EGW WritingsGenesis 5

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 177, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 177, 1897, par. 115

“The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, ... full of grace and truth.” [John 1:14.] “In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him.” Genesis 5:1. The missing link between beast and man we need not be particular to search for. It is not in the natural world of living, only as man himself makes it through the indulgence of liquor and tobacco and all kinds of vice which he greedily enters into. Then it is that the beasts may well refuse to own him. He places himself far below the brute creation. Man was not made in the likeness of any of the highest of the beasts that God created.

12LtMs, Ms 177, 1897, par. 116

God has given us the knowledge of where the likeness link is to be found. It is not from beneath but from above, the Highest Model. The link connecting man in the chain of living [beings] is plainly specified. “In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him.” [Verse 1.] “Thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet.” Psalm 8:5, 6.

Christ Triumphant

God Begins Anew With Seth, February 1

CTr 38.1

God ... hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.... Adam ... begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth. Genesis 4:25-5:3.

Patriarchs and Prophets

Chapter 6—Seth and Enoch

PP 80.1

To Adam was given another son, to be the inheritor of the divine promise, the heir of the spiritual birthright. The name Seth, given to this son, signified “appointed,” or “compensation;” “for,” said the mother, “God hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.” Seth was of more noble stature than Cain or Abel, and resembled Adam more closely than did his other sons. He was a worthy character, following in the steps of Abel. Yet he inherited no more natural goodness than did Cain. Concerning the creation of Adam it is said, “In the likeness of God made He him;” but man, after the Fall, “begat a son in his own likeness, after his image.” While Adam was created sinless, in the likeness of God, Seth, like Cain, inherited the fallen nature of his parents. But he received also the knowledge of the Redeemer and instruction in righteousness. By divine grace he served and honored God; and he labored, as Abel would have done, had he lived, to turn the minds of sinful men to revere and obey their Creator.

PP 80.2

“To Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of Jehovah.” The faithful had worshiped God before; but as men increased, the distinction between the two classes became more marked. There was an open profession of loyalty to God on the part of one, as there was of contempt and disobedience on the part of the other.

PP 80.3

Before the Fall our first parents had kept the Sabbath, which was instituted in Eden; and after their expulsion from Paradise they continued its observance. They had tasted the bitter fruits of disobedience, and had learned what every one that tramples upon God’s commandments will sooner or later learn—that the divine precepts are sacred and immutable, and that the penalty of transgression will surely be inflicted. The Sabbath was honored by all the children of Adam that remained loyal to God. But Cain and his descendants did not respect the day upon which God had rested. They chose their own time for labor and for rest, regardless of Jehovah’s express command.

PP 81.1

Upon receiving the curse of God, Cain had withdrawn from his father’s household. He had first chosen his occupation as a tiller of the soil, and he now founded a city, calling it after the name of his eldest son. He had gone out from the presence of the Lord, cast away the promise of the restored Eden, to seek his possessions and enjoyment in the earth under the curse of sin, thus standing at the head of that great class of men who worship the god of this world. In that which pertains to mere earthly and material progress, his descendants became distinguished. But they were regardless of God, and in opposition to His purposes for man. To the crime of murder, in which Cain had led the way, Lamech, the fifth in descent, added polygamy, and, boastfully defiant, he acknowledged God, only to draw from the avenging of Cain an assurance of his own safety. Abel had led a pastoral life, dwelling in tents or booths, and the descendants of Seth followed the same course, counting themselves “strangers and pilgrims on the earth,” seeking “a better country, that is, an heavenly.” Hebrews 11:13, 16.

PP 81.2

For some time the two classes remained separate. The race of Cain, spreading from the place of their first settlement, dispersed over the plains and valleys where the children of Seth had dwelt; and the latter, in order to escape from their contaminating influence, withdrew to the mountains, and there made their home. So long as this separation continued, they maintained the worship of God in its purity. But in the lapse of time they ventured, little by little, to mingle with the inhabitants of the valleys. This association was productive of the worst results. “The sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair.” The children of Seth, attracted by the beauty of the daughters of Cain’s descendants, displeased the Lord by intermarrying with them. Many of the worshipers of God were beguiled into sin by the allurements that were now constantly before them, and they lost their peculiar, holy character. Mingling with the depraved, they became like them in spirit and in deeds; the restrictions of the seventh commandment were disregarded, “and they took them wives of all which they chose.” The children of Seth went “in the way of Cain” (Jude 11); they fixed their minds upon worldly prosperity and enjoyment and neglected the commandments of the Lord. Men “did not like to retain God in their knowledge;” they “became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.” Romans 1:21. Therefore “God gave them over to a mind void of judgment.” Verse 28, margin. Sin spread abroad in the earth like a deadly leprosy.

PP 82.1

For nearly a thousand years Adam lived among men, a witness to the results of sin. Faithfully he sought to stem the tide of evil. He had been commanded to instruct his posterity in the way of the Lord; and he carefully treasured what God had revealed to him, and repeated it to succeeding generations. To his children and children’s children, to the ninth generation, he described man’s holy and happy estate in Paradise, and repeated the history of his fall, telling them of the sufferings by which God had taught him the necessity of strict adherence to His law, and explaining to them the merciful provisions for their salvation. Yet there were but few who gave heed to his words. Often he was met with bitter reproaches for the sin that had brought such woe upon his posterity.

PP 82.2

Adam’s life was one of sorrow, humility, and contrition. When he left Eden, the thought that he must die thrilled him with horror. He was first made acquainted with the reality of death in the human family when Cain, his first-born son, became the murderer of his brother. Filled with the keenest remorse for his own sin, and doubly bereaved in the death of Abel and the rejection of Cain, Adam was bowed down with anguish. He witnessed the wide-spreading corruption that was finally to cause the destruction of the world by a flood; and though the sentence of death pronounced upon him by his Maker had at first appeared terrible, yet after beholding for nearly a thousand years the results of sin, he felt that it was merciful in God to bring to an end a life of suffering and sorrow.

PP 82.3

Notwithstanding the wickedness of the antediluvian world, that age was not, as has often been supposed, an era of ignorance and barbarism. The people were granted the opportunity of reaching a high standard of moral and intellectual attainment. They possessed great physical and mental strength, and their advantages for acquiring both religious and scientific knowledge were unrivaled. It is a mistake to suppose that because they lived to a great age their minds matured late; their mental powers were early developed, and those who cherished the fear of God and lived in harmony with His will continued to increase in knowledge and wisdom throughout their life. Could illustrious scholars of our time be placed in contrast with men of the same age who lived before the Flood, they would appear as greatly inferior in mental as in physical strength. As the years of man have decreased, and his physical strength has diminished, so his mental capacities have lessened. There are men who now apply themselves to study during a period of from twenty to fifty years, and the world is filled with admiration of their attainments. But how limited are these acquirements in comparison with those of men whose mental and physical powers were developing for centuries!

