Teks -- Genesis 5:1-12 (NET)

From Adam to Noah

5:1 This is the record of the family line of Adam. When God created humankind, he made them in the likeness of God. 5:2 He created them male and female; when they were created, he blessed them and named them “humankind.” 5:3 When Adam had lived 130 years he fathered a son in his own likeness, according to his image, and he named him Seth. 5:4 The length of time Adam lived after he became the father of Seth was 800 years; during this time he had other sons and daughters. 5:5 The entire lifetime of Adam was 930 years, and then he died. 5:6 When Seth had lived 105 years, he became the father of Enosh. 5:7 Seth lived 807 years after he became the father of Enosh, and he had other sons and daughters. 5:8 The entire lifetime of Seth was 912 years, and then he died. 5:9 When Enosh had lived 90 years, he became the father of Kenan. 5:10 Enosh lived 815 years after he became the father of Kenan, and he had other sons and daughters. 5:11 The entire lifetime of Enosh was 905 years, and then he died. 5:12 When Kenan had lived 70 years, he became the father of Mahalalel.

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Kata/Frasa (per frasa)

Wesley: Gen 5:1 - The first words of the chapter are the title of argument of the whole chapter; it is the book of the generations of Adam

It is the list or catalogue of the posterity of Adam, not of all, but only of the holy seed, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came; the names, ages, and deaths of those that were the successors of the first Adam in the custody of the promise, and the ancestors of the second Adam.

Where we have a brief rehearsal of what was before at large related concerning the creation of man. This is what we have need frequently to hear of, and carefully to acquaint ourselves with. Observe here. 1. That God created man. Man is not his own maker, therefore he must not be his own master; but the author of his being must be the director of his motions, and the center of them. 2. That there was a day in which God created man, he was not from eternity, but of yesterday; he was not the first-born, but the junior of the creation. 3. That God made him in his own likeness, righteous and holy, and therefore undoubtedly happy; man's nature resembled the divine nature more than that of any of the creatures of this lower world. 4. That God created them male and female, Gen 5:2, for their mutual comfort, as well as for the preservation and increase of their kind. Adam and Eve were both made immediately by the hand of God, both made in God's likeness; and therefore between the sexes there is not that great difference and inequality which some imagine. 5. That God blessed them. It is usual for parents to bless their children, so God the common Father blessed his; but earthly parents can only beg a blessing, it is God's prerogative to command it. It refers chiefly to the blessing of increase, not excluding other blessings.

Wesley: Gen 5:2

Where we have a brief rehearsal of what was before at large related concerning the creation of man. This is what we have need frequently to hear of, and carefully to acquaint ourselves with. Observe here. 1. That God created man. Man is not his own maker, therefore he must not be his own master; but the author of his being must be the director of his motions, and the center of them. 2. That there was a day in which God created man, he was not from eternity, but of yesterday; he was not the first-born, but the junior of the creation. 3. That God made him in his own likeness, righteous and holy, and therefore undoubtedly happy; man's nature resembled the divine nature more than that of any of the creatures of this lower world. 4. That God created them male and female, Gen 5:2, for their mutual comfort, as well as for the preservation and increase of their kind. Adam and Eve were both made immediately by the hand of God, both made in God's likeness; and therefore between the sexes there is not that great difference and inequality which some imagine. 5. That God blessed them. It is usual for parents to bless their children, so God the common Father blessed his; but earthly parents can only beg a blessing, it is God's prerogative to command it. It refers chiefly to the blessing of increase, not excluding other blessings.

Wesley: Gen 5:2 -

He called their name Adam

He gave this name both to the man and the woman. Being at first one by nature, and afterwards one by marriage; it was fit they should both have the same name, in token of their union.

Wesley: Gen 5:3

Seth was born in the 130th year of Adam's life, and probably the murder of Abel was not long before. Many other sons and daughters were born to Adam besides Cain and Abel before this; but no notice is taken of them, because an honourable mention must be made of his name only, in whose loins Christ and the church were. But that which is most observable here concerning Seth, is, that Adam begat him in his own likeness after his image - Adam was made in the image of God; but when he was fallen and corrupted, he begat a son in his own image, sinful and defiled, frail and mortal, and miserable like himself; not only a man like himself, consisting of body and soul; but a sinner like himself, guilty and obnoxious, degenerate and corrupt. He was conceived and born in sin, Psa 51:5. This was Adam's own likeness, the reverse of that Divine likeness in which Adam was made; but having lost it himself he could not convey it to his seed.

