Unless there is definite proof that there is a gap in the chronological order of the years, it is far more accurate to base calculations on the Hebrew text than on noncanonical records that could be incomplete or inaccurate.
Third, the genealogy in Matthew 1 and the genealogies in Genesis 5 and Genesis 11 are separate genealogies recorded for different purposes. The genealogy in Matthew has omissions compared to other historical records in the Bible because the purpose of this genealogy was not to just narrate a historical bloodline. By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Matthew was calling attention to the fruition of God’s plan for redemption.
The genealogy in Matthew contains three groups of 14 generations of persons who played critical roles in shedding light on God’s work of redemption until it reached its zenith with the coming of Jesus Christ (Matt 1:17). It is not an exhaustive list of all the generations in biblical history. Matthew also began the genealogy of Jesus Christ with Abraham so that the Jewish audience may understand that Jesus is their Messiah and accept Him. In light of this, the genealogy in Matthew placed its focus on the continuity of faith rather than on a narration of the births and lives of every descendant. It was written from the redemption perspective.
Therefore, skepticism regarding the historicity and accuracy of the genealogies in Genesis 5 and Genesis 11 based on the genealogy in Matthew 1 is unfounded. If we use the records in Genesis 5 and Genesis 11 for our calculations, we will once again realize the astounding inerrancy of the Bible and the profoundness of the spiritual world.
3. A Point of Reference for Calculating the Years
Although there are many genealogies in the Bible, not every genealogy records the years of birth or death; thus, reference points are necessary. Selecting precisely recorded dates as reference points and using them to perform calculations forward and backward in time will help to build a complete chronological timeline. One such biblical reference point is the year of the exodus.
(1) The year of the exodus is 1446 BC.
The year of the exodus is an important reference point for calculating the generations of the patriarchs who lived prior to the exodus. The first record that assists in calculating the year of the exodus is found in the records of the kings in 1 Kings 6:1:
Now it came about in the four hundred and eightieth year after the sons of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the Lord.
Furthermore, 2 Chronicles 3:1–2 confirms the specific date that Solomon began to build the house of the Lord: the second day in the second month.
Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David, at the place that David had prepared, on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. 2And he began to build on the second day in the second month of the fourth year of his reign.
It is commonly known that Solomon succeeded the throne in 970 BC and began the construction work for the temple in 966 BC, the fourth year of his reign. Thus, calculations show that the year of the exodus was 1446 BC (966 + 480 = 1,446). While there are theologians who believe that the exodus occurred in the thirteenth century BC, the vast majority of conservative theologians agree that it is more biblically correct to view the time of the exodus as 1446 BC.
(2) The Israelites were in Egypt for 430 years.
It is clearly recorded in the Book of Exodus as follows:
Exodus 12:40–41 Now the time that the sons of Israel lived in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. 41And it came about at the end of four hundred and thirty years, to the very day, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt.
So if the year of the exodus was 1446 BC, then the year that the Israelites entered Egypt was 1876 BC (1,446 + 430 = 1,876).
(3) The time period between Abraham’s birth and Israel’s migration to Egypt was 290 years.
Abraham had Isaac at the age of 100 (Gen 21:5). Isaac had Jacob at the age of 60 (Gen 25:26). Jacob migrated to Egypt at the age of 130 (Gen 47:9). Thus, 290 years passed between Abraham’s birth and Jacob’s migration to Egypt (100 + 60 + 130 = 290). By adding 1,446 (the year of the exodus), 430 years in Egypt, and 290 years between Abraham’s birth and Israel’s migration into Egypt, we obtain the year of Abraham’s birth: 2166 BC (1,446 + 430 + 290 = 2,166).6
Hence, unspecified dates of events and births can be accurately calculated by using reference points in the Bible. By building a chronological timeline for the 20 generations of patriarchs from Adam to Abraham, we are able to calculate the year of birth for the last person (Abraham). By using the year of Abraham’s birth as a reference point, we can also accurately calculate the years during which the 20 generations of patriarchs lived.
From this point, we will continue to examine God’s divine administration for redemption as revealed through the genealogies in Genesis 4–5 and Genesis 10–11.
PART THREE
The Genealogy According
to the Line of Cain
Genesis 3 is the account of man’s original sin and Genesis 4 is a record of subsequent sins committed after the original sin. The impact of the original sin committed by Adam was not limited just to him; its influence spread to all of his descendants. The results of sin inherited from Adam first became apparent in Cain, but this sinfulness was also not limited to Cain. Sin prospered and grew increasingly strong in the people who were unable to restrain its powers through the Word of God. Sinfulness and wickedness became common traits apparent in all of the descendants in the line of Cain. The cycle of sin and violence that began with Cain’s act of murder advanced in the succeeding generations and reached its culmination during the generation of Lamech.
The genealogy according to the line of Cain is a “genealogy apart from God”; any mention of God’s name and His works is conspicuously absent.
In this chapter, we will study the genealogy of the line of Cain recorded in Genesis 4 and examine the lives of his descendants. We will learn about how unbelief continued to reappear in their lives as they followed after Cain’s sinfulness, and we will trace the spiritual root of that unbelief.
Chapter 8
The Descendants of Cain
1. Cain
Adam and Eve had relations and gave birth to their first son, Cain, by the grace of God (Gen 4:1). He brought great joy to them because he was the first son born to them after they received the promise of the woman’s seed in Genesis 3:15.
Genesis 4:1 Now the man had relations with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain, and she said, “I have gotten a manchild with the help of the Lord.”
Eve expressed her joy after giving birth to Cain, saying, “I have gotten a manchild with the help of the Lord.” The name Cain was Eve’s confession of faith after receiving the first fruit of mankind. She believed that she had received this son with “the help of the Lord,” by His absolute grace and guidance. It is evident that Adam and Eve had great expectations for their first son. They named him with the hope that the lost paradise would be reconstructed through him.
In connection with the birth of her first son, Eve called God by a new name, Jehovah (or Yahweh), meaning the “Lord of redemption.” This was an expression of her faith in the promise of the woman’s seed written in Genesis 3:15 and her hope for salvation.
Eve’s gratefulness and praises to God are also apparent in the name Cain. The name itself is her prayer of thanksgiving