Scripture References:
Genesis (Bereshit) 5:21–24 (Enoch taken); 5:25–27 (Methuselah)
Genesis (Bereshit) 6:13–22; 7:1–12 (Noah, the Ark, and the rains begin)
1656 AM (2104 BCE) – NOAH — The Last Words of Methuselah
Noah looked down at Methuselah. Noah had tried to make this cave as comfortable as possible for Methuselah’s last days. Noah loved his grandfather. Methuselah was all he had left. Lamech went to sleep with his fathers just five years ago. Had it really been that long? It seemed like an instant, a flicker of flame, like the brief shadows cast on the cave walls.
“You are sure you won’t come with us? We can care for you better on the Ark, and—”
“Noah,” Methuselah interrupted, “you mean well, and I am honored by your petition, but you don’t understand… or maybe you just won’t accept what I told you… or you are once again not using reason. Your voyage cannot start until I go to be with El. And besides…”
Methuselah looked up and saw the child-like grin on Noah’s face. “Or maybe you are just having some fun at the expense of an old, dying man.”
“Well,” Noah consoled, “you mustn’t be so dramatic. As you have said, death is not something to fear or be wearied about when one trusts fully in El—as you certainly do. I don’t know; I just wish I could do more for you. I just wish there were nine of us going instead of eight.”
“Yes, Noah, I understand. It is enough that you wait with me here. Besides, you are finished with your work. Your sons can finish loading the animals as they arrive. So, be in the moment, here, with me, now.”
They gazed at the fire. Its warmth shattered the hold of the cold dampness all around the walls of the dead stone. Noah tried to push away the thoughts of death and simply be in the moment as Methuselah requested. Noah looked into Methuselah’s eyes. They gazed at each other in silence for many long minutes, awkwardness beginning to weigh heavy on Noah.
Finally breaking the silence, Noah appealed to Methuselah, “Would you tell me of Enoch? All Lamech would ever say was that he walked with El, and then El took him. You were there, right? What really happened?”
“Oh, well,” Methuselah said with a cough, as he tried to sit up a little more, “Enoch was something special. He was an inspiration—even to Seth and Adam. I really believe he was what kept everyone and everything together for so long. But then…”
Methuselah fell into another long silence.
“You see, Noah, speaking to Enoch was almost like speaking to El Himself. When Enoch looked at you, it was like El was staring right through you, seeing every fear, every doubt. And his wisdom! My, at 300 he understood the deepest of spiritual truths that… that… well, that I, having lived three times as long, still cannot comprehend. It was like El was speaking through Enoch. I have never seen anything like that…”
Methuselah trailed off as he looked back up at Noah. “You know, Noah, the Spirit of El has fallen on you in a similar way as your great-grandfather Enoch. You will find it’s a blessing and a burden. El has allowed salvation to come to your household. That, of course, is the blessing. But you will now have to witness the judgment of the millennium, and you will have to persevere through it. That is the burden. Well, that is part of the burden—the easier part, actually.”
Methuselah pawed haplessly at his beard. “The other part of the burden, the heaviest part, is that you and your children must not repeat this folly of rebellion and self. You must be diligent to be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue the rebellion before it has a chance to gain a foothold. Hear me, Noah: you have to remember that El is Adonai. He is your Master. Listen and obey Adonai alone.”
Methuselah coughed again. It was a wet cough. Noah grabbed a flask and offered it to Methuselah. He drank. It helped.
“Enoch was a source of great strength to our community. People believed strongly in Enoch. The problem was, their faith and trust and loyalty were in Enoch and not in El. Enoch pleaded with them to walk closer to El, but they would not listen. Or maybe they could not listen. It doesn’t matter, really. You see, El had to take Enoch, if only to show the people that their hearts were misaligned.”
“And it was like Abba described?” Noah asked in confirmation.
“Yes, Noah, it was like Lamech described. It was so sudden. We had no warning. And, well, that’s when things came crashing down, so to speak. One moment Enoch was there; the next, he was gone. There was no goodbye, nothing. People were confused. They looked for him, and then looked for his body. Some thought he abandoned them and ran away; others thought he was murdered and his body hidden.”
“Nobody would accept the truth, and it got very ugly. Hostility to El flared, and that tiny seed of rebellion that was hiding under the thinnest veil of loyalty to Enoch took root. The people who claimed to love and honor El turned on each other. Our family turned on itself. We were all but abandoned. And those who once claimed to believe in El were far more cruel and violent to each other than any in the line of Cain.”
“I had no idea,” Noah said, aghast. “I mean, it makes sense why Lamech would want to hide that from me. How awful.”
Just then, a loud clap of thunder startled Noah. He had never heard such a sound. Noah quickly ran to the mouth of the cave. He gazed out of the opening in utter amazement at the sky—dark, ominous clouds; water falling in drops to the ground; and wind starting to blow more fiercely.
“Ah,” Methuselah said with a light chuckle in his voice, “El is nothing if not punctual. Noah, my son, I believe it has finally started to rain.”
Used with permission by the author. Find the author’s complete works online: Complete Works of Mack Samuels
