Gen. 5:29

His name shall be Noah


This, like when others are given specific names in the Bible, helps us see God's plan. We don't know how many heard the prophecy, but it is interesting that God still wished to show His mercy even as the world sped toward destruction. In the same way, today He calls people to repent and trust Jesus to save them even with all the problems and how we turn from Him. Isaiah said it so well - all we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned each one to his own way, and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.


Shall comfort us


Noah promised to comfort a group. Who? There are two possibilities at least.
This could refer to all the people in the world.  Noah promised salvation if p8would just believe him. That is great comfort to many, to be free from this world of sin. It may last a short time, but salvation is forever.


He may have been among the few following God yet, too. Perhaps the followers of wickedness had so corrupted mankind that dealing with them was among the great toil they faced.
Either way, whether that work of their hands was farming or just life in general, we know God is always good and faithful to see us through anything when we trust Him.


However, another interesting thought is this. God mentions that it is because of the ground He had cursed. Just because we have had the agricultural revolution doesn’t mean they had it back then – perhaps the ground didn’t yield as much as it does today, and there was starting to be sporadic famine. This is just speculation, but if people had begun to focus so much on the works of their hands that they had forgotten about God, then perhaps Noah comforted them that God was there for them, and begging the people to turn to Him. Even when serving the Lord, one may become so encumbered with serving that, like Jesus warned Martha at the end of Luke 11, one can forget that which is most important, as her sister Mary did sitting and learning t Jesus’ feet.


The Great Flood would come during Noah’s lifetime, and one wonders how news of that can be a comfort, but this world is not all there is. There is everlasting life to be had, and Noah may well have preached that it was attainable for anyone who would trust God by faith to deliver them.


Salvation has always been by faith. Now, that is by grace through faith(Eph. 2:8-9) - for if it is by works it is no more grace, and if by grace then it is no more works.(Rom. 11:6) however, even before, it was by faith. Abraham’s faith was counted to him for righteousness.(Gal.3:6, James 2:23) The men of the Hebrews 11 “Hall of Fame of faith” were all justified by faith. Indeed, the Bible shows that is how the just live, by faith.


So, for noah to comfort the people, perhaps it was in urging them to have faith in god delivering them, either by that ark he was building or that if they died before the Flood that he would forgive them through whatever means He would.


Now, of course, we know what he planned – He planned to come to this world, live a dinless life, and then die on the cross to take the punishment for each of our sins and rise from the dead. They may not have totally understood that plan in those pre-Flood days, I don’t know, but Noah, at least, knew enough to believe God would make a way where there seemed to be no way.

Genesis 5:25-28

Genesis 5:25-28

The same pattern from before returns again. We don’t know what other people also walked with God at the time of Enoch, or whether anyone else really even followed the Lord. There will always be a remnant that does, however, because of faithful men and women that follow the Lord and provide examples for us.

Enoch provided that example for Methuselah and then for. Lamech. Methusaleh lived 969 years, longer than anyone else in the Bible. More will be said about him later on. However, a few things are interesting here.

Same Name, Different Person

First, Lamech shares his name with a wicked man in the line of Cain. We don’t know if they overlapped substantially, though given the life spans they almost surely overlapped some. We don’t know if they were in different parts of the world at this time – or even if it was different continents or one like some geologists suspect – and that view is possible, since the “fountains of the deep” also opened up during the Floord, and massive earthquakes could have moved everything around such that a fairly level Earth suddenly had massive mountain ranges.(The tallest mountain, in fact, Mr. Everest, is still rising.)

Anyway, whichever it was, Lamech and his counterpart, Lamech the Terrible, have some interesting distinctions.

First, Lamech doesn’t boast here the way the Lamech who descended from Cain did. He simply lived a life that was apparently pleasing to God, though of course he was a sinner who needed to be saved by faith just like any of us.

His grandfather, Enoch, also shared a name with one of Cain’s sons, so it’s possible CEnoch’s son, Methusaleh, knew of this. And, if Seth’s ilne’s Lamech was born after, simply decided to name him the same thing, too.

Of course, it’s also possible that Cain’s line’s Lamech was born after and it was a case of the devil copying God to try to provide his own means of salvation, one which leads to tyranny and Hell. The devil’s ways are always about works, not by faith like God’s.

However, it’s important to remember that just because something or someone has the same outward appearance – such as a name – the inward heart much be looked at. Many times, something with the same name is used innocently, too, or in the English language just because there aren’t enough words, such as love – in the Greek there is eros(lust, a physical sensation), phileo(brotherly love, love toward a best friend), storge(family love, the way it should be, incredibly closeness and devotion) and agape(God’s unconditional love, greater than that of a family because God loved us before we ever knew Him and in fact while we were yet His enemies.)

