Enoch enjoyed close fellowship with the Lord. In fact, his communion with God was so intimate that the Lord translated him to glory long before his life on earth might have ended. “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” (Hebrews 11:5, NKJV).
Why did the Lord choose to translate Enoch? The opening word of this verse tells us very plainly that it was because of his faith. Moreover, the closing phrase tells us Enoch’s faith pleased God. The Greek root word for ‘please’ here means fully united, wholly agreeable, in total oneness. In short, Enoch had the closest possible communion with the Lord that any human being after the fall could enjoy, and this intimate fellowship was pleasing to God.
The Bible tells us Enoch began walking with the Lord after he begot his son, Methuselah. Enoch was sixty-five at the time. He then spent the next 300 years fellowshipping with God intimately. To our knowledge, this man never performed a miracle, never developed a profound theology, never did any great works worthy of mention in scripture.
Instead, we read this simple description of the faithful man’s life: “Enoch walked with God.”
Hebrews makes it clear that Enoch was so in touch with the Father, so close to him in hourly communion, God chose to bring him home to himself. The Lord said to Enoch, in essence, “I can’t take you any further in the flesh. To increase my intimacy with you, I have to bring you to my side.” So he whisked Enoch away to glory.
How often do we pray for that level of deeper fellowship with God? How often do we long to meet with God? Enoch’s life is a wonderful testimony of what it means to truly walk in faith, and it should inspire us to prayer and longing.