Editing Azazel (section)

===In the Apocalypse of Abraham===
In the [[Biblical canon|extra-canonical]] text the [[Apocalypse of Abraham]] (c.1st CE), Azazel appears as an unclean bird who came down upon the sacrifice which [[Abraham]] prepared. (This is in reference to Genesis 15:11: "Birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away" [<span style="font-variant:small-caps">[[NIV]]</span>]).

{{quotation|And the unclean bird spoke to me and said, "What are you doing, Abraham, on the holy heights, where no one eats or drinks, nor is there upon them food for men? But these all will be consumed by fire and ascend to the heights, they will destroy you. Forsake the man who is with you and flee; for if you ascend to the heights they will make an end of you." And it came to pass when I saw the bird speaking I said this to the angel: "What is this, my lord?" And he said, "This is disgrace – this is Azazel!" And he said to him, "Shame on you, Azazel! For Abraham's portion is in heaven, and yours is on earth, for you have selected here, [and] become enamored of the dwelling place of your blemish. Therefore the Eternal Ruler, the Mighty One, has given you a dwelling on earth. Through you the all-[[evil]] spirit [was] a liar, and through you [come] wrath and trials on the generations of men who live impiously.|Abr. 13:4–9}}

The text also associates Azazel with [[Serpent symbolism#Abrahamic mythology|the serpent]] and [[hell]]. In Chapter 23, verse 7, it is described as having seven heads, fourteen faces, "hands and feet like a man's, [and] on his back six wings on the right and six on the left."

Abraham elsewhere says that the wicked will "putrefy in the belly of the crafty worm Azazel, and be burned by the fire of Azazel's tongue" (Abr. 31:5) and, to Azazel himself, "May you be the firebrand of the furnace of the earth! Go, Azazel, into the untrodden parts of the earth. For your heritage is over those who are with you" (Abr. 14:5–6).

The implicit notion is that God's heritage (the created world) is largely under the dominion of evil – i.e., it is "shared with Azazel" (Abr. 20:5), who is arguably identified with the [[devil]] (whom Jesus called "the prince of this world"). ({{bibleref|John|12:31|NIV}} <span style="font-variant:small-caps">niv</span>)