The Apocalypse of Adam

1THE APOCALYPSE OF ADAM (V,5) Introduced and translated by George W. MacRae Edited by D ougls M. P arrott The Apocalypse o f Adam is a revelation received by Adam from three heaven­ ly visitors and narrated by him to his son Seth. He explains the loss of saving knowledge by himself and Eve (the fall), its transmission to Seth and his descen­ dants, and its preservation, despite the attempts of the creator-god to destroy mankind by flood and by fire, until the third coming of a savior figure, the “ Illu­ minator.” The latter is persecuted by the powers of the world but will ultimately triumph over them. At the mention of his coming there is a long hymnic passage (77,27-83,4), which may be an interpolation into an original apocalypse, in which thirteen false or inadequate explanations of his origin are contrasted with a true one by the “generation without a king,” i.e., the Gnostics. This unusual passage is a remarkable example of gnostic syncretism. In terms of literary form the work embodies a whole succession of the tradi­ tional revelation devices. First, the revelation comes to Adam in a dream vision (65,24-66,23) in which it is not clearly stated that he sees the events of the future but perhaps is merely told them. Secondly, Adam’s narration to Seth takes the form of a secret traditio from father to son (85,19-22). Thirdly, though not writ­ ten in a book, these words are hidden on a high mountain (85,3-11). Finally, since Adam’s revelation takes place just before his death, the work assumes the form of a testament. Though it is clearly dependent on certain episodes of the Genesis story which are often found in gnostic revelation literature, Apoc. Adam does not follow closely the text of Genesis as do Hyp. Arch. (11,4) and Ap. John (11,7), for example. The most notable feature of this work is the absence of any explicit or clear borrowings from the Christian tradition. This has led several interpreters to see in it a witness to a non-Christian Gnosticism which contains an already well de­ veloped redeemer myth. On the other hand, its close dependence on Jewish apo­ calyptic tradition suggests that it may represent a transitional stage in an evolu­ tion from Jewish to gnostic apocalyptic. In this case the document may be a very early one, perhaps first or second century C.E., but no clear indications of its date have been perceived. Apoc. Adam is a Sethian work in the sense that Seth and his posterity are the tradents of the saving knowledge; it does not have any uniquely close affinities to the description of the Sethians found in Hippolytus (R ef V. 19-21) or Epiphanius (Pan. 39). Within the Nag Hammadi collection it has a great deal in common with Gos. Eg. (111,2), which seems to suppose a chris­ tianized version of the story. Using as a key the three sets of angel names, which

22 7 8 are not common in the gnostic writings (Abrasax, Sablo, and Gamaliel, 75,22-23; Micheu, Michar, and Mnesinous, 84,5-6; Iesseus Mazareus Iessedekeus, 85,30-31), we find that Apoc. Adam is related to The Untided Text in the Bruce Codex, to Gos. E g to Zostrianos (VIII,7), and to Trim. Prot. (XIII,/). In addi­ tion several of these works share an interest in the personage of Seth and some concern with the interpretation of baptism, thus reflecting at least a remote con­ nection with (Jewish) baptist circles. There are references to “ apocalypses of Adam” in the writings of the heresiologist Epiphanius (4th cent. C.E.) and Manichaean writings refer to “ an apo­ calypse of Adam,” but no direct connection with this tractate can be made in either case. (George W. MacRae t) The possibility that the third illuminator, described in 76,8-77,18, might be Christ, has continued to be discussed. Some who favor the identification with Christ have argued that the vagueness of the allusions is precisely what one would expect in an apocalyptic work. The apocalyptic tradition, however, did not pre­ vent the writer from being rather precise about the flood. Also, the details that do come through in the illuminator’s description only partly resemble the tradi­ tional details about Christ: He will come in great glory, bring the knowledge of the eternal God, and perform signs and wonders. The god of the powers will be­ come angry. At that point the glory will withdraw. The flesh of the man, who was the illuminator when he had the glory, will be punished. We are not told the form of the punishment or whether it ended in death. Nor are we told of a subse­ quent resurrection. Thus the description is that of a charismatic figure who ran afoul of the authorities and was punished. It is difficult to see any compelling reason to identify this figure with Christ. Seams in the text have invited those interested in source analysis. In addition to the suggestion, noted above, that the long hymnic passage (13 Kingdoms) was originally independent, two other proposals should be mentioned. One is that the tractate originally ended at 84,3 and that the remainder was added later (it seems to have its own theme - opposition to water baptism). The other is that the trac­ tate is the result of the combining of two separate source documents by a redac­ tor, who also made some contributions of his own. One can get a sense of the basis for the latter theory by looking at the following passages, which, it is con­ tended, are the beginning sections of each of the sources: (A) 64,6-65,23; 66,12-67,11; (B) 65,24-66,12; 67,12-67,21). (Douglas M. P arrott)

