1 Enoch 69

After this judgment they will terrify them and make them tremble, because they have shown this to the people who live on the earth.

1And after this judgement they shall terrify and make them to tremble because they have shown this to those who dwell on the earth.

NoteThe chapter begins in the middle of a scene, and the Ethiopic leaves both pronouns unattached: it does not say who does the terrifying or who is terrified. From what follows, the ones made to tremble are the angels named in the next verses, and "they have shown this" refers to their disclosing heavenly secrets to human beings.

2Here are the names of those angels, and these are their names: the first of them is Samjaza, the second Artaqifa, the third Armen, the fourth Kokabel, the fifth Turael, the sixth Rumjal, the seventh Danjal, the eighth Neqael, the ninth Baraqel, the tenth Azazel, the eleventh Armaros, the twelfth Batarjal, the thirteenth Busasejal, the fourteenth Hananel, the fifteenth Turel, the sixteenth Simapesiel, the seventeenth Jetrel, the eighteenth Tumael, the nineteenth Turel, the twentieth Rumael, the twenty-first Azazel.

2And behold the names of those angels and these are their names: the first of them is Samjâzâ, the second Artâqîfâ, and the third Armên, the fourth Kôkabêl, the fifth †Tûrâêl†, the sixth Rûmjâl, the seventh Dânjâl, the eighth †Nêqâêl†, the ninth Barâqêl, the tenth Azâzêl, the eleventh Armârôs, the twelfth Batarjâl, the thirteenth †Busasêjal†, the fourteenth Hanânêl, the fifteenth †Tûrêl†, and the sixteenth Simâpêsîêl, the seventeenth Jetrêl, the eighteenth Tumâêl, the nineteenth Tûrêl, the twentieth †Rûmâêl†, the twenty-first †Azâzêl†.

NoteThese are Ethiopic spellings of names that were originally Hebrew or Aramaic. Most end in the element -el, "God": Kokabel is roughly "star of God," Baraqel "lightning of God," Armaros is often connected with a word for cursing. The list overlaps the roll of angel leaders in chapter 6. It is also damaged: Turel appears twice (fifteenth and nineteenth) and Azazel twice (tenth and twenty-first), and in Charles's printing several of the names carry daggers, his mark for a reading he believed the copyists had corrupted beyond repair. The plain rendering drops the daggers, since they are marks about the manuscript rather than words of the text.

3These are the chiefs of their angels and their names, and their chief ones who were set over hundreds and over fifties and over tens.

3And these are the chiefs of their angels and their names, and their chief ones over hundreds and over fifties and over tens.

Note"Over hundreds and over fifties and over tens" is the language of an army roster, and of the way Israel is organized in Exodus 18:21. The point is rank: the angels just listed are the officers, and each commands a unit.

4The name of the first is Jeqon. He is the one who led all the sons of God astray, and brought them down to the earth, and led them astray by means of the daughters of men.

4The name of the first Jeqôn: that is, the one who led astray all the sons of God, and brought them down to the earth, and led them astray through the daughters of men.

Note"Sons of God" is the phrase used in Genesis 6:2 for heavenly beings who took human wives, and "daughters of men" simply means human women. The name Jeqon is usually explained from a Hebrew root meaning to incite or stir up, which would suit what he is said to do, but the derivation is a guess.

5The second was named Asbeel. He gave the holy sons of God evil advice, and led them astray, so that they made their bodies unclean with the daughters of men.

5And the second was named Asbeêl: he imparted to the holy sons of God evil counsel, and led them astray so that they defiled their bodies with the daughters of men.

Note"Defiled their bodies" is language of ritual uncleanness: contact that makes a being unfit to stand in a holy place, rather than dirt. The name Asbeel is commonly explained as something like "deserter from God," though the reading is uncertain.

6The third was named Gadreel. He is the one who showed human beings all the deadly blows, and he led Eve astray, and he showed the weapons of death to the sons of men: the shield, and the coat of armor made of linked metal, and the sword for battle, and every weapon of death, to human beings.