Wesley: Gen 5:5

In the day Adam ate forbidden fruit, he became mortal, he began to die; his whole life after was but a forfeited condemned life, nay it was a wasting dying life; he was not only like a criminal sentenced, but as one already crucified, that dies slowly and by degrees."|| "00112"||"1"||"14"||"0"|@|"We have here all that the Holy Ghost thought fit to leave upon record concerning five of the patriarchs before the flood, Seth, Enos, Cainan, Mahalaleel, and Jared. There is nothing observable concerning any of those particularly, tho' we have reason to think they were men of eminency, both for prudence and piety: But in general, observe how largely and expressly their generations are recorded. We are told how long they lived that lived in God's fear, and when they died, that died in his favour; but as for others it is no matter: the memory of the just is blessed, but the name of the wicked shall rot. That which is especially observable, is, that they all lived very long; not one of them died 'till he had seen the revolution of almost eight hundred years, and some of them much longer; a great while for an immortal soul to be imprisoned in an house of clay. The present life surely was not to them such a burden as commonly it is now, else they would have been weary of it; nor was the future life so clearly revealed then, as it is now under the gospel, else they would have been impatient to remove it. Some natural causes may be assigned for their long life in those first ages. It is very probable that the earth was more fruitful, the products of it more strengthening, the air more healthful, and the influences of the heavenly bodies more benign before the flood than they were after. Though man was driven out of paradise, yet the earth itself was then paradisaical; a garden in comparison with its present state: and some think, that their knowledge of the creatures and their usefulness both, for their food and medicine, together with their sobriety and temperance, contributed much to it; yet we do not find that those who were intemperate, as many were, Luk 17:27, as short - lived as temperate men generally are now. It must therefore chiefly be resolved into the power and providence of God; he prolonged their lives, both for the more speedy replenishing of the earth, and for the more effectual preservation of the knowledge of God and religion, then when there was no written word, but tradition was the channel of its conveyance. All the patriarchs here (except Noah) were born before Adam died, so that from him they might receive a full account of the creation, paradise, the fall, the promise, and those divine precepts which concerned religious worship and a religious life: and if any mistake arose, they might have recourse to him while he lived, as to an oracle, for the rectifying of it, and after his death to Methuselah, and others that had conversed with him; so great was the care of Almighty God to preserve in his church the knowledge of his will, and the purity of his worship.

JFB: Gen 5:1 - book of the generations

(See Gen 11:4).

JFB: Gen 5:1 - Adam

Used here either as the name of the first man, or of the human race generally.

JFB: Gen 5:5 - all the days . . . Adam lived

The most striking feature in this catalogue is the longevity of Adam and his immediate descendants. Ten are enumerated (Gen. 5:5-32) in direct succession whose lives far exceed the ordinary limits with which we are familiar--the shortest being three hundred sixty-five, [Gen 5:23] and the longest nine hundred sixty-nine years [Gen 5:27]. It is useless to inquire whether and what secondary causes may have contributed to this protracted longevity--vigorous constitutions, the nature of their diet, the temperature and salubrity of the climate; or, finally--as this list comprises only the true worshippers of God--whether their great age might be owing to the better government of their passions and the quiet, even tenor of their lives. Since we cannot obtain satisfactory evidence on these points, it is wise to resolve the fact into the sovereign will of God. We can, however, trace some of the important uses to which, in the early economy of Providence, it was subservient. It was the chief means of reserving a knowledge of God, of the great truths of religion, as well as the influence of genuine piety. So that, as their knowledge was obtained by tradition, they would be in a condition to preserve it in the greatest purity.

Clarke: Gen 5:1 - The book of the generations

The book of the generations - ספר sepher , in Hebrew, which we generally translate book, signifies a register, an account, any kind of writing, even a letter, such as the bill of divorce. Here It means the account or register of the generations of Adam or his descendants to the five hundredth year of the life of Noah

Clarke: Gen 5:1 - In the likeness of God made he him

In the likeness of God made he him - This account is again introduced to keep man in remembrance of the heights of glory whence he bad fallen; and to prove to him that the miseries and death consequent on his present state were produced by his transgression, and did not flow from his original state. For, as he was created in the image of God, he was created free from natural and moral evil. As the deaths of the patriarchs are now to be mentioned, it was necessary to introduce them by this observation, in order to justify the ways of God to man.

Clarke: Gen 5:3 - And Adam lived a hundred and thirty years, etc.

