Genesis — Chapter 5
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1This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in His own likeness.
2Male and female He created them, and He blessed them. And in the day they were created, He called them “man.”
3When Adam was 130 years old, he had a son in his own likeness, after his own image; and he named him Seth.
4And after he had become the father of Seth, Adam lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters.
5So Adam lived a total of 930 years, and then he died.
6When Seth was 105 years old, he became the father of Enosh.
7And after he had become the father of Enosh, Seth lived 807 years and had other sons and daughters.
8So Seth lived a total of 912 years, and then he died.
9When Enosh was 90 years old, he became the father of Kenan.
10And after he had become the father of Kenan, Enosh lived 815 years and had other sons and daughters.
11So Enosh lived a total of 905 years, and then he died.
12When Kenan was 70 years old, he became the father of Mahalalel.
13And after he had become the father of Mahalalel, Kenan lived 840 years and had other sons and daughters.
14So Kenan lived a total of 910 years, and then he died.
15When Mahalalel was 65 years old, he became the father of Jared.
16And after he had become the father of Jared, Mahalalel lived 830 years and had other sons and daughters.
17So Mahalalel lived a total of 895 years, and then he died.
18When Jared was 162 years old, he became the father of Enoch.
19And after he had become the father of Enoch, Jared lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters.
20So Jared lived a total of 962 years, and then he died.
21When Enoch was 65 years old, he became the father of Methuselah.
22And after he had become the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters.
23So Enoch lived a total of 365 years.
24Enoch walked with God, and then he was no more, because God had taken him away.
25When Methuselah was 187 years old, he became the father of Lamech.
26And after he had become the father of Lamech, Methuselah lived 782 years and had other sons and daughters.
27So Methuselah lived a total of 969 years, and then he died.
28When Lamech was 182 years old, he had a son.
29And he named him Noah, saying, “May this one comfort us in the labor and toil of our hands caused by the ground that the LORD has cursed.”
30And after he had become the father of Noah, Lamech lived 595 years and had other sons and daughters.
31So Lamech lived a total of 777 years, and then he died.
32After Noah was 500 years old, he became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
1This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;
2Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
3And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:
4And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters:
5And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
6And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos:
7And Seth lived after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters:
8And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.
9And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan:
10And Enos lived after he begat Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters:
11And all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years: and he died.
12And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel:
13And Cainan lived after he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and daughters:
14And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died.
15And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared:
16And Mahalaleel lived after he begat Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters:
17And all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety and five years: and he died.
18And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch:
19And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
20And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years: and he died.
21And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah:
22And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
23And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years:
24And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
25And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech:
26And Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty and two years, and begat sons and daughters:
27And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died.
28And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son:
29And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed.
30And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters:
31And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven years: and he died.
32And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
1This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;
2male and female created he them, and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
3And Adam lived a hundred and thirty years, and begat [a son] in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:
4and the days of Adam after he begat Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters.
5And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
6And Seth lived a hundred and five years, and begat Enosh:
7and Seth lived after he begat Enosh eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters:
8and all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.
9And Enosh lived ninety years, and begat Kenan.
10and Enosh lived after he begat Kenan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters:
11and all the days of Enosh were nine hundred and five years: and he died.
12And Kenan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalalel:
13and Kenan lived after he begat Mahalalel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and daughters:
14and all the days of Kenan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died.
15And Mahalalel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared:
16And Mahalalel lived after he begat Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters:
17and all the days of Mahalalel were eight hundred ninety and five years: and he died.
18And Jared lived a hundred sixty and two years, and begat Enoch:
19and Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
20And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years: and he died.
21And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah:
22and Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
23and all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years:
24and Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
25And Methuselah lived a hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech:
26and Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty and two years, and begat sons and daughters.
27And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died.
28And Lamech lived a hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son:
29and he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us in our work and in the toil of our hands, [which cometh] because of the ground which Jehovah hath cursed.
