RE: [asa] Cainan

Hi Gordon, you wrote:

>Does anyone on this list know whether there is anything close to a

consensus about what was probably the original reading of those verses
in

Genesis 10 and 11 in which the Septuagint mentions Cainan?<

Look at the texts.

(Sept.) Gen. 11:10-14: And these are the generations of Sem: and Sem was
a hundred years old when he begot Arphaxad, the second year after the
flood. And Sem lived, after he had begotten Arphaxad, five hundred
years, and begot sons and daughters, and died. And Arphaxad lived a
hundred and thirty-five years, and begot Cainan. And Arphaxad lived
after he had begotten Cainan, four hundred years, and begot sons and
daughters, and died. And Cainan lived a hundred and thirty years and
begot Sala; and Canaan lived after he had begotten Sala, three hundred
and thirty years, and begot sons and daughters, and died. And Sala lived
an hundred and thirty years, and begot Heber.

(KJV) Gen. 11:10-14: These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an
hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood: 11 And
Shem lived after he begat Arphaxad five hundred years, and begat sons
and daughters. 12 And Arphaxad lived five and thirty years, and begat
Salah: 13 And Arphaxad lived after he begat Salah four hundred and three
years, and begat sons and daughters. 14 And Salah lived thirty years,
and begat Eber:

Only a deletion makes any sense. Can you imagine a creative scribe
making up the number of years Arphaxad lived before having Cainan, how
old Cainan was when he begot Salah, and how long Cainan lived after
that? Luke included Cainan because he likely was listed in the temple
in Jerusalem, and Cainan is included in Jubilees:

"In the twenty-ninth jubilee, in the first week, in the beginning
thereof Arpachshad took to himself a wife and her name was Rasu'eja, the
daughter of Susan, the daughter of Elam and she bare him a son in the
third year in this week, and he called his name Kainam. And the son
grew, and his father taught him writing, and he went to seek himself a
place where he might seize for himself a city. And he found a writing
which former (generations) had carved on the rock, and he read what was
thereon, and he transcribed it and sinned owing to it; for it contained
the teaching of the 'Watchers' in accordance with which they used to
observe the omens of the sun and moon and stars in all the signs of
heaven. And he wrote it down and said nothing regarding it; for he was
afraid to speak to Noah about it lest he should be angry with him on
account of it. And in the thirtieth jubilee in the second week, in the
first year thereof, he took to himself a wife, and her name was Melka,
the daughter of Madai, the son of Japheth, and in the fourth year he
begat a son, and called his name Shelah ."

Dick Fischer

Richard James Fischer, author

Historical Genesis from Adam to Abraham

www.historicalgenesis.com <http://www.historicalgenesis.com/>

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Received on Tue Feb 5 23:55:24 2008