by Erik Jones

After the death of Abel, the Bible doesn’t mention any of the other sons born to Adam and Eve (Genesis 5:4) as being righteous. Cain, banished to the east where he built a civilization apart from God, had no descendants listed as righteous through whom God was able to work. God couldn’t work through Cain because of his unrighteousness.

Adam and Eve gave birth to a son named Seth. The name Seth means “compensation” (Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon). Seth was the replacement for Abel who was murdered. Eventually Jesus Christ was one of his descendants and was the “Seed” through whom God would save mankind.

Seth’s descendants are those through whom:

• God would physically preserve humanity. Genesis 6 and 7 reveal how God destroyed nearly all of humanity through a global flood because of wickedness. God used Noah (a descendent of Seth) to preserve the human race through Noah’s three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth (Genesis 10). All humanity alive today, then, traces its lineage to Adam and Eve through the line of Seth.
• God would work with a chosen nation. Abraham, the progenitor of the Israelite nation, was a descendent of Seth through Noah’s son Shem (Genesis 11:10-26). God called and raised up Israel to be an example to the other nations of the earth (Deuteronomy 4:6-8).
• God would spiritually save humanity through the Messiah—Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was born from the Israelite tribe of Judah (Hebrews 7:14). It is through Jesus Christ that humans can be saved from their sins (Acts 4:12), through whom the prophecy of “her Seed” will be fulfilled (Genesis 3:15), and through whom mankind will receive salvation and be part of the Kingdom of God (Hebrews 9:28).

To learn more about what Christ, the Messiah, will accomplish when He returns, read “King of Kings and Lord of Lords.”

Tomorrow on the Daily Bible Verse Blog: “Men Call on God.”