Works are an outward action, just like a name. If Lamech in Cain’s line had decided he was going to change his name to change his image, it wouldn’t have worked unless his heart changed. God has changed peoples’ names once their heart was changed – Abram became Abraham, Jacob became Israel(though he still went by Jacob often, too), and Saul of Tarsus became Paul. This, however, signifies an inward transformation.

When we pay too much attention to the outward appearance, to the point we neglect the inward man, we become like the Pharisees. We must guard against putting too much emphasis on the outward appearance, including avoiding things that are unbiblical, just like was noted earlier where Even added to God’s message in Genesis 3 and said that they couldn’t touch the tree, when all God said was they couldn’t eat it.

Gen. 5;22-24

Gen. 5:22-24

I’m sorry I lost track of this for so long – I got burned out doing so much and so went on to other ministries, including starting in Global Media Outreach around when I stopped this. I will try to to update this some, though it won’t be as often.

Anyway, to continue…

Walked with God

The phrase “walking with God” is not limited to Enoch. David points out how to do it in Psalm 16:8, having the Lord ever before one. It means keeping ones eyes on Jesus, as Peter did when he stepped out of the boat for a moment. Hezekiah asks the Lord to remember how he did it – and he was a great king. The Lord, through the prophet Malachi, speaks of Levi walking this way. Micah 6:8 commands it. And, in the next chapter, Noah is said to have walked with God, as well.

While these men lived, however – and may have done quite well at serving God – the Lord singles out Enoch, with those few others, for his much closer walk, the kind we should all seek, and sadly, the ways of the world distract us so often, this writer included.

 Still, it’s a tall order, one that not many Christians do with Christ. It’s an order tall enough, God singles out only a few men who have done so, Enoch being one.

The phrase “walked with God” is used, to show a difference between that and merely living. Many sit in and out of churches around the world who are saved, yet aren’t really living for the Lord. At least in the early days, before sin became so common, others – even those not in this specifically line – probably lived for the Lord, just as those in the line from Adam to Enoch had.

However, there is a further large gap between those who live for Him, and those who truly walk with Him. Consider the following:

To live for something means you dedicate yourself to something. But, you can do this via serving in some way – like Martha, who Jesus tells in Luke 11 was “cumbered about with much serving” – and yet be ignoring that which is most important – which Jesus says her sister Mary was doing, sitting at His feet and learning.

This doesn’t mean that Martha wasn’t doing a good work. She lived for Christ, lived to serve Him. But, we can so easily get burned out. This can happen when something is too overwhelming, like when I thought to try to comment on the whole of Genesis, if not the whole Bible, and then found it so inexhaustible that it could take me ten thousands years and I might not be finished.  It can also happen when something is so totally on one’s own effort that he or she doesn’t have help.

Thus, it can be said that Enoch walked with God, constantly communing with Him just as Mary did at Jesus’ feet. But, there is a further meaning, too.

And he was not, for God took Enoch

There was something different about this walk, something which led to what many feel is a picture of the Rapture of the church as mentioned in Ephesians 4:13-18 and 1 Corinthians 15:51-53. It is not said that he died, but that God took him.

Some say he may be one of the 2 witnesses in revelation 11, though personally I think it will be Moses and Elijah. Their identities are not important right now,t hough. What is important is that God had a special plan for him, a purpose far beyond merely serving him.

Was he a prophet of antediluvian times? He certainly uttered at least one prophecy, as noted. Before is recorded in Jude and another with the naming of Methuselah.

But, whatever God’s purpose was for him, Enoch may recognized it first with methuselah’s birth, since the Bible says he walked with God “after he beget Methuselah.” Something may have been told to him by God which caused him to name Methuselah the way he did. Perhaps he was constantly serving the Lord before, perhaps he was only shown then how great a responsibility he had, something parenthood does to some people, though if they attempt ont heir own strength to handle that responsibility they fall woefully short.

Whatever it was, though,  it casued Enoch to realize a need to be so close to God that he poured everything he had into serving the Lord, but also into being with Him. One preacher once said that it was as if Enoch and God were walking and God sayd one day, “We’re a lot closer to My house than yours, why don’t you just come homw tih me.”

The fact he could walk with God in a very fallen world, one getting worse and worse, shows we shouldn’t make the excuse that the world is too much of a mess. True, there were still hundreds of years before man’s mind was on evil continually, but it was much closer to that than it was to the pristine Eden which Adam and Eve had to be evicted from.

