THE MARTYRDOM OF ISAIAH
From-The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament
Chapter 1
Hezekiah summons Manassah.
1. In the 26th year of his reign, Hezekiah, king of Judah summoned Manassah
his son; he was his only son, in the presence of Isaiah the son of Amos the
prophet, and in the presence of Josab the son of Isaiah.
2. This was in order to hand over to him the words of righteousness, which
the king himself had witnessed and also the words regarding the eternal judgments
and of the torments of Gehenna.
3. And of the prince of this world and his angels, his authority, his powers,
and the words concerning faith in the Beloved, which he himself had seen in
the 15th year of his reign during his sickness.
4. And he handed to him the written words, which Samnas the secretary had
written out, and also those, which Isaiah the son of Amos had given to him and
to the prophets.
5. That they might write out, and store up with him what he himself had seen
in the house of the king concerning the robes of the righteous, and concerning
the transformation, the persecution, and the ascension of the Beloved.
6. How in the 20th year of the reign of Hezekiah, Isaiah had seen the words
of this prophecy, and had handed them to Josab his son. And while Hezekiah was
giving commands, Josab the son of Isaiah stood by.
7. And Isaiah said to the king and those that were with him including Manassah.
“As the Lord lives whose name has not been transmitted to this world, and as
the Beloved of my Lord lives, and as the Spirit, which speaks in me lives.
8. All these commands and these words will have no effect on Manassah your
son, and by the deeds of his hands tormented in body I will depart.
9. And Sammael will serve Manassah, and will do everything he wishes, and
be a follower of Beliar rather than of me.
10. He will cause many in Jerusalem and Judah to desert the true faith, for
Beliar will dwell in Manassah, and by his hands I will be sawed in halves.”
11. And when Hezekiah heard these words he wept bitterly and tearing his
robe he threw dust on his head and fell on his face.
12. And Isaiah said to him; “Sammael’s plan against Manassah is complete,
there will be no benefit to you from this day on”. And Hezekiah thought in his
heart to kill his son Manassah.
13. But Isaiah said to Hezekiah; “The Beloved has made your plan ineffective,
the thought of your heart will not come about, for with this calling I have
been called, and my inheritance will be with the Beloved.”
Chapter 2
Manasseh’s wicked reign
1. And it came about that after Hezekiah had died, and Manassah had become
king, that he did not remember the commands of his father Hezekiah, but forgot
them.
2. And Sammael dwelt in Manassah clinging closely to him. And Manassah abandoned
the service of the Lord of his father, and served Satan and his angels and his
powers.
3. And he turned those of his father’s house, who had been with his father,
away from the words of wisdom, and from the service of the Lord, to serve Beliar.
4. And Beliar, the angel of iniquity, or also named Matanbukus rejoiced over
Jerusalem because of Manassah in causing aposty with all the iniquity done therein,
the sorcery, magic, augury, divination, and fornication.
5. And persecution of the righteous increased through Manassah, and by Belkira,
and Tobiah the Canaanite, and by John of Anathoth, and through Zaliq Neway.
6. And the rest of the acts are written in the books of the kings of Judah
and of Israel. Isaiah withdraws from Jerusalem.
7. And when Isaiah, the son of Amos, saw the great iniquity being done in
Jerusalem, and the service of Satan and his wantonness, he withdrew from Jerusalem,
and dwelt in Bethlehem of Judea.
8. But there also was great iniquity, and he withdrew from there and dwelt
on a mountain in a desert place, and with him Micha the prophet, and the aged
Ananias, and Joel, and Habakuk, and Josab his son, and many of the faithful
who believed in the inheritance of heaven.
9. And they were clothed in sackcloth, and had nothing with them, but were
destitute, and lamented bitterly over Israel having gone astray.
10. And they ate the herbs of the field, which they gathered from the mountains,
and cooked them to eat. And so they dwelt there for two years of days.
The prophets Zedekiah, and Micaiah.
11. Belkira now was of the family of Zedekiah, of Chenaanah who was the brother
of the father of Belkira, a teacher in the days of Ahab of the four hundred
prophets of baal.
