TRV
Translation
King James Version
And Enos lived after he begat Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters:
Complete Jewish Bible
After Kenan was born, Enosh lived another 815 years and had sons and daughters.
Berean Standard Bible
And after he had become the father of Kenan, Enosh lived 815 years and had other sons and daughters.
American Standard Version
and Enosh lived after he begat Kenan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters:
World English Bible Messianic
Enosh lived after he became the father of Kenan, eight hundred fifteen years, and became the father of other sons and daughters.
Geneva Bible (1599)
And Enosh liued, after he begate Kenan, eight hundreth and fifteene yeeres, and begate sonnes and daughters.
Young's Literal Translation
And Enos liveth after his begetting Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begetteth sons and daughters.
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In the KJVVerse 116 of 31,102
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Commentary on Genesis 5 verses 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.
We have here all that the Holy Ghost thought fit to leave upon record concerning five of the patriarchs before the flood, Seth, Enos, Cainan, Mahalaleel, and Jared. There is nothing observable concerning any of these particularly, though we have reason to think they were men of eminence, both for prudence and piety, in their day: but in general,
I. Observe how largely and expressly their generations are recorded. This matter, one would think, might have been delivered in fewer words; but it is certain that there is not one idle word in God's books, whatever there is in men's. It is thus plainly set down, 1. To make it easy and intelligible to the meanest capacity. When we are informed how old they were when they begat such a son, and how many years they lived afterwards, a very little skill in arithmetic will enable a man to tell how long they lived in all; yet the Holy Ghost sets down the sum total, for the sake of those that have not even so much skill as this. 2. To show the pleasure God takes in the names of his people. We found Cain's generation numbered in haste (Gen 4:18), but this account of the holy seed is enlarged upon, and given in words at length, and not in figures; we are told how long those lived that lived in God's fear, and when those died that died in his favour; but as for others it is no matter. The memory of the just is blessed, but the name of the wicked shall rot.
II. Their life is reckoned by days (Gen 5:8): All the days of Seth, and so of the rest, which intimates the shortness of the life of man when it is at the longest, and the quick revolution of our times on earth. If they reckoned by days, surely we must reckon by hours, or rather make that our frequent prayer (Psa 90:12), Teach us to number our days.
III. Concerning each of them, except Enoch, it is said, and he died. It is implied in the numbering of the years of their life that their life, when those years were numbered and finished, came to an end; and yet it is still repeated, and he died, to show that death passed upon all men without exception, and that it is good for us particularly to observe and improve the deaths of others for our own edification. Such a one was a strong healthful man, but he died; such a one was a great and rich man, but he died; such a one was a wise politic man, but he died; such a one was a very good man, perhaps a very useful man, but he died, etc.
IV. That which is especially observable is that they all lived very long; not one of them died till he had seen the revolution of almost eight hundred years, and some of them lived much longer, a great while for an immortal soul to be imprisoned in a house of clay. The present life surely was not to them such a burden as commonly it is now, else they would have been weary of it; nor was the future life so clearly revealed then as it is now under the gospel, else they would have been impatient to remove to it: long life to the pious patriarchs was a blessing and made them blessings. 1. Some natural causes may be assigned for their long life in those first ages of the world. It is very probable that the earth was more fruitful, that the productions of it were more strengthening, that the air was more healthful, and that the influences of the heavenly bodies were more benign, before the flood, than afterwards. Though man was driven out of paradise, yet the earth itself was then paradisiacal - a garden in comparison with its present wilderness-state: and some think that their great knowledge of the creatures, and of their usefulness both for food and medicine, together with their sobriety and temperance, contributed much to it; yet we do not find that those who were intemperate, as many were (Luk 17:27), were as short-lived as intemperate men generally are now. 2. It must chiefly be resolved into the power and providence of God. He prolonged their lives, both for the more speedy replenishing of the earth and for the more effectual preservation of the knowledge of God and religion, then, when there was no written word, but tradition was the channel of its conveyance. All the patriarchs here, except Noah, were born before Adam died; so that from him they might receive a full and satisfactory account of the creation, paradise, the fall, the promise, and those divine precepts which concerned religious worship and a religious life: and, if any mistake arose, they might have recourse to him while he lived, as to an oracle, for the rectifying of it, and after his death to Methuselah, and others, that had conversed with him: so great was the care of Almighty God to preserve in his church the knowledge of his will and the purity of his worship.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 6–20. Public domain.
