1 Enoch / Chapter 55

1 Enoch 55

4 verses • Ge'ez (Ethiopic)

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

After the flood vision, Enoch is told that there will be no second deluge to destroy the earth. Instead, the judgment will fall specifically on the fallen angels. The Head of Days is grieved and affirms that the punishment of the Watchers will be carried out through fire rather than water.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

The affirmation that God will not again destroy the earth by flood connects to the Noahic covenant (Genesis 9:11). The Parables honor this covenant while reinterpreting the judgment as targeted — fallen angels and their followers face destruction, but the earth itself is preserved. The distinction between universal watery destruction (which God has forsworn) and targeted fiery judgment (which is still pending) becomes important in 2 Peter 3:5-7.

Translation Friction

This chapter may contain fragments of a 'Book of Noah' that has been incorporated into the Parables. The reference to a flood that will not be repeated seems to interrupt the flow of the Parables' own judgment narrative.

Connections

Genesis 9:11-15 — the Noahic covenant against another flood. 2 Peter 3:5-7 — the world destroyed by water then, preserved for fire now. Isaiah 54:9 — 'as I swore that the waters of Noah would no more go over the earth.'

1 Enoch 55:1

Ge'ez: wa-'em-de'eri zeku — 'and after that'

After that the Head of Days expressed grief and said: 'In vain have I destroyed all who dwell on the earth.'

REF And after that the Head of Days repented and said: 'In vain have I destroyed all who dwell on the earth.'

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The Head of Days 'repenting' or expressing grief over the Flood echoes Genesis 6:6 ('the LORD regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart'). The Ge'ez naḥama can mean both 'repent' and 'grieve/be sorry.' We render 'expressed grief' to avoid implying moral fault in God while preserving the emotional weight.
1 Enoch 55:2

Ge'ez: wa-māḥala — 'and he swore'

He swore by his great name: 'From now on I will not do this to those who dwell on the earth. I will set a sign in the heavens, and this will be a pledge of good faith between me and them forever, as long as heaven is above the earth. This is according to my decree.'

REF And He sware by His great name: 'Henceforth I will not do so to all who dwell on the earth, and I will set a sign in the heavens: and this shall be a pledge of good faith between Me and them for ever, so long as heaven is above the earth. And this is in accordance with My command.'

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The 'sign in the heavens' is the rainbow of Genesis 9:12-17. God's oath 'by his great name' is the most solemn form of divine commitment — an irrevocable covenant sealed by God's own identity.
  2. The phrase 'as long as heaven is above the earth' establishes the covenant's permanence by tying it to the structure of the cosmos itself.
1 Enoch 55:3

Ge'ez: wa-sobē faqadku — 'when I have desired'

'When I decide to seize them through the hand of the angels on the day of tribulation and pain because of all this, I will let my chastisement and my wrath rest upon them,' says God, the Lord of Spirits.

REF When I have desired to take hold of them by the hand of the angels on the day of tribulation and pain because of this, I will cause My chastisement and My wrath to abide upon them, saith God, the Lord of Spirits.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. God distinguishes between methods: the Flood is forsworn, but judgment through angels is not. The 'hand of the angels' as the instrument of punishment preserves the Noahic covenant (no universal flood) while maintaining eschatological accountability.
1 Enoch 55:4

Ge'ez: wa-'antemu negaśtāt — 'and you, kings'

'You mighty kings who dwell on the earth — you will have to watch my Chosen One as he sits on the throne of glory and judges Azazel, all his associates, and all his armies in the name of the Lord of Spirits.'

REF Ye mighty kings who dwell on the earth, ye shall have to behold Mine Elect One, how he sits on the throne of glory and judges Azazel, and all his associates, and all his hosts in the name of the Lord of Spirits.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The kings are forced witnesses to the judgment of Azazel — they must watch as the supernatural power behind their own oppressive regimes is dismantled. The Chosen One judges both angelic and human evil from the same throne of glory, unifying cosmic and political judgment.
Chapter 54 Report an error 1 Enoch index Chapter 56