And Adam lived a hundred and thirty years, etc. - The Scripture chronology especially in the ages of some of the antediluvian and postdiluvian patriarchs, has exceedingly puzzled chronologists, critics, and divines. The printed Hebrew text, the Samaritan, the Septuagint, and Josephus, are all different, and have their respective vouchers and defenders. The following tables of the genealogies of the patriarchs before and after the flood, according to the Hebrew, Samaritan, and Septuagint, will at once exhibit the discordances. For much satisfactory information on this subject I must refer to A New Analysis of Chronology, by the Rev. William Hales, D.D., 3 vols. 4th., London, 1809

Clarke: Gen 5:3 - And begat a son in his own likeness, after his image

And begat a son in his own likeness, after his image - Words nearly the same with those Gen 1:26 : Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. What this image and likeness of God were, we have already seen, and we may rest assured that the same image and likeness are not meant here. The body of Adam was created provisionally immortal, i.e. while he continued obedient he could not die; but his obedience was voluntary, and his state a probationary one. The soul of Adam was created in the moral image of God, in knowledge, righteousness, and true holiness. He had now sinned, and consequently had lost his moral resemblance to his Maker; he had also become mortal through his breach of the law. His image and likeness were therefore widely different at this time from what they were before; and his begetting children in this image and likeness plainly implies that they were imperfect like himself, mortal like himself, sinful and corrupt like himself. For it is impossible that he, being impure, fallen from the Divine image, could beget a pure and holy offspring, unless we could suppose it possible that a bitter fountain could send forth sweet waters, or that a cause could produce effects totally dissimilar from itself. What is said here of Seth might have been said of all the other children of Adam, as they were all begotten after his fall; but the sacred writer has thought proper to mark it only in this instance.

Calvin: Gen 5:1 - This is the book of the generations of Adam // In the day that God created

1.This is the book of the generations of Adam. In this chapter Moses briefly recites the length of time which had intervened between the creation of the world and the deluge; and also slightly touches on some portion of the history of that period. And although we do not comprehend the design of the Spirit, in leaving unrecorded great and memorable events, it is, nevertheless, our business to reflect on many things which are passed over in silence. I entirely disapprove of those speculations which every one frames for himself from light conjectures; nor will I furnish readers with the occasion of indulging themselves in this respect; yet it may, in some degree, be gathered from a naked and apparently dry narration, what was the state of those times, as we shall see in the proper places. The book, according to the Hebrew phrase, is taken for a catalogue. The generations signify a continuous succession of a race, or a continuous progeny. Further, the design with which this catalogue was made, was, to inform us, that in the great, or rather, we might say, prodigious multitude of men, there was always a number, though small, who worshipped God; and that this number was wonderfully preserved by celestial guardianship, lest the name of God should be entirely obliterated, and the seed of the Church should fail.

In the day that God created. He does not restrict these “generations” to the day of the creation, but only points out their commencement; and, at the same time, he distinguishes between our first parents and the rest of mankind, because God had brought them into life by a singular method, whereas others had sprung from a previous stock, and had been born of parents. ²⁵³ Moreover, Moses again repeats what he had before stated that Adam was formed according to the image of God, because the excellency and dignity of this favor could not be sufficiently celebrated. It was already a great thing, that the principal place among the creatures was given to man; but it is a nobility far more exalted, that he should bear resemblance to his Creator, as a son does to his father. It was not indeed possible for God to act more liberally towards man, than by impressing his own glory upon him, thus making him, as it were, a living image of the Divine wisdom and justice. This also is of force in repelling the calumnies of the wicked who would gladly transfer the blame of their wickedness to their Maker, had it not been expressly declared, that man was formed by nature a different being from that which he has now become, through the fault of his own defection from God.

Calvin: Gen 5:2 - Male and female created he them

2.Male and female created he them. This clause commends the sacred bond of marriage, and the inseparable union of the husband and the wife. For when Moses has mentioned only one, he immediately afterwards includes both under one name. And he assigns a common name indiscriminately to both, in order that posterity might learn more sacredly to cherish this connection between each other, when they saw that their first parents were denominated as one person. The trifling inference of Jewish writers, that married persons only are called Adam, (or man,) is refuted by the history of the creation; nor truly did the Spirit, in this place, mean anything else, than that after the appointment of marriage, the husband and the wife were like one man. Moreover, he records the blessing pronounced upon them, that we may observe in it the wonderful kindness of God in continuing to grant it; yet let us know that by the depravity and wickedness of men it was, in some degree, interrupted.

Calvin: Gen 5:3 - And begat a son in his own likeness

3.And begat a son in his own likeness. We have lately said that Moses traces the offspring of Adam only through the line of Seth, to propose for our consideration the succession of the Church. In saying that Seth begat a son after his own image, he refers in part to the first origin of our nature: at the same time its corruption and pollution is to be noticed, which having been contracted by Adam through the fall, has flowed down to all his posterity. If he had remained upright, he would have transmitted to all his children what he had received: but now we read that Seth, as well as the rest, was defiled; because Adams who had fallen from his original state, could beget none but such as were like himself. If any one should object that Seth with his family had been elected by the special grace of God: the answer is easy and obvious; namely, that a supernatural remedy does not prevent carnal generation from participating in the corruption of sin. Therefore, according to the flesh, Seth was born a sinner; but afterwards he was renewed by the grace of the Spirit. This sad instance of the holy patriarch furnishes us with ample occasion to deplore our own wretchedness.

