Drawing from the Tablet theory or the Colophon theory,
Genesis 1–4 would be a divine revelation given to Adam, since Adam was not
present during creation. Genesis 5:1 would be viewed as a colophon, an ancient
signature that concludes the record.
This
is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made
him in the likeness of God (Genesis 5:1).
After this signature, the genealogy and narrative are passed
down through successive patriarchs until Moses compiled them.
Taking the genealogies in Genesis 5 and 11 to be complete
without skipping generations. It is possible to estimate the ages and get a
timeline:
From Adam to Noah’s Flood — about 1,656 years (Genesis 5).
Noah to Abraham — about 350 years (Genesis 11).
Abraham to Jesus — roughly 2,000 years
Consequently, from Adam to Jesus, totaling approximately
4,000–5,000 years. The longevity before the flood is possible due to genetic
purity, environmental conditions (Genesis 1:6–7), and Divine providence to
allow extended lifespans to fill the earth. After the flood, the recorded
lifespans dropped sharply, from 900+ years to around 120 years [Genesis 6:3;
11:10–32].
Humanity’s default setting is mortality
The phrase “and he died” in Genesis 5 is not just a detail,
but a constant reminder.
And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment
(Hebrews 9:27).
Adam was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26–27); he
had godly attributes of holiness, righteousness, and perfect fellowship. Nevertheless,
after the fall, he lost the image of God. Sin separated him from God. When Adam
had children, they inherited his fallen nature, subject to sin, decay, and
death. Hence, Seth was said to be “in Adam’s likeness” rather than God’s image.
This is a reminder that humanity’s default setting after the fall is separation
from God [Romans 5:12]. That is why the world needs a Redeemer, the second Adam;
Jesus Christ.
The repetition is broken, with Enoch as Enoch walked with
God, and he was no more. In the lineage,
there is a man who had a deep and true relationship with God, Enoch.
Enoch
lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah. 22 After he begot Methuselah,
Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters. 23 So
all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. 24 And Enoch
walked with God; and he was not, for God took him (Genesis 5:22-24).
The change would remind us that the death’s reign is broken.
The ultimate victory of Christ’s resurrection, death entered through Adam’s
fall, but its reign ended when Christ completed His redemptive work at the
cross.
The
last enemy that will be destroyed is death (1 Corinthians 15:26).
Christ’s resurrection is the guarantee that death’s power
was temporary. Christ initiated the transformation from mortality to
immortality.
Fellowship with Him and One Another
Walking with God is leading a life in the light of His
presence. God is light, pure, holy, and righteous. Walking in His light opens
our lives before Him, that, fundamentally, the blood of Jesus cleanses our
hearts, and then our steps are guided by truth.
5
This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God
is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship
with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if
we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one
another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin (1
John 1:5-7).
We walk in agreement; two cannot walk together unless they
share a common purpose. Walking with God means agreeing with Him, [Amos 3:3].
Enoch must have been a man who walked by faith to please God [Hebrews 11:5]. If
he managed in the Old Testament, what about in the dispensation of grace?
Being a prophet, Enoch received a revelation from God
concerning the judgment of the flood and the second coming of Christ. He named
his son Methuselah, meaning “When he is dead, it shall come,” a prophetic sign
that after Methuselah’s death, the Flood would come. It was surely fulfilled;
the Flood came in the year Methuselah died.
Now
Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, “Behold,
the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints (Jude 14).
The emphasis of chapter five is, "and they died,"
the consequence of sin.
George Ruheni
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