12. This Belkira then struck and abused Micaiah the son of Amida the prophet,
and Micaiah was thrown into prison with the prophet Zedekiah, by Ahaziah the
son of Ahab.
13. For Elijah the prophet reproved Ahaziah and Samaria and prophesied concerning
Ahaziah that he would die on his bed of sickness. And that Samaria would be
given into the hands of Shalmaneser, for he had killed the prophets of the Lord.
14. And when the prophets that were with Ahaziah, and Jalerias their teacher
from mount Joel, heard about Micaiah in prison, they persuaded Ahaziah to kill
Micaiah, and he did so. Jelerias now was a brother of Zedekiah.
Isaiah accused.
15. Belkira then prophesied lies in Jerusalem, and many were joined with
him. For it came about that when the king of Assyria captured Samaria, and took
nine tribes into captivity into the provinces of the Medes and the rivers of
Gozan, this Belkira, as a youth, escaped and came to Jerusalem in the days of
Hezekiah the king of Judah.
16. But he did not walk in the ways of his Samaritan father, because he hated
Hezekiah, and in the days of Hezekiah he was found speaking words of iniquity
in Jerusalem, and he was accused by the servants of Hezekiah, but he escaped
to the district of Bethlehem.
17. Belkira then discovered where Isaiah was and those with him, and he accused
Isaiah and the prophets before Manassah saying:
18. Isaiah and the prophets that are with him, prophecy against Jerusalem,
and against the cities of Judah that they will be laid waste, and also against
Benjamin that it will go into captivity, and against you O lord king, that you
will go with hooks and in chains of iron.
19. But their prophecies are lies against Israel and Judah. And Isaiah himself
said; “I saw more than Moses.” While Moses said that there is no one who can
see the Lord, and live.
20. So therefore O king knows that they are false prophets. And he has called
Jerusalem, Sodom. And the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, he declared as people
of Gomorrah.
21. In thus way he brought many accusations before Manassah against Isaiah
and the prophets that were with him.
22. Beliar then dwelling in the heart of Manassah and in the hearts of the
princes of Judah and Benjamin, an in that of the eunuchs and the kings counselors,
so it was that the words of Belkira pleased him very much, and he sent and seized
Isaiah.
Chapter 3
Why Satan was angry with Isaiah.
1. Beliar now was very angry with Isaiah because of the exposure with which
had exposed Sammael, and because of his vision that by him was revealed the
coming of the Beloved from the seventh heaven.
2. For unto Isaiah was this revealed, His transformation, His descent, His
form into a man, and the persecutions and torments with which the children of
Israel were to torment Him.
3. And of his disciples, and that before the Sabbath He would be hung on
a tree, and be buried, and that his disciples would be offended at Him, and
of the guards that would guard the grave.
4. And to Isaiah was also revealed the descent of the angel of the temple,
which is in heaven, whom He will summon in the last days. And that the angel
of the Holy Spirit, and Michael, chief of the holy angels, would open His grave
on the third day.
5. And that the Beloved would come forth on their shoulders, and sent forth
his disciples to teach all nations, to proclaim to every tongue the resurrection
of the Beloved.
6. And also His ascension to the seventh heaven, from where He had come,
was shown, and that many that believed in Him would speak through the Holy Spirit
and that there would be many signs and miracles in those days.
7. And afterwards, at his approach, the disciples will abandon the teachings
He gave to his apostles, together with the faith, the love, and the purity,
and that there would be much contention at His coming.
8. In those days there will be many that love office yet lacking wisdom,
and there will be many wicked elders and shepherds that wrong their sheep.
9. They will be rapacious, because they do not have holy shepherds, and many
exchange the glory of the righteous robes for the love of money, and there will
be much respect of persons in those days and lovers of the glory of this world.
10. And many slanderers and vain glory will there be at the approach of the
Lord, and the Holy Spirit will withdraw from many.
11. In those days there will not be many prophets, nor such as speak reliable
words except one here and there in different places.
12. For many who say to serve the One – will love the spirit of error and
of adultery and vain-glory having the love of money, and there will be hatred
among the shepherds towards each other.
