Genesis 4:25-26

The family of Seth 4:25-26

Seth’s name, from the Hebrew verb translated "granted" and meaning "to set or place," expresses Eve’s faith that God would continue to provide seed despite death. [Note: Waltke, Genesis, p. 101.]

Many commentators regarded Genesis 4:26 as the first reference to prayer as we know it in the Bible. Prayer is basic to man’s relationship with God, which is a major theme in Genesis. However the phrase "call on the name of the Lord" usually refers to proclamation rather than prayer in the Pentateuch. [Note: Ross, Creation and . . ., p. 169.] Here it probably refers to the beginning of public worship of Yahweh.

"Genesis 4 concludes the story of mankind that was cut off in the flood, a tale that opened with Genesis 2:4, ’This is the history. . . .’ With the aid of a genealogy from Adam to Lamek, the seventh generation, it traces the development of technology and arts on the one hand and the growth of violence on the other. Only in the last two verses introducing the descendants of Seth do we have glimmers of hope, for from him, as chap. 5 will describe, descended Noah, the survivor of the flood, and it was in Enosh’s day that the public worship of God was reintroduced." [Note: Wenham, p. 116.]

Chapter 4 also teaches that it is important for the righteous to preserve the knowledge of God when they live in an ungodly society.