PP 83.1

It is true that the people of modern times have the benefit of the attainments of their predecessors. The men of masterly minds, who planned and studied and wrote, have left their work for those who follow. But even in this respect, and so far as merely human knowledge is concerned, how much greater the advantages of the men of that olden time! They had among them for hundreds of years him who was formed in God’s image, whom the Creator Himself pronounced “good”—the man whom God had instructed in all the wisdom pertaining to the material world. Adam had learned from the Creator the history of creation; he himself witnessed the events of nine centuries; and he imparted his knowledge to his descendants. The antediluvians were without books, they had no written records; but with their great physical and mental vigor, they had strong memories, able to grasp and to retain that which was communicated to them, and in turn to transmit it unimpaired to their posterity. And for hundreds of years there were seven generations living upon the earth contemporaneously, having the opportunity of consulting together and profiting each by the knowledge and experience of all.

PP 83.2

The advantages enjoyed by men of that age to gain a knowledge of God through His works have never been equaled since. And so far from being an era of religious darkness, that was an age of great light. All the world had opportunity to receive instruction from Adam, and those who feared the Lord had also Christ and angels for their teachers. And they had a silent witness to the truth, in the garden of God, which for so many centuries remained among men. At the cherubim-guarded gate of Paradise the glory of God was revealed, and hither came the first worshipers. Here their altars were reared, and their offerings presented. It was here that Cain and Abel had brought their sacrifices, and God had condescended to communicate with them.

PP 84.1

Skepticism could not deny the existence of Eden while it stood just in sight, its entrance barred by watching angels. The order of creation, the object of the garden, the history of its two trees so closely connected with man’s destiny, were undisputed facts. And the existence and supreme authority of God, the obligation of His law, were truths which men were slow to question while Adam was among them.

PP 84.2

Notwithstanding the prevailing iniquity, there was a line of holy men who, elevated and ennobled by communion with God, lived as in the companionship of heaven. They were men of massive intellect, of wonderful attainments. They had a great and holy mission—to develop a character of righteousness, to teach a lesson of godliness, not only to the men of their time, but for future generations. Only a few of the most prominent are mentioned in the Scriptures; but all through the ages God had faithful witnesses, truehearted worshipers.

PP 84.3

Of Enoch it is written that he lived sixty-five years, and begat a son. After that he walked with God three hundred years. During these earlier years Enoch had loved and feared God and had kept His commandments. He was one of the holy line, the preservers of the true faith, the progenitors of the promised seed. From the lips of Adam he had learned the dark story of the Fall, and the cheering one of God’s grace as seen in the promise; and he relied upon the Redeemer to come. But after the birth of his first son, Enoch reached a higher experience; he was drawn into a closer relationship with God. He realized more fully his own obligations and responsibility as a son of God. And as he saw the child’s love for its father, its simple trust in his protection; as he felt the deep, yearning tenderness of his own heart for that first-born son, he learned a precious lesson of the wonderful love of God to men in the gift of His Son, and the confidence which the children of God may repose in their heavenly Father. The infinite, unfathomable love of God through Christ became the subject of his meditations day and night; and with all the fervor of his soul he sought to reveal that love to the people among whom he dwelt.

PP 85.1

Enoch’s walk with God was not in a trance or vision, but in all the duties of his daily life. He did not become a hermit, shutting himself entirely from the world; for he had a work to do for God in the world. In the family and in his intercourse with men, as a husband and father, a friend, a citizen, he was the steadfast, unwavering servant of the Lord.

PP 85.2

His heart was in harmony with God’s will; for “can two walk together, except they be agreed?” Amos 3:3. And this holy walk was continued for three hundred years. There are few Christians who would not be far more earnest and devoted if they knew that they had but a short time to live, or that the coming of Christ was about to take place. But Enoch’s faith waxed the stronger, his love became more ardent, with the lapse of centuries.

PP 85.3

Enoch was a man of strong and highly cultivated mind and extensive knowledge; he was honored with special revelations from God; yet being in constant communion with Heaven, with a sense of the divine greatness and perfection ever before him, he was one of the humblest of men. The closer the connection with God, the deeper was the sense of his own weakness and imperfection.

PP 85.4

Distressed by the increasing wickedness of the ungodly, and fearing that their infidelity might lessen his reverence for God, Enoch avoided constant association with them, and spent much time in solitude, giving himself to meditation and prayer. Thus he waited before the Lord, seeking a clearer knowledge of His will, that he might perform it. To him prayer was as the breath of the soul; he lived in the very atmosphere of heaven.

PP 85.5

Through holy angels God revealed to Enoch His purpose to destroy the world by a flood, and He also opened more fully to him the plan of redemption. By the spirit of prophecy He carried him down through the generations that should live after the Flood, and showed him the great events connected with the second coming of Christ and the end of the world.

PP 85.6

Enoch had been troubled in regard to the dead. It had seemed to him that the righteous and the wicked would go to the dust together, and that this would be their end. He could not see the life of the just beyond the grave. In prophetic vision he was instructed concerning the death of Christ, and was shown His coming in glory, attended by all the holy angels, to ransom His people from the grave. He also saw the corrupt state of the world when Christ should appear the second time—that there would be a boastful, presumptuous, self-willed generation, denying the only God and the Lord Jesus Christ, trampling upon the law, and despising the atonement. He saw the righteous crowned with glory and honor, and the wicked banished from the presence of the Lord, and destroyed by fire.

PP 86.1

Enoch became a preacher of righteousness, making known to the people what God had revealed to him. Those who feared the Lord sought out this holy man, to share his instruction and his prayers. He labored publicly also, bearing God’s messages to all who would hear the words of warning. His labors were not restricted to the Sethites. In the land where Cain had sought to flee from the divine Presence, the prophet of God made known the wonderful scenes that had passed before his vision. “Behold,” he declared, “the Lord cometh with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds.” Jude 14, 15.

PP 86.2

He was a fearless reprover of sin. While he preached the love of God in Christ to the people of his time, and pleaded with them to forsake their evil ways, he rebuked the prevailing iniquity and warned the men of his generation that judgment would surely be visited upon the transgressor. It was the Spirit of Christ that spoke through Enoch; that Spirit is manifested, not alone in utterances of love, compassion, and entreaty; it is not smooth things only that are spoken by holy men. God puts into the heart and lips of His messengers truths to utter that are keen and cutting as a two-edged sword.

PP 86.3

The power of God that wrought with His servant was felt by those who heard. Some gave heed to the warning, and renounced their sins; but the multitudes mocked at the solemn message, and went on more boldly in their evil ways. The servants of God are to bear a similar message to the world in the last days, and it will also be received with unbelief and mockery. The antediluvian world rejected the warning words of him who walked with God. So will the last generation make light of the warnings of the Lord’s messengers.

PP 86.4

In the midst of a life of active labor, Enoch steadfastly maintained his communion with God. The greater and more pressing his labors, the more constant and earnest were his prayers. He continued to exclude himself, at certain periods, from all society. After remaining for a time among the people, laboring to benefit them by instruction and example, he would withdraw, to spend a season in solitude, hungering and thirsting for that divine knowledge which God alone can impart. Communing thus with God, Enoch came more and more to reflect the divine image. His face was radiant with a holy light, even the light that shineth in the face of Jesus. As he came forth from these divine communings, even the ungodly beheld with awe the impress of heaven upon his countenance.