13. For there will be great jealousy in the last days, and everyone will
speak whatever is pleasing in his own eyes, and they will make the prophecy
of prophets ineffective, and my vision will they also make ineffective in order
that they may speak what comes from their own heart.
Chapter 4
Isaiah speaks of the last days
1. Now therefore Hezekiah and Josab my son, such will be the days at the
completion of the world. And in that period Beliar (Satan) will descend, that
great angel the king of this world, who has ruled it since it existed.
2. He will come down from his firmament in the form of a man, a king of iniquity,
a murderer of his birth, and he will persecute the plant, which the apostles
of the Beloved will have planted, and some will be given, into his hand.
3. This angel Beliar will come in the form of that king, and with him all
the powers of his reign, and they will obey him in every wish.
4. By his word he will cause the sun to rise by night, and he will cause
the moon to appear at the sixth hour, and will do whatever he wishes in the
world.
5. He will act and speak like the beloved, and will say; I am the Lord, and
before me there was no one, and all men in the world will believe in him.
6. And they will sacrifice to him and serve him saying. This is the Lord,
and besides him there is none other.
7. And the majority of those that have held together to be received by the
Beloved, these he will turn aside after him, and the power of his miracles will
be in every city and district.
8. And he will set-up his image in every city, he will rule for three years
and seven months and twenty-seven days.
9. And many of the faithful who when they thought they saw Him whom they
hoped for, the Christ who was crucified, few of these will be left in those
days as true servants fleeing from desert to desert as they await his “true
coming.”
10. Then after these days, the Lord will come with his angels and with the
host of the righteous and elect from the seventh heaven with the glory thereof,
and will place Beliar and his host in Gehenna.
11. And those coming with the Lord will have their robes, which were stored
in the seventh heaven; they will descend and be present in the world.
12. And the Lord will strengthen those that are in their body together with
those that are in their robes, and they will be taken upwards in their robes
their body left in the world.
13. The voice of the beloved, in anger, will reprove this heaven and earth,
and the mountains, the hills, the cities, the desert, the trees, and the sun
and moon, and everywhere where Beliar has appeared and acted openly in this
world.
14. There will be a resurrection and a judgment in their midst in those days,
and the Beloved will cause fire to rise from Him, and it will consume the impious,
and they will become as if they had never been created.
15. And the rest of the words of the vision are written in. “The vision of
Babylon” (unknown). And the rest of the vision about the Lord is written in
parables in my words that are written in the book, which I prophesied openly
(book of Isaiah).
16. And the descent of the beloved in Sheol (hell), behold it is written
in the section where the Lord says, “Behold My Son shall understand”.
17. And all these things are written in the psalms, and in the parables of
David son of Jesse, and in the proverbs of Solomon his son. And in the words
of Korah, and of Ethan the Israelite, and in the words of Asaph, and in the
rest of the psalms which the angel of the Spirit has inspired.
18. Namely in those which have no name written, and in the words of Amos
my father, and of the other prophets.
Chapter 5
The execution of Isaiah.
1. Because of these visions now Beliar was angry with Isaiah, and he dwelt
in the heart of Manassah, and he sawed Isaiah in half with a wood saw.
2. And while Isaiah was being sawed in halves his accuser Belkira stood by
and also the false prophets, laughing and joyful because of Isaiah.
3. As then Belkira through Satan so stood before Isaiah laughing and deriding
him, he said to Isaiah; “Say; I have lied in everything that I have said and
the ways of Manassah are good and right, and also the way of Belkira and those
with him are good.”
4. Isaiah himself now was in a vision of the Lord with his eyes open beholding
his accusers, and Belkira said to him when he began to be sawed in halves;
5. “Say what I say to you, and I will turn their heart, and make Manassah
and the princes of Judah and the people and all Jerusalem worship you.”
6. But Isaiah answered: “If it were in my power I would say. Condemned and
cursed be you and all your host and your house, for there is nothing further
that you can take except the skin of my body.”