6And the third was named Gâdreêl: he it is who showed the children of men all the blows of death, and he led astray Eve, and showed the weapons of death to the sons of men the shield and the coat of mail, and the sword for battle, and all the weapons of death to the children of men.

NoteIn Genesis 3 it is the serpent who deceives Eve; here the deceiving is assigned to a named angel, Gadreel, whose name is often explained as "God is my helper." "All the blows of death" and "the weapons of death" translate a phrase covering both the wounds and the implements that inflict them. The "coat of mail" is body armor made of small metal rings or scales linked together.

7From his hand these have gone out against the people who live on the earth, from that day on and forever.

7And from his hand they have proceeded against those who dwell on the earth from that day and for evermore.

8The fourth was named Penemue. He taught human beings the bitter and the sweet, and he taught them all the secrets of their wisdom.

8And the fourth was named Pênemûe: he taught the children of men the bitter and the sweet, and he taught them all the secrets of their wisdom.

Note"The bitter and the sweet" is an idiom for telling a thing from its opposite, that is, the power of discriminating and judging. The name Penemue is often connected with a Hebrew word for what is inner or hidden.

9He taught people how to write with ink and paper, and because of that many have sinned from age to age and up to this day.

9And he instructed mankind in writing with ink and paper, and thereby many sinned from eternity to eternity and until this day.

Note"Paper" is Charles's word for papyrus, the writing sheet of the ancient Mediterranean, made from a reed and written on with ink and a cut reed pen. Paper in the modern sense did not exist. The complaint is against writing itself as a human skill taught by a rebel angel.

10For people were not created for that purpose, to confirm that they can be trusted by using pen and ink.

10For men were not created for such a purpose, to give confirmation to their good faith with pen and ink.

NoteThe objection is legal rather than literary. A written document is a way of proving a promise afterward; the text says people were made to be trustworthy on their word alone and so had no need of signed instruments.

11For people were created exactly like the angels, so that they would stay pure and right, and death, which destroys everything, could not have taken hold of them. But because of this knowledge of theirs they are perishing, and through this power it is consuming me.

11For men were created exactly like the angels, to the intent that they should continue pure and righteous, and death, which destroys everything, could not have taken hold of them, but through this their knowledge they are perishing, and through this power †it is consuming me†.

NoteThe last clause is damaged in the Ethiopic manuscripts. Charles fenced it with daggers to say so, and printed "it is consuming me" while noting that the sense may be that they, the human beings, are being consumed. The rendering keeps the reading he printed.

12The fifth was named Kasdeja. He is the one who showed human beings all the evil blows dealt by spirits and demons, and the blows against the unborn child in the womb, so that it dies, and the blows against the soul, the bites of the snake, and the blows that come through the heat of noon, from the son of the snake whose name is Tabaet.

12And the fifth was named Kâsdejâ: this is he who showed the children of men all the wicked smitings of spirits and demons, and the smitings of the embryo in the womb, that it may pass away, and the smitings of the soul the bites of the serpent, and the smitings which befall through the noontide heat, the son of the serpent named Tabâ’ět.

Note"Smitings" means blows or strokes, used here for the harm dealt by unseen powers. "The smitings of the embryo in the womb, that it may pass away" means blows that cause a pregnancy to end. "The smitings which befall through the noontide heat" reflects a widespread ancient belief in a demon that struck at midday, the same idea behind the King James phrasing of Psalm 91:6, "the destruction that wasteth at noonday." Tabaet is a name of uncertain meaning, possibly from a root meaning strong.

13And this is the work of Kasbeel, the chief of the oath, the oath he showed to the holy ones while he lived high above in glory. Its name is Biqa.

13And this is the †task† of Kâsbeêl, the chief of the oath which he showed to the holy ones when he dwelt high above in glory, and its name is Bîqâ.