And, god protected Enoch from that evil world. We don’t know if he faced any kind of persecution, though I’d personally be shocked if he didn’t. We do know that he didn’t die, since that term is not used for Enoch the way it was for the others. Indeed, Paul says of those in the end times, “We shall not all sleep(die) but we shall all be changed.” The pains of this world are still with us till then, as they no doubt were to Enoch, but we deal with them – when we walk with God – with a confidence that he will guide us through. Jesus didn’t promise to keep us from everything, but He did say, “Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”(John 16:33)

Enoch had this testimony; that he pleased God.(Heb. 11:5) He didn’t work his way to God, as salvation is by grace through faith, and not by works.(Eph.2:8-9) God doesn’t want us to boast of ourselves. He wants us to be hmble, for He resisteth the proud but giveth grace to the humble.(James4:6)

Since God can’t touch sin due to His holiness, than, how could Enoch have pleased god or walked with him, unless Enoch was humble, realizing God was in charge. When we realize God is sovereign in our affairs, that is when we please Him. That is when we can walk with Him.

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Again, I won’t update this all the time, but I’ll try to get through Genesis 11, perhaps, or maybe a few verses beyond that, dealing with the promise to Abraham.

And, thanks to those who read. I don’t have the time for a lot of comments so I really got little positive feedback, but looking at the number of page views recently made me realize there are people who really enjoy this. So, thanks.

Gen. 5:21

This verse on Enoch begins just like all the others; he was a certain number of years old and then begat his son. However, a note in the next verse shows his life was indeed very different. All of us, indeed, have the same opportunity to really go above and beyond, and make a difference for the Lord; even if it seems small by some standards, because of our limitations it may be huge. Enoch, just like all the others, lived a certain number of years. Any of us, like all other believers, have been saved. Now, what will we do with it? Enoch walked with God, and prophesied.

We don’t know if there were any prophets before Enoch, or how much Enoch prophesied. We read a prophecy of his in Jude 14-15, that the Lord will return with His saints to execute judgment on this sinful world. (The number says ten thousand, but that was a number used in Greek to indicate a number so large it couldn’t be counted.)

Let us digress for a moment here. There is a Book of Enoch, but it is not on the level of Scripture. However, Jude, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, says that he prophesied. This prophecy wasn’t necessary to be revealed until then, in God’s eyes, though it may have been a tradition beforehand. Indeed, the apocryphal Book of Enoch could have borrowed the quote from Jude. Whatever else – if anything – Enoch foretold will only be known when we get to Heaven.

If Moses makes no mention of Enoch being a prophet, then how can we be sure? First, God doesn’t reveal everything right away. He tells us when it’s important for us to know. God chose, at this time, to let us know that Enoch had made at least one prophecy. One might also note that Lamech also prophesies about Noah, and that Enoch’s son, Methusaleh, bears a name which means “When he dies comes the emission,” or the Flood, according to John Gill’s and other commentaries. More importantly, however, the nature of the man’s life – one of a handful to be said to “walk with God” – shows he had a special relationship, different from those who merely lived and served. It’s quite likely that he was a prophet, and that some record even before that existed.

Gen. 5:6-20

These verses go into more detail than those concerning Cain’s descendants. However, they each hold the same basic truth that the previous verses did. These people lived and died. What they did between those times – other than fathering the one child of many who wound up in the genealogy down to Noah - is only known to the Lord. However, we can glean things from these verses.

First, more information is given than just the genealogy. God the Holy Spirit still felt it important that Cain’s descendants be recorded. God yearns for all to be saved; He is very longsuffering toward us, and gives us many chances. He sees each person, even those who stray far from Him. And, He uses numerous means to try to draw them to Him lovingly; never forcing, but working in things so they see His love and receive His forgiveness.

And yet, in the end, all perish in this life. We only have this life to decide whether to choose Him. It’s as if there’s a flight coming to pick us up, and we must choose to get on board. Many don’t know that there is a flight, or that we must get on board. They must be told. However, the important thing is, this world will cease to exist someday. Our mortal bodies will wear out. The question is, have we got that ticket to Heaven? It was given freely to each of us, the purchase price being the perfect blood of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Though people could only trust that God would send a deliverer at this point, they – like Abraham – were justified by faith.

We also see that the years are numbered. God gives this information here, but not in the other line. There are a few reasons this may be; and, it is likely a combination of them.

This may be because they followed Him, so the years they had to serve the Lord were numbered, to see what each would do with them. With Cain’s line, meanwhile, if these people didn’t trust in the Lord, the clock never started ticking on what they could do for Him. This is quite plausible, as it further shows that nobody can work their way to Heaven. God only counts what works we’ve done for Him after we’re saved. Before, He doesn’t know us, and we know facts, if that, about Him. We don’t have the personal relationship with Him that lets us truly serve Him.

Another possible reason is that God, in God is detailing His plan, and the genealogy through which He was working. This explains why He shows how old they were when they fathered the next one in that genealogy which would see mankind through to the other side of the deluge. The situation surrounding each is unique – see how some sired that particular son much later than others. In the same way, each of us comes from a unique background, but we all work together to ensure that the Lord’s work continues.