7. And they took Isaiah the son of Amos and sawed him in halves with a wood
saw. And Manassah, Belkira, and the false prophets, as well as the princes and
the people stood by and looked on.
8. But as for the prophets that were with Isaiah, before he was sawed in
halves he had said to them to go to the district of Tyre and Sidon, because
for me alone the Lord has mixed this cup.
9. And while Isaiah was sawed in halves he did not cry out nor weep, but
his mouth spoke with the Holy Spirit until he was sawed in two.
10. Beliar did this to Isaiah through Belkira and through Manassah, for Sammael
was very angry with Isaiah from the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, because
of the exposure of Sammael by which Isaiah had exposed him in the days when
Hezekiah was king, and he did as Satan wished.
THE VISION OF ISAIAH
Chapter 6
Isaiah visits Hezekiah.
1. In the 20th year of the reign of Hezekiah king of Judah, Isaiah, and Josab
his son came to Hezekiah in Jerusalem from Gilgal.
2. And he sat on the couch of the king, and they brought a seat for him,
but he would not sit thereon. And all the princes of Israel were there and the
eunuchs and the kings counselors.
3. And there were also forty prophets, sons of the prophets, who when they
had heard that Isaiah was coming had come from the neighboring districts, and
from the mountains and the country.
4. They came so they might greet him and hear his words, and that he might
lay his hands on them so that they might prophecy, and he might hear their prophecy.
All these then were in the presence of Isaiah.
5. And when Isaiah spoke with Hezekiah the words of righteousness and faith,
they all heard a door being opened, and the voice of the Spirit.
6. And the king summoned all the prophets and the people that were there,
among which was Micah, and the aged Ananias, with Joel, and Josab sitting on
his right.
7. And when they heard the voice of the Holy Spirit they all worshipped on
their knees and praised the God of righteousness, the Most High, the One who
dwells in the upper world, who sits on high, the Holy One who rests among the
holy ones.
8. And they gave glory to the One who had thus graciously given a door in
the world of men. And while the Holy Spirit spoke in the hearing of all, Isaiah
became silent as were his mind taken from him.
9. And though his eyes were open he did not see the men before him, but while
his mouth was silent his breath was still in him, for he was in a vision.
10. And the angel who was sent to show him the vision was not of this firmament,
nor was he of the angels of the glory of this world, but he came from the seventh
heaven.
11. And the people that were standing by, apart from the circle of prophets,
did not think that Isaiah had been taken up. Nor was the vision, which he had
from this world, but from a place hidden from the flesh.
12. After Isaiah then had seen this vision he recounted it to Hezekiah and
to Josab his son, and to the other prophets who had come.
13. But the officials, the eunuchs and the people, did not hear apart from
Samnas the secretary of Jehoiakim, and Asaph the recorder, for they were doers
of righteousness and the fragrance of the Spirit was in them.
14. But the people did not hear, for Micah and Josab had sent them out when
the wisdom of this world was taken from Isaiah as were he dead.
Chapter 7
The angel that came for Isaiah.
1. The vision then, which Isaiah saw and recounted, is as follows. When I
prophesied in accordance with the message, which you heard, I saw a glorious
angel.
2. His glory now was not like that of the angels, which I always used to
see, but he had great glory and an office such as I cannot describe.
3. And I saw when he took hold of my hand and I said to him: “Who are you,
what is your name, and where are you taking me up to?”
4. For strength had been given me that I might speak with him, and he said
to me “When I have taken you up through all the stages and shown you the vision
for which I was sent, then you will understand who I am.
5. But my name you will not know, for you have to return into this body,
but you will see that to where I am taking you up to, for to that purpose was
sent.”
6. And I rejoiced because he spoke to me with kindness. And he said to me
“You rejoice because I have spoken kindly to you, but you will see one greater
than me who will speak kindly and gentle with you.
7. And the Father of the One who is greater you will also see, because for
this purpose was I sent from the seventh heaven, that I might make all this
clear to you.”
The firmament.
8. And he went up into the firmament, and there I saw Sammael and his host,
and there was great struggle in it, and the words of Satan, and envying of one
another.
