Adam, Seth, Enosh;
Chronicles opens not with a story but with a name — the first man — and then two more, with no verb between them. Why does the book start this far back, and why these three names?
Beginning at the Beginning
Chronicles keeps its eye on one thing: God's kingdom in David's family. That focus decides where the book begins:
William KellyThe books of Chronicles look only at the history of God's kingdom in the hands of David and of his race. For that reason we are here at once connected with the whole of God's purposes from the beginning. We have the genealogy... but we begin with the beginning — "Adam, Sheth, Enosh" and so on, down to Noah, a line of ten from the start. Then come the various sons of Noah, and their descendants — seventy nations springing from the sons of Noah.
The first chapter is also complete in a way the next one is not:
Henri L. RossierThe genealogy begins with Adam. Verses 1 to 4 agree with what Genesis reveals. Moreover, there are no gaps in this first chapter. As soon as we approach Israel's history in 1 Chronicles 2, gaps appear. When Chronicles was written, the genealogies of many members of this people remained undetermined, because no one could prove them.
Seth — the Appointed One
The second name has a meaning, and that meaning explains why this line went on:
Morrish Bible DictionarySon of Adam and Eve, born after the death of Abel, and father of Enosh. His name means 'appointed': God continued the line of Abel, whom Cain killed, through the appointment of Seth. So in Genesis 4:25-26, in connection with Seth, it says, "At that time people began to call upon the name of the LORD." ... The genealogy runs from Seth to Noah, and the flood swept away all else. 1 Chronicles 1:1 calls him SHETH.
The Names Left Out
Genesis gives a full family record to Cain's descendants. Chronicles gives none:
The Bible TreasuryStarting with Genesis 4:16-24 we have a list of the descendants of the man Cain. He "went away from the presence of the Lord," and in the land of Nod "he built a city." There he and his descendants made themselves comfortable and cultivated crafts and the fine arts. Meanwhile they plunged deeper into sin. Then God poured out His wrath, and every member of that guilty family perished in the Flood. Now, turning to 1 Chronicles 1:1, we read, "Adam, Sheth, Enosh" — but not one word about Cain and his descendants.
A Sentence Made of Names
These names are not only labels. Their meanings, read in order, form their own message:
For the YoungThe opening three verses of 1 Chronicles 1 give us one of the wonderful sentences of Inspiration. It is a sentence containing ten proper names and not a single verb... Dr Kitto has pointed out that these ten names, translated in order, form this remarkable sentence in English: Man, Appointed [or Replaced], Miserable, Lamenting, The God of Glory, Shall descend, To instruct, His death sends, To the afflicted, Consolation.
Natural First, Spiritual After
Starting at Adam is not merely a way of reaching back far enough. It also sets an order that runs through these chapters:
Henri L. RossierChronicles deals with God's counsels and His ways of grace toward man. Naturally, then, it begins with Adam. It traces the line of man chosen according to the counsels of grace. That line stands in contrast to the line of man according to the flesh. Man has become sinful... In these chapters we therefore find the line of the flesh first, and that of the Spirit second. God does not beget until sinful man has first proven what his nature could produce. This is why the apostle says in 1 Corinthians 15:46: "But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual."
Where the Line Is Going
The list has a destination. One writer sees every name pointing to God's Son:
The Bible TreasuryThe sin and failure of man, and Satan's determined opposition, are only occasions for the display of sovereign grace and of Almighty power. Christ the Son will be King of the Jews as Son of David, and Inheritor of the promises as Son of Abraham. As Son of Man He will be King of kings and Lord of lords. So His genealogy runs down from Adam: He, the last Adam, is to win back the headship over the lower creation which the first Adam lost. Other names come in and shine among their fellows... but the great purpose of God centres in His Son. The genealogy points to Him.
Summary
- Adam — the line starts at the first man. Chronicles traces God's purpose from the beginning, not just Israel's history.
- Seth — the line goes on by appointment. His name means "appointed", and God gave him in place of Abel.
- Cain — the line leaves him out. He built a city, and his family perished in the Flood; Chronicles says nothing of them.
- Order — the line runs flesh first, Spirit second, because the natural comes before the spiritual.
- Christ — the line has a destination. It runs to the last Adam, who wins back what the first Adam lost.