Enoch, fate of
The fate of Enoch (Gen 5:24):
Enoch testified against the "ungodly" (Jud 1:14,15), ie
Lamech, his counterpart in Cain's line: a man of violence (Gen 4:23,24). Perhaps
Lamech sought to slay Enoch, and God removed him from harm -- hidden in Garden
of Eden, to walk with God in even closer fellowship, as a "reward" (Heb 11:5,6).
(BS 10:152,153).
What happened to Enoch? In both Gen and Heb 11:5 Enoch is
treated differently than his contemporaries. Did he die? Prob "Yes!": 1Co 15:22:
"as in Adam all die"; and Rom 5:14: "death reigned from Adam to Moses." Also,
Heb 11:13: "these all died in faith", and the five people mentioned earlier
included Enoch.
If so, then what about the statement: "he was not, for God
took him"? This suggests disappearance or removal, as does Heb 11:5 and the word
"translated" (= transferred, or changed as to status: ie Heb 7:12). Possibly
Enoch was taken away from a potential life-threatening disaster to another place
to live out his life. Heb 11:4,5 sets Enoch alongside Abel who died by the hand
of an assassin; both experienced God's overshadowing care, yet one suffered and
the other was delivered.
