The Book of Enoch

Chapter 2

1. Observe everything that takes place in heaven: how the heavenly bodies do not change their orbits, and how the luminaries in heaven all rise and set in order, each in its season, and do not transgress their appointed order. 2. Look at the earth and pay attention to the things that take place upon it from first to last: how steadfast they are, how none of the things upon earth change, but all the works of God appear to you. 3. Observe the summer and the winter, how the whole earth is filled with water, and clouds, dew, and rain lie upon it.

Chapter 3

Observe and see how in winter all the trees seem to have withered and shed all their leaves, except fourteen trees. These do not lose their foliage but retain the old foliage for two or three years, until the new foliage comes.

Chapter 4

Again, observe the days of summer, when the sun is above the earth, facing it. You seek shade and shelter because of the sun’s heat, and the earth also burns with intense heat, so you cannot walk upon the earth or upon a rock because of its heat.

Chapter 5

1. You, observe how the trees cover themselves with green leaves and bear fruit. Therefore, pay attention and understand all his works, and recognize how he who lives forever has made them this way.

2. And all his works continue this way from year to year forever. They accomplish all the tasks that they perform for him, and their tasks do not change, but everything is done as God has ordained.

3. And observe how the sea and the rivers likewise perform and do not change their tasks as he commands.

4. But you, you have not been steadfast or obeyed the Lord’s commandments,

But you have turned away and spoken proud and harsh words

With your impure mouths against his greatness.

Oh, you hard-hearted ones, you shall find no peace.

5. Therefore, you shall curse your days,

And the years of your life shall perish,

And the years of your destruction shall be multiplied under an eternal curse,

And you shall find no mercy.

6*a.* In those days you shall make your names an eternal curse among all the righteous,

b. And by you shall all who curse utter curses.

c. And all the sinners and godless shall invoke curses by you.

7*c.* And for you, the godless, there shall be a curse.

6*d.* And all the … shall rejoice,

e. And there shall be forgiveness of sins,

f. And every mercy, peace, and forbearance.

g. There shall be salvation for them, a beautiful light.

i. And for all of you sinners there shall be no salvation,

j. But a curse shall rest upon you all.

7*a.* But for the elect there shall be light, grace, and peace,

b. And they shall inherit the earth.

8. And then wisdom shall be bestowed upon the elect,

And they shall all live and never sin again,

Either through ungodliness or through pride,

But those who are wise shall be humble.

9. And they shall not transgress again,

Nor shall they sin all the days of their lives,

Nor shall they die from divine anger or wrath,

But they shall complete the full number of the days of their lives.

And their lives shall be lengthened in peace,

And the years of their joy shall be multiplied

In eternal gladness and peace,

All the days of their lives.

Chapter 6

1. When the children of men had multiplied, beautiful and attractive daughters were born to them in those days. 2. And the angels, the children of heaven, saw them and lusted after them. They said to one another, “Come, let us choose wives for ourselves from among the children of men and father children.” 3. And Semjâzâ, who was their leader, said to them, “I fear that you will not truly agree to do this deed, and I alone will have to pay the penalty for a great sin.” 4. They all answered him and said, “Let us all swear an oath and bind ourselves under mutual curses not to abandon this plan, but to carry it out.” 5. Then they all swore together and bound themselves under mutual curses concerning it. 6. They were two hundred in all, and they descended in the days of Jared upon the summit of Mount Hermon. They called it Mount Hermon because they had sworn and bound themselves under mutual curses upon it. 7. These are the names of their leaders: Sêmîazâz, their leader, Arâkîba, Râmêêl, Kôkabîêl, Tâmîêl, Râmîêl, Dânêl, Êzêqêêl, Barâqîjâl, Asâêl, Armârôs, Batârêl, Anânêl, Zaqîêl, Samsâpêêl, Satarêl, Tûrêl, Jômjâêl, and Sariêl. 8. These are their chiefs of tens.

