Methuselah | biblical figure | Britannica.com biblical figure Also known as Methushael Methuselah, also spelled Methushael , Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) patriarch whose life span as recorded in Genesis (5:27) was 969 years; he has survived in legend and tradition as the longest-lived human. Genesis tells nothing about Methuselah beyond sparse genealogical details: he was the great-great-great-great-grandson of Seth, the child of Adam and Eve begotten more than a century after Cain. He was the father of Lamech and the grandfather of Noah. By the biblical account he came of hardy stock: all his forebears lived for between 895 and 962 years except for his father, Enoch, who lived to be 365. The enumeration of Methuselah in Genesis is his only appearance in the Hebrew Bible save for a mention in I Chronicles 1:3, where he is cited in the lineage of Saul. In the New Testament he is mentioned once in the Gospel of Luke.

There, at 3:23–38, the lineage of Joseph, whom people supposed to be the father of Jesus, is traced back 75 generations, through David and Saul, and Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to Methuselah and thence to Seth and Adam. Learn More in these related articles: in number symbolism: Arithmomancy Methuselah is said to have lived 969 years. This number is a palindrome, meaning that it looks the same when reversed. It is also the 17th tetrahedral number, meaning that if you pile up spheres so that successive layers form the triangular numbers 1, 3, 6, 10, and so on, by layer 17 the total number of balls will be 969. Does 17 have any other significance? Well, the 17th triangular number... 1 Reference found in Britannica Articles Assorted Reference number symbolism (in number symbolism: Arithmomancy ) External Links Corrections? Updates? Help us improve this article! Contact our editors with your feedback. MEDIA FOR: You have successfully emailed this. Error when sending the email. Try again later.

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Close Date Published: September 02, 2015 URL: Access Date: January 18, 2017 Share Enoch (Author of The Book of Enoch) edit data Enoch is a figure in Biblical literature. In addition to an appearance in the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible, Enoch is the subject of many Jewish and Christian writings. Enoch was the son of Jared (Genesis 5:19–21), the father of Methuselah, and the great-grandfather of Noah. The Bible says that Enoch lived 365 years before he was taken by God. The text reads that Enoch "walked with God: and he was no more; for God took him" (Gen 5:21–24). This Enoch is not to be confused with Cain's son Enoch (Genesis 4:17). The Christian New Testament has three references to Enoch from the lineage of Seth (Luke 3:37, Hebrews 11:5, Jude 1:14–15).

Three extensive apocryphal works are attributed to Enoch: 1st Book of Enoch, or simply the Book of Enoch, an Enoch is a figure in Biblical literature. In addition to an appearance in the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible, Enoch is the subject of many Jewish and Christian writings. Enoch was the son of Jared (Genesis 5:19–21), the father of Methuselah, and the great-grandfather of Noah. The Bible says that Enoch lived 365 years before he was taken by God. The text reads that Enoch "walked with God: and he was no more; for God took him" (Gen 5:21–24). This Enoch is not to be confused with Cain's son Enoch (Genesis 4:17). The Christian New Testament has three references to Enoch from the lineage of Seth (Luke 3:37, Hebrews 11:5, Jude 1:14–15).

Three extensive apocryphal works are attributed to Enoch: 1st Book of Enoch, or simply the Book of Enoch, an apocryphal book in the Ethiopic Bible that is usually dated between the third century BC and the first century AD. 2nd Book of Enoch, an apocryphal book in the Old Slavonic Bible usually dated to the first century AD. 3rd Book of Enoch, a Rabbinic text in Hebrew usually dated to the fifth century AD. These recount how Enoch was taken up to Heaven and was appointed guardian of all the celestial treasures, chief of the archangels, and the immediate attendant on God's throne. He was subsequently taught all secrets and mysteries and, with all the angels at his back, fulfils of his own accord whatever comes out of the mouth of God, executing His decrees. Much esoteric literature like the 3rd Book of Enoch identifies Enoch as the Metatron, the angel which communicates God's word.

In consequence, Enoch was seen, by this literature, and the Rabbinic kabbala of Jewish mysticism, as having been the one which communicated God's revelation to Moses, in particular, the dictator of the Book of Jubilees. ...more Enoch | Genesis 5:21-24 | RayStedman.org Read the Scripture: Genesis 5:21-24 Genesis 5:21-24 21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. 22 After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters. 23 Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years. 24 Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away. New International Version This is the next to the last of the series scheduled for this summer on the great characters of the bible; some rather obscure men, others more well known. Today we want to look at one of the most mysterious and unusual men in scripture, the man who is listed in the genealogy in Genesis 5 as the seventh from Adam.