PP 87.1

The wickedness of men had reached such a height that destruction was pronounced against them. As year after year passed on, deeper and deeper grew the tide of human guilt, darker and darker gathered the clouds of divine judgment. Yet Enoch, the witness of faith, held on his way, warning, pleading, entreating, striving to turn back the tide of guilt and to stay the bolts of vengeance. Though his warnings were disregarded by a sinful, pleasure-loving people, he had the testimony that God approved, and he continued to battle faithfully against the prevailing evil, until God removed him from a world of sin to the pure joys of heaven.

PP 87.2

The men of that generation had mocked the folly of him who sought not to gather gold or silver or to build up possessions here. But Enoch’s heart was upon eternal treasures. He had looked upon the celestial city. He had seen the King in His glory in the midst of Zion. His mind, his heart, his conversation, were in heaven. The greater the existing iniquity, the more earnest was his longing for the home of God. While still on earth, he dwelt, by faith, in the realms of light.

PP 87.3

“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8. For three hundred years Enoch had been seeking purity of soul, that he might be in harmony with Heaven. For three centuries he had walked with God. Day by day he had longed for a closer union; nearer and nearer had grown the communion, until God took him to Himself. He had stood at the threshold of the eternal world, only a step between him and the land of the blest; and now the portals opened, the walk with God, so long pursued on earth, continued, and he passed through the gates of the Holy City—the first from among men to enter there.

PP 88.1

His loss was felt on earth. The voice that had been heard day after day in warning and instruction was missed. There were some, both of the righteous and the wicked, who had witnessed his departure; and hoping that he might have been conveyed to some one of his places of retirement, those who loved him made diligent search, as afterward the sons of the prophets searched for Elijah; but without avail. They reported that he was not, for God had taken him.

PP 88.2

By the translation of Enoch the Lord designed to teach an important lesson. There was danger that men would yield to discouragement, because of the fearful results of Adam’s sin. Many were ready to exclaim, “What profit is it that we have feared the Lord and have kept His ordinances, since a heavy curse is resting upon the race, and death is the portion of us all?” But the instructions which God gave to Adam, and which were repeated by Seth, and exemplified by Enoch, swept away the gloom and darkness, and gave hope to man, that as through Adam came death, so through the promised Redeemer would come life and immortality. Satan was urging upon men the belief that there was no reward for the righteous or punishment for the wicked, and that it was impossible for men to obey the divine statutes. But in the case of Enoch, God declares “that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6. He shows what He will do for those who keep His commandments. Men were taught that it is possible to obey the law of God; that even while living in the midst of the sinful and corrupt, they were able, by the grace of God, to resist temptation, and become pure and holy. They saw in his example the blessedness of such a life; and his translation was an evidence of the truth of his prophecy concerning the hereafter, with its award of joy and glory and immortal life to the obedient, and of condemnation, woe, and death to the transgressor.

PP 88.3

By faith Enoch “was translated that he should not see death; ... for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.” Hebrews 11:5. In the midst of a world by its iniquity doomed to destruction, Enoch lived a life of such close communion with God that he was not permitted to fall under the power of death. The godly character of this prophet represents the state of holiness which must be attained by those who shall be “redeemed from the earth” (Revelation 14:3) at the time of Christ’s second advent. Then, as in the world before the Flood, iniquity will prevail. Following the promptings of their corrupt hearts and the teachings of a deceptive philosophy, men will rebel against the authority of Heaven. But like Enoch, God’s people will seek for purity of heart and conformity to His will, until they shall reflect the likeness of Christ. Like Enoch, they will warn the world of the Lord’s second coming and of the judgments to be visited upon transgression, and by their holy conversation and example they will condemn the sins of the ungodly. As Enoch was translated to heaven before the destruction of the world by water, so the living righteous will be translated from the earth before its destruction by fire. Says the apostle: “We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump.” “For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God;” “the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” “The dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” 1 Corinthians 15:51, 52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18.

From Eternity Past

Chapter 6—Seth: When Men Turned to God

EP 43.1

To Adam was given another son to be the heir of the spiritual birthright. The name Seth, given to this son, signified “appointed,” or “compensation”; “for,” said the mother, “God hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.” Seth resembled Adam more closely than did his other sons, a worthy character following in the steps of Abel. Yet he inherited no more natural goodness than did Cain. Seth, like Cain, inherited the fallen nature of his parents. But he received also the knowledge of the Redeemer and instruction in righteousness. He labored, as Abel would have done, to turn the minds of sinful men to revere and obey their Creator.

EP 43.2

“To Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of Jehovah.” The distinction between the two classes became more marked—an open profession of loyalty to God on the part of one, contempt and disobedience on the part of the other.

EP 43.3

Before the Fall, our first parents had kept the Sabbath, which was instituted in Eden, and after their expulsion from Paradise they continued its observance. They had learned what every one will sooner or later learn, that the divine precepts are sacred and immutable and that the penalty of transgression will surely be inflicted. The Sabbath was honored by all who remained loyal to God. But Cain and his descendants did not respect the day upon which God had rested.

EP 43.4

Cain now founded a city, calling it after the name of his eldest son. He had gone out from the presence of the Lord to seek his possessions and enjoyment in the earth, standing at the head of that great class of men who worship the god of this world. In that which pertains to mere earthly and material progress, his descendants became distinguished. But they were in opposition to the purposes of God for man. To the crime of murder, Lamech, the fifth in descent, added polygamy. Abel had led a pastoral life, and the descendants of Seth followed the same course, counting themselves “strangers and pilgrims on the earth,” seeking “a better country, that is, an heavenly.” Hebrews 11:13, 16.

EP 44.1

For some time the two classes remained separate. The race of Cain, spreading from their first settlement, dispersed over the plains and valleys where the children of Seth had dwelt. The latter, in order to escape their contaminating influence, withdrew to the mountains and there maintained the worship of God in its purity. But in the lapse of time they ventured to mingle with the inhabitants of the valleys. “The sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair.” The children of Seth displeased the Lord by intermarrying with them. Many of the worshipers of God were beguiled into sin by the allurements constantly before them, and they lost their holy character. Mingling with the depraved, they became like them. The restrictions of the seventh commandment were disregarded, “and they took them wives of all which they chose.” The children of Seth went “in the way of Cain.” Jude 11. They fixed their minds upon worldly prosperity and enjoyment and neglected the commandments of the Lord. Sin spread abroad in the earth.

EP 44.2

For nearly a thousand years Adam sought to stem the tide of evil. He had been commanded to instruct his posterity in the way of the Lord, and he carefully treasured what God had revealed to him and repeated it to succeeding generations. To the ninth generation he described man’s holy and happy estate in Paradise and repeated the history of his fall, telling them of the sufferings by which God had taught him the necessity of strict adherence to His law and explaining to them the merciful provisions for their salvation. Yet often he was met with bitter reproach for the sin that had brought such woe upon his posterity.

EP 45.1

When he left Eden, the thought that he must die thrilled him with horror. Filled with remorse for his own sin and doubly bereaved in the death of Abel and the rejection of Cain, Adam was bowed down with anguish. Though the sentence of death had at first appeared terrible, yet after beholding for nearly a thousand years the results of sin, he felt that it was merciful for God to bring to an end a life of suffering and sorrow.

