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The Bible provides the following information in relation to the Creation
to the calling of Abraham.
FROM GENESIS 5:3-31,7:6,11,9:28-29
* Fathered * * Thereafter * * Total *
Adam 130 800 930
Seth 105 807 912
Enosh 90 815 905
Cainan 70 840 910
Mahalaleel 65 830 895
Jared 162 800 962
Enoch 65 300 365
Methuselah 187 782 969
Lamech 182 595 777
Noah to Flood 600 350 950
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1,656
[ NB: The way the 'fathered' and the 'thereafter' values
always equal the 'total' value, suggests that the
'thereafter' number is a record of each persons
additional birthdays. ]
FROM GENESIS 11:10-26
* Fathered * * Thereafter *
Shem 2
Arphaxad 35 403
Salah 30 403
Eber 34 430
Peleg 30 209
Reu 32 207
Serug 30 200
Nahor 29 119
Terah 70
Abraham
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292
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These figures need to be adjusted for the following.
A) Many people when assembling the chronology of the Creation to Abraham
period do not take into account the effect of accumulated months.
The way years are counted in English, a person's age is determined
on the basis of how many full years they have lived. However, in
Scripture a person's age is determined according to the year they
are living! An example of this can be seen in the verses mentioning
the age of Noah.
Gen 7:6 Noah was six hundred years old when the flood
of waters was on the earth.
7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life in
the second month, the seventeenth day of the
month, on that day all the foundations of
the great deep were broken up, and the
windows of heaven were opened.
Hence, Scripture is saying Noah is 600 years old (Gen 7:6), but he
was actually living his 600th year of life (Gen 7:11). In current
English culture it would be said that he was only 599 years old.
As a result of this, those biblical chronologists who ignore
this issue tend to overstate the actual number of years which
have elapsed.
B) On the topic of how years are counted, another issue arises.
In Scripture are the years of a persons life counted relative
to their birthdays OR are the years relative to the number of
calendar years their life has spanned?
Let us look at these two approaches while trying to MINIMISE
the tally of the number of years passing.
Birthday approach
Adam 129 yrs + a few days = 130 th year
Seth 104 yrs + a few days = 234 th year
Enosh 89 yrs + a few days = 323 rd year
Cainan 69 yrs + a few days = 392 nd year
Mahalaleel 64 yrs + a few days = 456 th year
Jared 161 yrs + a few days = 617 th year
Enoch 64 yrs + a few days = 681 th year
Methuselah 968 yrs + a few days = 1649 th year
(Have utilised the Methuselah age, which has allowed
the consideration of Lamech and Noah to be set aside
for this purpose.)
Calendar Year approach
[ This approach is seen in respect to the counting of
the years a king reigns. Any portion of a calendar
year being considered a full year. ]
Yr Died
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Adam 130 = 130 th yr 930
Seth 105 + 104 = 234 th yr 1041
Enosh 90 + 89 = 323 rd yr 1138
Cainan 70 + 69 = 392 nd yr 1232
Mahalaleel 65 + 64 = 456 th yr 1286
Jared 162 + 161 = 617 th yr 1417
Enoch 65 + 64 = 681 th yr 981
Methuselah 187 + 186 = 867 th yr 1649
Lamech 182 + 181 = 1048 th yr 1643
Noah 600 + 599 = 1647 th yr
NB: What can immediately be seen is that the counting
of 'calendar years spanned' approach is invalid! It
results in the Flood occurring in the 1647th year,
some two years earlier than the death of Methuselah
in the 1649th year.
C) Another critical issue to identify is :- That the English
terms 'begot' or 'father of' found in Genesis should be
rendered 'fathered'. The reference is to when the child
is born!
D) As previously mentioned, what we see in the information
presented for the Adam to Flood period is that the age
when they became a father plus the subsequent number of
years always equals their age at death.
This suggests that additional year counts are entirely
counted based on the passing of birthday markers.
NB: Otherwise any mixing of birthday approach and the
years spanned approach would generate occasional
discrepancies.
