Enoch establishes the first formal teaching within the Cult of Yahweh.

One much smaller division of the Essene, existing in the times of Jesus, called themselves the Enochian.  Why is this significant?  What is it about the Book of Enoch that would cause followers to so designate themselves?  Who is Enoch?

 

PART I

 

THE  BOOK

The Ethiopic (Abyssinia) text of Enoch was discovered in 1773 by James Bruce.  Enoch, the Book of Giants, and the Book of Noah, were all found in the caves surrounding Qumran.  Of these and other similar texts, Enoch stands out historically as the most cherished of these scriptures.

From the Genesis Apocryphon found in Cave I, DSS,”…Then I, Lamech, ran to Methuselah my father, and [I told] him all of these things.  [And asked him to go to Enoch] his father for he would surely learn all things from him.  For he was beloved, and he shared the lot [of the angels], who taught him all things.  And when Methuselah heard [my words…he went to] Enoch his father to learn all things truthfully from him…his will.”

Geza Vermes, The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English, Penguin, revised edition, p. 481.

 

 

The main focus of Book I (for most people) concerns the Watchers, beginning in chapter seven.  The second most important section begins in chapter forty-six and deals with the Son of Man, the Ancient of Days, and the Lord of the Spirits.  This section must be considered in two ways: the first concerns the order of souls or hierarchy, and the second is the prophetical speaking given by Enoch concerning the Son of Man.  Both would have to be more Essenic in content, especially compared to Ezra’s more historical and legal treatment of scripture, and his establishment of the Second Temple, with the continuation of sacrifice.

Book I is considered autobiographical by the people of Jesus’ time, whether written or spoken, but transcribed as a visionary work.  Most modern scholars would disagree with Enoch’s direct authorship.   However, the weight of Enoch’s Book I is supported by the Book of Giants, Jasher, and other sources.  This support does not guarantee Enoch’s authorship, but the storylines source from a common understanding accepted as fact, which is interesting in and of itself.

Books II & III of Enoch were transcribed at approximately 100 BC, not long after the Maccabean Revolt ended (144 BC).  These two books are not considered as substantive as Book I and are not given over to any autobiographical notion.   Later chapters, thought to have been written in the 5/6th centuries, also became a part of the Book of Enoch, but have to be considered removed from the previous text, clearly written by others.  This article focuses on Book I.

 The ancient text was originally transcribed into both Hebrew and Aramaic and was found among the DSS.  Earlier copies than in the DSS have not yet been discovered.  The Enochian scripture seems a well-known and well-liked part of the Judaic religious heritage, which reveals an ongoing study and commitment to this text.  Later references in the Christian Bible are also present.

“This complex work [Enoch] was extremely influential and is very important.  It is the oldest known Jewish apocalyptic text—older than the canonical book of Daniel—and this proves that it is incorrect to maintain that the apocalyptic genre originated in the age of the Maccabean revolt. The Enochic literature was very popular; there are many fragments among the Scrolls of the Dead Sea,” livius.org.

Jude 14: “Moreover, Hanokh [Enoch] in the seventh generation starting with Adam, also prophesied about these men, saying, ‘Look! Adonai came with his myriads of holy ones  (15) to execute judgment against everyone, that is, to convict all the godless for their godless deeds which they have done in such a godless way, and for all the harsh words these godless sinners have spoken against him.’  (16) These people are grumblers and complainers, they follow their evil passions, their mouths speak grandiosities, and they flatter others to gain advantage.  (17) But you, dear friends, keep in mind the words spoken in advance by the emissaries of our Lord Yeshua Messiah.  (18) They told you, ‘ During the acharit-hayamim [perilous times; end of days] there will be scoffers following on their own godless passions.’ (19) These are the [people] who cause divisions.  They are controlled by their impulses, because they don’t have the Spirit.” (Complete Jewish Study Bible)

The Book of Enoch maintained its stature well into the New Testament era.  The Book of Jasher establishes Enoch’s godly reign in chapter three, v. 2-12 (243 years), wherein one hundred and thirty kings and princes were students and followers of his wisdom and knowledge.

