VideoGameJunkie Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 Adam lived to be 900 years old, Noah was very old and Methusela lived very very long. How come they lived so long back then, but not anymore?
Grudunza Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 I think that's an error of translation or time accounting... where if you divide those years by a certain number which was considered "months" in that era, then it ends up being comparable to what we would expect for ages. I'm going from vague memory to an article I read once, though, so who knows. But I don't personally believe that we should take that lifespan literally. 1
cdowis Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 Skouson, as I remember, proposed the theory that it had to do with the weather. Prior to the great flood, the earth was covered with a mantle of clouds and moisture, and the flood was a result of a change in this pattern. This cause also a decrease in longevity. It's been decades since I read him, so I don't remember the details.
omni Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 Skouson, as I remember, proposed the theory that it had to do with the weather. Prior to the great flood, the earth was covered with a mantle of clouds and moisture, and the flood was a result of a change in this pattern. This cause also a decrease in longevity.It's been decades since I read him, so I don't remember the details.WTfluff?
The Nehor Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 I suspect the age is more or less correct. I suspect that when God placed a spirit in the first mortal bodies it invigorated them. Note that except for one direct line from Adam we have no record of others living that long. Who knows how long they lived. I don't think I want to live much past 70-75. I know I would not look with joy upon the idea of living on this earth while it is in this state for centuries.
Anijen Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 The theory I lean towards the most would be that the higher the age the greater respect. IOW making someone hundreds of years older than normal would make that person compared to a normal person venerated and would be given elite status (such as a prophet). Over time, old age was naturally given to patriarchs and important religious leaders, this became a common practice even though they might not have actually lived that long. Or they could have lived that long I dunno...
Kevin Christensen Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 Another approach is Joseph Campbell in The Inner Reaches of Outer Space, page 36. The ages of the Patriachs encode other information that turns out, in an interesting way to have links to archaic cosmology that predates Genesis. I think it points to a Kolob centric cosmology. I discussed that a bit in my Dialogue article way back when. FWIW Kevin Christensen Bethel Park, PA 2
David T Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 The J Penteteuch source doesn't feature ages, but notes 120 years as God's cap on human longevity. Moses is then said to die at age 120, fulfilling the extent of the 'cap'. The big ages are from a different source,with ages actually much shorter than those reported in the Sumerian King Lists! 1
Freedom Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 Since we know nothing of the language and culture of the time, and since we know how long mammals actually live, there is no reason so assume that these literally lived this long. I've told you a thousand times not to take numbers literally. 2
ksfisher Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 http://www.asa3.org/ASA/PSCF/2003/PSCF12-03Hill.pdfThis paper is a good place to start in understanding the meaning behind of ages given in Genesis. 1
strappinglad Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 Is there not a death gene? There also seems to be a limit to the number of times a cell can divide. Without these restrictions, would it not be possible to live .... ah... a really long time?
guerreiro9 Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 Is there not a death gene? There also seems to be a limit to the number of times a cell can divide. Without these restrictions, would it not be possible to live .... ah... a really long time?Certainly some biological organisms live as long as stated in the bible and longer. I don't know why other organisms live longer than we do now, but it certainly is not impossible that something could live that long. Obviously if the ages are true there would have been some biological differences between them and us, because even 120 is beyond our reach.-guerreiro9
Rob Osborn Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 I am guessing that the conditions were different back then. Think of it this way- if one were to go to spirit prison they would be there a very long time (until Christ's resurrection) and so God put forth a decree to prolong his days that he might repent- 21 And the days of the children of men were prolonged, according to the will of God, that they might repent while in the flesh; wherefore, their state became a state of probation, and their time was lengthened, according to the commandments which the Lord God gave unto the children of men. For he gave commandment that all men must repent; for he showed unto all men that they were lost, because of the transgression of their parents. (2 Nephi 2"21) Apparently these prolonged days caused their children to become mighty old men- men of great renown,- 21 And also, after that they had heard him, they came up before him, saying: Behold, we are the sons of God; have we not taken unto ourselves the daughters of men? And are we not eating and drinking, and marrying and giving in marriage? And our wives bear unto us children, and the same are mighty men, which are like unto men of old, men of great renown. And they hearkened not unto the words of Noah. (Moses 8:21)
cinepro Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 And while we're on the subject, how could a woman live in a shoe anyway? 3
krampus Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 this topic is funny lol! you all are like children 2
AndyDnom Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 inbreeding causes problems and shortens lifespan. pure human beings lived a long time. but adams children married and had children, and they were brother and sister. ditto for the grandchildren, etc. As such, the inbreeding caused a dilution of pure adamic genes, and led us to our fallen, shortened life spans.