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Ambrose of MilanAD 397
On Isaac and the Soul, Chapter I
For it is the mark of a wise man to separate oneself from the pleasures of the flesh, to elevate the soul, and to withdraw from the body; for this is truly to recognize oneself as a human being. He who is called Enos in the Chaldean language is called, in Latin, homo.
BedeAD 735
Commentary on Genesis (Hexaemeron)
Adam lived for one hundred and thirty years, and he begot a son in his own likeness and image, and he named him Seth. Adam indeed was created in the likeness and image of God, because he was made immortal in both soul and body. However, after he corrupted the image and likeness of God in himself by sinning, he begot a son in his own likeness and image, that is, mortal, corruptible, capable of reason, bound by the guilt of his transgression, and to be freed only by the grace of his Creator. It should be noted that where our Codices, translated from the Hebrew source, say Adam lived for one hundred and thirty years and begot Seth, the ancient translation has, instead of one hundred and thirty, two hundred and thirty; where our Codices continue, "And the days of Adam after he begot Seth were eight hundred years, and he begot sons and daughters," that one has seven hundred instead of eight hundred. And where it concludes, "And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years, and he died," it places the same total, and such a distinction of numbers is preserved in all generations up to the flood between the two editions, so that before the birth of a son each one in the Septuagint is said to have had one hundred years more, and after the birth one hundred years less than in the Hebrew truth. But in the conclusion, both editions place an equal number; except only in the sixth generation; where in both Codices, Jared is found to have begotten Enoch at one hundred and sixty-two years, and after his birth to have lived eight hundred years: and in the ninth, where, according to the Hebrew truth, Lamech begot Noah when he was one hundred and eighty years old, and after he was born, he is found to have survived for five hundred and ninety-five years. However, in the Septuagint, the years before Noah was born are found to be one hundred and eighty-eight, and after he was born, five hundred sixty-five; thus it happens that Lamech is found to have lived twenty-four years longer in Hebrew than in the Septuagint Codices: by which difference of interpretations, it is made that the lifetime of Methuselah seems to extend fourteen years beyond the flood, and so the years before the flood according to the Hebrews are one thousand five hundred and fifty-six; according to the Septuagint, which the chronographers follow, two thousand two hundred and forty-two: although the most learned Augustine professes that even in the Septuagint translation, Methuselah is found in fewer but more accurate Codices to have died six years before the flood: who, when he most diligently investigated the cause of the aforementioned discord in interpretations, and did not wish to derogate from the faith of the Septuagint translators, whom the apostles and evangelists are proven to have followed in many places; and he himself believed they used more a prophetic gift than the office of interpretation in translating the Scriptures; he concluded in this way, saying: "Therefore it is more credible for someone to say that when these first began to be copied from the library of Ptolemy; at that time, something like this could have happened in one Codex, but first copied from there, from which it spread more widely, where indeed the error of the scribe could have happened. However, it is not absurd to suspect this in that question about the life of Methuselah." And after some: "I would not doubt at all that it is rightly done, he says, when something different is found in both Codices, since both cannot be according to the faith of the transactions, that the truth be believed rather to the language from which it is translated into another by interpreters." Therefore, according to Hebrew truth, Adam lived one hundred and thirty years and begot Seth. Seth lived one hundred and five years and begot Enos. Enos lived ninety years and begot Cainan. Cainan lived eighty years and begot Mahalalel. Mahalalel lived sixty-five years and begot Jared. Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years and begot Enoch.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
Genesis 5:10 continues the meticulously recorded genealogy of Adam's descendants through Seth, focusing on Enos, the grandson of Adam. This verse precisely details Enos's lifespan after the birth of his son Cainan, affirming the remarkable longevity characteristic of the pre-Flood generations and the ongoing fulfillment of God's foundational mandate for humanity to multiply and fill the earth. It subtly underscores the divine preservation of a specific lineage, through which God's redemptive plan would progressively unfold, even as the world began to experience the pervasive effects of sin and the inevitability of mortality.