§

 

The Greek invasion created a tumultuous period that changed the face of Judaism.  The division of Judaism into different sects then began, eventuating in the Pharisees, Sadducees (Temple priests), and those who we know today as the Essene.  In 150 BC (approx.) a final split occurred when the ‘Teacher of Righteousness’ with the Elect of the Zadokite priesthood and their followers (Essene) went into retreat.  They removed themselves from the then-Hellenized Zadokites* (later known as Sadducees).  As for the Elect, they would divide into two principal groups, Nazarenes in the northern provinces of Arabia (Hauran) and Galilee itself, and Ossaean Essene who later reverted to legalism and who settled in Qumran and were celibate.**

*The Sadducees had assumed corrupt religious practices, pursuing wealth and governmental influence with the Greeks, much as they later would do with the Romans.

**”The people who wrote and curated the Dead Sea Scrolls and lived at Qumran are generally thought of as including a group known by the Greek name Essianoi, Essenes, who had separated themselves from the Second Temple priesthood and retreated to the silence of the wilderness to study, pray, and [further] develop their version of the Hebrew texts and the Hebrew religion.”  The Secret Initiation of Jesus at Qumran, Robert Feathers, p. 99.

Also in 150 BC, the Book of Daniel was written, and Books II & III of Enoch were soon after completed.  Combined with the Book of Revelation, the Book of Daniel, and the Book of Enoch, these become the most prophetic and apocalyptic of scriptural texts.  It seems clear that Enoch held a long and valued tradition within Judaism, being a root recounting of events.  All three manuscripts were transcribed after times of great trouble upon the land: first the Greek invasion (Enoch I), then the Maccabean Revolt (Daniel and Enoch II & III), and last, the invasion by Rome and the taking of Jerusalem, AD 70 (Revelation, AD 96).  Many other of The Dead Sea Scrolls were written during the Greek and Maccabean periods as well, including the Book of Giants.

In the New Testament, Enoch is referenced in Jude 14 & 15, emphasizing the coming of the Lord with ten thousand saints, and thence to execute judgment on those who commit ungodly deeds and those whose speech has been ungodly (heretical or blasphemous).  Written as a Hebrew text, and rooted in Essene tradition, along with representation in several New Testament scriptures, the Book of Enoch has to be considered an influence within the transitional teaching of the Way.

 

Christian Transitions

Matthew Chapter 13 expresses a part of the secret teachings, sometimes referred to as wisdom teachings.  Chapter 13 acquaints us with the sowing of good seed, the Parable of the Tares, and the Pearl of Great Price, and in verse 13.35-40, Jesus speaks of uttering secrets not revealed from the foundation of the world: (35) “I will say what has been hidden since the creation of the universe.”  These secrets reference himself as the Messiah and a plan that long ago came into being.

Enoch 1.1-2, 4-5, “The word of the blessing of Enoch, how he blessed the elect and the righteous, who were to exist in the time of trouble; rejecting (to the rejection of) all the wicked and ungodly.  Enoch, who was a righteous man, who was with God, answered and spoke, while his eyes were open, and while he saw a holy vision in the heavens.  This the angels showed me.  (2) From them I heard all things, and understood what I saw; that which will not take place in this generation, but in a generation which is to succeed at a distant period, on account of the elect.”  Verse 4, “Who will hereafter tread upon Mount Sanai; appear with his hosts; and be manifested in the strength of his power from heaven,  (5) All shall be afraid, and the Watchers be terrified.”  Note: The Watchers arrived during the time of Jared.

Mt. 25.34, “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you whom my Father has blessed, take your inheritance, the Kingdom prepared for you from the founding of the world.”

Jn. 17.24-26, “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am; so that they may see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. (25) Righteous Father, the world has not known you, but I have known you, and these people have known that you sent me.  (26) I made your name known to them, and I will continue to make it known; so that the love by which you have loved me may be in them, and I myself shall be united with them.” (CJSB interpretation, the above scriptures)

 

Chapter 13 also relates to Matt. 7.6, concerning casting pearls of wisdom or knowledge before those not ready, “and (they) turn again and rend you.”*  Immediately following Matt. 7.6, the proper instruction is given: “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”  To seek becomes an underpinning of Nazarene enlightenment principles, enlightenment into the spirit of God, as James later expands upon concerning perseverance.