3THE APOCALYPSE OF ADAM (V ,5 ) 2 7 9 THE APOCALYPSE OF ADAM V 64, 1-85, 32 The Apocalypse of Adam 1 The revelation which Adam 1 taught his son Seth in 1 the seven hun­ dredth year, saying, 5 “ Listen to my words, my 1 son Seth. When 1 god had created me out of 1 the earth along with Eve your mother, 1 I went about with her in a 10 glory which she had seen in 1 the aeon from which we had come 1 forth. She taught me a word 1 of knowledge of the eter­ nal god. 1 And we resembled 15 the great eternal angels, 1 for we were higher than 1 the god who had created us and 1 the powers with him, whom 1 we did not know. 20 “ Then god, 1 the ruler of the aeons 1 and the powers, divided us in wrath. Then 1 we became two aeons. 1 And the glory in our heart(s) 25 left us, 1 me and your mother Eve, 1 along with the first knowledge 1 that breathed within us. And 1 it (glory) fled from us; 30 it entered into [...] great [...] which (fem.) 65 [had come] forth, not from this aeon from which [we had] 1 come forth, I 1 and Eve your mother. But 1 it (knowledge) entered into the seed of 5 great aeons. For this reason 1 I myself have called you 1 by the name of that man 1 who is the seed of the great generation 1 or from whom (it comes). After 10 those days the eternal knowledge 1 of the God of truth 1 withdrew from me 1 and your mother Eve. 1 Since that time we 15 learned about dead things, 1 like men. Then 1 we recognized the god who had 1 created us. For we were not 1 strangers to his powers. And 20 we served him in fear 1 and slavery. 1 And after these (events) we became 1 darkened in our heart(s). 1 Now I slept in the 25 thought of my heart. 1 “ And I saw three 1 men before me 1 whose likeness I was unable 1 to recognize, since they 30 were not the powers 1 of the god who had [creat­ ed 1 us]. They surpassed [...] 1 glory, and [...] 1 men [...] 66 saying to me, ‘Arise, 1 Adam, from the sleep 1 of death, and hear 1 about the aeon and the seed 5 of that man 1 to whom life has come, 1 who came from you and 1 from Eve, your wife.’ 1 “ When I had heard these 10 words from the great men 1 who were standing 1 before me, then we 1 sighed, I and Eve, in 1 our heart(s). And the Lord, the god 15 who had created us, stood 1 before us. He said to us, 1 ‘Adam, why were you (pi.) 1 sighing in your heart? 1 Do you not know that 120 am the god who created 1 you? And I breathed into 1 you

42 8 0 a spirit of life 1 as a living soul.’ 1 Then darkness came upon our 25 eyes. “ Then the god, who 1 created us, created a 1 son from himself [and] Eve, 1 [your mother], for [... 67 in] the thought [of] 1 my [...]. I knew 1 a sweet desire 1 for your mother. Then 5 the vigor of 1 our eternal knowledge 1 was destroyed in us, 1 and weakness 1 pursued us. 10 There­ fore the days of 1 our life became few. 1 For I knew that I had 1 come under the authority 1 of death. “ Now then, 15 my son Seth, I will 1 reveal to you the things 1 which those men 1 whom I saw 1 before me 20 at first 1 revealed to me: 1 after I have completed 1 the times 1 of this generation 25 and [the] years of 1 [the generation] 1 have been accomplished, [then 1 ...] slave [...]. (p. 68 blank) 692 “ For rain-showers 1 of [god] the 1 almighty 5 will be poured forth [so that] he 1 might destroy [all] flesh (of 1 god the almighty, 1 so that he might destroy all flesh) 1 from the earth 10 on account of the things that it seeks 1 after, along with [those from] 1 the seed [of] the men 1 to whom passed 1 the life of 15 the knowledge, which 1 came from me [and] Eve, 1 your mother. For they were 1 strangers to him. 1 Afterwards great 20 angels will come 1 on high clouds, 1 who will bring those men 1 into the place 1 where the spirit [of] life dwells [...] 70 glory 1 [...] there, 1 [...] come from heaven 1 to earth. [Then] 5 the whole [multitude] of flesh 1 will be left behind in the [waters]. “ Then god 1 will rest from 1 his wrath. And he will cast 1 his power upon the waters, 10 and [he will] give power to his sons 1 and their wives by means of the ark 1 along with [the] animals, 1 whichever he pleased, and the 1 birds of heaven, which he 15 called and released 1 upon the earth. And god 1 will say to Noah - 1 whom the generations will call 1 Deucalion - , ‘Behold, 20 I have protected <you> in the ark 1 along with your wife and your sons 1 and their wives and their 1 animals and the birds of 1 [heaven], which you called 25 [and released upon the earth]. 71 Therefore I will give the [earth] to you - 1 you and your sons. In 1 kingly fashion you will rule over it - you 1 and your sons. And no 5 seed will come from you 1 of the men who will not 1 stand in my pres­ ence in 1 another glory.’ “ Then they will 1 become as the cloud of the 10 great light. Those 1 men will come who have 1 been cast forth from the knowledge 1 of the great aeons and the 1 angels. They will stand 15 before Noah and the aeons. 1 And god will say to 1 Noah, ‘Why have you departed from 1 what I told you? You have 1 created another generation so that you 20 might scorn my power.’ Then 1 Noah will say, ‘I shall 1 testify before

