Beginning with Adam and ending with Noah, Enoch is the seventh of the ten Antediluvian patriarchs. Not only was Enoch the seventh from Adam, he was also the second prophet after Adam. But most spectacularly of all, Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and has become hidden, because God has translated him (Hebrews 11:5). Just as Enoch has been hidden from the world he is also practically hidden throughout the Bible, with just a few passages mentioning him. Although the Biblical verses concerning Enoch are sparse, the weight of their content speaks volumes. For example, in Genesis 5:24 we see that Enoch walked with God and then disappeared because God took him. This is indeed a miraculous event, one of the most amazing miracles found within the Bible, yet it is given such a small place in the scriptures without much explanation. We may not come to a definitive answer, but if we search hard enough we just might unlock the mysteries surrounding Enoch the hidden one.
Apart from the few scriptures that mention Enoch, namely those found in the book of Genesis and in the Epistle to the Hebrews, Enoch does indeed pop up again, this time in the Epistle of St. Jude. St. Jude not only mentions Enoch, but quotes a prophecy that is attributed to him. This prophecy of Enoch, which is quoted in Jude verses 14 and 15, is also found in the book of Enoch: Enoch 1:9 to be specific. Now the book of Enoch is a Pseudepigraphal work, which means that it is part of a number of Jewish writings ascribed to various biblical patriarchs and prophets. However, it is also believed that the Book of Enoch was written 200 years before Christ and therefore not written by Enoch who walked the earth several millennia before the second century BC. This may be a stretch, but Enoch himself could have written his book and then given it to his son Methuselah, who gave it to Noah, who preserved it within the ark. Over the ages it could have been edited and tampered with, but again this is only a theory.
Along with the Pseudepigraphal book of Enoch, the Apocryphal book of Ecclesiasticus mentions Enoch twice. For it is written, “Enoch pleased the Lord and was taken up, an example of repentance to all generations.” (Ecclesiasticus 44:16). And again, “few have ever been created on earth like Enoch, for he was taken up from the earth.” (Ecclesiasticus 49:14). From what we see here in the first verse concerning Enoch in Ecclesiasticus and comparing it with Genesis 5:21-23, it would seem that Enoch did not walk with God his entire life. According to Genesis chapter 5, Enoch lived to be sixty-five years old and begot Methuselah. The Bible goes on to say that Enoch walked with God after he begot Methuselah for 300 years and then God took him. So if Enoch didn’t walk with God his entire life and since Ecclesiasticus tells us that Enoch was an example of repentance, then there must have come a time in Enoch’s life when he made a change. And that change, or repentance, must of happened after Enoch begot his son Methuselah.
The Bible tells us that Enoch was 365 years old when God took him. This may seem like a long life but not compared to the rest of the Antediluvian patriarchs who lived to be over 900 years old. In contrast, Enoch may in fact be the oldest man who ever lived because there is no scriptural evidence that supports the assumption that Enoch has died. On the contrary there is more Biblical proof that points to Enoch still being alive and well even after all these ages. For Hebrews 11:5 says, “Enoch was translated that he should not see death…” Additionally the scriptures state that Enoch was not found, making Enoch a holy hidden one who has lived from the most ancient of times. However, it is not exactly clear as to where Enoch now resides: in heaven, on the earth, or even possibly in the Garden of Eden. For when it comes to locating where Enoch can be, we just don’t know. But if Enoch walked with God, then the best way to find him would be to walk in his shoes, which is a life of repentance. Maybe as we humble ourselves and draw closer to God will we then find Enoch the hidden one.
References:
Cambridge University Press. The Apocrypha, New Revised Standard Version. (Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 1992).
Brown, R.K. The Book of Enoch. (Nashville, Tennessee: James C. Winston Publishing Company, Inc., 1997).
Zondervan. The Holy Bible, King James Version. (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2009).