Methuselah lived one hundred eighty-seven years, then became the father of Lamech. Methuselah lived after he became the father of Lamech seven hundred eighty-two years, and became the father of other sons and daughters. All the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty-nine years, then he died.
Lamech lived one hundred eighty-two years, then became the father of a son. He named him Noah, saying, “This one will comfort us in our work and in the toil of our hands, caused by the ground which Yahweh has cursed.” Lamech lived after he became the father of Noah five hundred ninety-five years, and became the father of other sons and daughters. All the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy-seven years, then he died.
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On v29 29. And he called his name Noah, saying, This…
29. And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work. In the Hebrew languages the etymology of the verb נחם (nacham) does not correspond with the noun נוח (noach,) unless we call the letter ם (mem) superfluous; as sometimes, in composition, certain letters are redundant. נוח Noach signifies to give rest, but נחם nacham to comfort. The name Noah is derived from the former verb. Wherefore, there is either the transmutation of one letter into another, or only a bare allusion, when Lamech says, “This same shall comfort us concerning our work.” But as to the point in hand, there is no doubt that he promises to himself an alleviation, or solace, of his labors. But it is asked, whence he had conceived such hope from a son whose disposition he could not yet have discerned. The Jews do not judge erroneously in declaring Lamech’s expression to be a prophecy; but they are too gross in restricting to agriculture what is applicable to all those miseries of human life which proceed from the curse of God, and are the fruits of sin. I come, indeed, to this conclusion; that the holy fathers anxiously sighed, when, being surrounded with so many evils they were continually reminded of the first origin of all evils, and regarded themselves as under the displeasure of God. Therefore in the expression, the toil of our hands, there is the figure synecdochee ; because under one kind of toil he comprises the whole miserable state into which mankind had fallen. For they undoubtedly remembered what Moses has related above, concerning the labourious, sad, and anxious life to which Adam had been doomed: and since the wickedness of man was daily increasing, no mitigation of the penalty could be hoped for, unless the Lord should bring unexpected succor. It is probable that they were very earnestly looking for the mercy of God; for their faith was strong, and necessity urged them ardently to desire help. But that the name was not rashly given to Noah, we may infer hence, that Moses expressly notes it as a thing worthy to be remembered. Certainly some meaning was couched under the names of other patriarchs; yet he passes by the reason why they were so called, and only insists upon this name of Noah. Therefore the contentious reader is not to be allowed hence to pronounce a judgment, that there was something peculiar in Noah, which did not suit others before him. I have, then, no doubt that Lamech hoped for something rare and unwonted from his son; and that, too, by the inspiration of the Spirit. Some suppose him to have been deceived, inasmuch as he believed that Noah was the Christ; but they adduce no rational conjecture in support of the opinion. It is more probable, that, seeing something great was promised concerning his son, he did not refrain from mixing his own imagination with the oracle; as holy men are also sometimes wont to exceed the measure of revelation, and thus it comes to pass, that they neither touch heaven nor earth.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On v29 Lamech had respect to the promise, Gen. 3:15, and…
Lamech had respect to the promise, Gen. 3:15, and desired to see the deliverer which should be sent, and yet saw but a figure thereof, he also spake this by the spirit of prophecy because Noah delivered the Church and preserved it by his obedience.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv25–31 Gen 5:25 And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and…
Gen 5:25 And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech:
Ver. 25. And begat Lamech,] i.e., Poverty: but yet he was endued with the gift of prophecy. {Gen 5:29} He might be
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“ Nudus opum, sed cui coelum terraeque paterent .”
We used to call them poor souls, whom we pity: but a man may have a rich soul, in a poor condition. {Rev 2:9}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv27–29 This was the longest time that any man lived.…
This was the longest time that any man lived. But it is observable that neither his nor any of the patriarch’s lives reached to a thousand years, which number hath some shadow of perfection.
