Enoch--First Man In Heaven

“Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah.  After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years and begot sons and daughters.  So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years.  And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him” (Genesis 5:21-24).

“By faith Enoch was translated so that he did not see death, ‘and was not found because God had translated him’; for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God” (Hebrews 11:5).

Prior to God’s establishing covenant with Abraham and the establishing of “The Law” with the promise of salvation, a man figured out how to please God sufficiently that God “translated” him that he should not see death.

How did Enoch pull this off? 

God had His ways of making Himself known.  Later, when God commanded Noah to build an ark, “according to all that God commanded him [Noah], so he did” (Genesis 6:22).  So, God spoke and Noah obeyed.  Can we not surmise this same plan of action prevailed between God and Enoch?

God spoke and Enoch obeyed.  That speaking was either direct (inwardly, or, to the hearing of the ear) or indirect (outwardly by physical attributes of God written into nature and the heavens).  Either way, Enoch was so able to master what it was that pleased God that God elected to translate Enoch that he should not see death.  One ingredient had to be “faith”.  The Bible gives this “witness” about faith:  “But without faith it is impossible to please Him [God] , for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6).

At least for 300 of his 365 years Enoch faith-walked with God.  If years were reckoned about the same length of time as at present, 300 years would have been sufficient time for both parties to know where the other stood.  Further, from Hebrews 11:5 we learn that Enoch had the testimony that “he pleased God”.  Obviously this wasn’t a secretive relationship—folks in the county knew about it.  It might also be surmised Enoch “didn’t give a rip” what folk thought of his relationship with God.  His concern only was that God be pleased with the whole of his life.

Having expressed pleasure with Enoch’s life and that the prospect of “translation” was on the horizon [Elijah the only other person in the Bible translated had some forewarning of the event], don’t you suppose Enoch would have had something of a farewell party—inviting friend and foe, especially “foes”? It’s almost inevitable Enoch’s translation had to be public so it could be attested.  Such a party would have been a powerful witness to all Enoch’s neighbors that he served the one true, and only living God.

Today, we have a tremendous advantage over Enoch in that the Bible clearly tells us how we are to “walk before God” if we are to please Him.  “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).