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3 Enoch, also called Hebrew Enoch, The Revelation of Metatron, or The Book of the Palaces, was likely written in the 1st or 2nd century AD by either Ishmael ben Elisha ha-Kohen or Rabbi Yishmael ben Elisha. Its Jewish author has an otherworldly experience where he ascends into the heavens and beholds the glorified Enoch (Metatron). Metatron has become the heavenly scribe and among the highest-ranking angels.
Rabbi Ishmael said: When I ascended on high to behold the vision of the Merkaba and had entered the six halls, one within the other, as soon as I reached the door of the Seventh Hall I stood still in prayer before the Holy One, blessed is He, and, lifting up my eyes on high toward the Divine Majesty, I said, “Lord of the Universe, please, that the merit of Aaron, the son of Amram, the lover of peace and pursuer of peace, who received the crown of priesthood from Your Glory on Mount Sinai, be valid for me in this hour, so that Cassiel, the prince, and the messengers with him may not get power over me nor throw me down from the heavens.” Immediately the Holy One, blessed is He, sent Metatron to me, his servant the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, and he, spreading his wings, came to meet me with great joy so as to save me from their hand. And he took me by his hand in their sight, saying to me: “Enter in peace before the high and exalted King and behold the picture of the Merkaba.” Then I entered the Seventh Hall, and he led me to the camps of Shekinah and placed me before the Holy One, blessed is He, to behold the Merkaba. As soon as the princes of the Merkaba and the flaming seraphim perceived me, they fixed their eyes on me. Trembling and shuddering instantly seized me, and I fell down and was benumbed by the radiant image of their eyes and the splendid appearance of their faces, until the Holy One, blessed is He, rebuked them, saying, “My servants, my seraphim, my cherubim, and my ophanim! Cover your eyes before Ishmael, my son, my friend, my beloved one, and my glory, so he does not tremble or shudder!” Immediately Metatron, the Prince of the Presence, came and restored my spirit and put me on my feet. After that moment there was not strength enough in me to say a song before the Throne of Glory of the glorious King, the mightiest of all kings, the most excellent of all princes, until after the hour had passed. After one hour had passed, the Holy One, blessed is He, opened to me the gates of Shekinah, the gates of Peace, the gates of Wisdom, the gates of Strength, the gates of Power, the gates of Speech, the gates of Song, the gates of Holiness, the gates of Chant. And he enlightened my eyes and my heart by words of psalm, song, praise, exaltation, thanksgiving, extolment, glorification, hymn, and eulogy. And as I opened my mouth, uttering a song before the Holy One, blessed is He, the holy chayyoth beneath and above the Throne of Glory answered and said, “Holy” and, “Blessed is the glory of the Lord from His place!”
R. Ishmael said: In that hour the eagles of the Merkaba, the flaming ophanim and the seraphim of consuming fire, asked Metatron, saying to him: “Youth! Why permit one born of woman to enter and behold the Merkaba? From which nation, from which tribe is this one? What is his character?” Metatron answered and said to them: “From the nation of Israel whom the Holy One, blessed is He, chose for His people from among seventy tongues, from the tribe of Levi, whom He set aside as a contribution to His Name and from the seed of Aaron whom the Holy One, blessed is He, chose for his servant and put on him the crown of priesthood on Sinai.” Immediately they spoke and said, “Indeed, this one is worthy to behold the Merkaba.” And they said, “Happy is the people that is in such a case!”
R. Ishmael said: In that hour I asked Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence: “What is your name?” He answered me: “I have seventy names, corresponding to the seventy tongues of the world, and all of them are based on the name Metatron, Messenger of the Presence; but my King calls me Youth.”
R. Ishmael said: I asked Metatron and said to him: “Why are you called by the Name of your Creator, by seventy names? You are greater than all the princes, higher than all the messengers, more beloved than all the servants, honored above all the mighty ones in kingship, greatness, and glory: why do they call you Youth in the high heavens?” He answered and said to me: “Because I am Enoch, the son of Jared. For when the generation of the flood sinned and were confounded in their deeds, saying to God, Depart from us, for we do not desire the knowledge of Your ways, then the Holy One, blessed is He, removed me from their midst to be a witness against them in the high heavens to all the inhabitants of the world, that they may not say: The Merciful One is cruel. What sins had they committed, all those multitudes? Or, let it be they sinned—what had their sons and their daughters, their mules and their cattle sinned? And likewise, all the animals, domestic and wild, and the birds in the world that God destroyed from the world? Hence the Holy One, blessed is He, lifted me up in their lifetime before their eyes to be a witness against them to the future world. And the Holy One, blessed is He, assigned me for a prince and a ruler among the ministering messengers. In that hour three of the ministering messengers, ‘Uzza, ‘Azza, and ‘Azzael came forth and brought charges against me in the high heavens, saying before the Holy One, blessed is He: Did the Ancient Ones not rightly say before You, Do not create man? The Holy One, blessed is He, answered and said to them: I have made, and I will bear, yes, I will carry and will deliver. As soon as they saw me, they said before Him: Lord of the Universe, what is this one that he should ascend to the height of heights? Is he not one from among the sons of the sons of those who perished in the days of the flood? What is he doing in the Raqia’? Again, the Holy One, blessed is He, answered and said to them: What are you, that you enter and speak in my presence? I delight in this one more than in all of you, and hence he will be a prince and a ruler over you in the high heavens. Immediately all stood up and went out to meet me, prostrated themselves before me, and said, Happy are you and happy is your father, for your Creator favors you. And because I am small and a youth among them in days, months, and years, therefore they call me Youth.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “From the day when the Holy One, blessed is He, expelled the first Adam from the Garden of Eden and onwards, Shekinah was dwelling on a cherub under the Tree of Life. And the ministering messengers were gathering together and going down from Heaven in parties, from the Raqia in companies, and from the heavens in camps to do His will in the whole world. And the first man and his generation were sitting outside the gate of the Garden to behold the radiant appearance of the Shekinah. For the splendor of the Shekinah traversed the world from one end to the other with a splendor three hundred sixty-five thousand times that of the globe of the sun. And everyone who made use of the splendor of the Shekinah, on him no flies and no gnats rested, neither was he sick nor did he suffer any pain. No demons got power over him, neither were they able to injure him. When the Holy One, blessed is He, went out and went in from the Garden to Eden, from Eden to the Garden, from the Garden to Raqia, and from Raqia to the Garden of Eden, then all and everyone beheld the splendor of His Shekinah and they were not injured, until the time of the generation of Enosh who was the head of all idol worshipers of the world. And what did the generation of Enosh do? They went from one end of the world to the other, and each one brought silver, gold, precious stones, and pearls in heaps like to mountains and hills, making idols out of them throughout all the world. And they erected the idols in every quarter of the world: the size of each idol was one thousand parasangs. And they brought down the sun, the moon, planets, and constellations, and placed them before the idols on their right hand and on their left, to attend them even as they attend the Holy One, blessed is He, as it is written: And all the host of Heaven were standing by Him on His right hand and on His left. What power was in them that they were able to bring them down? They would not have been able to bring them down but for ‘Uzza, ‘Azza, and ‘Azzielis who taught them sorceries whereby they brought them down and made use of them. In that time the ministering messengers brought charges against them before the Holy One, blessed is He, saying before Him: Master of the World! What have You to do with the children of men? As it is written: What is man that You are mindful of him? Mah Adam is not written here, but Mah Enosh, for he is the head of the idol worshipers. Why have You left the highest of the high heavens, which are filled with the majesty of Your glory and are high, uplifted, and exalted, and the high and exalted Throne in the Raqia’ Araboth on high, and have gone and dwell with the children of men who worship idols and equate You to the idols? Now You are on earth and the idols likewise. What have You to do with the inhabitants of the earth who worship idols? Immediately the Holy One, blessed is He, lifted up His Shekinah from the earth, from their midst. In that moment the ministering messengers came, the troops of hosts and the armies of ‘Araboth, in one thousand camps and ten thousand hosts: they fetched trumpets, and took the horns in their hands, and surrounded the Shekinah with all kinds of songs. And He ascended to the high heavens, as it is written: God has gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “When the Holy One, blessed is He, desired to lift me up on high, He first sent ‘Anaphiel H, the prince, and he took me from their midst in their sight and carried me in great glory on a fiery chariot with fiery horses, servants of glory. And he lifted me up to the high heavens together with the Shekinah. As soon as I reached the high heavens, the holy chayyoth, the ophanim, the seraphim, the cherubim, the wheels of the Merkaba, the galgallim, and the ministers of the consuming fire, perceiving my smell from a distance of three hundred sixty-five thousand myriads of parasangs, said, What smell of one born of woman and what taste of a white drop is this that ascends on high, and behold, he is merely a gnat among those who divide flames of fire? The Holy One, blessed is He, answered and spoke to them: My servants, My hosts, My cherubim, My ophanim, My seraphim! Do not be displeased on account of this! Since all the children of men have denied Me and My great Kingdom and have gone worshiping idols, I have removed My Shekinah from among them and have lifted it up on high. But this one whom I have taken from among them is a chosen one among the inhabitants of the world, and he is equal to all of them in faith, righteousness, and perfection of deed, and I have taken him as a tribute from My world under all the heavens.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “When the Holy One, blessed is He, took me away from the generation of the flood, He lifted me on the wings of the wind of Shekinah to the highest Heaven and brought me into the great palaces of the ‘Araboth Raqia’ on high, where the glorious Throne of Shekinah, the Merkaba, the troops of anger, the armies of vehemence, the fiery shin’anim, the flaming cherubim, and the burning ophanim, the flaming servants, the flashing chashmallim, and the lightening seraphim are. And He placed me there to attend the Throne of Glory day after day.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Before He appointed me to attend the Throne of Glory, the Holy One, blessed is He, opened to me three hundred thousand gates of understanding, three hundred thousand gates of subtlety, three hundred thousand gates of life, three hundred thousand gates of grace and loving-kindness, three hundred thousand gates of love, three hundred thousand gates of instruction, three hundred thousand gates of meekness, three hundred thousand gates of maintenance, three hundred thousand gates of mercy, [and] three hundred thousand gates of fear of Heaven. In that hour the Holy One, blessed is He, added in me wisdom to wisdom, understanding to understanding, subtlety to subtlety, knowledge to knowledge, mercy to mercy, instruction to instruction, love to love, loving-kindness to loving-kindness, goodness to goodness, meekness to meekness, power to power, strength to strength, might to might, brilliance to brilliance, beauty to beauty, splendor to splendor, and I was honored and adorned with all these good and praiseworthy things more than all the children of Heaven.