His name is Enoch, and his name occurs for us first in Genesis, the fifth chapter, in the midst of a survey some 1500 years of human history which is given very rapidly and focuses around nine men. Someone has called this God's obituary column because over and over again it's recorded of these men that they lived so many years, begat so and so, and then lived so many years after that, and then he died. And he died... and he died... and he died... is the refrain that rings like the tolling of a bell all the way through this account, and he died... , contradicting, as you'll recognize, the lie of Satan in the garden of Eden. Remember the Lord God had said to Adam and Eve concerning the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, On the day that thou eatest of it thou shalt surely die (Gen. 2:17). When the serpent came tempting Eve, he said to her a flat and blatant lie. He said, You will not die, but over and over through the process of history, God has recorded how this has been shown to be what it is: a lie. And men have died ever since.

Here's a record of 1500 years of human history in which it's recorded eight times, ...and he died... and he died. But there's one exception to this list. About one man out of the nine, the divinely inspired penman is not able to write, ...and he died, for when it comes to the name Enoch, he must say, He was not, for God took him , and this marks Enoch as a most unusual man. As far as the bible record goes there were only two human beings in all of human history who were translated and did not die. One was Elijah, we looked at his life briefly a few Sundays ago, and the other one is Enoch - Elijah and Enoch. Furthermore there are only two men in the record of the bible of whom it is ever said that they walked with God. Now obviously many others did walk with God, as many as walk with God today, but it's only recorded of two men that they walked with God - Abraham and Enoch. And there are only two recorded instances in the scriptures where it is said that man pleased God. Only two men have it recorded of them that their lives pleased God.

Now of course many others' lives have pleased God, but it's only written of two - Jesus and Enoch. And so this man takes his place in the highest rank of God's people, and for 300 years it's recorded of him that he walked with God. There are three references in scripture to Enoch, and we want to look briefly at them - one in Genesis, one in Hebrews, and one in the little book of Jude, tucked in just before the book of Revelation. Each of these references adds a very distinctive note concerning this man. The first one here in Genesis 5 is a description which marks a change in this man's life. Let's read it: When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. Enoch walked with God after the birth of Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him. (Gen 5:21-24 RSV) Twice in that verse it is recorded of Enoch the supremely important thing about this man: he walked with God.

But it's also recorded that he didn't always walk with God. For the first 65 years of his life, his life was no different than those around him. If you read the accounts of Genesis that center around this reference, you'll discover that the life which Enoch lived and the world in which he lived, though we regard it as back in the dawn of history, was in many ways not much different than the life that we live in the world in which we live today. It was perhaps not nearly as primitive as we imagine it to be, this world before the flood, for there are some very strong suggestions in the accounts in Genesis that this was a highly developed civilization before the flood. Certain of the marks that archaeologists have dug up from the ancient past would indicate that this is true, far more so than we generally suppose. For instance, in the fourth chapter of Genesis we're told in verse 20 concerning those who lived in that day that there was a man named Jabal who was the father of those who dwell in tents and have cattle . And telescoped into that little reference is all that is involved in a highly domesticated life involving many of the physical and material comforts of life.

There were tents; this suggests all that gathers around the thought of dwelling places, permanent places to live, homes and houses, and others. And cattle, which includes the ministering of physical needs and the highly developed material comforts that come from an agricultural economy such as we have just recently passed out from in our own nation here. Then it mentions Jubal, his brother, who was the father of all those who play on the lyre and the pipe . This strongly suggests a world which was given over to the development of music and the arts and culture, as we generally think of it. With them also was Tubal-Cain, who was the father of all those who deal in forged instruments of bronze and of iron, and that is suggestive of the mechanical age in which Enoch lived. In all of this we see a civilization therefore that has the basic marks of our own day: culture and arts and music, with mechanical contrivances and conveniences, and all that goes with a domesticated culture and the comforts of living. And in the midst of this world this man Enoch lived for 65 years.

The verse in scripture is very clear here, that for the first 65 years of his life he went right along with the thought of the men of his day who were, as we see from the other accounts of this era, trying to be happy without God. Isn't that exactly what the world is trying to do today? All of our vaunted culture, all of our comforts, all of our civilization, all of our discoveries in the world of sciences and mechanics and conveniences is all centered largely on this idea of finding all that life holds without finding any necessary reference to God - an attempt to be happy without God. This is the direction, and this is the philosophy of the world of our day, as it was the world of Enoch's day. For 65 years he went along with that, and then suddenly a change occurred. Perhaps you're thinking it was that he began to draw his social security payments at the age of 65. But I doubt very seriously if that's what's involved here, for the scriptures suggest a far more radical and revolutionary change that took place. After the first 65 years of this man's life there came a circumstance which caused him to turn right around.

It was a right about-face, a dramatic change. In the midst of the same world given over to culture and art and mechanics, and so on, this man began to no longer walk with the world, but to walk with God. And for the next 300 years it's recorded of him, as the supreme value of his life that he walked with God. I want to look at that a bit, and suggest certain things about what is meant by that turn. First of all I'd like to suggest that this was not literal, but figurative walking. I think some of us view the early patriarchs and some of these early fathers of scripture as supernatural men, legendary beings who lived in a totally different kind of world than we live in, and who had different experiences than we. But the whole tenor of the scripture is contrary to that, and to the effect that these men were of like passions with ourselves, and lived in the midst of the same kinds of problems and difficulties and circumstances.