CONTEXT
Literary Context: This verse is an integral part of Genesis chapter 5, a genealogical record often referred to as the "book of the generations of Adam" Genesis 5:1. The chapter follows a consistent formula for each patriarch: "X lived Y years, and begat Z; and X lived after he begat Z A years, and begat sons and daughters; and all the days of X were B years: and he died." Genesis 5:10 specifically provides the middle portion of this formula for Enos, detailing his life after Cainan's birth and before the summation of his total lifespan and death in Genesis 5:11. This structured repetition emphasizes the continuity of life, the passing of generations, and the pervasive reality of death, serving as a crucial chronological and theological bridge from the earliest human history to the subsequent narratives leading up to the Flood.
Historical & Cultural Context: The world of Genesis 5 is a pre-Flood world, characterized by extraordinary human longevity that far surpasses anything known post-Flood. While the exact environmental or physiological reasons are debated, this extended lifespan would have allowed for rapid population growth, the accumulation and transmission of knowledge across many generations, and the development of early human societies. Culturally, the emphasis on lineage and "begetting sons and daughters" reflects the ancient Near Eastern premium placed on progeny as a sign of blessing, continuity, and the fulfillment of a divine mandate. The genealogical record itself served as a vital means of preserving history, establishing identity, and tracing the fulfillment of divine promises, particularly the promised "seed" from Genesis 3:15.
Key Themes: Genesis chapter 5 contributes significantly to several overarching themes within Genesis and the broader biblical narrative. Firstly, it highlights the persistence of God's creation mandate to "be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth" Genesis 1:28, even after the Fall. Secondly, the recurring phrase "and he died" underscores the universal reality of mortality as a consequence of sin Genesis 3:19, despite the remarkable lifespans. Thirdly, the chapter meticulously traces the preservation of a godly lineage through Seth, distinct from the line of Cain, which is characterized by violence and a turning away from God Genesis 4:16-24. This specific line, including Enos, is crucial for the unfolding of God's redemptive plan. Finally, it was during Enos's time that "men began to call upon the name of the LORD" Genesis 4:26, indicating an early spiritual awakening and the establishment of communal worship among God's people, setting apart a faithful remnant.