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “After all these things the Holy One, blessed is He, put His hand on me and blessed me with five hundred thirty-six blessings. And I was raised and enlarged to the size of the length and width of the world. And He caused seventy-two wings to grow on me, thirty-six on each side. And each wing was as the whole world. And He fixed three hundred sixty-five eyes on me: each eye was as the great luminary. And He left no kind of splendor, brilliance, radiance, [or] beauty in of all the lights of the universe that He did not fix on me.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “All these things the Holy One, blessed is He, made for me: He made me a throne, similar to the Throne of Glory. And He spread a curtain of splendor and brilliant appearance over me—of beauty, grace, and mercy, similar to the curtain of the Throne of Glory; and all kinds of lights in the universe were fixed on it. And He placed it at the door of the Seventh Hall and seated me on it. And the herald went forth into every Heaven, saying, This is My servant Metatron. I have made him into a prince and a ruler over all the princes of My kingdoms and over all the children of Heaven, except the eight great princes, the honored and revered ones who are called Lord, by the Name of their King. And every messenger and every prince who has a word to speak in My presence before Me will go into his presence before him and will speak to him instead. And you observe and fulfill every command that he utters to you in My Name. For I have committed the Prince of Wisdom and the Prince of Understanding to him to instruct him in the wisdom of heavenly things and of earthly things, in the wisdom of this world and of the world to come. Moreover, I have set him over all the treasuries of the palaces of Araboth and over all the stores of life that I have in the high heavens.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Henceforth, the Holy One, blessed is He, revealed to me all the mysteries of instruction, and all the secrets of wisdom, and all the depths of the Perfect Law; and all living beings’ thoughts of heart, and all the secrets of the universe, and all the secrets of creation were revealed to me even as they are revealed to the Maker of creation. And I watched intently to behold the secrets of the depth and the wonderful mystery. Before a man thought, I knew what was in his thought. And there was no thing above on high nor below in the deep hidden from me.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “By reason of the love with which the Holy One, blessed is He, loved me more than all the children of Heaven, He made me a garment of glory on which were fixed all kinds of lights, and He clad me in it. And He made me a robe of honor on which were fixed all kinds of beauty, splendor, brilliance, and majesty. And He made me a royal crown in which were fixed forty-nine costly stones like to the light of the globe of the sun. For its splendor went forth in the four quarters of the ‘Araboth Raqia’, and in through the seven heavens, and in the four quarters of the world. And he put it on my head. And He called me The Lesser Jehovah in the presence of all His heavenly household; as it is written: For My Name is in him.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, the glory of all heavens, said to me: “Because of the great love and mercy with which the Holy One, blessed is He, loved and cherished me more than all the children of Heaven, He wrote with His finger with a flaming style on the crown on my head the letters by which the heavens and earth, the seas and rivers, the mountains and hills, the planets and constellations, the lightnings, winds, earthquakes and voices, the snow and hail, the storm-wind and the tempest were created—the letters by which all the needs of the world and all the orders of creation were created. And every single letter sent forth time after time as it were lightnings, time after time as it were torches, time after time as it were flames of fire, time after time rays like as the rising of the sun, and the moon and the planets.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “When the Holy One, blessed is He, put this crown on my head, [then] all the princes of kingdoms who are in the height of ‘Araboth Raqia’ and all the hosts of every heaven trembled before me; and even the princes of the elim, the princes of the er’elim, and the princes of the taphsarim, who are greater than all the ministering messengers who minister before the Throne of Glory, shook, feared, and trembled before me when they beheld me. Even Sammael, the prince of the accusers, who is greater than all the princes of kingdoms on high, feared and trembled before me. And even the messenger of fire, and the messenger of hail, and the messenger of the wind, and the messenger of the lightning, and the messenger of anger, and the messenger of the thunder, and the messenger of the snow, and the messenger of the rain, and the messenger of the day, and the messenger of the night, and the messenger of the sun, and the messenger of the moon, and the messenger of the planets, and the messenger of the constellations who rule the world under their hands, feared, and trembled, and were frightened before me when they beheld me. These are the names of the rulers of the world: Gabriel, the messenger of the fire, Baradiel, the messenger of the hail, Ruchiel who is appointed over the wind, Baraqiel who is appointed over the lightnings, Za’amiel who is appointed over the vehemence, Ziqiel who is appointed over the sparks, Zi’iel who is appointed over the commotion, Za’aphiel who is appointed over the storm-wind, Ra’amiel who is appointed over the thunders, Ra’ashiel who is appointed over the earthquake, Shalgiel who is appointed over the snow, Matariel who is appointed over the rain, Shimshiel who is appointed over the day, Lailiel who is appointed over the night, Galgalliel who is appointed over the globe of the sun, ‘Ophanniel who is appointed over the globe of the moon, Kokbiel who is appointed over the planets, [and] Rahatiel who is appointed over the constellations. And they all fell prostrate when they saw me. And they were not able to behold me because of the majestic glory and beauty of the appearance of the shining light of the crown of glory on my head.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, the glory of all heavens, said to me: “As soon as the Holy One, blessed is He, took me in His service to attend the Throne of Glory, and the wheels of the Merkaba, and the needs of Shekinah, my flesh was immediately changed into flames, my sinews into flaming fire, my bones into coals of burning juniper, the light of my eyelids into [the] splendor of lightnings, my eyeballs into firebrands, the hair of my head into hot flames, all my limbs into wings of burning fire, and the whole of my body into glowing fire. And on my right were divisions of fiery flames, on my left firebrands were burning, around me storm-wind and tempest were blowing, and in front of me and behind me was roaring of thunder with earthquake.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, the glory of all Heaven, said to me: “At first I was sitting on a great throne at the door of the Seventh Hall, and I was judging the children of Heaven, the household on high by authority of the Holy One, blessed is He. And I divided Greatness, Kingship, Dignity, Rulership, Honor and Praise, and Diadem and Crown of Glory to all the princes of kingdoms, while I was presiding in the Celestial Court, and the princes of kingdoms were standing before me, on my right and on my left by authority of the Holy One, blessed is He. But when Acher came to behold the vision of the Merkaba and fixed his eyes on me, he feared and trembled before me and his soul was frightened even to departing from him, because of [the] fear, horror, and dread of me when he beheld me sitting on a throne like a king with all the ministering messengers standing by me as my servants and all the princes of kingdoms adorned with crowns surrounding me. In that moment he opened his mouth and said, Indeed, there are two Divine Powers in Heaven! Immediately Bath Qol, the Divine Voice, went forth from Heaven from before the Shekinah and said, Return, you backsliding children, except Acher! Then ‘Aniyel, the prince—the honored, glorified, beloved, wonderful, revered, and fearful one—came in commission from the Holy One, blessed is He, and gave me sixty strokes with lashes of fire and made me stand on my feet.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, the glory of all heavens, said to me: “There are seven princes—the great, beautiful, revered, wonderful, and honored ones—who are appointed over the seven heavens. And they are these: Michael, and Gabriel, Shatqiel, and Baradiel, and Shachaqiel, and Baraqiel, and Sidriel. And each of them is the prince of the host of one heaven. And each one of them is accompanied by four hundred ninety-six thousand myriads of ministering messengers. Michael, the great prince, is appointed over the seventh heaven, the highest one, which is in the ‘Araboth. Gabriel, the prince of the host, is appointed over the sixth heaven which is in Makon. Shataqiel, prince of the host, is appointed over the fifth heaven which is in Ma’on. Shahaqi’el, prince of the host, is appointed over the fourth heaven which is in Zebul. Badariel, prince of the host, is appointed over the third heaven which is in Shehaqim. Barakiel, prince of the host, is appointed over the second heaven which is in the height of Merom. Pazriel, prince of the host, is appointed over the first heaven which is in Wilon, which is in Shamayim. Under them is Galgalliel, the prince who is appointed over the globe of the sun, and with him are ninety-six great and honored messengers who move the sun in Raqia’. Under them is ‘Ophanniel, the prince who is set over the globe of the moon. And with him are eighty-eight messengers who move the globe of the moon three hundred fifty-four thousand parasangs every night at the time when the moon stands in the east at its turning point. And when is the moon sitting in the east at its turning point? Answer: in the fifteenth day of every month. Under them is Rahatiel, the prince who is appointed over the constellations. And he is accompanied by seventy-two great and honored messengers. And why is he called Rahatiel? Because he makes the stars run in their orbits and courses three hundred thirty-nine thousand parasangs every night from the east to the west, and from the west to the east. For the Holy One, blessed is He, has made a tent for all of them: for the sun, the moon, the planets, and the stars in which they travel at night from the west to the east. Under them is Kokbiel, the prince who is appointed over all the planets. And with him are three hundred sixty-five thousand myriads of ministering messengers, great and honored ones who move the planets from city to city and from province to province in the Raqia’ of heavens. And over them are seventy-two princes of kingdoms on high corresponding to the seventy-two tongues of the world. And all of them are crowned with royal crowns, and clad in royal garments, and wrapped in royal cloaks. And all of them are riding on royal horses and they are holding royal scepters in their hands. And before each one of them, when he is traveling in Raqia’, royal servants are running with great glory and majesty; even as on earth they are traveling in chariots with horsemen and great armies, and in glory and greatness, with praise, song, and honor.