He died but a little before the flood came, being taken away from the evil to come.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On vv25, 28 Concerning Methuselah observe, 1. The signification of his name,…
Concerning Methuselah observe, 1. The signification of his name, which some think was prophetical, his father Enoch being a prophet. Methuselah signifies, he dies, or there is a dart, or, a sending forth, namely, of the deluge, which came the very year that Methuselah died. If indeed his name was so intended and so explained, it was fair warning to a careless world, a long time before the judgment came. However, this is observable, that the longest liver that ever was carried death in his name, that he might be reminded of its coming surely, though it came slowly. 2. His age: he lived nine hundred and sixty-nine years, the longest we read of that ever any man lived on earth; and yet he died. The longest liver must die at last. Neither youth nor age will discharge from that war, for that is the end of all men: none can challenge life by long prescription, nor make that a plea against the arrests of death. It is commonly supposed that Methuselah died a little before the flood; the Jewish writers say, "seven days before," referring to Gen 7:10, and that he was taken away from the evil to come, which goes upon this presumption, which is generally received, that all the patriarchs mentioned in this chapter were holy good men. I am loth to offer any surmise to the contrary; and yet I see not that this can be any more inferred from their enrollment here among the ancestors of Christ than that all those kings of Judah were so whose names are recorded in his genealogy, many of whom, we are sure, were much otherwise: and, if this be questioned, it may be suggested as probable that Methuselah was himself drowned with the rest of the world; for it is certain that he died that year.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On v25 And Noah was five hundred years old,.... Or "the…
And Noah was five hundred years old,.... Or "the son of five hundred years" (f); he was in his five hundredth year: it can hardly be thought that he should live to this time a single life, and have no children born to him, which he might have had, but were dead; though some think it was so ordered by Providence, that he should not begin to procreate children until of this age, because it being the will of God to save him and his family from the flood, had he began at the usual age he might have had more than could conveniently be provided for in the ark; or some of them might have proved wicked, and so would deserve to perish with others:
and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth; not together, but one after another; and since Ham was the younger son, see Gen 9:24 and Shem was an hundred years old two years after the flood, Gen 11:10 he must be born in the five hundred and second year of his father's age; so that it seems most probable that Japheth was the eldest son, and born in the five hundred and first year of his age; though Shem is usually mentioned first, because of his superior dignity and excellency, God being in an eminent manner the God of Shem, Gen 9:26 and from whom the Messiah was to spring, and in whose line the church of God was to be continued in future ages. The name of Japheth is retained in Greek and Latin authors, as Hesiod (g) Horace (h), and others (i), by whom he is called Japetos and Japetus.
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(f) "filius quingentorum annorum", Pagninus, Montanus, &c. (g) "Theogonia prope principium et passim". (h) Carmin. l. 1. Ode 3. (i) Apollodorus de Deorum Orig. l. 1. p. 2, 4. Ovid. Metamorph. l. 1. Fab. 2.
Next: Genesis Chapter 6
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv25, 29 Methuselah signifies, He dies, there is a sending forth,…
Methuselah signifies, He dies, there is a sending forth, viz. of the deluge, which came the very year that Methuselah died. If his name was so intended, it was a fair warning to a careless world long before the judgment came. However, this is observable, that the longest liver that ever was, carried death in his name, that he might be minded of its coming surely, tho' it came slowly. He lived nine hundred sixty and nine years, the longest we read of that ever any man lived on earth, and yet he died: the longest liver must die at last. Neither youth nor age will discharge from that war, for that is the end of all men: none can challenge life by long prescription, nor make that a plea against the arrests of death. 'Tis commonly supposed, that Methuselah died a little before the flood; the Jewish writers say, seven days before, referring to chap. vii, 10, and that he was taken away from the evil to come.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv27, 29 Verse 27. The days of Methuselah were nine hundred…
Verse 27. The days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years] This is the longest life mentioned in Scripture, and probably the longest ever lived; but we have not authority to say positively that it was the longest. Before the flood, and before artificial refinements were much known and cultivated, the life of man was greatly protracted, and yet of him who lived within thirty-one years of a thousand it is said he died; and the longest life is but as a moment when it is past. Though life is uncertain, precarious, and full of natural evils, yet it is a blessing in all its periods if devoted to the glory of God and the interest of the soul; for while it lasts we may more and more acquaint ourselves with God and be at peace, and thereby good shall come unto us; Job 22:21.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On v29 Gen 5:29. He called his name Noah — Which…
Gen 5:29. He called his name Noah — Which signifies rest; saying — No doubt by a spirit of prophecy; This same shall comfort us concerning our toil, &c. — That is, the hard labour and manifold troubles to which they were sentenced. This he did, 1st, By the invention of instruments of husbandry, whereby tillage was made more easy: 2d, By removing a part of the curse inflicted on the earth: and especially, 3d, By preserving a remnant of mankind from that deluge which Enoch had foretold, and which he foresaw would come, and by repeopling the empty earth with a new generation of men.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv29, 31 Noe means consolation, or repose. After he had beheld…
Noe means consolation, or repose. After he had beheld the most dreadful catastrophe or disturbance that ever happened in the world, he settled mankind once more in the friendship of God, and merited a blessing both for himself and for the whole earth. He gave, likewise, comfort to all, by useful inventions in agriculture, and in the art of making wine. He saw an end of the distractions caused by the wicked sons of Cain, and became the restorer of a new world: in a word, he was the progenitor of the Messias, who is the King of Peace, and our only solid comfort. (Menochius) (Haydock)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On v26 Lamech--a different person from the one mentioned in the…
Lamech--a different person from the one mentioned in the preceding chapter [Gen 4:18]. Like his namesake, however, he also spoke in numbers on occasion of the birth of Noah--that is, "rest" or "comfort" [Gen 5:29, Margin]. "The allusion is, undoubtedly, to the penal consequences of the fall in earthly toils and sufferings, and to the hope of a Deliverer, excited by the promise made to Eve. That this expectation was founded on a divine communication we infer from the importance attached to it and the confidence of its expression" [PETER SMITH].
