Genesis 5 Study Notes

5:1 This is the second of eleven (Hb) toledoth sections in Genesis (2:4; 6:9; 10:1; 11:10,27; 25:12,19; 36:1,9; 37:2). The Hebrew term toledoth (“family records”) refers to “those who were given birth.” Each section contains genealogical information and/or accounts regarding the descendants of the people or things named in the section title.

Only the Sethite genealogy is called the family records of Adam, even though Cain’s descendants are equally related. The reason for this is undoubtedly the contrasting descendants within the brothers’ genealogies; only offspring in Seth’s line are noted as being righteous. In this genealogy, emphasis is given to the fact that Adam was created in God’s likeness, a characteristic that would be passed along to future generations (v. 3).

5:2 Key themes of chap. 1 are repeated and extended in the Sethite genealogy: (1) God created both male and female, thus making it possible for humanity to fulfill the divine mandate to create offspring; (2) people, though made in God’s image, are not God; they were created; (3) humanity has been specially blessed by God; and (4) humanity is under God’s authority, as demonstrated by the fact that God assigned them the name mankind.

5:3 Adam’s role in Seth’s life both compares and contrasts with God’s role with Adam. Whereas God “created” Adam, Adam fathered Seth. Whereas Adam was made in God’s image, Seth was made in Adam’s image. Like God, Adam named the one he was responsible for bringing into being.

5:4 The phrase fathered other sons and daughters is repeated ten times in the Sethite genealogy, but it never occurs in the Cainite genealogy. The clear implication is that the line of Seth more faithfully fulfilled God’s command to be fruitful and multiply (1:28).

5:5 Only three individuals are said to have lived longer than Adam’s 930 years. They are Noah (950), Jared (962), and Methuselah (969). The notation that he died emphasizes the solemn truth of God’s curse following Adam’s sin (3:19). The fact that it is repeated seven other times in this chapter demonstrates the lasting consequences of Adam’s sin.

5:6-31 The name Kenan (Hb qeynan) is closely linked to Cain (Hb qayin), and may mean “metalworker.”

The name Mahalalel may mean “one who praises God.”

The name Enoch means “dedication.”

Enoch, as the seventh member of the Sethite genealogy, is given special emphasis. The name Methuselah may mean either “man of the spear” or “man of Shelah.”

Enoch’s life stands in stark contrast to Lamech, the seventh member of Cain’s line. Whereas Lamech was notorious for his immorality and violence, Enoch walked with God, much as Adam must have done before his sin in the garden (3:8) and as Noah did later (6:9). The phrase “walked with God” suggests living a life consistent with God’s will as well as experiencing fellowship with him. Perhaps it was Enoch’s entrance into parenthood with the birth of Methuselah that inspired him to take his relationship with God seriously. Imagine the level of spiritual maturity Enoch must have attained after 300 years of living wholeheartedly for God! Jude 14 indicates that Enoch was a prophet.

The description of Enoch’s life differs from the others in two remarkable ways: (1) His righteousness is highlighted through the double notation that Enoch walked with God. (2) The description of the end of his life is mysterious: he was not there because God took him. The NT confirms the meaning of this phrase: “Enoch was taken away, and so he did not experience death” (Heb 11:5). Enoch’s experience, like Elijah’s later (2Kg 2:11), anticipates an experience reserved for Christians living at the end of time (1Co 15:51-55; 1Th 4:17).

Methuselah’s 969 years marks him as the oldest person in the Bible. Ancient genealogies commonly attribute long life spans to people. While the Bible’s numbers are exceptionally large compared to modern life spans, they seem much more credible than those found in the Sumerian king list, which states that one individual reached the age of seventy-two thousand!

The Lamech of the Sethite genealogy (v. 28) stands in sharp contrast to the Lamech of the Cainite genealogy. Both Lamechs are the only individuals in their respective genealogies to have quotations attributed to them, but Cain’s Lamech spoke of murder and vengeance (4:23-24), while the Lamech in this chapter spoke words of hope and deliverance. The name Noah means “rest/relief.” Prophetically, Lamech declared that the son born to him would live up to his name: he would bring . . . relief to humanity from the agonizing labor that had resulted from Adam’s sin. The Hebrew verb “relief” is more commonly translated “comfort.”

A final point of comparison between the Cainite and Sethite Lamechs is the use of sevens. The first Lamech mentioned Cain’s sevenfold curse and pronounced a 77-fold curse on anyone who would bring death to him, while Seth’s Lamech lived 777 years before death came to him. For the numbers-conscious original audience, the author’s inclusion of a figure consisting of three sevens would have trumped the first Cain’s numbers and would have added a sense of completeness and perfection to the portrait of this man’s life.

5:32 The mention of Noah at the end of the Sethite genealogy serves as both a conclusion to this section of Genesis and a subtle introduction of the central human character in its next major section. A similar technique will be used in the case of Terah and Abraham (cp. 5:32 and 6:9 with 11:26-27).