5THE APOCALYPSE OF ADAM ( v ,5 ) your 1 might that the generation 1 of these men did not come 25 [from me] nor [from 1 my sons. ...] 72 knowledge. “And [he] will 1 [...] those men 1 and bring them into their proper 1 land and build them a 5 holy dwelling-place. And 1 they will be called by that 1 name and dwell there 1 six hundred years in a 1 knowledge of im­ perishability. 10 And angels of the great 1 light will dwell with them. 1 No foul deed 1 will dwell in their heart(s), but 1 only the knowledge of god. 15 “Then Noah will divide the 1 whole earth among his sons, 1 Ham and Japheth and Shem. 1 He will say to them, ‘My sons, 1 listen to my words. Behold, 20 I have divided the earth among you. But 1 serve him in fear and 1 slavery all the days 1 of your life. Let not 1 your seed depart from the face 25 of god the almighty. 1 [...] I and your [...] 73 son of Noah, ‘[My] 1 seed [will be] pleasing before you 1 and before your power. 1 Seal it by your 1 strong hand with fear and 1 commandment, so that the whole 1 seed which came forth from me 1 may not be inclined away from you 1 and god the almighty, 10 but it will serve 1 in humility and 1 fear of its knowledge.’ 1 “ Then others 1 from the seed of Ham and 15 Japheth will come, four hundred 1 thousand men, and enter into 1 another land and sojourn 1 with those men who 1 came forth from the great 20 eternal knowledge. For 1 the shadow of their power will 1 protect those who have sojourned 1 with them from every evil thing 1 and every unclean desire. 25 Then the seed of Ham and 1 Japheth will form twelve 1 kingdoms, and their 1 seed [also] will enter into 1 the kingdom of another people. 30 “ [Then ...] will take counsel [...] 1 aeons [...] 74 who are dead, of the great 1 aeons of imperishability. 1 And they will go to Sakla 1 their god. They will go in 5 to the powers, accusing the great 1 men who are in their 1 glory. “ They will say to Sakla, 1 ‘What is the power of these men who 1 stood in your presence, 10 who were taken from the 1 seed of Ham and Japheth, 1 who will number four hundred (thousand) men? 1 They have been received into another aeon 1 from which they had come forth, and 15 they have overturned all the glory of your 1 power and the dominion of your hand. 1 For the seed of Noah through 1 his sons has done 1 all your will, and (so have) all the powers 20 in the aeons over which your might 1 rules, while both those 1 men and the ones who are 1 sojourners in their glory 1 have not done your will. 25 [But] they have turned (aside) your 1 whole throng.’ “ Then the god 1 of the aeons will give them 1 (some) of those who