30And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters:
31And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven years: and he died.
32And Noah was five hundred years old: And Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
1This is the record of the family line of Adam.When God created humankind, he made them in the likeness of God.
2He created them male and female; when they were created, he blessed them and named them “humankind.”
3When Adam had lived 130 years he fathered a son in his own likeness, according to his image, and he named him Seth.
4The length of time Adam lived after he became the father of Seth was 800 years; during this time he had other sons and daughters.
5The entire lifetime of Adam was 930 years, and then he died.
6When Seth had lived 105 years, he became the father of Enosh.
7Seth lived 807 years after he became the father of Enosh, and he had other sons and daughters.
8The entire lifetime of Seth was 912 years, and then he died.
9When Enosh had lived 90 years, he became the father of Kenan.
10Enosh lived 815 years after he became the father of Kenan, and he had other sons and daughters.
11The entire lifetime of Enosh was 905 years, and then he died.
12When Kenan had lived 70 years, he became the father of Mahalalel.
13Kenan lived 840 years after he became the father of Mahalalel, and he had other sons and daughters.
14The entire lifetime of Kenan was 910 years, and then he died.
15When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he became the father of Jared.
16Mahalalel lived 830 years after he became the father of Jared, and he had other sons and daughters.
17The entire lifetime of Mahalalel was 895 years, and then he died.
18When Jared had lived 162 years, he became the father of Enoch.
19Jared lived 800 years after he became the father of Enoch, and he had other sons and daughters.
20The entire lifetime of Jared was 962 years, and then he died.
21When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah.
22After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God for 300 years, and he had other sons and daughters.
23The entire lifetime of Enoch was 365 years.
24Enoch walked with God, and then he disappeared because God took him away.
25When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he became the father of Lamech.
26Methuselah lived 782 years after he became the father of Lamech, and he had other sons and daughters.
27The entire lifetime of Methuselah was 969 years, and then he died.
28When Lamech had lived 182 years, he had a son.
29He named him Noah, saying, “This one will bring us comfort from our labor and from the painful toil of our hands because of the ground that the Lord has cursed.”
30Lamech lived 595 years after he became the father of Noah, and he had other sons and daughters.
31The entire lifetime of Lamech was 777 years, and then he died.
32After Noah was 500 years old, he became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
1This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, he made him in God’s likeness.
2He created them male and female, and blessed them. On the day they were created, he named them “Adam”.
3Adam lived one hundred thirty years, and became the father of a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth.
4The days of Adam after he became the father of Seth were eight hundred years, and he became the father of other sons and daughters.
5All the days that Adam lived were nine hundred thirty years, then he died.
6Seth lived one hundred five years, then became the father of Enosh.
7Seth lived after he became the father of Enosh eight hundred seven years, and became the father of other sons and daughters.
8All of the days of Seth were nine hundred twelve years, then he died.
9Enosh lived ninety years, and became the father of Kenan.
10Enosh lived after he became the father of Kenan, eight hundred fifteen years, and became the father of other sons and daughters.
11All of the days of Enosh were nine hundred five years, then he died.
12Kenan lived seventy years, then became the father of Mahalalel.
13Kenan lived after he became the father of Mahalalel eight hundred forty years, and became the father of other sons and daughters
14and all of the days of Kenan were nine hundred ten years, then he died.
15Mahalalel lived sixty-five years, then became the father of Jared.
16Mahalalel lived after he became the father of Jared eight hundred thirty years, and became the father of other sons and daughters.
17All of the days of Mahalalel were eight hundred ninety-five years, then he died.
18Jared lived one hundred sixty-two years, then became the father of Enoch.
19Jared lived after he became the father of Enoch eight hundred years, and became the father of other sons and daughters.
20All of the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty-two years, then he died.
21Enoch lived sixty-five years, then became the father of Methuselah.
22After Methuselah’s birth, Enoch walked with God for three hundred years, and became the father of more sons and daughters.