EP 45.2

The antediluvian age was not, as has often been supposed, an era of ignorance and barbarism. The people possessed great physical and mental strength, and their advantages were unrivaled. Their mental powers were early developed, and those who cherished the fear of God continued to increase in knowledge and wisdom throughout their life. Illustrious scholars of our time would appear as greatly inferior in mental as in physical strength. As the years of man have decreased and his physical strength has diminished, so his mental capacities have lessened.

EP 45.3

It is true that the people of modern times have the benefit of the attainments of their predecessors. Men of masterly minds have left their work for those who follow. But how much greater the advantages of the men of that time! They had among them for hundreds of years him who was formed in God’s image. Adam had learned from the Creator the history of creation; he himself witnessed the events of nine centuries. The antediluvians had strong memories to retain that which was communicated to them and to transmit it unimpaired to their posterity. For hundreds of years there were seven generations living upon the earth contemporaneously, profiting by the knowledge and experience of all.

EP 46.1

So far from being an era of religious darkness, that was an age of great light. All the world had opportunity to receive instruction from Adam, and those who feared the Lord had also Christ and angels for their teachers. And they had a silent witness to the truth, in the garden of God, which for many centuries remained among men. Eden stood just in sight, its entrance barred by watching angels. The object of the garden, the history of its two trees, were undisputed facts. And the existence and supreme authority of God were truths which men were slow to question while Adam was among them.

EP 46.2

Notwithstanding the prevailing iniquity, a line of holy men lived as in the companionship of heaven—men of massive intellect, of wonderful attainments. They had a great mission—to develop a character of righteousness, to teach a lesson of godliness, not only to men of their time, but for future generations. Only a few are mentioned in the Scriptures, but all through the ages God had faithful witnesses, true-hearted worshipers.

EP 46.3

Enoch lived sixty-five years and begat a son. After that he walked with God three hundred years. He was one of the preservers of the true faith, the progenitors of the promised seed. From the lips of Adam he had learned the story of the fall and of God’s grace as seen in the promise, and he relied upon the Redeemer to come.

EP 46.4

But after the birth of his first son, Enoch reached a higher experience. As he saw the child’s love for its father, its simple trust in his protection, as he felt the deep tenderness of his own heart for that firstborn son, he learned a precious lesson of the wonderful love of God in the gift of His Son. The unfathomable love of God through Christ became the subject of his meditations day and night, and he sought to reveal that love to the people among whom he dwelt.

EP 47.1

Enoch’s walk with God was not in a trance or vision, but in all the duties of daily life. As a husband and father, a friend, a citizen, he was the unwavering servant of the Lord.

EP 47.3

Enoch was a man of extensive knowledge, honored with special revelations from God; yet he was one of the humblest of men. He waited before the Lord. To him prayer was as the breath of the soul; he lived in the very atmosphere of heaven.

EP 47.4

Through holy angels God revealed to Enoch His purpose to destroy the world by a flood. He also opened more fully to him the plan of redemption and showed him the great events connected with the second coming of Christ and the end of the world.

EP 47.5

Enoch had been troubled in regard to the dead. It had seemed to him that the righteous and the wicked would go to the dust together and that this would be their end. He could not see the life of the just beyond the grave. In prophetic vision he was instructed concerning the death of Christ and His coming in glory, attended by all the holy angels, to ransom His people from the grave. He also saw the corrupt state of the world when Christ should appear the second time—that there would be a boastful, self-willed generation trampling upon the law and despising the atonement. He saw the righteous crowned with glory and honor and the wicked destroyed by fire.

EP 48.1

While he preached the love of God in Christ, he rebuked the prevailing iniquity and warned that judgment would surely be visited upon the transgressor. It is not smooth things only that are spoken by holy men. God puts into the lips of His messengers truths that are keen and cutting as a two-edged sword.

EP 48.2

Some gave heed to the warning, but the multitudes went on more boldly in their evil ways. So will the last generation make light of the warnings of the Lord’s messengers.

EP 48.3

In the midst of a life of active labor, Enoch steadfastly maintained his communion with God. After remaining for a time among the people, he would spend a season in solitude, hungering and thirsting for divine knowledge. Communing with God, Enoch came more and more to reflect the divine image. His face was radiant with the light that shines in the face of Jesus.

EP 48.4

As year after year passed, deeper and deeper grew the tide of human guilt, darker and darker gathered the clouds of divine judgment. Yet Enoch held on his way, warning, pleading, striving to turn back the tide of guilt. Though his warnings were disregarded by a sinful, pleasure-loving people, he had the testimony that God approved. He continued to battle against evil until God removed him from a world of sin to the pure joys of heaven.

EP 48.5

The men of that generation had mocked him who sought not to build up possessions here. But Enoch’s heart was upon eternal treasures. He had seen the King in His glory in the midst of Zion. His mind, his conversation, were in heaven. The greater the existing iniquity, the more earnest was his longing for the home of God.

EP 49.1

For three hundred years Enoch had walked with God. Day by day he had longed for a closer union; nearer and nearer had grown the communion, until God took him to Himself. Now the walk with God, so long pursued on earth, continued, and he passed through the gates of the Holy City—the first from among men to enter there.

EP 49.2

His loss was felt on earth. Some, both righteous and wicked, had witnessed his departure. Those who loved him made diligent search, but without avail. They reported that he “was not,” for God had taken him.

EP 49.3

By the translation of Enoch the Lord designed to teach an important lesson. There was danger that men would yield to discouragement because of the fearful results of Adam’s sin. Many were ready to exclaim, “What profit is it that we have feared the Lord and have kept His ordinances, since a heavy curse is resting upon the race, and death is the portion of us all?” Satan was urging upon men the belief that there was no reward for the righteous or punishment of the wicked, and that it was impossible for men to obey the divine statutes. But in the case of Enoch, God shows what He will do for those who keep His commandments. Men were taught that it is possible to obey the law of God, that they were able by grace to resist temptation and become pure and holy. His translation was an evidence of the truth of his prophecy concerning the hereafter, with its award of immortal life to the obedient and of condemnation and death to the transgressor.

From Eternity Past

Enoch—The First Man Never to Die

EP 47.2

His heart was in harmony with God’s will; for “can two walk together except they be agreed?” Amos 3:3. And this holy walk continued for three hundred years. Enoch’s faith waxed stronger, his love more ardent, with the lapse of centuries.

EP 47.6

Enoch became a preacher of righteousness, making known God’s messages to all who would hear. In the land where Cain had sought to flee from the divine presence, the prophet made known the wonderful scenes that had passed before his vision. “Behold,” he declared, “the Lord cometh with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds.” Jude 14, 15.

