Genesis 4:25 - 5:1-32

 

4:25
Begins the godly line that will ultimately:

  1. Produce the man who saves the human race from the flood.
  2. Receive the covenant and promise of the messiah, the seed of the woman.
  3. Develops into the line of Israel with the priests and kings.
  4. Be the family line of the Messiah
    1. Luke 3:23-37

 

This account is clearly interested in the “seed” of 3:15.  The seed is identified and traced from generation to generation until it finally reaches to Jesus in Luke 3.

Eve says, “God has granted me another child (Hb. “zera” or “seed”)
When Cain was born Eve said, “I have brought forth a man.”

 

The heir of the line of the seed is not the oldest child, Cain, but was Abel who is now replaced by Seth.  The heir of the promised seed is always chosen by God and not by man’s position.  Other older sons who are not the heir: Japheth (10:2-5), Ham (10:6-20), Nahor (11:29; 22:20-24), Ishmael (17:20), Lot ((19:19-38), Esau (ch. 36).  Even Solomon’s line is going to be rejected from David and another unknown son, Nathan, will be chosen.

 

“Seth” is Hebrew “set” and “granted” is “sat”. Seth name probably means “granted and is referring to God giving or granting another son.

 

Eve names the children.  Adam named the animals and his wife.

 

4:26

Seth has a son named “Enosh” which is another word for “man” and is similar to the word that means “to be weak, frail.”

 

At that time men began to call on the name of the LORD (YHWH).

During the days of Seth men began to:

  1. call on the name of YHWH
  2. invoke the name of YHWH
  3. worship God by his name YHWH

Every thing and everyone has been given a name.

Now, God is identified as YHWH (LORD).

When Moses meets YHWH (“I am that I am”) it is a return to the worship that came from the Garden of Eden.

 

Cain’s line gave us herds, music and tools.  These made life productive, pleasant and easier.

Seth’s line gave us the name of YHWH.  This gave life purpose, direction and hope.

 

 Timeline: Adam to Abraham

5:1

“This is the written account of Adam’s line.”  This is the “toledot” formula.
The Hebrew says “seper toledot ‘adam” or literally “book of the generations of Adam”.

The word for “book” is “seper” and it does not mean “book” but it refers to something that is inscribed.  It does not refer to what from the inscription goes on or what form it is packaged in.  The original meaning of “seper” may come from the verb “sapar” which means “to scrape” as when someone would scrape a surface flat and clean so they could inscribe something on it.

 

The book of Genesis is basically a listing of the genealogy of the promised seed with narrative mixed in.  The narrative includes accounts of: Enoch’s being taken away, Lamech naming Noah, the sons of God, Noah’s account, Nimrod the mighty hunter, the nations, great cities, Abraham’s covenant, etc.

 

5:2

Refers back to Genesis 1:26 when God created man.
This is now  in  comparison with man procreating man. 
It says here and in Genesis 1:28 that God “blessed them” and named them “adam” or “man”.  Now we see that blessing fulfilled as man began to produce man.

It is important here to see God “name” man just as Eve and the fathers listed here named their children.  God is seen then as the original father in this genealogy.

 

This account tells us that God is the father of Adam, Seth, Enosh and on just like Moses tells the children of the new nation of the Hebrews in Deuteronomy 32:6: “Is he not your Father, your Creator, who made you and formed you?  Remember the days of old; consider the generation long past.  Ask your father and he will tell you, your elders , and they will explain to you . . . “

This fatherhood of God or YHWH will continue up through Abraham, through the Exodus generation and on.  Even in Luke 3 the genealogy of the Messiah, the seed, ends with this: “. . . Kenan, the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.”

 

Then through out this account and the book of Genesis the Father God returns to bless his children.  Thus, these 10 generations are a document listing the blessing of the Father God on the line of the promised Seed.  God originally wanted to bless the entire human race, but human folly and sin prevents God’s blessing.  Through this line of the promised seed all the earth and the human race will again be blessed by God.  This was the purpose for calling Abram: “I will bless you . . . .and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” (Gn. 12:2-3)

 

This theme of sons, blessing and a family genealogy with an inheritance is the theme of Paul’s epistles like Ephesians and Romans:

  • “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (the seed), who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.    For he chose us . . . he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ. . . “ Ephesians 1:3-5
  • “You received the Spirit of sonship.  And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’  The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.  Now if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. . . “  Romans 8:15-17

 

The Bibles first genealogy.