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Genesis 5:10 employs several literary devices characteristic of the chapter. The most prominent is Genealogy, which serves as the primary structural framework, meticulously tracing the lineage from Adam. This is not merely a historical record but a theological device, establishing the continuity of humanity and, more importantly, the specific line through which God's redemptive plan will unfold. Repetition is also key, with the formulaic "X lived... and begat Z... and begat sons and daughters" appearing consistently. This Formulaic Language creates a rhythmic, almost liturgical, cadence that emphasizes the cyclical nature of life, procreation, and death. The extraordinary numbers associated with lifespans can be seen as a form of Hyperbole (though often interpreted as literal in this context), drawing attention to the unique conditions of the pre-Flood world and perhaps underscoring a divine blessing or a different physiological reality. Finally, the stark contrast between the immense longevity and the recurring phrase "and he died" creates a subtle Juxtaposition, highlighting the ultimate reality of mortality as a consequence of the Fall, even amidst extended life.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Genesis 5:10 is far more than a simple historical record; it is a theological statement embedded within the grand narrative of God's redemptive work. It affirms God's faithfulness to His initial creation mandate for humanity to multiply, even after the devastating impact of the Fall. The continuation of the human race through the birth of "sons and daughters" ensures the preservation of the lineage through which the promised deliverer would eventually come. Furthermore, Enos's place in the Sethite line, distinct from the line of Cain, underscores God's sovereign hand in preserving a righteous remnant, a community that began to "call upon the name of the LORD" Genesis 4:26. This verse, therefore, points to the enduring power of life and God's providential care in sustaining humanity and His covenant promises across generations, even in a world increasingly marked by sin and death.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Genesis 5:10 invites us to consider the profound sweep of God's faithfulness across generations. It reminds us that even in the seemingly mundane details of lineage and lifespan, God is diligently working to preserve His people and advance His eternal purposes. For us today, this verse challenges us to recognize our own place within this grand narrative of redemption. We are called to steward the life and faith passed down to us, to raise our "sons and daughters" in the knowledge of the Lord, and to contribute to the ongoing story of God's people. Our lives, like Enos's, are not isolated events but vital links in a chain of faith that stretches from creation to Christ's return. It encourages us to live with an awareness of our spiritual heritage and our responsibility to pass on a legacy of devotion to God to future generations, even amidst a world that often seems to reject divine authority or embrace fleeting pursuits.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why are the lifespans in Genesis 5 so long?
Answer: The extraordinary longevity recorded in Genesis chapter 5, including Enos's 905 years, is generally understood as a historical reality of the pre-Flood world. While the Bible does not explicitly state the reasons, various theories have been proposed. These include different environmental conditions (e.g., a pre-Flood canopy that filtered harmful radiation), greater genetic purity in the early human population, or God's specific design for rapid population growth and the accumulation and transmission of knowledge in early humanity. This longevity also allowed for fewer generations to bridge the gap between Adam and the Flood, facilitating the direct transmission of oral history.
What is the significance of the name "Enos"?
Answer: The Hebrew name 'Enosh (אֱנוֹשׁ) means "man" or "mankind," often carrying a connotation of frailty, weakness, or mortality. This is significant because it provides a striking contrast with the immense lifespans recorded for Enos and his contemporaries. Despite living for centuries, Enos, like all humanity, remained 'enosh—a fragile, dependent creature, ultimately subject to death as a consequence of the Fall Genesis 3:19. This subtle linguistic detail reminds humanity of their created, dependent nature and ultimate mortality, even amidst their long existence.
How does this verse connect to the "calling upon the name of the LORD" in Genesis 4:26?
Answer: Genesis 4:26 states that it was "then began men to call upon the name of the LORD" during Enos's time. This suggests that Enos's generation marked a significant spiritual turning point. While the line of Cain was characterized by increasing godlessness and violence Genesis 4:16-24, the line of Seth, to which Enos belonged, began to openly worship and seek God. This indicates the establishment of communal worship and a distinct group of people who publicly identified with and devoted themselves to Yahweh, setting them apart from the broader, increasingly corrupt society and preserving a spiritual heritage.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
While Genesis 5:10 does not directly mention Christ, its profound significance lies in its indispensable place within the unfolding genealogy that meticulously leads to Him. Enos is a vital link in the "seed" promised in Eden Genesis 3:15, a lineage miraculously preserved by God through generations marked by sin and death. This meticulous genealogical record, tracing from Adam through Seth and Enos, culminates in the birth of Jesus Christ, who is explicitly identified as the Son of David, the Son of Abraham and whose lineage is traced back to Adam through Seth and Enos in Luke's Gospel. Enos's life, and the generations that followed him, ensured the continuity of the human family from which the Savior would eventually arise, demonstrating God's faithful preservation of His redemptive plan through all of history. The very existence of humanity, preserved through these early generations, speaks to God's patient and sovereign work to bring forth the one who would ultimately redeem those who were under the law and take away the sin of the world.