25 And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Seth, for she said, “God has appointed for me another offspring instead of Abel, for Cain killed him.” 26 To Seth also a son was born, and he called his name Enosh. At that time people began to call upon the name of the Lord.
Hope Afresh
Here, when Adam and Eve have another son, they called his name Seth (25). His name might mean something like seat or buttocks or new beginning or foundation. It's clear Eve felt there was something special about this son, saying, God has appointed for me another offspring instead of Abel (25).
This is beautiful because of the clear hope found in Eve. God had said her seed would be in conflict with the serpent. She remembered the garden. She could recall that state of sinless perfection. But she could not go back in time. She could not undo the past.
But she could look forward to the restoration her eventual seed would bring. Perhaps she thought Seth the one who would crush the serpent's head, or maybe she thought one of his descendants would be the awaited answer. Either way, she had hope.
People Called on God
And this hope eventually gave way to the time people began to call upon the name of the Lord (26). Hope led to worship. Yahweh received honor and praise. Somehow, someway -- we aren't given much detail -- people began to worship God during Seth's time.
But the emphasis is not so much on the fact of their worship, but the backdrop of their worship. Satan was on the move, stealing, killing, and destroying (John 10:10). He was doing his worst to disrupt and dismantle humanity. And, while following Cain's story, it seemed everything was happening according to Satan's plan. Murder and division, along with flourishing societies without God, all hummed along.
In the midst, however, there was a remnant. And the ancient, along with the modern, reader would learn a valuable lesson: God always has a remnant. His plans cannot be thwarted. He will raise up a godly generation. No matter how dark the days, God is on the move. He is working to renew and restore all things.
So, with that, we begin to follow the line of Seth.
Adam (5:1-5)
1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. 2 Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them Man when they were created.
The Book of Adam
We move now to another book, this time the book of the generations of Adam (1). It is a genealogy of ten generations, and genealogies are often tedious to handle, but this one is highly instructive.
God Blessed Them
One of the first things we must note is that creation is retold with the phrase when God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. Male and female he created them (1-2). Then we are reminded how God blessed and named them when they were created (2).
This is such an important statement at this particular moment in the text. Cain had rebelled against God, and it hurt. Lamech lived his own way, and pain resulted. Cain's whole line expressed the toil and hardship of living under the curse.
But now we see God still has a blessing for people. One could walk with God and enjoy his kindness in their lives. Yes, there would still be death. Yes, hardships still abound. But, especially as Enoch will show us, walking with God is a rewarding and blessed life, even in a broken and hurting world.
This helps us understand that, though the world is fallen and humanity is depraved, there is still hope of living under God's blessing. We know this is made possible by Jesus.
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places," (Ephesians 1:3)
3 When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. 4 The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years, and he had other sons and daughters. 5 Thus all the days that Adam lived were 930 years, and he died.
930 Years!?
Modern readers are shocked to read of the incredibly long lifespans mentioned in the pre-flood, antediluvian period of human history.
But how are we to take these massive numbers? Are they myths, much like the ancient Babylonian legends, some of which said past kings had reigned for thousands of years each? Are they symbolic numbers which the first readers would've understood in more natural terms? Are they months, rather than years?
Though there have been many attempts to account for these numbers in another way, they come up short. It seems we are meant to take these numbers as accurate representations of life in the pre-flood world.
And there are decent reasons to believe conditions at that time would've allowed for longer life spans.
- A gradual penetration of sin and death into the species.
- The perfect health of Adam and Eve took generations to decay as they passed it down to their offspring.
- Some suggest the expanse separating the waters below from the waters above may have created a different habitat than we're used to.
And He Died
Though blessed by God, the text records that, even after many years of life (930), Adam died (5).
" For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23)
The phrase and he died is the repeated refrain of the chapter (5). Over and over again, even though God was blessing them, the ultimate effects of the curse had its way, and each person died.
Seth (5:6-8)
6 When Seth had lived 105 years, he fathered Enosh. 7 Seth lived after he fathered Enosh 807 years and had other sons and daughters. 8 Thus all the days of Seth were 912 years, and he died.
Enosh (5:9-11)
9 When Enosh had lived 90 years, he fathered Kenan. 10 Enosh lived after he fathered Kenan 815 years and had other sons and daughters. 11 Thus all the days of Enosh were 905 years, and he died.
