Enoch, Who Walked With God (Pt. 2 of 2)
In Enoch, we find a man who took seriously his responsibility as God’s spokesman. Jude records of this man of God, “And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against them” (Jude 14-15). Enoch, according to Divine revelation, was the earliest of all of the prophets mentioned in Scripture. His message was a message of conviction of sins, and warning of judgment to come. No doubt, the world of Enoch’s day was waxing worse and worse, for just three generations later, in the days of Noah, we read of mankind that “every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Gen.6:5). Enoch attempted to warn man to turn from his wickedness, but it seems his message went unheeded, and for that reason, not long thereafter God sent the flood as judgment against man’s sinfulness and stubborn refusal to repent. Enoch was not afraid to call things just as God called them: notice how many times the word “ungodly” appears in the prophecy of Enoch as recorded by Jude. In order to walk with God, one must agree with God (Amos 3:3), and this includes agreeing with the Almighty’s view of sin. Enoch walked with God, faithfully proclaiming the word of Jehovah.
In Enoch, we find a man who was rewarded for his faithfulness. Perhaps the most interesting tidbit of information about the life of Enoch is what transpired at the conclusion of his earthly pilgrimage. Moses penned that Enoch “was not; for God took him” (Gen.5:24). The Hebrews writer gives a little more insight when he writes, “By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him” (Heb.11:5). The Greek word metatithemi (English translation “translated”) carries with it the idea of being transferred, or changing sides (Thayers). Enoch was spared having to venture through the portal of death to gain entrance into the realm of the unseen. God transferred Enoch from the temporal to the eternal, a journey that only one other in Scripture was privileged to make. Elijah, too, was spared from death, and taken to heaven in impressive fashion: as Elijah and Elisha were talking, God sent a chariot of fire with horses ablaze, parting the two prophets asunder, and taking Elijah in a whirlwind to heaven (2 Kings 2:11). Why God chose to allow these two this honor of circumventing death to gain Paradise, we are not told. However, we do know that both were faithful servants of Jehovah, and as such, they were rewarded for their fidelity to God and His will. Enoch walked with God while upon earth, and because of his faithfulness, he will walk with the Almighty eternally.
Patrick Morrison
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