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Book of Moses Essays
The Teachings of Enoch (Moses 6:51-68)
Essays #14 - #21

Essay #21: The Teachings of Enoch — “Thus May All Become My Sons” (Moses 6:59, 66–68)

Significantly, the last verse of Moses 6 includes the words “and thus may all become my sons.” This statement relating to the exaltation of Adam and Eve and all their posterity provides the doctrinal foundation for the account in the Book of Moses of Enoch’s adoption as a son of God, with a right to God’s throne....

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Essay #19: The Teachings of Enoch — “By the Spirit Ye Are Justified” (Moses 6:60, 63, 65–66)

In this article, we turn our attention to the second phrase in Moses 6:60: “by the Spirit ye are justified.” Simply put, individuals become “just”—in other words, innocent before God and ready for a covenant relationship with Him—when they demonstrate sufficient repentance to qualify for an “initial cleansing from sin” “by the Spirit,” thus having had the demands of justice satisfied on their behalf through the Savior’s atoning blood....

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Essay #17: The Teachings of Enoch — “By the Water Ye Keep the Commandment” (Moses 6:60, 64)

In Moses 6:60, Enoch declares the word of the Lord about the essential place of baptism in the suite of saving ordinances. In v. 64, he illustrates his point by describing the baptism of Adam. In this article, we will discuss the antiquity of water symbolism in rituals of rebirth, showing that in many ancient traditions, as in the Book of Moses, they are believed to go back to Adam....

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Essay #15: The Teachings of Enoch — “The Son of Man, Even Jesus Christ, a Righteous Judge” (Moses 6:57)

In a previous Essay, we discussed resemblances in vocabulary and phrasing between the prophetic call of Enoch in the Book of Moses and the account of Jesus’ baptism in the Gospels. We described evidence for the possibility that the authors of the New Testament gospels drew on older ideas present in ancient literature connected to the figure of Enoch when they composed their accounts. ...

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Essay #18: The Teachings of Enoch — “Out of the Waters of Judah” (1 Nephi 20:1; JST Genesis 17:3–7)

In this article, we digress from the direct discussion of Enoch’s sermon on the ordinances to discuss the corresponding subject of the relationship between baptism, as revealed in the beginning to Adam and Eve, and the later institution of the Old Testament ordinance of circumcision through God’s command to Abraham. A neglected passage in the Joseph Smith Translation and an often criticized verse in the Book of Mormon give interesting insights on these topics....

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Essay #16: The Teachings of Enoch — “By Water, and Blood, and the Spirit” (Moses 6:58–60)

According to the Book of Moses, Enoch and other ancient prophets taught the doctrine of rebirth. Enoch cited the word of God to Adam to the effect that man must be “born … into the kingdom of heaven” in order to be “sanctified from all sin, … enjoy the words of eternal life in this [world], and [acquire] eternal life in the world to come,” even immortal glory....

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Essay #14: The Teachings of Enoch — Enoch as a Teacher (Moses 6:51–68)

In reviewing ancient and modern threads that highlight Enoch’s roles as a missionary, prophet, and visionary, we must not overlook his effectiveness as a teacher. Among the most precious and significant insights he conveyed to the people is the sequence described in Moses 6:60, whereby all people may be “born again into the kingdom of heaven.”...

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