Credible Theories
Enoch, Jubilees and others · Jubilees 10:1–11

Mastema keeps a tenth of the spirits

ReferenceJubilees 10:1–11
Writtenc. 160–150 BCE
SetAfter the Flood
Lord, Creator, let some of them remain before me, and let them harken to my voice… And He said: Let the tenth part of them remain before him, and let nine parts descend into the place of condemnation.

Translation: R. H. Charles, 1902

Read it literally

A negotiated deal: ninety percent locked up, ten percent left on earth to work for Mastema. Noah is given medical knowledge to fight them.

What scholars say

Mastema means 'hostility'.

Spirits and jinn Council of gods
People and places hereNoah

Quick answers about Jubilees 10:1–11

Where is Jubilees 10:1–11 found?

Jubilees 10:1–11 (Enoch, Jubilees and others). Translation quoted: R. H. Charles, The Book of Jubilees (1902; SPCK 1917).

When was Jubilees 10:1–11 written?

c. 160–150 BCE.

What do scholars say about Jubilees 10:1–11?

Mastema means 'hostility'.

Rabbit holes in this passage

BeingMastemaThe prince of evil spirits who, in Jubilees, negotiates with God to keep a tenth of the demons free after the Flood.

Sources

  1. R. H. Charles, The Book of Jubilees (1902; SPCK 1917)Primary text
  2. Jubilees 10:1–14, trans. R. H. Charles, The Book of Jubilees (1917)Primary text

Scholarly dates are rounded. The wording follows the named public-domain translation.

Updated