Chapter 7

1. All the others, together with them, took wives for themselves, and each chose one for himself. They began to sleep with them and defile themselves with them, and they taught them charms and enchantments, the cutting of roots, and knowledge of plants. 2. The women became pregnant and bore great giants whose height was three thousand ells. 3. These consumed all the possessions of humanity. When people could no longer sustain them, 4. the giants turned against them and devoured humanity. 5. They began to sin against birds, beasts, reptiles, and fish, and to devour one another’s flesh and drink the blood. 6. Then the earth brought an accusation against the lawless ones.

Chapter 8

1. Azâzêl taught men to make swords, knives, shields, and breastplates. He revealed to them the metals of the earth and the art of working them, as well as bracelets, ornaments, the use of antimony, the beautifying of the eyelids, every kind of costly stone, and all coloring dyes. 2. Much godlessness arose, and they committed fornication. They were led astray and became corrupt in all their ways. 3. Semjâzâ taught enchantments and root-cutting; Armârôs taught the undoing of enchantments; Barâqîjâl taught astrology; Kôkabêl taught the constellations; Ezêqêêl, the knowledge of the clouds; Araqiêl taught the signs of the earth; Shamsiêl, the signs of the sun; and Sariêl, the course of the moon. 4. As people perished, they cried out, and their cry rose to heaven.…

Chapter 9

1. Then Michael, Uriel, Raphael, and Gabriel looked down from heaven and saw much blood being shed upon the earth and all the lawlessness being committed upon it. 2. They said to one another, “The earth, made without inhabitants, cries with the voice of their cry up to the gates of heaven. 3. And now to you, the holy ones of heaven, the souls of men plead their case, saying, ‘Bring our cause before the Most High.’”

4. And they said to the Lord of the ages, “Lord of lords, God of gods, King of kings and God of the ages, the throne of your glory stands throughout all generations of the ages, and your name is holy, glorious, and blessed throughout all the ages! 5. You have made all things, and you have power over all things. All things are naked and exposed before you; you see all things, and nothing can hide from you. 6. You see what Azâzêl has done, how he has taught all unrighteousness on earth and revealed the eternal secrets that were preserved in heaven, which men were striving to learn. 7. And you see Semjâzâ, to whom you gave authority to rule over his associates. 8. They have gone to the daughters of men upon the earth and slept with the women. They have defiled themselves and revealed to the women every kind of sin. 9. The women have borne giants, and the whole earth has therefore been filled with blood and unrighteousness. 10. And now, behold, the souls of those who have died are crying out and pleading their case at the gates of heaven. Their lamentations have ascended and cannot cease because of the lawless deeds committed upon the earth. 11. You know all things before they happen, and you see these things and allow them. Yet you do not tell us what we are to do to them concerning these things.”

Chapter 10

1. Then the Most High, the Holy and Great One, spoke and sent Uriel to the son of Lamech, saying to him, 2. “Go to Noah and tell him in my name, ‘Hide yourself!’ Reveal to him the approaching end: the whole earth will be destroyed, and a flood is about to come upon the whole earth and destroy everything upon it. 3. Now instruct him so that he may escape and his offspring may be preserved for all the generations of the world.”

4. Again the Lord said to Raphael, “Bind Azâzêl hand and foot and cast him into darkness. Make an opening in the desert that is in Dûdâêl and cast him into it. 5. Place rough and jagged rocks upon him, cover him with darkness, and let him remain there forever. Cover his face so that he may not see light. 6. On the day of the great judgment, he shall be cast into the fire. 7. Heal the earth that the angels have corrupted, and proclaim the healing of the earth, so that they may heal the plague and all the children of men may not perish because of all the secret things that the Watchers have disclosed and taught their sons. 8. The whole earth has been corrupted through the works taught by Azâzêl. Ascribe all sin to him.”

9. And the Lord said to Gabriel, “Proceed against the bastards and the reprobates, and against the children of fornication. Destroy the children of fornication and the children of the Watchers from among humanity. Cause them to go forth. Send them against one another so that they may destroy each other in battle, for they shall not have long lives.