From Eternity Past

Enoch Is Translated to Heaven

EP 49.4

By faith Enoch “was translated that he should not see death, ... for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.” Hebrews 11:5. The godly character of this prophet represents the state of holiness which must be attained by those who shall be “redeemed from the earth” (Revelation 14:3) at Christ’s second advent. Then, as before the Flood, iniquity will prevail. Men will rebel against the authority of Heaven. But like Enoch, God’s people will seek for purity of heart and conformity to His will, until they shall reflect the likeness of Christ. Like Enoch they will warn the world of the Lord’s second coming and by their holy example will condemn the sins of the ungodly. As Enoch was translated to heaven, so the living righteous will be translated from the earth before its destruction by fire. See 1 Corinthians 15:51, 52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 4 (1883 - 1886)

Lt 47, 1886

4LtMs, Lt 47, 1886, par. 13

The counsels are of God, and His Word was not given in a few days on a high-pressure plan. It took a long space of time to bring out the Bible history. Under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, a chapter was written, a psalm was composed, a proverb penned, a vision from God recorded, and so down through the ages the will and purposes of God were brought out. About fifteen hundred years were occupied from the time Moses began to write the book of Genesis down to the completion of the Revelation by the beloved John. God would not have us so excitable, in such a hurry; and yet there are some who need to be taught diligence.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 4 (1883 - 1886)

Lt 47a, 1886

4LtMs, Lt 47a, 1886, par. 14

The Lord would not have us be so excitable, in such a hurry. The counsels of God in His Word were not given in a few days, on the high-pressure plan. It took a long period of time to bring out the Bible history. Under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, a chapter was written, a psalm composed, a proverb penned, a vision recorded, and so down through the ages the will and purposes of God were brought out. About fifteen hundred years passed from the time Moses began to write the book of Genesis, down to the completion of the Revelation by the beloved John.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 5 (1887-1888)

Ms 16, 1888

5LtMs, Ms 16, 1888, par. 13

Men should let God take care of His own Book, His living Oracles, as He has done for ages. They begin to question some parts of revelation and pick flaws in the apparent inconsistencies of this statement and that statement. Beginning at Genesis, they give up that which they deem questionable, and their minds lead on, for Satan will lead to any length they may follow in their criticism and they see something to doubt in the whole Scriptures. Their faculties of criticism become sharpened by exercise, and they can rest on nothing with a certainty. You try to reason with these men, but your time is lost. They will exercise their power of ridicule even upon the Bible. They even become mockers, and they would be astonished if you put it to them in that light.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 9 (1894)

Ms 40, 1894

9LtMs, Ms 40, 1894, par. 17

From Genesis to Revelation the conditions upon which eternal life is promised are made plain. God requires that those who shall enter heaven shall be without spot or wrinkle or any such thing. “Keep My commandments and live” is the requirement of God. [Proverbs 4:4.] But one says, “My conscience does not condemn me in not keeping the commandments of God.” But in the Word of God we read that there are good and bad consciences, and the fact that your conscience does not condemn you in not keeping the law of God does not prove that you are uncondemned in His sight. Take your conscience to the Word of God, and see if your life and character are in accordance with the standard of righteousness which God has revealed in His Word. You can then determine whether or not you have an intelligent faith, and what manner of conscience is yours.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 10 (1895)

Lt 67, 1895

10LtMs, Lt 67, 1895, par. 14

Christ came in the form of humanity to live the law of God. He was the Word of life. He came to be the gospel of salvation to the world, and to fulfill every specification of the law. Jesus is the Word, the guidebook, which must be received and obeyed in every particular. How necessary that this mine of truth be explored, and the precious treasures of truth be discovered and secured as rich jewels. The incarnation of Christ, His divinity, His atonement, His wonderful life in heaven as our Advocate, the office of the Holy Spirit—all those living, vital themes of Christianity are revealed from Genesis to Revelation. The golden links of truth form a chain of evangelical truth, and the first and staple link is found in the great teachings of Christ Jesus. Why, then, should not the Scriptures be ennobled and exalted in every school in our land? How little children are educated to study the Bible as the Word of God, and feed upon its truths, which are the flesh and blood of the Son of God! “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood” (that is, continue to receive the words of Christ, and practice them) “hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” [John 6:53-56.] “And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.” [1 John 3:24.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 75, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 75, 1897, par. 1

Those who accept Christ will follow on to know the Lord. This acceptance means conversion through the Holy Spirit’s power and efficiency. The working of the Holy Spirit upon the human agent brings to him a conviction of sin, makes him susceptible to truth, [and] enables him to discern and make earnest application of it to his own heart. This power preserves him from falling under temptation, and imparts to him wisdom in winning souls to Christ. And every true believer who will follow on to know the Lord will have this power working in him. He will discern in Christ not only the Alpha of Genesis, but the Omega of Revelation. He will learn by personal experience that Christ is the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star, and that it is through His church, His people in their unity, that He is to shine in undimmed luster to the world. He beholds himself as the work of Christ. Having the mind of Christ, he walks in His footsteps, and his good works and love for others testify to the world that He is Christ, that God has sent His Son to impart His Spirit to His people, and that they may represent Christ in their love for one another.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 52, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 52, 1897, par. 2

After His crucifixion and resurrection, thousands would be led to open the Scriptures with an intense desire to study the prophecies, from Genesis to Revelation. And they would see with anointed eyes the predictions in the prophetic Roll of the advent of a divine Teacher. In Christ crucified they would see the very work done which the prophecies declared He would do to proclaim the gospel, the Word of life to a world that was shadowed and corrupted by transgression and sin. And the words of Christ would be gathered up; the New Testament would declare to them a work which would thrill the world.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 33, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 33, 1897, par. 30

When the students of prophecy shall set their hearts to know the truths of Revelation, they will realize what an importance is attached to this search. Christ Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega, the Genesis of the Old Testament, and the Revelation of the New. Both meet together in Christ. Adam and God are reconciled by the obedience of the second Adam, who accomplished the work of overcoming the temptations of Satan and redeeming Adam’s disgraceful failure and fall. The two Adams will meet in Paradise and embrace each other, while the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet, and all who have refused the opportunities and privileges given to them at such an infinite cost, and have not returned to their loyalty, will be shut out of Paradise.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 21, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 21, 1897, par. 29

Here we have the Alpha of Genesis and the Omega of Revelation. The blessing is promised to all those who keep the commandments of God, and who co-operate with Him in the proclamation of the third angel’s message. “I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning Star.” [Revelation 22:16.] That which Christ has spoken in the Old Testament is for all the world. What He has said in reference is His commandments is not Yea and Nay, but Yea and Amen.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 69, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 69, 1897, par. 15

Our youth must have well-conducted schools, where they can gain an all-round education. From Genesis to Revelation the gospel shines forth with no uncertain light. From the time when God talked with Adam and Eve in Eden, giving them heavenly instruction, the light has continued to shine down through the ages. Christ appeared to His servant John, and gave him a revelation of the closing events of this earth’s history.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Lt 98a, 1897

12LtMs, Lt 98a, 1897, par. 49

All who join the ranks of Sabbathkeepers should become diligent Bible students, that they may know the pillars and ground work of the truth. They should study prophetic history, which has brought us down point by point to where we are at the present time. This is God’s plan for our school. Young men should attend who desire to become educated for any line of work, who have capabilities and see the necessity of learning more and still more where we stand today in prophetic history, uniting link after link in the prophetic chain, even from Genesis to Revelation. Christ is the Alpha, the first link, and the Omega, the last link, of the gospel chain, which is welded in Revelation. These young men will not have fixed habits of wrong, or defects in disposition and character that will make them inflexible.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)

