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Volume 13: Number 3: Article 6
Methuselah: Oldest Myth, or Oldest Man?
Lee McKague, 5000 Birch Hollow Lane, Fort Worth, TX 76132
The Old Testament records the age at death of 31 men in the lineage
from Adam to Jehoiakim. For another 10 men, the Bible gives death ages
that can be correlated to generation number. Altogether, the recorded
death ages span almost 50 generations. Adam and many of his earlier
descendants are recorded to have lived over 900 years, whereas Moses
is recorded to have lived 120 years. Death ages between these two change
gradually, and individual values are very specific. No serious investigation
has been made of claims that Adam, Methuselah, and others lived nearly
a millennium, perhaps because conventional knowledge (beliefs) make
such life spans seem preposterous — and perhaps also for fear that it
would appear to be an endorsement of creationism or theology. However,
open-minded examination of the recorded ages now is warranted because
(1) recent discoveries related to telomerase and stem cells (see Section
5, Genetics and Aging Studies for explanation) suggest a biological
basis for such "immortality," and (2) the recorded ages appear well
correlated by genetic equations describing the effects of inbreeding
depression. Close inbreeding was a social and legal custom well documented
in the Old Testament.
Keywords: Adam, Methuselah, life spans, genetic inheritance, inbreeding
depression, mores, telomerase
FULL TEXT:
Methuselah: Oldest Myth, or Oldest Man?
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