Genealogies and the Line of the Messiah

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Genesis 4.25
May 22nd 2022

I will love you oh Lord my strength

Okay, we left off with verse 25 of Genesis 4 where after listing Cain’s genealogy, Moses now writes

25 And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.

Remember, the seed of the Messiah had to come into the world through Eve and with Abel being dead, Eve admits here that “God-hath appointed her another seed instead of Abel,” ostensibly whereby the holy one would come. We can see here that he did not come from just any line as Cain was offset in another direction and it is believed that in the face of all things Eve understood this. Interestingly, most of the genealogies kept by the Jews was to accomplish two things – first, to describe who was of what tribe, by which line of the Messiah could be traced, and then also to justify the tribes that were privy to the priesthood which would oversee the things of the temple.

The Messianic Line

From what God said to Satan in the Garden and from Eve reiterating that has appointed her “another seen instead of Abel,” the import of genealogy is made clear and we can see that the Messianic line did not begin with Abraham as some suppose. It's worthy of remark, that Seth's posterity alone continued after the flood, when all the other families of the land were apparently destroyed, Noah being the tenth descendant from Adam through Seth. Though all these persons are mentioned in the following chapter here they are in order now:

1. Adam
2. Seth
3. Enos
4. Cainan
5. Mahalaleel
6. Jared
7. Enoch
8. Methuselah
9. Lamech, (the second)
10. Noah

In order to keep this line distinct, we find particular care was taken that, where there were two or more sons in a family, the one through whom God particularly designed to bring his Son into the world was, by some especial providence, pointed out. Therefore, in the family of Adam, Seth was chosen; in the family of Noah, Shem; in the family of Abraham, Isaac; and in that of David, Solomon and Nathan.

Faith in God's Providence

We take it by faith that all of these things were overseen by God from the beginning, so that when Yehsua was born He should come clearly through God’s promise and ways and that he would not just naturally pop-up somewhere. This is important because these scriptures are ancient and intact, supported by Dead Sea Scroll verification. And so we know with these genealogies so articulately written, the field for the promised Messiah was really limited in His day. (Verse 26)

26 And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos (and then we have a righteous line established as Moses writes) “then began men to call upon the name of the LORD."

The marginal reading of that last line is, “Then began men to call themselves by the name of the Lord,” which appears to mean that in the time of Enos the true followers of God began to distinguish themselves apart from the rest of the world, and that this apparently was distinguished by the title of “sons of God.” Remember, those from the other branch of Adam's family, among whom the Divine worship was apparently not observed, were distinguished by the name as the “sons of men.” These two groups – children of God and children of men in one way or another represent the whole of human civilization – with some switching sides at times – even today. With this being the case, I am amazed at the infighting we endure as part of the family of God.

Teachings of Maimonides

Now there is a Jewish scholar named Maimonides who had a firm grip on the Tanakh and wrote on the beginnings of Idolatry in the Nation of Israel and he postulates the following which is of some interest, but not necessarily true, saying: "In the days of Enos the sons of Adam erred with great error, and the counsel of the wise men of that age became brutish, and Enos himself was (one) of them that erred; and their error was this: they said, Forasmuch as God hath created these stars and spheres to govern the world, and set them on high, and…

The Root of Idolatry

Imparted honor unto them, and they are ministers that minister before him; it is meet that men should laud, and glorify, and give them honor. For this is the will of God, that we magnify and honor whomsoever he magnifieth and honoreth; even as a king would have them honored that stand before him, and this is the honor of the king himself.

When this thing was come up into their hearts they began to build temples unto the stars, and to offer sacrifice unto them, and to laud and glorify them with words, and to worship before them, that they might in their evil opinion obtain favor of the Creator; and this was the root of idolatry.

False Prophets and Image Worship

And in process of time there stood up false prophets among the sons of Adam, which said that God had commanded and said unto them, "Worship such a star, or all the stars, and do sacrifice unto them thus and thus; and build a temple for it, and make an image of it, that all the people, women, and children may worship it." And the false prophet showed them the image which he had feigned out of his own heart, and said it was the image of such a star, which was made known unto him by prophecy.

And they began after this manner to make images in temples, and under trees, and on tops of mountains and hills, and assembled together and worshipped them. And this thing was spread through all the world, to serve images with services different one from another, and to sacrifice unto and worship them. So, in process of time, the glorious and fearful name (of God) was forgotten out of the mouth of all living, and out of their knowledge, and they acknowledged him not.

