Enoch and the Gospel of Matthew

Synopsis: Matthew's Gospel contains material unique to it among the canonical Gospels. What is the background for this material? Why does the writer of Matthew's Gospel tell the story of Jesus in the way he does--including women in his genealogy, telling the story of the birth of Jesus in his particular way, and including the visit of the magi led by a star? Enoch and the Gospel of Matthew shows that the writer of Matthew was familiar with themes and traditions about the antediluvian patriarch Enoch, including the story of the fall of the angels called "watchers," who transgress their heavenly boundaries to engage in illicit relations with women and teach them forbidden arts. The Gospel writer shows that Jesus brings about the eschatological repair of the consequences of the watchers' fall as told in the Enochic legend. This study focuses on Matthew's genealogy and infancy narrative and also has implications for the study of women in Matthew, since it is often through the stories of women in Matthew that the repair of the watchers' transgression takes place. Endorsements: "Well-written, learned, and arguing a fascinating thesis, Amy Richter's Enoch and the Gospel of Matthew makes a welcome contribution to our understanding of Matthew and the role of apocalyptic themes in the Gospels." --Stephen Fowl, Loyola College in Maryland "Amy Richter leads us to a deeper understanding of the Jewishness of the early Jesus movement by revealing its Enochic apocalyptic roots, far beyond the more obvious relationship with the Son of Man theology and the book of Parables. It is a call for New Testament scholars and Second Temple specialists to work together and explore the many intriguing connections that make Enochic Judaism the most likely candidate as the parent movement out of which the Jesus movement was born." --Gabriele Boccaccini, University of Michigan Author Biography: Amy E. Richter is visiting instructor in New Testament at St. Mary's Seminary and University Ecumenical Institute of Theology in Baltimore, Maryland, and rector of St. Anne's Episcopal Church in Annapolis, Maryland.