Chapter 5 begins with a reiteration of some of what we’ve already learned in chapters 1 and 2– “[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. [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.”
The language used here at the start of chapter 5 is very similar to the language used in Genesis 1:27, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it…”
I think Moses is doing several things here.
First, I think he is gluing the creation narrative to history. Adam was not a hypothetical figure, a metaphor for all of creation. He was a real person made in the image of a real God. The stories of the Bible aren’t mystical, nor are they fairy tales. They are real stories rooted in real history.
This may seem like a trivial point to some of us. But, it’s not! I’ve had countless conversations over the past few months with people who struggle to see the Bible as a historical account. They view it as folklore, a fairytale, or a mystical story that conveys good morals. But I want us to see that the Bible doesn’t endorse this! The Bible roots itself in history. It’s a historical account. The Bible is filled with real stories rooted in actual history. Adam was a real man created in the image of a real God who had real descendants that traced themselves down to a real Savior. And this Savior lived a real life, performed real miracles, died a real death on a real cross by the hands of real people, and this crucified Savior really rose from the grave.
A few weeks ago, I cut a man’s hair who was visiting from Mississippi. He and his wife had taken the Amtrak into town to celebrate their anniversary.
The Amtrak is a modern railroad system. It’s a fun and unique way to travel. Everything about a train ride feels distinct: the seating, the smell, the steady rhythm of the tracks beneath you. But one thing that’s distinct about a train ride is its lack of flexibility: the train can only go where the track leads. You can’t change your mind on where you want to go halfway through your ride. Once you get on the train, your next stop will be Mobile, AL.
When people ask, “Why are genealogies in the Bible?” I tell them they’re like the railroad tracks on which God’s faithfulness runs. They keep the story of God’s faithfulness moving in the right direction. They ground us in real history, and they carry us straight to our real Savior, Jesus, the one who historically came, historically died, and historically rose from the grave.
Second, I think we see that God’s blessing on mankind wasn’t diminished once sin entered the picture. God blessed mankind and commissioned them to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. And that blessing is culminating right before our eyes.
Seth was born “in the likeness of Adam,” which I think is a play on words that is intended to show the continuity between Adam and Seth. On Thursday, someone pointed to my oldest and said to me, “That boy is your son! He looks just like you.” Perhaps his facial features resemble mine, or his mannerisms reflect mine. But that person was stating that my son bears my image. And in the same way that my children bear my image, Seth bears Adam’s image, and Adam bears God’s image. I think Moses is seeking to show us that, although the image of God has been marred by sin, it’s still there. God and man’s story didn’t end after the fall. Sin destroyed a lot of things, but not God’s good, redemptive plan for humanity. Because of God’s grace, love, and mercy, man’s story continues. We are still image-bearers of God. Although our moral nature has been twisted, our relationships have been marred by sin, our worship has been misdirected, and we are described in the Bible as spiritually dead individuals in need of new life, God’s image is still in humanity. Therefore, we treat everyone with respect and reverence. We carefully love, honor, and respect all people everywhere.
God and man’s story didn’t end after the fall. Although we are all sinners in need of grace (which is why Jesus came), everyone still bears the image of God and is worthy of love, honor, and respect. Seth bears Adam’s image, and Adam bears God’s image. We are image bearers.
Now, before we begin to unpack the genealogy provided for us here, I want to answer a question many of us have probably asked at some point. After the service last Sunday, I had someone come to me and ask, “How could there already be others outside of Lamech’s immediate family line to murder?”
That’s a good question, one worth answering!
I think Moses gives us a helpful little distinction in verses 4-5 when he says, “The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years; and he had other sons and daughters.”
So, I think what we have in chapters 4 and 5 is selective genealogy, meaning these two chapters don’t record every person born from Adam and Eve; they are selective in who they describe. Adam and Eve had other sons and daughters not recorded in these genealogies. So, by the time Lamech killed the man and the young man, there could have already been hundreds or even thousands of people on the earth.
Now, let’s spend some time looking at the genealogy provided for us here. There are a few things that should stand out to us as we read through this. The first thing that should stick out is the fact that these dudes were OLD! Adam was 930 years old when he died. Seth was 912 years old when he died. Enosh was 905 years old when he died. Kenan was 910 years old when he died. Mahalalel was 895 years old when he died. Jared was 962 years old when he died. Enoch was 365 years old when he died. Methusaleh was 969 years old when he died. Lamech was 777 years old when he died. Noah (as we will see in Genesis 9:29) was 950 years old when he died.
If we were to exclude Enoch, since he didn’t die a natural death, the average lifespan provided here would be 910 years. And, including Enoch, the average lifespan was 855 years old.
