Bible Facts
Who Was the Oldest Person in the Bible? Methuselah and the Long-Lived Patriarchs
The oldest person in the Bible was Methuselah, who lived 969 years. Genesis 5:27 records it: "Altogether, Methuselah lived a total of 969 years, and then he died." He was the son of Enoch and the grandfather of Noah (Genesis 5:21, 25-29).
Methuselah is one of several people in Genesis whose ages run into the hundreds of years. This article lists the ages the text gives for the people in Genesis 5 and 11, and explains how lifespans in the Bible change after the flood.
Who Was the Oldest Person in the Bible?
Methuselah's life is described in only a few verses. The text gives these facts about him:
- His father was Enoch, who walked faithfully with God and was taken by God without dying (Genesis 5:21-24).
- He was 187 years old when his son Lamech was born (Genesis 5:25).
- He lived 782 more years after Lamech was born and had other sons and daughters (Genesis 5:26).
- He died at 969 (Genesis 5:27).
- His grandson was Noah (Genesis 5:28-29).
Genesis does not say how Methuselah died or record anything he said or did beyond his family line. He is also listed in the genealogies of 1 Chronicles 1:3 and Luke 3:37.
Did Methuselah die in the flood?
The Bible does not say. Adding up the ages in Genesis gives a date for his death. Methuselah was 187 when Lamech was born (Genesis 5:25), Lamech was 182 when Noah was born (Genesis 5:28-29), and Noah was 600 when the flood came (Genesis 7:6). That totals 969, which means Methuselah died in the same year the flood began.
Whether he died shortly before the flood or in it, the text does not state. Some Jewish and Christian writers have held that he died before the flood began, but that is a matter of interpretation.
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Ages of the People in Genesis 5 (Adam to Noah)
Genesis 5 traces the line from Adam to Noah. For each person, it gives the age at which he fathered the named son, the years he lived afterward, and his total age at death.
| Name | Age at son's birth | Age at death | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adam | 130 | 930 | Genesis 5:3-5 |
| Seth | 105 | 912 | Genesis 5:6-8 |
| Enosh | 90 | 905 | Genesis 5:9-11 |
| Kenan | 70 | 910 | Genesis 5:12-14 |
| Mahalalel | 65 | 895 | Genesis 5:15-17 |
| Jared | 162 | 962 | Genesis 5:18-20 |
| Enoch | 65 | 365 (taken by God) | Genesis 5:21-24 |
| Methuselah | 187 | 969 | Genesis 5:25-27 |
| Lamech | 182 | 777 | Genesis 5:28-31 |
| Noah | 500 (first of three sons) | 950 | Genesis 5:32; 9:28-29 |
Jared is second at 962 years, followed by Noah at 950 and Adam at 930. Enoch is the exception in the list. The text says God took him away (Genesis 5:24), and Hebrews 11:5 says he was taken so that he did not experience death.
These figures come from the Hebrew text used by English translations. The ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament (the Septuagint) gives some different numbers for the age at which sons were born, but it gives Methuselah the same total of 969 years.
Ages of the People in Genesis 11 (Shem to Terah)
After the flood, Genesis 11 traces the line from Noah's son Shem to Abraham's father Terah. Unlike Genesis 5, this chapter usually does not state the total age at death. It gives the age at the son's birth and the years lived afterward. The totals below add those two figures.
| Name | Age at son's birth | Years lived after | Total | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shem | 100 | 500 | 600 | Genesis 11:10-11 |
| Arphaxad | 35 | 403 | 438 | Genesis 11:12-13 |
| Shelah | 30 | 403 | 433 | Genesis 11:14-15 |
| Eber | 34 | 430 | 464 | Genesis 11:16-17 |
| Peleg | 30 | 209 | 239 | Genesis 11:18-19 |
| Reu | 32 | 207 | 239 | Genesis 11:20-21 |
| Serug | 30 | 200 | 230 | Genesis 11:22-23 |
| Nahor | 29 | 119 | 148 | Genesis 11:24-25 |
| Terah | 70 (first of three sons) | Not stated | 205 | Genesis 11:26, 32 |
Some other English translations, such as the ESV, spell Arphaxad as Arpachshad. The table shows a steady drop in lifespan after the flood, from Shem's 600 years to Nahor's 148.
