Maranatha Evangelistic Ministries : Study Resources : Notes and Articles for a Deeper Biblical Understanding



		The Significance of Names
		In Genesis 5, God gives us the geneology of Adam through Noah. Some may think this is irrelevant information, or merely just given to prove that God's word is historically accurate. However, our personal and infinite God never tells us something for only one reason. In a similar way, God tells the same thing in many different ways, using different methods. In the Bible, the meanings of names are often used to teach us deeper lessons. In Hebrew, all words have roots, much like the words "social," "socialize," "sociology," and "sociopath," all share the common root meaning "relating to others." All of the names in Genesis 5 have roots with different meanings. Adam: man Seth: appointed Enosh: mortal Kenan: sorrow Mahalel: the blessed God Jared: shall come down Enoch: teaching Methuselah: his death shall bring Lamech: despairing Noah: rest "Man is appointed mortal sorrow. The blessed God shall come down, and teaching His death shall bring the despairing rest." From the very beginning, God knew that because man was not God, he was imperfect, and could never achieve eternal life in God's presence under his own power. From the very beginning, God planned to sacrifice Himself for man, so that His perfect righteousness could be credited to us (throughout all history) as our perfect righteousness, giving us access to God's presence. Jesus has been mankind's atonement from first to last. Praise God. He never changes.