23All the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty-five years.
24Enoch walked with God, and he was not found, for God took him.
25Methuselah lived one hundred eighty-seven years, then became the father of Lamech.
26Methuselah lived after he became the father of Lamech seven hundred eighty-two years, and became the father of other sons and daughters.
27All the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty-nine years, then he died.
28Lamech lived one hundred eighty-two years, then became the father of a son.
29He named him Noah, saying, “This one will comfort us in our work and in the toil of our hands, caused by the ground which Yahweh has cursed.”
30Lamech lived after he became the father of Noah five hundred ninety-five years, and became the father of other sons and daughters.
31All the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy-seven years, then he died.
32Noah was five hundred years old, then Noah became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Summary
This chapter records the genealogy from Adam to Noah across ten generations, each entry noting a man's age at his son's birth, his remaining years, and his total lifespan before closing with his death (vv. 1-32). The recurring pattern of long life ending in death underscores that death now reigns as the consequence of the Fall. Enoch stands out as an exception - he walks with God and is taken away without dying (vv. 21-24). The genealogy closes by introducing Noah and his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, setting up the flood narrative (vv. 28-32).
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- No specific geography in this chapter — it is a genealogy from Adam to Noah.
- The long lifespans and genealogical structure suggest humanity spreading across the earth, though no locations are named.
Deep Dive
Setting: Chapter 4 ended with two families heading in opposite directions: Cain's line building cities and boasting of revenge, and Seth's line, where "people began to call upon the name of the LORD" (4:26). Chapter 5 now follows Seth's line from Adam to Noah in ten generations. It opens a new section of Genesis, "the book of the generations of Adam," and it carries the story across the long years between the garden and the flood. On the surface it is a list of names and numbers. Read slowly, it says three things: death now reigns, as God warned it would; God's image and blessing still pass from parent to child; and the promise of 3:15 is being carried forward, one birth at a time, toward a son whose name means "rest."
Adam's Descendants to Noah (vv1–32)
- "This is the book of the generations of Adam" (v1). "Generations" is toledot, the word that marks the main sections of Genesis ("these are the generations of…," 2:4; 6:9; 10:1; 11:10, 27 and on). It means roughly "what came of" someone: the family and story that followed. "Book" (sepher) is simply a written record. Some, including Guzik, think Adam's own family record lies behind this chapter, handed down and later edited by Moses. The text doesn't say where its sources came from.
- "He made him in the likeness of God… he blessed them and named them Man" (vv1–2). The chapter starts by repeating 1:26–28 on purpose. After the fall, after Cain's murder, the first thing said about humanity is still that God made it in his likeness and blessed it. The name "Man" is adam, given by God himself to the whole race, male and female together. In the ancient world only kings were called the "image" of a god. Genesis gives that dignity to every human being.
- "He fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image" (v3). The same two words, "likeness" and "image," now pass from Adam to Seth. Seth bears God's image, because Adam does (9:6 and James 3:9 assume all people still do). But he also bears the likeness of his father as he now is: mortal and fallen. Paul draws the line from here: "in Adam all die" (1 Cor 15:22; Rom 5:12). Cain and Abel are not mentioned. The line of promise is counted through Seth, the "appointed" son (4:25).
- "And he died" (v5). This is the refrain of the chapter, eight times: Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Methuselah, Lamech. God said "in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die" (2:17), and the serpent said "you will not surely die" (3:4). Chapter 5 settles who was right. Each life is long and full ("other sons and daughters"), and each paragraph ends at a grave.
- The pattern (vv6–20). Every entry runs the same way: age at the son's birth, years lived after, other children, total years, death. The sameness is the point. Generation after generation, the blessing of 1:28 ("be fruitful and multiply") goes on, and so does the curse. The names in this stretch, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel and Jared, are otherwise almost unknown. Some resemble names in Cain's line (Enoch, Irad/Jared, Methushael/Methuselah, Lamech in 4:17–18). Scholars debate whether the two lists come from a shared tradition. Either way, Genesis sets them side by side so the reader compares the two Enochs and the two Lamechs.