How the Genealogies Overlap
Because the Genesis 5 figures give the age at each son's birth, the lifespans can be laid side by side. Doing so shows that several generations were alive at the same time.
- Adam was 130 at Seth's birth and lived to 930 (Genesis 5:3-5). Adding the ages at each son's birth down to Lamech (130 + 105 + 90 + 70 + 65 + 162 + 65 + 187) places Lamech's birth in year 874 after creation, so Adam was still alive for the first 56 years of Lamech's life.
- Methuselah was born in year 687 and died in year 1656, the year the flood began (Genesis 5:25-29; Genesis 7:6, 11).
- Shem was 100 years old two years after the flood and lived to 600 (Genesis 11:10-11). By these figures, he lived about 500 years after the flood, well into the generations listed after him in Genesis 11.
These calculations use the numbers in the Hebrew text as English Bibles translate them. Some conservative scholars hold that the genealogies may skip generations, since Hebrew genealogies elsewhere sometimes do (compare Matthew 1:8 with 1 Chronicles 3:11-12). If so, the overlaps would be different. The ages of the individuals, including Methuselah's 969 years, are not affected by this question.
Ages of Other Notable People in the Bible
After Genesis 11, recorded lifespans continue to shorten. These are ages the text states directly.
| Name | Age at death | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Abraham | 175 | Genesis 25:7 |
| Sarah | 127 | Genesis 23:1 |
| Ishmael | 137 | Genesis 25:17 |
| Isaac | 180 | Genesis 35:28 |
| Jacob | 147 | Genesis 47:28 |
| Joseph | 110 | Genesis 50:26 |
| Aaron | 123 | Numbers 33:39 |
| Moses | 120 | Deuteronomy 34:7 |
| Joshua | 110 | Joshua 24:29 |
| Jehoiada the priest | 130 | 2 Chronicles 24:15 |
Sarah is the only woman in the Bible whose age at death is recorded. Job is another long-lived figure: after his trials he lived 140 more years and saw four generations of descendants (Job 42:16), but his total age is not given. For more on Abraham, see who was Abraham in the Bible.
Moses, writing in Psalm 90, describes a normal human lifespan as about seventy years, or eighty for those with greater strength (Psalm 90:10).
Why Did People Live So Long in Genesis?
The Bible records these ages as history but does not explain the reason for them. It does record two relevant facts:
- Before the flood, God set a limit, saying that man's days would be 120 years (Genesis 6:3). Interpreters differ on whether this refers to the time remaining before the flood or to a future limit on lifespan.
- After the flood, the recorded ages decline steadily over several generations, as the tables above show.
Various explanations have been offered, including changes in the environment after the flood and the effects of sin spreading through the human race over time (Genesis 3:19; Romans 5:12). The text itself does not state a cause, so these explanations should be treated as proposals rather than as what Scripture teaches.
For another figure from this period, see who was Enoch in the Bible. If you enjoy facts like these, our Bible trivia questions cover many more.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who was the oldest person in the Bible?
Methuselah was the oldest person in the Bible. He lived 969 years, according to Genesis 5:27.
Who was the second oldest person in the Bible?
Jared, the father of Enoch, was the second oldest, living 962 years (Genesis 5:20). Noah was third at 950 years (Genesis 9:29).
Who was Methuselah's grandson?
Noah was Methuselah's grandson. Methuselah's son Lamech was Noah's father (Genesis 5:25-29).
How old was Adam when he died?
Adam lived 930 years (Genesis 5:5). He was 130 when his son Seth was born (Genesis 5:3).
How old was Abraham when he died?
Abraham died at 175 years old (Genesis 25:7). He was buried by his sons Isaac and Ishmael in the cave of Machpelah (Genesis 25:9).