Calvin: Gen 5:4 - And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth

4.And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth. In the number of years here recorded we must especially consider the long period which the patriarchs lived together. For through six successive ages, when the family of Seth had grown into a great people, the voice of Adam might daily resound, in order to renew the memory of the creation, the fall, and the punishment of man; to testify of the hope of salvation which remained after chastisement, and to recite the judgments of God, by which all might be instructed. After his death his sons might indeed deliver, as from hand to hand, what they had learned, to their descendants; but far more efficacious would be the instruction from the mouth of him, who had been himself the eyewitness of all these things. Yet so wonderful, and even monstrous, was the general obstinacy, that not even the sounder part of the human race could be retained in the obedience and the fear of God.

Calvin: Gen 5:5 - And he died

5.And he died. This clause, which records the death of each patriarch, is by no means superfluous. For it warns us that death was not in vain denounced against men; and that we are now exposed to the curse to which man was doomed, unless we obtain deliverance elsewhere. In the meantime, we must reflect upon our lamentable condition; namely, that the image of God being destroyed, or, at least, obliterated in us, we scarcely retain the faint shadow of a life, from which we are hastening to death. And it is useful, in a picture of so many ages, to behold, at one glance, the continual course and tenor of divine vengeance; because otherwise, we imagine that God is in some way forgetful; and to nothing are we more prone than to dream of immortality on earth, unless death is frequently brought before our eyes.

Defender: Gen 5:1 - book

The use of the word "book" in this connection strongly implies that reading and writing were abilities shared by the earliest generations of mankind. These records, edited and assembled by Moses, must have originally come from eye-witnesses, and there is no reason (other than evolutionary presuppositions), why their transmission could not have been by written records instead of orally-repeated tales.

Defender: Gen 5:1 - generations

This is the second of the toledoth statements in Genesis (the first at Gen 2:4). Since Adam (and only Adam) could have personal knowledge of all the events in Genesis 2, 3 and 4, it is reasonable to conclude that this section was originally written by him. Gen 5:1 is thus Adam's signature at its conclusion.

Defender: Gen 5:1 - made he him

If Gen 5:1 is the concluding statement of Adam's record, then Gen 5:1 is the opening statement of Noah's record, which concludes with Noah's signature at Gen 6:9. As is true with the opening statements following the other toledoth endings in Genesis, as well as similar phenomena in Babylonian tablets, each statement ties in to the previous division by keying in to relevant statements. The opening statement in Gen 5:1, Gen 5:2 obviously refers back to Gen 1:26-28. Note that God "created" man in His spiritual image, and "made" man in His physical "likeness" (anticipating His future incarnation in human flesh)."

Defender: Gen 5:2 - their name Adam

"Adam" and "man" are both translations of the same Hebrew word. Its generic use in this context would perhaps better warrant the translation "and called their name Man.""

Defender: Gen 5:3 - hundred and thirty years

It is possible that other children were born to Adam, particularly daughters, during this 130 year period. Only Seth is mentioned by name in light of an implied revelation to Eve that he was the appointed son leading eventually to Christ.

Defender: Gen 5:3 - begat a son

Adam was "created" in God's likeness (Gen 5:1), whereas Adam "begat" Seth in his own likeness. Jesus Christ is the only "begotten" Son of God (Joh 3:16)."

Defender: Gen 5:4 - sons and daughters

Probably many children were born to Adam during his long life; the ancient quibble about "Cain's wife" is easily resolved in terms of brother/sister marriages in the first generation. Close marriages are genetically dangerous today because of the accumulation of harmful mutations in the human genetic system over many generations, and incest has been prohibited since Moses' time (Lev 20:11-20). In the first few generations, including those after the flood, marriages of near relatives were necessary in order for mankind to obey God's command to "multiply" (Gen 1:28; Gen 9:1)."

Defender: Gen 5:6 - begat Enos

These records provide three items of necessary information nowhere else available: (1) the names of the antediluvian patriarchs in the line of the promised Seed who would ultimately fulfill God's Protevangelic promise (these names are accepted as authentic and repeated in 1Ch 1:1-4 and Luk 3:36-38); (2) the chronological framework of primeval history, showing a total of 1656 years from Adam to the Flood (there is no internal evidence to suggest any gaps in these records); and (3) the lifespans of the antediluvians averaged over 900 years (912 to be exact, excluding Enoch), indicating environmental conditions were vastly superior to our age."

Defender: Gen 5:8 - nine hundred and twelve years

These great ages have been questioned. However, a "king list" was excavated near Babel, which tells of ten kings who had lived to great ages before the Flood. Although these ages were first deciphered as thousands of years, improved translations have brought them more in line with those in the Bible record. The Egyptians, Chinese, Greeks and Romans also record a tradition that the ancient men lived to great ages."