9. And just as it is there above so also it is on earth, for the likeness
of what is in the firmament is here on earth.
10. And I said to the angel. “What is this envying?” And he said. “So it
has been since this world existed till now, and this struggle will last till
the One comes whom you are to see, and He will destroy him.”
The first heaven.
11. After this he took me up above the firmament into the first heaven, and
there I saw a throne in the middle, and on the right and left of it were angels,
and those on the left were not like those on the right.
12. But those on the right had more glory, and they all sang praises with
one voice, praising the throne that was in the middle, and those on the left
also sang after them.
13. But the voices of those on the left were not like the voices of those
on the right, nor their praise like those on the right.
14. And I asked him who led me; “To whom is this praise directed?” And he
said; “To the praise of the One who sits in the seventh heaven, the One who
rests in the holy world, and to His Beloved from where I was sent to you, to
there it is directed.”
The second heaven.
15. And again he took me up into the second heaven, and the height of that
heaven is like that from heaven to earth and to the firmament.
16. There I saw, as in the first heaven, angels on the right and left and
a throne in the middle. And the praise of the angels in this heaven with the
one on the throne had more glory than all the previous.
17. There was great glory in this second heaven, their praise was not like
those of the first heaven, but greater.
18. And I fell on my face to worship, but the angel that led me would not
allow me, but said to me. “Worship neither throne nor angel from the six heavens
before I tell you to in the seventh heaven.”
19. For above all the heavens and their angels is your throne placed, and
also your robe and your crown, which you are to see.
20. And I rejoiced very much that those who love the Most High and His Beloved
will at their end go up there through the angel of the Holy Spirit.
The third heaven.
21. And he took me up to the third heaven where I saw those on the right
and on the left in the same way with a throne in the middle, and him who sat
on it.
22. But no mention of this our world was made there, and also the glory of
my spirit was being transformed as we went up from heaven to heaven. And I said
to the angel with me; “Nothing of the vanity of that world below is named here.”
23. And he answered; “Nothing is named because of its weakness, but nothing
is hidden which is done there”. Then I wished to know how it was known, and
he said:
24. “When I have taken you up into the seventh heaven to the One who is above
these, from where I was sent, then you will know that nothing is hidden from
the thrones, and from those that dwell in the heavens, nor from angels.”
25. And the praise which they sang, and the glory of the one who sat on the
throne were great, and the angels on the right and left had more glory than
those in the heavens below them.
The fourth heaven.
26. And again he took me up to the fourth heaven, and the height from the
third to the fourth was greater than from earth to the firmament.
27. There I saw again those who were on the right and left, and the one who
sat on the throne that was in the middle, and they also sang praises.
28. And the praise and glory of the angels on the right was greater than
of those on the left, and the glory of the one on the throne was greater than
that of the angels who were on the right. But theirs was greater than those
of the angels of the lower heavens were.
The fifth heaven.
29. And he took me up into the fifth heaven, and again I saw those on the
right and left, and the one who sat on the throne with more glory than those
of the fourth heaven.
30. And the glory of those on the right was greater than of the left, and
the glory of the one on the throne was greater than those on the right, and
their praise was greater than those of the fourth heaven.
31. And I praised the One who was not named and who is unique, who dwells
in the heavens, whose name is unknown to all flesh. The One who has given such
glory to the different heavens, who makes the glory of the angels great, and
the glory of the one who sits on the throne even greater.
Chapter 8
The air of the sixth heaven
1. And again he took me up into the air of the sixth heaven where I saw a
splendor such as I had not seen in the five heavens as I went up.
2. The angels had great glory, and the praise there was holy and wonderful.
And I said to the angel who led me;
3. “What is this I see my lord?” And he said; I am not your lord, but your,
companion.” And again I asked him, “Why are there not corresponding groups of
angels here?”
4. And he said; “From the sixth heaven and upwards there are no longer those
on the left, nor is there a throne placed in the middle. But they are directed
by the power of the seventh heaven where the One who is not named dwells, and
His chosen One whose name is unknown.
5. And no heaven can learn His name, for He to whose voice all the heavens
and the thrones answer – is alone.
