with white hair and beard. He is seated on a glorious throne, and surrounded with myriads of angels (Eth. En 1^- ■', Sib. Or 3"'- »=, Slav. En 20', Test. Levi 4, Assumji. Mos 12»). In some representations it is the Messiah who acts as the judge (uniformly in the Book of Similitudes, Eth. Enoch 37-71, with the exception of 47"). His sphere of judgment, however, includes the fallen angels and demons, not men. For the most part, the Messiah appears either before or after the judgment (4 Ezr 7'^ before ; Eth. Enoch 90, after). Again, Messiah is associated with God and acts as the judge while God executes sentence (Eth. En 62).
11. The Punishment of the Wicked. — The most manifest eflect of the judgment is the overthrow of God's enemies and the infliction of fit penalties upon them. Of these enemies, llin-i- classes may be distinguished : (a) Spirits, inrlu.linu Satan and fallen angels (Test. Benj. 3, Sil,. (ii :)'■, I'cst. Sim. 6, Zeb._ 9). (6) Heathen worl.l |...wris. h.oked at either in the abstract or -as special individual kings 4 Ezr 11. 12", Sib. Or 3="'-», Ps - Sol 17", Eth. En pi* 52" 53'). _ (c) Sinners in general. But special mention is made of Israelites who trans- gressed the law (Syr. Bar 85"* 54-). Satan (Beliar)is cast into the fire (Test. Jud. 25), though he rules in hell with his angels (Eth. En 53" 56'). The fallen angels pass at the judgment into a permanent condition of damnation. The giants who s])rang from the union of the angels with the daughters of men are also confined in eternal torment. The heathen who have opposed God and oppressed Israel are destroyed. Destruction (aTTwKua), however, is not conceived as equivalent to annihilation, but as involving existence in a wretched state.
12. The Reward of the Righteous. — The works of the pious are preserved as in a treasury in heaven (4 Ezr 7" 8"", Syr. Bar 14'= 24'). When they ai'e raised from the dead, it is in order that they may come into eternal life (Ps-Sol 3'"). This they are said to inherit (Eth. En Ti* 40'-', Ps-Sol 99 J411. 3j_ Eternal life is sometimes looked at as simply a prolonged bodily life (Eth. En 5» jQio. 17 g.iu^ j„|j 03:7-^9) . ij^(^ sometimes it appears as a superior kind of life in another world (4 Ezr 8=3, Syr. Bar 21==, Test. Lev. 18.
13. The Renovation of the World.— TXna is the natural corollary of the idea that the world as at present constituted has been corrupted by rebellion against God and sin, and therefore cannot stand. Deutero-Isaiah (65" 66==) foreshadows the advent of 'anew heaven and a new earth. ' The same world- reconstruction is held in prospect by the apoca- lyptists. The Ethiopic Enoch (91'"'-) announces that ' the first heaven will vanish and pass away, and a new heaven will appear.' The present order of the material heavens will last only until the new eternal creation is brought into existence (Eth. En 72'). Time distinctions will cease when the new creation is accomplished (Jub 50*).
14. Predestination.— In the sense of the deter- mination of the destiny of individuals beforehand, as elect or non-elect, the idea of predestination does not clearly appear in the apocalyptic litera- ture. In the sense, however, that all the experi- ences of God's people are known and have always been known by Him, and do not come to pass without His consent, the doctrine is constant as the undertone of thought. All the events unfolded in the eschatological pictures are certain to come to pass because "God wills that they should. Cer- tainty of blessedness for the righteous is not de- pendent upon their own piety, but upon God's having foreordained it (Assump. Mos 12«). The age is as a whole fixed and measured (Book of Jubilees). When its course has run, it comes to
94 APOCALYPTIC LITERATUEE
APOCRYPHA
an end (4 Ezr 4'" 7"^). A certain number of righteous must be gathered in. Only when this takes place can the consummation occur. It was this doctrine that made the whole apocalyptic theory a practical effective scheme, because it enabled it to impart the assurance of the realiza- tion of that good in the future which was missed in the present.
vi. Contact with the Kew Test.4mext.— Tlie significance of apocalyntic literature for the NT is very large. In general, apocalyptic furnishes the atmosjihere of the NT. Its form, its language, and its material are extensively used.* In par- ticular, this is true of the following main lines : —
1. The apocalyptic fm-m is used as such in the literary composition of the NT. In the Apocalypse of John this becomes the form of the whole book. In other places it is introduced as a part of ]iroduc- tions of a different literary tyi)e (cf. Mt 24 and l)arallels). Whether these passages were origin- ally separate works and the Gospel writers in- corporated them, or whether they make up integral parts of the plans of the Gospels, is a question for historical criticism to deal with. In their inter- pretation no satisfactory results will he reached if their formal affinity to the apocalypses be ignored. In 2 Th 22-'- the case is clear. 'The A])ostle eW- dently weaves an apocalyptic passage of his own construction into his Epistle. A firm base of opeiations is thus furnished for the interpretation of the apocalyptic portions of the NT. These must be read as tlie ai>ocalypses in general are read.