Chapter LX
1. In those days I beheld long ropes given to those angels ; who took to their wings, and fled, advancing towards the north.
2. And I inquired of the angel, saying, Wherefore have they taken those long ropes, and gone forth ? He said, They are gone forth to measure.
3. The angel, who proceeded with me, said. These are the measures of the righteous ; and cords shall the righteous bring, that they may trust in the name of the Lord of spirits for ever and ever.
4. The elect shall begin to dwell with the elect.
5. And these are the measures which shall be given to faith, and Which shall strengthen the words of righteousness.
6. These measures shall reveal all the secrets in the depth of the earth.
7. And it shall be, that those who have been destroyed in the desert, and who have been devoured by the fish of the sea, and by wild beasts, shall return, and trust in the day of the Elect One ; for none shall perish in the presence of the Lord of spirits, nor shall any be capable of perishing.
8. Then they received the commandment, all who were in the heavens above ; to whom a combined power, voice, and splendour, like fire, were given.
9. And first, with their voice, they blessed him, they exalted him, they glorified him with wisdom, and ascribed to him wisdom with the word, and with the breath of life.
10. Then the Lord of spirits seated upon the throne of his glory the Elect One;
11. Who shall judge all the works of the holy, in heaven above, and in a balance shall he weigh their actions. And when he shall lift up his countenance to judge their secret ways in the word of the name of the Lord of spirits, and their progress in the path of the righteous judgment of God most high ;
12. They shall all speak with united voice ; and bless, glorify, exalt, and praise, in the name of the Lord of spirits.
13. He shall call to every power of the heavens, to all the holy above, and to the power of God. The Cherubim, the Seraphim, and the Ophanin, all the angels of power, and all the angels of the Lords, namely, of the Elect One, and of the other Power, who was upon earth over the water on that day,
14. Shall raise their united voice ; shall bless, glorify, praise, and exalt with the spirit of faith, with the spirit of wisdom and patience, with the spirit of mercy, with the spirit of judgment and peace, and with the spirit of benevolence ; all shall say with united voice : Blessed is He ; and the name of the Lord of spirits shall be blessed for ever and for ever ; all, who sleep not, shall bless it in heaven above.
15. All the holy in heaven shall bless it ; all the elect who dwell in the garden of life; and every spirit of light, who is capable of blessing, glorifying, exalting, and praising thy holy name ; and every mortal man more than the powers of heaven, shall glorify and bless thy name for ever and ever.
16. For great is the mercy of the Lord of spirits ; long-suffering is he ; and all his works, all his power, great as are the things which he has done, has he revealed to the saints and to the elect, in the name of the Lord of spirits.
Chapter LXI
1. Thus the Lord commanded the kings, the princes, the exalted, and those who dwell on earth, saying. Open your eyes, and lift up your horns, if you are capable of comprehending the Elect One.
2. The Lord of spirits sat upon the throne of his glory.
3. And the spirit of righteousness was poured out over him.
4. The word of his mouth shall destroy all the sinners and all the ungodly, who shall perish at his presence.
5. In that day shall all the kings, the princes, the exalted, and those who possess the earth, stand up, behold, and perceive, that he is sitting on the throne of his glory ; that before him the saints shall be judged in righteousness
6. And that nothing, which shall be spoken before him, shall be spoken in vain.
7. Trouble shall come upon them, as upon a woman in travail, whose labour is severe, when her child comes to the mouth of the womb, and she finds it difficult to bring forth.
8. One portion of them shall look upon another. They shall be astonished, and shall humble their countenance ;
9. And trouble shall seize them, when they shall behold this Son of woman sitting upon the throne of his glory.
10. Then shall the kings, the princes, and all who possess the earth, glorify him who has dominion over all things, him who was concealed; for from the beginning the Son of man existed in secret, whom the Most High preserved in the presence of his power, and revealed to the elect.
11. He shall sow the congregation of the saints, and of the elect ; and all the elect shall stand before him in that day.
12. All the kings, the princes, the exalted, and those who rule over the earth, shall fall down on their faces before him, and shall worship him.
13. They shall fix their hopes on this Son of man, shall pray to him, and petition him for mercy.
14. Then shall the Lord of spirits hasten to expel them from his presence. Their faces shall be full of confusion, and their faces shall darkness cover. The angels shall take them to punishment, that vengeance may be inflicted on those who have oppressed his children and his elect. And they shall become an example to the saints and to his elect. Through them shall these be made joyful ; for the anger of the Lord of spirits shall rest upon them.
