(NOTE: Some of the themes of these articles may not be appropriate for young readers. Please keep that in mind when sharing this information).
It is written:
“To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins.” (Acts 10:43)
One example of the supernatural unity of the Bible as proof of its’ Divine inspiration may be seen in the names of the patriarchs in Genesis 5. In this passage, Moses is writing down the names of the patriarchs (the male heads of the homes through whom one day the Messiah, Jesus Christ, would be born). While Moses wrote Genesis some fifteen hundred years before Christ was born, he was actually quoting from an older book.
Genesis 5:1-This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God.
Speaking of the word “toledoth” Cooper has written:
“We begin by taking on board the fact that Genesis consists of several successive documents that were written under inspiration at successive times. This in no way subscribes to the entirely spurious and misguided Documentary Hypothesis of the ‘Higher Critics’ though. Most of the documents of Genesis are clearly marked out for us by the appearance and function of the toledoth, and if we must look for a source for these various documents, then we can look no further than God. He is their source and Author, and each document in Genesis is as much the Word of God as is the next. Even as God is, each document is inerrant and infallibly true. It would seem that when Moses brought together, or was given, these successive documents to make a single book of them, either he himself provided under inspiration the toledoth which ‘stitch’ these documents together, or the toledoth already existed in the documents themselves. The latter would seem the most likely option, because when the toledoth supplies a colophon to one document and an identifying preface or title to the next, it is merely fulfilling the same functions as the titles and colophons that appear at the beginning and end of clay (or stone) tablets. It is a most ancient method of record-keeping which largely fell into redundancy once writing was committed to parchment scrolls and papyrus, this allowing the unbroken continuation of long texts. Any clay tablet which formed part of a series would contain a preface or title at the beginning and a colophon at the end, so that the reader would know which tablet followed in the series or preceded the one that he was reading. Tablets, whether of clay or stone, were always a cumbersome medium for writing, just a small series or collection taking up an inordinate amount of space. Their collective weight was also a problem, although they did have one quality – durability. They were both waterproof and fireproof, and impervious to insects and vermin. Many are in as good a condition today as when they were written on and baked in the sun four and a half thousand years ago. Amazing. It would seem, though, that from the very beginning, the Torah itself has been written on leather or parchment scrolls. Leather, parchment and papyrus scrolls were not unknown to Moses from his time in Egypt, so their use would have seemed perfectly natural. Moreover, it was possible to write the entire Pentateuch onto a single scroll when many hundreds of cumbersome clay tablets would have been required to meet the same task. The advantages of the scroll were immediate and obvious. But the use of clay tablets for the writing of Scripture, it would seem, did not altogether die out with the writing of the Torah on parchment. Of all the books of the Pentateuch, it is significant that Genesis contains eleven of the Bible’s toledoth. Nowhere else in Scripture do we find such a concentration.5 Indeed, we do not see another until Numbers 3:1 – “These also are the generations (toledoth) of Aaron and Moses…” – which is also dated – “…in the day that the Lord spake with Moses in Mount Sinai.” – in accordance with the already age-old conventions of the clay tablet. Then we do not meet another in the Bible until the Book of Ruth (4:18) – “Now these are the generations (toledoth) of Pharez…” – which marks the short genealogy which follows as well as all that has gone before, indicating surely that the Book of Ruth was originally written on clay tablets. Then we come to the last, being that which is given in 1 Chronicles 1:29 – “These are their generations (toledoth)….” So for the Book of Genesis to contain so many toledoth, we may assume that a whole collection of clay tablets contained the already-inspired records and histories of Genesis that came into Moses’ care and keeping. In itself, that suggests an antiquity for the Book of Genesis which far surpasses any of those modernist notions which would have us believe that this most ancient of Books is but a late compilation and the work of 6th or 5th-century BC forgers. But this is not the only evidence that we have for the antiquity of the Book of Genesis. There is more. Much more.” (Bill Cooper, The Authenticity Of The Book Of Genesis, 482-512 (Kindle Edition)
Therefore, what we are about to learn about the names of the men in Genesis 5 predates Moses by possibly thousands of years.