This also leads back to the point about their work counting for eternity in ways that those of Cain’s line didn’t. God makes note of what we do for Him, no matter how big or small. After all, it’s ntoed that each man had sons and daughters, too; only the most prominent in Cain’s line merit mention. (See Genesis 4:22 concerning Naamah for other reasons this line may have been mentioned.)

Also, the Bible notes that these men lived. Yes, Cain’s line is mentioned as people begat others, but while God noticed them and worked in love to woo them, they became nother more than people, living and dying, most if not all with no knowledge of the Redeemer. Such is the sad state of affairs today, which is why it is vital that we get the Gospel to as many as possible.

Gen. 5:5

Here, we’re told the number of years Adam lived total. We see two important facts that apply to everyone. He lived. And, he died. No matter how long it was – much longer because of that canopy above the earth – he died, just as all do.

However, we should never forget that he lived. God gave him the grace and mercy to be able to live. Some peoples’ days are shorter, some longer, but, while it may sound like baseball great Yogi Berra, it’s true. Everyone who is alive is living.

The amount of information he could have imparted is incredible. The amount he could have gathered is also incredible. Imagine 930 years of arts, science, inventions, anything. As noted, too, genetic problems hadn’t begun to haunt people. He and Eve possessed the great minds, and they were able to pass on much of that to their descendants. Given that great pioneers in various areas have changed the world in a few decades, having a few centuries would mean astounding developments. We don’t know how advanced people were in that day and time, but we do know this – these people lived, and at least a few had the opportunity to create incredible things.

Take the Pyramids in Egypt, for instance. They were built soon after the Great Flood, according to most experts. The technology just to get the shafts so perfectly fitted has only existed for a few decades. And, people still aren’t sure how they were constructed, or how Stonehenge and a few other ancient wonders were created. The Mayans, too, had very advanced astronomy.

So, why did it die out? People stopped using the knowledge. Indeed, they stopped even needing it, they were so concerned with survival after the Flood. Machines may have been built soon after the Flood, but nobody recorded how to make them, and the machines to make the machines to build the Pyramids, or Stonehenge, became unworkable. Soon, all their works perished. And, only a few scant things remained. It’s just like people forgot how to use the information to build aqueducts, or the very elaborate Roman road system, after the Roman Empire declined – the road system in Europe wasn’t as good as those Roman ones till the 1700s, if not later!

That’s just like us, though. Just like Adam, just like that technical knowledge, we all die. The great composers of history, the great painters, the great inventors, are all dead, just as Adam was. As long as he lived, he was on Earth doing things. And yet, his life on Earth came to an end. It didn’t matter how much he contributed. What mattered was that he had a redeemer.

All the great accomplishments that Adam made, whatever they were – no doubt written language, the discovery of fire and its uses, simple tools like the lever and perhaps more complex ones, were among them – added to the sum of all knowledge that people had. However, in the end, those things only added to what was on Earth. All that was counted when he got to heaven were these two things. First, and most importantly, had he put his trust in that Redeemer. Second, what had he done to point people to the future Redeemer.

This, then, is the story of each of our lives. Have you put your trust in the Redeemer – who eventually came in the flesh, and took the punishment for your sin by shedding His perfect blood on the cross, dying for you and rising from the dead – to save you and get you to Heaven? Next, what have you done to point others to Jesus Christ. That can mean witnessing, but it can also mean showing His love, goodness, and compassion to others; not to point them to yourself or just to a “noble cause,” but doing so in order to glorify God, and make Him known. It can also mean prayer, talking with God and having things in common with Him, growing so close to Him that you can understand His will, and His love, for others. It can mean seeking His face in many areas.

We don’t all have the same amount of life. We don’t all have the same opportunities. God cares only about what we do with the opportunities that we have. We all have the opportunity, in some way – even if it’s just through prayer - to show Christ’s love to others, to put the focus off of ourselves and onto God.

Gen. 5:4

As mentioned in the discussion here (Gen. 4:3), Gen. 4:17, and a couple other places, if anyone asks where Cain got his wife, you can point them to this verse.

Jude 22-23 instructs us about the difference between people, and how to reach them. This is a perfect example. Some are ignorant through no fault of their own. They must be reached with compassion. We must understand that they have never had the chance to know the Bible. They have been taught lies, because their teachers – whoever they might be – have withheld the truth. However, others are willfully ignorant. They won’t listen, because they know if they did, they’d be converted, and forced to confess their sins. The only way to tell the difference is to trust in the Lord for guidance. Of course, it’s always best to presume that the person is genuinely ignorant, through no fault of their own. It is in this way we show Christian love and gentleness toward others.

We also see the length of time Adam and Eve had together. Tradition is that they had anywhere from 12 sons (and at least two daughters as the language shows) to 100 children. Josephus gives it as 33 sons and 23 daughters. The exact number is unknown, but with genetics not breaking down so much, it’s possible some people could have had hundreds. This time allowed him to live till Lamech was old enough to understand when Adam passed on information.