(Essay) Two Enochs: Two Different Lives

There are two Enochs in the Bible. One is the eldest son of Cain, and the other ascended to heaven without dying. Let me look into the second Enoch first. You can see his story in Genesis 5:21-24.

 

At the age of 65, Enoch became the father of Methuselah. For some reason, his life was drastically transformed since then. Enoch walked faithfully with God for another three hundred years and was finally taken up to heaven.

 

Enoch's time was before Noah's Flood, and people were getting more and more wicked. Enoch might have been one of those. But he was changed and later known as a person who pleased God. (Hebrews 11:5b)

The name of Enoch is of Hebrew origin. Its meaning is "trained, vowed, dedicated; profound." (www.thebump.com baby names)

 

The fact Enoch walked with God implies that he had been living up to his name. He must have "vowed" his faith and "trained" to grow spiritually and "dedicated" as a man of God. 

Furthermore, he became a "profound" prophet who had already prophesied the Second Coming of Jesus. You can hear Enoch's voice in Jude 1:14(NLT). "Listen! The Lord is coming with countless thousands of his holy ones."

But what about another Enoch? Genesis 4:17b(NLT) says, "Then Cain founded a city, which he named Enoch, after his son."

The other Enoch represented the city civilization which would later build the Babel tower rebelling against God. (Genesis 11:1-9) 

The lives of the two men with the same name Enoch were utterly different. This contrast teaches us what matters is not the name itself but the identity. I wish we all will live with the new identity which the Lord Jesus gives.