Pronouncement of Judgment
A Devotional Series from Genesis
Online Bible Audio/Readings Links (ESV)
5/27 Reading Portions: Numbers 36; Psalm 80; Isaiah 28; 2 John
Genesis 6:3
Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.”
FLESH
Prior to the flood, the wickedness of mankind had run so rampant that history must record the words of YHV God speaking. While there is much to say about God’s words and judgment from this verse, today we will meditate upon three points. First, by his own words about man, “for he is flesh,” בשׁגם הוא בשׂר (b’-sha-GAM hoo va-SAR) in Hebrew; that this confirms what we had considered yesterday from the first two verses: that a hybrid race of beings did not come from the perverse union between fallen angels and female humans. Moreover, I forgot to mention this yesterday. If the angels were fallen, would God through Moses call them “sons of God” when their rebellion had clearly divorced them from legitimate sonship (2 Pet 2:4; Jude 1:6)? The wickedness YHVH speaks of here is manifested in the flesh, vis-à-vis, in human beings.
Second, the ESV translation of “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever,”
לא־ידון רוחי באד לעלם (lō-YAH-dōn roo-CHEEY va-a-DAM lō-LAM),
may have to bow to the KJV as a better translation for its immediate context:
…My spirit shall not always strive with man…
While “abide” is a good translation, one of its definitions has fallen out of use in today’s Christianity because of the expressions used for abiding in Christ (John 15:4-6), or the abiding Holy Spirit (John 14:16-17, KJV). Yet “abide” is a good word because it conveys the intended meaning of the Hebrew; for example, we might say, “I cannot abide his behavior,” or “he does not abide by the law of the land.” The Hebrew root, דּוּן (doon), means “to contend,” “to judge,” or “to strive.”
Now the words “forever” (ESV) and “always” (KJV) are both good translations for the Hebrew root עֹלָם (ō-LAM). The latter translation from the KJV satisfies its immediate context concerning the worldwide deluge to come. The former translation from the ESV is filled with gospel hope because, when Jesus returns, the wicked will be judged and cast out, and the redeemed will be glorified, immortal, and incorruptible (1 Cor 15:52-54; 1 Jn 3:1-2).
Third, I’ll just throw this out there—and I could be wrong about this—but I believe that the 120 years spoken of here was the timeframe before the actual flood, God pronouncing the judgment twenty years before Noah fathered Shem, Ham, and Japheth (Gen 5:32). Some will teach and preach that this became the span of life for man; that while men were living to around 900 years (Gen 5), that after the flood, the ages would diminish, and they did (Gen 11:10-26). Nevertheless, in the scriptural record, the first person recorded to be exactly 120 years of age at his death was Moses, some 1,500 years after the flood.
Now, the Scripture does speak of a generation of life having an estimate of time. It is written:
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. Psalm 90:10
But here’s a thought I’ve speculated upon privately for some time: what if the 120 years was a prophetic utterance of the times before the return of the Lord Jesus? After all, the Lord Jesus said that His coming would be like the days of Noah (Matt 24:37; Luke 17:26). With all the pills we ingest today, and with modern medicine extending life, perhaps more folks will live to be 120 years old. I’m turning 66 in just a few months; and with all my ailments and disabilities from years of deep-sea diving with the Navy, I’ve already lived 40 years longer than my father, and I may make it into my nineties or beyond.
Yet as with everything that may point to the Lord’s return, we must never set our eyes squarely upon any sign, but we must ever pray to be strengthened to keep our eyes of faith fixed upon Jesus Messiah alone. So, that when He returns, we’ll see Him when He comes. Hallelujah! What a Savior!