Baradiel is an angel associated with hail in 3 Enoch. The name appears in a catalogue of the rulers of natural forces, where hail is distinguished from wind, lightning, snow and rain.
The angel of hail
3 Enoch 14:3–4, in Hugo Odeberg’s edition, first enumerates the natural offices and then supplies names. Baradiel is the angel of hail; Ruchiel concerns wind and Baraqiel the lightnings. The passage places these rulers under the authority described in Metatron’s account.
This is a specific office within the text’s heavenly organization. It is not a description of a fallen Watcher, and the passage does not give Baradiel an independent story about the Egyptian plagues or the battle of Gibeon. Those connections would require evidence beyond the shared presence of hail.
Comparing the names in chapter 17
Chapter 17 also contains similar forms in its lists of heavenly princes. Odeberg prints Badariel in one arrangement and records Baradiel in a variant enumeration. His notes point out disagreements between the lists themselves. These details should be retained rather than smoothed into one universal angelic hierarchy.
Baradiel’s hail office also distinguishes this entry from Barakiel/Baraqiel and the astrology-teaching Baraqijal of 1 Enoch. A familiar ending in an English angel name is a reason to examine the source carefully, not sufficient evidence to merge the entries.
Explore related entries
Read Barakiel, Baraqijal, Metatron, the angel names A–Z index, or the guide to source traditions.