Who was Methuselah from the Bible?

Question

I know some things from the bible, but on one of my questions people answered that Methuselah lived to be 969 years old. I don't remember hearing about this guy from the bible... could someone tell me who he is?

Answer 1

He was a Hebrew patriarch and the grandfather of Noah. Not much is known about him, other than his extraordinary lifespan. According to the Book of Genesis (5:27), Methuselah lived 969 years. If true, this would make Methuselah the longest-lived human by over 840 years.

Methuselah died in the year of the Great Flood. Some interpret this as God waiting for Methuselah to die before causing the Great Flood.

Methuselah came from a line of long-lived individuals. His father Enoch was 65 years old when Methuselah was born. Enoch then lived another 300 years and had other sons and daughters after Methuselah. Altogether Enoch lived 365 years. When Methuselah was 187 years old, he had a son named Lamech. After having Lamech, Methuselah lived another 782 years and had other sons and daughters. Methuselah's great-great-great-great-grandfather was Seth whose parents were Adam and Eve. Lamech (Methuselah's son) is the father of Noah.
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Answer 2

Methuselah is mentioned in Genesis as the son of Enoch and the father of Lamech (father of Noah), whom he fathered at the age of 187. A close reading of the dates in the Old Testament reveals that Methuselah is said to have died in the year of the Great Flood, but the Bible does not indicate if the cause of his death was by drowning. Some have interpreted his name as a prophecy: when he dies, the Flood will come. In that case, the long life has an allegorical dimension, showing that God withheld judgment on humans for a very long time.
Methuselah is also mentioned in the Book of Enoch as being the son of Enoch and as having brothers. The writer tells Methuselah of the coming Deluge and of a future Messianic kingdom.

Answer 3

He was the son of the prophet Enoch, who is mentioned in both the Old & New Testaments (Enoch didn’t die, but went directly to heaven, according the Genesis). I’ve been told that Methuselah literally means “when he dies, it will come”. Considering the fact that Old Testament prophets sometimes gave their children odd names in order to remind people of their prophecies, some people have suggested that the life & death of Methuselah had some special meaning, based on the literal translation of his name. According to Genesis, Methuselah died during the year of Noah’s flood, so it seems that Methuselah lived so long because God was postponing the coming of the Flood. Methuselah is the longest lived person in the Bible.

That's all that I know.

Answer 4

Genesis 5:21-27 is the single reference to Methuselah. Other then his father, birth, son and age when he died, nothing else is known about him.

If you do some math, you will discover that he died the same year that Noah's flood came (according to the Bible). Some people believe that his long life was a sign to the people of the coming flood, and that his death triggered the flood. But that is not stated in the Bible.

Answer 5

I asked a question about Methuselah a few months ago. He's found in Genesis 5 and he was the grandfather of Noah. If you do the math, you will find that he died in the same year as Noah's flood, so I have to wonder if Methuselah died of old age or did he die in the flood?

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Ar4QsVhKSVc_iSTusBkamOYjzKIX?qid=20060928225505AAvBwC8

He's known because he's the oldest person recorded in the Bible. Although Enoch and either Elijah or Elisha and Jesus were all taken to heaven without dying, so I have to say he wasn't the oldest person.

Here's another link that gives more info on Methuselah, provided courtesy of a nice person who answered my question.
http://www.khouse.org/articles/1996/44/

Answer 6

The oldest dude in the Bible. 969 years old, WOW! Genesis 5:22-27. He was Noah's grandad. I wonder what the food was like back then? I think they were all Vegan. Animals were not for food until after the flood. A massive catastrophe (the flood), destroyed the vapor canopy over the earth, letting in killing amounts of radiation (the cause of many mutations and cancers in humans today). also, most of the plant life was destroyed, no doubt plants that had much more nutrients, and from fossil records, they were much bigger. Also, they definately didnt have the stress we have today, they lived in a tropical paradise.

Answer 7

Methuselah is found in Genesis ch 5:25 genealogies. He did live 969 years and it the longest living human recorded. His name means -"his death shall bring" . It was his death that signaled the death of the first earth. When Methuselah died the flood came.
Now, chapter 5 of Genesis tells a "hidden" story if you can do a word study with the Hebrew meanings of the names listed in order.
If you are interested-email me and I will tell you.

Answer 8

Hi, Methuselah is mentioned in the Bible as being the son of Enoch and the Father of Lamech( Father of Noah) and is recorded as the oldest man in the Bible,he was thought to have died in the flood.

Answer 9

He did not do a lot as far as a big event. He did not build an Ark, or go across the red sea. He usually just has the distinction of having been the longest living human being ever recorded.

Answer 10

According to the old testament, Methusalah was the oldest man to ever live, reaching some impossible age of 900 or so, but according to the Bible, humans used to have lifespans of centuries anyway. Thats one reason why I ALWAYS trust the Bible for my ancient history lessons. (heavy sarcasm)