1 Enoch (Book of Enoch)

c. 300–100 BC · Early Jewish / Second Temple Texts

About this text

One of the most discussed non-canonical texts. Quoted in Jude 14–15. Covers fallen angels (the Watchers), heavenly visions, the Son of Man, and the final judgment. Considered canonical by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

Significance

Directly quoted in the New Testament. Deeply influential on early Christian and Jewish apocalyptic thought.

How to Read This Historical Text

1 Enoch (Book of Enoch) is included here as a historical and educational resource, not as Scripture and not as a replacement for the biblical canon. Readers may find it useful for understanding the ideas, debates, devotional language, and literary settings that surrounded Jewish and Christian communities in different periods.

Read this text with context in mind. Notice its era, category, and relationship to canonical passages, then compare its themes with the Bible itself. Some library works preserve valuable historical background, while others represent viewpoints that many Christian traditions rejected. Inclusion in this library does not mean endorsement of every claim or doctrine in the text.

For more about how The Bible Companion handles public-domain writings, Bible translations, attribution, and devotional material, see the Sources & Editorial Policy.

Key excerpts

"And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones to execute judgement upon all, and to destroy all the ungodly."
"In those days shall the elect and holy race descend from the upper heavens, and their seed shall then be with the sons of men."
"The Watchers, the children of heaven, saw and lusted after the daughters of men, and said to one another: Come, let us choose us wives from among the children of men."

Scripture cross-references

  • Jude 1:14-15 — Directly quotes 1 Enoch 1:9
  • Genesis 6:1-4 — The Nephilim / "sons of God" passage that 1 Enoch expands
  • 2 Peter 2:4 — Angels who sinned — echoes the Enochic Watchers tradition

Continue exploring

This text is one of 17 in the Early Jewish / Second Temple Texts category, and one of 62 across the entire library.