The Gospel message Uncovered in Genesis 5

Jesus said about the Old Testament Scriptures: “These are the very Scriptures that testify about me” (John 5:39). One fascinating example of this is Genesis 5, which contains the genealogy from Adam to Noah. The original text of this part of the Old Testament is written in Hebrew, and in Hebrew there is always important meaning in names.  Upon closer examination, we can see the message of the Gospel foretold thousands of years before Jesus was born.  Let’s see the meaning of each of the names of the descendants from Adam to Noah.  This was of course a godly line of men.

The name Adam means “man.”

The name Seth means “is appointed.” When Seth was born Eve said as recorded in Genesis 4:25, “God has appointed me another child in place of Abel.”

The name Enosh means “mortal .”

The name Kenan means “sorrow.”

The name Mahalalel means “the blessed God.” His name is from two words: Mahalal which means blessed; and El, the name for God.

The name Jared means, “shall come down.”

The name Enoch means, “teaching.” Enoch was the first of four generations of preachers, and according to Jude 14 & 15 he also prophesied about the second coming of Christ.

The name Methuselah means, “his death shall bring.” Methuselah is made up of the word muth, a root that means death, and from shalach, which means to bring or to send forth. So his name means, “his death shall bring.” His death will bring what? The flood! Methuseleh died in the year that the flood was sent.

The name Lamech means “the hopeless ones.”

The name Noah means “comfort, rest,” as the name mentions in Genesis 5:29.

So, when you put this all together, it gives the following message:

Man, is appointed, mortal sorrow. The blessed God shall come down, teaching. His death shall bring the hopeless ones comfort and rest.

Incredibly, when you take the meaning of each name from Adam to Noah, a summary of the gospel message pointing to Jesus is seen. Though man was appointed death and sorrow because of sin, the blessed God himself came down in the person of Jesus. Among other things he came teaching, but ultimately, he came to die on the cross. His sacrificial death washes our sins away and brings comfort and eternal rest to those who believe in him.  The Old Testament Scriptures point to Jesus in very unique ways.