So that when it is said of Enoch that he walked with God, it does not mean that God appeared to him in any form at all, or that he saw him in any visible way, or that he took walks with such an incarnated personality. It simply means exactly what it means when we say of someone today, What a godly person, he walks with God. It meant that Enoch, first of all, was going in the same direction that God is going. When you walk with somebody this is invariably involved; you must go in the same direction that they're going. And this certainly means this with regard to Enoch. He walked in the direction God is going. Let me ask you: What direction is God going in? What is the direction in which God moves in human history? It's obvious to us as we read our daily newspapers and our news magazine and see the changing scene in which we live, that the one supreme characteristic of all human history has been that everything is in a constant state of change, a transition. Nothing is permanent. Even nature is continually changing. Mountains heave up and blow their tops, and earthquakes shake the ground and rearrange the landscape.

And in history, movements are always sweeping through the masses of men and of nations, changing and shifting and sifting, radically altering the look of things so that we can hardly keep up with the constant change of life. This has always been true. In the midst of that uncertainty and of that changeability and transitory character of time and history, God is nevertheless moving unreservedly, unswervingly, unhesitatingly in one single direction. What direction is it? Because that's the direction in which Enoch walked with God. We only need to turn to the scriptures or to life itself to see. God is unhesitatingly moving always in the direction against sin, contrary to the principle of evil in human life. This is because the deepest fact about God is that he's a God of love. His love, like a burning fire, is continually blazing out against anything that destroys, brutalizes, harms and blasts the humanity that He loves. And because God loves us He is forever unhesitatingly against everything that destroys within it. If we walk with God, we will walk always against these things, against this principle of independence, this destroying principle of rebelliousness, against a sense of dependence continually upon God.

That's the direction God moves in human history. We read in Ephesians that the end will be when He gathers all things together in Him in Christ, brought back into unity, into subjection under the only One who has the right that all things should be in subjection to him. When it's said of Enoch that he walked with God it means he went in the same direction, and it also meant that he kept step with God. For after all that's what a walk is, a series of steps. And these steps must be concurrently. You can't walk by taking a step today, and another one six months from today, and then another one six months later. That's not a walk. I don't know what that's called, almost paralysis, isn't it? A walk is a series of steps taken one succeeding another. That's all. And everyone of us in this congregation knows what it means to take a step toward God. We've done it at times. But that's not a walk. A walk is a series of steps taken day after day, after day, after day with God.

Progression, and therefore activity, for the one thing that's obvious about human history is that God is at work, and when I say work I mean He's at work. He's working, He's active, He's changing, He's affecting, He's moving. He's not stagnant. He's not simply sitting still. One of the distressing things to me about Christian understanding of the truth is that, oftentimes, when we begin to move out of the initial areas of Christian life, those initial stages of understanding what it means to have our sins forgiven, to have peace with God, a hope of the future and access to Him by grace, and so on, and we move into that glorious area of truth, which gathers around the indwelling life of Jesus Christ, and the fact that our activity is no longer to be our activity, but His activity in us. One of the distressing things is that so many Christians stop short of the complete teaching of that if God is going to be at work in us then there's nothing for us to do. That all we do is sit and wait for Him to act.

And I know Christians, unfortunately, who have been sitting waiting now for months, waiting for God to move them in some way. It always reminds me of that story, that an old southern evangelist used to tell, about a man who went out in the woods to chop down a tree. After an hour or so a friend came by and found him leaning against the tree without a stroke having been taken yet. The man said to him, What are you waiting for He said, I'm waiting 'til I start to sweat. You see, God's activity, the full orbit of that truth is that God is working in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure, and that the willing of our hearts is His willing. That's what we need to know. Therefore, start doing something, meeting some needs around you. Move out. God is in you to work, both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Therefore any moving with God is a continual life of activity for God. It's taking on every responsibility that seems to show up before us, or as much as we can, at least. It's moving out to meet needs that are immediately before us. I think of the story of D.L.

Moody, who had a man in his church in Chicago. He was always asking him to take on some new opportunity, some new activity, or some new responsibility. The man would say, Well, I don't know - I'm aiming to do that. Finally D.L. Moody said, Sir, you've been aiming long enough. It's about time you fired. This is exactly what it means to walk with God. It means to move, to begin to get involved, to move out and take on responsibility, for it is God who worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Furthermore for Enoch it meant that there was agreement with God. It's one thing to be in agreement with the divine direction of God through history – we can all nod our heads at this and say, Yes, we're against sin, but to walk means to walk in step with another in which there's full agreement as to the particular step. It meant that there was no controversy between Enoch and God, that he wasn't agreeing to the general provision of God's moving, but actually resisting him in the immediate step.

