The Bible says that Enoch walked with God as he did with Adam as well. Would God have walked in the same manner with both of them?
This is a great question and I don’t know if there is a definitive answer for it based on Scripture. Adam (and probably Eve) walked with God in the cool of the day in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:8).
As best I can understand, this may have been the Shekinah glory that later shows up regularly in the tabernacle and tent of meeting with Moses, and the inauguration of the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem. But we don’t know for sure because the Bible doesn’t say.
It does mention the presence of the Lord in the Garden, referencing God walking in the cool of the day. So his presence was with Adam and Eve, but they hid from him after eating the fruit because their eyes were opened, and they lost connection with God. Sin separates us from God and his presence.
We can infer from Genesis 3:8, which talks about God walking in the Garden and looking for Adam and Eve to walk with them, that this was a regular occurrence before the Fall. We don’t know if when God walked with them throughout the Garden he spoke with them, taught them, and gave them guidance.
Walking with God in the cool of the day in the presence of the Lord was the greatest loss after the Fall. It was unfortunate for Adam and Eve, and they would never have that close, intimate relationship with the Lord again.
Enoch walked with God, and he was not because God took him (Genesis 5:24). All of his days together where 365 years. He had one of the shortest lives in the genealogy of Genesis. He never died because God took him before the penalty of sin, death, occurred.
For him to have such a righteous life, to walk with God, may have been similar to Adam’s experience with God in the Garden. The Bible doesn’t give us clear indication either way. The best we can do is infer from the language of “walked with God” that it was a similar experience.
Yet we cannot fully describe this experience that Adam and Enoch had. It may have been, as I have mentioned, the Shekinah glory experience that Moses had later. It may have been something more intimate.
God told Moses that no man could look upon him and see his face or he would instantly die (Exodus 33:20). However, before Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden, there was no sin or shame. It’s quite possible they could walk with God freely without the threat of death because there was no sin.
So Adam may have been the only human being to walk with God, see his face and be with him without any danger whatsoever. There was no separation. He may have had a more unique experience even then Enoch.
When Enoch walked with God, there was sin on the earth. However, because of his righteousness he may have had the rare opportunity to walk with God the same way Adam did. It’s an interesting thing to imagine and think about.
Today, Christians can walk with God because his Holy Spirit dwells in them. We can experience the presence of God as we worship and live for him. But the Holy Spirit today is only a foretaste, a down payment, of what it will be like to be in his presence physically for eternity.
God’s goal throughout Scripture has always been, “I will be there God and he will be my people.” It will be a great thing for us to once again walk with God in the cool of the day for eternity. For now, we have the foretaste of his full presence with us.
