Methuselah was the father of Lamech and the grandfather of Noah. God chose Noah for a special purpose. Noah was the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Methuselah lived a very long life of 969 years. He is the longest living person recorded in the Bible. Methuselah had Lamech who in turn had Noah.
In Genesis 4 we learned that in the genealogy of Cain there was a man named Lamech (Genesis 4:18-24). Likewise, in the godly line of Seth, there was a Lamech. Although they had the same name, their family heritage impacted who they were and how they lived. Seth’s Lamech was the father of Noah, who was used by God to save the human race and continue the messianic promise. Cain’s Lamech murdered a young man who had wounded him and then boasted about it to his wives (Genesis 4:23-24). This shows the very different paths that these two families took.
Lamech’s hope for his son, Noah, is explained by Lamech in the naming, when Lamech prophesies that Noah will be the agent God will use to give humanity rest. This shows us that mankind still understood God’s curse and desired a form of relief from it. Noah was not the deliverer Lamech hoped for (he didn’t save humanity from the God’s curse), but Noah did fulfill the prophetic hope by saving mankind from God’s judgment, as we will see in Genesis 6. Noah fathered three boys. The oldest was Japheth. Shem was the middle child and Ham was the youngest.
This chapter covers the lineage from Adam to Noah, the same lineage that will ultimately connect to Jesus (Luke 3:23-38).
Biblical Text
25 Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-seven years, and became the father of Lamech. 26 Then Methuselah lived seven hundred and eighty-two years after he became the father of Lamech, and he had other sons and daughters. 27 So all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred and sixty-nine years, and he died. 28 Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and became the father of a son. 29 Now he called his name Noah, saying, “This one will give us rest from our work and from the toil of our hands arising from the ground which the Lord has cursed.” 30 Then Lamech lived five hundred and ninety-five years after he became the father of Noah, and he had other sons and daughters. 31 So all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy-seven years, and he died. 32 Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Check out our other commentaries:
-
Ecclesiastes 9:3-6 meaning
We have a choice to either lament (or deny) death, or to take its inevitability as motivation to make the most of today....... -
Deuteronomy 25:17-19 meaning
Moses urged the Israelites to remember to wipe out the Amalekites when they are settled in the Promised Land. This was in response to the...... -
Matthew 20:1-7 meaning
Jesus tells the first half of the parable of the Vineyard laborers. He describes how the landowner continually goes out throughout the day to hire...... -
Numbers 3:11-13 meaning
The LORD declared that the Levites were to be set apart to become His possession instead of the firstborn....... -
Matthew 9:35-38 meaning
Jesus feels compassion for the people of Galilee. He tells His disciples that the harvest for the gospel is bountiful, but there are few workers.......