It meant the total collapse of all revolt against his will, and the cessation of any resistance to what he felt immediately this very day God was wanting him to do. He kept in step. Walking is exactly, of course, the activity to which we are called in the New Testament, isn't it? Walk as children of light, Paul said Walk worthy of God, Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. This is the very thing we're called to do. For 300 years Enoch walked with God, and the end was he was not, for God took him. What does that mean? There are many who have puzzled over that expression, wondered if he just simply disappeared and nobody could find him, perished out in the wilderness. But let the New Testament flash its light upon this. If you turn to Hebrews, the eleventh chapter, that great listing of the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11, you'll find another reference to Enoch that illuminates this for us. Chapter 11, verse 5 we read: By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death; and he was not found, because God had taken him.

Now before he was taken he was attested as having pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please Him. (Heb. 11:5-6 RSV) In the old version it says he was translated , by faith he was translated that he should not see death (Heb 11:5 KJV). In my days as a student in seminary we used to say that Enoch was translated by faith , but it takes work to translate Hebrew and Greek, and so it does. I love the story of the little Sunday school girl who after Sunday school said to her mother one day, Mother, we heard about the most wonderful man in Sunday school today. His name was Enoch, and he used to go on long walks with God. One day they walked so far that God said to him, It's too far for you to go back, you better come home with Me now. And he just walked on home with God. That's exactly what this implies. Now why was this man taken without seeing death? Of all the long line of humanity, which has followed Him, why is he the great exception? Well, it's told to us very clearly.

It is given to us, said very plainly that he should not see death, that's why he was taken. In order that he should not see death. But what does this mean to us? Is this a promise that if we walk with God we shall never die? Yes, in a sense it is. You remember those words of Jesus: I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead yet shall he live, and he that liveth and believeth in me shall never die. There's a sense in which this is clearly true, that when we walk with God we never really see physical death. But let me suggest something else. Is this not a lesson on the physical level intended to illustrate for us something on the spiritual level, such as we find so frequently in scripture? We are told very plainly that Enoch was lifted up, translated, taken in order that he would not see death, and death, as you know, in scripture has a double meaning. There's that word death which means, of course, as in the case of most of the bible characters, the end of life, the cessation of the body's existence.

But it also has the meaning of the end of life, such as abundant life, such as we describe really living . Therefore it means futility, and barrenness, dullness, drabness, meaninglessness and emptiness. That's death. That's what it means in Romans 7 and Romans 8, The mind of the flesh is death, drabness, barrenness, emptiness. The question that this brings before us is this: Am I, are you living in death even as a Christian, because we do not walk with God? Enoch's life is a testimony to us that if we walk with God we shall not see death. That the answer to barrenness, drabness and dullness is this daily stepping out by faith on the promises of God, this daily testing of his promises of his presence, and reckoning upon them. Unless, you see, we make demands upon His glory and His greatness, how else can we learn that we can never touch bottom with Him? And it was by faith that Enoch walked with God, by testing what God said, by reckoning Him true, and discovering it was true as he stepped out upon it.

Now let me come to the third thing about this man: Faith always requires a previous revelation. Do we have a hint of any revelation given to Enoch? Well, turn to the book of Jude. In Jude, the fourteenth verse, we have the third reference in scripture to this man Enoch, and here we see a prediction which supplies a motive. Verse 14, Jude is speaking of the apostates, those who have left their faith, wandering stars for whom the nether gloom of darkness is reserved forever. He says in verse 14, It was of these also that Enoch in the seventh generation from Adam prophesied, saying, Behold, the Lord came with his holy myriads, to execute judgment on all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness which they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. (Jude 14-15 RSV) That's what Enoch saw. Looking forward, he saw a time of judgment and a coming of the Lord to judge the earth. I'm convinced that this is not the second coming of Christ.

What he saw was the flood coming upon the world of his own day, and as he looked he saw the direction of the divine movement through history. He looked on to the end of the world of culture and comforts, and of the mechanical marvels of his day, to the day when God would judge among men the principle of evil that was at work through all these things. When he saw this, he saw the certainty of the destruction of a world aiming to please itself. When he saw what God was doing, and how resistless are the movements of God, how irresistible is his march through history to bring things to judgment that are opposed to him, Enoch began to walk with God. When was this revelation given? Well, we can answer that. Remember back in Genesis 5 it told us specifically. It was at the birth of his first child, when Methuselah was born. How do I know that? Because of what he named that boy, for the name Methuselah is a most interesting name. It means, literally, from the Hebrew when he dies, it will come . When he dies, it will come.

