The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch, Charles translation) · 31 of 141 · tr. R.H. Charles

Chapter XIV (part 1)

CHAPTER XIV.

1.

The book of the words of righteousness, and of the reprimand of the eternal Watchers in accordance with the command of the Holy Great One in that vision.

2.

I saw in my sleep what I will now say with a tongue of flesh and with the breath of my mouth: which the Great One has given to men to converse therewith and understand with the heart.

3.

As He has created and given ⌈⌈ to man p.

41 the power of understanding the word of wisdom, so hath He created me also and given ⌉⌉ me the power of reprimanding the Watchers, the children of heaven.

4.

I wrote out your petition, and in my vision it appeared thus, that your petition will not be granted unto you ⌈⌈ throughout all the days of eternity, and that judgement has been finally passed upon you: yea (your petition) will not be granted unto you ⌉⌉ .

5.

And from henceforth you shall not ascend into heaven unto all eternity, and ⌈ in bonds ⌉ of the earth the decree has gone forth to bind you for all the days of the world.

6.

And (that) previously you shall have seen the destruction of your beloved sons and ye shall have no pleasure in them, but they shall fall before you by the sword.

7.

And your petition on their behalf shall not be granted, nor yet on your own: even though you weep and pray and speak all the words contained in the writing which I have written.

8.

And the vision was shown to me thus: Behold, in the vision clouds invited me and a mist summoned me, and the course of the stars and the lightnings sped and hastened me, and the winds in the vision caused me to fly and lifted me upward, and bore me into heaven.

9.

And I went in till I drew nigh to a wall which is built of crystals and surrounded by tongues of fire: and it began to affright me.

And I went into the tongues of fire and drew nigh to a large house which was built of crystals: and the walls of the house were like a tesselated floor (made) of crystals, and its groundwork was of crystal.

11.

Its ceiling was like the path of the stars and the lightnings, and between them were fiery cherubim, and their heaven was (clear as) water.

12.

A flaming fire surrounded the walls, and its portals blazed with fire.

13.

And I entered into that house, and it was hot as fire and cold as ice: there were no delights of life therein: fear covered me, and trembling got hold upon me.

14.

And as I quaked and trembled, I fell upon my face.

15.

And I beheld a vision, And lo!

there was a second house, greater than the former, p.

42 and the entire portal stood open before me, and it was built of flames of fire.

16.

And in every respect it so excelled in splendour and magnificence and extent that I cannot describe to you its splendour and its extent.

17.

And its floor was of fire, and above it were lightnings and the path of the stars, and its ceiling also was flaming fire.

18.

And I looked and saw ⌈⌈ therein ⌉⌉ a lofty throne: its appearance was as crystal, and the wheels thereof as the shining sun, and there was the vision of cherubim.

19.

And from underneath the throne came streams of flaming fire so that I could not look thereon.

20.

And the Great Glory sat thereon, and His raiment shone more brightly than the sun and was whiter than any snow.

21.

§ Ask Guru about this passage →

Themes

Anthropomorphismtheology

Attributing human characteristics, emotions, or form to the divine; embodied divine imagery.

The Great Glory is described as sitting on a throne and wearing raiment, attributing human form to the divine.

All passages →

Divine Hiddennesstheology

The supreme God's radical concealment beyond ordinary knowledge or perception; the Hidden Father.

The divine presence is overwhelming and partially concealed by fire and crystal, causing fear and preventing direct looking.

All passages →

Divine Lighttheology

The uncreated luminous quality of the divine, sometimes experienced directly in mystical states; illumination as revelation.

[auto] The vision is dominated by imagery of fire, lightnings, crystal, and the Great Glory's raiment shining brighter than the sun.

All passages →

Eschatological Judgmentsoteriology

Final, collective cosmic judgment as an event in which the wicked are sentenced and the cosmos restored; distinct from psychopomp_journey (individual passage at death) and emphasising verdict where Zoroastrian frashokereti emphasises restoration.

[auto] The text declares final judgment passed upon the Watchers, foretelling the destruction of their sons and eternal binding.

All passages →

Living Godtheology

The divine conceived as active, present, and dynamic—not an abstract principle but a personal responsive reality.

God is depicted as an active agent who commands, judges, and interacts with the vision of Enoch.

All passages →

Spiritual Ascentpraxis

A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source.

[auto] Enoch describes a staged journey upward through clouds, mist, and heavenly houses to reach the divine throne.

All passages →

Watchers Descentcosmology

The 1 Enoch narrative in which a class of originally-good angelic beings (the Watchers) descends, mates with women, and teaches forbidden arts — the substrate that Gnostic archons inherits and inverts: archons are born malevolent, the Watchers fall through transgression.

[auto] The passage explicitly details the judgment and binding of the Watchers (fallen angels) who petitioned for mercy but were denied.

All passages →

Related passages · 5 parallels

christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 2, Section 1g

“Their ultimate nature, which they possess in their own original being, is beyond Mind and beyond all Being and Knowledge. 203 203 Even the Differentiations finally lead us up into the Undifferenced Godhead Where they transcend themselves.…”

Shared concept: Divine Hiddenness — The supreme God's radical concealment beyond ordinary knowledge or perception; the Hidden Father. (derived)

theosophy|The Secret Doctrine|Page 62 (part 2)

“a dynasty of Spirit -Kings, not of Manes, or "ghosts," as some believe ( See " Pneumatologie "), but of actual living Devas (or demi-gods or Angels, again) who had assumed bodies to rule over them, and who, in their turn, instructed them in…”

Shared concept: Watchers Descent — The 1 Enoch narrative in which a class of originally-good angelic beings (the Watchers) descends, mates with women, and teaches forbidden arts — the substrate that Gnostic archons inherits and inverts: archons are born malevolent, the Watchers fall through transgression. (derived)

egyptian|The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani)|Chapter 43 (part 69)

“unity of a supreme and self-existent being, his eternity, his almightiness, and external reproduction thereby as God; the attributing of the creation of the world and of all living beings to this supreme God; the immortality of the soul, co…”

Shared concept: Divine Hiddenness — The supreme God's radical concealment beyond ordinary knowledge or perception; the Hidden Father. (derived)

christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 4, Section 1k

“and all things are moved by a longing for the Beautiful and Good, to accomplish every outward work and form every act of will. And true reasoning will also dare to affirm that even the Creator of all things Himself yearneth after all thing…”

Shared concept: Living God — The divine conceived as active, present, and dynamic—not an abstract principle but a personal responsive reality. (derived)

western_esoteric|The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall)|Atlantis and the Gods of Antiquity-g

“At the first gate the great crown is removed from her head, at the second gate the earrings from her ears, at the third gate the necklace from her neck, at the fourth gate the ornaments from her breast, at the fifth gate the girdle from her…”

Shared concept: Spiritual Ascent — A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source. (derived)