Theme: The Impact of Unsung Heroes in the Bible
Topic: Enoch-A Man Who Walked With God
Main Texts: Genesis 5:18-24, Hebrews 11:5-6
Key verse: Hebrews 11:5 – “By faith, Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him” for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God” (NKJV).
Introduction:
Genesis 5 lists the family history of the first man Adam showing the line through whom the second Adam, Christ, should come. Enoch is the “seventh from Adam” (Jude 14) and an ancestor of Jesus (Luke 3:37). There are ten generations from Adam to Noah. The record in Genesis 5 follows a pattern – a man lived so many years, he had a son, he named him, had more sons and daughters, lived so many years more, “and he died”. The pattern is broken when we get to Enoch, son of Jared. At the age of sixty-five, his son Methuselah was born. After that Enoch walked with God for three hundred years, had other sons and daughters, and then God took him to heaven without dying. Enoch is one of two people who were taken up to heaven without experiencing death, the other being Elijah. There are many other parallels with Elijah – both were prophets of judgment and fought idolatry and apostasy; both knew the time and purpose of their translation (to heaven); and both feature in Hebrews 11 – the Faith Hall of Fame. Some prominent Bible scholars hold that Enoch and Elijah are the two witnesses of Revelation 11:3-11. The witnesses are killed then raised to life three and half years later. If the witnesses are indeed Enoch and Elijah, their death would bring them into line with Hebrews 9:27. The Bible does not say very much about Enoch, but we can learn a lot from the little that is said. He walked with God, and his testimony was that he pleased God. Can there be a greater legacy than that?
Q1. (1a) Read Gen 4:23, 6:5, Jude 14-15 What kind of spiritual environment prevailed in Enoch’s time? (1b) Read 1Kings 16:29-33;19:10 Do you see any similarities between the spiritual environments that Enoch and Elijah ministered in? How different are the times we now live in? (1c) Read Gen 5:21-22 Why do you think Enoch’s walk with God is only mentioned after the birth of Methuselah (which means “when he is dead it (the flood) shall come”).
Paragraph 2:
The phrase “walked with God” is said of Enoch twice in consecutive verses (Gen 5:22,24) and once of Noah (Gen 6:9). Enoch and Noah walked with God at a time when the whole of mankind was given to corruption and evil (Gen 6:5). The word translated “walked” (halak) means to walk up and down, be conversant. It is a habitual, regular communion. Walked with God speaks of a true, deep relationship. Abel, Enoch and Noah are the only people identified as being godly before the flood. Noah was said by God to be the only righteous person on earth (Enoch was in heaven by then). Given the long span of their lives, Enoch’s relatives and many of the “other sons and daughters” noted in the genealogies of Genesis 4 and 5, would have been alive while Noah was building the Ark. Enoch remained a man of outstanding sanctity who enjoyed close fellowship with God in a world so evil that God decided to wipe out the world and start again. Enoch’s holiness was not conditional on a “supportive” environment. Something we should learn from.
Q2. Read Gen 6:8-9, 17:1; Zech 3:7 (2a) What do you understand by the phrase “walk with (or before) God? Give examples of people other, than Enoch, Noah, or Abraham, who exemplified that (2b) Read Micah 6:8. Who is required to walk (humbly) before God? (2c) What prevents us from “walking with God” and what should we do about it?
Paragraph 3:
Enoch was sixty-five when he had his first son, and the story of his life changed. That is an age today when many people are thinking about their legacy. There was another Enoch in Genesis 4, who had a city named after him. Many would consider having a city (or even a street!) named after them to be a major life achievement. Yet that city was washed away in the flood, and no one talks about that Enoch (son of Cain). Enoch’s is one of the briefest and most outstanding of biographies – one sentence revealing the history of 365 years, 300 of which were believing, humble, holy walking with God. Thousands of years after he left the earth, his legacy is still inspiring millions every day.
Q3. Read 2Ti 4:7-8 (3a) If you were to write your autobiography this week, what would be some of the highlights? (3b)What would you like to include in the next edition after 2025, should the Lord tarry?
Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the example of Enoch and all the other men and women of faith. Help us to follow their example and humbly walk with you that despite the prevailing environment that our testimony may be that we pleased you. Amen