K. Schenck

Abstract: "Jesus and 'Enochic' Views of the Afterlife: More Commonality between the Historical Jesus and Qumran"

Kenneth Schenck

A critical examination of synoptic material in regard to the afterlife yields some general conclusions regarding the historical Jesus' teaching. His proclamation of immanent judgment focused on the living rather than the dead. Mark 9:42-48 and Q 12:5 originally envisaged bodies (and souls) being thrown into Gehenna as well as persons with amputated body parts entering into an earthly kingdom of God. Compare with these verses the implicit claim of Mark 9:1 that the disciples would die even after the kingdom and the Son of Man arrive. From these data it is clear that Jesus did not expect the end of the world to come with the judgment, although he did believe in a place of torment for the wicked dead.

He likely expected the restoration of Israel both socially and politically (e.g., parables of inclusion), saw himself as viceroy in that restored kingdom (cf. his appointment of the twelve), but did not expect such a restoration to take place solely by human revolutionary means. He may have expected God and his angels (or the "Son of Man") to bring it about (cf. Mark 15:34).

Our conclusions concerning Jesus' view of the afterlife are largely negative: he said very little about it, although he believed in the eternal torment of the wicked. There are hints he believed in a resurrection for the righteous who die in the eschatological battle (e.g., Mark 8:35), perhaps in a transformed angelic state (Mark 12:18-27). He may have also foreseen an ultimate Day of Judgment for all the dead (e.g., Q 10:13-15).

There are some interesting similarities between Jesus' teaching on the afterlife and those of Essenism in general. In the Dead Sea Scrolls in particular, references to the afterlife are almost as conspicuously absent as they are from the teaching of the historical Jesus. Yet it is clear that this community envisaged an eschatological battle among those living on the earth (e.g., 1QM passim). While the sons of light are active in this battle, the victory is decisive because of the assistance of holy angels like Melchizedek and Michael (e.g., 11QMelch; 1QM VII,6; XVII,6). This victory does not bring an end to the earth but an end to the enemies of true Israel.

The Dead Sea Community retained the broader "Enochic" conception of the judgment of the dead (e.g., _1 Enoch_ 22), particularly the image of judgment by fire with bitter weeping in a place of outer darkness (e.g., 1QS IV, 13). There is, however, no undisputed reference to resurrection in the distinctive literature of Qumran. The broader Essene literature did, however, hold to the continued existence of the righteous in the underworld as well as in a final judgment of all the dead (_1 Enoch_ 22), although it is not clear that this judgment involves a resurrection or that it interferes with the continued functioning of the earthly realm. These similarities are striking enough to place Jesus ideologically in the "Enochic" stream of first century Judaism.

(c) 2001
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