Genesis 5 is largely an account of how long each person in the line of Seth, Adam and Eve’s third son, lived and which children they had. For 32 verses, the Bible accounts the lifespan and lineage of generation after generation with no further detail, except Enoch. What set him apart?
Enoch walked with God.
My brother Chris preached a message in youth service a few weeks ago that very astutely made the point that, of all the hundreds of years these men lived, God had nothing special to say about any of their lives except for Enoch’s life.
“Enoch was 65 years old when he fathered Methuselah. And after the birth of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 300 years and fathered other sons and daughters. So Enoch’s life lasted 365 years. Enoch walked with God; then he was not there because God took him.”
Genesis 5:21-24, HCSB
The point is this: some of the men acknowledged in this chapter lived over 900 years. Surely they must have achieved something significant in all those years. Maybe they discovered something, invented something, improved a process for doing something… anything. To God, none of it mattered. The only thing he recognized about their lives were that they lived and had children, arguably only mentioned for the sake of context. But Enoch was different.
Twice it was mentioned that Enoch walked with God. The fact that this was brought up at all, let along two separate times, suggests great significance. In fact, it suggests that it’s the only thing that matters in this life, at least to God. In fact, it mattered so much to God that Enoch didn’t even experience death. God just took him because He wanted Enoch to be with Him.
Makes you think about all the things we strive for and prioritize in the name of success. Ultimately, walking with God is all that will matter in the end. What will God have to say about your life? What will your legacy be?