NoteThe name shifts from Kasdeja in the previous verse to Kasbeel here, and it is disputed whether one angel is meant or two; the word Charles rendered "task" is itself uncertain in the manuscripts, which is why he daggered it. "The oath" in this passage is not a promise someone makes but a binding formula built on the secret name of God, treated almost as an object: it can be shown, named, and handed over. Biqa is the name given to it here.

14This angel asked Michael to show him the hidden name, so that he could speak it out in the oath, so that those who had revealed everything that was secret to human beings would shake with fear at that name and that oath.

14This (angel) requested Michael to show him the hidden name, that he might enunciate it in the oath, so that those might quake before that name and oath who revealed all that was in secret to the children of men.

NoteMichael is one of the chief angels, named in Daniel 10 and often in Enoch. "The hidden name" is the name of God that Jewish tradition held was not to be pronounced; knowing and speaking it was thought to carry power, which is why possessing it makes the oath effective.

15And this is the power of this oath, for it is powerful and strong, and he placed this oath, called Akae, in the hand of Michael.

15And this is the power of this oath, for it is powerful and strong, and he placed this oath Akâe in the hand of Michael.

NoteAkae is a second name for the oath, alongside Biqa in verse 13; its meaning is unknown. Placing it "in the hand of Michael" continues to speak of the oath as a thing that can be held and used.

16And these are the secrets of this oath . . . And they hold firm through his oath: the heavens were hung in place before the world was created, and hung so forever.

16And these are the secrets of this oath . . . And they are strong through his oath: And the heaven was suspended before the world was created, And for ever.

NoteThe row of dots is Charles's mark for words he judged lost from the Ethiopic at this point, not a pause in the sense. What follows lists the fixed features of the created order that the oath is said to hold in place.

17Through it the earth was set in place upon the water, and out of the hidden inner parts of the mountains beautiful waters come, from the making of the world and on into forever.

17And through it the earth was founded upon the water, And from the secret recesses of the mountains come beautiful waters, From the creation of the world and unto eternity.

NoteAncient Near Eastern cosmology pictured the dry land as resting on a body of water beneath it, the same picture as Psalm 24:2, "he hath founded it upon the seas." Springs rising inside mountains were understood as that lower water coming up.

18Through that oath the sea was made, and as its foundation he set the sand for it, to hold against the time of its rage, and it does not dare go past it, from the making of the world on into forever.

18And through that oath the sea was created, And †as its foundation† He set for it the sand against the time of (its) anger, And it dare not pass beyond it from the creation of the world unto eternity.

NoteThe image is the shoreline: sand is the boundary the sea rages against and cannot cross, as in Jeremiah 5:22, "which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea." "The time of (its) anger" means storm and high water. Charles daggered "as its foundation" as a doubtful reading.

19Through that oath the deep places are held fast, and they stay and do not move from where they are, from age to age.

19And through that oath are the depths made fast, And abide and stir not from their place from eternity to eternity.

Note"The depths" are the deep waters thought to lie beneath and around the earth, the abyss of ancient cosmology, not valleys or canyons.

20Through that oath the sun and the moon finish their course, and do not turn aside from the rule set for them, from age to age.

20And through that oath the sun and moon complete their course, And deviate not from their ordinance from eternity to eternity.

Note"Ordinance" here means a fixed rule or appointed course laid down for them, not a law people obey. The sun and moon are pictured as running an assigned track.

21Through that oath the stars finish their course, and he calls them by their names, and they answer him, from age to age.

21And through that oath the stars complete their course, And He calls them by their names, And they answer Him from eternity to eternity.

NoteCalling the stars by name and having them answer echoes Isaiah 40:26 and Psalm 147:4. In Enoch the heavenly bodies are treated as beings that can respond, not merely as lights.

22And it is the same for the spirits of the water, and of the winds, and of all the light breezes, and for their paths from every quarter that the winds come from.