If you take your pencil and figure out from the listing of the ages given of the patriarchs there, you will see that the year Methuselah died, 969 years later, the oldest man in history, that very same year, the flood came. The earth broke open. The fountains of the deep were open, the whole surface of the earth changed. The windows of Heaven were opened and the rain was poured out, when the waters welled from the deep, and the earth was destroyed by water. When he dies, it will come . So that God gave, in the birth of that baby, a revelation to Enoch, and he reflected it in the name of the child. He didn't know how long that child was going to live. It's a token of the mighty grace of God that that boy, who was a sign to Enoch, was the oldest man that ever lived. God preserved judgment that long. But Enoch didn't know how long he was going to live; he only knew that as long as that child lived, God was restraining judgment. God's grace was moving among men. And that was the thing that kept him always remembering, always walking with God day after day, after day.

Do you know that each of us stands this morning right where Enoch stood? God has given you a life to watch as Enoch watched the life of that boy. Can you imagine how every day when that boy would go out Enoch would wonder if he'd come back alive? How every day as he watched him grow up he wondered how much longer he would live? When he dies, it will come... And God has given you a life to watch, and me a life to watch; it's my own life, your own life. We don't know how long it's going to last. How far is it to the world's end for you, do you know? 50 years? 30, 10? 2? Perhaps tomorrow; perhaps this afternoon. But when that dies, it will come - the end of all things, the end of all man, the end of all that man has made and all that man has done - and only what God has done will survive. Do you feel this in Enoch, here? Does this move you to begin to reckon upon the supervening grace of God, and to walk with Him?

To see life as He sees it, to look at it through His perspective, to begin day after day walking; walking endless steps with God in the direction against sin, against rebelling, against independence, into a dependence with Him that pleases God. Prayer What a surprising thing this is, Father, to see in this man of old and ancient past such a vivid picture of Thy workings with us in our own lives today. Lord, as we see something of the brevity of life, the uncertainty of it, how this should call again our attention to this day walking with Thee. And as we come now to close this service, gathering about the table of the Lord, may we remember that here, in this meaningful ceremony which we enter into this morning, is inculcated all the marvelous principles of a life of dependence, which is so contrary to that independent spirit that flourishes in the world. As we eat the bread and drink the cup may we thus recognize that our very life is dependent on Thee. Our activity on all that we do must come from Thee, Lord, eating Thy bread, eating Thy flesh, drinking Thy life, we ask in Jesus' name, Amen.

Title: Elijah, Enoch, and Moses Elijah, Enoch, and Moses The Bible says that "Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven" (2 Kings 2:11), "Enoch was translated that he should not see death" (Hebrews 11:5), and "God took him" (Genesis 5:24), and Moses appeared in the transfiguration with Jesus (Matthew 17:3). Do these scriptures prove that the three were in heaven (the throne of God) before Jesus was sent to Earth in the flesh? John 3:13, "And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven." These words were spoken by Jesus himself at a time when only Christ had seen God (John 1:18). And how did He know that no man had ascended up to heaven...the throne of God? Because he came from there! Therefore, what heaven did Elijah go to? What about Enoch and Moses?

Elijah Elijah was taken up by a whirlwind "into heaven" (2 Kings 2:1) by "a chariot of fire, and horses of fire" (verse 11). Yet, over nine hundred years after this event, Jesus Himself said "And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven" (John 3:13). Is this a bible contradiction? Did Elijah really ascend to heaven where God's throne is, even though Jesus said he didn't? If Elijah did not go to heaven, then where did he go? Three Heavens The Scripture mentions three heavens (2 Corinthians 12:2), not just one! The first heaven is earth's atmosphere where birds fly (Genesis 1:20, Jeremiah 4:25; 34:20, Lamentations 4:19, Zephaniah 1:3). One of the Hebrew words for 'heaven' is shamayim.

This same word is translated as 'sky' in the Scripture, as can be seen by comparing Genesis 7:3, "fowls also of the air," with Genesis 7:23, "fowl of the heaven." The word 'sky' and 'heaven' are used interchangeably from the same Hebrew word (Psalm 8:8). So the first heaven is synonymous with 'heights' or 'elevations.' Here are other examples to illustrate the first heaven. Exodus 19:20 says the Lord was on top of Mount Sinai when he called Moses up there, and God describes Mount Sinai as 'heaven' (Exodus 20:22, Deuteronomy 4:36). Here, everything above the ground is called 'heaven'. Another example of the first heaven is in Amos 9:1-3, where God states that at the time of this judgment, nobody will be able to flee away (verse 1), even "though they climb up to heaven" (verse 2). This "heaven" is defined in the next verse, verse 3, as climbing to the top of Mount Carmel.

Another example is where the Scripture speaks of the "dew of heaven" (Genesis 27:28,39, Deuteronomy 33:28, Daniel 4:15-33; 5:21). The first heaven, from which dew comes, means the atmosphere, where the clouds and the wind roam. Therefore, everything above the ground is called 'heaven." Another Hebrew word for the first heaven is 'shachaq.' This same word for heaven (Psalm 89:6,37) is also translated as 'sky' or 'skies' (Deuteronomy 33:26; Job 37:18; Psalm 18:11), and as 'clouds' (Job 35:5; 36:28; Psalm 36:5; 68:34, Pro. 3:20; 8:28).