- The long lifespans. These ages, 900 years and more, are the most striking thing in the chapter. Faithful Christians read them in different ways: - Literal years. Most traditional readers, including Henry, JFB and Guzik, take them at face value. JFB says the cause can't be known and is best left to "the sovereign will of God." Guzik suggests the effects of the fall had not yet built up in the human body and that the world before the flood was different. Lifespans fall steadily after the flood (11:10–32) to the "seventy years" of Psalm 90:10. Guzik rejects the idea that the numbers count months, since Enoch would then have fathered a child at about five. - Numbers with a literary purpose. Many scholars note that the Sumerian King List gives pre-flood kings reigns of tens of thousands of years. Next to those, Genesis's numbers look restrained. On this view the ages follow ancient conventions and mark these men as belonging to a distant, different age, and their exact sizes may carry meaning that is now hard to recover. - Both views agree on what the chapter teaches: these were real ancestors, life was long, and death came anyway.
- "Fathered" and gaps. The Hebrew verb can mean "became the ancestor of," and the Tyndale notes point out that Hebrew genealogies don't always list every generation. Matthew 1:8, for example, skips three kings. If there are no gaps here, the years add up to 1,656 from Adam's creation to the flood. If there are, the total is longer. Guzik holds that the list can't yield an exact date, though he doubts the gaps are large.
- Different numbers in other ancient copies. The ancient Greek translation (the Septuagint) and the Samaritan Pentateuch give several different ages. The Greek mostly adds 100 years to the age at which each man fathers his son, so its total to the flood is over 2,200 years. The ESV follows the Hebrew text, and most scholars think the Greek and Samaritan figures are later adjustments, but the differences are real and worth knowing about before building a precise timeline.
- "Enoch walked with God" (vv22, 24). The formula breaks for Enoch, seventh from Adam (Jude 14), in deliberate contrast to Lamech, seventh from Adam in Cain's line, who boasted of killing (4:23–24). "Walked" is halak in a reflexive form meaning to walk about, to live one's life. The same form is used of God "walking in the garden" (3:8) and of Noah, who also "walked with God" (6:9). It pictures daily companionship, not a single moment. Amos 3:3 asks, "Do two walk together, unless they have agreed to meet?" Micah 6:8 calls God's people "to walk humbly with your God."
- "After he fathered Methuselah 300 years" (v22). The text ties Enoch's walk to the years after his son's birth. Guzik suggests the birth was a turning point. The text doesn't say why, only that he walked with God while raising a family. Holiness here is not a monk's life; it is an ordinary household life lived with God.
- "He was not, for God took him" (v24). Every other entry ends "and he died." Enoch's ends with a gap. "Took" is laqach, the ordinary word for taking, used again when Elijah is "taken" up (2 Kings 2:10). Hebrews 11:5 explains: "By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death… he was commended as having pleased God." Living 365 years, a number that matches the days of a year, he had the shortest life in the list, yet he alone did not die. In a chapter of graves, Enoch is a sign that death will not have the last word.
- Enoch the prophet. Jude 14–15 quotes a prophecy of Enoch about the Lord coming with his holy ones to judge the ungodly. The words come from 1 Enoch, a Jewish book written centuries before Christ and not part of the Bible. Jude quotes a true saying from it, as Paul quotes Greek poets (Acts 17:28), without endorsing the whole book.
- Methuselah, 969 years (vv25–27). He is the oldest man in the Bible. If the numbers are added (187 + 182 + 600, see 7:6), he died in the very year of the flood, as the Tyndale notes observe. A popular explanation says his name means "when he dies, it shall come," a prophecy of the flood. Guzik and JFB both take it that way. The lexicon doesn't support it: BDB gives the meaning as uncertain, perhaps "man of the dart" or "man of the spear," and notes other guesses. The timing is striking, and many see God's patience in the long delay before judgment (1 Pet 3:20), but the name itself shouldn't be pressed.