Truth 101 Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 Adam lived to be 900 years old, Noah was very old and Methusela lived very very long. How come they lived so long back then, but not anymore? Because it's fiction 1
Truth 101 Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 (edited) inbreeding causes problems and shortens lifespan. pure human beings lived a long time. but adams children married and had children, and they were brother and sister. ditto for the grandchildren, etc. As such, the inbreeding caused a dilution of pure adamic genes, and led us to our fallen, shortened life spans. That is one of the most scientifically unsound things I've read like, ever. You need 64 members of a species for them to repopulate w/o inbreeding and there is NO way that an entire population can come from the genes of just 2 people. Edited March 21, 2014 by Truth 101 1
Truth 101 Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 (edited) Is there not a death gene? There also seems to be a limit to the number of times a cell can divide. Without these restrictions, would it not be possible to live .... ah... a really long time? Gene therapy is a rapidly developing field and that is one of the things they're trying to do, is lessen or take away the restrictions you mentioned. Not to mention robotics and computer science. Soon we'll be able to replace organs by growing them from donor tissue from the patient, then the next step will be synthetic organs that are better than what we're born with. Brain implants that interface with your cerebral cortex through your hippocampi and neocortex as well as upgrading our corpus collosum (the part of the brain the connects the two hemispheres) with microscopic biofiber-optic cabling, allowing for multiple trains of thought, increased intelligence, enhanced long term memory recall, eidetic memory, interfacing with electronics, etc. The line between man and machine will be blurred. That is how we will eventually achieve immortality/transcend, or at least live for a very, very long time. I don't know what the future will bring, or when, but I like to envision a future where once AI is sophisticated enough everybody will be paired with a symbiotic AI. We're getting closer and closer to the technological singularity (I still think we're at least 50 years away). A point where technology will start progressing so quickly we will need the aide of technology to understand how it works and its impact on society. Imagine if space travel evolved as quickly as computer technology has. We'd have broken the light barrier and be exploring deep space by now. My cell phone is a literal billionfold increase in cost to manufacture, size, and computational power compared to the computers of the late 1960's to early 1980's that only universities and the government could afford. Edited March 21, 2014 by Truth 101
Alan Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 The reason the OT credits these old patriarchs with such long lives is because the actually lived that long. The simplest explanation is usually the right one. 1
rodheadlee Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 Imagine if space travel evolved as quickly as computer technology has. We'd have broken the light barrier and be exploring deep space by now. My cell phone is a literal billionfold increase in cost to manufacture, size, and computational power compared to the computers of the late 1960's to early 1980's that only universities and the government could afford.So why doesn't it? 1
Truth 101 Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 The reason the OT credits these old patriarchs with such long lives is because the actually lived that long. The simplest explanation is usually the right one. Before I knew how babies were made when I was a wee child, around five or six or so, I thought that a mommy and daddy just had to give each other a really long tight hug and they'd have a baby. Sounds pretty simple, so that's how it works right? All characters in the OT that were super long lived are fictitious, and to think otherwise would be like believing in a fairy tale. 1
Truth 101 Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 So why doesn't it? I'm afraid you'll have to be more specific. Why doesn't what? Space travel evolve as quickly? Because right now it's economically unviable
Senator Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 The reason the OT credits these old patriarchs with such long lives is because the actually lived that long. The simplest explanation is usually the right one. Then that would make Truth 101's answer: "Because it's fiction", the right one. 2
thesometimesaint Posted March 21, 2014 Posted March 21, 2014 I'm afraid you'll have to be more specific. Why doesn't what? Space travel evolve as quickly? Because right now it's economically unviable There are significant scientific problems with faster than light travel. Star Trek got passed it by bending space around their craft. In normal space-time time becomes fluid. Now if we could find a space-time wormhole.
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