Genesis 5
5
1This [is] an account of the births of Adam: In the day of God's preparing man, in the likeness of God He hath made him;
2a male and a female He hath prepared them, and He blesseth them, and calleth their name Man, in the day of their being prepared.
3And Adam liveth an hundred and thirty years, and begetteth [a son] in his likeness, according to his image, and calleth his name Seth.
4And the days of Adam after his begetting Seth are eight hundred years, and he begetteth sons and daughters.
5And all the days of Adam which he lived are nine hundred and thirty years, and he dieth.
6And Seth liveth an hundred and five years, and begetteth Enos.
7And Seth liveth after his begetting Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begetteth sons and daughters.
8And all the days of Seth are nine hundred and twelve years, and he dieth.
9And Enos liveth ninety years, and begetteth Cainan.
10And Enos liveth after his begetting Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begetteth sons and daughters.
11And all the days of Enos are nine hundred and five years, and he dieth.
12And Cainan liveth seventy years, and begetteth Mahalaleel.
13And Cainan liveth after his begetting Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begetteth sons and daughters.
14And all the days of Cainan are nine hundred and ten years, and he dieth.
15And Mahalaleel liveth five and sixty years, and begetteth Jared.
16And Mahalaleel liveth after his begetting Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begetteth sons and daughters.
17And all the days of Mahalaleel are eight hundred and ninety and five years, and he dieth.
18And Jared liveth an hundred and sixty and two years, and begetteth Enoch.
19And Jared liveth after his begetting Enoch eight hundred years, and begetteth sons and daughters.
20And all the days of Jared are nine hundred and sixty and two years, and he dieth.
21And Enoch liveth five and sixty years, and begetteth Methuselah.
22And Enoch walketh habitually with God after his begetting Methuselah three hundred years, and begetteth sons and daughters.
23And all the days of Enoch are three hundred and sixty and five years.
24And Enoch walketh habitually with God, and he is not, for God hath taken him.
25And Methuselah liveth an hundred and eighty and seven years, and begetteth Lamech.
26And Methuselah liveth after his begetting Lamech seven hundred and eighty and two years, and begetteth sons and daughters.
27And all the days of Methuselah are nine hundred and sixty and nine years, and he dieth.
28And Lamech liveth an hundred and eighty and two years, and begetteth a son,
29and calleth his name Noah, saying, ‘This [one] doth comfort us concerning our work, and concerning the labour of our hands, because of the ground which Jehovah hath cursed.’
30And Lamech liveth after his begetting Noah five hundred and ninety and five years, and begetteth sons and daughters.
31And all the days of Lamech are seven hundred and seventy and seven years, and he dieth.
32And Noah is a son of five hundred years, and Noah begetteth Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
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Genesis 5
5
From Adam to Noah
1 This is the record#tn Heb “book” or “roll.” Cf. NIV “written account”; NRSV “list.” of the family line#tn Heb “generations.” See the note on the phrase “this is the account of” in 2:4. of Adam.
When God created humankind,#tn The Hebrew text has אָדָם (’adam). he made them#tn Heb “him.” The Hebrew text uses the third masculine singular pronominal suffix on the accusative sign. The pronoun agrees grammatically with its antecedent אָדָם (’adam). However, the next verse makes it clear that אָדָם is collective here and refers to “humankind,” so it is preferable to translate the pronoun with the English plural. in the likeness of God. 2 He created them male and female; when they were created, he blessed them and named them “humankind.”#tn The Hebrew word used here is אָדָם (’adam).
3 When#tn Heb “and Adam lived 130 years.” In the translation the verb is subordinated to the following verb, “and he fathered,” and rendered as a temporal clause. Adam had lived 130 years he fathered a son in his own likeness, according to his image, and he named him Seth. 4 The length of time Adam lived#tn Heb “The days of Adam.” after he became the father of Seth was 800 years; during this time he had#tn Heb “he fathered.” other#tn The word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons. sons and daughters. 5 The entire lifetime#tn Heb “all the days of Adam which he lived” of Adam was 930 years, and then he died.#sn The genealogy traces the line from Adam to Noah and forms a bridge between the earlier accounts and the flood story. Its constant theme of the reign of death in the human race is broken once with the account of Enoch, but the genealogy ends with hope for the future through Noah. See further G. F. Hasel, “The Genealogies of Gen. 5 and 11 and their Alleged Babylonian Background,” AUSS 16 (1978): 361-74; idem, “Genesis 5 and 11,” Origins 7 (1980): 23-37.