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, the glory of all Heaven, said to me: “The messengers of the first heaven, whenever they see their prince, they dismount from their horses and fall on their faces. And the prince of the first heaven, when he sees the prince of the second heaven, he dismounts, removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And the prince of the second heaven, when he sees the prince of the third heaven, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And the prince of the third heaven, when he sees the prince of the fourth heaven, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And the prince of the fourth heaven, when he sees the prince of the fifth heaven, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And the prince of the fifth heaven, when he sees the prince of the sixth heaven, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And the prince of the sixth heaven, when he sees the prince of the seventh heaven, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And the prince of the seventh heaven, when he sees the seventy-two princes of kingdoms, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And the seventy-two princes of kingdoms, when they see the doorkeepers of the First Hall in the ‘Araboth Raqia in the highest, they remove the royal crown from their head and fall on their faces. And the doorkeepers of the First Hall, when they see the doorkeepers of the Second Hall, they remove the crown of glory from their head and fall on their faces. And the doorkeepers of the Second Hall, when they see the doorkeepers of the Third Hall, they remove the crown of glory from their head and fall on their faces. And the doorkeepers of the Third Hall, when they see the doorkeepers of the Fourth Hall, they remove the crown of glory from their head and fall on their faces. And the doorkeepers of the Fourth Hall, when they see the doorkeepers of the Fifth Hall, they remove the crown of glory from their head and fall on their faces. And the doorkeepers of the Fifth Hall, when they see the doorkeepers of the Sixth Hall, they remove the crown of glory from their head and fall on their faces. And the doorkeepers of the Sixth Hall, when they see the doorkeepers of the Seventh Hall, they remove the crown of glory from their head and fall on their faces. And the doorkeepers of the Seventh Hall, when they see the four great princes, the honored ones, who are appointed over the four camps of Shekinah, they remove the crowns of glory from their head and fall on their faces. And the four great princes, when they see Tag’as, the prince, great and honored with song and praise, at the head of [the] children of Heaven, they remove the crown of glory from their head and fall on their faces. And Tag’as, the great and honored prince, when he sees Barattiel, the great prince of three fingers in the height of ‘Araboth, the highest Heaven, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Baratiel, the great prince, when he sees Hamon, the great prince, the fearful and honored, pleasant and terrible one who makes all the children of Heaven to tremble, when the time draws near for the saying of the Thrice Holy—as it is written: At the noise of the tumult the peoples are fled; at the lifting up of Yourself the nations are scattered—he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Hamon, the great prince, when he sees Tutresiel, the great prince, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Tutresiel-Jehovah, the great prince, when he sees Atrugiel, the great prince, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Atrugiel, the great prince, when he sees Na’aririel-Jehovah, the great prince, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Na’aririel-Jehovah, the great prince, when he sees Sasnigiel, the great prince, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Sasnigiel-Jehovah, when he sees Zazriel-Jehovah, the great prince, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Zazriel-Jehovah, the prince, when he sees Geburatiel-Jehovah, the prince, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Geburatiel-Jehovah, the prince, when he sees ‘Araphiel-Jehovah, the prince, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And ‘Araphiel-Jehovah, the prince, when he sees ‘Ashruylu, the prince, who presides in all the sessions of the children of Heaven, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Ashruylu-Jehovah, the prince, when he sees Gallisur-Jehovah, the prince, who reveals all the secrets of the Law, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Gallisur-Jehovah, the prince, when he sees Zakzakiel-Jehovah, the prince who is appointed to write down the merits of Israel on the Throne of Glory, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And Zakzakiel-Jehovah, the great prince, when he sees ‘Anaphiel-Jehovah, the prince who keeps the keys of the heavenly halls, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. Why is he called by the name of ‘Anaphiel? Because the bough of his honor and majesty and his crown, and his splendor, and his brilliance cover all the chambers of ‘Araboth Raqia on high even as the Maker of the world overshadows them, just as it is written with regard to the Maker of the world: His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of His praise—even so do the honor and majesty of ‘Anaphiel cover all the glories of ‘Araboth the highest. And when he sees Sother ‘Ashiel-Jehovah, the prince, the great, fearful, and honored one, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. Why is he called Sother ‘Ashiel? Because he is appointed over the four heads of the fiery river beside the Throne of Glory; and every single prince who goes out or enters before the Shekinah, only goes out or enters by his permission. For the seals of the fiery river are entrusted to him. And furthermore, his height is seven thousand myriads of parasangs. And he stirs up the fire of the river; and he goes out and enters before the Shekinah to expound what is written concerning the inhabitants of the world, according as it is written: The judgment was set, and the scrolls were opened. And Sother ‘Ashiel, the prince, when he sees Shoqed Chozi, the great prince, the mighty, terrible, and honored one, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And why is he called Shoqed Chozi? Because he weighs all the merits of man in a balance in the presence of the Holy One, blessed is He. And when he sees Zehanpuryu-Jehovah, the great prince, the mighty and terrible one, honored, glorified, and feared in all the heavenly household, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. Why is he called Zehanpuryu? Because he rebukes the fiery river and pushes it back to its place. And when he sees ‘Azbuga-Jehovah, the great prince, glorified, revered, honored, adorned, wonderful, exalted, beloved, and feared among all the great princes who know the mystery of the Throne of Glory, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. Why is he called ‘Azbuga? Because in the future he will gird the righteous and pious of the world with the garments of life and wrap them in the cloak of life, that they may live a continuous life in them. And when he sees the two great princes, the strong and glorified ones who are standing above him, he removes the crown of glory from his head and falls on his face. And these are the names of the two princes: Sopheriel-Jehovah Who Kills, the great prince, the honored, glorified, blameless, venerable, ancient, and mighty one; and Sopheriel-Jehovah Who Makes Alive, the great prince, the honored, glorified, blameless, ancient, and mighty one. Why is he called Sopheriel-Jehovah Who Kills? Because he is appointed over the scrolls of the dead, so that everyone, when the day of his death draws near, he writes him in the scrolls of the dead. Why is he called Sopheriel-Jehovah Who Makes Alive? Because he is appointed over the scrolls of the living, so that everyone whom the Holy One, blessed is He, will bring into life, he writes him in the Scroll of the Living, by authority of Maqom. You might perhaps say: Since the Holy One, blessed is He, is sitting on a throne, they are also sitting when writing. Answer: the Writing teaches us: And all the host of Heaven are standing by Him. It is said, The host of Heaven, in order to show us that even the great princes—like whom there is none in the high heavens—do not fulfill the requests of the Shekinah otherwise than standing. But how is it they are able to write when they are standing? It is like this: one is standing on the wheels of the tempest and the other is standing on the wheels of the storm-wind. The one is clad in kingly garments, the other is clad in kingly garments. The one is wrapped in a mantle of majesty and the other is wrapped in a mantle of majesty. The one is crowned with a royal crown and the other is crowned with a royal crown. The one’s body is full of eyes and the other’s body is full of eyes. The appearance of one is like to the appearance of lightnings and the appearance of the other is like to the appearance of lightnings. The eyes of the one are like the sun in its might and the eyes of the other are like the sun in its might. The one’s height is like the height of the seven heavens and the other’s height is like the height of the seven heavens. The wings of the one are as many as the days of the year and the wings of the other are as many as the days of the year. The wings of the one extend over the breadth of Raqia’ and the wings of the other extend over the breadth of Raqia. The lips of the one are as the gates of the east and the lips of the other are as the gates of the east. The tongue of the one is as high as the waves of the sea and the tongue of the other is as high as the waves of the sea. From the mouth of the one a flame goes forth and from the mouth of the other a flame goes forth. From the mouth of the one there go forth lightnings and from the mouth of the other there go forth lightnings. From the sweat of the one fire is kindled and from the perspiration of the other fire is kindled. From the one’s tongue a torch is burning and from the tongue of the other a torch is burning. On the head of the one there is a sapphire stone and on the head of the other there is a sapphire stone. On the shoulders of the one there is a wheel of a swift cherub and on the shoulders of the other there is a wheel of a swift cherub. One has a burning scroll in his hand, the other has a burning scroll in his hand. The one has a flaming style in his hand, the other has a flaming style in his hand. The length of the scroll is three thousand myriads of parasangs; the size of the style is three thousand myriads of parasangs; the size of every single letter that they write is three hundred sixty-five parasangs.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Above these three messengers, these great princes, there is one prince, distinguished, honored, noble, glorified, adorned, fearful, valiant, strong, great, magnified, glorious, crowned, wonderful, exalted, blameless, beloved, lordly, high and lofty, ancient and mighty, like to whom there is none among the princes. His name is Rikbiel-Jehovah, the great and revered prince who is standing by the Merkaba. And why is he called Rikbiel? Because he is appointed over the wheels of the Merkaba, and they are given in his charge. And how many are the wheels? Eight; two in each direction. And there are four winds compassing them around. And these are their names: the Storm-Wind, the Tempest, the Strong Wind, and the Wind of Earthquake. And there are four fiery rivers continually running under them, one fiery river on each side. And around them, between the rivers, four clouds are planted, and they are these: clouds of fire, clouds of lamps, clouds of coal, [and] clouds of brimstone, and they are standing beside their wheels. And the feet of the chayyoth are resting on the wheels. And between one wheel and the other, earthquake is roaring, and thunder is thundering. And when the time draws near for the recital of the Song, then the multitudes of wheels are moved, the multitude of clouds tremble, all the chieftains are made afraid, all the horsemen rage, all the mighty ones are excited, all the hosts are frightened, all the troops are in fear, all the appointed ones hurry away, all the princes and armies are dismayed, all the servants faint, and all the messengers and divisions travail with pain. And one wheel makes a sound to be heard to the other, and one cherub to another, one chayya to another, one seraph to another, saying, Extol Him that rides in ‘Araboth, by His Name Jehovah, and rejoice before Him!”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Above these there is one great and mighty prince. His name is Chayyliel-Jehovah, a noble and revered prince, a glorious and mighty prince, a great and revered prince, a prince before whom all the children of Heaven tremble, a prince who is able to swallow up the whole earth in one moment. And why is he called Chayyliel-Jehovah? Because he is appointed over the holy chayyoth and strikes the chayyoth with lashes of fire, and glorifies them when they give praise, and glory, and rejoicing, and he causes them to hurry to say Holy and Blessed is the Glory of Jehovah from his place!”