*DSS Community Rule, Chapter IX, “He shall conceal the teaching of the Law from men of injustice, but shall impart true knowledge and righteous judgment to those who have chosen the Way.”  

Correspondent teachings run throughout the Hebrew and Christian testaments, some of which are oft-quoted scripture.  Read the following: Dan. 9.4, “…keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love Him, and to them that keep His commandments;” compares well with Mark 12.32-33, which is spoken by a scribe, “Well, Master thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but He: (33) And to love Him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbor as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”  Compared to Hosea 6.6, “For I desired mercy, not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.”  These scriptures reflect the ‘seeking and the finding’.  Jesus again speaks to the issue of mercy in Matt. 9.13, “I will have mercy, and not sacrifice; for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” 

All of these scriptures pronounce a secret knowledge and wisdom teaching confirmed within man, of which Enoch is the first notable teacher.   In these texts, man is considered a spirit being, taking the loftier road looking downward and not the lower road looking upward, of which animal sacrifice was one lower earthly representation.  Jesus wants you to see yourself as a Child of God by innate nature.  Instead of using sacrifice to restore yourself, but to assume it by asking, seeking, and knocking, and with no interventions—to ascend to what you should be and how you should perceive yourself, and without ritual or sacrifice, which is not needed.  Knowledge and wisdom continue a strong thread from the influence of Enoch.*

*Jasher 3.5, “And Enoch rose up according to the things of the Lord, and went forth from his house, from his place and the chamber in which he was concealed; and he went to the sons of men and taught them the ways of the Lord, and at a time assembled the sons of men and acquainted them with the instruction of the Lord.”

Older and newer testaments share the higher vision of putting away animal sacrifice and remitting the spiritual call upon the person.   All of these scriptures have a strong Essenic bent.  The story of Enoch provides one important root.  The Essene did not practice sacrifice, and this would include Jesus.  The teaching had always been to embrace the spirit and to sacrifice your earthly Self, the self of bad habits, excuses, intellectual justifications, and negativity, with faith, love, and wisdom-knowledge emphasized.  Sacrifice all of the temporal conditions of man, one by one, and reinsert yourself (reborn, recommitted) under God. 

 

Old and New Testament

Let us begin the study of the Book of Enoch with comparisons between the Old and New Testaments.  Many of Jesus’ teachings derive from the prophets of the high priesthood, the earlier Zadokites ( First Temple Priests) of the Hebrew Bible.  Many comparative scriptures could be referenced: Isaiah 6.9, “Seeing many things, but thou observes not; opening the ears, but he hearth not,” and then spoken by Jesus in Matt. 13.13-14, “…because they seeing they see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.”  Isaiah 42.17-24, particularly v. 20 is a similar case.

 

The following scriptures are a very brief compendium of similarities:

Revelation 1.12-14 ends with, “His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes were as aflame of fire.”                                                                                                                                                       

Enoch, 46.1,  “There I beheld the Ancient of Days, whose head was like white wool, and with him another, whose countenance resembled that of a man.  His countenance was full of grace, like that of one of the holy angels.”

Daniel 7.9, “I beheld till the thrones cast down, and the Ancient of Days did sit, Whose garment was as white as snow, and the hair of His head like the pure wool: His throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.” 

                                                                                                                                                                            

Dan. 4.5, “I saw a dream which made me afraid, and the thoughts upon my bed and the visions of my head troubled me.”                                                                                                                                                                      

Enoch, 82.4, “I was lying down in the house of my grandfather Mamalel, when I saw in a vision heaven purifying and snatched away.  (5) And falling to the earth, I saw likewise the earth absorbed by a great abyss; and mountains suspended over mountains… (7) I cried out and said, The earth is destroyed.”

The Essene text of Enoch reads much like Revelation, both of which include a powerful apocalyptic style:

In Enoch, we read, ch. 60.13, “He shall call to every power of the heavens, to all the holy above, and the power of God.  The Cherubim, the Seraphim, and the Ophanin, all the angels of power, and all the angels of the Lords, namely, of the Elect One, and of the other Power, who was upon the earth over the water of that day.”*                                                                                                                                                                                    

Compare this to Revelation 4.5, “And out of the throne proceeded lightning and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.” 

