Andrei Orlov, «Moses’ Heavenly Counterpart in the Book of Jubilees and the
Exagoge of Ezekiel the Tragedian», Vol. 88 (2007) 153-173
The paper provides conceptual background for the idea of the angel of the presence as the heavenly counterpart of Moses in the Book of Jubilees and the Exagoge of Ezekiel the Tragedian. The identity of the celestial scribe in the form
of the angel of the presence found in the Book of Jubilees and some other Second Temple materials might further our understanding of the enigmatic process of
mystical and literary emulation of the exemplary figure, the cryptic mechanics of which often remains beyond the grasp of our post/modern sensibilities. It is possible that in the traditions of heavenly counterparts where the two characters
of the story, one of which is represented by a biblical exemplar, become eventually unified and acquire a single identity, we are able to draw nearer to the very heart of the pseudepigraphical enterprise. In this respect, it does not appear to be coincidental that these transformational accounts dealing with the heavenly doubles of their adepts are permeated with the aesthetics of penmanship and the
imagery of the literary enterprise. In the course of these mystical and literary metamorphoses, the heavenly figure surrenders his scribal seat, the library of the celestial books and even personal writing tools to the other, earthly identity who now becomes the new guardian of the literary tradition.
Moses’ Heavenly Counterpart 167
In Deuteronomy this language of standing continues to play a
prominent role. In Deut 5,31 God again orders Moses to stand with
him: “But you, stand (dm[) (49) here by me, and I will tell you all the
commandments, the statutes and the ordinances, that you shall teach
them.…†In Deut 5,4-5 the motif of standing, as in Exodus 33, is
juxtaposed with the imagery of the divine Panim: “The Lord spoke
with you face to face (µynpb µynp) at the mountain, out of the fire. At that
time I was standing (dm[) (50) between the Lord and you to declare to
you the words of the Lord; for you were afraid because of the fire and
did not go up the mountainâ€. Here Moses is depicted as standing
before the Face of the Deity and mediating the divine presence to the
people.
These developments of the motif of standing are intriguing and
might constitute the conceptual background of the later identifications
of Moses with the office of the angel of the presence.
The idiom of standing also plays a significant part in the Exagoge
account that has Moses approach and stand (ejstavqhn) (51) before the
throne (52).
In the extra-biblical Mosaic accounts one can also see a growing
tendency to depict Moses’ standing position as the posture of a
celestial being. Crispin Fletcher-Louis observes that in various Mosaic
traditions the motif of Moses’ standing was often interpreted through
the prism of God’s own standing, indicating the prophet’s participation
in divine or angelic nature. He notes that in Samaritan and rabbinic
literature a standing posture was generally indicative of the celestial
being (53). Jarl Fossum points to the tradition preserved in Memar
Marqah 4,12 where Moses is described as “the (immutable) Standing
One†(54).
(49) LXX: sth'qi.
(50) LXX: eiJsthvkein.
(51) Moses’ standing here does not contradict his enthronement. The same
situation is discernible in 2 Enoch, where the hero who was promised a place to
stand in front of the Lord’s Face for eternity is placed on the seat next to the Deity.
(52) JACOBSON, The Exagoge of Ezekiel, 54.
(53) C.H.T. FLETCHER-LOUIS, All the Glory of Adam. Liturgical Anthropology
in the Dead Sea Scrolls (STDJ 42; Leiden 2002) 146-147; J. FOSSUM, The Name
of God and the Angel of the Lord. Samaritan and Jewish Mediation Concepts and
the Origin of Gnosticism (WUNT 36; Tübingen 1985) 121; J.A. MONTGOMERY,
The Samaritans (New York 1968) 215.
(54) FOSSUM, The Name of God and the Angel of the Lord, 56-58.
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