E) A period of time which needs special attention is the Methuselah
to Flood period.
Methuselah dies in his 969th year.
[ Assuming he died of natural causes prior to the start of
the Deluge he would have had to die before the unleashing
of the Flood waters on the 17th day of the 2nd month in
that year. ]
Minimum counting for this period arrives at,
Methuselah fathers after (187-1) 186 years
Lamech fathers in his (182-1) 181 years
Noah to Flood 600th year
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967th year
[ NB: Numbers being adjusted to avoid double counting. ]
A value 2 years lower than the 969th year of Methuselah. This
indicates the use of 'minimum additional days' is not to be
applied to the birth of Lamech or Noah. As it is necessary
to lift the total number of passing years to have the Flood
occur in the 1649th year.
F) The Flood lasted a period of less than one year.
For a fuller discussion, refer FLOOD CHRONOLOGY
(The waters of the Deluge rose and receded over a span of
300 days. Starting from the 17th day of the 2nd month and
finishing on the 16th day of the 12th month. This was
followed by 14 days of the ground drying.)
G) Genesis 11:10 indicates Shem fathered Arphaxad 2 years after the
Flood.
However, Genesis 5:32 states Shem was born when Noah was 500 years
of age and Genesis 11:10 states Shem was only 100 years of age when
Arphaxad was born.
The indication is that Arphaxad had to be born immediately after
the Flood, in the second year. That is to say the 1650th year.
[NB: 1) The word translated 'two' in Gen 11:10 is Strong's reference
8147 which can also be rendered 'second' as in 1Kings 15:25,
2Kings 1:17, 14:1, 15:32, Daniel 2:1, Haggai 1:1 and
Zechariah 1:1.
2) The bible counts inclusively. The first period after the
Flood occurred in the same year as the Flood. It seems
that technically the Deluge had ended shortly before
the sending out of the birds. Nevertheless, the waters
continued to abate until the day the dove brought back
the freshly picked olive leaf, which was midway through
the twelfth month.
[ NB: In addition to these thoughts there is a subtle
indication that what is commonly translated as
'two years' ('year of two') in Gen 11:10 (and
perhaps in some other verses), may actually
be an obscure reference to the year of the
execution of a covenant. ]
H) We do NOT know the exact birth date of Noah.
Genesis 7:11 states Noah was living his 600th year when the Deluge
began on the 17th day of the second month.
Genesis 7:6 states Noah was six hundred years old when the flood
of waters were upon the earth. In other words, during the entire
period of the Deluge it happens that Noah was living in his 600th
year of life.
Gen 7:6 Noah was six hundred years old when the
floodwaters were on the earth.
The waters of the Deluge were upon the earth until late in
the eleventh month. Following this Noah sent out the birds.
Any time after the period of the Deluge, and before the 17th
day of the second month of the following year, Noah could have
become one year older.
[ NB: The issue is complicated a little further when one
realises the first month of the 1650 year was a
special month which was added in some years to keep
the calendar aligned with the seasons. So it may be
that in the year 1650, the true anniversary for the
start of the Deluge may be one month later. ]
Genesis 8:13 states that the 1st day of the 1st month of the next
year was the 601st year.
Gen 8:13 And it came to pass in the six hundred and
first year, in the first month, the first
day of the month, that the waters were dried
up from the earth; ...
Many have assumed the reference to the 601st year is indicating
that at that time Noah was already living in his 601st year.
However, it may only be saying that in that year (ie, the year
after the Flood) Noah would during that year become another
year older and then start living his 601st year.
SUMMARY
The details of the Adam to Arphaxad period can be quite confusing.
So hopefully the following will help to clarify.
