The Household of God
Volume 1
The early history of mankind
- Chapter 62 -
THE PATRIARCHS AND ENOCH'S SPEECH
Behold, this was a good speech and yet not quite clear to the patriarchs. And so Adam asked all the children surrounding him:
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"Children, have you all properly understood Enoch's words?"
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But Seth answered: "O father, if only now the seed was planted, how could we possibly understand it completely? Although we have received the shell with the germ and the stone with the life, the matter has not yet decayed so as to free the life. But I am confident that the Lord's time will do its part and will reform our hearts for a new Paradise. Amen."
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Then Adam asked also Enos whether he understood it and he replied: "O father, I once saw a heap of shapeless, heavy stones which were all of the same color. But soon there came a fertile rain from heaven which poured down also upon this heap of stones and the stones, having been submitted to the heat of the' sun, greedily absorbed every drop and steamed, apparently delighted at such refreshment, so much so that I was unable to see them for all the steam. Now a strong wind began to blow under the rain, which soon dispelled the steam from the stones, which I could see once more. But how changed they were!
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The plain color had turned into a thousand colors and the penetrated water had rendered them completely transparent. Some of them dissolved to a white pulp and I could see, almost too clearly, their multifarious content.
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"Now too I believe to see such a heap of stones before me and within me which seem to be mightily warmed by the rays of grace from above and there is still little difference between them. But I firmly believe that when the rain will come, accompanied by storms, my stones will most likely become like the ones I saw where the transparent ones will be like the full understanding and the dissolved ones like the decay from which a new life will sprout out of the soil of my heart, just as there a luscious young grass began to grow from the white pulp. Amen,"
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Then also Kenan was asked, and he replied as follows: "O father, recently I saw on a hot and humid day how distant regions began to fade away more and more, and much as I strained my eyes they finally vanished completely. Even the light of the sun could not prevent this perdition, which kept approaching closer, and closer. And gradually also my nearest steep and high neighbors were being swallowed up by this miasma and I became afraid for the earth and fled into my hut.
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"During the night there was a thunderstorm with mighty flashes of lightning and thunder. One storm followed the other, hurricanes raged past my hut and from heaven gushed masses of rain whose glowing tore rents split asunder on the peaks of the mountains and then, thundering and foaming, rushed into the deep crevasses and valleys and on towards the sea.
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O fathers, then my whole house languished in a great stupefying fright and was afraid of God.
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I prayed. The thunderstorm was passing over and it became cairn towards morning. Shortly before sunrise I left my hut and gazed into the distance, surprised and grateful. Oh, it was a most delightful morning and my eye discovered in formerly unimaginable distances things coming into a friendly existence.
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"And so I firmly believe that also after my heart's stormy night, there will arise a calm and delightfully pure morning in and through the love for God, our most loving and holy Father. Amen."
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'The question was now put to Mahalaleel whether and how he had comprehended Enoch's speech
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And he answered them laconically: "O fathers, I recently decided one morning to gaze at the sun in order to maybe discover in it something, like in the full moon. However, I soon received the punishment for my folly, for when my eyes could no longer bear the great, burning intensity of the light and I turned my eyes away from the sun, I noticed with great anxiety that I could no longer see anything. Even I was lost to myself, and I could only feel but no longer see the earth and myself.
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"Thus I remained all through the day and in the evening hardly noticed how the night was gradually spreading over the earth.
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"My children led me into my hut. There I prayed to the good, holy Father to graciously restore to me the eyesight I had lost through my great folly. Then I fell asleep and the night spread plenty of dew on my eyelids and cooling breezes blew over my hot eyes and cooled the sunburn in my sight The night passed and - the good, holy Father be thanked and praised - there arose for me once more a calm, bright, pure and fresh morning. My eyesight was strengthened; yet not for another folly, but to see the earth's meadows abounding in flowers and to watch how life freely extricates itself from decay in countless forms and the happiest shapes.
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"And so I too am convinced that even if now my spiritual eye is blinded by the immense light of grace from the holy height of God, a quiet nightly rest of the heart and the cooling dew of love, supported by a strengthening wafting of love from the height of the good, holy Father, will soon in the great morning of the spirit over the fields of my heart let a wondrous life arise from the decay of my hard thoughts and feelings. Amen."
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Thus it became also Jared's turn and his answer was as follows: "O fathers, what can I say? Enoch has in the first place gone forth from me just as the sun appears to go forth from the earth behind the mountains; but it soon rises high above the depths of the earth and mightily spreads it rays over the endless space and then the entire earth, blinded, bathes in the supremely mighty rays of its light. It awakens all life to happy activity and a multitudinous, marvelous unfolding out of the decay of the night.
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"So I also believe firmly and steadfastly that Enoch was raised to an immeasurable height above me like a sun and now my whole being is blinded by his great light. However, the holy light shall act only like the light of the sun and my night shall become a blessing to me. For if the light gives life and draws the living germ from the decay, then wondrously forming and guiding it, I shall no doubt- being not less than a plant - be looked after by the Lord in the tranquil calm of my humility. O fathers of that I am sure! May the Lord give to every one what pleases Him! Amen."