The Consequence of Idolatry

And there was found no people on the earth that knew aught, save images of wood and stone, and temples of stone, which they had been trained up from their childhood to worship and serve, and to swear by their names. And the wise men that were among them, as the priests and such like, thought there was no God save the stars and spheres, for whose sake and in whose likeness they had made these images; but as for the Rock everlasting, there was no man that acknowledged him or knew him save a few persons in the world, as Enoch, Methuselah, Noah, Sham, and Heber. And in this way did the world walk and converse till that pillar of the world, Abraham our father, was born.

Genesis 5 – The Generations of Adam

So, to chapter five where we are given a more detailed account on Adams genealogy of the sons of God. Let me read through the whole thing because we are going to cover the whole thing starting at verse 1.

Genesis 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;
2 Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
3 And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:
4 And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters:
5 And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
6 And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos:
7 And Seth lived after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters:
8 And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.
9 And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan:
10 And Enos lived after he begat Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters:
11 And all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years: and he died.
12 And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel:
13 And Cainan lived after he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and daughters:
14 And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died.
15 And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared:
16 And Mahalaleel lived after he begat Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters:
17 And all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety and five years: and he…

Genealogies and Lifespans of the Antediluvian Patriarchs

Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah: And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years: And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech: And Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty and two years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died. And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son: And 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. And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven years: and he died. And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

The Generations of Adam

Genesis 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; Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.

Once again, this reiterates how they were one from the start as He created He them in his image and called THEIR name Adam.

And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:

Okay so, scriptural chronology especially in the ages of some of the antediluvian patriarchs, has been a source of great confusion to critics and scholars alike. The printed Hebrew text, the Samaritan text, the Septuagint, and Josephus, are all different, and have their respective promoters and defenders. I don’t know what to say about it other than there are differences of opinion and if it were a hill to die on we would all be dead. Because we are among the living, lets move on:

And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters: And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.

Lifespans of the Patriarchs

ADAM – 930 years old

That’s it for Adam except some references to his choices. And we get nothing at all from what happened to Eve.

And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos: And Seth lived after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.

SETH – 912 years old

And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan: And Enos lived after he begat Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years: and he died.

ENOS – 905 years old

And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel: And Cainan lived after he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died.

CAINAN – 910 years

And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared: And Mahalaleel lived after he begat Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety and five years: and he died.

Mahalaleel – 895 years

And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch: And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years: and he died.

Jared – 962 years

And Enoch lived…

The Life and Walk of Enoch

All the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years: 24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

ENOCH – 365 years – but his life on earth was cut short, so to speak. Let’s talk more about him so go back to verse 22 where we read:

22 And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: Notice that in the description of neither Adam, Seth, Enos, Cainen, Mahalaleel, or Jared does it say that they “walked with God,” but here speaking of Enoch it does.

As we learned relative to Cain’s first son, Enoch is a name that means “to instruct, to initiate, to dedicate or to be initiated or dedicated.” For this reason, some believe that from an early life Enoch was instructed in the things of God, initiated into the worship of his Maker, and dedicated to his service. The fact that Moses describes him as one who walked with God appears to suggest that this was a personal determination, and he was personally dedicated to seeing it through. The Hebrew verb in the conjugation called hithpael best means “a reciprocal act,” or “that which a man does upon himself,” which is why I say this. This seems to be Enoch’s choice.

Enoch's Example

We also note that he was married and with children, and so while encumbered with this in his life, he was still successful in this desire to walk with God. What is astonishing about this pre-flood patriarch is that he apparently lived such a sanctified life he didn’t even need to experience deathSeparation from God—now overcome. Physical death remains, but it no longer separates us from life with God. of his body but was changed and transported up to the heavenly realm without it. We can say this because flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of GodGod’s spiritual reign—fulfilled and present, not political or future., so either Enoch was translated, perhaps in the twinkling of an eye, which Paul told the believers would also happen to them in that day if they were alive when Jesus returned, or He went somewhere else other than the presence of God.

I happen to think therefore that Enoch was a type and picture of that very event that was to come when Jesus returned and the people were changed in the twinkling of an eye. What is also super interesting is that Enoch attained this state of spiritual excellence at a time when, comparatively speaking, there were few helps to bring him along to the truth. I mean, there were no written revelations that we know of, no prophets to admonish him nor any law given in stone. Perhaps there were heavenly instructions passed down – can’t really say because it's not recorded.