*The Book of Enoch the Prophet, from original 1883 edition, R. Laurence translation, all of the above Enoch quotes.

 

The New Testament is not immune from Enoch, which lends the thought that Enoch was a well-known text.

Matt. 19.28, “When the Son of Man shall sit on the throne of his glory, ye shall also sit on twelve thrones”: Enoch 62.2, “The Lord of the spirits has sat down on the throne of his glory, and the spirit of righteousness has been poured out upon him.”*

*J. H. Charlesworth. Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. Hendrickson, Peabody Mass., 2011. Print. Highly recommended.

Acts 10.4, “Thy prayers and thine alms are come for a memorial before God”: Enoch 99.3, “to raise up your prayers as a memorial, and place them as a testimony before the angels.”

Acts 4.12, “Neither is there salvation from any other; for there is none another name under heaven given to men, whereby we must be saved.”  Enoch, ch. 48, [The Son of Man; the Antecedent of Time; his judgment,] v. 7, “And he has revealed the wisdom of the Lord of the Spirit of the righteous and holy ones, because he has preserved the portion of the righteous…and because they will be saved in his name and it is (his) good pleasure that they have life.”

Enoch 48: “Furthermore, in that place I saw the fountain of righteousness, which does not become depleted and is surrounded completely by numerous fountains of wisdom.  All the thirsty ones drink (of the water) and become filled with wisdom.  (Then) their dwelling places become with the holy, righteous, and elect ones.  At that hour, that Son of Man was given a name, in the presence of the Lord of the Spirits, the Before-Time; even before the creation of the sun and the moon, before the creation of the stars, he was given a name in the presence of the Lord of the Spirits.  He will become a staff for the righteous ones in order that they may lean on him and not fall.  He is the light of the gentiles and he will become the hope of those who are sick in their hearts.  All those who dwell upon the earth shall fall and worship before him; they shall glorify, bless, and sing the name of the Lord of the Spirits.  For this purpose he became the Chosen One; he was concealed in the presence of (the Lord of the Spirits) prior to the creation of the world, and for eternity.  And he has revealed the wisdom of the Lord of the Spirits to the righteous and the holy ones, for he has preserved a portion of the righteous because they have despised this world of oppression (together with) all its ways of life and its habits in the name of the Lord of the Spirits; and because they will be saved in his name and it is his good pleasure that they have life.”*

*Charlesworth translation

Luke and Paul were companions, and Paul has no problem with the content of the Book of Enoch, as in verse I Thess. 5.5, “Ye are the children of light, and the children of the day, and we are not of the night, or darkness”: Enoch 92.24, “…walk in eternal light,”  and many more Enochian scriptures reference the Son of Man, Heaven as a blessing of light (45.4), with many contrasts to dark and light.*  Many scriptures from Enoch, Revelations, and Daniel might be chosen and compared favorably.

*Further study: jstor.org.

 

Much of Enoch was newly transcribed not long after the Essenic separation.  Much of the transcription occurred in Qumran (Ossaeans).  Most scholars accept that the Teacher of Righteousness and his followers became the Nazarene Essene, those who would become the new sprout (nazara) of pure truth and understanding, the originating group from which Jesus came (Jesus the Nazarene).  A concurrent group, the Ossaeans, confined their study to a much more legal perspective, even though they too would have studied Enoch.  To both of them, the Book of Enoch was accepted history.

To find out where John the Baptist reached his understanding of Messiah, Enoch 48.2-5 tells us, “In that hour was this Son of Man invoked before the Lord of spirits, and his name in the presence of the Ancient of days.  Before the sun and the signs were created, before the stars of heaven were formed, his name was invoked in the presence of the Lord of Spirits.  A support he shall be for the righteous and the holy to lean upon, without falling; and he shall be the light of nations.”  And v. 5, gives us, “Therefore the Elect and the Concealed One existed in his presence, before the world was created, and forever.” *