10. “No request they make of you shall be granted to their fathers on their behalf, for they hope to live an eternal life, and that each one of them will live five hundred years.”

11. And the Lord said to Michael, “Go, bind Semjâzâ and his associates, who united themselves with women and defiled themselves with them in all their uncleanness. 12. When their sons have slain one another and they have witnessed the destruction of their beloved ones, bind them securely for seventy generations in the valleys of the earth, until the day of their judgment and consummation, until the everlasting judgment is completed. 13. In those days they shall be led away to the abyss of fire, and to the torment and prison in which they shall be confined forever. 14. Whoever is condemned and destroyed will from then on be bound together with them until the end of all generations. 15. Destroy all the spirits of the reprobate and the children of the Watchers, because they have wronged humanity. 16. Destroy all wrongdoing from the face of the earth, and let every evil work come to an end. Let the plant of righteousness and truth appear, and it shall prove a blessing. The works of righteousness and truth shall be planted in truth and joy forever.

17. “And then all the righteous shall escape,

And shall live until they beget thousands of children,

And shall complete all the days of their youth and their old age in peace.

18. “Then the whole earth shall be cultivated in righteousness, planted throughout with trees, and filled with blessing. 19. Every desirable tree shall be planted upon it, and they shall plant vines upon it. The vines planted there shall produce wine in abundance. For all the seed sown there, each measure of it shall yield a thousand, and every measure of olives shall yield ten presses of oil. 20. Cleanse the earth from all oppression, unrighteousness, sin, and godlessness. Destroy from the earth all the uncleanness committed upon it. 21. And all the children of men shall become righteous, and all nations shall offer adoration and praise me, and all shall worship me. 22. The earth shall be cleansed from all defilement, sin, punishment, and torment, and I will never again send them upon it, from generation to generation and forever.

Chapter 11

1. “And in those days I will open the storehouses of blessing that are in heaven and send them down upon the earth over the work and labor of the children of men. 2. Truth and peace shall be joined together throughout all the days of the world and throughout all the generations of men.”

Chapter 12

1. Before these things, Enoch was hidden, and none of the children of men knew where he was hidden, where he lived, or what had become of him. 2. His activities concerned the Watchers, and his days were spent with the holy ones.

3. I, Enoch, was blessing the Lord of majesty and the King of the ages. And look! The Watchers called me, Enoch the scribe, and said to me, 4. “Enoch, scribe of righteousness, go and declare to the Watchers of heaven who have left the high heaven, the holy eternal place, defiled themselves with women, acted as the children of earth do, and taken wives for themselves: ‘You have brought great destruction upon the earth. 5. You will have neither peace nor forgiveness of sin. Because they delight in their children, 6. they will see the murder of their beloved ones; they will lament over the destruction of their children, and make supplication forever, but you will obtain neither mercy nor peace.’”

Chapter 13

1. Enoch went and said, “Azâzêl, you will have no peace. A severe sentence has been issued against you, to put you in chains. 2. Neither tolerance nor any request will be granted to you because of the unrighteousness you have taught and all the works of godlessness, unrighteousness, and sin you have shown to men.”

3. Then I went and spoke to them all together. They were all afraid, and fear and trembling seized them. 4. They begged me to draw up a petition for them so that they might obtain forgiveness, and to read their petition in the presence of the Lord of heaven. 5. From that time onward, they could neither speak with Him nor raise their eyes to heaven because they were ashamed of the sins for which they had been condemned.

6. Then I wrote out their petition and the prayer concerning their spirits and their individual deeds, and concerning their requests that they might receive forgiveness and length of days. 7. I went away and sat beside the waters of Dan, in the land of Dan, south of the west of Hermon. I read their petition until I fell asleep.

8. And look, a dream came to me, and visions descended upon me. I saw visions of punishment, and a voice came, commanding me to tell it to the sons of heaven and reprimand them. 9. When I awoke, I went to them. They were all sitting together, weeping in ’Abelsjâîl, which is between Lebanon and Sênêsêr, with their faces covered. 10. I recounted before them all the visions I had seen in my sleep, and I began to speak the words of righteousness and reprimand the heavenly Watchers.