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Four [are] the chayyoth corresponding to the four winds. Each chayya is as the space of the whole world. And each one has four faces; and each face is as the face of the east. Each one has four wings, and each wing is like the cover of the universe. And each one has faces in the middle of faces and wings in the middle of wings. The size of the faces is as the size of two hundred forty-eight faces, and the size of the wings is as the size of three hundred sixty-five wings. And each one is crowned with two thousand crowns on his head. And each crown is like to the bow in the cloud. And its splendor is like to the splendor of the globe of the sun. And the sparks that go forth from each one are like the splendor of the morning star in the east.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Above these there is one prince: noble, wonderful, strong, and praised with all kinds of praise. His name is Kerubiel-Jehovah, a mighty prince, full of power and strength, a prince of highness, and with him there is a righteous prince of righteousness, and with him a holy prince of holiness, and with him there is a prince glorified by one thousand hosts, exalted by ten thousand armies. At his wrath the earth trembles, at his anger the camps are moved, from fear of him the foundations are shaken, at his rebuke the ‘Araboth trembles. His stature is full of burning coals. The height of his stature is as the height of the seven heavens, the breadth of his stature is as the wideness of the seven heavens, and the thickness of his stature is as the seven heavens. The opening of his mouth is like a lamp of fire. His tongue is a consuming fire. His eyebrows are like to the splendor of the lightning. His eyes are like sparks of brilliance. His countenance is like a burning fire. And there is a crown of holiness on his head on which the Explicit Name is graven—and lightnings go forth from it. And the bow of Shekinah is between his shoulders. And his sword is like to lightning, and on his loins there are arrows like to a flame, and on his armor and shield there is a consuming fire, and on his neck there are coals of burning juniper, and also around him there are coals of burning juniper. And the splendor of Shekinah is on his face, and the horns of majesty on his wheels, and a royal diadem on his skull. And his body is full of eyes. And wings are covering the whole of his high stature. On his right hand a flame is burning, and on his left a fire is glowing; and coals are burning from it. And firebrands go forth from his body. And lightnings are cast forth from his face. With him there is always thunder on thunder, by his side there is always earthquake on earthquake. And the two princes of the Merkaba are together with him. Why is he called Kerubiel-Jehovah, the prince? Because he is appointed over the chariot of the cherubim. And the mighty cherubim are given in his charge. And he adorns the crowns on their heads and polishes the diadem on their skull. He magnifies the glory of their appearance. And he glorifies the beauty of their majesty. And he increases the greatness of their honor. He causes the song of their praise to be sung. He intensifies their beautiful strength. He causes the brilliance of their glory to shine forth. He beautifies their excellent mercy and loving-kindness. He frames the fairness of their radiance. He makes their merciful beauty even more beautiful. He glorifies their upright majesty. He extols the order of their praise, to establish the dwelling place of Him who dwells on the cherubim. And the cherubim are standing by the holy chayyoth, and their wings are raised up to their heads, and Shekinah is resting on them, and the brilliance of the Glory is on their faces, and song and praise [are] in their mouth, and their hands are under their wings, and their feet are covered by their wings, and horns of glory are on their heads, and the splendor of Shekinah on their face, and Shekinah is resting on them, and sapphire stones are around them, and columns of fire [are] on their four sides, and columns of firebrands beside them. There is one sapphire on one side and another sapphire on another side, and under the sapphires there are coals of burning juniper. And one cherub is standing in each direction, but the wings of the cherubim encircle each other above their skulls in glory; and they spread them to sing a song with them to Him that inhabits the clouds and to praise the fearful majesty of the King of kings with them. And Kerubiel-Jehovah, the prince who is appointed over them, he arrays them in attractive, beautiful, and pleasant orders, and he exalts them in all manner of exaltation, dignity, and glory. And he hastens them in glory and might to do the will of their Creator every moment. For above their lofty heads continually abides the glory of the High King who dwells on the cherubim.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the Prince of the Presence said to me: “What is the distance between one bridge and another? Twelve myriads of parasangs. Their ascent is myriads of parasangs, and their descent myriads of parasangs. The distance between the rivers of dread and the rivers of fear is twenty-two myriads of parasangs; between the rivers of hail and the rivers of darkness, thirty-six myriads of parasangs; between the chambers of lightnings and the clouds of compassion, forty-two myriads of parasangs; between the clouds of compassion and the Merkaba, eighty-four myriads of parasangs; between the Merkaba and the cherubim, one hundred forty-eight myriads of parasangs; between the cherubim and the ophanim, twenty-four myriads of parasangs; between the ophanim and the chambers of chambers, twenty-four myriads of parasangs; between the chambers of chambers and the holy chayyoth, forty thousand myriads of parasangs; between one wing of the chayyoth and another, twelve myriads of parasangs; and the breadth of each one wing is of that same measure; and the distance between the holy chayyoth and the Throne of Glory is thirty thousand myriads of parasangs. And from the foot of the Throne to the seat there are forty thousand myriads of parasangs. And the Name of Him that sits on it: let the Name be sanctified! And the arches of the Bozv are set above the ‘Araboth, and they are one million and one hundred million parasangs high. Their measure is after the measure of the ‘Irin and Qaddishin, that is, the Watchers and the Holy Ones. As it is written: I have set My bow in the cloud. It is not written here: I will set, but: I have set—already—clouds that surround the Throne of Glory. As His clouds pass by, the messengers of hail turn into burning coal. And a fire of the voice goes down from by the holy chayyoth. And because of the breath of that voice, they run to another place, fearing lest it command them to go; and they return lest it injure them from the other side. Therefore, [as it is written:] They run and return. And these arches of the bow are more beautiful and radiant than the radiance of the sun during the summer solstice, and they are whiter than a flaming fire, and they are great and beautiful. Above the arches of the bow are the wheels of the ophanim. Their height is one million and one hundred million units of measure after the measure of the seraphim and the troops.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “There are numerous winds blowing under the wings of the cherubim. The Fluttering Wind blows there, as it is written: And the Spirit of God was fluttering on the face of the waters. The Strong Wind blows there, as it is said: And the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night. The East Wind blows there, as it is written: The east wind brought the locusts. The Wind of Quails blows there, as it is written: And there went forth a wind from the Lord and brought quails. The Wind of Jealousy blows there, as it is written: And the wind of jealousy came on him. The Wind of Earthquake blows there, as it is written: And after that, the wind of the earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. The Wind of Jehovah blows there, as it is written: And He carried me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me down. The Evil Wind blows there, as it is written: And the evil wind departed from him. The Wind of Wisdom, and the Wind of Understanding, and the Wind of Knowledge, and the Wind of the Fear of Jehovah blow there, as it is written: And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, || The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, || The Spirit of counsel and might, || The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear. The Wind of Rain blows there, as it is written: The north wind brings forth rain. The Wind of Lightnings blows there, as it is written: He makes lightnings for the rain and brings forth the wind out of His treasuries. The Wind, Breaking the Rocks, blows there, as it is written: The Lord passed by and a great and strong wind split the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord. The Wind of Assuagement of the Sea blows there, as it is written: And God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters assuaged. The Wind of Wrath blows there, as it is written: And behold, there came a great wind from the wilderness and [it] struck the four corners of the house and it fell. The Storm-Wind blows there, as it is written: Storm-wind, fulfilling His word. And Satan is standing among these winds, for Storm-Wind is nothing else but Satan, and all these winds do not blow but under the wings of the cherubim, as it is written: And He rode on a cherub and flew, yes, and He flew swiftly on the wings of the wind. And where do all these winds go? The Writing teaches us that they go out from under the wings of the cherubim and descend on the globe of the sun, as it is written: The wind goes toward the south and turns around to the north; it turns around continually in its course and the wind returns again to its circuits. And from the globe of the sun they return and descend on the rivers and the seas, on the mountains and on the hills, as it is written: For behold, He that forms the mountains and creates the wind. And from the mountains and the hills they return and descend to the seas and the rivers; and from the seas and the rivers they return and descend on the cities and provinces; and from the cities and provinces they return and descend into the Garden, and from the Garden they return and descend to Eden, as it is written: Walking in the Garden in the wind of day. And in the midst of the Garden they join together and blow from one side to the other and are perfumed with the spices of the Garden even from its remotest parts, until they separate from each other, and, filled with the scent of the pure spices, they bring the fragrance from the remotest parts of Eden and the spices of the Garden to the righteous and godly who in the time to come will inherit the Garden of Eden and the Tree of Life, as it is written: Awake, O north wind; and come you south; blow on my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden and eat his precious fruits.