Significance of Enoch's Faith

But from all of this, I would make a hefty leap into an opinion that might trouble some – but it seems to me that Enoch’s experience proves that the state of a human's trajectory is not the direct-result of outside supports and influences but are more due to the condition and desires of our own hearts. I mean Enoch’s father Jared wasn’t translated – and we don’t read that he walked with God either – but he could have been a mighty fine example to Enoch. And neither was his own son, Methuselah, but for some reason without the aide of a good community or discipleship, Enoch walked with God THREE HUNDRED YEARS.

It seems to me that if a man like Enoch in the primitive age of faith could, from the heart, be acceptable to God, then anyone with even the slightest desire to receive God’s grace in this age of post-Jesus, the written word, and the influence of the Holy Spirit ought to be more than sufficiently equipped to enter the Kingdom of Heaven – if their heart so desires it. I mean, Moses does not say that Enoch had greater spiritual advantages than any of the other patriarchs, though it seems pretty evident that he chose to make better use of whatever access he had to God.

Scripture confirms that Enoch not only walked with God (meaning that he set God up before his eyes and sought to serve Him ahead of himself), but that he also pleased God, and had the heart that pleased God, as Hebrews 11:5 reads, saying:

5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

Faith and Pleasing God

6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

I want to pause on this and reiterate the key words here:

6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Why is this the case? I can only postulate. But we get more insight into the focus of the diligence in John 4:23 when Jesus says to the woman at the well:

“But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.”

Historical Perspectives on Faith and Diligence

So you want a scripturally supported view on how to live your life relative to God – In faith, diligently seek him and (along the way) worship Him IN spirit and truth – because God the Father seeks such and is pleased by such, and is a rewarder of such. And how He rewards is an entirely different message.

So from this earliest of accounts of Enoch we discover some facts that go counter to some general statements people maintain in the Christian faith today. We see that post fall there have been some souls who have lived in a way that God did not deemed them “reprobated sinners,” but they instead possessed all, even outside religion, preaching, prophets, and the written word, hearts that were pleasing in the sight of the one who “searches the heart.”

Standard fare for Calvinists is man, because of the Fall, is wholly and completely reprobated and nothing good dwells in them that could please God. The Enoch account stands counter to this view. We find a similar picture in the description of Job as it reads in the very first passage of the book bearing his name:

Job 1:1 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.

So, while I admit that all human beings born post the fall have an enhanced nature toward sinMissing the mark of faith and love—no punishment, just lost growth or peace. and rebellion, making most of us egregious sinners by virtue of our choices, Enoch, nor Job appear to fit this category – so much so that Enoch pleased God in his fallen state.

Enoch's Unique Example

If the dogma of original sin held water, there was no way that Enoch could have been translated without a proper propitiation – otherwise God would be capricious and the atonement of Christ really not needed. So even here, in an early report from scripture, we see God’s grace serving to overcome Enoch’s failures – whatever they were – and to bring him into His presence without mediation all because Enoch PLEASED GOD.

That being said, this is what we read of Enoch:

24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

Took Him where? And why did He take him? The last question we can’t answer at all though some suggest that he would be used in the last day of that age as one of the two witnesses slain and laying in the streets along with Elijah. But that’s pure conjecture.

As to “where,” that is a little easier to answer from canon as all we read is God took him. Hebrews says He was translated but does not say to what or where. We assume heaven but the Kingdom of God was far from being established so I would suggest that he went to “a heavenly realm until the day it was.

Because flesh cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, I would also suggest that Enoch received his heavenly spiritual body at this time – which would erase the theory that he returned as one of the two witnesses to lie dead in the streets.

By the way, I mentioned when we embarked on our study of the Tanakh that I am artistic and tend to believe that God winds and threads all sorts of messages and meanings into the narrative for people to discover and the life of Enoch is no exception.

In what way? Enoch lived exactly 365 years – one year for every day of the year it takes to orbit the sun. To me this was a picture of God’s desire for all of His children, to fulfill the course

The Path of Light

…of our lives, becoming more and more glorious as Proverbs 4:18 describes, saying, "But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day." And as Jesus promised the believers at Thyatira in Revelation 2:28, saying, “And I will give him the morning star.”

In the end, Enoch to me was a type of Christ, who, as John 5:35 describes was “a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light.” We may not be like Enoch, nor have any of us lived like Yeshua, but we can, by the grace and power of God, walk more and more in the Light, as Peter suggests, saying in 2nd Peter 1:19, “We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.”

I am convinced this is the picture and believe that this is the goal for most of us in life – for the day star to rise in our hearts.

Methuselah and Prophecy

Verse 25

25 And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech: 26 And Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty and two years, and begat sons and daughters: 27 And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died.