The second heaven is outer space where the planets and stars exist (Genesis 1:14-17; 15:5; 22:17; 26:4, Deuteronomy 1:10; 17:3; Psalm 8:3, Jeremiah 8:2; Matthew 24:29). Usually the term "host of heaven" or "firmament of the heaven" is used to describe this second heaven. The third heaven is literally called "the third heaven" in 2 Corinthians 12:2. This third heaven is what Christ calls his "Father's house" (John 14:2), and both Christ and the Apostle Paul calls it "paradise" (Luke 23:43, 2 Corinthians 12:2-4, Revelation 2:7). This is where God and the heavenly sanctuary exist (1 Peter 3:22).

This third heaven is also known as the "heaven of heavens" (Deuteronomy 10:14; 1 Kings 8:27, 2 Chronicles 2:6; 6:18, Nehemiah 9:6, Psalms 148:4), "The heavenly Jerusalem" (Galatians 4: 26; Hebrews 12:22; Revelation 3:12), the "kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 25:1, James 2:5), the "eternal kingdom" (2 Peter 1:11), the "eternal inheritance" (1 Peter. 1:4, Hebrews 9:15), and the "better country" (Hebrews 11:14,16). The fact that there are more than one 'heaven' can be shown by Psalm 115:16, "The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD'S." There are obviously two different 'heavens' being addressed in this one verse. Since Elijah could not have gone to the heaven of God's throne, then to which heaven did he go?

He was not taken to God's heavenly throne (as some imagine). He was actually taken into this earth's atmosphere, the first heaven. There could be no whirlwind in any other place but in the atmosphere surrounding this earth. Why Taken Up? What was the reason for this unusual act of God? Why did he take Elijah up into the atmosphere? Was it to make him immortal? No! The Scripture says no word about that! In Hebrews 11:13,39, we read about the prophets who lived by faith and died without receiving the promises. So Elijah was not to be made Immortal, for that would give him pre-eminence above Jesus. But what does the Scripture reveal as the reason for this removal? 2 Kings 2:3 and 5 has the answer. Notice what the sons of the prophets said to Elisha: "Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day?" (Kings 2:3). Elijah was the leader of the sons of the prophets in that day. God had sent Elijah as His prophet to wicked king Ahab and to his son Ahaziah.

Now God wanted Elisha to direct His work, as Ahaziah the king had died and a new king was ruling. So what did God do? He could not allow Elijah to be among the people with Elisha directing the work now. That would have been the same as disqualifying him. God never takes an office from a man when that man has been performing his duty well. The only thing God could do would have been to remove Elijah so that another would fulfill the office. This God did do. When he was taken up, Elijah's mantle dropped from him and Elisha picked it up (2 Kings 2:12-15). And what did the mantle mean? In Clarke's Commentary we note that it was "worn by prophets and priests as the simple insignia of their office" (Vol.2, p.484). The purpose of God in removing Elijah was to replace him with another man who would occupy Elijah's office in Israel for another fifty years. This work had to start under a new king, for Ahaziah had just died, and Elijah was already aging.

So, as not to disqualify Elijah in the sight of the people, God took him away allowing the mantle which signified the office of Elijah to drop into the hands of Elisha. Thus, God preserves the name and office of His prophet. Where did Elijah go? This has been the perplexing problem to so many. He did not ascend to the throne of God, because Jesus said so! Also, notice in 2 Kings 3 and 5 that the sons of the prophets knew Elijah would be taken away by God in advance. They believed that Elijah was going to be taken to another location, which is why they were fearful that the Spirit of God might have dropped him "upon some mountain, or into some valley" (2 Kings 2:16). Elisha knew that God would preserve Elijah from falling, but at their insistence he permitted men to go in search for him, to no avail. And God did not say that Elijah was to die at that time. If he were, Elisha could have assumed his new office without the removal of Elijah, for we know that Elisha died in office after fulfilling his duty (2 Kings 13:14).

The new king of Israel was another son of Ahab, Jehoram, or Joram as he is sometimes called. The beginning of his reign marked the year of his removal of Elijah (2 Kings 1:18 and 3:1). During this king's reign, Elisha was the recognized prophet of God (2 Kings 3:11). In the fifth year of Joram king of Israel, the son of the king of Judah began to reign along with his father in Judah (2 Kings 8:16). His name also was Jehoram. The first thing he did to establish his kingdom rule was to put his relatives to the sword lest they should claim the throne from him (2 Chronicles 21:4). For nearly six years he followed the ways of the nations about him and did evil in the sight of God. Almost ten years had now expired since Elijah was taken from the people. After this wicked rule by the Jewish king, God chose Elijah to write a letter and have it sent to the king! The contents of the letter are found in 2 Chronicles 21:12-15.