*R. Laurence translation

In chapter 50.14 of Enoch, a curious phrase is used, a phrase which would later be used by those called gnostics (knowers), as well as those described as blessed with the Holy Spirit, or the Shekinah Glory (Pentecost), as follows: “…all shall say with united voice: Blessed is He; and the name of the Lord of spirits shall be blessed forever and forever; all, who sleep not, shall bless it in the heaven above.”  To wake up, or to be awakened, was the trademark of the early church.  To commit is always considered a good beginning and is integrated into many of Jesus’ teachings; true awakening, and continuing progress, however, is the fuller intent.  The Essene traditionally used the principle of awakening, meaning the realization of the spirit of God within, or awakening to God by extreme experience, thus ‘born again’.  To ‘know about’ the spirit within serves only as a flickering light and is not adequate.  To sow the good seed and that you should awaken would be closer to the mark and is the standard of the Way.

In Ezekiel, 37.12, the allusion to coming out of the grave is written, “Therefore prophesy and say unto them…Behold, O My People, I will open up your graves* (awaken you), and cause you to come up out of your graves (come forth), and bring you into the land of Israel (promised land, or heaven, awakening).  Much like Ezekiel, Jesus speaks in Matt. 22.32, “God is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living,” also points to wakefulness or awakening.  Matt. 11.5, “…the dead (asleep) are raised up, and the poor (in spirit) have the gospel preached to them.”  

*graves: used to convey being asleep or dead to the spirit.

§

 

To become a believer was to be desired, but the experience of the Holy Spirit pouring down upon thee was greatly desired.  Believers would have perceived themselves as participating in and receiving a part of the anointing Jesus experienced.  Father and Son, and now you, are bound together*. The experience of oneness is often described by those who receive the Shekinah.  Exhilarating joy is often experienced.  Those who have received this anointing, and I am one, can say at times the Holy Spirit** can move with quiet grace and joy upon one occasion and another with power and strength.  The awakening to the spirit of God within and the anointing of the Holy Spirit from without are fundamental to the Nazarene enlightenment tradition (see, Love-Oneness).

 

*Jn. 17.21, That they may all be one;

As Thou, Father, art in me, and I in Thee,

that they also may be one of Us:

**Shekinah (Holy Spirit) is related to, as we observe from our earthly encasement, as feminine (new birth). God was perceived as one or at one with Himself, manifesting what we perceive as masculine or feminine as needed.  The root of Shekinah is Shin, which is feminine.

 

 

Paul, for example, would have been taught the meanings of certain events described in the Book of Enoch.  Paul’s training in Arabia (Gal. 1. 17), then later training in Damascus, indicates that the more mystical secrets he later writes about are not Pharisaic.  Paul’s journey did not include visiting apostles in Jerusalem, and once there to receive training secondhand, he removed himself directly to the source—Nazarene locations in the now Syrian desert, then Arabia, perhaps in Cochaba and Nazara*—and then finished his remaining training for three years in Damascus (v. 1.18).  Paul then sees Peter and James for two weeks in Jerusalem, wherein Paul’s ministry unto the Gentiles begins with his travels to Syria and Cilicia.

*Early History of the Way

Enoch hands down the preserved thread of the Way, continued through the old and new testimonies, the Dead Sea Scrolls, through Jesus, and right unto the end of scripture, the Book of Revelation.

 

 

PART II

 

ENOCH

The ‘good line’ or heritage of man, as opposed to the morally corrupted lineage (Cain), becomes heightened within the seventh generation.  In the Book of Enoch, the confirmation of God’s promise to His own—believe in Me, then awaken to Me, I will take you unto Me, you shall abide with Me—is presented in the context of the seventh generation*, the generation of perfection-completeness, and is delivered to us in the person of Enoch.

*A good explanation concerning the length of life (generations) and gematria is given on YouTube: InspiringPhilosophy.com.  This explanation is non-orthodox.

The extent of Enoch’s influence amongst the people would require a faith-based ministry.  Jewish scholars believe Enoch possessed the gift of prophecy (spokesman, inspirational speaker).  Later designated as a prophet, Enoch becomes the first soul given this honor.  Instructed by his grandfather, Mahalaleel, he would graduate into Divine instruction, which infers instruction directly from the Holy Spirit.  It is likely his speech would contain an apocalyptic vision, including revelation of truth (knowledge-based).  Enoch organized thousands to follow in the steps of ‘Hasidim’ or righteousness.  Enoch’s name relates to teaching or ‘to initiate.’

