English · KJV

Genesis 5

Listen to this chapter
0:00 0:00

The Book of the Generations of Adam 1–5

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. ​

The Line from Seth to Jared 6–20

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.

Enoch Walks with God 21–24

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. ​

Methuselah, Lamech, and Noah 25–32

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. ​
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. ​

Bible text: King James Version (1769 Blayney text) · Public domain

Study Notes for Genesis 5

Verse 1

the book of the generations of Adam — Toledot, 'generations', is the heading that opens sections of Genesis (2:4; 6:9; 10:1; 11:10). Here it introduces a 'book' (sepher), the first time Scripture uses the word. Man is made 'in the likeness of God' (demuth, the likeness of Gen 1:26), and the image is still named after the Fall (Gen 9:6; Jas 3:9).

Verse 3

in his own likeness, after his image — The two words of Gen 1:26, demuth (likeness) and tselem (image), now describe Adam's son, in reversed order. Seth (Sheth) comes from the verb of Gen 4:25, 'God… hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel'; Eve names him there, Adam here. The likeness is passed on, and so is the death of v.5.

Verse 5

and he died — This closes every life in the chapter but Enoch's (vv.5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 27, 31). It is the sentence of 'in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die' (Gen 2:17) and 'unto dust shalt thou return' (Gen 3:19); Paul says the same: 'by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin' (Rom 5:12).

Verse 22

walked with God — Halak, to walk, as of a whole manner of life. The phrase is used again of Noah (Gen 6:9). Enoch's walk is reckoned from the birth of Methuselah, 'three hundred years', with sons and daughters born in them. Jude calls him 'the seventh from Adam', who 'prophesied' (Jude 14).

Verse 24

God took him — Laqach, to take, is the verb for Elijah, whom 'the LORD will take away' (2 Kgs 2:3, 5), and for the hope of Ps 49:15, 'he shall receive me', and Ps 73:24. Hebrews gives the sense: 'translated that he should not see death… for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God' (Heb 11:5).

Verse 27

nine hundred sixty and nine years — The longest life recorded in Scripture. Methuselah begat Lamech at 187 (v.25), Lamech begat Noah at 182 (v.28), and the Flood came when Noah was 600 (Gen 7:6): 187 + 182 + 600 = 969. The figures place his death in the year of the Flood.

Verse 29

Noah… comfort — Noach means 'rest'; the verb 'comfort' is nacham, to console or ease. Lamech's hope is set against 'the ground which the LORD hath cursed', the curse of Gen 3:17, and 'toil' (itstsabon) is the 'sorrow' of Gen 3:16–17; it occurs only in those verses and here. After the Flood the LORD says, 'I will not again curse the ground any more' (Gen 8:21).

Verse 32

Shem, Ham, and Japheth — At 500 Noah 'begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth'. The three are named again when the Flood comes at 'six hundred years' (Gen 6:10; 7:6) and as the sons of whom 'was the whole earth overspread' (Gen 9:19). Their lines are traced in 'the generations of the sons of Noah' (Gen 10:1).