Genesis 5:1-6:4's 3rd Creation Account

Genesis 5 starts the 3rd (creation) account—an oft-overlooked account that is not usually seen as a creation account. As Kass notes: “Little attention is paid to the events that led up to the Flood or to the reasons why God might have caused it…The only intervening material between the gentle genealogy of Genesis 5 and…the Flood are a few enigmatic verses (6:1-4)…” So, Kass encourages us to read carefully!

The 1st account was cosmological; the 2nd depicted prototypical humans interacting with God. Here, God plays almost no role; it mostly describes how the human race grew and hints at what leads to the Flood. As before, at first, things seem quite promising. Early-on, there are references to Gen 1:26-27; it retains Seth in the genealogy; verse 3 repeats the reference to likeness/image, and 3ff’s fulfills “be fruitful and multiply” (1:28). Cain and Eve don’t show up; nor is there any mention of Gen 3’s punishments/curses. They have long (and presumably prosperous) lives, although the passage does underline man’s mortality.

An overview of the list: 10 generations from Adam to Noah—from Fall to Flood. This illustrates the importance of individuals to God, esp. on Seth’s relatively-godly side. (See: the details of ch. 5 vs. the list in ch. 4). And from Kass: “The line of Adam and Seth, simpler and gentler, contains no inventors or warriors; and [later] its most distinguished members are…closer to God”—Seth’s Enoch (5:22) and Seth’s Lamech (5:29).

In Genesis 5:21-24, Enoch (through Seth) is the representative of ultimate good—and counters Lamech (Cain) who is also the 7th generation from Adam. Enoch "walked with God" vs. merely "lived" (8x throughout Ch. 5). Then "he was no more, because God took him away" vs. "then he died" (8x). Enoch escapes the curse of death and is brought home relatively early. (This reminds me of the sentimental/powerful Michael W. Smith song-- Kentucky Rose. I tear up every time I hear this mini-biography-- something to aspire to!)

I like what Patrick Henry Reardon said about Enoch: “Living before both Noah and Moses, Enoch was participant in neither of the covenants associated with these men. Not a single line of Holy Scripture was yet written for him to read. Much less did Enoch ever hear the message of salvation preached by the apostles. Yet, he was so pleasing to God by his faith as to be snatched away before his time...What exactly did Enoch believe, then, that he should be such a champion of faith for the Church until the end of time? The Epistle to the Hebrews explains: ‘But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek him.’ This was the sum total of all that Enoch’s faith told him-- God’s existence and his own duty to seek God to obtain the singular blessing that Scripture ascribes to Him.”

In Genesis 5:25-27, we read about the famous Methuselah and his 969 years—a Biblical record. He died in the (year of the) flood (5:25 + 5:28 + 7:6)—taken out by it (or just beforehand). As a bit of trivia, it’s interesting that Methuselah (along with Jeroboam, Rehoboam, Mordecai, Nebuchadnezzar, Solomon and Melchizedek) are oversized wine bottle.

In Gen 5:28-32, we read about Lamech (on Seth’s side) and are introduced to Noah and Sons. Interestingly, both Lamechs are the only ones to speak out of their lineages, but moaning under vs. taunting the curse—here, 29’s to name Noah in light of God’s provision.

Are these genealogies selective? Sometimes, but probably not here. In any case, many of the years are at least symbolic in parts—whether literary device &/or Providence at work—in particular, Enoch's 365, Lamech (Seth)’s 777; and the 7/10 generations out from Adam.

OK, aside from a few nice observations, can we do anything else with this? Kass argues: “To discover the worm in the family tree, we must read with a magnifying glass—and with a timeline and a calculator.” He notes that for more than a half-century, between 874 (when Lamech is born) and 930 (when Adam dies), all nine generations of humans (at least Seth’s line) are alive at the same time! Then, Adam dies the first natural death. Kass: “the prophecy of human mortality is, at long last, fatally—and fatefully—fulfilled…how [will] human beings—especially the men—react to the discovery of their unavoidable finitude.”

From another angle, Noah (born in 1056), is the first [recorded] man to be born after Adam dies. He has no (indirect) contact with Eden and its prospect of immortality; Kass: “Noah is the first man who enters a world in which death is already present, the first man who grows up knowing about death…For Noah unlike his predecessors, mortality is a received part of the human condition: thus, Noah (not Adam or Cain) is the prototype of self-consciously mortal man.”

Kass: “In the meantime, the rest of mankind goes boldly and heroically wild…offended and angry…[the] death-defying warrior…[a] desire for glory and immortal fame…” Thus, the best explanation I’ve heard of the difficult passage in 6:1-4.

Who are Gen 6:2a's "sons of God" and "daughters of men". There is no fully compelling answer. Kass provides evidence for both views, but concludes: “In the end, it may make little difference…the result is mixed marriage, with an illicit mixing of the god-like and the human, leading to the corruption of one by the other.”

Who were Gen 6:4's Nephilim? The term is often translated giants—and this is perhaps ok, but the root words are “to (cause to) fall”. Here, they are aptly defined as 4b’s "heroes of old, men of renown". This may explain the reference to “and also afterwards”—that this is a type of man, rather than a race of men.

What about Gen 6:3b's upper age-limit of 120 years? Again, two possibilities, but the larger issue?

Hugh Ross: “Many seem to think ‘life’s too short’…The human condition in the days just before the flood suggests the opposite….God allows people to live on Earth long enough to recognize and choose (or reject) Him, long enough to fulfill their destiny, and long enough to receive the training they will need for the new creation.” (See also: Gen 6:3a’s “my Spirit will not contend…”)

Similarly, Kass: “Later…God will elect the path of external law. But for the time being…a different tactic: to shorten the human life span to 120 years. Presumably very great longevity invited [mostly] very great mischief and danger.”

As Kass notes, this could have gone either way: “Because death was for so long so far out of sight, these men were able to forget their mortality and pretend to immortal godliness. Yet when the inevitable happened, they behaved worse than all the animals…Perhaps if men learned from observing the deaths of others that they too had limited time, they would use it better. Perhaps if they could not pretend to immortality, they would be more open to the truly eternal. But the strategy of a shortened life span is to no avail, at least in the short run, as the sequel makes plain.”

And that leads to the Flood…