Year When Person Yr of Life Extra Son Born Year
Born Son Born Days
day 1, yr 1 Adam 130th few 129 yr + few days
early 130 Seth 105th few 234 yr + few days
early 234 Enosh 90th few 323 yr + few days
early 323 Cainan 70th few 392 yr + few days
early 392 Mahalaleel 65th few 456 yr + few days
early 456 Jared 162nd few 617 yr + few days
early 617 Enoch 65th few 681 yr + few days
early 681 Methuselah 187th many 868 yr
868 Lamech 182nd many 1050 yr
1050 Noah 500th many 1550 yr
1550 Shem 100th many early 1650 yr
early 1650 Arphaxad
From this compilation the following can be noticed;
1) Methuselah was born in the 681st year and as we know he died
after living a further 968 complete years (dying shortly
afterwards in his 969th year). He died in the year of the
Flood. In the 1649th year.
The circumstances of his death are not known, but given his
age it is quite possible he died of old age prior to the
unleashing of the floodwaters.
2) Arphaxad was born in the 1650th year. The year immediately
following the year of the Flood.
We need to take into account Noah fathers Shem in his 500th
year and Shem fathers Arphaxad in his 100th year. If Noah
and Shem father late in their respect years of life, then
the time which may have elapsed could be approaching 600
years.
However, what this means is that Noah would have to start
his 601st year of life after the birth of Arphaxad (in
the year 1650), but before the anniversary of the start
of the Flood in that year.
This also means that if Noah completes 600 full years of
life in year 1650, then he has to have been born in the
year 1050.
3) Noah lives into his 950th year.
Born early in the year 1050 he will die before his 950th
birthday. His 950th birthday occurs in the year 2000.
So in summary, after taking all the above points into consideration and
converting the numbers to the English form of counting, we can arrive at
the following 'minimum' compilation;
* Adjusted *
Adam (130-1) 129
Seth (105-1) 104
Enosh ( 90-1) 89
Cainan ( 70-1) 69
Mahalaleel ( 65-1) 64
Jared (162-1) 161
Enoch ( 65-1) 64
Methuselah (969-1) 968 1,648
Flood Year 1 1
Shem ( 2-2) -
Arphaxad ( 35-1) 34
Salah ( 30-1) 29
Eber ( 34-1) 33
Peleg ( 30-1) 29
Reu ( 32-1) 31
Serug ( 30-1) 29
Nahor ( 29-1) 28
Terah ( 70-1) 69 282
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1,931 full years
So, having resolved the Adam to Terah period, it is now necessary
to consider the timing of the calling of Abraham.
CALLING OF ABRAHAM
At what age was Abraham when he was called by God to enter the
Promised Land of Canaan?
Genesis 12:4 indicates Abraham was 75 years old when he departed from
Haran and entered Canaan. However, a more literal rendering of this
verse reads as follows;
Gen 12:4 And Abram a son of five years and seventy years
when he departed from Haran. ....
In Genesis 12:4 it is not necessarily wrong to translate the Hebrew
as 75 years, but the verse can also be understood to be saying Abraham
was at this time a son (ie builder) of both 5 years and 70 years!
[NB: God sometimes uses the Hebrew term 'son' to refer to
the number of years since He has called a person. Refer
1Sam 13:1 in the NKJV. This situation is also encountered
in relation to the age of Joseph when he appeared before
Pharaoh (Gen 41:46).]
What is possibly being suggested is;
1) This was the 70th year since Abraham's birth, and
2) The 5th year since God had called him to leave
Mesopotamia.
Please refer to;
| PEOPLES AGES MENTIONED IN GENESIS |
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[NB: It is not unusual in Genesis for the lower number of years
to be stated before the greater value, but it is unusual
for this order to be encountered in conjunction with the
term 'son of'. ]
Understanding that Abraham left Haran when he was 70 years old, ie
he was living his 70th year, would mean that in English terms he was
69 years old.
* Adjusted *
Creation to birth of Abraham 1,931
Age of Abraham when he enters Canaan 69
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2,000 full years
Therefore, the minimum number of years which could have past prior to
the calling of Abraham to leave Haran and to enter the land of Canaan
was 2,000 years!
Placing this calling of Abraham in the 2001st year.
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