However, the tribes that emerged from these brothers failed to honor Noah's covenant, as they began to torment and provoke one another, resulting in bitter disputes, as will be revealed later. The righteous Noah survived 350 years after the flood, living a total of 950 years. He imparted fatherly wisdom to his sons, grandsons, and great-grandsons, teaching them to acknowledge their Creator, have faith in Him, and to act in accordance with His will through good works while avoiding wickedness that could incite God’s wrath. He also encouraged them to foster love among themselves, refrain from causing each other harm, and to coexist in harmony and gentleness. After blessing them all, he passed away in the year 2592 from the world’s inception (according to George Kedrin), and the entire human race that had multiplied after the flood mourned for him. Those interested in the questionable calculations of years in our Russian Bible may refer to Genesis 9:28-29 and 11:10-11. Noah lived 350 years post-flood before he died; Shem, having become father to Arphaxad in the second year after the flood, lived for 335 more years before passing away, thus Shem died thirty years before his father Noah. The ‘Word about the Court and the Serpent’, attributed to Saint Chrysostom and printed in the great Moscow Sobornik, recounts that in ancient times, both before and after the flood, no son died before his father except for Lamech, son of Methuselah, who lived before the flood. After 3,300 years from the creation of the world, Arran died before his father Farrah because God had been displeased with Farrah due to his idolatry, resulting in the death of his third son, Arran. This account is also supported by Saint Chrysostom and Saint Epiphanius. Therefore, it is thought that the calculations in Russian Bibles regarding the years are erroneous, suggesting that it was not Noah who died before his son Shem, but rather Shem who passed away before his father. Nevertheless, it is clear that Shem was alive at the time of Noah’s death and burial, receiving his father’s final blessing and the covenant mentioned earlier. After Noah's death, Shem continued to live for many more years, witnessing the birth of grandchildren and great-grandchildren before departing from this life into eternity. Accounts supporting this can be found in the Bibles written in various languages as well as in Jerome's translation from Hebrew, which states that Shem lived another 500 years after the birth of Arphaxad, during which he had more sons and daughters, thus his demise occurred many years after Noah’s. Those interested can verify this for themselves by examining the relevant texts. If our Russian Bibles’ calculations are correct, then the statement attributed to Chrysostom in the Sobornik is inaccurate, as is the interpretation of the above-mentioned Epiphanius regarding sons not dying before their fathers until the case of Arran, son of Farrah. Similarly, we would need to consider the account from the ancient Greek historian George Kedrin, who claimed that Shem lived 150 years after Noah’s death, as dubious. Nonetheless, Kedrin’s accounts of Shem’s lifespan, alongside the interpretations of Saint Epiphanius and Saint Chrysostom, deserve serious consideration.
THEOSIS