Ms 54, 1898

13LtMs, Ms 54, 1898, par. 8

Perfection of character is required by God, and this is kept before us in His Word from Genesis to Revelation. “When Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.” [Genesis 17:1.] To Israel God said, “I am the Lord your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy for I am holy. ... For I am the Lord your God that bringeth you out of the land of Egypt, to by your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.” “And the Lord spake unto Moses saying, Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. Ye shall fear every man his mother and his father, and keep my sabbaths: I am the Lord your God.” [Leviticus 11:44, 45; 19:1-3.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)

Ms 117, 1898

13LtMs, Ms 117, 1898, par. 12

The uneducated heathen then learns his lessons through nature, and through his own necessities; and, dissatisfied with darkness, he is reaching out for light, searching for God in the first great cause. There is recorded in Genesis various ways in which God speaks to the heathen. But the contrast between the revelation of God in Genesis and the ideas of the heathen is striking. Pagan philosophers, many of them, had a knowledge of God which was pure, but degeneracy, the worship of created things, began to obscure this knowledge. The handiwork of God in the natural world, the sun, the moon, the stars, were worshipped.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Ms 12, 1899

14LtMs, Ms 12, 1899, par. 2

The Word of God is to be the great lesson book in all our schools. From Genesis to Revelation it is full of instruction in practical godliness.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Ms 85, 1899

14LtMs, Ms 85, 1899, par. 12

The history of the world from the beginning is contained in Genesis. There it is revealed that all nations who forget God and discard His way and His sign of obedience, which distinguishes between the just and the unjust, the righteous and the wicked, the saved and the unsaved, will be destroyed. The first books of the Bible, which trace down the history of nations, including the destruction of the old world, show the overruling providence of God, which from generation to generation has provided for the education of a chosen people. The plainly written Word in regard to the just and the unjust is a living testimony in regard to those whom the Lord will sanctify. None who live in disobedience can receive His blessing. Only those who are obedient can receive this.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Ms 153, 1899

14LtMs, Ms 153, 1899, par. 32

We cannot know God and Jesus Christ until we search the Scriptures, beginning with Genesis. In this Word we find out why it was necessary for Christ to leave His high command in heaven, to separate Himself from the angelic family, laying off His royal robe and kingly crown, and clothe His divinity with humanity. For our sake He became poor, that by His poverty He might make many rich, securing for them eternal riches. That He might work in our behalf, He came to live among fallen humanity, in a world marred by sin and misery.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 15 (1900)

Ms 68, 1900

15LtMs, Ms 68, 1900, par. 15

The whole gospel from Genesis to Revelation is the means appointed and specified of God through which to reveal His will to the people, and it is to be appreciated, respected, and heeded.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Ms 110, 1901

16LtMs, Ms 110, 1901, par. 6

While they were talking thus of their crucified and buried Lord, “Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. But their eyes were holden that they should not know him. And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?” [Luke 24:15-17.] “Have ye not heard,” they answered, “that the prophet mighty in deed and word has been taken and crucified by cruel hands, and is now buried?” Beginning at Genesis, the Stranger told them what had been prophesied from the first concerning Jesus. While He was comforting their hearts, they came to the house where they lived, and invited their Companion to come in. He acted as though He were going further, but they constrained Him to tarry with them.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Ms 70, 1901

16LtMs, Ms 70, 1901, par. 9

The sacrifice of Christ as an atonement for sin is the great truth around which all other truths cluster. In order to be rightly understood and appreciated, every truth in the Word of God, from Genesis to Revelation, must be studied in the light which streams from the cross of Calvary, and in connection with the wondrous, central truth of the Saviour’s atonement. Those who study the Redeemer’s wonderful sacrifice grow in grace and knowledge.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 19 (1904)

Ms 170, 1904

19LtMs, Ms 170, 1904, par. 19

I have not been able to sleep since 12 o’clock, but I have a message from the Lord to bear to our people. Present to the people everywhere at this time the perpetuity of the law of Jehovah. Present to them that the only foundation for Sunday observance has its origin not in the Word of God, but in the papal authority. Now let all consider that the time has come to reason from cause to effect. We must, as ministers of the Word, delay not to impress the people more decidedly in defining our authority for keeping the original Sabbath of Jehovah. Please read the word in Genesis.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 22 (1907)

Ms 67, 1907

22LtMs, Ms 67, 1907, par. 17

The message of the gospel, from Genesis to Revelation, is God’s appointed means through which to reveal His will to men. It is to be appreciated, respected, and carefully studied. In a humble, prayerful spirit, Scripture is to be compared with Scripture. In the fourth chapter of Ephesians, the plan of God is so plainly and simply revealed, that all His children may lay hold upon the truth. Here the means which He has appointed to keep unity in His church, that its members may reveal to the world a healthy religious experience, is plainly declared. Those who conform their lives to obedience to the commandments of God, and are united in the faith of the Scriptures; those who are bound together as one in Christ Jesus, their lives hid with Christ in God, will practice the golden rule, doing to others as they would have others do to them. They will bear a living, abiding testimony that the Father loves them even as He loves His Son, and their testimony will have a powerful influence with the unbelieving world. These souls appreciate the great gift of God to our world; their course in life testifies that Christ has not died for them in vain. They make use of the provision made by heaven at infinite cost to draw souls to obedience to the law of God. Co-operating with the great Master Worker, they become laborers together with God. They become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. Their consistent Christian lives magnify the law of God and make it honorable before the gainsaying world. Their deportment in courtesy and unwavering fidelity, their justice and mercy demonstrate to the world that the law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 25 (1910 - 1915)

Ms 69, 1912

25LtMs, Ms 69, 1912, par. 42

The Old Testament, containing the prophecies of the coming of Christ, is now made of small account. The cry now is, “The Christ, the Christ! The gospel, the gospel!” But the gospel is taught all the way through the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. The gospel is revealed in all the prophecies of the first advent of Christ as the Saviour of men. Every act of the old dispensation to turn men away from sin or to bring them forgiveness was done with reference to the Saviour who was to come. He was the steppingstone by which man was to be exalted.

The Story of Redemption

Chapter 7—Seth and Enoch

SR 57.1

Seth was a worthy character, and was to take the place of Abel in right doing. Yet he was a son of Adam, like sinful Cain, and inherited from the nature of Adam no more natural goodness than did Cain. He was born in sin, but by the grace of God, in receiving the faithful instructions of his father Adam, he honored God in doing His will. He separated himself from the corrupt descendants of Cain and labored, as Abel would have done had he lived, to turn the minds of sinful men to revere and obey God.