6. I therefore have been empowered and sent to bring you up here that you
may see this glory, and that you may see the Lord of all these heavens and of
these thrones, being transformed until He resembles your appearance and your
likeness.
7. But I say to you Isaiah, that no man that has to return into a body of
that world – has come up, or seen, or understood what you have seen, and what
you are to see, for you are destined in the lot of the Lord to come here. From
there is the power of the sixth heaven.”
8. I then proclaim the greatness of my Lord with praise that through His
lot I should come here. And he said to me, “Hear this also from your companion,
when by the will of God you have come up here divested from the body, then you
will receive the robe, which you are to see now.
9. And the other robes you will also see here, then you will be equal to
the angels who are in the seventh heaven.”
The sixth heaven.
10. And he took me up into the sixth heaven where there was no right or left,
nor a throne in the middle, but all were of one appearance, and their praises
equal.
11. And strength was given me that I also sang praises with them, and the
angel also sang, and our praise was like theirs.
12. The voice then of these angels was not like those of the fifth heaven,
but of a different voice, and there was much light.
13. And by comparison, I thought the light, which I had seen in the fifth
heaven as darkness to this of the sixth, and I rejoiced and praised the One
who had graciously given such light to those who await His promise.
14. And I entreated the angel that led me, that from there on I might not
return to the world of flesh. Indeed I say to you Hezekiah, and Josab my son,
and Micah that there is much darkness here.
15. And the angel who led me knew what I thought, and said to me. “If you
rejoice over this light, how much more will you not rejoice in the seventh heaven
when you see the light where the Lord and His Beloved are, He that in the world
is to be called “The Son.”
16. He who is not yet revealed in the corruptible world, nor are the robes,
nor the thrones, nor the crowns which are placed there for the righteous, for
those who believe in the Lord, the Lord who will descent in your form.
17. For the light, which is there is great and wonderful. And concerning
you not returning into your body, your days Isaiah are not yet complete for
coming here.”
18. And when I heard this I was sad, but he said to me, “Do not be sad”.
Chapter 9
The air of the seventh heaven.
1. And he led me into the air of the seventh heaven where I heard a voice
saying: How far is he who dwells among flesh to go up? And I was afraid and
trembled.
2. And he said to me as I was trembling; “Behold!” And another voice was
sent out and said; “The holy Isaiah is permitted to co me up here, for his robe
is here.”
3. And I asked the angel who was with me; “Who is the one who prevented me,
and who is the One that turned to me that I might go up?” And he said;
4. “The one who prevented you, is the one in charge of the praise of the
sixth heaven, and the One who turned to you, He is your Lord, the Lord the Christ
who in the world is to be called Jesus. But you cannot hear His name until you
have come up from this body.”
The seventh heaven.
5. And he took me up into the seventh heaven where I saw a wonderful light,
and angels without number, there I saw all the righteous.
6. They were stripped of their robes of flesh, and were like the angels who
stand there in great glory.
7. But they were not sitting on their thrones, nor were their crowns of glory
on them. And I asked the angel that was with me;
8. “How is it that they have received robes, but are not on their thrones,
nor with their crowns?” And he said; “They do not receive the crowns and thrones
of glory, even though they behold and know them to be, until the Beloved ascends
in the form in which you will see Him.”
9. The Lord will indeed descend into the world in the last days, He who is
called the Christ, after He has descended and become like your form. And they
will think that He is flesh and a man.
10. And the god of that world will stretch out and lay his hands upon Him
and hang Him on a tree, not knowing who He is.
11. And thus His descend, as you will see, will be concealed even from the
heavens, so that it will not be known who He is.
12. And when He has plundered the angel of death, He will rise on the third
day, and will remain in that world for five hundred forty five days. Then many
of the righteous will ascend with Him whose spirits will receive their robes
when the Lord Christ ascends and they ascend with Him.
Record of man’s deeds.
13. And I asked him what I asked of him in the third heaven, how it is known
what is done in the world here. And while I was still speaking to him,
14. One of the angels that were standing by, who were more glorious than
the angel who had brought me up, showed me books.
