HENOCH (Hebrew: Hānōkh). - 1. Antediluvian patriarch, son of Jared. Of him, who according to Gen. 5:23 reached the age of 365 years (the number of days of the solar year), it is said that he "walked with God" (the Septuagint translates: "pleased God"; cf. Heb. 11:5). At the age of 65 he had his son Methuselah (v.). Finally "he was seen no more, because God took him" (Gen. 5:24); the term "to take" (lāqah) is the one used for the taking up of Elijah into heaven (II Kings 2:10). It may be interpreted: "from one of his communications with God H. did not return."

The biblical notices about H. are very sober. Only in later literature, shortly before the Christian era, will H. become the hero of a whole heaven of legends that make him the inventor of writing, the author of the first book, the creator of astronomy and astrology. This reworked H. is brought close to a king of an ancient Babylonian legend (v. HENOCH, book of).

2. Son of Cain (Gen. 4:17). The latter built a city which he named H., after the name of his son. - See plate XC.

Plate XC ENOCH. 12th-cent. fresco - Rome, basilica of S. Croce in Gerusalemme.(per cortesia del prof. E. Josi)

Bibliography6 works

BIBL.: A. Jirku, Altorient. Kommentar zum Alt. Test., Leipzig 1923, p. 30 ff.; P. Dhorme, in Rev. bibl., 33 (1924), pp. 542-56; B. Jacob, Genesis, Berlin 1924, p. 147 ff.; H. Junker, Genesis, Würzburg 1949, pp. 23-25; Ch. Viroleaud, Legendes de Babylone et de Canaan, Paris 1949, pp. 32 n. 6, 210; A. Vaccari, in La S. Bibbia, edited by the Pontifical Biblical Institute, I, Florence 1942, p. 74.

Eugenio Zolli

@incollection{ec6_henoch_ebr_hanohh, author = {Zolli, Eugenio}, title = {Henoch (Ebr. HĀNŌHh)}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {VI}, pages = {1404--1405}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1951}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/henoch-ebr-hanohh} }

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