According to the Bible, some people live to be very old compared to today's average. Is this true?

Question

Or is it just an allegory?

I'm trying to be objective here with an open mind. Thanks for all of the comments, but it really sounds like science fiction. People living 900 years, some sort of vapor canopy over earth prior to the flood, things were different on earth before the flood.

With all due respect, doesn't this sound a little bit weird even to the believers?

Answer 1

It is more likely a mistake. The long ages of people in Genesis are actually ridiculously short compared to the primordial king lists of other Semitic nations. The 10 ancient kings of Sumer, for example, were listed as having lived for nearly 100,000 years, and the same is true for ancient Egyptian king lists. If the long ages were meant as allegory, they would have multiplied them by some 10,000 years.

Nevertheless, it is clear that the book of Genesis gets its genealogies from other ancient near-eastern sources. The ancient Sumerians supposedly measured time in different lengths of "years." The longest year actually spanned several thousand years, and the shortest year actually spanned a single lunar month. If you divide the age of the Patriarchs (as recorded in the Septuagint) by 12, you get perfectly reasonable ages. The average age of fatherhood runs around the late teens to the late twenties, and the average of death runs from the early sixties to the early seventies. Methuselah weighs in at about 80 years, which would have seemed miraculous in ancient Mesopotamia. Later editors probably mistook the number of lunar months for years.

Answer 2

And as promised, people will live a lot longer than they do now.
Like, forever with no death, in perfect heath on a perfect earth.

Agelessness is likened in the following verses as a mere boy being 100 years old.

Most of us know how long some trees can live. Actually, usually, they die because of sickness or injury in this imperfect world. That's why they are in an example below.


Isa 65:20 There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days; for the child shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner being a hundred years old shall be accursed.
Isa 65:21 And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.
Isa 65:22 They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree shall be the days of my people, and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
Isa 65:23 They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth for calamity; for they are the seed of the blessed of Jehovah, and their offspring with them.
Isa 65:24 And it shall come to pass that, before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
Isa 65:25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox; and dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith Jehovah.

Answer 3

It is real. In context God said he would shorten the average lifetime of man to about 70 years as part of the changes that happened as a result of the flood of Noah

Some speculated that the worldwide flood drastically altered aspects of the environment, the food chain, the air, the magnetic field... and in the end it was a work of God as a restrain for mankind. Rather than living for centuries, man would have to face their mortality and it would be more of a restraint than if they lived centuries

It was no allegory, the worldwide flood was no allegory and creation was no allegory

Answer 4

This Is Very True. For Instance, Noah Lived to be 950 Years Old, then Died. His sons Lived to Be 350 yrs. to 500 Years old. You will find this in Gen. 9:28 and Gen. I0. > Methuslah Lived Much longer than any Human.

Answer 5

5 And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
6 And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos:
7 And Seth lived after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters:
8 And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.
9 And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan:
- Gen 5:5-9

It is perfectly literal. The pre-flood world, even though fallen, was dramatically different than it is today. There's nothing wrong with that at all.

Answer 6

I heard once, in typical Episcopalian fashion of trying to make the Bible make sense in today's world, that in Biblical times, age was counted in what are known today as months. In other words, somebody who lived to be 900 was actually 900 months old, or 75 years, a ripe old age for a time with poor nutrition and medical care.

Answer 7

Adam lived to be 930. As time progressed things in the world changed shortening lifespans. Today most people live to be 70-80 accordiing to Psalms.

Answer 8

No, it's true. One theory is that it had to do with the increased radiation causing genetic deterioration. Adam and Eve were genetically perfect which was why their children could get married to each other and not have to worry about deformed babies. Then it appears that there was a vapor canopy over the earth before the flood of Noah and that layer may have screened out a lot of harmful radiation. After the flood the canopy was gone and the age of human beings started dropping until when Moses wrote Psalm 90 he said a person lived to be around 70 years old or maybe 80 if they were in good health.

Genesis 2:5 When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up--for the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, 6 and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground--

Before the flood.

Genesis 5:3 When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. 4 The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years; and he had other sons and daughters. 5 Thus all the days that Adam lived were 930 years, and he died. 6 When Seth had lived 105 years, he fathered Enosh. 7 Seth lived after he fathered Enosh 807 years and had other sons and daughters. 8 Thus all the days of Seth were 912 years, and he died. 9 When Enosh had lived 90 years, he fathered Kenan. 10 Enosh lived after he fathered Kenan 815 years and had other sons and daughters. 11 Thus all the days of Enosh were 905 years, and he died. 12 When Kenan had lived 70 years, he fathered Mahalalel. 13 Kenan lived after he fathered Mahalalel 840 years and had other sons and daughters. 14 Thus all the days of Kenan were 910 years, and he died. 15 When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he fathered Jared. 16 Mahalalel lived after he fathered Jared 830 years and had other sons and daughters. 17 Thus all the days of Mahalalel were 895 years, and he died. 18 When Jared had lived 162 years he fathered Enoch. 19 Jared lived after he fathered Enoch 800 years and had other sons and daughters. 20 Thus all the days of Jared were 962 years, and he died. 21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. 22 Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters. 23 Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. 24 Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him. 25 When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he fathered Lamech. 26 Methuselah lived after he fathered Lamech 782 years and had other sons and daughters. 27 Thus all the days of Methuselah were 969 years, and he died.

After the flood, Shem was Noah's son.

Genesis 11:10-25 These are the generations of Shem. When Shem was 100 years old, he fathered Arpachshad two years after the flood. 11 And Shem lived after he fathered Arpachshad 500 years and had other sons and daughters. 12 When Arpachshad had lived 35 years, he fathered Shelah. 13 And Arpachshad lived after he fathered Shelah 403 years and had other sons and daughters. 14 When Shelah had lived 30 years, he fathered Eber. 15 And Shelah lived after he fathered Eber 403 years and had other sons and daughters. 16 When Eber had lived 34 years, he fathered Peleg. 17 And Eber lived after he fathered Peleg 430 years and had other sons and daughters. 18 When Peleg had lived 30 years, he fathered Reu. 19 And Peleg lived after he fathered Reu 209 years and had other sons and daughters. 20 When Reu had lived 32 years, he fathered Serug. 21 And Reu lived after he fathered Serug 207 years and had other sons and daughters. 22 When Serug had lived 30 years, he fathered Nahor. 23 And Serug lived after he fathered Nahor 200 years and had other sons and daughters. 24 When Nahor had lived 29 years, he fathered Terah. 25 And Nahor lived after he fathered Terah 119 years and had other sons and daughters.

Moses' time.

Psalms 90:10 The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.

Answer 9

I find it funny how they mess up the dates in the geneologies. I guess the older you get the more faulty your memory gets.
I have heard a lot of different *Maybees* to allow for the dates.
Sure, why not, they only pooped once every twenty years too.

Here is a novel idea. It is all mythology. Forget allegory.
---------------------
And "Age of Pisces" points out the Biblical contradiction where God set the upper limit in Genesis. Nice.

Answer 10

Yes