62 8 2 serve [him . . . ] 30 they will come upon that land 75 where the great men 1 will be who 1 have not been defiled, nor will be 1 defiled by any desire. 5 For their soul did not come 1 from a defiled hand, but it 1 came from a great commandment 1 of an eternal angel. 1 Then fire 10 and sulphur and asphalt will be cast upon 1 those men, and 1 fire and (blinding) mist will come over 1 those aeons, and 1 the eyes of the powers of the illumi­ nators will be darkened, 15 and the aeons will not see 1 them in those days. 1 And great clouds of light 1 will descend, and 1 other clouds of light 20 will come down upon them from 1 the great aeons. 1 “ Abrasax and Sablo and 1 Gamaliel will descend and bring 1 those men out of 25 the fire and the wrath, and 1 take them above the aeons 1 and the rulers of the [powers], and 1 [take] them away [...] 1 of life [... ] 30 and take them away [... ] 1 aeons [... 76 dwelling place] of the [great ...] 1 there with the holy angels 1 and the aeons. 1 The men will be like 5 those angels, for they 1 are not strangers to them. But 1 they work in the imperishable seed. 1 “ Once again, for the 1 third time, the illuminator 10 of knowledge will pass by in great 1 glory, in order to leave 1 (something) of the seed of Noah 1 and the sons of Ham and Japheth - 1 to leave for himself 15 fruit-bearing trees. And he will 1 redeem their souls from the 1 day of death. For the whole creation 1 that came from 1 the dead earth will be 20 under the authority of death. 1 But those who reflect upon the knowl­ edge 1 of the eternal God 1 in their heart(s) will not perish. 1 For they have not received spirit 25 from this kingdom alone, 1 but they have re­ ceived (it) from an 1 [...] eternal angel. 1 [...] illuminator 1 [... will] come upon 30 [... that is] dead [...] 77 of Seth. And he will perform 1 signs and wonders in order to 1 scorn the powers and their ruler. 1 “ Then the god 5 of the powers will be disturbed, saying, ‘What 1 is the power of this man who 1 is higher than we?’ Then he will 1 arouse a great wrath against 1 that man. And 10 the glory will withdraw and 1 dwell in holy houses which 1 it has chosen for itself. And 1 the powers will not see it 1 with their eyes, nor will they 15 see the illuminator either. 1 Then they will punish the flesh 1 of the man upon whom the 1 holy spirit came. “ Then 1 the angels and all the 20 generations of the powers 1 will use the name 1 in error, asking, 1 ‘Where did it (the error) come from?’ or 1 ‘Where did the 25 words of deception, which 1 all the powers have failed to discover, come from?

7THE APOCALYPSE OF ADAM (v ,5 ) 2 8 3 “ [Now] the first 1 kingdom [says of him] 1 [that] he came [from ...]. 78 A spirit [...] to heaven. He was nourished 1 in the heavens. He received the glory 1 of that one and the power. He came 1 to the bosom of his mother. 5 And thus he came to the water. 1 “ And the second kingdom says 1 about him that he came 1 from a great prophet. 1 And a bird came, took 10 the child who was born and brought him 1 onto a high moun­ tain. 1 And he was nourished by 1 the bird of heaven. An angel 1 came forth there. He said to him, 15 ‘Arise! God has given glory 1 to you.’ He received glory and strength. 1 And thus he came to the water. 1 “The third kingdom says 1 of him that he came 20 from a virgin womb. 1 He was cast out of his ci­ ty, 1 he and his mother; he was brought 1 to a desert place. He was nourished 1 there. He came and received 25 glory and power. And thus 1 he came to the water. 1 “ [The fourth] kingdom says 1 [of him] [that] he came 1 [from a virgin. 30 ... Solomon 79 sought] her, he and Phersalo 1 and Sauel and his armies, 1 which had been sent out. Solomon 1 himself sent his army 5 of demons to seek out the 1 virgin. And they did not find 1 the one whom they sought, but 1 the virgin who was given to them. 1 It was she whom they fetched. 10 Solomon took her. 1 The Virgin became pregnant and gave birth to 1 the child there. 1 She nourished him on a border 1 of the desert. When 15 he had been nourished, he received glory 1 and power from the seed 1 from which he had been begotten. 1 And thus he came to the 1 water. “ And the fifth 20 kingdom says of him that 1 he came from a 1 drop from heaven. He was thrown 1 into the sea. The abyss 1 received him, gave birth to him, 25 and brought him to heaven.

82 8 4 He received 1 glory and power. And 1 thus he came to [the water]. 1 “ And [the] sixth kingdom 1 [says] that a [... 30 down] to the aeon 80 which is below, in order to [gather] 1 flowers. She became pregnant from 1 the desire of the flowers. She 1 gave birth to him in that place. 5 The angels of the 1 flower garden nourished him. He received 1 glory there 1 and power. And thus he came 1 to the water. “ And the 10 seventh kingdom says 1 of him that he is a drop. 1 It came from heaven to earth. 1 Dragons brought him down to caves. 1 He became a 15 child. A spirit came upon him and 1 brought him on high to the place where the 1 drop had come forth. 1 He received glory and power 1 there. And thus 20 he came to the water. “ And the 1 eighth kingdom says 1 of him that a cloud came 1 upon the earth and enveloped a 1 rock. He came 25 from it. The angels 1 who were above the cloud 1 nourished him. He [received] glory 1 [and] power [there]. And [thus he] came to [the water]. 81 “ And the [ninth] kingdom says 1 of him that from the nine 1 Muses one separated away. 1 She came to a high mountain and spent 5 (some) time seated there, so that 1 she desired herself alone 1 in order to become androgynous. 1 She ful­ filled her desire 1 and became pregnant from her desire. 10 He was born. The 1 angels who were over the desire nourished him. 1 And he received glory there 1 and power. And 1 thus he came to the water. “ The 15 tenth kingdom says of him 1 that his god loved a cloud 1 of desire. He begot him 1 in his hand and cast 1 upon the cloud above him 20 (some) of the drop, and 1 he was born. He received glory and 1 power there. And 1 thus he came to the water. 1

