THE AGES OF THE PATRIARCHS - Genesis Chapters 5 and 11
In the images below, there is a chart showing the ages of the Patriarchs both before and after the Universal Flood. These details are from the fifth and eleventh chapters of the Book of Genesis. Each reference is given in the NOTES column. The sequence is naturally divided into two parts by the Universal Flood.
Before the flood, the title of two generations is given, the one of The Heavens and the other of The Earth:
These are the generations of The Heavens and The Earth when they were created. [Genesis 2:4]
Many students erroneously assume that this title refers to the work of God detailed in the first chapter of Genesis. The Book of Genesis itself is the story of The Generations [in anglicised Hebrew: ëtol-ed-awí], each one of which is listed following the word. This first reference is no exception.
The Generation of The Heaven is that of Adam through Cain, his firstborn, the twin brother of Able who he slew (Genesis 4:14). His generation is listed in verses 17 to 24.
The Generation of The Earth is that of Adam through Seth, his third son (Genesis 4:25). His generation is listed in the following chapter 5.
Due to the Edenic conditions which prevailed before the flood, the ages of these patriarchs are exceptional, Adam being 930yrs and Methuselah being 969yrs when they died. After the flood, the Edenic conditions changed such that the ages of Shem's generation, the children of Noah, were limited to about 400yrs until, in the days of Peleg, the continents moved apart, changing the conditions on earth again. Following this, up till the time of Jacob the patriarch's ages averaged about 200yrs. The ages of Cain's descendants in the generation of The Heavens is not defined. Their command over the generation of Seth is illustrated by the work through the line of Cain in the three sons of Lamech, who are the fathers of the three activities of mankind: Farming, The Arts and Industry.
The regularity of the ages is noticeable, with the exception of that of Enoch, whom God took. By the name of Methuselah, the date of the flood was known, he died in the year of the flood. The age of Shem, even though born before the flood, was limited, as was Arphaxad his son, born after the flood. The flood ended in the 1656th year [8.9.23] after Adam sinned, when Noah was 600 years old.
This table is projected upon the average ages of the pre-flood patriarchs above. This is the generation of the sons of Cain, the Nephilim. Exiled in the heavens, they returned to the earth at the time of the angelic interference, as the Scripture says: They were in the earth in those days and also after that, meaning after the flood, thus Jabal, Jubal and Tubal-cain became the original teachers of farming, the arts and industry.
After the flood the most noticeable event is the parting of the continents in the days of Peleg. These days are between his birth and the birth of his son Reu, 30 years from 1757 from the sin of Adam. It affected the following ages which are reduced to almost half of those immediately following the flood. Abraham's age of 100 years at the birth of his son is clearly different to others.
In the images below, there is a chart showing the ages of the Patriarchs both before and after the Universal Flood. These details are from the fifth and eleventh chapters of the Book of Genesis. Each reference is given in the NOTES column. The sequence is naturally divided into two parts by the Universal Flood.
Before the flood, the title of two generations is given, the one of The Heavens and the other of The Earth:
These are the generations of The Heavens and The Earth when they were created. [Genesis 2:4]
Many students erroneously assume that this title refers to the work of God detailed in the first chapter of Genesis. The Book of Genesis itself is the story of The Generations [in anglicised Hebrew: ëtol-ed-awí], each one of which is listed following the word. This first reference is no exception.
The Generation of The Heaven is that of Adam through Cain, his firstborn, the twin brother of Able who he slew (Genesis 4:14). His generation is listed in verses 17 to 24.
The Generation of The Earth is that of Adam through Seth, his third son (Genesis 4:25). His generation is listed in the following chapter 5.
Due to the Edenic conditions which prevailed before the flood, the ages of these patriarchs are exceptional, Adam being 930yrs and Methuselah being 969yrs when they died. After the flood, the Edenic conditions changed such that the ages of Shem's generation, the children of Noah, were limited to about 400yrs until, in the days of Peleg, the continents moved apart, changing the conditions on earth again. Following this, up till the time of Jacob the patriarch's ages averaged about 200yrs. The ages of Cain's descendants in the generation of The Heavens is not defined. Their command over the generation of Seth is illustrated by the work through the line of Cain in the three sons of Lamech, who are the fathers of the three activities of mankind: Farming, The Arts and Industry.
The regularity of the ages is noticeable, with the exception of that of Enoch, whom God took. By the name of Methuselah, the date of the flood was known, he died in the year of the flood. The age of Shem, even though born before the flood, was limited, as was Arphaxad his son, born after the flood. The flood ended in the 1656th year [8.9.23] after Adam sinned, when Noah was 600 years old.
This table is projected upon the average ages of the pre-flood patriarchs above. This is the generation of the sons of Cain, the Nephilim. Exiled in the heavens, they returned to the earth at the time of the angelic interference, as the Scripture says: They were in the earth in those days and also after that, meaning after the flood, thus Jabal, Jubal and Tubal-cain became the original teachers of farming, the arts and industry.
After the flood the most noticeable event is the parting of the continents in the days of Peleg. These days are between his birth and the birth of his son Reu, 30 years from 1757 from the sin of Adam. It affected the following ages which are reduced to almost half of those immediately following the flood. Abraham's age of 100 years at the birth of his son is clearly different to others.