 

 

Although Enosh, son of Seth, proselytized the Cult of Yahweh, a resurgent following congregates under Enoch’s firm leadership. Enoch’s prophetic voice would have captured the imagination of many who had strayed.  Firmly rooted within his faith, his walk in the ways of God, and accompanied by a broad-based knowledge teaching, these elements would effectively combine with apocalyptic speaking, separating those who would follow and those who would not.  For this reason, he engenders the revelation of each man into God; mankind is tested thoroughly, with Enoch’s teaching and standards serving as the arbiter.  Each man becomes revealed as wheat or chaff.

 

Book of Jasher, Chapter 3

1 And Enoch lived sixty-five years and begat Methuselah; and Enoch walked with God after having begat Methuselah, and he served the Lord, and despised the evil ways of men.

2 And the soul of Enoch was wrapped up in the instruction of the Lord, in knowledge and in understanding; and he wisely retired from the sons of men, and secreted himself from them for many days.

3 And it was at the expiration of many years, whilst he was serving the Lord, and praying before him in his house, that an angel of the Lord called to him from Heaven, and he said, Here am I.

4 And he said, Rise, go forth from thy house and from the place where thou dost hide thyself, and appear to the sons of men, in order that thou mayest teach them the way in which they should go and the work which they must accomplish to enter in the ways of God.

5 And Enoch rose up according to the word of the Lord, and went forth from his house, from his place and from the chamber in which he was concealed; and he went to the sons of men and taught them the ways of the Lord, and at that time assembled the sons of men and acquainted them with the instruction of the Lord.

6 And he ordered it to be proclaimed in all the places where the sons of men dwelt, saying, Where is the man who wishes to know the ways of the Lord and good works? let him come to Enoch.

7 And the sons of men assembled to him, for all who desired this thing went to Enoch, and Enoch reigned over the sons of men according to the word of the Lord, and they came and bowed to him and they heard his word.

8 And the spirit of God was upon Enoch, and he taught all his men the wisdom of God and his ways, and the sons of men served the Lord all the days of Enoch, and they came to hear his wisdom.

9 And all the kings of the sons of men, both first and last, together with their princes and judges, came to Enoch when they heard of his wisdom, and they bowed down to him, and they also required of Enoch to reign over them, to which he consented.

10 And they assembled in all, one hundred and thirty kings and princes, and they made Enoch king over them and they were all under his power and command.

11 And Enoch taught them wisdom, knowledge, and the ways of the Lord; and he made peace amongst them, and peace was throughout the earth during the life of Enoch.

12 And Enoch reigned over the sons of men two hundred and forty-three years, and he did justice and righteousness with all his people, and he led them in the ways of the Lord.*

*from sacred-texts.com

 

Enoch produced tremendous and sustaining work.  But, as Genesis 6.1* tells us about increasing populations, followed by the hierarchies that begin to rule these burgeoning city-states, earthly leadership becomes engrossed by assumptions of earthly power, as related in the Cain article, Inheritance.  By the end of Enoch’s age, and upon entering the age of Noah, all men have now chosen, either standing with the God of righteousness or pagan to the root.

* Gn. 6.1, “…men began to multiply on the face of the earth.”

§

 

Enoch’s Life

 

Enoch would be typified as a family man.  The name Enoch refers also to the educated one, or those educated.  ‘Holy Hasidic’ would be a descriptive name for Enoch.  His teaching was highly prized among those later designated as the Hasadim and speaks to his broad-based acceptance.  Many who study in the Way consider Enoch as the primitive root of the teaching itself.  Having had Adam and Eve’s knowledge base handed down from Enosh, Enoch’s teaching platform is complete.  

Enosh tries first by establishing the Cult of Yahweh, but it is Enoch’s teaching heritage that survives.  Placed in a surrounding of growing corruption, yet able to maintain fealty and countenance toward God, Enoch becomes the first true prophet.

