Skip to content
Tradition reading

Latter-day Saint (LDS) — Overview

From the latter day saint tradition

Latter-day Saint reception of the Enoch tradition

The LDS (Mormon) tradition has its own substantial Enoch corpus, distinct from but related to 1 Enoch. The primary sources are inside the LDS canon:

Primary LDS Enoch passages

  • Pearl of Great Price, Moses 6–7 — a revealed expansion of the Genesis 5 account, narrating Enoch's preaching, the founding of Zion (city), Enoch's vision of the divine sorrow at the wickedness of mankind, the ascension of Zion. This is the most extensive single LDS Enoch text.
  • Doctrine & Covenants 107:48–57 — Enoch's role in the patriarchal priesthood line; gathering at Adam-ondi-Ahman.
  • D&C 78, 84, 88, 116, 133 — scattered Enoch references in covenantal and eschatological contexts.

Relation to 1 Enoch

  • Moses 6–7 was dictated by Joseph Smith in 1830, decades after Richard Laurence's English translation (1821). LDS scholars (Nibley, Bradshaw, Skinner) note striking thematic parallels between Moses 6–7 and 1 Enoch (Enoch as preacher of righteousness, city of Zion translated, weeping God).
  • Whether the parallels indicate (a) common pre-Adamic revelation, (b) Joseph's familiarity with Laurence's translation, or (c) independent prophetic revelation, is read variably depending on confessional posture vs. critical-historical posture.
  • The LDS Enoch corpus is not coextensive with 1 Enoch. 1 Enoch's Watchers narrative, Astronomical Book, Parables, etc., are not present in Moses 6–7.

Reading posture

  • Moses 6–7 read as scripture revealed through Joseph Smith.
  • 1 Enoch read as a useful witness to ancient traditions about Enoch, but not canonical.
  • The Watchers-descent narrative is engaged variably; some LDS commentators harmonize with the Cain/Seth genealogy reading.

Notable LDS commentators

  • Hugh NibleyEnoch the Prophet (1986) and other essays; argued for an ancient prophetic Enoch corpus underlying both Moses 6–7 and 1 Enoch.
  • Andrew Skinner — Pearl of Great Price commentary.
  • Jeffrey BradshawIn God's Image and Likeness multivolume commentary on Moses.

Lens modules (surfaced on the website when the LDS reading lens is active)

Caveat for non-LDS readers

This vault tags LDS readings under tradition/latter_day_saint and presents them alongside other tradition readings. The LDS Enoch corpus is treated as scripture within that tradition; this vault neither endorses nor rejects that posture, only labels it.