Kenon (5:12-14)
12 When Kenan had lived 70 years, he fathered Mahalalel. 13 Kenan lived after he fathered Mahalalel 840 years and had other sons and daughters. 14 Thus all the days of Kenan were 910 years, and he died.
Mahalel (5:15-17)
15 When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he fathered Jared. 16 Mahalalel lived after he fathered Jared 830 years and had other sons and daughters. 17 Thus all the days of Mahalalel were 895 years, and he died.
Jared (5:18-20)
18 When Jared had lived 162 years, he fathered Enoch. 19 Jared lived after he fathered Enoch 800 years and had other sons and daughters. 20 Thus all the days of Jared were 962 years, and he died.
Enoch (5:21-24)
21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. 22 Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters. 23 Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. 24 Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.
Enoch Walked With God
After generations of death, "Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him" (5:24). You read it right. Everyone else's story ended with, "and he died," but Enoch's ends with "God took him." Though the text doesn't explicitly say where Enoch went, the reader is meant to understand that Enoch didn't taste death like everyone else, but was plucked from the earth by the hand of God.
To walk with God speaks of incredible diligence. Enoch spent time walking with God for 300 years of his life, likely starting his journey after the birth of his son. 300 years! This wasn't a brief foray into spiritual stuff. Enoch didn't go through a phase. No, for him, God existed, and the reward of walking with God made his walk real and enduring. God was not something to try, but someone to enjoy. He gave God his days, but also his decades.
To walk with God speaks of a steady and consistent voyage. To run anywhere, the runner will eventually fatigue. But when walking it takes longer to tire. The body isn't taxed as severely when walking, so the journey can be a long one. Enoch went on that long and daily walk with God. Too often, we want the spectacular whenever we meet with God, but if you walk with Him for decades, the life-shaking and earth-shattering really shouldn't occur all that often. That would be a schizophrenic kind of life. You cannot possibly handle a revolutionary life-altering word from God every day.
Rewarding
But Enoch would not have walked with God if he didn't believe it a rewarding experience. This is why we read, in connection to Enoch's story:
"For whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek him" (Hebrews 11:6).
To seek God, you must hold two beliefs. First, you must believe He is there. Second, you must believe it would be rewarding to draw near to Him.
Methuselah (5:25-27)
25 When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he fathered Lamech. 26 Methuselah lived after he fathered Lamech 782 years and had other sons and daughters. 27 Thus all the days of Methuselah were 969 years, and he died.
Methuselah lived the longest of anyone in Adam's line, the longest recorded life in the Bible, 969 years (27). His placement here is fascinating. He was born before Adam's death. And he lived until after Noah's birth. Noah then lived all the way to the time of Terah, Abraham's father. Such long life spans would have made the transmission of the creation record and early human history easier to pass along.
Lamech (5:28-31)
28 When Lamech had lived 182 years, he fathered a son 29 and called his name Noah, saying, “Out of the ground that the Lord has cursed, this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the painful toil of our hands.” 30 Lamech lived after he fathered Noah 595 years and had other sons and daughters. 31 Thus all the days of Lamech were 777 years, and he died.
Lamech Speaks
After Noah's birth, Lamech said, “Out of the ground that the Lord has cursed, this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the painful toil of our hands” (29).
In both the genealogies of Genesis 4-5, only one person speaks in each. In Cain's, a wicked Lamech pleads for mercy. In Adam's, a righteous Lamech prays for relief. In a sense, the first Lamech taunted the curse, while the second Lamech longed for relief from the curse.
Lamech's Hope
Noah's name did not mean comfort or relief, but his name sounds similar to the Hebrew word for comfort (29). So Moses picked up on the similar sound and declared Lamech to be a man of hope. He wanted a reprieve. After all this death and decay, surely God would have mercy. Surely God would give them relief.
And God would, but in a different form than Lamech could have imagined. He would never have thought of a flood, an ark, or a small remnant chosen by God.
But his son Noah would lead to the saving, the comfort, and relief, of the future generations. It wasn't unrighteousness the world needed relief from, and Noah would be God's vessel to bring that relief.
Noah (5:32)
32 After Noah was 500 years old, Noah fathered Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Three Sons
Cain's genealogy ended with a record of Lamech's three sons -- Jabal, Jubal, and Tubal-Cain. Adam's line concludes with the mention of three sons as well, the sons of Noah -- Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