From the wording of this letter, it is clear that Elijah wrote it after these events had occurred, for he speaks of them as past events, and of the diseases as future, Two years after the king became diseased the king died, having reigned only eight short years (2 Chronicles 21:18-20). This proves that the letter was written about ten years after Elijah had been taken to another location by the whirlwind. God used Elijah to convey the message because he was the prophet of God in the days of the present king's father, and the son was not going in the ways of his obedient father, Jehosophat. This letter proves that he was alive someplace else. The Bible does not reveal how much longer Elijah lived after writing the letter, but it does say that it is appointed for all men to die once (Romans 5:12,14, 1 Corinthians 15:20-23, Hebrews 9:27). A similar incident to Elijah's took place in Acts 8:39,40. Phillip was caught up into the first heaven, as Elijah was, and was transported to another location approximately 30 miles away.

Another similar incident happened to Ezekiel, in which the spirit took him away (Ezekiel 3:12). The spirit lifted him up "between the earth and the heaven" and brought him "to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate" (Ezekiel 8:3). Afterwards, the spirit took him up to Chaldea (Ezekiel 11:24). Elijah may not have been found because he was transported further away than the fifty men searched (2 Kings 2:17). And, as far as being taken into heaven where God's throne is, we can know that neither Elijah nor Enoch nor Moses were taken into God's heavenly abode, because Jesus said, while he was on this earth, that "no man hath ascendeth to heaven" (John 3:13), and "No man hath seen God at any time" (John 1:18). Enoch Some people believe that Enoch did not die but was taken directly to heaven where God is. But, Enoch eventually died, as all humans die. How can we know?

The apostle Paul mentioned the circumstances associated with Enoch in Hebrews 11:5, along with other men of faith, and then stated: "These all died in faith, not having received the promises" (Hebrews 11:13). Yes, Enoch died, and he did not receive the promise of heaven (verse 16) at the time the book of Hebrews was written. Based on Hebrews 11:5,13 and Jesus� statement in John.3:13, "no man hath ascended up to heaven", how are we to understand the account of Enoch? Genesis 5:21-24 says that Enoch's days, alive on Earth, ended at 365 years old. The question is, did he die, was he taken to heaven alive, or was he transported to another location on Earth?

Let us examine the bold phrase in Genesis 5:24, where it says, "And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him" and compare the same Hebrew phrase in: Psalms 37:36, "Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found." Psalms 39:13, "O spare me, that I may recover strength, before I go hence, and be no more." The Hebrew for the phrases in bold are the same Hebrew as Genesis 5:24. As in the Psalms, the phrase means the person "passed away" or would eventually die. Let�s look at the same phrase in the book of Genesis: Genesis 42:13, "And they said, Thy servants are twelve brethren, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and, behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is not." This was spoken by his brothers of Joseph. What�d they mean by "is not"?

Genesis 44:20, "And we said unto my lord, We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him." Here, the brothers recount their previous discussion about Joseph with Pharaoh. When they first said, "and one is not," they meant Joseph "is dead." Matthew 2:18, "In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not." Where were Rachel's children? Dead. Hebrews 11:5, "By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him:" Does the phrase that says Enoch "should not see death" mean Enoch never died? Hebrews 11:13, "These all died [including Enoch] in faith." But not only that, verse 13 goes on to say that they did not receive the promises. One of the promises was a heavenly country (verse 16).

If Enoch were in heaven, wouldn't he have received that promise? Psalms 89:48, "What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death? shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave? Selah." Why would this Psalmist ask such a question concerning physical death if he believed Enoch did not see a physical death? The fact is, the Psalmist believed Enoch was in the grave and therefore asked this question. So what does the phrase "should not see death" mean? Notice it is not in the present tense, that he "did not see" death, but that he "should not see death." John 8:51, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death" [see also John 11:26]. This phrase must mean "the second death," since all the Apostles kept Jesus� sayings and yet died the first death.

Based on Hebrews 9:27, "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:" and Hebrews 11:13, "These all died in faith, not having received the promises," we must conclude that Enoch died the first death. To believe Enoch did not die is to deny the plain word of many other scriptures as well. For example, Romans 5:12, "...so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned" and Romans 5:14, "...death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned." Are we to believe that Enoch did not sin? Are we to believe that a man who was not yet cleansed of sin by the blood of Jesus could enter heaven and dwell in God's presence? Enoch�s translation But what about his translation in Hebrews 11:5? Does that mean he didn�t die? That�s what most people carelessly assume without proof. The Bible does not say that Enoch went to heaven when he was translated.

Instead, it says he "was not found." According to Strong's, Thayer's and Bullinger's Greek Lexicons, "translate" means "to put or place in another place, to transport, to transfer." Nowhere in the Scripture does �translate� mean to make immortal! The same Greek word is rendered "carried over" in Acts 7:16 where Jacob's body was �translated� or �transported� to Sychem, where he was buried! The Scriptures say Jacob was translated to the place of burial! God took Enoch and buried him somewhere so as not to be found, just as he did with the body of Moses in Deuteronomy 34:6. No man knows where Moses' or Enoch�s grave is. God hid them for reasons known only to Him. Notice another proof that �translate� does not mean to make immortal. Paul wrote that the Father "hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son" (Colossians 1:13). The apostle Paul says that he was already translated, even though he was still physically alive!

