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The Book of Enoch · 100 of 109

Chapter XCIX. Woes on the Godless

1.Woe to you who work godlessness,

And glory in lying and extol them:

Ye shall perish, and no happy life shall be yours.

2.Woe to them who pervert the words of uprightness,

And transgress the eternal law,

And transform themselves into what they were not into sinners:

They shall be trodden under foot upon the earth.

3.In those days make ready, ye righteous, to raise your prayers as a memorial,

And place them as a testimony before the angels,

That they may place the sin of the sinners for a memorial before the Most High.

4.In those days the nations shall be stirred up,

And the families of the nations shall arise on the day of destruction.

5.And in those days the destitute shall go forth and carry off their children,

And they shall abandon them, so that their children shall perish through them:

Yea, they shall abandon their children (that are still) sucklings, and not return to them,

And shall have no pity on their beloved ones.

6.And again I swear to you, ye sinners, that sin is prepared for a day of unceasing bloodshed.

7.And they who worship stones, and grave images of gold and silver and wood and stone and clay, and those who worship impure spirits and demons, and all kinds of idols not according to knowledge, shall get no manner of help from them.

8.And they shall become godless by reason of the folly of their hearts,

And their eyes shall be blinded through the fear of their hearts And through visions in their dreams.

9.Through these they shall become godless and fearful;

For they shall have wrought all their work in a lie,

And shall have worshiped a stone:

Therefore in an instant shall they perish.

10.But in those days blessed are all they who accept the words of wisdom, and understand them,

And observe the paths of the Most High, and walk in the path of His righteousness,

And become not godless with the godless;

For they shall be saved.

11.Woe to you who spread evil to your neighbours;

For you shall be slain in Sheol.

12.Woe to you who make deceitful and false measures,

And (to them) who cause bitterness on the earth;

For they shall thereby be utterly consumed.

13.Woe to you who build your houses through the grievous toil of others,

And all their building materials are the bricks and stones of sin;

I tell you ye shall have no peace.

14.Woe to them who reject the measure and eternal heritage of their fathers And whose souls follow after idols;

For they shall have no rest.

15.Woe to them who work unrighteousness and help oppression,

And slay their neighbours until the day of the great judgement.

16.For He shall cast down your glory,

And bring affliction on your hearts,

And shall arouse His fierce indignation,

And destroy you all with the sword;

And all the holy and righteous shall remember your sins.

Asked of Guide

Why does this chapter pronounce so many 'woes'—what is it trying to accomplish?

The chapter issues a string of woes to name specific social and religious corruptions—lying, perverting justice, idolatry, exploitation, false measures—and to forecast their consequences: perishing, blind fear, abandonment, and destruction. It frames these curses as a public indictment so that the righteous will “raise their prayers as a memorial” and have those sins recorded before the Most High.

The effect is both moral warning and comforting assurance: the righteous who “accept the words of wisdom” and “walk in the path of His righteousness” will be saved while the godless face judgment. This structure echoes prophetic denunciations in Isaiah and the moral bookkeeping found in Deuteronomy, where communal sins bring national disaster and faithful obedience brings vindication.

Guide is the guide inside the Gnosis app, where every book on these shelves is free to read. Guide is the part you pay for — your guide has read all of them, and answers about the passage you’re actually on. Ask your guide your own question.