SR 57.2

Enoch was a holy man. He served God with singleness of heart. He realized the corruptions of the human family and separated himself from the descendants of Cain and reproved them for their great wickedness. There were those upon the earth who acknowledged God, who feared and worshiped Him. Yet righteous Enoch was so distressed with the increasing wickedness of the ungodly, that he would not daily associate with them, fearing that he should be affected by their infidelity and that his thoughts might not ever regard God with that holy reverence which was due His exalted character. His soul was vexed as he daily witnessed their trampling upon the authority of God. He chose to be separate from them, and spent much of his time in solitude, which he devoted to reflection and prayer. He waited before God and prayed to know His will more perfectly, that he might perform it. God communed with Enoch through His angels and gave him divine instruction. He made known to him that He would not always bear with man in his rebellion—that His purpose was to destroy the sinful race by bringing a flood of waters upon the earth.

SR 58.1

The pure and lovely Garden of Eden, from which our first parents were driven, remained until God purposed to destroy the earth by a flood. God had planted that garden and specially blessed it, and in His wonderful providence He withdrew it from the earth, and will return it to the earth again more gloriously adorned than before it was removed from the earth. God purposed to preserve a specimen of His perfect work of creation free from the curse wherewith He had cursed the earth.

SR 58.2

The Lord opened more fully to Enoch the plan of salvation, and by the Spirit of prophecy carried him down through the generations which should live after the Flood, and showed him the great events connected with the second coming of Christ and the end of the world. (Jude 1:14.)

SR 58.3

Enoch was troubled in regard to the dead. It seemed to him that the righteous and the wicked would go to the dust together, and that would be their end. He could not clearly see the life of the just beyond the grave. In prophetic vision he was instructed in regard to the Son of God, who was to die man’s sacrifice, and was shown the coming of Christ in the clouds of heaven, attended by the angelic host, to give life to the righteous dead and ransom them from their graves. He also saw the corrupt state of the world at the time when Christ should appear the second time—that there would be a boastful, presumptuous, self-willed generation arrayed in rebellion against the law of God and denying the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ, and trampling upon His blood and despising His atonement. He saw the righteous crowned with glory and honor while the wicked were separated from the presence of the Lord and consumed with fire.

SR 59.1

Enoch faithfully rehearsed to the people all that God had revealed to him by the Spirit of prophecy. Some believed his words and turned from their wickedness to fear and worship God.

SR 59.2

Enoch continued to grow more heavenly while communing with God. His face was radiant with a holy light which would remain upon his countenance while instructing those who would hear his words of wisdom. His heavenly and dignified appearance struck the people with awe. The Lord loved Enoch because he steadfastly followed Him and abhorred iniquity and earnestly sought heavenly knowledge, that he might do His will perfectly. He yearned to unite himself still more closely to God, whom he feared, reverenced, and adored. God would not permit Enoch to die as other men, but sent His angels to take him to heaven without seeing death. In the presence of the righteous and the wicked, Enoch was removed from them. Those who loved him thought that God might have left him in some of his places of retirement, but after seeking him diligently, and being unable to find him, reported that he was not, for God took him.

SR 59.3

The Lord here teaches a lesson of the greatest importance by the translation of Enoch, a descendant of fallen Adam, that all would be rewarded, who by faith would rely upon the promised Sacrifice and faithfully obey His commandments. Two classes are here again represented which were to exist until the second coming of Christ—the righteous and the wicked, the rebellious and the loyal. God will remember the righteous, who fear Him. On account of His dear Son He will respect and honor them and give them everlasting life. But the wicked, who trample upon His authority, He will cut off and destroy from the earth, and they will be as though they had not been.

SR 60.2

In the case of Enoch the desponding faithful were taught that, although living among a corrupt and sinful people, who were in open and daring rebellion against God, their Creator, yet if they would obey Him and have faith in the promised Redeemer, they could work righteousness like the faithful Enoch, be accepted of God, and finally exalted to His heavenly throne.

SR 60.3

Enoch, separating himself from the world, and spending much of his time in prayer and in communion with God, represents God’s loyal people in the last days, who will be separate from the world. Unrighteousness will prevail to a dreadful extent upon the earth. Men will give themselves up to follow every imagination of their corrupt hearts and carry out their deceptive philosophy and rebel against the authority of high heaven.

SR 61.1

God’s people will separate themselves from the unrighteous practices of those around them and will seek for purity of thought and holy conformity to His will until His divine image will be reflected in them. Like Enoch, they will be fitting for translation to heaven. While they endeavor to instruct and warn the world, they will not conform to the spirit and customs of unbelievers but will condemn them by their holy conversation and godly example. Enoch’s translation to heaven just before the destruction of the world by a flood represents the translation of all the living righteous from the earth previous to its destruction by fire. The saints will be glorified in the presence of those who have hated them for their loyal obedience to God’s righteous commandments.

The Story of Redemption

Enoch Translated

SR 60.1

After Adam’s fall from a state of perfect happiness to a state of misery and sin, there was danger of man’s becoming discouraged and inquiring, “What profit is it that we have kept His ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord” (Malachi 3:14), since a heavy curse is resting upon the human race, and death is the portion of us all? But the instructions which God gave to Adam, and which were repeated by Seth and fully exemplified by Enoch, cleared away the darkness and gloom, and gave hope to man, that as through Adam came death, through Jesus, the promised Redeemer, would come life and immortality.

Conflict and Courage

By Word of Mouth, January 16

CC 22.1

And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died. Genesis 5:5.

Lift Him Up

Our Vital Force, February 19

LHU 64.1

And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died. Genesis 5:5.

Homeward Bound

The Restoration of Adam, December 11

HB 376.1

So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died.—Genesis 5:5.

Christian Temperance and Bible Hygiene

Chapter 1—Christian Temperance General Principles

CTBH 7.3

Moses, the first historian, gives quite a definite account of social and individual life in the early days of the world’s history, but we find no record that an infant was born blind, deaf, crippled, or imbecile. Not an instance is recorded of a natural death in infancy, childhood, or early manhood. Obituary notices in the book of Genesis run thus: “And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died.” “And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years; and he died.” Concerning others the record states, “He died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years.” It was so rare for a son to die before his father, that such an occurrence was considered worthy of record: “Haran died before his father Terah.” [Genesis 5:5, 8; 25:8; 11:28.] The patriarchs from Adam to Noah, with few exceptions, lived nearly a thousand years. Since then the average length of life has been decreasing.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 1 (1844 - 1868)

Ms 7, 1866

1LtMs, Ms 7, 1866, par. 12

God has been displeased with Sabbathkeepers for their avaricious spirit. Their desire to get gain is so strong upon them, that they have taken advantage of their poor, unfortunate brethren in their distress and have added to their already abundant means when their poorer brethren have been distressed and necessitated for the same means. “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 5:7) is the language of their heart.

Conflict and Courage

He Walked With God, January 22

CC 28.1

Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah: and Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years. Genesis 5:21, 22.

CC 28.2

Of Enoch it is written that he lived sixty-five years, and begat a son.... During these earlier years Enoch had loved and feared God and had kept His commandments.... But after the birth of his first son, Enoch reached a higher experience; he was drawn into a closer relationship with God. He realized more fully his own obligations and responsibility as a son of God. And as he saw the child’s love for its father, its simple trust in his protection; as he felt the deep, yearning tenderness of his own heart for that firstborn son, he learned a precious lesson of the wonderful love of God to men in the gift of His Son, and the confidence which the children of God may repose in their heavenly Father. The infinite, unfathomable love of God through Christ became the subject of his meditation day and night; and with all the fervor of his soul he sought to reveal that love to the people among whom he dwelt.

