Who was Methuselah?
Genesis 5:25-27
25 When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he became the father of Lamech.
26 After he became the father of Lamech, Methuselah lived 782 years and had other sons and daughters.
27 Altogether, Methuselah lived a total of 969 years, and then he died.
New International Version (NIV)
The answer
Methuselah was the son of Enoch, the father of Lamech, and the grandfather of Noah. He belongs to the genealogy from Seth to Noah, and he is best known as the longest-lived person recorded in Scripture.
Genesis records that Methuselah was 187 years old when Lamech was born, lived another 782 years, and had other sons and daughters. His total lifespan was 969 years: “All the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty-nine years, then he died” (Genesis 5:25-27).
His father was the Enoch who “walked with God” and whom God took (Genesis 5:21-24). Methuselah also appears in Jesus’ genealogy, between Enoch and Lamech, showing his place in the ancestral line from Adam through Noah to Christ (Luke 3:36-38).
Answered from Scripture · reviewed November 12, 2026
Scripture cited
- Genesis 5:25-27
- Genesis 5:21-32
- Luke 3:36-38