How did the Patriarchs Live so Long?
From looking at the Genesis account we know that the earliest men to walk the earth had exceptionally long lifespans but the question is, how were they able to live so long?
By looking at Genesis 5 it is stated that the lifespans until the flood were as follows:
Adam 930Yrs, Seth 912Yrs, Enosh 905Yrs, Kenan 910Yrs, Mahalalel 895Yrs, Jared 962Yrs, Enoch 365Yrs (Gen 5:24), Methuselah 969Yrs, Lamech 777Yrs. Now we know from Gen 5:31-32 & Gen 7:6 the flood came 100Yrs after the death of Lamech, at which time Noah was 600Yrs old.
For us living in today's world where we consider a person of 80Yrs+ to have lived a generously long life these figures are above all else a testament to God's handiwork. According to a variety of sources it's estimated that Moses wrote the prayer 'God's Eternity and Man's Transitoriness' (Psalm 90) around the year 1407BC. In the prayer he states that 'As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years, Or if due to strength, eighty years.' It's interesting to note that this was almost 3500Yrs ago and already man's normal lifespan was what it is today. Another interesting point to note is that whilst Moses was aware of the normal human lifespan at the time... 'Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died, his eye was not dim, nor his vigor abated' Deu 34:7. By all accounts Moses lived a very long life, as well as the fact that his final years were not spent in frailty but with vigor.
In 2016 Dr Nigel Blamey published a topic relevant article in what is described by ResearchGate as 'Undoubtedly the most popular and widely read earth science journal in print', Geology. The article looked at measuring the earths past atmospheric Oxygen level, it concludes in saying 'Our atmospheric oxygen measurements indicate an oxygenated environment in which complex life could have emerged and flourished in advance of the Ediacaran and Cambrian explosions... ~(approximately)100–200 million years in advance of most proxy-based models'.
Whilst this is a mouthful (I'm not a scientist either), the main point I'm alluding to is that the modern evolutionary model of early life formation and earth's early atmospheric formation may be out by 100-200 million years.
Going back to the biblical narrative,Gen 9:11-13 is the sign of God's new covenant with man, the rainbow. Presumably given that it was a 'new covenant' I think it's fair to assume Noah had never seen a rainbow before, this coupled with Gen 2:5-6 leads me to believe it is possible that the inhabitants of the earth prior to the flood had much higher levels of protection from UV light due to the thick water vapour in the atmosphere, thus resulting in longer life. This of course is conjecture so don't take my opinion as gospel, quite literally 😊.
Ultimately we won't know until we meet Adam, Enoch, Noah and the rest of the righteous souls who we will be in communion with one day, what is certain is that the Word of God is as fascinating today as when it was written 2000years ago.
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Thanks@galacticvagabond for sharing your post. During the time before the flood, the basic diet was plant based. Everything was organic way back then. After the flood, Noah was given permission to eat meat because there were no trees and plants. All were destroyed during that great flood. Ever since, man became a meat eater. That's the reason the life span of man decreased.
Thanks for your insight. Not that I am one but it's interesting to note the global vegan movement becoming very popular over the past year or so, a small factor alluded to in Matt 24:37 maybe... 🙂
God had people live longer back then so they could populate the earth.
May well be, thanks for the input :)
7.14% @pushup from @galacticvagabond
Nice one...I like your theory tho
Thanks much appreciated. Hopefully more logical theories to follow... 🙂
think barncat nailed the reason.
scientifically, there would have been a lot more oxygen and co2 in the atmosphere, tons of fresh, pure organic food to eat, no disease, no vaccinations, ready meals, fast food, fizzy drinks, telescreen, chemtrails nor poisoned water either..
That is what I was alluding to but couldn't find any scientific articles backing up the higher O2 levels at the time of the Patriarchs so I settled for the fact proxy estimates are woefully inaccurate. Very true points, one can only imagine what the new heaven and new earth will be like Rev 21:1
i'm expecting pretty awesome, hope i'm chosen to be worthy despite my sins.
just the fact that there would have been a LOT more trees and vegetation would lead us to conclude there would have been a lot more oxygen in the atmosphere - i'm sure there are ice cores and things which may also prove it. though not that the authorities would want to remind people that we're not progressing in any way whatsoever.
peace brother.
Rev 21:21 sounds pretty awesome to me 'The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.'
Not to preach at you but you might enjoy watching this cinematic video on being chosen to receive salvation
Very true, always two sides to a story, if you can get your hands on it 'Is Genesis History?' is a well made movie looking at it the 'authorities' data and attempting to answer the question. Peace be with you.
indeed isaiah 65:17-25 is God's promise to all those who strive for the kingdom till the end.
the bible is pretty clear we have to do a lot more than simply believe to enter the kingdom - Jesus said over and over again 'repent..' easier said than done, especially when anger is counted as murder..
with peace & love & faith :-)