CC 28.3

Enoch’s walk with God was not in a trance or a vision, but in all the duties of his daily life. He did not become a hermit, shutting himself entirely from the world; for he had a work to do for God in the world. In the family and in his intercourse with men, as a husband and father, a friend, a citizen, he was the steadfast, unwavering servant of the Lord.... And this holy walk was continued for three hundred years. There are few Christians who would not be far more earnest and devoted if they knew that they had but a short time to live, or that the coming of Christ was about to take place. But Enoch’s faith waxed the stronger, his love became more ardent, with the lapse of centuries.35Patriarchs and Prophets, 84, 85.

CC 28.4

He [Enoch] was of one mind with God.... If we are of one mind with God, our will will be swallowed up in God’s will, and we shall follow wherever God leads the way. As a loving child places his hand in that of his father, and walks with him in perfect trust whether it is dark or bright, so the sons and daughters of God are to walk with Jesus through joy or sorrow.36The Review and Herald, December 3, 1889.

Conflict and Courage

God Took Him, January 23

CC 29.1

Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. Genesis 5:24.

CC 29.2

Enoch, we read, walked with God three hundred years. That was a long time to be in communion with Him.... He communed with God because it was agreeable to him, ... and he loved the society of God.37Manuscript 16, 1887.

CC 29.3

Enoch was a marked character. Many look upon his life as something above what the generality of mortals can ever reach. But Enoch’s life and character ... represent what the lives and characters of all must be, if like Enoch, they are subjects to be translated when Christ shall come. His life was what the life of every individual may be if he closely connects with God. We should remember that Enoch was surrounded with influences so depraved that God brought a flood of waters on the world to destroy its inhabitants for their corruption.38The Signs of the Times, October 30, 1879.

CC 29.4

We are living in an evil age. The perils of the last days thicken around us. Because iniquity abounds, the love of many waxes cold....

CC 29.5

Enoch’s case is before us.... He lived in a corrupt age, when moral pollution was teeming all round him; yet he trained his mind to devotion, to love purity. His conversation was upon heavenly things. He educated his mind to run in this channel, and he bore the impress of the divine. His countenance was lighted up with the light which shineth in the face of Jesus.

CC 29.6

Enoch had temptations as well as we. He was surrounded with society no more friendly to righteousness than is that which surrounds us. The atmosphere he breathed was tainted with sin and corruption, the same as ours; yet he lived a life of holiness. He was unsullied with the prevailing sins of the age in which he lived. So may we remain pure and uncorrupted. He was a representative of the saints who live amid the perils and corruptions of the last days. For his faithful obedience to God he was translated. So, also, the faithful, who are alive and remain, will be translated. They will be removed from a sinful and corrupt world to the pure joys of heaven.39Testimonies for the Church 2:121, 122.

CC 29.7

Our present work is to come out from the world and be separate. This is the only way we can walk with God, as did Enoch.40Testimonies for the Church 5:535.

My Life Today

Enoch’s Life of Holiness, September 8

ML 255.1

Enoch walked with God ... three hundred years. Genesis 5:22.

From the Heart

Enoch, July 6

FH 199.1

After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years. Genesis 5:22.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 5 (1887-1888)

Ms 20, 1888

5LtMs, Ms 20, 1888, par. 14

We read that Enoch walked with God. [Genesis 5:22.] And how did he walk with God? Why, he made Christ his companion. I long to see men who walk with God in this age. You read of those holy men of old. They did not act as though Christ was afar off. They acted as though He was with them. They conversed with Him. They would let their petitions go out to Him. You can do just the same.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 24 (1909)

Ms 11, 1909

24LtMs, Ms 11, 1909, par. 15

The soul who really believes the truth will carry out in his life the principles revealed in the life of Christ. Of Enoch it is written that his ways pleased God; and without faith it is impossible to please God. Not a thread of coarseness or selfishness was woven into the web that this servant of God was weaving in his daily life. And of him we read, “Enoch walked with God three hundred years; and he was not, for God took him.” [Genesis 5:22, 24.]

To Be Like Jesus

Walking With God Through Prayer, January 26

BLJ 33.1

Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and begot sons and daughters.... And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him. Genesis 5:22-24, NKJV.

My Life Today

Walk With God Continually, December 3

ML 341.1

And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. Genesis 5:24.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 16 (1901)

Ms 11, 1901

16LtMs, Ms 11, 1901, par. 9

“Enoch walked with God; and he was not; for God took him.” [Genesis 5:24.] And when God takes the members of His church to heaven, it will be because they have walked with Him here on this earth, receiving from above strength and wisdom which enables them to serve Him aright. Those who are taken to God will be men and women who now pray in humility and contrition, whose hearts are not lifted up unto vanity. In their dealing with believers and unbelievers they represent Christ. Those who dishonor God in the church, acting like those of the world, are one with the world. They will at the last great day be found among the number who knew their Lord’s will and did it not. Full of evil in heart and practice, they readily discern defects in the course of others. They treat their own precious souls meanly. They have no real confidence in themselves, and are therefore very quick to see the mistakes made by others. They make all the capital they possibly can out of the errors of their brethren. As they judge, so they will be judged.

Our High Calling

Walking With God in a Corrupt World, September 29

OHC 278.1

And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. Genesis 5:24.

Sons and Daughters of God

Enoch, a Son of God, Walked With the Father, January 14

SD 20.1

And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. Genesis 5:24.

That I May Know Him

A Happy Walk With Jesus, November 10

TMK 320.1

And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. Genesis 5:24.

The Upward Look

Enoch Pleased God, August 2

UL 228.1

And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. Genesis 5:24.

Ye Shall Receive Power

Godliness, March 27

YRP 95.1

And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. Genesis 5:24.

From the Heart

Modern-day Enochs, July 8

FH 201.1

And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him. Genesis 5:24.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 13 (1898)

Ms 111, 1898

13LtMs, Ms 111, 1898, par. 9

While trusting in your heavenly Father for the help you need, He will not leave you. God has a heaven full of blessings that He wants to bestow on those who are earnestly seeking for that help which the Lord alone can give. It was in looking in faith to Jesus, in asking of Him, in believing that every word spoken would be verified, that Enoch walked with God. He kept close by the side of God, obeying His every word. And the record comes down along the line to our time, “Enoch walked with God.” [Genesis 5:24.] His was a wonderful life of oneness. Christ was his companion. He was in intimate fellowship with God.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 15 (1900)

Ms 43, 1900

15LtMs, Ms 43, 1900, par. 3

Wherever there is genuine piety there will be pure morality. How little is said of Enoch, a man who walked with God, one whom God did not permit to come under the domain of death! How short is this brief biography! How many volumes are written of Napoleon. How much is said of Caesar, and of the other great men of the world. Their works and exploits are recorded and sent through the length and breadth of the earth, and yet we have no evidence that these men honored God, or that God honored them. “Enoch walked with God, and was not; for God took him.” [Genesis 5:24.] How much is said in these few words.