Bible facts
The Book of Enoch: what it is, what it says and why it is not in the Bible
The Book of Enoch (or 1 Enoch) is an ancient Jewish text written in stages between the 3rd century BC and the 1st century AD and attributed to the patriarch Enoch, Noah’s great-grandfather. It tells of the angelic “Watchers” who came down to earth, the giants, visions of heaven and the final judgment. It is not part of the Jewish, Catholic or Protestant Bible, but it is canonical in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.
Who was Enoch in the Bible?
Enoch appears in the genealogy of Genesis 5: son of Jared, father of Methuselah and great-grandfather of Noah. Unlike everyone else on the list, the Bible does not say he died:
And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
That mysterious line made Enoch the perfect figure for legends: someone taken up to heaven who had seen its secrets. The letter to the Hebrews returns to the idea (Hebrews 11:5).
What is the Book of Enoch?
It is a collection of five Jewish works gathered under Enoch’s name and written over roughly three centuries:
- Book of the Watchers (ch. 1–36): the angels who came down to earth and Enoch’s journeys through heaven.
- Book of Parables (ch. 37–71): visions of a heavenly judge called the “Son of Man”.
- Astronomical Book (ch. 72–82): a 364-day solar calendar.
- Book of Dreams (ch. 83–90): the history of Israel told through symbolic animals.
- Epistle of Enoch (ch. 91–108): exhortations and the fate of the righteous and the wicked.
What does the Book of Enoch say about angels and giants?
Its most famous section expands Genesis 6:1–4, which mentions the “sons of God” who took the “daughters of men”. In Enoch, two hundred angels, the Watchers, descend on Mount Hermon, take human wives and father giants. They also teach humans metalworking, sorcery and astrology. The flood is presented as the judgment on that corruption.
Is the Book of Enoch quoted in the Bible?
Yes. The letter of Jude, in the New Testament, quotes 1 Enoch 1:9 almost word for word:
And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.
This shows that the book was known and respected by some first-century Christians. Quoting a text, however, does not make it Scripture: Paul also quotes Greek poets (Acts 17:28).
Why is the Book of Enoch not in the Bible?
The Hebrew Bible never included it, and most Church Fathers eventually rejected it, although some, such as Tertullian, defended it. It disappeared from use in the West for over a thousand years. Only the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church kept it in its canon, which is why the complete text survived only in Ge’ez, the classical language of Ethiopia. See also who wrote the Bible and how its books were collected.
How was the book rediscovered?
In 1773, the Scottish explorer James Bruce brought Ge’ez copies from Ethiopia to Europe, and the first English translation appeared in 1821. In the 20th century, Aramaic fragments of almost every section were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls at Qumran, confirming the text’s antiquity. Only the Book of Parables was missing there.
Are there other books of Enoch?
Yes, and they are different works: 2 Enoch, preserved in Slavonic, which ends with the miraculous birth of Melchizedek, and 3 Enoch, a much later Jewish mystical text in Hebrew.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the Book of Enoch?
A set of ancient Jewish texts attributed to Enoch, Noah’s great-grandfather, with visions about fallen angels, heaven, the calendar and the final judgment.
Who wrote the Book of Enoch?
Anonymous Jewish authors between the 3rd century BC and the 1st century AD, writing under Enoch’s name, a common practice at the time.
Why was the Book of Enoch removed from the Bible?
It was never part of the Hebrew Bible or of most Christian Bibles. Only the Ethiopian Orthodox Church includes it in its canon.
Is the Book of Enoch quoted in the Bible?
Yes. Jude 14–15 quotes 1 Enoch 1:9, about the Lord coming with ten thousands of his saints.
How many chapters does the Book of Enoch have?
In its Ethiopic form, 108 chapters, divided into five parts.