Two types of genealogies:

  1. linear or vertical
    1. list of descendants from first to the last in order
    2. Gen. 5:1-32 Adam to Noah
    3. Gen. 11:10 Shem to Terah
  2. Segmented or horizontal
    1. List descent from one individual through several of his children
    2. Gen. 10 list the sons of Noah’s three sons Shem, Ham and Japheth
    3. Gen. 24:12 Ishmael’s sons
    4. Gen. 36:1 Esau’s sons

 

Cain’s Line 4:17-22

Seth’s Line 5:1-31

Adam

Adam

Cain

Seth

Enoch

Enosh

Irad

Kenan

Mehujael

Mahalalel

Methushael

Jared

Lamech

Enoch

Jabal, Jubal, Tubal -cain, Naamah

Methuselah

 

Lamech

 

Noah

 

Shem -   Ham - Japheth

 

Three Similarities

  1. Both genealogies start linear in form and end in a segmented genealogy
  2. A few names are the same
    1. Cain: Enoch #3       Seth: Enoch #7
    2. Cain: Lamech #7    Seth: Lamech #9
  3. A few names sound similar (different vowels but similar consonants)
    1. Irad #4 / Jared #6
    2. Mehujael #5 / Mahalalel #5
    3. Methushael #6/  Methuselah #8
    4. Enoch #3 / Enosh #3

 

These are two different lines of descendents. 
It is not uncommon to find the same name used by people who live at the same time in history.

 

 

The Sumerian King List

The Sumerian king list is an ancient list of Sumerian kings and was composed around 2,000 BC.
This was about the time a king named Utuhegal was king of Uruk and had also liberated Sumer.  To unite the land  Utuhegal may have had a list or genealogy of the previous  kings inscribed.  Although the kings ruled in different cities they were put in this list.  This would have reinforced his own kingship and attempt to rule the newly united land.

This list begins by saying the “kingship was lowered from heaven”.  This introduction is followed by a list of eight ancient kings:

 

King

City

Length of Kings Reign (years)

Alulim

Eridu

28,800

Alalgar

Eridu

36,000

Enmenlauanna

Badtibira

43,200

Enmengalanna

Badtibira

28,800

Dumuzi

Badtibira

36,000

Ensipazianna

Larak

28,800

Enmenduranna

Sippai

21,000

Ubartutu

Shuruppak

18,600

TOTAL:  8 kings

5 cities

241,200 years

 

Then the List of Kings says at this point after the list of 8 kings:

“These are five cities, eight kings ruled them for 241,000 years.  Then the Flood swept over the earth.”

 

After the flood 39 kings reigned whose reigns are much shorter.  The longest reign is by Etana who reigned for 1,560 years.  He is number 13 on the list of kings after the flood but other sources from this time list him as the first king after the flood.

 

Here is some of the text from the Sumerian’s Kings List:

“"After kingship had descended from heaven, Eridu became the seat of kingship. In Eridu Aululim reigned 28,800 years as king. Alalgar reigned 36,000 years. Two kings, reigned 64,800 years. Eridu was abandoned and its kingship was carried off to Bad-tabira. . . .

"Total: Five Cities, eight kings, reigned 241,200 years.

"The FLOOD then swept over. After the Flood had swept over, and kingship had descended from heaven, Kish became the seat of Kingship. In Kish .... Total: twenty-three kings, reigned 24,510 years, 3 months, 3 1/2 days. Kish was defeated; its kingship was carried off to Eanna.

"In Eanna, Meskiaggasher, the son of (the sun god) Utu reigned as En (Priest) and Lugal (King) 324 years--Meskiaggasher entered the sea, ascended the mountains. Enmerkar, the son of Meskiaggasher, the king of erech who had built Erech, reigned 420 years as king. Lugalbanda, the shepherd, reigned 1,200 years. Dumuzi the fisherman, whose city was Kua, reigned 100 years. Gilgamesh, whose father was a nomad (?) reigned 126 years. Urnungal, the son of Gilgamesh, reigned 30 years. Labasher reigned 9 years. Ennundaranna reigned 8 years. Meshede reigned 36 years. Melamanna reigned 6 years. Lugalkidul reigned 36 years. Total: twelve kings, reigned 2,130 years. Erech was defeated, its kingship was carried off to Ur...."

