Hope Through Seth

Genesis 5: 1-25 This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day when God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. ² He created them male and female, and He blessed them and named them Man in the day when they were created. ³ When Adam had lived one hundred and thirty years, he became the father of a son in his own likeness, according to his image, and named him Seth. ⁴ Then the days of Adam after he became the father of Seth were eight hundred years, and he had other sons and daughters. ⁵ So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years, and he died.

⁶ Seth lived one hundred and five years, and became the father of Enosh. ⁷ Then Seth lived eight hundred and seven years after he became the father of Enosh, and he had other sons and daughters. ⁸ So all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years, and he died.

⁹ Enosh lived ninety years, and became the father of Kenan. ¹⁰ Then Enosh lived eight hundred and fifteen years after he became the father of Kenan, and he had other sons and daughters. ¹¹ So all the days of Enosh were nine hundred and five years, and he died.

¹² Kenan lived seventy years, and became the father of Mahalalel. ¹³ Then Kenan lived eight hundred and forty years after he became the father of Mahalalel, and he had other sons and daughters. ¹⁴ So all the days of Kenan were nine hundred and ten years, and he died.

¹⁵ Mahalalel lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Jared. ¹⁶ Then Mahalalel lived eight hundred and thirty years after he became the father of Jared, and he had other sons and daughters. ¹⁷ So all the days of Mahalalel were eight hundred and ninety-five years, and he died.

¹⁸ Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years, and became the father of Enoch. ¹⁹ Then Jared lived eight hundred years after he became the father of Enoch, and he had other sons and daughters. ²⁰ So all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years, and he died.

²¹ Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah. ²² Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. ²³ So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. ²⁴ Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.

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.

Notice the years lived with Seth’s line. When we read about Cain’s descendants, no ages were added. One commentator said, “Why record the years of a life that is wasted because God is not in it?”

Proverbs 10:7 says The memory of the righteous is blessed, But the name of the wicked will rot.

Seth’s genealogy includes three prominent men of faith. These are some of the saints mentioned in Hebrews 11which says they “were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance.” They confessed this faith by their way of living and considered they were merely pilgrims en route through this earth toward a better country.

Basically their living faith in God looked forward to the fulfillment of God’s promise in Christ as they believed God’s word, even as we today look both backward to Christ’s past redemption and forward to our future life with Him. They walked with God according to His unique revelation given to them at that time.

The first prominent man was Enosh the son of Seth and grandson of Adam. He lived 905 years. If you look back to Genesis 4:26 it says “at that time men began to call on the LORD” (in capital letters so it means the name of the covenant God.) Seth and men around him realized the darkness of the times and started praying to God.

God wants people to realize they need Him. He wants us to cry out to Him. And He will meet our needs. The Bible says many people don’t have because they don’t ask. Pray earnestly and for as long as it takes. Don’t just ask once and if nothing happens the next day say, “Well, I guess God said no!”

The next man was Enoch. Look at what the genealogy says about him again: ²¹ Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah. ²² Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. ²³ So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. ²⁴ Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.

And here’s what Hebrews 11:5 says about him; ⁵ By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.” For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God.

According to Jude 14, Enoch was the seventh from Adam. His godly life was in extreme contrast to the culmination of wickedness in the life of Lamech, his counterpart, also the seventh from Adam in the line of Cain.

Enoch apparently lived a life of supreme spiritual power and beauty in a deteriorating age. It looks like he didn’t walk with God until his son Methuselah was born. Sometimes it takes having kids for adults to turn to God and start living right.

Only Enoch and Noah are described in the Bible as “walking with God”. We don’t know if this is literal or not. Maybe God did still come down to earth to be with certain people like He did with Adam and Eve. There’s really no way of knowing.

But we do know He will dwell with us one day. Revelation 21:3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.

And Revelation 22:3-4 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. ⁴ They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.

Enoch pleased God so much Enoch just walked into Heaven one day!

What kind of person pleases God? It might be tempting to say “someone who goes out and feeds the hungry” or “a minister who preaches the Bible every Sunday”. But it’s people of faith. People who have a loving, trustful spirit. A belief in God’s Word. Someone who sets apart time for God and then is obedient in little and big things. Someone who is joyfully dependent on God.

Hebrews 11:6 says, “Without faith it is impossible to please God.”

Anyone who comes to Him must believe He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him with the realization of His presence and with the answers to their prayers. Do you come to Jesus believing He is a real living person and He wants to bless you?

According to Jude 14-15 Enoch also prophesied about non-believers of the time. He said, “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones ¹⁵ to judge everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”

Enoch’s walking into Heaven without dying reminds us that when Christ comes back for His church, those who are still alive on earth will be caught up and not die – much like Enoch did.

Another quick thing about Enoch. Many Bible students think Enoch and Elijah (the two Old Testament prophets who never died) will be the two witnesses during the Tribulation.

The third prominent man is Noah. By the time he built the ark apparently his was the only family true in faith to God.