Methuselah – 969 years, the Oldest to ever live in this world – according to scripture which is anything but exhaustive so maybe there were others older. By the way – I have mentioned that names in Genesis (and other places) are important. Methuselah lived till the very year in which the flood came. In other words, “when Methuselah died, God sent the flood.”

Guess what Methuselah means in Hebrew?

Methu = "he dieth," and
Shalach = "he sendeth out"

It’s almost as if God subtly taught people of that day as soon as Methuselah died the flood should be sent forth to drown an ungodly world. For whatever its worth.

(Verse 28)

28 And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son: 29 And 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.”

The name Noah means “rest or comfort” and Moses ties his name directly to what he would do concerning “the work and toil of our hands relative to the ground which the Lord had cursed.”

We will talk more about Noah in the next chapter.

30 And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters: 31 And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven years: and he died.

Lamach – 777 years!

The Lineage of Noah

32 And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

From Genesis 10:21 and 1st Chronicles 1:5 we learn that Japheth was the eldest son of Noah, but Shem is mentioned first, because it was from him, in a direct line, that the Messiah came. Ham was certainly the youngest of Noah's sons, and from what we read in Genesis 9:22 he as the worst of them so how is he mentioned in the middle of Shem and Japeth?

Bottom line, verse 32 needs a little explaining.

In the Old Testament we discover that the listing of children is not always reflective of first to last. We will see that Isaac is listed before Ishmael though Ishmael was a teenager when Isaac was born. Same with Jacob and Esau, Isaac’s sons, and Ephraim and Manasses.

The Old Testament, especially in the book of Genesis, gives a series of prophecies about the lineage of the Messiah. Genesis 9:26 is viewed as being the first of those prophecies, which says:

And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.

To better understand why it is considered a prophecy, let's review the broader context.

In Genesis 9:18-28 we will read about Noah getting drunk and falling asleep “nakabanche” in his tent. His son Ham walks in on him, sees that he is drunk and naked, and tells his brothers. His brothers, Shem and Japheth, take a garment, enter their father's tent backward (to show respect) and place it over their naked father. When Noah wakes up and realizes what has happened, he is angry with Ham but pleased with…

The Blessings and Curses of Noah's Sons

Noah curses Ham and blesses Japheth and Shem. He tells Ham that Ham's son, Canaan, will be the lowest of slaves. These blessing and cursings appear to have some long-term application. Noah isn't just talking about Shem, Ham, and Japheth – he is talking about them and their descendants. We see this in verses 26 and 27 where we read him say,

"Praise be to the Lord, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem. May God extend Japheth's territory; may Japheth live in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be the slave of Japheth.”

As we just heard, the three sons, and their descendants, are each linked with a blessing or a curse.

• Japheth is blessed in connection with territory.
• Ham is cursed with enslavement.
• Shem is blessed with a connection with God.

The Lineage of the Messiah

Based on this passage, it would make sense that the Messiah would be a descendant of Shem, as opposed to one of Japheth or Ham, given the nature and content of Shem's blessing. In later verses of Genesis, we begin to see a pattern as God unveils the lineage of the Messiah, through the form of these pronounced blessings.

For example, in Genesis 22:18 we read that Abraham is told that his descendants will be a blessing to the world. Abraham is a descendant of Shem. Then in later verses of Genesis, a similar blessing is given to Isaac, who is a son of Abraham, and then to Jacob, who is a son to Isaac. By the time we get to the end of Genesis, specifically in Genesis 49:10, we learn that the Messiah will come from the tribe of Judah, which descends from the lineage of Jacob, Isaac, Abraham, and Shem.

Further Unfolding of Messianic Lineage

This concept of a Messiah coming from a pre-announced lineage continues in other books of the Old Testament until finally we learn that the Messiah will be a descendant of King David (as described in Isaiah 11:1-10 and Jeremiah 23:5). And by that point, it becomes very clear that all the blessings specifically involve the promised Messiah in the future.

But before this, we aren’t really sure what is happening – especially if we read everything without any presupposition. So, what we have here is an unfolding, an unveiling, throughout Genesis, through these subtle indications that build upon each other, all giving flashing indications that God was at work from the start, to bring about the solution to the state of Man.

In chapter six we begin to experience some larger scale drama, as humankind develops into something not so pleasing to God – we will talk all about that then.

Prayer

Nancy/Sarah Lohutko/ the pregnant, sick, lonely, struggling, disaffected, lost – help them find you in the storm.