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, the glory of all Heaven, said to me: “The Holy One, blessed is He, has numerous chariots: He has the Chariots of the Cherubim, as it is written: And he rode on a cherub and flew. He has the Chariots of Wind, as it is written: And he flew swiftly on the wings of the wind. He has the Chariots of the Swift Cloud, as it is written: Behold, the Lord rides on a swift cloud. He has the Chariots of Clouds, as it is written: Behold, I come to you in a cloud. He has the Chariots of the Altar, as it is written: I saw the Lord standing on the altar. He has the Chariots of Myriads, as it is written: The chariots of God are myriads, thousands of messengers. He has the Chariots of the Tent, as it is written: And the Lord appeared in the tent in a pillar of cloud. He has the Chariots of the Dwelling Place, as it is written: And the Lord spoke to him out of the Dwelling Place. He has the Chariots of the Propitiatory Covering, as it is written: Then he heard the voice speaking to him from on the propitiatory covering. He has the Chariots of Sapphire Stone, as it is written: And there was under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone. He has the Chariots of Eagles, as it is written: I bare you on eagles’ wings. (Eagles are not literally meant here but they that fly swiftly as eagles.) He has the chariots of Shout, as it is written: God has gone up with a shout. He has the Chariots of ‘Araboth, as it is written: Extol Him that rides on the ‘Araboth. He has the Chariots of Thick Clouds, as it is written: Who makes the thick clouds His chariot. He has the Chariots of the Chayyoth, as it is written: And the chayyoth ran and returned. They run by permission and return by permission, for Shekinah is above their heads. He has the Chariots of Wheels, as it is written: And He said, Go in between the whirling wheels. He has the Chariots of a Swift Cherub, as it is written: Riding on a swift cherub. And at the time when He rides on a swift cherub, as He sets one of His feet on him, before He sets the other foot on his back, He looks through eighteen thousand worlds at one glance. And He discerns and sees into them all and knows what is in all of them and then he sets down the other foot on him, according as it is written: Around eighteen thousand. From where do we know that He looks through every one of them every day? It is written: He looked down from Heaven on the children of men to see if there were any that understood, that seek after God. He has the Chariots of the Ophanim, as it is written: And the ophanim were full of eyes around. He has the Chariots of His Holy Throne, as it is written: God sits on His holy throne. He has the chariots of the Throne of Yah, as it is written: Because a hand is lifted up on the throne of Yah. He has the Chariots of the Throne of Judgment, as it is written: But the Lord of Hosts will be exalted in judgment. He has the Chariots of the Throne of Glory, as it is written: The throne of glory, set on high from the beginning, is the place of our sanctuary. He has the Chariots of the High and Exalted Throne, as it is written: I saw the Lord sitting on the high and exalted throne.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Above these there is one great prince, revered, high, lordly, fearful, ancient, and strong. ‘Ophphanniel-Jehovah is his name. He has sixteen faces, four faces on each side, one hundred wings on each side. And he has eight thousand four hundred sixty-six eyes, corresponding to the days of the year. Two thousand one hundred and ninety and some say two thousand one hundred sixteen on each side. And those two eyes of his face—in each one of them lightnings are flashing, and from each one of them firebrands are burning, and no creature is able to behold them. For anyone who looks at them is burned instantly. His height is as the distance of two thousand five hundred years’ journey. No eye can behold and no mouth can tell the mighty power of his strength except the King of kings, the Holy One, blessed is He, alone. Why is he called ‘Ophphanniel? Because he is appointed over the ophanim and the ophanim are given in his charge. He stands every day, and attends, and beautifies them. And he exalts and orders their apartment, and polishes their standing-place, and makes their dwellings bright, [and] makes their corners even, and cleanses their seats. And he waits on them early and late, by day and by night, to increase their beauty, to make their dignity great, and to make them diligent in praise of their Creator. And all the ophanim are full of eyes, and they are all full of brightness; seventy-two sapphire stones are fixed on their garments on their right side and seventy-two sapphire stones are fixed on their garments on their left side. And four carbuncle stones are fixed on the crown of every single one, the splendor of which proceeds in the four directions of ‘Araboth even as the splendor of the globe of the sun proceeds in all the directions of the universe. And why is it called Carbuncle? Because its splendor is like the appearance of lightning. And tents of splendor, tents of brilliance, [and] tents of brightness as of sapphire and carbuncle enclose them because of the shining appearance of their eyes.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Above these there is one prince, wonderful, noble, great, honorable, mighty, terrible, a chief, and leader, and a swift scribe, glorified, honored, and beloved. He is altogether filled with splendor, full of praise and shining; and he is wholly full of brilliance, of light and of beauty; and the whole of him is filled with goodliness and greatness. His countenance is altogether like that of messengers, but his body is like an eagle’s body. His splendor is like to lightnings, his appearance like firebrands, his beauty like to sparks, his honor like fiery coals, his majesty like electrum, his radiance like the light of the planet Venus. The image of him is like to the Greater Light. His height is as the seven heavens. The light from his eyebrows is like the sevenfold light. The sapphire stone on his head is as great as the whole universe and like to the splendor of the very heavens in radiance. His body is full of eyes like the stars of the sky, innumerable and unsearchable. Every eye is like the planet Venus. Yet, there are some of them like the Lesser Light and some of them like to the Greater Light. From his ankles to his knees, they are like to stars of lightning; from his knees to his thighs like to the planet Venus; from his thighs to his loins like to the moon; from his loins to his neck like the sun; from his neck to his skull like to the Imperishable Light. The crown on his head is like to the splendor of the Throne of Glory. The measure of the crown is the distance of five hundred and two years’ journey. There is no kind of splendor, no kind of brilliance, no kind of radiance, no kind of light in the universe but is fixed on that crown. The name of that prince is Seraphiel-Jehovah. And the crown on his head, its name is the Prince of Peace. And why is he called by the name of Seraphiel-Jehovah? Because he is appointed over the seraphim. And the flaming seraphim are given in his charge. And he presides over them by day and by night and teaches them song, praise, proclamation of beauty, might, and majesty, that they may proclaim the beauty of their King in all manner of praise and sanctification. How many are the seraphim? Four, corresponding to the four winds of the world. And how many wings does each one of them have? Six, corresponding to the six days of Creation. And how many faces do they have? Each one of them [has] four faces. The measure of the seraphim and the height of each one of them correspond to the height of the seven heavens. The size of each wing is like the measure of all Raqia’. The size of each face is like that of the face of the east. And each one of them gives forth light like to the splendor of the Throne of Glory, so that not even the holy chayyoth, the honored ophanim, nor the majestic cherubim are able to behold it. For everyone who beholds it, his eyes are darkened because of its great splendor. Why are they called seraphim? Because they burn the writing tablets of Satan: every day Satan is sitting, together with Sammael, the Prince of Rome, and with Dubbiel, the Prince of Persia, and they write the iniquities of Israel on writing tablets which they hand over to the seraphim in order that they may present them before the Holy One, blessed is He, so that He may destroy Israel from the world. But the seraphim know from the secrets of the Holy One, blessed is He, that He does not desire that this people Israel should perish. What do the seraphim do? Every day they receive them from the hand of Satan and burn them in the burning fire beside the high and exalted Throne in order that they may not come before the Holy One, blessed is He, at the time when He is sitting on the Throne of Judgment, judging the whole world in truth.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger of Jehovah, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Above the seraphim there is one prince, exalted above all the princes, wondrous more than all the servants. His name is Radweriel-Jehovah, who is appointed over the treasuries of the scrolls. He fetches forth the Case of Writings with the Scroll of Records in it, and brings it before the Holy One, blessed is He. And he breaks the seals of the case, opens it, takes out the scrolls, and delivers them before the Holy One, blessed is He. And the Holy One, blessed is He, receives them from his hand and gives them in his sight to the Scribes that they may read them in the Great House of Judgment in the height of ‘Araboth Raqia’, before the heavenly household. And why is he called Radweriel? Because out of every word that goes forth from his mouth a messenger is created: and he stands in the singing company of the ministering messengers and utters a song before the Holy One, blessed is He, when the time draws near for the recitation of the Thrice Holy.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Above all these there are four great princes, Watchers and Holy Ones by name: high, honored, revered, beloved, wonderful, and glorious ones, greater than all the children of Heaven. There is none like to them among all the celestial princes and none their equal among all the servants. For each one of them is equal to all the rest together. And their dwelling is beside the Throne of Glory, and their standing place beside the Holy One, blessed is He, so that the brilliance of their dwelling is a reflection of the brilliance of the Throne of Glory. And the splendor of their countenance is a reflection of the splendor of Shekinah. And they are glorified by the glory of the Divine Majesty and praised by the praise of Shekinah. And not only that, but the Holy One, blessed is He, does nothing in His world without first consulting them, but after that He does it. As it is written: The sentence is by the decree of the watchers and the demand by the word of the holy ones. The watchers are two and the holy ones are two. And how are they standing before the Holy One, blessed is He? It is to be understood that one watcher is standing on one side and the other watcher on the other side, and one holy one is standing on one side and the other on the other side. And they always exalt the humble, and they abase to the ground those that are proud, and they exalt to the height those that are humble. And every day, as the Holy One, blessed is He, is sitting on the Throne of Judgment and judges the whole world, and the scrolls of the living and the scrolls of the dead are opened before Him, then all the children of Heaven are standing before Him in fear, dread, awe, and trembling. At that time, when the Holy One, blessed is He, is sitting on the Throne of Judgment to execute judgment, His garment is white as snow, the hair on His head as pure wool, and the whole of His cloak is like the shining light. And He is covered with righteousness all over as with a coat of mail. And those watchers and holy ones are standing before Him like court officers before the judge. And they raise and argue every case and close the case that comes before the Holy One, blessed is He, in judgment, according as it is written: The sentence is by the decree of the watchers and the demand by the word of the holy ones. Some of them argue and others pass the sentence in the Great House of Judgment in ‘Araboth. Some of them make the requests from before the Divine Majesty and some close the cases before the Most High. Others finish by going down and executing the sentences on earth below. According as it is written: Behold, a watcher and a holy one came down from Heaven, and cried aloud, and said thus: Hew down the tree, and cut off his branches, shake off his leaves, and scatter his fruit: let the beasts get away from under it, and the birds from his branches. Why are they called watchers and holy ones? By reason that they sanctify the body and the spirit with lashes of fire on the third day of the judgment, as it is written: After two days He will revive us, || On the third [[day]] He will raise us up, || And we will live before Him.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Each one of them has seventy names corresponding to the seventy tongues of the world. And all of them are based on the Name of the Holy One, blessed is He. And every name is written with a flaming style on the Fearful Crown which is on the head of the high and exalted King. And sparks and lightnings go forth from each one of them. And each one of them is beset with horns of splendor around. From each one lights are shining forth, and each one is surrounded by tents of brilliance so that not even the seraphim and the chayyoth who are greater than all the [other] children of Heaven are able to behold them.