15. But these were not like books of this world, and opening them, I saw
writing in them, but again not like the writing in this world, and they were
given to me, and I read them.
16. And behold the deeds of the children of Israel were written there, the
deeds which you know my son Josab. And I said; truly nothing which is done in
this world is hidden in the seventh heaven.
17. Having then seen these many robes, crowns and thrones placed there, I
asked the angel: Whos all are they?
18. And He said; there are many from the world that will receive them through
believing in the words of that One who will be named, as I told you.
19. And they will keep them, and believe in them, and believe in His cross,
for these are they placed here.
The Lord.
20. And I saw One standing whose glory surpassed that of all, His glory was
great and wonderful. And as I beheld Him the angels and the righteous came Him,
and sang praises.
21. And He, who was so glorious, was transformed and became like an angel.
Then the angel who led me up said to me;
22. “Worship this One, for this is the Lord of all the praise which you have
seen.” And I did so and sang praises.
23. Then I saw another glorious person who was like Him, unto whom they approached
and worshipped, and sang praises, and I also sang. But His glory was not transformed
to accord with their form.
24. And I saw the Lord, and also a second Angel standing with Him, which
was on His left. And I asked the angel with me; who is this One?
25. And he said to me, “Worship Him, for this is the angel of the Holy Spirit
who has spoken in you, and also in the other righteous”.
26. Thus I beheld the great glory while the eyes of my spirit were open,
and I saw the righteous as they with great power beheld the glory of that One.
27. And I beheld how my Lord and the angel of the Holy Spirit both together
worshipped and praised the great Lord.
28. Thereafter all the righteous worshipped, and the angels approached and
worshipped, and sang praises.
29. Then I heard the voices and the hymns of praise, which I had heard in
each of the six heavens as I ascended up by them. And they all were directed
to that Glorious One whose glory I could not see, but I heard and saw the praise
that was directed to Him.
30. And the Lord and the angel of the Spirit heard and saw everything, for
the praise, which was sent up from the six heavens, was not only heard but also
seen.
31. And the angel who led me said: “This is the Most High of the high ones,
who dwells in the holy world, who rests among the holy ones, who will be called
by the Holy Spirit in the mouth of the righteous “The Father of the Lord.”
Chapter 10
The Lord commissioned by the Father.
1. And I heard the voice of the Most High, the Father of my Lord as He said
to my Lord who will be called Jesus; ” Go out and descend through all the heavens.
2. You shall descend through the firmament and through the world as far as
the angel who is in Sheol, but you shall not go as far as perdition.
3. And you shall make your likeness like that of all who are in the five
heavens, and you shall take care to make your form like that of the angels of
the firmament, and also like that of the angels of Sheol.
4. And none of the angels of that world shall know that you are Lord with
Me in the seven heavens and of their angels. They shall not know that you were
with Me, when with the voice of the heavens I summon you to come up through
the six heavens, so that you may destroy the princes and the angels, and the
gods of that world, and the world that is ruled by them.
5. For they have denied Me, and said they were alone, and there is no-one
besides us.
6. Afterwards you shall ascend from the gods of death to your place, and
you shall not be transformed in each of the heavens.
7. But in glory you shall ascend, and sit at My right hand. Then the princes
and the powers of that world will worship you.”
8. This command I heard the Great Glory giving to my Lord.
The descend of the Lord.
9. Thus I saw when my Lord went out from the seventh heaven into the sixth,
and the angel who had led me said; “Understand Isaiah and look that you may
see the transformation and descend of the Lord.”
10. And I looked, and when the angels in the sixth heaven saw Him, they praised
and glorified Him, for He had not been transformed into the form of the angels
there.
11. And I beheld when He descended into the fifth heaven that there He made
His form like of the angels there, and they did not praise Him, for His form
was like theirs.
12. Then He descended into the fourth heaven, making His form like theirs,
and they seeing Him did not praise Him, since He was like theirs.
13. And again I saw when descended into the third heaven, making His form
like theirs, and those who kept the gate of the third heaven demanded the password,
and the Lord gave it them, so that He might not be recognized.
