1 Enoch 66

After that he showed me the angels of punishment. They were ready to go and set loose all the powers of the waters that are down beneath the earth, in order to bring judgment and destruction on all who stay and live on the earth.

1And after that he showed me the angels of punishment who are prepared to come and let loose all the powers of the waters which are beneath in the earth in order to bring judgement and destruction on all who abide and dwell on the earth.

NoteThe waters "beneath in the earth" are the underground ocean that ancient Near Eastern cosmology placed below the land, the same source that in the flood story breaks open as "the fountains of the great deep." The angels are poised to unstop it. In 1 Enoch the "angels of punishment" are a standing class of beings whose assigned work is carrying out sentences, distinct from the angels who guard or intercede.

2And the Lord of Spirits gave an order to the angels who were going out: they were not to make the waters rise, but were to hold them back. Those angels were the ones in charge of the powers of the waters.

2And the Lord of Spirits gave commandment to the angels who were going forth, that they should not cause the waters to rise but should hold them in check; for those angels were over the powers of the waters.

Note"The Lord of Spirits" is this book's most frequent title for God, used where other Jewish writings would say "the Lord of Hosts." The picture behind it is of a ruler over all living and spiritual beings. The chapter also assumes that natural forces have angels assigned to them: these particular angels are "over the powers of the waters," meaning they operate the sea and the deeps rather than merely watch them, which is why a direct order is needed to hold the flood back.

3And I went away from where Enoch was.

3And I went away from the presence of Enoch.

Note"I went away from the presence of Enoch" is startling because Enoch has been the speaker of the whole book. These chapters come from a separate block of material, often called the Noah fragments, in which the narrator is Noah, Enoch's great-grandson, receiving explanations of the coming flood from Enoch himself. The compiler set the fragment into the larger book without smoothing over the change of voice.