The Genealogy of Early Man
Genesis 5
Gen. 5:1-32
" This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God
created man, He made him in the likeness of God. He created them male and female, and blessed them and
called them Mankind in the day they were created.
And Adam lived one hundred and
thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named
him Seth. After he begot Seth, the days of Adam were eight hundred years; and he
had sons and daughters. So all the days that Adam lived were
nine hundred and thirty years; and he died.
Seth lived one hundred and five years,
and begot Enosh. After he begot
Enosh, Seth lived eight hundred and seven years, and had sons and
daughters. So all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years; and he
died.
Enosh lived ninety years, and begot Cainan. After he
begot Cainan, Enosh lived
eight hundred and fifteen years, and had sons and daughters.
So all the days of Enosh were nine
hundred and five years; and he died.
Cainan lived seventy years, and begot Mahalalel.
After he begot Mahalalel, Cainan
lived eight hundred and forty years, and had sons and daughters. So all the days
of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years; and he
died.
Mahalalel lived sixty-five years, and begot Jared. After he begot
Jared, Mahalalel lived eight hundred and thirty years,
and had sons and daughters. So all the days of Mahalalel
were eight hundred and ninety-five years; and he died.
Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years, and begot Enoch. After
he begot Enoch, Jared lived eight hundred years, and had sons and daughters. So
all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years; and he died.
Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah. After he begot
Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and
daughters. So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and
sixty-five years. And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for
God took him.
Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-seven years, and begot Lamech. After he begot Lamech,
Methuselah lived seven hundred and eighty-two years, and had sons and daughters.
So all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred and sixty-nine years; and he
died.
Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and had a son. And he
called his name Noah, saying, ‘This one will comfort us concerning our work and
the toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD has cursed.’ After
he begot Noah, Lamech lived five hundred and
ninety-five years, and had sons and daughters. So all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy-seven years; and he
died.
And Noah was five hundred years old,
and Noah begot Shem, Ham, and Japheth."
In dealing with this amazing chapter, let me begin by making a few comments and then speak to few of its major personalities. Then, we will look at the central importance of this chapter in relation to the true age of the Earth and its universe.
1. First, note that this genealogy is an interlocking genealogy.
Each person in this genealogy is interlocked with a son that was born to that individual who will, in turn, introduce the next name in the genealogy. In each case the parent is named, then the time is given to the birth of his son, then the time is given which the parent lived after the birth of his son then, finally, the numbers are added together and the total lifespan of the parent is given. I believer that this precise interlocking system was used by God to shut out any possibility of fiddling with the text to change the actual years of the life of each individual involved. Another, and perhaps even more important it is used here, is that it also provides us with an accurate, lead pipe cinch, time frame for the actual date of Creation. It effectively excludes speculations about missing links or possible overlooked generations and cuts off debate from those who would seek to distort the times and historicity of the record.
2. Second, be aware that there are three New Testament passages that
verify the reliability of the sequence of the people named in this genealogy.
They are as follows:
"Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam,
prophesied about these men also, saying, "Behold, the Lord comes with ten
thousands of his saints..." Jude 14
"For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but
cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be
reserved unto judgment; and spared not the old world, but saved Noah the
eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon
the world of the ungodly..." II Peter 2:4-5 (KJV)
“… the son of Cainan,
the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah,
the son of Lamech, the son of Methuselah, the son of
Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel, the son
of Cainan, the son of Enos,
the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God. Luke 3:36-38
(Mary’s
genealogy)
I site the King James Version of II Peter 2:4-5, above because I believe that
it more correctly translates the phrase, "the eighth person"
(referring to the genealogy of Genesis 5) rather than the translation, "one
of eight people". The original Greek here simply says "but
eighth Noah",
all ogdoon Noe (all
ogdoon Nwe).
Now, due to the rock-solid nature of the interlocking genealogies of Genesis, we are able to date the creation of the Earth. It is an encouraging and thrilling thing to me that God has seen to it that we can actually date Creation. Men are always asking, "Is there any degree of certainty in the Bible?" The answer is a resounding, "Yes!" I make no apology for holding to a young age for the Earth. Do not be too quick to dismiss this simply because it is not politically correct. Literally, hundreds of scientists today agree with the young earth hypothesis and are able to defend it with unbiased examinations of the scientific data, facts and evidences that are all around us. You will find a sampling of many of these evidences from the Institute on Creation Research in Appendix A. This organization of scientists, college professors, and graduate school professors have done an outstanding job of compiling a case for creation and a young Earth based on real science from several different disciplines. It is well worth anyone’s time to study their materials. They can be found on the Internet at http://www.icr.org
Now, I would like to take you through the process of how one determines the biblical date for Creation. We will begin with a key scripture found in I Kings 6:1...
" And it came to pass in the four hundred and
eightieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt,
in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month of
Ziv, which is the second month, that he began
to build the house of the LORD."