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Whenever the Great House of Judgment is seated in the ‘Araboth Raqia’ on high there is no opening of the mouth for anyone in the world except those great princes who are called Jehovah by the Name of the Holy One, blessed is He. How many are those princes? Seventy-two princes of the kingdoms of the world besides the Prince of the World who speaks in favor of the world before the Holy One, blessed is He, every day, at the hour when the scroll is opened in which all the doings of the world are recorded, according as it is written: The judgment was set and the scrolls were opened.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “At the time when the Holy One, blessed is He, is sitting on the Throne of Judgment, then Justice is standing on His right, and Mercy on His left, and Truth before His face. And when man enters before Him to judgment, then a staff, as it were, comes forth from the splendor of the Mercy toward him and stands in front of him. Immediately man falls on his face, and all the messengers of destruction fear and tremble before Him, according as it is written: And with mercy will the throne be established, and He will sit on it in truth.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “When the Holy One, blessed is He, opens the Scroll—half of which is fire and half flame—then they go out from before Him in every moment to execute the judgment on the wicked by His sword that is drawn forth out of its sheath and the splendor of which shines like lightning and pervades the world from one end to the other, as it is written: For the Lord will plead by fire and with all flesh by His sword. And all the inhabitants of the world fear and tremble before Him when they behold His sharpened sword like to lightning from one end of the world to the other, and sparks and flashes of the size of the stars of Raqia’ going out from it, according as it is written: If I sharpen the lightning of My sword.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “At the time that the Holy One, blessed is He, is sitting on the Throne of Judgment, then the messengers of Mercy are standing on His right, the messengers of Peace are standing on His left, and the messengers of Destruction are standing in front of Him. And one scribe is standing beneath Him, and another scribe above Him. And the glorious seraphim surround the Throne on its four sides with walls of lightnings, and the ophanim surround them with firebrands around the Throne of Glory. And clouds of fire and clouds of flames surround them to the right and to the left; and the holy chayyoth carry the Throne of Glory from below: each one with three fingers. The measure of the fingers of each one is eight hundred thousand and seven hundred times one hundred, and sixty-six thousand parasangs. And underneath the feet of the chayyoth seven fiery rivers are running and flowing. And the breadth of each river is three hundred sixty-five thousand parasangs and its depth is two hundred forty-eight thousand myriads of parasangs. Its length is unsearchable and immeasurable. And each river turns around in a bow in the four directions of ‘Araboth Raqia’, and from there it falls down to Ma’on and is stayed, and from Ma’on to Zebul, from Zebul to Shechaqim, from Shechaqim to Raqia’, from Raqia’ to Shamayim, and from Shamayim on the heads of the wicked who are in Gehenna, as it is written: Behold, a whirlwind of the Lord, even His fury, is gone, yes, a whirling tempest; it will burst on the head of the wicked.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “The hooves of the chayyoth are surrounded by seven clouds of burning coals. The clouds of burning coals are surrounded on the outside by seven walls of flames. The seven walls of flames are surrounded on the outside by seven walls of hailstones. The hailstones are surrounded on the outside by stones of hail. The stones of hail are surrounded on the outside by stones of the wings of the tempest. The stones of the wings of the tempest are surrounded on the outside by flames of fire. The flames of fire are surrounded by the chambers of the whirlwind. The chambers of the whirlwind are surrounded on the outside by the fire and the water. Around the fire and the water are those who utter the Holy. Around those who utter the Holy are those who utter the Blessed. Around those who utter the Blessed are the bright clouds. The bright clouds are surrounded on the outside by coals of burning juniper; and on the outside surrounding the coals of burning juniper there are one thousand camps of fire and ten thousand hosts of flames. And between every camp and every host there is a cloud, so that they may not be burned by the fire.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “The Holy One, blessed is He, has five hundred and six thousand myriads of camps in the height of ‘Araboth Raqia’. And each camp is composed of four hundred ninety-six thousand messengers. And every single messenger, the height of his stature is as the Great Sea; and the appearance of their countenance as the appearance of the lightning, and their eyes as lamps of fire, and their arms and their feet like in color to polished brass, and the roaring voice of their words like the voice of a multitude. And they are all standing before the Throne of Glory in four rows. And the princes of the army are standing at the head of each row. And some of them utter the Holy and others utter the Blessed, some of them run as messengers, others are standing in attendance, according as it is written: One million ministered to Him and one hundred million stood before him, the judgment was set, and the scrolls were opened. And in the hour when the time draws near for [them] to say the Holy, then first there goes forth a whirlwind from before the Holy One, blessed is He, and bursts on the camp of Shekinah and there arises a great commotion among them, as it is written: Behold, the whirlwind of the Lord goes forth with fury—a continuing commotion. At that moment one million of them are changed into sparks, one million of them into firebrands, one million into flashes, one million into flames, one million into males, one million into females, one million into winds, one million into burning fires, one million into flames, one million into sparks, one million into chashmals of light, until they take on themselves the yoke of the Kingdom of the heavens, the high and lifted up, of the Creator of them all, with fear, dread, awe, and trembling, with commotion, anguish, terror, and trepidation. Then they are changed again into their former shape to always have the fear of their King before them, as they have set their hearts on saying the Song continually, as it is written: And one cried to another and said, Holy, Holy, Holy.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “At the time when the ministering messengers desire to say the Song, then the fiery stream rises with many thousand[s] of thousands and myriads of myriads of messengers of power and strength of fire and it runs and passes under the Throne of Glory, between the camps of the ministering messengers and the troops of ‘Araboth. And all the ministering messengers first go down into Nehar di-Nur, and they dip themselves in the fire and dip their tongue and their mouth seven times; and after that they go up and put on the garment of ‘Machaqe Samal, and cover themselves with cloaks of chashmal, and stand in four rows beside the Throne of Glory, in all the heavens.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “There are four chariots of Shekinah standing in the seven Halls, and the four camps of Shekinah are standing before each one. Between each camp a river of fire is continually flowing. Between each river there are bright clouds surrounding them, and pillars of brimstone are put up between each cloud. Flaming wheels are standing between one pillar and another, surrounding them. And between one wheel and another there are flames of fire around. Between one flame and another there are treasuries of lightnings; behind the treasuries of lightnings are the wings of the storm wind. Behind the wings of the storm-wind are the chambers of the tempest; behind the chambers of the tempest there are winds, voices, thunders, sparks on sparks, and earthquakes on earthquakes.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “At the time when the ministering messengers utter the Thrice Holy, then all the pillars of the heavens and their sockets tremble, and the gates of the Halls of ‘Araboth Raqia’ are shaken, and the foundations of Shechaqim and the universe are moved, and the orders of Ma’on and the chambers of Makon quiver, and all the orders of Raqia’, and the constellations, and the planets are dismayed, and the globes of the sun and the moon hurry away, and flee out of their courses, and run twelve thousand parasangs, and seek to throw themselves down from the heavens by reason of the roaring voice of their chant, and the noise of their praise, and the sparks and lightnings that go forth from their faces; as it is written: The voice of Your thunder was in the heavens and the lightnings lightened the world, the earth trembled and shook. Until the Prince of the World calls them, saying, Be quiet in your place! Do not fear because of the ministering messengers who sing the Song before the Holy One, blessed is He. As it is written: When the morning stars sang together, || And all the sons of Heaven [[or God]] shouted for joy.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “When the ministering messengers utter the Holy, then all the explicit names that are graven with a flaming style on the Throne of Glory fly off like eagles, with sixteen wings. And they surround and encircle the Holy One, blessed is He, on the four sides of the place of His Shekinah. And the messengers of the host, and the flaming servants, and the mighty ophanim, and the cherubim of the Shekinah, and the holy chayyoth, and the seraphim, and the er’elim, and the taphsarim and the troops of consuming fire, and the fiery armies, and the flaming hosts, and the holy princes, adorned with crowns, clad in kingly majesty, wrapped in glory, girt with loftiness, fall on their faces three times, saying, Blessed is the name of His glorious Kingdom forever and ever.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “When the ministering messengers say Holy before the Holy One, blessed is He, in the proper way, then the servants of His Throne, the attendants of His Glory, go forth with great mirth from under the Throne of Glory. And they all carry in their hands—each one of them—one million and one hundred million crowns of stars, similar in appearance to the planet Venus, and put them on the ministering messengers and the great princes who utter the Holy. They put three crowns on each one of them: one crown because they say Holy, another crown because they say Holy, Holy, and a third crown because they say Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of Hosts. And in the moment that they do not utter the Holy in the right order, a consuming fire goes forth from the little finger of the Holy One, blessed is He, and falls down in the midst of their ranks and is divided into four hundred ninety-six thousand parts corresponding to the four camps of the ministering messengers, and consumes them in one moment, as it is written: A fire goes before Him and burns up His adversaries around. After that, the Holy One, blessed is He, opens His mouth, and speaks one word, and creates others in their stead—new ones like them. And each one stands before His Throne of Glory, uttering the Holy, as it is written: They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Come and behold the letters by which the heavens and the earth were created, the letters by which the mountains and hills were created, the letters by which the seas and rivers were created, the letters by which the trees and herbs were created, the letters by which the planets and the constellations were created, the letters by which the globe of the moon and the globe of the sun, Orion, the Pleiades, and all the different luminaries of Raqia’ were created, the letters by which the Throne of Glory and the wheels of the Merkaba were created, the letters by which the necessities of the worlds were created, the letters by which wisdom, understanding, knowledge, prudence, meekness, and righteousness were created, by which the whole world is sustained.” And I walked by his side, and he took me by his hand, and raised me on his wings, and showed me those letters, all of them, that are graven with a flaming style on the Throne of Glory: and sparks go forth from them and cover all the chambers of ‘Araboth.