Can you imagine how bad their knees must have hurt? Can you imagine having a midlife crisis at the age of 475?
Now, not only did these men live long lives, but they also had children relatively late in their lives, at ages that seem unrealistically old. Adam had Seth when he was 130 years old. Seth had Enosh when he was 105, Enosh had Kenan when he was 90, Kenan had Mahalel when he was 70, Mahalalel had Jared when he was 65, Jared had Enoch when he was 162, Enoch had Methuselah when he was 65, Methuselah had Lamech when he was 187, Lamech had Noah when he was 182, and Noah had his boys when he was 500. So, including Noah, the average age here was 156 years old.
Now, this is a mind-blowing reality that none of us can relate to, because the window for conception and birth is seemingly much smaller than it was back then, along with the length of one's life. Life has seemingly deteriorated since this point before the flood. A shift occurred in Chapter 6, where God said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.”
This long lifespan didn’t last forever. Soon, the days of one's life would shorten drastically. Yet, here in this time, Moses intentionally records for us the length of one's life.
Now, when you compare Seth’s line with Cain’s line, I find some interesting parallels. In Cain’s line, you see their skills and their wickedness recorded, but not the length of their lives. In Seth’s line, you find the length of their lives recorded, but not their skills or wickedness.
I think that’s because Cain’s family line represents humanity apart from God, a life that might achieve much but fail to produce any lasting spiritual legacy. Seth’s line represents a lasting legacy that leads to redemption.
You may be able to achieve much in this life apart from God. But, apart from him, you will not produce an ounce of spiritual significance.
So, what do you want to be remembered for in this life? Your skills? Your sin? Or the small role you played in God’s glorious story of redemption?
But, with that, here’s what I find remarkable. These are the individuals who lived the longest lives in the history of the Bible. And yet these are some of the individuals that we know the least about in the Bible. All we really know about them here is that they had children and died. Yet they played a valuable role in God’s grand story of redemption.
In the same way that every rail, every tie, and every fastener is essential to a railroad track, every individual here is vital to God’s story of redemption; each name is another link in the track that leads us to Jesus!
In a social media-driven world that makes us feel like we need to let everyone know every detail of our lives, may Genesis 5 show us the truth that the world doesn’t have to know all the details of our lives for us to be effective in the kingdom of God! The long lives that these men lived played a small but vital role in God’s grand story of redemption. They lived, they bore children, and they died.
When you read a passage, it’s helpful to look for repeated words or phrases. In doing so, you will be able to discover the intended point of the text. Three words are repeated often in this chapter. Three that have a bite to them. Three words that make us uncomfortable to hear.
When I was in high school and college, I loved rap music. Now that I’m older—and maybe a little senile—I think rap it’s loud and obnoxious. But back when I was a young whippersnapper, I listened to it all the time.
In high school, my choice of songs wasn’t exactly God-glorifying. But by college, my taste had shifted toward what many would call Christian rap.
There was one particular song, though, that I could never listen to. I couldn’t listen to it because in the background of the beat, there was this subtle ringing, a ringing that was just faint enough to notice, yet constant enough to drive me crazy. It reminded me of my alarm clock.
The lyrics of the song were phenomenal. But, no matter how good the song was, that one ringing sound ruined it for me. And it ruined it for me because I felt like it didn’t belong in the song.
Well, like that irritating ring in the song, there’s a ringing in Genesis 5 that catches our attention. It’s a refrain that doesn’t seem to fit the melody of creation and life. Over and over again, we hear the ringing of the phrase, “and he died.” Those three words echo through the genealogy like an out-of-tune note. Deep down, we know they shouldn’t be there. Death is an unwelcome intruder, an uncomfortable and tragic reality that wedges itself into the song of all of our lives.
So, here’s the truth we all have to face: one day, life on this earth will end for all of us. Eventually, we’ll be reduced to words on a page, pictures in an album, or videos on a feed. “And he/she died” will one day be words that conclude the small paragraph used to describe our lives. One day, no one will remember our names or care about the lives we lived. The Earth will go on without us.
Is this a reality we’ve all come to terms with? Have we come to terms with the fact that one day we will take our last breath?
The beauty of the gospel is that it addresses this unfortunate reality; It interjects life into death, hope into something that is terrifying, and peace into something unsettling.
Now, if you’re observant, one of these men was not like the rest. Enoch, unlike the rest of these men, “walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.” Before we observe how he left this earth, let’s look at how he lived while on the earth.
