Last updated: February 2, 2026
"Adding up the dates in the Bible, we get an age of about 6,000 years for the Earth... The genealogies of Genesis 5 and 11 provide a continuous chronology from creation to Abraham."— Ken Ham, The New Answers Book (2006)
"When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth."
1. Biblical genealogies were not intended as complete chronologies.
Ancient Near Eastern genealogies typically served purposes other than strict chronology. They established lineage, legitimacy, and covenant relationships. The Hebrew word translated "fathered" (yalad) can mean direct parentage or ancestral relationship.
Evidence that biblical genealogies skip generations:
2. Different manuscript traditions give different ages.
The Masoretic Text (Hebrew), Septuagint (Greek), and Samaritan Pentateuch provide different ages for the patriarchs:
| Patriarch | Masoretic (age at fathering) | Septuagint (age at fathering) |
|---|---|---|
| Adam | 130 | 230 |
| Seth | 105 | 205 |
| Enosh | 90 | 190 |
| Kenan | 70 | 170 |
| Mahalalel | 65 | 165 |
These variants produce date estimates ranging from ~6,000 years (Ussher, using Masoretic) to ~7,500 years (Septuagint-based calculations). The discrepancies indicate textual transmission issues, not precise chronological data.
3. The chronology depends on contested interpretive choices.
Archbishop James Ussher's famous 4004 BCE date required numerous assumptions:
Other biblical scholars using the same texts have calculated dates ranging from 3761 BCE (Jewish calendar) to 5500 BCE (Byzantine tradition).
4. Multiple independent dating methods converge on an old Earth.
The scientific evidence for Earth's age comes not from a single method but from convergent lines of evidence:
| Method | Result |
|---|---|
| Radiometric dating (multiple isotope systems) | 4.54 ± 0.05 billion years |
| Meteorite dating | 4.567 billion years |
| Lunar rock dating | 4.4-4.5 billion years |
| Oldest Earth minerals (Jack Hills zircons) | 4.404 billion years |
These methods use different physical principles and are performed by independent laboratories worldwide. Their agreement is difficult to explain if the methods were unreliable.
5. Historical note: Young-earth chronology is a recent development.
While many pre-modern Christians accepted a young earth, this was based on limited evidence. By the early 19th century, Christian geologists like William Buckland, Adam Sedgwick, and Hugh Miller concluded from geological evidence that the Earth was ancient—before Darwin, and motivated by science rather than anti-religious sentiment.
The modern young-earth creationism movement dates primarily from George McCready Price (1920s) and Henry Morris and John Whitcomb's The Genesis Flood (1961).