22And in like manner the spirits of the water, and of the winds, and of all zephyrs, and (their) paths from all the quarters of the winds.

Note"Zephyrs" are light breezes. "The quarters of the winds" are the fixed points of the sky each wind was thought to blow from; elsewhere Enoch describes twelve gates through which the winds come out.

23And there the voices of the thunder are kept, and the light of the lightning flashes. And there the storerooms of the hail are kept, and the storerooms of the frost, and the storerooms of the mist, and the storerooms of the rain and the dew.

23And there are preserved the voices of the thunder and the light of the lightnings: and there are preserved the chambers of the hail and the chambers of the hoar-frost, and the chambers of the mist, and the chambers of the rain and the dew.

NoteWeather was pictured as kept in heavenly storerooms until released, as in Job 38:22, "the treasures of the snow." "Hoar-frost" is the white frost that forms on cold surfaces.

24All of these trust and give thanks before the Lord of Spirits, and they praise him with all their strength, and their food is in every act of thanksgiving. They thank and praise and lift high the name of the Lord of Spirits forever and ever.

24And all these believe and give thanks before the Lord of Spirits, and glorify (Him) with all their power, and their food is in every act of thanksgiving: they thank and glorify and extol the name of the Lord of Spirits for ever and ever.

Note"Lord of Spirits" is the standard title for God throughout this section of Enoch (chapters 37 to 71), corresponding roughly to "Lord of hosts" in the Hebrew Bible. "Their food is in every act of thanksgiving" is obscure in the Ethiopic; the sense appears to be that thanksgiving is what sustains them, the way food sustains a body.

25This oath is mighty over them, and through it they are kept safe and their paths are kept safe, and their course is not destroyed.

25And this oath is mighty over them, And through it they are preserved and their paths are preserved, And their course is not destroyed.

26And there was great joy among them, and they blessed and praised and lifted him high, because the name of that Son of Man had been revealed to them.

26And there was great joy amongst them, And they blessed and glorified and extolled Because the name of that Son of Man had been revealed unto them.

Note"Son of Man" in Hebrew and Aramaic ordinarily means nothing more than a human being, a member of the human race. In this part of Enoch, as in Daniel 7:13, it has become a title for one particular heavenly figure, and the joy here is at the disclosure of his name.

27And he sat on the throne of his glory, and the whole of the judgment was handed over to the Son of Man, and he made the sinners pass away and be destroyed from the face of the earth, along with those who have led the world astray.

27And he sat on the throne of his glory, And the sum of judgement was given unto the Son of Man, And he caused the sinners to pass away and be destroyed from off the face of the earth, And those who have led the world astray.

Note"The throne of his glory" is a Semitic way of saying his glorious throne. "The sum of judgement" means the whole business of judging, the entire office, handed over to him.

28They will be bound with chains, and they will be shut up in the place where they are gathered for destruction, and all their works will vanish from the face of the earth.

28With chains shall they be bound, And in their assemblage-place of destruction shall they be imprisoned, And all their works vanish from the face of the earth.

Note"Their assemblage-place of destruction" renders a phrase for the place where they are herded together in order to be destroyed. The Ethiopic does not make clear whether a specific named location is meant.

29From then on there will be nothing that decays, for that Son of Man has appeared and has taken his seat on the throne of his glory, and all evil will pass away from before his face. And the word of that Son of Man will go out and be strong before the Lord of Spirits. This is the third Parable of Enoch.

29And from henceforth there shall be nothing corruptible; For that Son of Man has appeared, And has seated himself on the throne of his glory, And all evil shall pass away before his face, And the word of that Son of Man shall go forth And be strong before the Lord of Spirits. This is the third Parable of Enoch.

Note"Parable" translates a word corresponding to the Hebrew mashal: a weighty discourse, oracle or revealed saying, not a short story with a moral. Chapters 37 to 71 of Enoch are known as the Book of Parables and are divided into three such discourses, and this line marks the end of the third.