 

A Translation of the Sumerian’s Kings List can be found here:

http://www-etcsl.orient.ox.ac.uk/section2/tr211.htm

or

http://www.livius.org/k/kinglist/sumerian.html

Answers in Genesis  Website

http://www.answersingenesis.org/tj/v12/i3/sumerian.asp

“The Sumerian King List records the lengths of reigns of the kings of Sumer. The initial section deals with kings before the Flood and is significantly different from the rest. When the kingdom durations of the antediluvian section are expressed in an early sexagesimal numerical system, all durations except two are expressed as multiples of 602. A simple tally of the ciphers used yields six 10x602 signs, six 602 signs and six 60 signs.

The lives of the biblical patriarchs, however, have a precision of one year. If Adam and Noah are not included (as in the King List), and the lives of the patriarchs are similarly rounded to two digits, the sum of the lives has six 103 signs, six 102 signs and six 10 signs. In addition, if the number representing the sum of the ages was wrongly assumed as having been written in the sexagesimal system, the two totals become numerically equivalent.

It is suggested that the Sumerian scribe that composed the original antediluvian list had available a document (possibly a clay tablet) containing numerical information on the ages of eight of the patriarchs similar to that of the Genesis record and that he mistakenly interpreted it as being written in the sexagesimal system.

That the two documents are numerically related is strong evidence for the historicity of the book of Genesis. The fact that the Sumerian account shows up as a numerically rounded, incomplete version of the Genesis description, lacking the latter’s moral and spiritual depth, is a strong argument for the accuracy, superiority, and primacy of the biblical record. In addition, the parallels between the Sumerian and biblical antediluvian data open up the possibility of establishing chronological correlations between the rest of the Kings List and the book of Genesis.”
                -The above text is a small portion of text from the Answers in Genesis Website

.The Land of Sumer, List of Kings, City of Enoch

 

 The Flood Genealogy

Genealogies from this time were developed and recorded.

 

5:3

Now begins the genealogy with this structure:

  1. The age of the father at the birth of his firstborn son
  2. The name of his son
  3. How many years the father lived after the birth of his firstborn son
  4. A reference to the father having other sons and daughters
  5. The father’s age at his death

 

The Descending Life Spans in the Old Testament

  1. Adam to Lamech is 100-800 years
  2. Noah to Abraham is 600-200 years
  3. Abraham to Joseph and Moses is 200-200  years
  4. Psalm 90:10 says 70 years

 

5:3-31, Adam to Lamech, it is said of each of them “then he died”.  This is written:

  1. Only in this set of the genealogy
  2. To separate them from the seventh name, Enoch, who did not die.
  3. To remind us that the ultimate blessing and the ultimate purpose can not be found in man’s life but must be found in the promised seed.
  4. To remind us that no matter how productive, pleasant or convenient your years on earth you must still face death

 

5:22

“walked with God” (“wayyithallek ‘et-ha elohim”) is mentioned twice about Enoch.

  • This is also said of Noah in Genesis 6:9:

“Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God.”

  • God speaks to Abraham in Genesis 17:1-2 and says:

“I am God Almighty (“el shaddai”); walk before me and be blameless.  I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”

The idea of walking with God refers to keeping your part of the covenant obligations.

But, these men Enoch, Noah and Abraham are “walking with God” and fulfilling covenant obligations with YHWH before the Law of Moses.  This shows there is a better way to walk with God than to follow a legalistic code.

It was said of Abraham that he “believed the LORD (YHWH), and he credited it to him as righteousness” (Gen. 15:6)

 

Enoch is referred to in Hebrews 11:5,6

Enoch is quoted in Jude 14

The Book of Enoch can be found here:

http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/

 

The Book of Enoch is a book written between the Old and New Testaments. Probable date of writing was between 150-80 B.C. Copies of the Book of Enoch have been found among the Dead Sea scrolls.

                              

 

 Genealogy from Shem to Isaac