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Come, and I will show you where the waters are suspended in the highest, where fire is burning in the midst of hail, where lightnings lighten out of the midst of snowy mountains, where thunders are roaring in the celestial heights, where a flame is burning in the midst of the burning fire, and where voices make themselves heard in the midst of thunder and earthquake.” Then I went by his side, and he took me by his hand, and lifted me up on his wings, and showed me all those things. I beheld the waters suspended on high in ‘Araboth Raqia’, by the Name Yah ‘Ehye ‘Asher ‘Ehye, that is, Yah, I am that I am; and [I beheld] their fruits going down from Heaven and watering the face of the world, as it is written: “He waters the mountains from His chambers: the earth is satisfied with the fruit of Your work.” And I saw fire, and snow, and hailstone that were mingled together within each other and yet were not damaged, by the name ‘Esh ‘Okela, as it is written: “For the Lord your God is a consuming fire.” And I saw lightnings that were lightening out of mountains of snow and yet were not damaged, by the name Yah Sur ‘Olamim, as it is written: “For in Yah, the Lord, the everlasting rock.” And I saw thunders and voices that were roaring in the midst of fiery flames and were not damaged, by the name ‘El-Shaddai Rabba, as it is written: “I am God Almighty.” And I beheld a flame and a glow that were flaming and glowing in the midst of burning fire, and yet were not damaged, by the name Yad ‘Al Kes Yah, as it is written: “And he said, For the hand is on the Throne of the Lord.” And I beheld rivers of fire in the midst of rivers of water and they were not damaged, by the name ‘Ose Shalom, as it is written: “He makes peace in His high places.” For He makes peace between the fire and the water, between the hail and the fire, between the wind and the cloud, between the earthquake and the sparks.
R. Ishmael said: Metatron said to me: “Come, and I will show you where the spirits of the righteous are that have been created and have returned, and the spirits of the righteous that have not yet been created.” And he lifted me up to his side, took me by his hand, and lifted me up near the Throne of Glory by the place of the Shekinah; and he revealed the Throne of Glory to me, and he showed me the spirits that have been created and had returned: and they were flying above the Throne of Glory before the Holy One, blessed is He. After that I went to interpret the following verse of Writing and I found in what is written: “For the spirit clothed itself before me, and the souls I have made”—that means the spirits that have been created in the chamber of creation of the righteous and that have returned before the Holy One, blessed is He; and the words “and the souls I have made” refer to the spirits of the righteous that have not yet been created in the chamber, or Guph.
R. Ishmael said: Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence, said to me: “Come, and I will show you where the spirits of the wicked and the spirits of the intermediate are standing, and the spirits of the intermediate, where they go down, and the spirits of the wicked, where they go down.” And he said to me: “The spirits of the wicked go down to Sheol by the hands of two messengers of destruction: their names are Za’aphiel and Simkiel. Simkiel is appointed over the intermediate to support them and purify them because of the great mercy of the Prince of the Place. Za’aphiel is appointed over the spirits of the wicked in order to cast them down from the presence of the Holy One, blessed is He, and from the splendor of the Shekinah to Sheol, to be punished in the fire of Gehenna with staves of burning coal.” And I went by his side, and he took me by his hand and showed me all of them with his fingers. And I beheld the appearance of their faces, and behold, it was as the appearance of children of men, and their bodies like eagles. And not only that, but furthermore the color of the countenance of the intermediate was like pale grey on account of their deeds, for there are stains on them until they have become cleaned from their iniquity in the fire. And the color of the wicked was like the bottom of a pot on account of the wickedness of their doings. And I saw the spirits of the Patriarchs—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—and the rest of the righteous whom they have brought up out of their graves and who have ascended to Heaven. And they were praying before the Holy One, blessed is He, saying in their prayer: “Lord of the Universe! How long will You sit on Your Throne like a mourner in the days of his mourning with Your right hand behind You and not deliver Your children and reveal Your Kingdom in the world? And for how long will You have no pity on Your children who are made slaves among the nations of the world? Nor on Your right hand that is behind You with which You stretched out the heavens, and the earth, and the heavens of heavens? When will You have compassion?” Then the Holy One, blessed is He, answered each of them, saying, “Since these wicked sin so and so, and transgress with such and such transgressions against Me, how could I deliver My Great Right Hand in the downfall by their hands?” In that moment Metatron called me and spoke to me: “My servant! Take the scrolls and read their evil doings!” Immediately I took the scrolls and read their doings and there were to be found thirty-six transgressions written down with regard to each wicked one and besides that they have transgressed all the letters in the Torah, as it is written: “Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law.” It is not written “‘al torateka” but, “‘et torateka,” for they have transgressed from Aleph to Taw; they have transgressed forty statutes for each letter. Immediately Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob wept. Then the Holy One, blessed is He, said to them: “Abraham, My beloved, Isaac, My chosen one, Jacob, My firstborn! How can I now deliver them from among the nations of the world?” And immediately Michael, the prince of Israel, cried and wept with a loud voice and said, “Why do You stand far off, O Lord?”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron said to me: “Come, and I will show you the curtain of the Divine Majesty which is spread before the Holy One, blessed is He, and whereon are graven all the generations of the world and all their doings, both what they have done and what they will do until the end of all generations.” And I went, and he showed it to me, pointing it out with his fingers like a father who teaches his children the letters of Torah. And I saw each generation, the rulers of each generation, and the heads of each generation, the shepherds of each generation, the oppressors of each generation, the keepers of each generation, the scourgers of each generation, the overseers of each generation, the judges of each generation, the court officers of each generation, the teachers of each generation, the supporters of each generation, the chiefs of each generation, the presidents of academies of each generation, the magistrates of each generation, the princes of each generation, the counselors of each generation, the nobles of each generation, and the men of might of each generation, the elders of each generation, and the guides of each generation. And I saw Adam, his generation, their doings and their thoughts; Noah and his generation, their doings and their thoughts; and the generation of the flood, their doings and their thoughts; Shem and his generation, their doings and their thoughts; Nimrod and the generation of the confusion of tongues, and his generation, their doings and their thoughts; Abraham and his generation, their doings and their thoughts; Isaac and his generation, their doings and their thoughts; Ishmael and his generation, their doings and their thoughts; Jacob and his generation, their doings and their thoughts; Joseph and his generation, their doings and their thoughts; the tribes and their generation, their doings and their thoughts; Amram and his generation, their doings and their thoughts; Moses and his generation, their doings and their thoughts; Aaron and Miriam, their works and their doings; the princes and the elders, their works and doings; Joshua and his generation, their works and doings; the judges and their generation, their works and doings; Eli and his generation, their works and doings; Phinehas, their works and doings; Elkanah and his generation, their works and their doings; Samuel and his generation, their works and doings; the kings of Judah with their generations, their works and their doings; the kings of Israel and their generations, their works and their doings; the princes of Israel, their works and their doings; the princes of the nations of the world, their works and their doings; the heads of the councils of Israel, their works and their doings; the heads of the councils in the nations of the world, their generations, their works and their doings; the rulers of Israel and their generation, their works and their doings; the nobles of Israel and their generation, their works and their doings; the nobles of the nations of the world and their generations, their works and their doings; the men of reputation in Israel, their generation, their works and their doings; the judges of Israel, their generation, their works and their doings; the judges of the nations of the world and their generation, their works and their doings; the teachers of children in Israel, their generations, their works and their doings; the teachers of children in the nations of the world, their generations, their works and their doings; the counselors of Israel, their generation, their works and their doings; the counselors of the nations of the world, their generation, their works and their doings; all the prophets of Israel, their generation, their works and their doings; all the prophets of the nations of the world, their generation, their works and their doings; and all the fights and wars that the nations of the world worked against the people of Israel in the time of their kingdom. And I saw Messiah, son of Joseph, and His generation, and their works and their doings that they will do against the nations of the world. And I saw Messiah, son of David, and His generation, and all the fights and wars, and their works and their doings that they will do with Israel both for good and evil. And I saw all the fights and wars that Gog and Magog will fight in the days of Messiah, and all that the Holy One, blessed is He, will do with them in the time to come. And all the rest of all the leaders of the generations and all the works of the generations both in Israel and in the nations of the world, both what is done and what will be done hereafter to all generations until the end of time, all were graven on the curtain of Maqom. And I saw all these things with my eyes; and after I had seen it, I opened my mouth in praise of Maqom, the Divine Majesty saying thus: “For the King’s word has power and who may say to Him: What are You doing? Whosoever keeps the commandments will know no evil thing.” And I said, “O Lord, how manifold are Your works!”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron said to me: “Come, and I will show you the space of the stars that are standing in Raqia’ night by night in fear of the Almighty and I will show you where they go and where they stand.” I walked by his side, and he took me by his hand and pointed out all to me with his fingers. And they were standing on sparks of flames around the Merkaba of the Almighty. What did Metatron do? At that moment he clapped his hands and chased them off from their place. Immediately they flew off on flaming wings, rose, and fled from the four sides of the Throne of the Merkaba, and as they flew he told me the names of every single one. As it is written: “He tells the number of the stars, || He gives them all their names,” teaching that the Holy One, blessed is He, has given a name to each one of them. And they all enter in counted order under the guidance of Rahatiel to Raqia’ ha-Shamayim to serve the world. And they go out in counted order to praise the Holy One, blessed is He, with songs and hymns, according as it is written: “The heavens declare the glory of God.” But in the time to come the Holy One, blessed is He, will create them anew, as it is written: “They are new every morning.” And they open their mouth and utter a song. Which is the song that they utter? “When I consider Your heavens.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron said to me: “Come, and I will show you the souls of the messengers and the spirits of the ministering servants whose bodies have been burned in the fire of the Almighty that goes forth from His little finger. And they have been made into fiery coals in the midst of the fiery river. But their spirits and their souls are standing behind the Shekinah. Whenever the ministering messengers utter a song at a wrong time or as not appointed to be sung, they are burned and consumed by the fire of their Creator and by a flame from their Maker, in the places of the whirlwind, for it blows on them and drives them into the Nehar di-Nur; and there they are made into numerous mountains of burning coal. But their spirit and their soul return to their Creator, and all are standing behind their Master.” And I went by his side, and he took me by his hand and showed me all the souls of the messengers and the spirits of the ministering servants who were standing behind the Shekinah on wings of the whirlwind and walls of fire surrounding them. At that moment Metatron opened the gates of the walls to me within which they were standing behind the Shekinah, and I lifted up my eyes and saw them, and behold, the likeness of each one was as that of messengers and their wings like birds’ wings, made out of flames, the work of burning fire. In that moment I opened my mouth in praise of Maqom and said, “How great are Your works, O Lord.”
