The Encyclopedia Of Demons And Demonology

184 Nisroc
(people) in order to eat them. And they began to sin
against birds, wild beasts, reptiles and fish. And their
flesh was devoured the one by the other, and they drank
blood. And then the earth brought an accusation against
the oppressors. (7:3–7)
Meanwhile, the Watchers spread more corruption
by teaching people secret and magical arts they are not
supposed to know. From the heavens above, the angels
Michael, Gabriel, and Surafal observe in horror the
bloodshed and oppression upon the earth. They hear the
prayers of the people begging for help. They petition God
to intervene, saying that the giants have filled Earth with
blood and oppression. God declares that he will punish
these transgressions with complete destruction in the
flood. He tells Gabriel:
Proceed against the bastards and the reprobates and the
children of adultery; and destroy the children of adultery
and expel the children of the Watchers from among the
people and send them against one another (so that) they
may be destroyed in the fight, for length of days have
they not. They will beg you everything—for their fathers
on behalf of themselves because they hope to live an
eternal life. (They hope) that each one of them will live a
period of 500 years. (10:9–11)
The Nephilim also are the subject of a Qumran text referred
to as the Enochic Book of Giants (4Q532). The text
tells that two Nephilim sons of SEMYAZA (leader of the
Watchers), named Ahya and Ohya, have a shared dream
vision in which they visit a world garden and see 200 trees
being cut down by angels. They do not understand the
dream and so they take it to the Nephilim council. The
council appoints one of their members, Mahawai, to consult
Enoch in paradise and ask him what it means. Mahawai
rises up into the air like the whirlwinds and flies with
the help of his hands like an eagle until he reaches Enoch.
Enoch says that the 200 trees symbolize the 200 Watchers
who are going to be destroyed in the coming flood.
Later in the text, Mahawai transforms into a bird
again to make another journey. He flies too close to the
Sun and is threatened with incineration. He is saved by
Enoch, whose voice descends from heaven to tell him to
turn back and not die prematurely.
FURTHER READING:
The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. Vols. 1 & 2. Edited by
James H. Charlesworth. 1983. Reprint, New York: Doubleday,
1985.
Collins, Andrew. From the Ashes of Angels: The Forbidden
Legacy of a Fallen Race. London: Signet Books, 1996.
Eisenman, Robert, and Michael Wise. The Dead Sea Scrolls
Uncovered. London: Element Books, 1992.
Nisroc Assyrian deity who became both a good ANGEL
and a FALLEN ANGEL. As a fallen angel in HELL, Nisroc
rules cuisine in the House of Princes. As a holy angel, he
rules the order of principalities.
Niyaz In ZOROASTRIANISM, the DEMON of want, distress,
and scarcity. Niyaz is often paired with AZ, the
demon of avarice, insatiability, gluttony, and lust. Niyaz
is powerful and haughty and is behind the evil deeds and
disasters of people’s lives and their ill-omened deaths.