- "Out of the ground that the LORD has cursed, this one shall bring us relief" (vv28–29). The formula breaks again, for Lamech's words at Noah's birth. "Noah" (Noach) sounds like nuach, "rest," and the verb Lamech uses, nacham, "comfort" or "relief." BDB calls this the traditional explanation of the name. Lamech remembers the curse on the ground (3:17) and hopes this son will lift it. He speaks of "the LORD," God's covenant name, which shows that Seth's line still called on him (4:26). His hope is partly fulfilled. After the flood God promises never again to curse the ground (8:21), and Noah plants a vineyard (9:20). The full rest Lamech longed for waits for someone greater.
- Lamech, 777 years (v31). The other Lamech boasted of "seventy-sevenfold" revenge (4:24). This Lamech lives 777 years and speaks only of hope. Whether the number is meant to echo the other is debated, but the contrast between the two men is clear.
- "Noah fathered Shem, Ham, and Japheth" (v32). The list ends with a man and three sons, the family through whom the whole human race will start again (9:19). The chapter's ten generations close an era, and the next list in 11:10–26 runs another ten from Shem to Abram.
- Commentators: Henry calls the chapter "the only authentic history extant of the first age of the world." On v3 he writes, "A sinner begets a sinner, but a saint does not beget a saint," and "Grace does not run in the blood, but corruption does." Of Adam's death he says his whole life after the fall "was but a reprieve." On Enoch: "To walk with God is to set God always before us, and to act as those that are always under his eye," and "God often takes those soonest whom he loves best." JFB calls walking with God "a common phrase in Eastern countries denoting constant and familiar intercourse," sees Enoch's translation as God's confirmation of his preaching in an unbelieving age, and suggests the list follows the line of promise rather than each man's firstborn. JFB comments only on vv1, 5, 21, 24, 26 and 32 and passes over the rest. Guzik stresses that each of these men died and none of them was the promised deliverer. He reads Methuselah's long life as God's mercy, giving the world more time to repent. All three accept the Methuselah name meaning that the lexicon treats as uncertain.
Pointing to Christ
Luke traces Jesus' family back through this very list, "the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch… the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God" (Luke 3:37–38). Every name in it ends "and he died," and the curse on the ground Lamech hoped to see lifted was still in place when Jesus was born. Jesus entered that line to break its refrain. He is the true image of God (Col 1:15), the last Adam who gives life (1 Cor 15:45), and the one who says, "Come to me… and I will give you rest" (Matt 11:28). Enoch was taken without dying. Christ went through death and came out the other side, so that his people, whether they die or are caught up at his coming (1 Thess 4:17), will walk with God forever.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik covers the genealogy's purpose, the refrain of death, Enoch's translation, and Noah's prophetic name.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- BibleProject: bibleproject.com On the whole book: how its opening chapters work as literature and how they set up everything that follows.
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of Genesis -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- An Inherited Likeness (v.3) — Adam passes on his own likeness to Seth, carrying the fallen nature forward into every generation that follows. Are you still living out of that old inherited nature, or letting Christ renew you into His image?
- The Tolling Refrain of Death (vv.5-31) — "And he died" repeats through the genealogy like a funeral bell, the direct consequence of the fall playing out generation after generation. Does the certainty of death create any urgency in how you're living today?
- Enoch Walked With God (v.24) — In a chapter dominated by death, Enoch alone doesn't die — because he walked with God in steady, daily companionship. What does walking with God actually look like in your daily routine, and is it habitual or only occasional?
- A Name That Holds Out Hope (v.29) — Lamech names his son Noah in hope that he will bring comfort from the toil of a cursed ground. Where are you looking for relief from the hard, wearying parts of life, and is that hope ultimately anchored in Christ?