This is a well-established date in history confirmed by the scholar, Thiele,
in his classic book, The Mysterious Numbers of the Hebrew Kings. This
date, when Solomon began to build the temple, is the starting point for all
Biblical chronology including the dating of the Creation. Thiele demonstrated
that Solomon began to build the temple in 967 BC. First Kings 6:1,
above, also tells us that Solomon
began to build the temple in the 480th
year after
Thus,
adding 480 years to 967 gives us 1447 B.C.
for the date of the Exodus. Now we go to
Exodus 12:40...
"Now the sojourn of the children of
Adding 430 years to 1447 gives us 1877 B.C. for the
date of
"And Jacob lived in the
Deducting the 17 years Jacob was in
"Afterward his brother came out, and his hand took
hold of Esau's heel; so his name was called Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old
when she bore them."
Adding 60 years to 2007 gives us 2067
B.C. for the
birth of Isaac. Now we go to
Genesis
21:5...
"Now Abraham was one hundred
years old when his son Isaac was born to him."
Adding 100 years to 2067 gives us 2167
B.C. for the
birth of Abraham.
At this point, we need to look at four scriptures beginning with
Genesis 11:26...
"Now Terah
lived seventy years, and begot Abram, Nahor, and
"So the days of Terah
were two hundred and five years, and Terah
died in
"So Abram departed as the LORD had spoken to him,
and
"The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham
when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran, and said to him, 'Get out
of your country and from your relatives, and come to a land that I will show
you.' Then he came out of the land of the Chaldeans and dwelt in
Terah’s total age of 205, minus Abraham’s age when he left Haran
at 75,
tells us that Terah was 130 years old when Abraham was
born. Adding 130 years to 2167 gives us 2297 B.C. for the birth of Terah.
Now, all we need to do is simply back up through the genealogy found in Genesis 11. Notice that, like the genealogy in Genesis 5, it also is an interlocking genealogy.
"Nahor lived twenty-nine
years, and begot Terah. Genesis 11:24...
Adding 29 years to 2297 gives us 2326
B.C. for the
birth of Nahor.
"Serug lived thirty
years, and begot Nahor." Genesis 11:22...
Adding 30 years to 2326 gives us 2356
B.C. for the
birth of Serug.
"Reu lived thirty-two
years, and begot Serug." Genesis 11:20...
Adding 32 years to 2356 gives us 2388
B.C. for the
birth of Reu.
"Peleg lived thirty years, and begot Reu." Genesis 11:18...
Adding 30 years to 2388 gives us 2418
B.C. for the
birth of Peleg.
"Eber lived thirty-four years, and begot Peleg." Genesis 11:16...
Adding 34 years to 2418 givens
us 2452 B.C. for the birth of Eber.
"Salah lived thirty years, and begot Eber." Genesis 11:14...
Adding 30 years to 2452 gives us 2482
B.C. for the
birth of Salah.
"Arphaxad lived
thirty-five years, and begot Salah." Genesis 11:12...
Adding 35 years to 2482 gives us 2517
B.C. for the
birth of Arphaxad.
"This is the genealogy of Shem: Shem was one
hundred years old, and begot Arphaxad two years after
the flood." Genesis 11:10...
Adding 100 years to 2517 gives us 2617
B.C. for the
birth of Shem. (In addition, this scripture also yields the date of the Flood.
Adding 2617 + 2 tells us the flood ended in 2619 BC.)
Now, we must go to
Genesis 7:6...
"Noah was six hundred years old when the
floodwaters were on the earth."
Adding 1 year to 2619, for the duration of the
Flood, gives us the date the Flood began at 2620 B.C. Adding 600 years to
2620 gives us 3220 B.C. for the birth of Noah.
Now we move to
Genesis 5:28-29...
"Lamech lived one
hundred and eighty-two years, and had a son. And he called his name Noah,
saying, ‘This one will comfort us concerning our work and the toil of our hands,
because of the ground which the LORD has cursed.’"
Adding 182 years to 3220 gives us 3402
B. C. for the
birth of Lamech.
"Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-seven
years, and begot Lamech." Genesis 5:25...
Adding 187 years to 3402 gives us 3589
B.C. for the
birth of Methuselah.
"Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot
Methuselah." Genesis 5:21...
Adding 65 years to 3589 gives us 3654
B.C. for the
birth of Enoch.
"Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years, and
begot Enoch." Genesis 5:18...
Adding 162 years to 3654 gives us 3816
B.C. for the
birth of Jared.
"Mahalalel lived
sixty-five years, and begot Jared." Genesis 5:15...
Adding 65 years to 3816 gives us 3881
B.C. for the
birth of Mahalalel.
"Cainan lived seventy
years, and begot Mahalalel." Genesis 5:12...
Adding 70 years to 3881 gives us 3951
B.C. for the
birth of Cainan.
"Enosh lived ninety
years, and begot Cainan." Genesis 5:9...
Adding 90 years to 3951 gives us
4041 B.C. for the
birth of Enosh.
"Seth lived one hundred and five years, and begot Enosh." Genesis
5:6...
Adding 105 years to
4041 gives us 4146 B.C. for the
birth of Seth.
