Genesis 6:1-8

Well I haven't been blogging for a couple of weeks because I hit the brick wall of Genesis 6. Understanding exactly what is going on with the Nephilim has eluded me. The heart of the passage seems to rest on verse 5 - "every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually". This indictment on mankind powerfully captures the depths of depravity that man had sunk to. Sin had multiplied with generation after generation since the tragedy of the fall. The condition of the day were so dark and the passage conveys this sense of utter hopelessness.

The depth of God's emotions are revealed at this point "it grieved Him to His heart". Does it get any more raw than this? So far in the story we have seen God pour His energy, passion and love into this wildly extravagant creation before crowning it with His masterpiece - 'man'. The creation story explodes with God's delight and celebration as he declares over and over again 'it is good'. Now, just a few chapter later, God's heart is so deeply disturbed by the unfolding of His plan that He expresses regret at the work of His hands. At this point we are thrust into the difficult debate about God's foresight and will. How does an all knowing God, who holds the future arrive at this state? My only reflections on this so far have been that this is a powerful lesson about the patience, long suffering and grace of God. He had know for eternity that this day would arrive and yet beyond the pain of betrayal and the disease of sin he saw a people that would freely chose Him and who would become His very great reward. At this point humanity could have been utterly destroyed but God found one man through whom this dream could be realised. As long as God found a seed of faith, amongst all the weeds, he was willing to push through the pain for something glorious that lay on the other side. For those who have chosen God this passage must shout to us of His love for us. God was willing to persevere through the pain of rejection and the heart break of a deteriorating creation so that we might become His beloved people. This is an act of extraordinary generosity.

Cain v Seth

My attention has been drawn to an interesting distinction between the two family lines recorded in Genesis 4 and 5. Cain's line culminates in Lamech's merciless revenge. Lamech boasts that he is avenged seventy-seven fold. The contrast with Jesus teaching to forgive not seven but seventy-seven times seems to illuminate the godlessness of Cain's lineage.

On the other hand Abel's replacement, Seth, has Enoch and Noah amongst his descendents. This line is characterised by righteousness. The meaning of Noah's name in 5:29 seems prophetic in its declaration that Noah would provide, in some form, salvation from the curse that was bearing down heavily on mankind.

Genesis 5 1-32

At the beginning of this passage we are reminded that when man was created it was in the image of God. The verse then reminds us that when humans reproduce the children bear their parents image. When Adam and Eve first reproduced did they still have God's image? We have seen how they rejected God instructions for their lives. What impact did these events have on the image that man was created in? How closely did the next generation resemble the image that God had initially given man? What was the result of the multiple generations that separated Adam and Noah on the image of Noah's generation?

In the middle of the list of Adam's descendants we are introduced to Enoch. Enoch walked with God all the days of his life. The first time we were introduced to the concept of walking with God was in Genesis chapter 3. Adam and Eve hid from God when he was walking through the garden because of their sin. So it would seem that this expression, 'walking with God' is suggesting that peace and harmony characterise the relationship. There was nothing that caused Enoch to hide, so much so that Enoch escapes the curse of sin and departs from the world in a more unusual fashion. He is just taken by God!! For some reason Enoch, the only man noted in this list for his godliness, departs this earth a lot sooner than any of the others. He is half their age in fact. I'm not sure if there is any significance in this!? Enoch's epitaph is surely one we would all aspire to. What a privilege to be known as the man who walked with God.