9THE APOCALYPSE OF ADAM ( v ,5 ) 2 8 5 “ And the eleventh 25 kingdom says that the father 1 desired his [own] 1 daughter. She herself became pregnant 1 [from] her father. She cast [...] 1 tomb 82 out in the desert. The angel 1 nourished him there. And thus he came 1 to the water. “ The 5 twelfth kingdom says 1 of him that he came from 1 two illuminators. He was 1 nourished there. He received glory 1 and power. And thus he came 10 to the water. “ And the 1 thirteenth kingdom says 1 of him that every birth 1 of their ruler is a word. 1 And his word received 15 a mandate there. He 1 received glory and power. 1 And thus he came to the water, 1 in order that the desire 1 of those powers might be satisfied. “ But the generation 20 without a king over it says 1 that God chose 1 him from all the aeons. 1 He caused knowledge of the 1 undefiled one of truth to come to be 25 [in] him. [He (or: It)] said, ‘[Out of] 1 a foreign air, 1 [from a] great aeon, [the 1 great] illuminator came forth. [And he made] 83 the generation of those men 1 whom he had chosen for himself shine, 1 so that they could shine upon the 1 whole aeon.’ “ Then the seed, 5 those who will receive his 1 name upon the water and (that) of them all, will fight against the power. 1 And a cloud 1 of darkness will come upon them. “Then 1 the peoples will cry out with a 10 great voice, saying, 1 ‘Blessed is the soul of those 1 men because they have known 1 God with a knowledge 1 of the truth! They shall live forever, 15 because they have not been 1 corrupted by their desire, 1 along with the angels, nor 1 have they accomplished the works of the 1 powers, but they have stood 20 in his presence in a knowledge 1 of God like light 1 that has come forth from 1 fire and blood. “ ‘But we 1 have done every deed of the powers 25 senselessly. We have 1 boasted in the transgression 1 of [all] our works. 1 We have [cried] against [the God] 1 of [truth] because all his works [...] 84 is eternal. These are against our 1 spirits. For now we have known that 1 our souls will die the death.” 1

102 8 6 “ Then a voice came to them, 5 saying, ‘Micheu and Michar and Mnesinous, who 1 are over the holy baptism 1 and the living water, why 1 were you crying out against the 10 living God with lawless voices 1 and tongues without law 1 over them, and souls 1 full of blood and foul 1 [deeds]? You are full of 15 works that are not of the truth, 1 but your ways are full of 1 joy and rejoicing. 1 Having defiled the water of life, 1 you have drawn it within 20 the will of the powers 1 to whom you have been given 1 to serve 1 them. “ ‘And your 1 thought is not like that of 25 those men whom 1 you persecute [ . . . ] 28 desire [...]. 85 Their fruit does not wither. But 1 they will be known 1 up to the great aeons, because the words 1 they have kept, of the God 5 of the aeons, were not committed to 1 the book, nor were they written. 1 But angelic (beings) will bring 1 them, whom all the generations 1 of men will not know. 10 For they will be on a high 1 m ountain, upon a rock of truth. 1 Therefore they will be named 1 “ The W ords of Imperishability 1 [and] T ruth,” for those who know 15 the eternal God in 1 wisdom of knowledge 1 and teaching of angels 1 for­ ever, for he knows all things.’” 1 These are the revelations which 20 Adam made known to Seth his 1 son. And his son taught 1 his seed about them. This is the 1 hidden knowledge of Adam, 1 which he gave to Seth, which is the 25 holy bap­ tism of those who 1 know the eternal knowledge 1 through those born of the word 1 and the imperishable illuminators, who 1 came from the holy seed: 30 Yesseus, Mazareus, 1 [Yesse]dekeus, [the Living] Water. 1 The Apocalypse of Adam