Chapter 14

1. This is the book of the words of righteousness and the reprimand of the eternal Watchers, in accordance with the command of the Holy Great One in that vision. 2. In my sleep I saw what I will now declare with a tongue of flesh and the breath of my mouth, which the Great One has given to men so that they may speak with it and understand with the heart. 3. Just as He created and gave man the power to understand the word of wisdom, so He also created me and gave me the power to reprimand the Watchers, the children of heaven.

4. I wrote out your petition, and in my vision it was revealed that your petition will not be granted to you throughout all the days of eternity, and that judgment has finally been passed upon you. Yes, your petition will not be granted to you. 5. From now on, you will not ascend into heaven for all eternity, and the decree has been issued to bind you in the chains of the earth for all the days of the world. 6. And before then you will have seen the destruction of your beloved sons. You will take no pleasure in them, for they will fall before you by the sword. 7. Your petition on their behalf will not be granted, nor will your petition for yourselves, even though you weep, pray, and speak all the words contained in the writing I have written.

8. The vision was shown to me in this way: Look, in the vision, clouds invited me, a mist summoned me, the course of the stars and the flashes of lightning sped and hurried me onward, and the winds made me fly, lifted me upward, and carried me into heaven.

9. I continued until I drew near a wall built of crystals and surrounded by tongues of fire, and it began to frighten me. 10. I entered the tongues of fire and approached a large house built of crystals. The house’s walls were like a tessellated floor made of crystals, and its foundation was crystal. 11. Its ceiling was like the path of the stars and the flashes of lightning. Fiery cherubim were between them, and their heaven was clear as water. 12. Flaming fire surrounded the walls, and its portals blazed with fire.

13. I entered that house. It was as hot as fire and as cold as ice. There were no delights of life in it. Fear covered me, and trembling seized me. 14. As I shook and trembled, I fell upon my face and saw a vision.

15. And look! There was a second house, greater than the first, and its entire portal stood open before me. It was built of flames of fire. 16. In every respect, it so surpassed the first in splendor, magnificence, and size that I cannot describe its splendor or its extent. 17. Its floor was fire. Above it were flashes of lightning and the path of the stars, and its ceiling was also flaming fire.

18. I looked and saw within it a lofty throne. Its appearance was like crystal, its wheels were like the shining sun, and there was the vision of cherubim. 19. Streams of flaming fire flowed from beneath the throne, so that I could not look at it. 20. The Great Glory sat upon it. His clothing shone more brightly than the sun and was whiter than any snow.

21. None of the angels could enter or look upon His face because of the magnificence and glory, and no flesh could look upon Him. 22. Flaming fire surrounded Him, and a great fire stood before Him. No one around Him could draw near. Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him, yet He needed no counselor. 23. The most holy ones who were near Him did not leave at night or depart from Him.

24. Until then, I had remained prostrate on my face, trembling. The Lord called me with His own mouth and said to me, “Come here, Enoch, and hear my word.” 25. Then one of the holy ones came to me and awakened me, and He made me rise and approach the door. I bowed my face downward.

Chapter 15

1. He answered me, and I heard His voice: “Do not be afraid, Enoch, righteous man and scribe of righteousness. Come here and hear my voice. 2. Go and say to the Watchers of heaven who sent you to intercede for them: ‘You should intercede for men, not men for you.

3. Why have you left the high, holy, and eternal heaven, lain with women, defiled yourselves with the daughters of men, taken wives for yourselves, acted like the children of earth, and fathered giants as your sons? 4. Though you were holy and spiritual, living the eternal life, you defiled yourselves with the blood of women and fathered children with the blood of flesh. Like the children of men, you lusted after flesh and blood as those also do who die and perish.

5. Therefore I have also given them wives so that they might impregnate them and father children by them, so that they might lack nothing on earth. 6. But you were formerly spiritual, living the eternal life and immortal throughout all the generations of the world. 7. Therefore I did not appoint wives for you, for the spiritual ones of heaven have their dwelling in heaven.