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv27, 29 27. Methuselah — The etymology of this word is…
27. Methuselah — The etymology of this word is uncertain. Gesenius gives it man of the dart; it may also mean, he dieth, and sendeth forth, (that is, the deluge,) a prophetic name, given by his father, Enoch, when prophesying of God’s judgments, indicating that the deluge would take place at his death. He died in the year of the flood, having reached the greatest age recorded, nine hundred and sixty-nine years.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv25, 29, 31 25. Methuselah] According to the Hebrew text and the…
25. Methuselah] According to the Hebrew text and the Samaritan version, Methuselah lived the longest of all the patriarchs, and, according to their figures, his death at the age of 969 years occurred in the year of the Flood.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On v29 (29) He called his name Noah.—This is the first…
(29) He called his name Noah.—This is the first recorded instance, since the days of Eve, of a child being named at his birth, and in both cases the name ended in disappointment. Noah brought no rest, but in his days came the flood to punish human sin. We have already noticed that this longing of Lamech for comfort is in strong contrast with the arrogance of his namesake of the race of Cain. (Comp. Gen_4:18.)
This same shall comfort us . . . of our hands.—These words form a couplet in the Hebrew, and rhyme like the Arabic couplets in the Koran.
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The ground (adâmâh) which the Lord hath cursed.—It is usual to style this section Elohistic, because it so evidently takes up the narrative at Gen_2:3. Yet, first, the writer distinctly refers to Gen_3:17, where it is Jehovah-Elohim who curses the ground; and next he uses the name Jehovah as equivalent to God, according to what we are told in Gen_4:26. Here, then, as in several other places, the idea that Genesis can be arranged in two portions, distinguished as Elohistic or Jehovistic, according to the name of God employed in them, entirely breaks down. It is remarkable, also, that the word for “toil” in Lantech’s distich is the same as that rendered sorrow in Gen_3:16-17, and that it occurs only in these three places.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On v25 Vers. 25-32. The shortest life was followed by the…
Vers. 25-32. The shortest life was followed by the longest, Methuselah begetting, at the advanced age of 187, Lamech, strong or young man (Gesenius); overthrower, wild man (Furst); man of, prayer (Murphy), continuing after his son s birth 782 years, and at last succumbing to the stroke of death in the 969th year of his age, the year of the Flood. Lamech, by whom the line was carried forward, was similarly far advanced when he begat a son, at the age of 182, and called his name Noah, from nuach, to rest, (cf. Gen_8:4) not "The Sailor," from the Latin no, and the Greek nauv (Bohlen), but at the same time explaining it by saying, This same shall comfortna-cham, to pant, groan, Piel to comfort. Nuach and nacham are stems not immediately connected, but they both point back to a common root, nch, signifying to sigh, breathe, rest, lie down" (Murphy) us concerning our work and toil of our hands. To say that Lamech anticipated nothing more than that the youthful Noah would assist him in the cultivation of the soil (Murphy) is to put too little into, and to allege that this prophecy his father uttered of him, as he that should be a figure of Christ in his building of the ark, and offering of sacrifice, whereby God smelled a sweet savor of rest, and said he would not curse the ground any more for man"s sake, (Gen_8:21) (Ainsworth), is to extract too much from his language. Possibly he had nothing but a dim, vague expectation of some good thing the destruction of sinners in the Flood (Chrysostom), the use of the plough (R. Solomon), the grant of animal food (Kalisch), the invention of the arts and implements of husbandry (Sherlock, Bush) that God was about to bestow upon his weary heritage; or at most a hope that the promise would be fulfilled in his son s day (Bonar), if not in his son himself (Calovius). The fulfillment of that promise he connects with a recall of the penal curse which Jehovah had pronounced upon the soil. Because of the ground which the Lord Jehovah, by whom the curse had Been pronounced (Gen_3:17) hath cursed. The clause is not a Jehovistic interpolation (Bleek, Davidson, Colenso), but a proof "that the Elohistic theory is unfounded" ("Speaker"s Commentary").
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv27, 29 And all the days of Methuselah
Gen_5:27
And all the days of Methuselah
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The longest life and its lessons
In dwelling upon this text I shall--
I.
Take a simple survey of the age and manners of the antediluvian world. The youth of the world was the season of mans greatest age; perhaps, also, of mans greatest wickedness.