TSK: Gen 5:1 - book // in the likeness

book : The original word rendered ""book,""signifies a register, account, history, or any kind of writing. Gen 2:4, Gen 6:9, Gen 10:1; 1Ch 1:1; Mat 1:1; Luk 3:36-38

in the likeness : Gen 1:26, Gen 1:27; Ecc 7:29, Ecc 12:1; 1Co 11:7; 2Co 3:18; Eph 4:24; Col 3:10; Heb 1:3, Heb 12:9

TSK: Gen 5:2 - Male // their

Male : Gen 1:27; Mal 2:15

their : Gen 2:15, Gen 2:23 *marg. Act 17:26

TSK: Gen 5:3 - hundred // in his // called

am 130, bc 3874

hundred : The chronology differs in the Hebrew Text, the Samaritan, the LXX, and Josephus. The LXX adds 100 years to each of the patriarchs Adam, Seth, Enos, Cainan, Mahalaleel, and Enoch, before the birth of their sons; while they take 20 from the age of Methuselah, and add 6 to that of Lamech Thus the space from the creation to the deluge is made 2,242 years, according to the Vatican copy, but 2,262 by the Alexandrine; and the sum total by Josephus is 2,265, by the Samaritan 1,307, and the Hebrew Text, 1,656. The sum total from the Deluge to the 70th year of Terah, according to these authorities, is, Heb. 292; Sam. 942; Sept. Vat. 1,172; Alex. 1,072, and Josephus 1,002.

in his : Job 14:4, Job 15:14-16, Job 25:4; Psa 14:2, Psa 14:3, Psa 51:5; Luk 1:35; Joh 3:6; Rom 5:12; 1Co 15:39; Eph 2:3

called : Gen 4:25

TSK: Gen 5:4 - And the // and he

And the : 1Ch 1:1-3; Luk 3:36-38

and he : Gen 5:7, Gen 5:10, Gen 5:13, Gen 5:19, Gen 5:22, Gen 5:26, Gen 5:30, Gen 1:28, Gen 9:1, Gen 9:7, Gen 11:12; Psa 127:3, Psa 144:12

TSK: Gen 5:5 - nine // and he died

am 930, bc 3074

nine : Gen 5:8, Gen 5:11, Gen 5:14, 17-32; Deu 30:20; Psa 90:10

and he died : Gen 5:8, Gen 5:11, 14-32, Gen 3:19; 2Sa 14:14; Job 30:23; Psa 49:7-10, Psa 89:48; Ecc 9:5, Ecc 9:8; Ecc 12:5, Ecc 12:7; Eze 18:4; Rom 5:12-14; 1Co 15:21, 1Co 15:22; Heb 9:27

TSK: Gen 5:6 - begat

am 235, bc 3769

begat : Gen 4:26

TSK: Gen 5:8

am 1042, bc 2962, Gen 5:8

TSK: Gen 5:9 - Cainan

am 325, bc 3679

Cainan : Heb. Kenan, 1Ch 1:2; Luk 3:37

TSK: Gen 5:10 - begat

begat : Gen 5:4

TSK: Gen 5:11 - died

am 1140, bc 2864

died : Gen 5:5

TSK: Gen 5:12 - Mahalaleel

am 395, bc 3609

Mahalaleel : Gr. Maleleel, Luk 3:37

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Kata/Frasa (per Ayat)

Poole: Gen 5:1 - This is the book // The generations of Adam // God created man

This is the book i.e. the list or catalogue, as this word is taken, Neh 7:5 Mat 1:1 , as it is also put for any short writing, as for a bill of divorce, as Deu 24:1,2 .

The generations of Adam i.e. his posterity begotten by him; the word being passively used. But he doth not here give a complete list of all Adam’ s children, but only of his godly seed, which preserved true religion and the worship of God from Adam to the Flood, and from whose loins Christ came, Luk 3:1-38 .

God created man This is here repeated to note the different way of the production of Adam, and of his posterity; his was by creation from God, theirs by generation from their parents. See Gen 1:26 .

Poole: Gen 5:2 - blessed them // Called their name Adam

See Gen 1:26 Mat 19:4 Mar 10:6 . He

blessed them with power to propagate their kind, and with other blessings. See Gen 1:28 .

Called their name Adam which name is given both to every man, as Gen 9:6 Psa 49:20 , and to the first man, as Gen 2:23 , and to the whole kind, both the man and the woman, who are called by one name, to show their intimate union and communion in all things.

Poole: Gen 5:3 - Adam lived an hundred and thirty years // After his image

3874

Adam lived an hundred and thirty years after he was created, in which time he begat other sons and daughters, as appears from what was said before.

