Did Methuselah really live to be almost a millenium old?

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I'm wondering what jmfcst and BushOklahoma types will say to this.

The explanation I always heard in my youth to the people living ridiculous ages in the Bible is the definition of age being used is different from the modern time (and likely there were translation issues.) Something worth noting is if you define "years" as "months" you get him living to be around 80, aka a realistic time.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I'm wondering what jmfcst types will say to this.

YES, he lived as long as it said.

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The explanation I always heard in my youth to the people living ridiculous ages in the Bible is the definition of age being used is different from the modern time (and likely there were translation issues.) Something worth noting is if you define "years" as "months" you get him living to be around 80, aka a realistic time.

that's an extremely weak "explanation".

The New Testament interprets the ages of people in the book of Genesis just as they were written:

Gen 17:1 "When Abram was ninety-nine years old"

Rom 4:19 "Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah's womb was also dead. "

Heb 11:11 "By faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise."

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Also, the Genesis duration of times if accepted by the New Testament as literal:


Gen 13:15 "they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years."

Exod  12:40   "Now the sojourn of the children of Israel who lived in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years - on that very same day "

Acts 7:6 "they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years."

Gal 3:17 "The law, introduced 430 years later [after the promises were given to Abraham]"

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The "years" of Genesis are interpretted as literal "years" throughout the rest of the bible.  End of debate.

OK, now explain how something which is clearly physically impossible did happen.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

OK, now explain how something which is clearly physically impossible did happen.

You mean biologically impossible?

Yeah.

Would it really be so outlandish to think that human biology was different at the time?

It would be outlandish to think THAT much different. A few thousand years is not a lot of time in evolutionary standards for such a drastic change to come, not to mention the standards of health and medicine should only increase lifespans.

OK, now explain how something which is clearly physically impossible did happen.

You mean biologically impossible?

Would it really be so outlandish to think that human biology was different at the time?

Maybe because DNA was more pure and modern mutations and defects hadn't developed yet. Just a thought.

Still too much of a drastic change in an evolutionary short period of time.