The names of the men in Genesis 5 teach us a great deal about the amazing supernatural unity of the Bible.
“Since there is such significance in Methuselah’s name, let’s examine the other names to discover what may lie behind them. (Bear with me on this: it’ll be worth it!) The first name, Adam, , adomah, means “man.” As the first man, that seems straightforward enough. Adam’s son was named Seth, , which means “appointed.” “When he was born Eve said, “For God hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.”15 Seth’s son was called Enosh, , which means “mortal,” “frail,” or “miserable.” It is from the root anash: to be incurable, used of a wound, grief, woe, sickness, or wickedness. It was in the days of Enosh that men began to defile the name of the Living God.16 Enosh’s son was named Kenan, from which can mean “sorrow,” “dirge,” or “elegy.” (The precise denotation is somewhat elusive; some study aids unfortunately presume that Kenan is synonymous with “Cainan.” Balaam, looking down from the heights of Moab, employed a pun upon the name of the Kenites when he prophesied their destruction.17) We have no real idea as to why these names were chosen for their children. Often they may have referred to circumstances at their birth, etc. Kenan’s son was Mahalalel, from , which means “blessed” or “praise”; and El, the name for God. Thus, Mahalalel means “the Blessed God.” Often Hebrew names included El, the name of God, as Dani-el, “God is my Judge,” Nathani-el, “Gift of God,” etc. Mahalalel’s son was named Jared, , from the verb yaradh, meaning “shall come down.” Some authorities suggest that this might be an allusion to the “Sons of God” who “came down” to corrupt the daughters of men, resulting in the Nephilim (“fallen ones”) of Genesis 6.18 Jared’s son was named Enoch, , which means “teaching,” or “commencement.” He was the first of four generations of preachers. In fact, the earliest recorded prophecy was by Enoch,…Enoch was the father of Methuselah, whom we have already mentioned. Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah.19 Apparently, Enoch received the prophecy of the Great Flood, and was told that as long as his son was alive, the judgment of the Flood would be withheld. The year that Methuselah died, the Flood came. Methuselah’s son was named Lamech, , a root still evident today in our own English word, “lament” or “lamentation.” Lamech suggests “despairing.” (This name is also linked to the Lamech in Cain’s line who inadvertently killed his son Tubal-Cain in a hunting incident.20) Lamech, of course, is the father of Noah, , which is derived from nacham, “to bring relief” or “comfort,” as Lamech himself explains..“Man (is) appointed mortal sorrow; (but) the Blessed God shall come down teaching (that) His death shall bring (the) despairing rest.” Here is a summary of God’s plan of redemption, hidden here within a genealogy in Genesis!…The implications of this discovery are far more deeply significant than may be evident at first glance. It demonstrates that in the earliest chapters of the Book of Genesis, God had already laid out His plan of redemption for the predicament of mankind. It is the beginning of a love story, ultimately written in blood on a wooden cross which was erected in Judea almost 2,000 years ago. This is also one of many evidences that the Bible is an integrated message system, the product of supernatural engineering. This punctures the you presumptions of many who view the Bible as a record of an evolving cultural tradition, noble though it may be. It claims to be authored by the One who alone knows the end from the beginning.21 It is astonishing to discover how many Biblical “controversies” seem to evaporate if one simply recognizes the unity—the integrity—of these 66 books. Every number, every place name, every detail—every jot and tittle—is part of a tightly engineered design, tailored for our learning, our discovery, and our amazement.” (Chuck Missler, Hidden Treasures In The Biblical Text, 1443-231 (Kindle Edition); Coeur d’Alene, ID; Koinonoia House)
Astonishing!
“Man Is Appointed To Mortal Sorrow But The Blessed God Shall Come Down Teaching And His Death Will Bring The Broken-hearted Peace.”
This declaration of the Gospel was encoded in the names of these patriarchs long before the time of Christ, even long before the time of Moses-and it is a powerful example of the supernatural unity of the Bible.
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