After his image either,

1. In regard of the natural frame of his body and soul; but this was so evident of itself, that the mention of it had been frivolous. Nor is there any reason why that should be said of Seth, rather than of Cain or Abel. Or,

2. In regard of his corruption, q.d. a weak, sinful, mortal man, like himself; for Adam’ s image is here plainly opposed to the likeness of God, wherein Adam is said to be created, Gen 5:1 . And this is fitly said of Seth to signify, that although he was a worthy and good man, and, Adam excepted, the most eminent person of the whole church of God; yet he, no less than wicked Cain, was begotten and born in sin; and that all the difference which was between him, and consequently between other good men, and the wicked progeny of Cain, was not from the nature which they received from Adam, but from the grace infused into them by God.

Poole: Gen 5:4

Whose names and numbers are here passed over in silence, as not belonging to the genealogy of Christ, nor to the following history.

Poole: Gen 5:5

The long lives of men in ancient times, here noted, are also mentioned by heathen authors; and it was wisely so ordered by God, both for the more plentiful increase of mankind in the first age of the world, and for the more effectual propagation of true religion and other useful knowledge to the world. And many natural reasons might be given why their lives were then longer than afterwards.

Haydock: Gen 5:2 - Adam

Adam: the common name of mankind, made to the likeness of God . (Haydock)

Haydock: Gen 5:5 - He died

He died. Ecclesiasticus xiv. 12, says very justly, the covenant of this world is, he shall surely die. God prolonged the lives of the patriarchs to a more advanced age, that the world might be sooner filled. Their constitution was then more excellent, the fruits of the earth more nourishing, &c. But the sole satisfactory reason for their living almost a thousand years, while we can hardly arrive at 70, is, because so it pleased God, in whose hands are all our lots. There is a great difference in the number of years assigned by the Hebrew and Vulgate, from that which the Samaritan copy mentions; and the Septuagint differs from both. Whether the difference be real, or only apparent, we shall not pretend to determine. The Church has not decided which system of chronology is the most accurate. In the Martyrology, she adopts that of the Septuagint and placed the birth of Christ in 5199, after Eusebius and Ven. Bede, though Riccioli calculates the Septuagint at 5634 years. (Haydock) ---

Adam died penitent, as we are assured by the Holy Ghost, Wisdom x. 2.; and tradition affirms the same of Eve, insomuch that the heresy of the Encratites, who condemned our first parents to hell, was exploded with horror. (St. Epiphanius; St. Augustine, in hæres.; Tirinus)

Gill: Gen 5:1 - This is the book of the generations of Adam // in the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him

This is the book of the generations of Adam,.... An account of persons born of him, or who descended from him by generation in the line of Seth, down to Noah, consisting of ten generations; for a genealogy of all his descendants is not here given, not of those in the line of Cain, nor of the collateral branches in the line of Seth, only of those that descended one from another in a direct line to Noah:

in the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him; this is repeated from Gen 1:27 to put in mind that man is a creature of God; that God made him, and not he himself; that the first man was not begotten or produced in like manner as his sons are, but was immediately created; that his creation was in time, when there were days, and it was not on the first of these, but on the sixth; and that he was made in the likeness of God, which chiefly lay in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, and in dominion over the creatures.

Gill: Gen 5:2 - Male and female created he them // and blessed them // and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created

Male and female created he them,.... Adam and Eve, the one a male, the other a female; and but one male and one female, to show that one man and one woman only were to be joined together in marriage, and live as man and wife for the procreation of posterity; and these were not made together, but first the male, and then the female out of him, though both in one day:

and blessed them; with a power of propagating their species, and multiplying it, and with all other blessings of nature and providence; with an habitation in the garden of Eden; with leave to eat of the fruit of all the trees in it, but one; with subjection of all the creatures to them, and with communion with God in their enjoyments:

and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created; which, as Philo ^s observes, signifies "earth"; and according to Josephus ^t red earth, out of which Adam was made; and as soon as he was made, this name was imposed upon him by God, to put him in mind of his original, that he was of the earth, earthly; and the same name was given to Eve, because made out of him, and because other marriage with him, and union to him; on that account, as ever since, man and wife bear the same name: wherefore I should rather think the name was given them from their junction and union together in love; so the name may be derived from the Arabic word ^u signifying to "join": though some think they had it from their beauty, and the elegance of their form ^w, being the most fair and beautiful of the whole creation. The names of Adam and Eve in Sanchoniatho ^x, as translated into Greek by Philo Byblius, are Protogonos, the first born, and Aeon, which has some likeness to Eve: the name of the first man with the Chinese is Puoncuus ^y.