"And Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and
begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth." Genesis
5:3...
Adding 130 years to 4146 gives us approximately
4276 B.C. for the creation of Adam. I say “approximately” because we need to take
into consideration the variables that we are not given to us as to the exact day
or
month of the birth of each of the preceding individuals. There would also be
some other minor variables involved such as leap years, etc. However, it would
be a good estimate to say that the Creation Event occurred somewhere within the
general parameters of 4226 and 4326 B.C.
I make no apology for these dates. To me, this is very exciting and I am extremely grateful that the Lord has seen fit to give them to us. Imagine, we actually know the general age of our universe and our world! We have the Word of God on it. Scientifically, are there problems? Yes, but a great deal of work has been done and continues to be done in many areas of the sciences that reconcile the scientific data with the straight forward statements of the Bible. Meanwhile, just keep in mind that Creation and a young earth hypothesis is far more scientifically defensible with far fewer problems than Evolution or Theistic Evolution and their attending great ages hypothesis. If there are other scientific facts that are bothering you in relation to this, I suggest that you reserve judgment until all the facts are in. Historically, whenever a child of God has taken that position of "wait and see" when there is a seeming conflict with the Word of God ... the Word of God has inevitably won out. Colossians 2:8 warns...
"Beware lest anyone cheat you through
philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition
of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to
Christ."
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Now, let's look at a few individuals in this chapter that stand out.
1. First, there is this man Enoch.
Twice, in this chapter, we are told that Enoch walked with God. Verse 24, states that Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. My, what an epitaph, aye? No greater thing can be said of a man or woman than this. They walked with God. For over 300 years, Enoch enjoyed a continuous moment by moment fellowship with the true and living God. Then one day, as he and God were walking together, the Lord just said to him, "Enoch it’s getting late and it’s a long way back to your house. So, I've decided to just take you on home with me to my house!" And this man, Enoch, disappeared from the face of the Earth. He is one of only two people in the scriptures that did not suffer death. Elijah was the other. He was taken up to heaven in a flaming chariot (II Kings 2).
May we step aside here for a moment and may I ask you a personal question? Are you walking with God down here, dear saint? That’s his plan for each of his children, you know. It’s an amazing thing that he desires our fellowship and the importance of our response to that cannot be overstated. John 15, comes to mind in this regard. Here are a few words from Jesus on this subject as recorded in that all-important chapter…
"Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot
bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you
abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in
him, bears much fruit; for without me you can do nothing." John
15:4-5
"If you abide in me, and my words abide in you,
you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this my
Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be my disciples. As
the Father loved me, I also have loved you; abide in my love." John 15:7-9
It is an amazing thing how our Lord Jesus Christ pursues fellowship with us. His haunting call to the backslidden and cold Laodicean church members in the book of Revelation is deeply moving.
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone
hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and
he with me." Revelation 3:20
2. Next, we come to this fellow Methuselah.
Methuselah is the oldest man that ever lived. Hence the saying, "as old as Methuselah". He lived 969 years. The longevity that existed in the pre-Flood world was probably due to several circumstances.
The first that comes to mind is the fact that those people were living so close to creation. Their bodies had been designed to last forever and were no doubt far more superior and sturdy than our bodies are today.
Second, we need to keep in mind that there are many factors that cause the deterioration of the human body. Things like gamma radiation, for instance, which was probably far less in that early world than it is today. Many scientists believe that it was radically altered after the flood.
Third, it was God’s will that man live long in that age. I believe that God wanted to thereby demonstrate man’s total depravity. With longevity, God was able to demonstrate that man, though he were to be given nearly a thousand years to get it right, would simply use the time to become a more and more sophisticated sinner. Today, man's life-span has been reduced to, give or take, seventy years (Psalm 90:10). And, may I say to you, that is more than ample time to get right with God but, again, most do not take advantage of the time they have been given.
There is another very interesting thing here about Methuselah, by the way. His name means "when he dies it will come". If you look at these dates more closely, you will discover that the lives of these ancient men overlapped a great deal so that they lived concurrently with their fathers, grandfathers, great grandfathers and even their great great grandfathers. Methuselah was Noah’s grandfather and was still alive when Noah lived. Then, when Methuselah died ... as his name seems to indicate ... the Flood came.
Finally, a word about this same genealogy as
we find it in Luke 3:34-38.
In the book of Luke, we find the genealogy of Mary’s ancestors given all the way back to Adam. There is only one difference between the names recorded there and the names found here in the Genesis 5. It is found at verse 36, where the name Cainan is inserted between Salah and Arphaxad. I believe this was an accidental repetition by a copyist of the correctly placed Cainan found between Mahalalel and Enosh in verse 37. This also seems to be substantiated by the fact that this error is not found in the best Greek manuscripts of Luke. To conclude, we have both the Old Testament and the New Testament testimony to the names and dates of the ancient peoples that lived on the Earth prior to the Great Flood. Our God is a people-person. He loves people and he never forgets a one of his own. I, for one, am looking forward to meeting many of these folks one day.