Gen 5: 21 Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah. 22 After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters. 23 So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. 24 And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.
"By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." (Hebrews 11:5-6)
“Yet in all ages there have been many who attempted to please God without faith. Cain began it, but failed woefully. All in their Divine worship profess a desire to please God… why otherwise should they make the attempt? But, as the apostle declares in another place, many seek unto God ‘but not by faith, but as it were by the works of the Law’ (Rom. 9:32).” (A. W. Pink)
This Enoch is “Jared's son among the descendants of Seth; Methuselah's father (Gn 5:18-24; 1 Chr 1:3).” (Tyndale Bible Dictionary) He is the seventh from Adam. (Jude 14)
The name "Enoch" is from Hebrew Hanokh, literally "dedicated, consecrated.” “In Abel the truth of righteousness by faith is illustrated.” (Arno Gaebelein) In contrast in Enoch we witness the blessedness of living a consecrated life. “The sacrifices of the fathers were only instructive emblems; it was faith in the Promise which animated their souls." (Joseph Sutcliffe)
After his son's birth, Enoch earnestly pursed and found God. Adults often awaken is to responsibility in child birth. “Enoch had ‘walked according to the course of this world’ (Eph. 2:2), had gone his ‘own way’ (Isa. 53:6) of self-pleasing, and unconcerned about the future, had thought only of the present. But now he had been ‘reconciled to God’ (2 Cor. 5:20), for ‘can two walk together, except they be agreed?’ (Amos 3:3). The term ‘walk’ signifies a voluntary act, a steady advance, a progress in spiritual things. To ‘walk with God’ imports a life surrendered to God, a life controlled by God, a life lived for God. It is to that our present verse has reference.” (A. W. Pink) Enoch was translated without dying, as a reward. God “changed corruption into incorruption, the natural body into the spiritual.” (Schaff’s NT Commentary)
“The question arises, ‘Well, what in the world happened to Enoch?’ We are told that ‘he was not; for God took him.’What does that mean? The writer to the Hebrews tells us, ‘By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him.’ ...That word ‘translate’ is metatithemi. Tithemi means ‘to place’ and meta means ‘over’ — it means ‘to place over.’ And it actually means to place over death — he went over death, not through it." (The Man Who Went Home for Christmas by Dr. J. Vernon McGee) “Nothing is said in the Old Testament of [the contents of] his faith; but before his translation is recorded, it is recorded that ‘he pleased God;’ and now the NT writer proceeds to show that faith was the foundation of his God-accepted life." (Schaff's NT Commentary)
Some believe that when we die, the immortal soul merely leaves the mortal body. Then why all of the fuss over the translation of Enoch... and later Elijah. Their translations provided “a mighty miracle, designed to effect what ordinary means of instruction had failed to accomplish, [it] gave a palpable proof to an age of almost universal unbelief that the doctrines which he had taught (Jude 14, 15) were true and that his devotedness to the cause of God and righteousness in the midst of opposition was highly pleasing to the mind of God.” (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown)
Jesus will indeed come again in glory and resurrect the dead and a whole generation of His saints will likewise be translated: “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory.’” (1 Cor 15:51-54)
JUDE AND THE BOOK OF ENOCH
Jude 14 Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, 15 to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” (cp. Enoch 1:9)
Jude seems to paraphrase the non-canonized book of Enoch. Let’s take a look to see if it is in line with the Biblical text. Jude says that some “pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.” (Jude 4; NIV) He then, reminds us that the God of Israel “at one time delivered His people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day. In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire” which shall likewise destroy His adversaries.
“The Holy Great One will come forth from His dwelling, and the eternal God will tread upon the earth, (even) on Mount Sinai, and appear from His camp, and appear in the strength of His might from the heaven of heavens. And all shall be smitten with fear and the Watchers shall quake, and great fear and trembling shall seize them unto the ends of the earth. And the high mountains shall be shaken, and the high hills shall be made low, and shall melt like wax before the flame. And the earth shall be wholly rent in sunder, and all that is upon the earth shall perish." (Enoch 1:3b-7a) That speaks of the destruction of this world by fire at the Coming of Jesus.
And on the destroyed earth "the angels who did not keep their positions of authority etc" are "kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day." (Jude 1:6) I believe that this speaks of the millennium after the earth is destroyed.
But then there will be the Second Resurrection. “And there shall be a judgement upon all." (Enoch 1:7b) "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, etc.." (2 Cor 5:10) "But with the righteous He will make peace, and will protect the elect, and mercy shall be upon them. And they shall all belong to God, And they shall be prospered, and they shall all be blessed. And He will help them all, And light shall appear unto them, And He will make peace with them." (Enoch 1:8)
And his next message is about final punishment of the wicked:
"And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones to execute judgement upon all, and to destroy all the ungodly: and to convict all flesh of all the works of their ungodliness which they have ungodly committed, and of all the hard things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” (Enoch 1:9)