15. Then the sword of the Lord of spirits shall be drunk with their blood ; but the saints and elect shall be safe in that day ; nor the face of the sinners and the ungodly shall they thenceforwards behold.
16. The Lord of spirits shall remain over them :
17. And with this Son of man shall they dwell, eat, lie down, and rise up, for ever and ever.
18. The saints and the elect have arisen from the earth, have left off to depress their countenances, and have been clothed with the garment of life. That garment of life is with the Lord of spirits, in whose presence your garment shall not wax old, nor shall your glory diminish.
Chapter LXII
1. In those days the kings who possess the earth shall be punished by the angels of his wrath, wheresoever they shall be delivered up, that he may give rest for a short period ; and that they may fall down and worship before the Lord of spirits, confessing their sins before him.
2. They shall bless and glorify the Lord of spirits, saying, Blessed is the Lord of spirits, the Lord of kings, the Lord of princes, the Lord of the rich, the Lord of glory, and the Lord of wisdom.
3. He shall enlighten every secret thing.
4. Thy power is from generation to generation ; and thy glory for ever and ever.
5. Deep are all thy secrets, and numberless ; and thy righteousness cannot be computed.
6. Now we know, that we should glorify and bless the Lord of kings, him who is King over all things.
7. They shall also say, Who has granted us rest to glorify, laud, bless, and confess in the presence of his glory ?
8. And now small is the rest we desire; but we do not find it; we reject, and do not possess it. Light has passed away from before us ; and darkness has covered our thrones for ever.
9. For we have not confessed before him ; we have not glorified the name of the Lord of kings ; we have not glorified the Lord in all his works; but we have trusted in the sceptre of our dominion and of our glory.
10. In the day of our suffering and of our trouble he will not save us, neither shall we find rest. We confess that our Lord is faithful in all his works, in all his judgments, and in his righteousness.
11. In his judgments he pays no respect to persons ; and we must depart from his presence, on account of our evil deeds.
12. All our sins are truly without number.
13. Then shall they say to themselves, Our souls are satiated with the instruments of crime
14. But that prevents us not from descending to the flaming womb of hell.
15. Afterwards, their countenances shall be filled with darkness and confusion before the Son of man from whose presence they shall be expelled, and before whom the sword shall remain to expel them.
16. Thus saith the Lord of spirits. This is the decree and the judgment against the princes, the kings, the exalted, and those who possess the earth, in the presence of the Lord of spirits.
Chapter LXIII
1. I saw also other countenances in that secret place. I heard the voice of an angel, saying. These are the angels who have descended from heaven to earth, and have revealed secrets to the sons of men, and have seduced the sons of men to the commission of sin.
Chapter LXIV
1. In those days Noah saw that the earth became inclined, and that destruction approached.
2. Then he lifted up his feet, and went to the ends of the earth, to the dwelling of his great-grandfather Enoch.
3. And Noah cried with a bitter voice. Hear me ; hear me ; hear me : three times. And he said, Tell me what is transacting upon earth; for the earth labours, and is violently shaken. Surely I shall perish with it.
4. After this there was a great perturbation on earth, and a voice was heard from heaven. I fell down on my face, when my great-grandfather Enoch came and stood by me.
5. He said to me. Why hast thou cried out to me with a bitter cry and lamentation ?
6. A commandment has gone forth from the Lord against those who dwell on the earth, that they may be destroyed ; for they know every secret of the angels, every oppressive and secret power of the devils, and every power of those who commit sorcery, as well as of those who make molten images in the whole earth.
7. They know how silver is produced from the dust of the earth, and how on the earth the metallic drop exists ; for lead and tin are not produced from earth, as the primary fountain of their production.
8. There is an angel standing upon it, and that angel struggles to prevail.
9. Afterwards my great-grandfather Enoch seized me with his hand, raising me up, and saying to me. Go, for I have asked the Lord of spirits respecting this perturbation of the earth; who replied, On account of their impiety have their innumerable judgments been consummated before me. Respecting the moons have they inquired, and they have known that the earth will perish with those who dwell upon it, and that to these there will be no place of refuge for ever.
10. They have discovered secrets, and they are those who have been judged; but not thou, my son. The Lord of spirits knows that thou art pure and good, free from the reproach of discovering secrets.
11. He, the holy One, will establish thy name in the midst of the saints, and will preserve thee from those who dwell upon the earth. He will establish thy seed in righteousness, with dominion and great glory ; and from thy seed shall spring forth righteous and holy men without number for ever.
No comments:
Post a Comment