 

 

 

 

Gen. 5.22, again restated in v. 24: “Enoch walked with God three hundred years*… And Enoch walked with God, and he was not, and God took him.”  These scriptures point to Enoch as outstandingly different than any other participant of the generations thus far.  Previously the litany of the generations reads as ‘they lived, they died, and in-between they begot’.  Enoch truly walks with God (spirit manifest from within?), spurring three complete books written in his name, but also that Enoch does not die but is taken directly by God and assumed into heaven.

*Number 300 relates to Divine perfection, supernatural victory over enemies, and the signature of God (3, 30, 300).

“Walked with God,” tells us much about Enoch.  Enoch’s daily walk demonstrates full commitment.  ‘The walk with God’ suggests ‘God abided in him’—Enoch is awake while others sleep.  Other examples of this inspired pathway were entered upon by other biblical luminaries, among them John the Baptist, who “raised up a horn of salvation,” “Prophet of the Highest” (Lk. 2.69, 76).  Jesus, in his person and his teaching of the Way, speaks to the same office, and John 1.1-15 relates Jesus’ supreme precedence.  Noah also walked with God (Gn. 9.1).  Known as the ‘righteous remnant’, through these highly committed individuals the thread of the enlightenment into God remains preserved.  Even so, the first true proto-Christ figure, Enoch, stands out.

By contrast, remember the seventh generation of Cain?  Lamech arrives in that generation (Cain VI) and is arguably the most reprehensible individual in the Hebrew Bible.  However, the godly line which follows Adam into the seventh generation gives us Enoch.  His is the generation of perfection, or full completion often attributed as ‘wholeness with God’.  Just as Cain’s heritage is a complete evil, so Adam’s is a completed spirituality.

 

Enoch lives during the time of a falling away.  Many gods proliferated and moved mankind into great confusion.  Enoch tries to rally those who have remained righteous and those who can be converted, contrasted with those who have chosen the fallen pathway.

 

Jesus makes an oblique reference to the times of Enoch and those who interfere with God’s works, “Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven them; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven, in this age or this age to come” (Lk. 12.10).  The plan of God is sacrosanct, and to interfere in His workings of that plan bears a heavy burden.  It directly implies that he who is interfering or speaks against the Holy Spirit already knows about God, and interferes willfully.

As to those who disrupt God’s work, even into the times of Jesus, these interfering souls are mentioned, as Jesus speaks in the Parable of the Tares, “…but the tares are the sons (children) of the wicked one” (Mt. 13.37-40).  As we head toward Noah, such are the times of Enoch.

 

THE WAY

 

 

It is Noah who receives Enoch’s teaching “… a just man, perfect in his generations.  Noah walked with God” (Gn. 6.9).  The idea of walking with God is intrinsic to the Way. 

 

Enoch essentially establishes this pathway of ‘walking’ for the generations, and in part why Enoch is considered a proto-Christ by many religious scholars.  This pathway implies several attributes.  Much as Jesus demonstrated while walking in the full expression of God, it implies a knowledge of what God approves and does not approve.  It implies a certain wakefulness and insightfulness whose gears turn the enlightened understanding.  This, in turn, implies seeking Him and implies a relationship with Him.  Walking with God requires sensitivity to Him, both His presence within and without, and a familiarity with the teachings God has provided, not only through study but by personal revelation—God considers your life important.

Sowing good seeds and a consistent prayer regimen keeps the soul connected to the spirit within.  These two factors create a pathway grounded in relationship, for you are relating to the spirit of God within, as in ‘walked with God’.  Most people configure with the intellect, using a kind of logic to gain understanding.  Of a nature, this intellectual approach only feeds the intellect.  Although helpful within the analytical function, the intellect can carry a person only so far.  Enoch, however, would have to move much further into the revelation from within, a more directly cognitive state.

Other practices assist this cognitive development.  Faith is an important attribute, for it adds continuity, and continuance, for weakness befalls all men, even if it is personal doubt.  Asking, seeking, and persistence, relating to knocking on the door is a good example.  Seeking is sometimes demonstrated by meditation or focusing on the subject at hand, therein witnessing or guidance might be provided.  Asking is often contained within prayer.  Walking with God embraces all of the above-mentioned factors. Although sometimes stumbling at first, these spiritual attributes lend a good deal of soundness to anyone’s pathway.

