Part II. (6-11). In the twentieth j-ear of Heze- kiali, Isaiah saw a vision which he narrated tu the king and council of prominent men (6) : an angel took him through the firmament and through the six lower heavens into the seventh. Here he saw the departed patriarchs — Adam, Abel, and Enoch— and God Himself. He learned that Christ should come into the earth ; and having received this information, he was led by tlie same angel back into the firmament (7-10). In the firma- ment he saw the future birth, life, sullering, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus into the seventh heaven. The angel left him, and Isaiah's soul returned into his earthly body. It was because of this vision, which he had related to Hezekiah, that Manasseh caused Isaiah to 1 e i)Ut to death (11).
Literary qnett ions.— The sijriis of " f the
book are too plain to require critical •!' ^ac-s-
tion is simply whether it consists oi ' n.le-
pendent writinjfs. The umsl ubxiun- i Tlie
Vision "I ]-i ii .n.t Inim the
MartM't I ' > ulym, which it
would ]■•■■■! ..lunce of inde-
penilrii' 11 enlarged by
theatl.l , , ,. , in the »e<onil part. 'I: .- • , :_ii) till- Murt.M-.l.iiii M" I-.iiMi II :,
(3)Am"i'.:
later L'l.i -
Iter hand (U (4) -.1, and 11-';b). T1 ■iilly accepted
ilso widely apar
inson in Hastm-s' PB d. i'J-J ; Chaik-s, .4so=„s,u„ ./ Jsaiah.
12. The Histories of Adam and Eve.— This work appears under two main forms, almost as distinct as two works : one in Greek and one in Latin. The Greek is entitled Narrative and Citizenship of Adam and Eve (iii^^ijcris). It was publishedT by Tischendorf in 1866 (Apocal. Apocr. pp. 1-23) under the misleading title of ' The Apocalypse of Moses.' The Latin version is entitled Vita Ada: ct EvcB, and was published by W. jNIeyer {Abhandl. d. Munrhc. Akad. Phil.-Hist. Klasse xiv. 3, 1878, pp. IS". -Jriiii. A third slightly varying form e.xists in Sl,i\oiii- . aiel a fourth in Armenian. Both of the-r .11. ■ ti..iii the Greek narrative.
C"i:f< iit.i. — Thestoryopens with an account of the deeds of Adam and Eve immediately following tlie expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve seek for food, experience dilficidties in obtain- ing it, and perfoi m penance in order to secure God's mercy (l-8i. >:i!aii ..u..- luore tempts Eve (9-11), and narrate, i: iii. i. |u -t of Adam the circum- stances of hi. ...ill lall |1_'-17). Then follows an account of the imih ui Cain and Abel, and Adam is taught how to cultivate the soil (18-22). Eve dreams of Abel's death, which presently occurs ; but Seth and other children are born to Adam and Eve (23. 24). Adam informs Seth of a vision given him through the archangel Michael, after he and Eve had been cast out of Eden. It was a chaiiot siuiilar to the wind, but with wheels of fire. The I.iM.l sat upon it, and many thousand angels stood .11 II 1. 1 i-ht handandou His left. Adam addressed a 1 ia\ri tu the Lord, and the Lord assured him that tho.e who should know and serve Himself H uuld not fail from the seed of Adam. Adam en- joins Seth to receive this knowledge and keep it (25-29). At the age of 930, Adam falls sick, and, calling his sons together, once more tells them of the circumstances of the Fall (30-34). He then sends Eve and Seth to the vicinity of Paradise in order that, putting dust upon their heuds, they might plead for him and receive some of the oil of life to anoint hiin (35. 36). On the way they are met by the Serpent, which bites Setli, but is per- suaded by Eve to let him go (37-39). They reach the gates of Paradise, present; their petition, but, instead of the oil for >\ hich they hacl asked, they receive the promise of a blessing in the distant future (40-42). They return to Adam, and report their experiences (43. 44). Adam then dies and is buried (45-51).
The Dicgesis gives a parallel account of the Fall by Eve (15-30), of Adam's last will and death (30, 31), of the intercession of the entire angel host in behalf of forgiveness for .A.daiu (33-36), of the acceptance of the prayer (37), of the burial of .\daui by the angel (38-42), and of Eve's death and burial (42, 43). '
Literary questions.— Taa book (or couplet of books) is found in three recensions, Greek, Latin, and Slavonic. It is based on a Jewish original (Tischendorf, Conybeare, Spitta, Hariiack, lu.hs). Others, however, do not believe in the Jewish original . hiirer, Gelzer).
1 hu date of the composition is uncertain. Tlie author was a > A-. [Hort, however, finds traces of Cliristiaii inAueiice, and . :■ u-atcs the .\daiii story to post-Chrislian times.]
;;i(i(iu(is.— UieekText: Tischendorf, J/^i'cu/y/isPi-.liJOOwAa,
APOCALYPTIC LITERATURE
APOCALYPTIC LITERATURE 91
1866; Wilh. Meyer, Vita Ada; et 7?c(r.— Enclish translations; in Schafl and Wace's Ante-Sn^ „■■ i / , ,,,/,.,„ I.ihrarij, vol. xxii.; Conybearein J'Q/f vii. lS!i,j, I , ' i ;. inrni : ii((cra(K)--
blatt. d. Orients, I8b0, fv • " 'I i lis in Kautzsch's
Pseudepirjr. 1900.
Siiiilh and Wace's
.■1./V.
13. The Apocalypse of Abraham. — This i.s a work preserved only in a Slavonic translation. It was published in that language (1863), hut only made known more widely through a German trans- lation by Bonwetsch (1897). It tells of how Abra- ham took ofi'ence at the idolatry of his father, how he despised both the wooden image Barisat and the stone statue Marumath, and was on that ground made tlie subject of a special visit on the part of the angel Jaoel, who taught him to offer sacrifice, and then took him into heaven on the wings of a dove. Here Abraham received many revelations. This work should not be mistaken for tlie Testa- ment of Abraham, edited by James in the Cam- bridge Texts and Sfid/irs (ii. 2, 1892).