Enoch was a man who walked with God. Walking with God expresses deep fellowship, intimacy, and obedience. It’s a life lived in proximity to God. It’s a life lived in fellowship with God. It’s a life lived in agreement with God.
It implies a life of walking next to someone; not before, not behind, but beside in intimate fellowship. It points to a righteous and devoted life that stands in stark contrast to those around him.
Charles Spurgeon once said, “It is a delight to such children to be with their father. The roughness of the way or of the weather is nothing to them: it is joy enough to go for a walk with father. There is a warm, tender, affectionate grip of the hand and a beaming smile of the eye as they look up to father while he conducts them over hill and dale. Such a walk is humble too, for the child looks upon its father as the greatest and wisest man that ever lived. He considers him to be the incarnation of everything that is strong and wise, and all that his father says or does he admires. As he walks along he feels for his father the utmost affection, but his reverence is equally strong: he is very near his father, but yet he is only a child, and looks up to his father as his king. Moreover such a walk is one of perfect confidence. The boy is not afraid of missing his way, he trusts implicitly his father's guidance. His father’s arm will screen him from all danger, and therefore he does not so much as give it a thought— why should he? If care is needed as to the road, it is his father’s business to see to it, and the child, therefore, never dreams of anxiety; why should he? If any difficult place is to be passed, the father will have to lift the boy over it, or help him through it—the child meanwhile is merry as a bird—why should he not be? Thus should the believer walk with God, resting on eternal tenderness and rejoicing in undoubted love. A believer should be unconscious of dread either as to the present or to the future. Beloved friend in Christ, your Father may be trusted, he will supply all your need.”
So, as a child walks with dad, Enoch walked with God. With joyful fellowship, complete trust, and total obedience, he walked side-by-side with God. Hebrews 11:5 describes him as a man of faith, “By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now, before he was taken, he was commended as having pleased God.”
Enoch was a man of faith. But his faith was not without works. He was commended as one who pleased God. This further reiterates the point that faith without works is dead. If your faith resides in Jesus, your obedience is surrendered to Jesus. By faith Enoch was taken up, but before he was taken up he was commended as having pleased God. He was a man who walked with God. If the title Christian is on your name tag, there is a way in which you are expected to walk. “We were buried with him by baptism into death in order that we too might walk in newness of life (Rom 6:4).” We are to walk by the Spirit so that we might not gratify the desires of the flesh (Gal 5:16). We are to walk in love as Christ loved us (Eph 5:1-2). We are to walk in the light as he is in the light (1 Jn 1:7). Enoch walked with God, and Christians are called to do the same. We are to walk by faith, not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7). We are to walk by the Spirit (Gal 5:16). We are to walk in love as Christ loved us (Eph. 5:1-2). We are to walk in the light as He is in the light (1 Jn 1:7).
Not only was Enoch a man who walked with God, but he was also a man who spoke for God. Jude 14-15 describes Enoch as a prophet who said, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way.”
Strangely, Jude is quoting here an extra-biblical source, a book that isn’t in the biblical canon. This quote is found in a well-known Jewish tradition from the book of 1 Enoch 1:9. The Book of Enoch was written between 300 BC and 100 BC, thousands of years after the time Enoch is believed to have lived on earth. The timing of its composition lends itself to the conclusion that it would be impossible for Enoch to have written this book. Therefore, although it’s claimed to be written by Enoch, it was written by anonymous Jewish authors who used Enoch’s name as a literary figure. Yet Jude still attributes these words to Enoch. So it’s likely that this prophecy was passed down through oral tradition over the years.
So, as Enoch walked with God, he spoke to a corrupt people, warning them of a judgment that was on the horizon. He possessed a robust faith in God’s coming justice. He knew sin would not go unpunished, and he warned those who lived contrary to his God. Part of walking with God is a willingness to speak on behalf of God to those who live against God.
But we see that the man who walked with God was later taken by God. He miraculously escaped death.
We don’t know how this happened. Perhaps it was visible. Maybe he rode up on a cloud, just as Jesus did before his disciples. Maybe he was taken up in a chariot. Maybe it happened in the middle of the night. But, no matter how it happened, this man was missed. As we see in the book of Hebrews, he was not found. The phrase “not found” implies that he was searched for and could not be located.
What a way to be remembered, as a man who walked with God. What reputation do you wish to have one day? How do you hope to be remembered? Oh, LORD, may we be men and women who have the reputation as those who walk with God. May we know the intimate fellowship of a life with God!
If Genesis 5 is full of ordinary people who lived long, ordinary lives for the glory of God and played a small part in God’s grand story of redemption, we can do the same. Church, how do you want to be remembered?