II. Draw some important lessons from this survey--
1. The agglomerative tendencies of human depravity.
2. The vanity of earthly things.
3. The power of an endless life.
4. The great natural wickedness of the heart.
5. That mere duration of years does not constitute a long life, but the fulfilment of lifes ends.
6. The danger of religious procrastination. (Dr. Cheever.)
The close of life
I. THE CLOSE OF LIFE IS ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN.
II. LIFE HAS COME TO A CLOSE WITH MEN THROUGH ALL GENERATIONS FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES.
III. LIFE COMES TO A CLOSE IN ALL PARTS OF THE WORLD. Some places are more salubrious than others.
IV. LIFE COMES TO A CLOSE AT ALL SEASONS OF THE YEAR.
V. LIFE CLOSES AT ALL PERIODS. Death is not peculiar to any age.
VI. LIFE CLOSES IN A VARIETY OF WAYS. How many perish in the battlefield, amid all the dreadful realities of war! Many are lost by shipwreck at sea. Many lose their lives by accident on land. Far from the land of his birth and friends, pursuing his philanthropic career, John Howard finished his labours and his life. Sublimely grand must have been the exit of Thomas Chalmers; but, like that of John Foster, no human eye was permitted to see it. It was a Sabbath evening when he retired to rest, in his most happy mood. In the morning he was found on his bedside in an attitude of repose. A peaceful smile, like a beam from the Sun of Righteousness, lingered about his face. His immortal part had soared upwards, escorted by a convoy of angels, to the better land. Thus widely diversified are the circumstances and modes of our departure. VII. THE CLOSE OF LIFE NEVER HAPPENS BY CHANCE. It is an event of Divine appointment.
VIII. THE CLOSE OF LIFE MAKES ALL THE ARTIFICIAL DISTINCTIONS OF LIFE VOID. Death, says Dr. Donne, comes equally to us all, and makes us all equal when it comes. The ashes of an oak in a chimney are no epitaph of that to tell me how high, or how large it was; it tells me not what flocks it sheltered whilst it stood, nor what men it hurt when it fell. The dust of great mens graves is speechless too; it says nothing, it distinguishes nothing. As soon the dust of a wretch whom thou wouldst not, as of a prince whom thou couldst not look upon, will trouble thine eyes if the wind blow it thither; and when a whirlwind hath blown the dust of the churchyard into the church, and the man sweeps out the dust of the church into the churchyard, who will undertake to sift those dusts again, and to pronounce: This is the patrician--this is the noble flour; and this the yeoman--this the plebeian bran!
IX. THE CLOSE OF LIFE IS OF INCONCEIVABLE IMPORTANCE. Our chances of preparation last while life lasts. Iris said that when Alexander encamped before a city, he used to set up a light, to give notice to those within that if they came forth to him while that light lasted, they should have quarter; but if they came not out within the given time they were to expect no mercy. Our light is burning now. It goes out when life departs. Death fixes all forever. It is this solemn fact--that death in shutting the gates of life upon us here, ushers us into the unchangeable hereafter--that accounts for the opposite experiences of men when they come to die. Voltaire said to his doctor--I am abandoned by God and man. I will give you half of what I am worth, if you will give me six months life. Sir, replied the doctor, you cannot live six weeks. Then, said the dying man, I shall go to hell; and soon after expired. I shall be glad to find a hole, said Hobbes, to creep out of the world at. How different the anticipations of good men! O Father of Thy beloved Son Jesus Christ! exclaimed the martyr Polycarp; I bless Thee that Thou hast counted me worthy to receive my portion in the number of martyrs. I have pain, said Richard Baxter, (there is no arguing against sense); but I have peace. Is this dying? said Dr. Goodwin. How have I dreaded as an enemy this smiling friend. The best of all is, God is with us, was John Wesleys shout of victory in the last hour. The victorys won forever, exclaimed Dr. Payson; I am going to bathe in an ocean of purity and benevolence and happiness to all eternity.
X. I HAVE NOW TO OBSERVE, THAT THE CLOSE OF LIFE MAY BE NEAR AT HAND. We know not the day nor the hour of the messengers arrival.
XI. MY LAST REMARK IS THAT THE CLOSE OF LIFE DEMANDS INSTANT PREPARATION. Mark what that preparation is. What you require to fit you for death is all the same as that which you require to fit you for life. (W. Walters.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv25, 28, 30 General Information:
General Information:
The records in Genesis 5:6-27 have the same format. Translate them according to the notes in Genesis 5:6-8. (See: How to Translate Names and Numbers)
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Lamech
This Lamech is different from the Lamech in Genesis 4:18.
translationWords
ancestor
Lamech
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv27–28 5:27 969 years: This statement and the numbers given…
5:27 969 years: This statement and the numbers given in 5:25, 28 and 7:6 mean that Methuselah died in the year of the flood.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.