8. Now the giants, who are produced from spirits and flesh, will be called evil spirits upon the earth, and their dwelling will be upon the earth. 9. Evil spirits have come from their bodies because they are born from men, and their beginning and primal origin are from the holy Watchers. They will be evil spirits on earth, and evil spirits they will be called.

10. The spirits of heaven will have their dwelling in heaven, but the spirits of the earth, which were born upon the earth, will have their dwelling upon the earth.

11. The spirits of the giants afflict, oppress, destroy, attack, wage war, work destruction on the earth, and cause trouble. They eat no food, but nevertheless hunger and thirst, and cause offenses. 12. These spirits will rise against the children of men and against the women because they came from them.

Chapter 16

1. “‘From the days of the slaughter, destruction, and death of the giants, the spirits that have gone out from the souls of their flesh will destroy without incurring judgment. They will continue to destroy until the day of consummation, the great judgment in which the age will be consummated over the Watchers and the godless. Yes, it will be wholly consummated.’

2. “Now concerning the Watchers who sent you to intercede for them, who had been formerly in heaven, say to them: 3. ‘You were in heaven, but all the mysteries had not yet been revealed to you. You knew worthless mysteries, and in the hardness of your hearts you made these known to the women. Through these mysteries, women and men work much evil on earth.’ 4. Therefore say to them, ‘You have no peace.’”

Chapter 17

1. They took and brought me to a place where those who were there were like flaming fire, but when they wished, they appeared as men. 2. They brought me to the place of darkness and to a mountain whose summit reached heaven.

3. I saw the places of the luminaries and the treasuries of the stars, and the places of the thunder. And in the farthest depths were a fiery bow, arrows and their quiver, a fiery sword, and all the lightning.

4. They took me to the living waters and to the fire of the west, which receives every setting of the sun. 5. I came to a river of fire in which fire flows like water and empties into the great sea toward the west.

6. I saw the great rivers and came to the great river and to the great darkness, and I went to the place where no flesh walks. 7. I saw the mountains of the darkness of winter and the place from which all the waters of the deep flow. 8. I saw the mouths of all the rivers of the earth and the mouth of the deep.

Chapter 18

1. I saw the treasuries of all the winds. I saw how He had furnished the whole creation and the firm foundations of the earth with them. 2. I saw the cornerstone of the earth. I saw the four winds that support the earth and the firmament of heaven. 3. I saw how the winds stretch out the vaults of heaven and take their station between heaven and earth. These are the pillars of heaven.

4. I saw the winds of heaven that turn and carry the circuit of the sun and all the stars toward their setting. 5. I saw the winds upon the earth carrying the clouds. I saw the paths of the angels. I saw the firmament of heaven above at the end of the earth.

6. I continued and saw a place that burns day and night, where there are seven mountains of magnificent stones, three toward the east and three toward the south. 7. Of those toward the east, one was of colored stone, one of pearl, and one of jacinth. Those toward the south were of red stone. 8. But the middle mountain reached to heaven like the throne of God. It was of alabaster, and the summit of the throne was of sapphire.

9. I saw a flaming fire. Beyond these mountains 10. lies a region at the end of the great earth. There the heavens were completed.

11. I saw a deep abyss with columns of heavenly fire, and among them I saw columns of fire falling, immeasurable alike in height and depth. 12. Beyond that abyss, I saw a place that had no firmament of heaven above it and no firmly founded earth beneath it. There was no water upon it and no birds, but it was a desolate and horrible place.

13. There I saw seven stars like great burning mountains, and when I asked about them, 14. the angel said, “This place is the end of heaven and earth. It has become a prison for the stars and the host of heaven. 15. The stars that roll over the fire are those that transgressed the Lord’s commandment at the beginning of their rising because they did not come out at their appointed times. 16. He was angry with them and bound them until the time when their guilt would be consummated, even for ten thousand years.”