Gill: Gen 5:3 - And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years // and begat a son // in his own likeness, after his image

And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years,.... The Septuagint version, through mistaken, gives the number two hundred and thirty years:

and begat a son; not that he had no other children during this time than Cain and Abel; this is only observed to show how old he was when Seth was born, the son here meant; who was begotten

in his own likeness, after his image; not in the likeness, and after the image of God, in which Adam was created; for having sinned, he lost that image, at least it was greatly defaced, and he came short of that glory of God, and could not convey it to his posterity; who are, and ever have been conceived in sin, and shapen in iniquity; are polluted and unclean, foolish and disobedient; averse to all that is good, and prone to all that is evil: the sinfulness of nature is conveyed by natural generation, but not holiness and grace; that is not of blood, nor of the will of man, nor of the flesh, but of God, and produced of his own will, by his mighty power impressing the image of his Son in regeneration on his people; which by beholding his glory they are more and more changed into by the Spirit of God. The Jewish writers understand this in a good sense, of Seth being like to Adam in goodness, when Cain was not: so the Targum of Jonathan,"and he begat Seth, who was like to his image and similitude; for before Eve had brought forth Cain, who was not like unto him---but afterwards she brought forth him who was like unto him, and called his name Seth.''So they say ^z Cain was not of the seed, nor of the image of Adam, nor his works like Abel his brother; but Seth was of the seed and image of Adam, and his works were like the works of his brother Abel; according to that, "he begat (a son) in his own likeness". And they assert ^a, that Adam delivered all his wisdom to Seth his son, who was born after his image and likeness; and particularly Maimonides ^b observes, that all the sons of Adam before Seth were rather beasts than men, and had not the true human form, not the form and image of men; but Seth, after Adam had taught and instructed him, was in human perfection, as it is said of him, "and he begat in his likeness": but the text speaks not of the education of Seth, and of what he was through that, but of his birth, and what he was in consequence of it; and we are told by good authority, that "that which is born of the flesh is flesh", carnal and corrupt, and such are all the sons of Adam by natural generation; see Job 14:4.

Gill: Gen 5:4 - And the days of Adam, after he had begotten Seth, were eight hundred years // and he begat sons and daughters

And the days of Adam, after he had begotten Seth, were eight hundred years,.... The Septuagint version is seven hundred; for having added one hundred years more the should be, to the years of his life before the birth of Seth, here they are taken away to make the number of his years complete:

and he begat sons and daughters; not only after the birth of Seth, but before, though we have no account of any, unless of Cain's wife; but what their number was is not certain, either before or after; some say he had thirty children, besides Cain, Abel, and Seth; and others a hundred ^c. Josephus says the number of children, according to the old tradition, was thirty three sons and twenty three daughters. ^d(These families had at least five children, for one son is named as well as other sons and daughters. Therefore there must be at least three sons and two daughters in each family. For a family to have at least three sons and two daughters, according to the laws of chance, a family must on the average have nine children for this to be a near certainty. Hence the families listed in this chapter must have been large by today's standards. Given their long life, this is not at all unusual. However even today, the Old Order Mennonites of Waterloo County in Ontario and Lancaster County in Pennsylvannia, have many families this large. Ed.)

Gill: Gen 5:5 - And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years // and he died

And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years,.... Not lunar years, as Varro ^d, but solar years, which consisted of three hundred and sixty five days and odd hours, and such were in use among the Egyptians in the times of Moses; and of these must be the age of Adam, and of his posterity in this chapter, and of other patriarchs in this book; or otherwise, some must be said to beget children at an age unfit for it, particularly Enoch, who must beget a son in the sixth year of his age; and the lives of some of them must be very short, even shorter than ours, as Abraham and others; and the time between the creation and the deluge could not be two hundred years: but this long life of the antediluvians, according to the Scripture account, is confirmed by the testimony of many Heathen writers, who affirm that the ancients lived a thousand years, as many of them did, pretty near, though not quite, they using a round number to express their longevity by; for the proof of this Josephus ^e appeals to the testimonies of Manetho the Egyptian, and Berosus the Chaldean, and Mochus and Hestiaeus; besides Jerom the Egyptian, and the Phoenician writers; also Hesiod, Hecataeus, Hellanicus, Acusilaus, Ephorus and Nicolaus. And though the length of time they lived may in some measure be accounted for by natural things as means, such as their healthful constitution, simple diet, the goodness of the fruits of the earth, the temperate air and climate they lived in, their sobriety, temperance, labour and exercise; yet no doubt it was so ordered in Providence for the multiplication of mankind, for the cultivation of arts and sciences, and for the spread of true religion in the world, and the easier handing down to posterity such things as were useful, both for the good of the souls and bodies of men. Maimonides ^f is of opinion, that only those individual persons mentioned in Scripture lived so long, not men in common; and which was owing to their diet and temperance, and exact manner of living, or to a miracle; but there is no reason to believe that they were the only temperate persons, or that any miracle should be wrought particularly on their account for prolonging their lives, and not others. But though they lived so long, it is said of them all, as here of the first man:

and he died, according to the sentence of the law in Gen 2:17 and though he died not immediately upon his transgression of the law, yet he was from thence forward under the sentence of death, and liable to it; yea, death seized upon him, and was working in him, till it brought him to the dust of it; his life, though so long protracted, was a dying life, and at last he submitted to the stroke of death, as all his posterity ever since have, one or two excepted, and all must; for "it is appointed unto men once to die". Heb 9:27. The Arabic ^g writers relate, that Adam when he was near death called to him Seth, Enos, Kainan, and Mahalaleel, and ordered them by his will, when he was dead, to embalm his body with myrrh, frankincense, and cassia, and lay it in the hidden cave, the cave of Machpelah, where the Jews ^h say he was buried, and where Abraham, Sarah, &c. were buried; and that if they should remove from the neighbourhood of paradise, and from the mountain where they dwelt, they should take his body with them, and bury it in the middle or the earth. They are very particular as to the time of his death. They say ⁱ it was on a Friday, the fourteenth of Nisan, which answers to part of March and part of April, A. M. nine hundred and thirty, in the ninth hour of that day. The Jews are divided about the funeral of him; some say Seth buried him; others, Enoch; and others, God himself ^k: the primitive Christian fathers will have it that he was buried at Golgotha, on Mount Calvary, where Christ suffered.

Gill: Gen 5:6 - And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos.

And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos. Not that this was his firstborn, no doubt but he had other children before this time; but this is only mentioned, because it carried the lineage and descent directly from Adam to Noah, the father of the new world, and from whom the Messiah was to spring; whose genealogy to give is a principal view of this book, or account of generations from Adam to Noah.

Gill: Gen 5:7 - And Seth lived, after he begat Enos, eight hundred and seven years // and begat sons and daughters

And Seth lived, after he begat Enos, eight hundred and seven years,.... The Septuagint version makes the same mistake in the numbers of Seth as of Adam, giving him two hundred and five years before the birth of Enos, and but seven hundred and seven years after:

and begat sons and daughters; very probably both before and after Enos was born; but how many is not said.

Gill: Gen 5:8 - And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years, and he died.

And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years, and he died. As his father Adam before him. Seth, according to Josephus ^l, was a very good man, and brought up his children well, who trod in his steps, and who studied the nature of the heavenly bodies; and that the knowledge of these things they had acquired might not be lost, remembering a prophecy of Adam, that the world should be destroyed both by fire and by water, they erected two pillars, called Seth's pillars; the one was made of brick, and the other of stone, on which they inscribed their observations, that so if that of brick was destroyed by a flood, that of stone might remain; and which the above writer says continued in his time in the land of Siriad. The Arabic writers ^m make Seth to be the inventor of the Hebrew letters, and say, that when he was about to die he called to him Enos, Cainan, Mahalaleel, Jared, Enoch, their wives and children, and adjured them by the blood of Abel not to descend from the mountain where they dwelt, after the death of Adam, nor suffer any of their children to go to, or mix with any of the seed of Cain, which were in the valley; whom he blessed, and ordered by his will to serve the Lord, and then died in the year of his age nine hundred and twelve, on the third day of the week of the month Ab (which answers to part of July and part of August), A. M. 1142, and his sons buried him in the hidden cave in the holy mountain, and mourned for him forty days.

Gill: Gen 5:9 - And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan.

And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan. According to the Septuagint a hundred and ninety years; it can hardly be thought but that he had sons or daughters before, but this is only taken notice of for a reason before given.

Gill: Gen 5:10 - And Enos lived, after he begat Cainan, eight hundred and fifteen years // and begat sons and daughters

And Enos lived, after he begat Cainan, eight hundred and fifteen years,.... The Septuagint version is seven hundred and fifteen; the hundred which is wanting is to be supplied from the preceding verse, which in that version has an hundred too much:

and begat sons and daughters; others besides Enos, as very likely he had before he was born.

Gill: Gen 5:11 - And all the days or Enos were nine hundred and five years, and he died.

And all the days or Enos were nine hundred and five years, and he died. According to the Arabic writers ⁿ, this man was a very good man, governed his people well, and instructed them in the ways of righteousness, and the fear of God; and when his end drew nigh, his offspring gathered about him for his blessing; and calling them to him, he ordered them by his will to practise holiness, and exhorted them not to mix with the offspring of Cain the murderer; and having appointed Cainan his successor, he died in the year of his age nine hundred and five, A. M. 1340, and was buried in the holy mountain; but according to Bishop Usher it was A. M. 1140.

Gill: Gen 5:12 - And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel.

And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel. Here the Septuagint version adds an hundred years, as before.