 

If we observe Jesus’s ministry one root of the Way becomes revealed from the Book of Jude.  This scripture mentions Enoch’s prophesies concerning the ungodly and their deeds.

“The seventh one in line from Adam, Enoch, also prophesied about them when he said: ‘Look, Jehovah came with his holy myriads to execute judgment against all, and to convict the ungodly concerning all the ungodly deeds that they did in an ungodly way… these men are murmurers, complainers about their lot in life, following their desires, and their mouths make grandiose boasts, while they are flattering others for their benefit” (Jude 14-16).  The teachings of Jesus are full of such references.  Enoch, in his own time and place, would have no problem relating to Jesus’ teachings.

There are further similarities to Jesus.  While Jesus dealt with the splintering of Judaism itself, Enoch dealt with the splintering of the righteous broken off into various pagan religions.  As surely as Enoch found himself surrounded by enemies, we know Jesus was also.  The height of God’s teachings for that era were presented during Enoch’s ministry, for Jesus we would undoubtedly say the same was true.

From Enoch Book II, chapter 33, verse 4, “And there is no advisor and no successor to my creation.  I am self-eternal and not made by hand.  My thought is without change.  My wisdom is my advisor and my deed is my word…  (5) Apply your mind, Enoch, and acknowledge the One who is speaking to you.”*   This is written as a direct speaking from God unto Enoch.  This is reminiscent of God speaking to Moses, “I Am that I Am,” Ex. 3.14, and “…and the Word was with God,” Jn.1.1

*Charlesworth. The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, vol. I, Apocalyptic Literature, and Testaments. Peabody, Mass: Hendrickson, 2nd ed., 2011. Print.

 

When Enoch is taken up he transcends into the angel Metatron.  Angel Metatron is also ‘he who unifies’, but he who also ‘crowns’ your prayers to enhance them toward the will of God, and in so doing assists in binding heaven and earth together.  

There is much commentary concerning Metatron.  One noted comment makes a similarity between Melchizedek and Metatron:  “…both hold exalted, if not pre-eminent, positions among the angels; both are heavenly judges… Both had earthly lives prior to their exalted, heavenly states.”*  This similarity extends itself to Jesus Christ as well.  Metatron is called the ‘Prince of the Divine Presence’, he dwells with God.

*ibid. Charlesworth, trans. P. Alexander, introduction 3 Enoch, The Heavenly Melchizedek.

For the teaching of the Way, Jesus speaks of his generation that cannot discern the signs of the times and denounces those who cannot interpret them as evil (Mt. 16.3-4).  Enoch faces a similar circumstance which within two centuries leads to Noah and the flood.  The people cannot recognize the movement of the spirit in the times in which they live.  Many would denote our current times as quite similar.  Enoch, as a teacher and Holy One, shines as a beacon of light, and amidst his generation radiates his relationship with God.

*

 

Enoch and the Flood

I Enoch, ch. 83-89, describes the flood of Noah, The Dream Visions.  It begins with symbolic language concerning Enoch’s times, followed by the Vision of the Deluge, and ends with the establishment of the Messianic Kingdom.  Written in a highly symbolic fashion, the Vision of the Deluge throughout ch. 89, reads much like Revelation.

 

As to the flood itself, ch. 89, “Again I saw, and behold, fountains were opened upon the ground…and the water began to swell and rise upon the ground; and I saw the enclosed area until the whole ground was completely covered with water.”   A tectonic shift is a usual explanation for the “water began to swell”, somewhat more than a mere earthquake.  Later, “…cascading streams were dissipated from that high ceiling…and other pits were opened.  Then the water began to descend into them until the ground became visible, that boat settled upon the earth, the darkness vanished, and became light.”

 

Enoch calls out over the ages that man should walk with God, know godly ways, and stay keen on His presence.  En. 83.8, “Now, my son..for you are a man of faith, so that a remnant shall remain upon the earth and that the whole earth shall not be blotted out.”

The next Righteous Remnant is Noah.

 

 

 

 

 

God Bless!