1 Enoch 63
Study resource: not ScriptureR. H. Charles translation (1917) · public domain
1In those days shall the mighty and the kings who possess the earth implore (Him) to grant them a little respite from His angels of punishment to whom they were delivered, that they might fall down and worship before the Lord of Spirits, and confess their sins before Him.
2And they shall bless and glorify the Lord of Spirits, and say: ‘Blessed is the Lord of Spirits and the Lord of kings, And the Lord of the mighty and the Lord of the rich, And the Lord of glory and the Lord of wisdom,
3And splendid in every secret thing is Thy power from generation to generation, And Thy glory for ever and ever: Deep are all Thy secrets and innumerable, And Thy righteousness is beyond reckoning.
4We have now learnt that we should glorify And bless the Lord of kings and Him who is king over all kings.’
5And they shall say: ‘Would that we had rest to glorify and give thanks And confess our faith before His glory!
6And now we long for a little rest but find it not: We follow hard upon and obtain (it) not: And light has vanished from before us, And darkness is our dwelling-place for ever and ever:
7For we have not believed before Him Nor glorified the name of the Lord of Spirits, [nor glorified our Lord] But our hope was in the sceptre of our kingdom, And in our glory.
8And in the day of our suffering and tribulation He saves us not, And we find no respite for confession That our Lord is true in all His works, and in His judgements and His justice, And His judgements have no respect of persons.
9And we pass away from before His face on account of our works, And all our sins are reckoned up in righteousness.’
10Now they shall say unto themselves: ‘Our souls are full of unrighteous gain, but it does not prevent us from descending from the midst thereof into the burden of Sheol.’
11And after that their faces shall be filled with darkness And shame before that Son of Man, And they shall be driven from his presence, And the sword shall abide before his face in their midst.
12Thus spake the Lord of Spirits: ‘This is the ordinance and judgement with respect to the mighty and the kings and the exalted and those who possess the earth before the Lord of Spirits.’
The chapter, studied
Too Late for Rest: The Kings Confess
The kings and mighty ask for a brief respite from their punishing angels so they might worship and confess their sins before the Lord of Spirits. They confess they should have blessed His name, admit their hope had been in their own scepters and glory instead, and find no rest and no escape: driven from the presence of "that Son of Man" while the sword of judgment stands ready.
This chapter completes chapter 62's scene, giving the condemned kings their own words rather than only describing their fate. Their confession is theologically precise, "we have not believed before Him nor glorified the name of the Lord of Spirits... but our hope was in the sceptre of our kingdom, and in our glory", naming trust in political power as the specific sin that damns them, alongside unbelief.
The line "we long for a little rest but find it not" gives the chapter its most haunting note: repentance offered only after judgment has already fallen comes too late to change the outcome, though it is not too late to be spoken. The chapter insists the confession itself is true: "our Lord is true in all His works... and His judgements have no respect of persons" — even though truth spoken this late brings no relief.
Doors into the 66
Teachers on this ground
R. H. Charles
The Book of Enoch (1917)
The public-domain translation this shelf reads, with the critical introduction the field still builds on.
Johnny Enlow
The Book of Enoch: Paraphrase and Commentary (2025)
A living teacher's paraphrase of the whole book with his own running commentary, from the prophetic stream.
Michael S. Heiser
A Companion to the Book of Enoch: A Reader's Commentary, Vol. II — The Parables of Enoch (2020)
The reader's commentary continued into the Son of Man visions of these chapters.
1In those days shall the mighty and the kings who possess the earth implore (Him) to grant them a little respite from His angels of punishment to whom they were delivered, that they might fall down and worship before the Lord of Spirits, and confess their sins before Him.
2And they shall bless and glorify the Lord of Spirits, and say: ‘Blessed is the Lord of Spirits and the Lord of kings, And the Lord of the mighty and the Lord of the rich, And the Lord of glory and the Lord of wisdom,
3And splendid in every secret thing is Thy power from generation to generation, And Thy glory for ever and ever: Deep are all Thy secrets and innumerable, And Thy righteousness is beyond reckoning.
4We have now learnt that we should glorify And bless the Lord of kings and Him who is king over all kings.’
5And they shall say: ‘Would that we had rest to glorify and give thanks And confess our faith before His glory!
6And now we long for a little rest but find it not: We follow hard upon and obtain (it) not: And light has vanished from before us, And darkness is our dwelling-place for ever and ever:
7For we have not believed before Him Nor glorified the name of the Lord of Spirits, [nor glorified our Lord] But our hope was in the sceptre of our kingdom, And in our glory.
8And in the day of our suffering and tribulation He saves us not, And we find no respite for confession That our Lord is true in all His works, and in His judgements and His justice, And His judgements have no respect of persons.
9And we pass away from before His face on account of our works, And all our sins are reckoned up in righteousness.’
10Now they shall say unto themselves: ‘Our souls are full of unrighteous gain, but it does not prevent us from descending from the midst thereof into the burden of Sheol.’
11And after that their faces shall be filled with darkness And shame before that Son of Man, And they shall be driven from his presence, And the sword shall abide before his face in their midst.
12Thus spake the Lord of Spirits: ‘This is the ordinance and judgement with respect to the mighty and the kings and the exalted and those who possess the earth before the Lord of Spirits.’
The language it was written in
Aramaic (the Qumran fragments' language); parts possibly Hebrew. The Parables (chs. 37–71) have no Qumran witness and their original language is debated.
What survives, and where
Aramaic: Dead Sea Scrolls
Eleven fragmentary manuscripts from Qumran Cave 4 covering every section except the Parables (3rd c. BC – 1st c. AD).
Greek
Substantial portions: chs. 1–32 (Codex Panopolitanus), quotations in Syncellus, and the Chester Beatty papyrus of the Epistle.
Ge’ez (Ethiopic)
The only complete text, preserved by the Ethiopian church, whose canon receives the book; the base of every full translation.
What you are reading here
R. H. Charles's 1917 English translation, made from the Ge’ez against the Greek and Aramaic evidence then known — public domain, quotable in full.
No tagged word floor exists for the Aramaic or Ge’ez text; word-by-word study on this shelf awaits a future ingest. What stands here is the manuscript story itself.