Bernard Muller

emphasis mine
This burial in third heaven is sometimes used to demonstrate that Jesus also could have been believed buried in heaven (ref 1 Cor 15:4).

What follows is a posting which has been rejected on Vridar blog (no reason given).

>> The reference is here http://vridar.wordpress.com/2012/12/...city-of-jesus/

"RC: To give an example of how diverse Jewish views could be: In The Life of Adam we have Adam being buried in heaven."

Only the Greek & Georgian version have a mention of Adam's body being buried in Paradise, located then in third heaven. The Latin, Slavonic and Armenian versions do not.

The translation from the Greek version I use is from -The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament R.H. Charles Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1913
http://wesley.nnu.edu/sermons-essays...ypse-of-moses/

Except for the two mentions of the Paradise being in third heaven (xxxvii 4 & xl 2), this "paradise" is the garden of Eden, located on earth (as in Genesis). This is confirmed all along the text:
i 1 "This is the story of Adam and Eve after they had gone out of Paradise."
vii 1 "And Adam said to him: 'When God made us, me and your mother, through whom also I die, He gave us power to eat of every tree which is in paradise, but, concerning that one only, He charged us not to eat of it,"

After Adam dies (xxxii - xxxii), with his spirit going to heaven, but his body lying on the earth. After being washed by angels (xxxvii), the body is lying again in front of God, God said:
" 'Lift him up into Paradise unto the third Heaven, and leave him there until that fearful day of my reckoning, which I will make in the world.' Then Michael took Adam and left him where God told him." (xxxvii 4)
But next, three sentences later, we learn:
"And lo ! the 'Lord of Hosts' came on and four winds drew Him and cherubim mounted on the winds and the angels from heaven escorting Him and they came on the earth, where was the body of Adam. And they came to paradise and all the leaves of paradise were stirred so that all men begotten of Adam slept from the fragrance save Seth alone, because he was born 'according to the appointment of God '. Then Adam's body lay there in paradise on the earth and Seth grieved exceedingly over him." (xxxviii 3-5)

So Adam's body is transported to paradise, on earth. Therefore, it looks that "unto the third heaven" is an interpolation.
The next verse also has paradise in third heaven:
"Then God spake to the archangel(s) Michael, (Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael): 'Go away to Paradise in the third heaven, and strew linen clothes and cover the body of Adam and bring oil of the 'oil of fragrance' and pour it over him." (xl 1-2)
But the body of Adam, as last reported, was on earth, not in third heaven!

Later Abel is buried close to Adam "in the spot where God found the dust [when he created Adam]" (xl 6), which is, according to Genesis, on earth, of course.
Still later (xliii), Eve is buried close to Adam and Abel. And after helping Seth for the burial, Michael ascended into heaven (which proves, again, the burial was on earth).

Note: if you still think "Life of Adam" had initially Adam's burial in heaven, then you should add up the ones of Abel & Eve as also in heaven, because the three of them are buried side by side. However, there is no statement in the text saying the bodies of Abel & Eve were transported by angels to third heaven!<<

So, I think my analysis suggests that the two "unto/in the third heaven" are later interpolations, probably coming from someone who knew 2 Corinthians 12:2-4.

Cordially Bernard
PS: I have my own blog now.

stephan huller

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing this Bernard. We people with umlauten have to stick together

Toto

Why assume that "paradise" is an interpolation? Why not take the plain meaning, that the Garden of Eden was in some higher realm?

Historicists continually accuse mythicists of playing the interpolation card too casually. But it looks like you have done that here. You need much more to call that phrase an interpolation.

Perhaps "Adam's body lay there in paradise on the earth" means that Adam's body lay on the part of paradise that looked like earth - the floor". Do you know how the original Greek reads?

Or if it was an interpolation, what does that tell you about the interpolator's assumption as to the location of Eden?

Bernard Muller

to TOTO:
I never said "Paradise" in an interpolation, only "into/in the third heaven".
Paradise is the garden of Eden in the text. Paradise is also mentioned to be on earth (see my quote of xxxviii 3-5) which would correspond to Genesis 2:4-9.
In the text of Life of Adam, Seth & Eve go by themselves (and alive) towards Paradise (x 1) and get near Paradise (xxx 1) where they meet Adam in a hut (xiv 1).
Also God allows Adam to go in Paradise for a short time:
"And God bade Adam go in and take sweet spices and fragrant herbs from paradise and seeds for his food. And the angels let him go and he took four kinds: crocus and nard and calamus and cinnamon and the other seeds for his food: and, after taking these, he went out of paradise." (xxix 5-7).
So it really looks that paradise=garden_of_Eden is on earth.

Chili

Is is called the mind of Christ that every Christian has.

Bernard Muller

to TOTO:
I want to add that before Seth & Eve go near Paradise, Adam & Seth are on earth, according to:
"And Adam begat thirty sons and thirty daughters and Adam lived nine hundred and thirty years; and he fell sick and cried with a loud voice and said, 'Let all my sons come to me that I may see them before I die.' And all assembled, for the earth was divided into three parts. And Seth his son said to him: 'Father Adam, what is thy complaint'." (v 1-4)

stephan huller

I just saw that Methodius understood Paul to have had two ascensions or revelations. He took 'the third heaven' and 'paradise' to be two different 'trips'

Duvduv

According to midrashim Abraham wanted to purchase the Cave of Machpela because Adam and Eve were buried there in Kiryat Arba. The number four represents the four couples: Adam and Eve; Abraham and Sarah ; Isaac and Rivka; and Jacob and Leah.
The midrash also mentions the head of Esau rolling inside when he was killed trying to prevent Jacob's burial there since he still believed it was his own rightful spot.
The Zohar says that although the Torah states that the burial place of Moses is publicly unknown, in fact his body was carried underground to be buried secretly in the cave of Machpela.

Chili

How can that be if Paul had noetic vision.

Vorkosigan

Bernard, the statement was

"To give an example of how diverse Jewish views could be: In The Life of Adam we have Adam being buried in heaven."

Two versions of the Life of Adam indeed appears to say so. The statement is correct as it stands. Your analysis nowhere suggests anything about the origin of the "burial in the third heaven" since it provides no evidence that the text is an interpolation. Inconsistency can be a signal of many things -- plain error, multiple hands, missing text, coded language....

Vorkosigan