January 6 Daily Devotional

Genesis 4–5

At the age of one hundred and thirty years Adam and Eve had another son. They called his name Seth. “For God,” so Eve said, “hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.” The descendants of Seth feared God, and they were called sons of God. God revealed to them his will, and they looked up to him in thankfulness, while the sons of men lived on in wickedness and ungodliness.

A great grandson of Seth was Enoch. Of him it is said he “walked with God.” While so many of his fellowmen had drifted away, Enoch walked with God, and God walked with him and talked with him. He heard the voice of God and became a preacher of righteousness. In the name of God he proclaimed to the fallen world, “The Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, to execute judgment upon all.” Three hundred and sixty-five years he had lived on this earth when his departure took place. He did not die, for God took him away from this earth to heaven. “By faith,” so it is said, “Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found.”

At that time people lived very long. To live hundreds of years was nothing unusual. Some lived almost a thousand years. Adam lived, after Seth was born, eight hundred years, and died at the age of nine hundred and thirty. Seth had a son, Enos, at the age of one hundred five years. After that he lived eight hundred and seven years. He reached the age of nine hundred and twelve. Enos lived nine hundred and five years. Cainan, a son of Enos, died at the age of nine hundred and ten years. Mahalaleel, a son of Cainan, did not reach the nine hundred mark. He was taken from this earth at the age of eight hundred and ninety-five. Jared, a son of Mahalaleel, brought his years up to nine hundred and sixty-two. The longest life we read of that any man lived on earth was that of Methuselah. He was the son of Enoch, and finished his earthly course at nine hundred and sixty-nine years.

Methuselah had a son whom he called Lamech. At the age of one hundred and eighty-two Lamech had a son whom he called No­ah, saying, “This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the Lord hath cursed.” Lamech died at the age of seven hundred and seventy-seven years, in the same year when the great flood came, of which we will hear in the following stories. Without doubt the long lives of these patriarchs before the flood were rich in various experiences, and we regret that no details have come down to us.