6 When Seth had lived 105 years, he became the father#tn Heb “he fathered.” of Enosh. 7 Seth lived 807 years after he became the father of Enosh, and he had#tn Heb “he fathered.” other#tn Here and in vv. 10, 13, 16, 19 the word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons. sons and daughters. 8 The entire lifetime of Seth was 912 years, and then he died.
9 When Enosh had lived 90 years, he became the father of Kenan. 10 Enosh lived 815 years after he became the father of Kenan, and he had other sons and daughters. 11 The entire lifetime of Enosh was 905 years, and then he died.
12 When Kenan had lived 70 years, he became the father of Mahalalel. 13 Kenan lived 840 years after he became the father of Mahalalel, and he had other sons and daughters. 14 The entire lifetime of Kenan was 910 years, and then he died.
15 When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he became the father of Jared. 16 Mahalalel lived 830 years after he became the father of Jared, and he had other sons and daughters. 17 The entire lifetime of Mahalalel was 895 years, and then he died.
18 When Jared had lived 162 years, he became the father of Enoch. 19 Jared lived 800 years after he became the father of Enoch, and he had other sons and daughters. 20 The entire lifetime of Jared was 962 years, and then he died.
21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. 22 After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God#sn With the seventh panel there is a digression from the pattern. Instead of simply saying that Enoch lived, the text observes that he “walked with God.” The rare expression “walked with” (the Hitpael form of the verb הָלָךְ, halakh, “to walk” collocated with the preposition אֶת, ’et, “with”) is used in 1 Sam 25:15 to describe how David’s men maintained a cordial and cooperative relationship with Nabal’s men as they worked and lived side by side in the fields. In Gen 5:22 the phrase suggests that Enoch and God “got along.” This may imply that Enoch lived in close fellowship with God, leading a life of devotion and piety. An early Jewish tradition, preserved in 1 En. 1:9 and alluded to in Jude 14, says that Enoch preached about the coming judgment. See F. S. Parnham, “Walking with God,” EvQ 46 (1974): 117-18. for 300 years,#tn Heb “and Enoch walked with God, after he became the father of Methuselah, [for] 300 years.” and he had other#tn The word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons. sons and daughters. 23 The entire lifetime of Enoch was 365 years. 24 Enoch walked with God, and then he disappeared#tn The Hebrew construction has the negative particle אֵין (’en, “there is not,” “there was not”) with a pronominal suffix, “he was not.” Instead of saying that Enoch died, the text says he no longer was present. because God took#sn The text simply states that God took Enoch. Similar language is used of Elijah’s departure from this world (see 2 Kgs 2:10). The text implies that God overruled death for this man who walked with him. him away.
25 When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he became the father of Lamech. 26 Methuselah lived 782 years after he became the father of Lamech, and he had other#tn The word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons. sons and daughters. 27 The entire lifetime of Methuselah was 969 years, and then he died.
28 When Lamech had lived 182 years, he had a son. 29 He named him Noah,#sn The name Noah appears to be related to the Hebrew word נוּחַ (nuakh, “to rest”). There are several wordplays on the name “Noah” in the story of the flood. saying, “This one will bring us comfort#tn The Hebrew verb יְנַחֲמֵנוּ (yÿnakhamenu) is from the root נָחָם (nakham), which means “to comfort” in the Piel verbal stem. The letters נ (nun) and ח (heth) pick up the sounds in the name “Noah,” forming a paronomasia on the name. They are not from the same verbal root, and so the connection is only by sound. Lamech’s sentiment reflects the oppression of living under the curse on the ground, but also expresses the hope for relief in some way through the birth of Noah. His words proved to be ironic but prophetic. The relief would come with a new beginning after the flood. See E. G. Kraeling, “The Interpretations of the Name Noah in Genesis 5:29,” JBL 48 (1929): 138-43. from our labor and from the painful toil of our hands because of the ground that the Lord has cursed.” 30 Lamech lived 595 years after he became the father of Noah, and he had other#tn The word “other” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for stylistic reasons. sons and daughters. 31 The entire lifetime of Lamech was 777 years, and then he died.
32 After Noah was 500 years old, he#tn Heb “Noah.” The pronoun (“he”) has been employed in the translation for stylistic reasons. became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
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