A computer program was developed to track the number of people of every age from creation until the flood. This program accurately calculates the
population growth if correct parameters are used.
Every year each person gets a year older. At a certain age each family has a child and then waits a few years for the next birth.
Each person is removed from the population at the average age of death.
The following paragraphs describe the parameters that affect population growth. A reasonable value is suggested for each,
but you can modify them to whatever you believe is correct. Try it out.
The results might surprise you.
Initial Conditions: Adam and Eve were not infants.
They were married and sufficiently mature to have children within one year.
The calculation begins with a married couple that could have a child in one year.
Years: The number of years from creation to the flood must be determined. 1656 years seems a likely
estimate. However, there are other possibilities: Year Details
Mother's Age: The age of the mother when her first child is born significantly affects the population growth.
Genesis has several clues that this age might be considerably older than it is today. Sixty years old might be an appropriate estimate.
Mother Details
Children per Family: The average number of children per family was likely high.
The families in Genesis chapter five had at least five children (the named son, other sons, other daughters). It seems that six children might be a reasonable minimum and
the maximum might exceed twelve.
Years between Children: If mothers had more years of childbearing it is likely that children might be spaced further apart.
The text does not provide clues to this parameter, but a range of 3 to 8 years or more seems likely.
Percent Infertile: One reason people lived 900 years prior to the flood was that there were few genetic mutations.
This would also produce a very low infertility rate.
While the text does not provide clues to this parameter, it is likely that it would be less than 3%, and it could be less than 1%.
Average Age of Death: Nearly all the men listed in Genesis chapter five lived over 900 years. If women lived longer than men on average as today, then the
average age of death could be well over 900.
Maximum Sustainable Population: If the entire Earth was optimally farmed, it could produce sufficient food for an enormous number of people.
However, there is a limit to the maximum number of people that can be fed using Earth's resources.
With optimum farming techniques, the Earth could likely feed 30-50 billion people.