Metatron — Enoch transformed
Hugo Odeberg / Philip Alexander (composite, abridged) · Public domain / scholarly composite. Reproduced for educational and religious commentary.
1I, Rabbi Ishmael, said to Metatron, my master: Why does thy name differ from the name of thy creator? They call thee "Lesser YHVH," and yet thy name is Metatron. What is thy name?
2Metatron said: I am Enoch the son of Yared. When the men of the generation of the flood, and afterwards the men of the generation of Babel — when they corrupted their ways — the holy One, blessed be he, removed me from their midst. He took me up to the highest heaven. He gave me a great name. He set me upon a throne next to his throne. He made me prince and ruler over all the angels of the heights.
3And the holy One, blessed be he, fastened upon me three hundred and sixty-five thousand eyes; he made me the seal of every scroll of judgment. He set seventy-two princes of kingdoms under my hand. He made me the prince of his sons.
4Every day I sit upon my throne, and the wisdom of the Torah is opened before my face. I write down the deeds of the children of men, the prayers of those who pray, the deeds of the wicked.
5And the holy One, blessed be he, called me Lesser YHVH — for he caused his name to dwell in me. But I am not he; I am his servant.