heaven…is called “the Holy of Holies.” As observed by Himmelfarb, in the extended version of the text the chambers of the temple are identical with the higher celestial levels.
In the later apocalypses, the three-tier cosmology is largely displaced by a more complex model of seven heavens…
Another interesting point, mentioned in class, is that the Christian theologian, Origen, seems to quote from a version of 3 Baruch that mentions seven heavens instead of five.
Leaving the issue of how many heavens aside, the content of the heavens can also be useful in light of our understanding of the afterlife. It is interesting that Baruch sees that the lower heavens are inhabited by those who displeased God or were disobedient in some way. This fits Joseph Smith’s description of the lower heavens/degrees of glory quite well. The upper three levels–perhaps we can compare the three levels of the celestial kingdom in Joseph Smith’s visions–contain Paradise, the Sun, the righteous dead, and the heavenly abode of God. While they are not exact matches by any means, I think we can still sift through the details to find some enlightening parallels.
Finally, for your further edification I would like to post a link to an article written by Andrei Orlov on the topic of 3 Baruch: http://www.mu.edu/maqom/SBQArboretums.pdf