“And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch… And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch.”
— Genesis 4:17 & 5:18 (KJV)
Two Men, One Name
In the opening chapters of Genesis, the Holy Spirit presents two men named Enoch. Their shared name—meaning “Dedicated” or “Initiated”—highlights a profound spiritual truth: every soul is dedicated to something. While they lived in the same era, their lives represent two diametrically opposed paths: the way of the world and the walk of faith.
1. Enoch: The Son of Cain (The Earthly Architect)
The first Enoch mentioned in Scripture was the son of Cain. Born in the Land of Nod (the land of “wandering”), he became the namesake of the world’s first city.
- The City of Man: Cain, defying his sentence to be a fugitive, built a city and named it after his son. This Enoch represents the establishment of human civilization apart from God.
- The Secular Legacy: His lineage (the Cainites) focused on earthly mastery—metallurgy, music, and urban expansion—but culminated in the violent boastings of Lamech.
- The End: This Enoch’s legacy was rooted in the earth, and it perished with the earth during the Great Deluge.
2. Enoch: The Son of Jared (The Heavenly Pilgrim)
The second Enoch was the son of Jared and the “seventh from Adam” through the line of Seth. He did not build a city on earth; instead, he looked for a city yet to come.
- The Walk of Faith: Scripture records that “Enoch walked with God” for three hundred years. His life was defined by intimate communion and a testimony that he “pleased God” (Hebrews 11:5).
- The Prophetic Voice: He was the first prophet to warn of the Lord’s Second Coming, preaching against the ungodliness of his age (Jude 1:14-15).
- The Translation: Unlike the first Enoch, who left his name on a city of stone, this Enoch left the earth entirely. Because of his faith, “he was not; for God took him,” making him a type of the saints who will be caught up at the return of the King.
The Forensic Contrast
| Feature | Enoch (Cainite) | Enoch (Sethite) |
| Lineage | The Way of Cain (Rebellion) | The Line of Seth (Appointed) |
| Focus | Building an earthly kingdom | Walking in a heavenly fellowship |
| Achievement | A city named after him | A testimony that pleased God |
| End of Life | Death (Lineage ended in Flood) | Translation (Did not see death) |