Genesis 5 Sermon Notes

Genesis 5:1-6:3

Sermon Notes

Listen

Live Long and Prosper

March 25, 2018

Lynchburg, Virginia

EXHORDIUM

As we make our way through the early part of Genesis, we see many main themes of the Bible emerge.

God has made mankind in His image and giving him charge over all the Earth. Man is take dominion on the Earth, ruling the Earth like a fruitful garden.

However, Eve sinned and included her husband in the sin. Adam was the covenant head of mankind. His failure to protect his wife from sin and then to join her in the sin, plunged mankind into a fallen estate of sin and misery.

Thus, now the Earth itself was unruly and difficult to manage. Eve found that her childbearing created sons who were at enmity with one another, thus great pain in this childbearing.

Now, a fatal flaw is prevalent in man. Envy pokes its ugly head into everything. Man, who was made to take dominion on the Earth through husbandry and service, became one who would rather rule through domination and intimidation.

But God did not leave mankind without promise. He promised Eve that one day her seed would crush the head of the seed of the serpent. But these seeds both arise in her, Cain and Abel.

Another main theme that occurs here and continues throughout the course of the Bible is the seeming impossibility of the fulfillment of the promise.

God makes a promise to Eve and then gives her a faithful son, Abel, who seems like the one to bring the promise. But Abel is murdered by his wicked brother, Cain, and the hope of the promise disappears. Unless God intervenes in a remarkable or miraculous way, then the promise will not happen. But God is faithful to His promises, even if man is not, and always comes through to keep the promise.

Adam and Eve have to wait a long time. Adam and Eve are 130 years old before Seth is born. And then we see the faithful line of God flow through Seth. But after a while, even the Sethites are unfaithful, except for a very select few, and God will wipe out the Earth.

This theme works its way through the Bible in many stories and events. The fulfillment of the promise depends upon Noah. Then Abraham is called and his wife cannot have children. She takes matters in her own hands but makes things worse instead of better. Eventually, when all hope seems lost, God provides Isaac, the replacement of Ishmael.

Jacob is a lost son who returns. Joseph is a dead son who is raised. David is the 7^th Son not even considered to be Savior. He is lost in the wilderness but God raised him up. Israel is later defeated and exiled, God’s lost son, only to return to the land and saved. Even Jesus, the firstborn, is lost in Egypt, and returns to save Israel.

Then Jesus dies on the cross and all hope is lost until God raises Him from the dead. This idea of death, lostness and resurrection is ever in the Bible from the beginning. The point here as everywhere is that no dead man can raise himself. If God does not give us life, we will not live.

He breathed the breath of life in Adam as He must breathe the breath of life into every living saint. We are utterly and completely dependent upon God for every Earthly breath. How much more so, every spiritual breath?

EXEGESIS

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.

God created man. Man did not evolve from apes. God made man in God’s image. We are not exactly sure what that means. God, in His essence is not flesh and bone. He is a Spirit. So, we do know that part of being made in God’s image is that man is a spiritual being. He is not merely an animal. This is a chief difference between men and beasts.

God made them male and female. How many genders are there? Two.

The name for the human race is Adam, Man, or mankind.

Man and woman together are mankind.

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.

Cain killed Abel and we have no other record of sons. At 130 years old, God gave Adam and Eve another son, Seth. That is a long time to wait for the replacement of a son.

Adam lives 800 years after Seth was born. So, he had plenty of time to see the righteous line develop. But even the sons of Eve could not refrain from evil. Near the end of Adam’s life thinks are really falling apart.

Adam lives to be 930 years old. He dies shortly before the flood. Lamech was born in 874 and fathered Noah in 1056. So, Adam could have known Noah’s father, and likely did. Noah was 600 years old when the flood started, so that date is 1656 years from the time of creation. That would be 2348 BC.

These long lives begin to rapidly taper after the flood as God set the age of man at 120. Some of the patriarchs, Abraham and others live longer than 120 years but the lifespans rapidly decrease to about 120 years and then even shorter. Even in our day, 120 years seems to be about the upper limit.

However, Isaiah talks about a time in the re-creation in the New Covenant, when young men will die at 100 years. So, even before the final Resurrection, we can expect longer lives to be part of the re-creation in Jesus Christ. We are seeing that now to some degree. People are living longer. However, we do not see them living longer in the full vigor of health. The longer lives are often with even more pain and suffering. But the Isaiah pictures seems to point to a time when health and vigor will accompany what we call old age, say after 80 or 90. But there will always be decay and death until the Lord gives us all resurrected bodies.

Gen. 5:6   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 died. ¹⁸ And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch: ¹⁹ And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: ²⁰ And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years: and he died.

Adam 930, Seth 912, Enos 905, Cainan 910, Mahalaleel 895, Jared 962, Enoch 365 (God took him), Methuselah 969, Lamech 777, Noah

Gen. 5:21   And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah: ²² And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: ²³ And 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 was taken into heaven by God. He was taken at age 365 years. Of course, 365 is the number of days in a year. Was this a perfect man? The one who fathered the oldest man?

Gen. 5:25   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 was the oldest man who ever lived.

Gen. 5:28   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. 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. ³² And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Noah born in 1056 from creation. Flood begins in 1656.

Gen. 6:1   And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, ² That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.

What is going on here? It would make sense that the sons of God were the line of Seth. And that these men married the daughters of men, the line of Cain.

However, the relations seem to have something to do with Nephilim in the Earth, mighty men, giants. These giants are then spoken of throughout the rest of the Bible as enemies of God. They do somehow survive the flood. So, their blood was also in the line of Noah, Shem, Ham and Japheth.

Another popular view is that fallen angels somehow had relations with women and that these relations produced giants. If that view holds, then the sons of God were the fallen angels and the daughters of men were the offspring of both Seth and Cain.

Gen. 6:3   And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.

There is clearly some connection here. The Sons of God and daughters of Eve intermarry and negative things are going on. There are Nephiliim, mighty men. They survive the flood, so we know that the covenant line is infected with sin and unrightousness. This threatens the promise. God destroys the Earth but His promises remain.

Rita Cefalu      

Sons of God ‘saw’ daughters of men ‘good’ and ‘took’ them.

Eve ‘saw’ tree ‘good’ and ‘took’.

Lamech fathers Noah (rest).

Image of God- Divine Kingship.

EXHORTATION

Image of God not completely obliterated but it is ruined. It must be restored.

Creation Groans. The Holy Spirit is the first fruits of the Resurrection. We can follow God now.

Romans 8- Rom. 8:10   And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. ¹¹ But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. ¹² Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. ¹³ For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. ¹⁴ For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. ¹⁵ For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. ¹⁶ The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

Rom. 8:17   And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. ¹⁸ For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. ¹⁹ For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. ²⁰ For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, ²¹ Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. ²² For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. ²³ And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. ²⁴ For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? ²⁵ But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

Rom. 8:26   Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. ²⁷ And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. ²⁸ And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Creation longs for Sons of God to be revealed.