R. Ishmael said: Metatron said to me: “Come, and I will show you the Right Hand of Maqom, laid behind Him because of the destruction of the holy temple, from which all kinds of splendor and light shine forth and by which the nine hundred fifty-five heavens were created, and whom not even the seraphim and the ophanim are permitted to behold until the day of salvation will arrive.” And I went by his side, and he took me by his hand and showed me the Right Hand of Maqom, with all manner of praise, rejoicing, and song: and no mouth can tell its praise, and no eye can behold it, because of its greatness, dignity, majesty, glory, and beauty. And not only that, but all the souls of the righteous who are counted worthy to behold the joy of Jerusalem, they are standing by it, praising and praying before it three times every day, saying, “Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord,” according as it is written: “He caused His glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses.” In that moment the Right Hand of Maqom was weeping. And there went forth from its five fingers five rivers of tears, and they fell down into the Great Sea, and shook the whole world, according as it is written: “The earth is utterly broken down, || The earth is clean dissolved, || The earth is utterly moved, || The earth will stagger like a drunken man, || And will be moved to and fro like a lodge,” five times corresponding to the fingers of His Great Right Hand. But when the Holy One, blessed is He, sees that there is no righteous man in the generation, and no pious man on earth, and no justice in the hands of men, and that there is no man like to Moses, and no intercessor as Samuel who could pray before Maqom for the salvation and for the deliverance, and for His Kingdom, that it might be revealed in the whole world, and for His Great Right Hand that He put it before Himself again to work great salvation for Israel by it, then immediately the Holy One, blessed is He, will remember His own justice, favor, mercy, and grace, and He will deliver His Great Arm by Himself, and His righteousness will support Him, according as it is written: “And He saw that there was no man” (that is, like to Moses who prayed countless times for Israel in the desert and averted the Divine decrees from them) “and He wondered that there was no intercessor”—like to Samuel who entreated the Holy One, blessed is He, and called to Him and He answered him and fulfilled his desire, even if it was not fit in accordance with the Divine plan, according as it is written: “Is it not wheat-harvest today? I will call to the Lord.” And not only that, but He joined fellowship with Moses in every place, as it is written: “Moses and Aaron among His priests.” And again it is written: “Though Moses and Samuel stood before Me, || My own arm brought salvation to Me.” The Holy One, blessed is He, said in that hour: “How long will I wait for the children of men to work salvation according to their righteousness for My arm? For My own sake and for the sake of My merit and righteousness I will deliver [with] My arm and redeem My children by it from among the nations of the world, as it is written: For My own sake I will do it. For why should My Name be profaned?” In that moment the Holy One, blessed is He, will reveal His Great Arm and show it to the nations of the world, for its length is as the length of the world and its breadth is as the width of the world. And the appearance of its splendor is like to the splendor of the sunshine in its might, in the summer solstice. Immediately Israel will be saved from among the nations of the world. And Messiah will appear to them and He will bring them up to Jerusalem with great joy. And not only that, but they will eat and drink, for they will glorify the Kingdom of Messiah, the house of David, in the four quarters of the world. And the nations of the world will not prevail against them, as it is written: “The Lord has made His holy arm bare || In the eyes of all the nations, || And all the ends of the earth will see || The salvation of our God.” And again: “The Lord alone led him, || And there was no strange god with him.” [And again:] “And the Lord will be King over all the earth.”
1 Metatron has seventy names which the Holy One, blessed is He, took from His own Name and put on him. And they are these: (1) Yehoel Yah, (2) Yehoel, (3) Yophiel, and (4) Yophphiel, and (5) ’Aphphiel, and (6) Margeziel, (7) Gippuyel, (8) Pa’aziel, (9) ’A’ah, (10) Periel, (11) Tatriel, (12) Tabkiel, (13) ’W, (14) Jehovah, (15) Dh, (16) Whyh, (17) ’Ebed, (18) Dibburiel, (19) ’Aph’apiel, (20) Sppiel, (21) Paspasiel, (22) Senegron, (23) Metatron, (24) Sogdin, (25) ’Adrigon, (26) ’Asum, (27) Saqpam, (28) Saqtam, (29) Migon, (30) Mitton, (31) Mottron, (32) Rosphim, (33) Qinoth, (34) Chatatyah, (35) Degazyah, (36) Pspyah, (37) Bsknyh, (38) Mgrg, (39) Barad, (40) Mkrkk, (41) Msprd, (42) Chshg, (43) Chshg, (43) Chshb, (44) Mnrttt, (45) Bsyrym, (46) Mitmon, (47) Titmon, (48) Pisqon, (49) Saphsaphyah’, (50) Zrch, (51) Zrchyah, (52) B, (53) Beyah, (54) Hbhbeyah, (55) Pelet, (56) Pltyah, (57) Rabrabyah, (58) Chas, (59) Chasyah, (60) Taphtaphyah, (61) Tamtamyah, (62) Sehasyah, (63) Iruryah, (64) ’Al’alyah, (65) Bazridyah, (66) Satsatkyah, (67) Sasdyah, (68) Razrazyah, (69) Bazrazyah, (70) ’Arimyah, (71) Sbhyah, (72) Sbibkhyh, (73) Simkam, (74) Yahseyah, (75) Ssbibyah, (76) Sabkasbeyah, (77) Qelilqalyah, (78) Kihhh, (79) Hhyh, (80) Wh, (81) Whyh, (82) Zakklkyah, (83) Tutrisyah, (84) Suryah, (85) Zeh, (86) Penirhyah, (87) Z’zi’h, (88) Gal Razayya, (89) Mamlikyah, (90) Ttyah, (91) ’Emeq, (92) Qamyah, (93) Mekapperyah, (94) Perishyah, (95) Sepham, (96) Gbir, (97) Gibboryah, (98) Gor, (99) Goryah, (100) Ziw, (101) ’Okbar, (102) the Lesser Jehovah, after the Name of his Master, “for My Name is in him,” (103) Rabibiel, (104) Tumiel, (105) Segansakkiel, the Prince of Wisdom. 2 And why is he called by the name Sagnesakiel? Because all the treasuries of wisdom are committed in his hand. 3 And all of them were opened to Moses on Sinai, so that he learned them during the forty days, while he was standing: the Torah in the seventy aspects of the seventy tongues, the Prophets in the seventy aspects of the seventy tongues, the Writings in the seventy aspects of the seventy tongues, the Halakhas in the seventy aspects of the seventy tongues, the Traditions in the seventy aspects of the seventy tongues, the Haggadahs in the seventy aspects of the seventy tongues, and the Toseftas in the seventy aspects of the seventy tongues. 4 But as soon as the forty days were ended, he forgot all of them in one moment. Then the Holy One, blessed is He, called Yephiphyah, the Prince of the Law, and [through him] they were given to Moses as a gift. As it is written: “And the Lord gave them to me.” And after that it remained with him. And from where do we know that it remained in his memory? Because it is written: “Remember the Law of My servant Moses which I commanded to him in Horeb for all Israel, even My statutes and judgments.” The Law of Moses: that is, the Teaching; the Prophets and the Writings—[the] statutes: that is, the Halakhas and Traditions; Judgments: that is, the Haggadahs and the Toseftas. And all of them were given to Moses on high on Sinai. 5 These seventy names are a reflection of the Explicit Names on the Merkaba which are graven on the Throne of Glory. For the Holy One, blessed is He, took from His Explicit Names and put seventy names of His on the name of Metatron by which the ministering messengers call the King of the kings of kings, blessed is He, in the high heavens, and twenty-two letters that are on the ring on His finger with which the destinies of the princes of kingdoms on high are sealed in greatness and power and with which the lots of the Messenger of Death are sealed, and the destinies of every nation and tongue. 6 Metatron, the messenger, the Prince of the Presence; the messenger, the Prince of the Wisdom; the messenger, the Prince of the Understanding; the messenger, the Prince of the Kings; the messenger, the Prince of the Rulers; the messenger, the Prince of the Glory; the messenger, the Prince of the High Ones; and of the princes—the exalted, great, and honored ones, in Heaven and on earth—said: 7 “Jehovah, the God of Israel, is my witness in this thing, that when I revealed this secret to Moses, then all the hosts in every heaven on high raged against me and said to me: 8 Why do you reveal this secret to a son of man, born of woman, tainted and unclean, a man of a decaying drop—the secret by which the heavens and earth, the sea and the dry land, the mountains and hills, the rivers and springs, Gehenna of fire and hail, the Garden of Eden and the Tree of Life were created; and by which Adam and Eve, and the cattle, and the wild beasts, and the bird of the air, and the fish of the sea, and Behemoth and Leviathan, and the creeping things, the worms, the dragons of the sea, and the creeping things of the deserts, and the Torah, and Wisdom, and Knowledge, and Thought, and the Knowledge of things above, and the fear of Heaven were formed? Why do you reveal this to flesh and blood? Have you obtained authority from Maqom? And again: Have you received permission? The Explicit Names went forth from before me with lightnings of fire and flaming chashmallim. 9 But they were not appeased until the Holy One, blessed is He, rebuked them and drove them away with rebuke from before Him, saying to them: I delight in, and have set My love on, and have entrusted and committed to Metatron, My servant, alone, for he is one unique among all the children of Heaven.” 10 And Metatron brought them out from his house of treasuries and committed them to Moses, and Moses to Joshua, and Joshua to the elders, and the elders to the prophets, and the prophets to the men of the Great Synagogue, and the men of the Great Synagogue to Ezra, and Ezra the Scribe to Hillel the elder, and Hillel the elder to R. Abbahu, and R. Abbahu to R. Zera, and R. Zera to the men of faith, and the men of faith committed them to give warning and to heal by them all diseases that rage in the world, as it is written: “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God and will do that which is right in His eyes, and will give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord that heals you.” Ended and finished. Praise be to the Creator of the World.