14. And again I saw that He descended into the second heaven where again
He gave the password, since they of the gate demanded it, and His form being
like theirs – they did not praise Him.
15. And descending into the first heaven, He gave the password to them that
guarded the gates, and His form was like theirs, like of the angels on the left
of the throne. And no one questioned me, because of the angel that led me.
16. And again He descended into the firmament where the prince of this world
dwells, and He gave the password to those who were on the left.
17. And His form was like theirs wherefore they did not praise Him there,
but in envy they were fighting with one another, for there is a power of evil
there, and envy over trifles.
18. And I saw when He descended and made Himself like the angels of the air,
to be like them, and He did not give the password, for they were plundering
and doing violence to one another.
19. After this I looked, and the angel who spoke with me and led me, said
to me, “Understand Isaiah son of Amos, it is to this purpose that I was sent
from the Lord.”
20. And I saw a woman of the family of David the prophet (Mary), a virgin,
and she was betrothed to a man (Joseph) a carpenter, who also was of the seed
and family of David.
21. And when she was found to be pregnant the man wished to divorce her,
but the angel of the Spirit appeared in this world, and He did not divorce her,
nor did he reveal this to anyone, nor did he approach her.
22. And they were all blinded concerning the infant, they all knew Him, but
they did not know from where He was. And they took Him and went to Nazareth
in Galilee.
23. And I saw O Hezekiah, and Josab my son, and say to the other prophets
also, that it was hidden from all the heavens, and all the princes, and from
every god of this world.
24. And I saw that He sucked the breast as an infant, as was customary that
He might not be recognized. And when He had grown up He performed great signs
and miracles in the land of Israel, and in Jerusalem.
25. And after this, the adversary envied Him, and roused the children of
Israel, who did not know who He was, against Him. And they handed Him to the
ruler and crucified Him, and He descended to the angel in Sheol.
26. I saw how they crucified Him on a tree, and how on the third day He rose
and remained many days.
Chapter 11
The ascension of the Lord.
1. And the angel who led me said, “Understand Isaiah”. And I saw when He
sent out the twelve disciples and ascended. And I saw Him in the firmament but
not transformed in their form, and all the angels of the firmament and Satan
saw Him and worshipped.
2. And there was much sorrow there as they said “How did our Lord descend
upon us and we did not notice the glory which was upon Him that we now see?”
3. And He ascended into the second heaven, and was not transformed, and the
angels on the right and left and the throne in the middle worshipped and praised
Him, and said; “How did our Lord remain hidden from us as He descended, and
we did not notice?”
4. And in the same way He ascended into the third heaven, and in the fourth,
and fifth heaven, and they spoke exactly the same way.
5. I saw when He ascended into the sixth heaven that they worshipped Him
and praised Him, and in each heaven as He went up, the praise was more profound.
6. And I saw how He ascended into the seventh heaven, and all the righteous
the angels praised Him. Then He sat down at the right hand of that Great Glory,
whose glory I told you I could not behold. And I also saw that Angel of the
Holy Spirit sat on His left.
7. And the angel said to me: Isaiah son of Amos, it is sufficient, you have
observed what no-one born of flesh has observed, and you shall return in your
body until your days are complete, then you shall come here. These things I
saw.
Isaiah instructs Hezekiah.
8. And Isaiah told this to all who were standing before him, and they sang
praises. And he said to Hezekiah the king; “These things have I spoken, and
at the end of this world all this vision will be brought about in the last generations.”
9. And Isaiah made him swear that he would not tell this to the people of
Israel, and that he would not allow any man to copy these words, but later they
shall read them.
10. But as for you, be in the Holy Spirit that you may receive your robes,
and the thrones, and the crowns of glory, which are placed in the seventh heaven.
11. And because of these visions and prophecies, Sammael-Satan sawed Isaiah
the son of Amos, the prophet, in halves by the hand of Manassah.
12. And Hezekiah gave all things to Manassah in the 26th year of his reign,
but Manassah did not remember these things, nor place them in his heart, but
he became the servant of Satan, and was destroyed.