Has your family done a generational family photo of a grandmother, mother, and daughter together, or grandfather, father, and son? It’s a precious image that captures a story of the impact of a legacy being written and passed down through each generation. You can see similarities in look and stature. The hands of the grandfather show evidence of decades of hard labour. The grandson’s vitality and freshness of young skin holding potential of learned skills ahead.
As we carry on from the event at the tower of Babel, Moses continues to share the genealogy of Shem’s family down 10 generations and the promise of the blessing Noah gave his son Shem in Genesis 9 starts growing root by the end of the chapter.
“These are the family records of Shem. Shem lived 100 years and fathered Arpachshad two years after the flood. After he fathered Arpachshad, Shem lived 500 years and fathered other sons and daughters. Arpachshad lived 35 years and fathered Shelah. After he fathered Shelah, Arpachshad lived 403 years and fathered other sons and daughters. Shelah lived 30 years and fathered Eber. After he fathered Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and fathered other sons and daughters. Eber lived 34 years and fathered Peleg. After he fathered Peleg, Eber lived 430 years and fathered other sons and daughters. Peleg lived 30 years and fathered Reu. After he fathered Reu, Peleg lived 209 years and fathered other sons and daughters. Reu lived 32 years and fathered Serug. After he fathered Serug, Reu lived 207 years and fathered other sons and daughters. Serug lived 30 years and fathered Nahor. After he fathered Nahor, Serug lived 200 years and fathered other sons and daughters. Nahor lived 29 years and fathered Terah. After he fathered Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and fathered other sons and daughters. Terah lived 70 years and fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran.” (Genesis 11:10-26)
(As a fun mathematical exercise (which if you know me is quite rare to put fun and math in the same sentence!), I calculated the ages of each generation to see who was alive during Abram’s life and what ages they were at the time. See the bottom of this post if interested)
The older generations outlived many of the younger ones. The Lord’s words from Genesis 6:3 that His “Spirit will not remain with mankind forever, because they are corrupt. Their days will be 120 years” was starting to come into effect. Why would God allow the older generations to live that long? I believe part of it might have to do with the fact that the Lord made sure His story was accurately passed down from generation to generation. Abram could have heard the stories of the beginning of time, Adam’s lineage, the life of Enoch, and the flood’s account from the very mouth of Noah himself.
What would have been going through Noah’s mind as he watched sin take hold of the world’s hearts again? Did he weep and try to warn people? Did he still walk with God until the end of his life? Or did the trauma of the flood corrode his heart of worship over time? Tragically, as civilization developed, people quickly began creating their own idols to worship. This should be a warning for us. Whether we’re new to the faith or deeply involved in ministry as a seasoned saint, no one is exempt from temptation and the pull of sin. This is why there are many warnings throughout the New Testament, especially from Jesus Himself to “Stay alert!” “The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.” (Mark 14:38) We need to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus lest we let the things of this world distract and discourage us from the course He’s set before us.
We don’t know where in this generational line the world became divided during the tower of Babel. Some guess it was during Peleg’s generation because his name means either “Divide” or “Watercourse” depending on the translation. Either way, the division took place in Babylon, and we can confirm that Abram’s family still hadn’t left that region yet because Genesis 11:28 says that Terah’s son “Haran died in his native land, in Ur of the Chaldeans.” Chaldea was located in southern Babylon which is now modern southern Iraq.
Perhaps the world’s division didn’t take place until Terah’s time when he decided to take his son Abram, Abram’s wife Sarai, and Haran’s son Lot with him to Canaan. The story of Shem’s and Japheth’s blessings and the plight of Canaan’s curse would have been engrained in this family’s mind. Was Terah in pursuit of grabbing hold of the blessings awaiting his family? Did God nudge his spirit to pursue His calling on this family?
“Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot (Haran’s son), and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram’s wife, and they set out together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan. But when they came to Haran, they settled there. Terah lived 205 years and died in Haran.” (Genesis 11:31-32
Terah was 70 when he fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran, and he lived 205 years, “and died in Haran” (Genesis 11:32). For some reason, Terah got comfortable in Haran and never made it to Canaan. He never finished the quest God had stirred his heart to pursue. This is the danger of complacency. What are we missing when we’re unwilling to step outside our comforts and explore the adventure God has for us?
Unlike his father, Abram took hold of the conquest from God and continued forward. At the age of 75, he separated from Terah and kept going. He had already broken away from majority of his family years prior and knew the pain of separation. But something in him told him to keep going. A thirst for the God of creation and the promise He had to offer Shem’s family that had been left disregarded to this point. So, leaving his father and the rest of Shem’s generations behind, he forged into new territory.
Let me ask you, friend:
– Is there an idol you’ve been worshipping instead of the Living God that needs to be removed?
– Is there something regarding the Lord and your faith where you’ve been complacent?
– Are you courageously pursuing what God has called you to do regardless of the sacrifices it might be costing you?
No idol is worth worshipping. No comfort is worth keeping. The Lord is worthy, He is good, and an everlasting reward is awaiting all those who walk with Him. As we’ve looked at these generations the last few weeks and the effects of each since the flood, let me leave you this week with this last question:
What kind of legacy are you passing down to the next generation?
—
As a fun mathematical exercise (which if you know me is quite rare to put fun and math in the same sentence!), I calculated the ages of each generation to see who was alive during Abram’s life and what ages they were at the time.
Noah lived 950 years. At 500 years old, he fathered Shem, Japheth, and Ham (Genesis 5:32) (No record of exact dates) but it did say he was 600 the year the flood came (Genesis 7:6)
Shem lived 500 years. At 100 years old, he fathered Arpachshad
- Genesis 11:10 said Shem fathered Arpachshad two years after the flood, which would put Noah at approximately 603 years old
Arpachshad lived 403 years. At 35 years old, he fathered Shelah
- Noah was 638, Shem was 135
Shelah lived 403 years. At 30 years old, he fathered Eber
- Noah was 668, Shem was 165, Arpachshad was 65
Eber lived 430 years. At 34 years old, he fathered Peleg
- Noah was 702, Shem was 199, Arpachshad was 99, Shelah was 64
Peleg lived 209 years. At 30 years old, he fathered Reu
- Noah was 736, Shem was 229, Arpachshad was 129, Shelah was 94, Eber was 64
Reu lived 207 years. At 32 years old, he fathered Serug
- Noah was 768, Shem was 261, Arpachshad was 161, Shelah was 126, Eber was 96, Peleg was 62
Serug lived 200 years. At 30 years old, he fathered Nahor
- Noah was 798, Shem was 291, Arpachshad was 191, Shelah was 156, Eber was 126, Peleg was 92, Reu was 62
Nahor lived 119 years. At 29 years old, he fathered Terah
- Noah was 827, Shem was 320, Arpachshad was 220, Shelah was 185, Eber was 155, Peleg was 121, Reu was 91, Serug was 59
Terah lived 205 years. At 70 years old, he had fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran (it doesn’t specifically say when each child was born so we’ll base it off of the age listed)
- Noah was 897, Shem was 390, Arpachshad was 290, Shelah was 255, Eber was 225, Peleg was 191, Reu was 161, Serug was 129, Nahor was 99
These ages mean that at the time of Abram’s childhood, all 10 generations back to Noah were still alive. Could you imagine what that generational family photo would look like if they had cameras back then? Noah still lived for another 53 years
Shem lived another 110 years
Arpachshad lived another 113 years
Shelah lived another 148 years
Eber lived another 205 years
Peleg lived another 18 years (died first)
Reu lived another 46 years
Serug lived another 71 years
Nahor lived another 20 years
Terah lived another 135 years