Although he was once part of the darkness of this world, he was translated, removed from darkness, into the light of the kingdom of God while he was physically alive! At the age of 65, Enoch had a son named Methuselah. But how long did Enoch walk with God? Genesis 5:22, "And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters." So, Enoch followed God�s ways for three hundred years. Notice that the Scripture does not record that Enoch is still walking with God. It says that Enoch WALKED with God for three hundred years, and not one year more. Why? Because "all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years" (Genesis 5:23). Paul says, in Colossians 1:10, "That ye might walk worthy of the Lord." Enoch walked with God and pleased God.

This is what Genesis 5:22,24 means when it says "Enoch walked with God." 1 Corinthians 15:20-23 says that all die and all shall be resurrected, but Messiah must be first in the order. Enoch could not possibly have preceded him, especially if he were still flesh and blood as it says in verses 49-52. The Transfiguration The only remaining texts that puzzle people are those relative to the appearances of Moses and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration with Jesus (Matthew 17:1-9, Mark 9:2-10, Luke 9:28-36). After the Transfiguration, Jesus said, while leaving the mountain, "Tell the vision to no man" (Matthew 17:9). Jesus calls the transfiguration a vision! A vision is not a material reality, but a supernatural picture observed by the eyes. The same Greek word for "vision" was used of Peter's vision of the unclean beasts being made clean (Acts 10:3,17,19; 11:5). They were not real but a supernatural picture.

In the case of the transfiguration it was a prophetic vision which would take place in the future. Peter, James and John saw the Son of Man glorified in the Kingdom through a prophetic vision. Here are other examples: Acts 16:9, "And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us." This also is something that was to happen in the future. Acts 18:9-10, "Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city." Jesus is telling Paul that, in the near future, no man shall hurt him. Visions should not be interpreted as literal. For example, look at Genesis 37:5-10.

When Joseph dreamed that his "sheaf arose, and stood upright," and his brother�s sheaves bowed down to Joseph�s sheaf (verse 7), Or when Joseph dreamed that "the sun and the moon and the eleven stars" bowed down to Joseph (verse 9), is this literal? No. This was a prophetic vision of something that was to occur in the future; when Joseph�s mother, father, and brothers would bow down to him as King. Both Moses and Elijah were still in their graves, but in vision both they and Jesus were seen in glory of the resurrection, and event to which Moses and Elijah have not yet attained at that time (Hebrews 11:39). The vision was granted the disciples after Jesus had spoken of the glory of immortality in the coming Kingdom. Moses There cannot be any doubt that Moses died and was buried (Deuteronomy 34:5-6). Therefore, for him to have been in heaven while Jesus was still in the flesh, Moses had to be resurrected from the dead, receive eternal life, and "put on immortality" (1 Corinthians 15:53).

But the Bible is clear that Jesus had to be the first one to be resurrected to eternal life. 1 Corinthians 15:20, "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept." The Apostle Paul said Jesus had to be "the firstborn from the dead" and "have the preeminence" (Colossians 1:18). If anyone preceded Jesus, then he wasn't the firstborn from the dead. Since some people believe Enoch and Elijah did not die, but that Moses did die, then that would mean Moses had the preeminence over Jesus. Therefore, since Jesus had to be the first to be resurrected unto eternal life and the first to ascend into heaven and stand before God, Moses could not possibly have been in heaven while Jesus was on earth Hebrews 11:23-28 talks about Moses living by faith. Now read verses 39-40, which say that Moses did not receive the promise of a resurrection unto eternal life and perfection. This should settle any disputes to the contrary. What about Michael and Satan disputing about Moses' body?

Jude 9 does not say Michael won the dispute and then took Moses to heaven. Since there is no mention of heaven here, nor in the entire book of Jude, we should not assume he was taken there. Your Questions Answered "It is obvious Elijah's going to Heaven was viewed as his death because the other prophets said the spirit of Elijah now rested on Elisha (2 Kings 2:15)." Answer: This refers to how the Spirit of prophecy was given to Elisha as it was previously given to Elijah. "It is obvious Elijah's going to Heaven was viewed as his death because Elisha rent his clothes (2 Kings 2:12)." Answer: Elisha rent his clothes as a sign of sorrow for having lost so good and glorious a master. Renting ones clothes is a sign of sorrow, which may include the death of someone.

But it does not always mean a death is involved when one rents his clothes (Genesis 44:10-13, Leviticus 13:44-46, Judges 11:34-35, 1 Kings 21:25-29, 2 Kings 5:7-8; 18:37; 19:1; 22:11,19-20; Matthew 26:65, Acts 14:14; 16:22).

Question: Which maligned Biblical figure was the father of Enoch?
Answer: Cain