Why did people in ancient times live hundreds of years when people now live shorter lives?

Answer 1

When we look at the evidence, we see that the only references to extraordinarily long lives are in the religious texts, of which only The Bible continues to be used. All the archaeological evidence shows that ancient lifespans were, on average, much shorter than those today. This is supported by Egyptian and Near Eastern records that show the lifespans of pharaohs and kings to have been generally quite short. So we should look at why the Bible says that people lived hundreds of years in ancient times.

The great ages of the Old Testament heroes, all the way down from Adam to Joshua, involve elegant patterns using the number 17. For example, the first five persons in the biblical genealogy (Cain and Abel were not included):
Name Lifespan (Pattern)
Adam 930 (7x9 + 51x17 )
Seth 912 (5x9 + 51x17 )
Enos 905 (8x9 + 49x17)
Cainan 910 (6x10 + 50x17)
Mahalalel 895 (5x9 + 50x17)
Thus, these biblical heroes, and their descendants, down to Noah and his descendants, had extraordinarily long lifespans that just happened to coincide with these patterns.

Methuselah became a father at 187, which is a multiple of 17 (11x17), and died at 969, which is also a multiple of 17 (57x17).

When we come to the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, we find:

1. Abraham lived to 175 (5 X 5 X 7)
2. Isaac lived to 180 (6 X 6 X 5)
3. Jacob lived to 147 (7 X 7 X 3)

• Each lifespan involves a perfect square (5, 6, then 7 in a numeric series),
• the third factor also forms a series (7, 5, 3)
• in each case the sum of the factors is 17.

Once again, an amazingly elegant pattern associated with these lifespans, although they are now closer to those we know to be realistic.

Joseph is sometimes referred to as the fourth Patriarch, and his lifespan fits into the elegant pattern of the Patriarchs, but as the last man in Genesis also that of the first man in Genesis, Adam. Joseph is attributed the lifespan of 110 years: · 110 = 5X5 + 6X6 + 7X7, the same series of squares as we saw for the Patriarchs

· 110 = (10X10 + 10) - Joseph's lifespan
. 930 = (30X30 + 30) - Adam's lifespan

Then we find a similar fascination with elegant series and the number 17 in their lives of the other great leaders, with Joseph featuring in another series with Levi, Moses and Joshua:


Joseph 110 (5x5 + 5x17 )
Levi . . 137 (7x5 + 6x17)
Moses 120 (7x5 + 5x17)
Joshua 110 (5x5 + 5x17)

From this, we can see that the biblical heroes' lifespans were not based on fact, but on numerology. They did not live, if they lived at all, any longer than we do today.

Answer 2

There is no scientific evidence to support the belief that people in ancient times lived hundreds of years. It is likely that this belief stems from a combination of factors, including the use of exaggerated numbers in ancient texts, differences in how time was measured, and a lack of accurate record-keeping. Modern advances in healthcare, nutrition, and overall living conditions have contributed to increased life expectancy in recent centuries.