The Books of Enoch, Aramaic Fragments of Qumran Cave 4

Z32 THE BOOKS OF ENOCH En* i xxvi
niai nna'?
pax]
] 7-13
d
[ ^D'?!?'? nai Kim am vx'?]a n[3n ]
[ nB?3 pnia I'px i o [... nD > n"?] 15
pnnx flit? n^[Tnx] pnnna pDs'^D ]'?K [x^mtj]
vacat ]^'?D'?[DI] pnnpi nasi f K*7a]
[njD'pnKi xynx nna^ pma pirn Kmo niha^]
[K]6!&P Dins ns^nxv naa p[i]fn xDwn |a
[. • . 28 ^Flowing like] a [copious aqueduct approximately to the North-
West, it brought from everywhere water and dew as well. 29 iprom thence]
I went to [another] place [which was in the desert and I withdrew far] to
the East of [this] part. [^And there I saw wild trees which] were exuding
[perfumes of incense and myrrh . . .]
«i 2... in it full of [nectar, and it is like the bark of the almond tree. ^When
incisions are made (?)] in [these] trees [there comes forth from them a pleasant
odour; when] their bark is ground, they are [sweeter than any fragrance.
^ ^And beyond these mountains] approximately northwards, on their eastern
side, I was shown other mountains plentiful with choice nard, mastic,
cardamom, and pepper. ^And from thence I proceeded to the East of all these
mountains, far from them, to the East of the earth, and I was conveyed over
the Red Sea and withdrew far from it, and I crossed over the darkness, far
from it. 3And I passed on to the Paradise of righteousness.
Texts for comparison: En^ i xii 28-30, C, E.
Fragment rf, lines 14-21, has been published in RB Ixv (1958), 70-7, along with En9 i xii
23-30-
I consider the identification of fragment c, lines 3-6, to be pretty well beyond doubt, although
the text of Enoch corresponding to this passage is rather difficult to understand. However, if
one keeps essentially to the Greek wording of C (fairly concise in chapter 28), it will be possible
to bring out the meaning of En. 28: 1-29: 2. The commentators (myself included, RB, loc. cit.,
p. 72) had too much faith in the Ethiopic text, which is decidedly corrupt.