Introduction
Seth is a son of Adam and Eve, born after Abel's death, whom Eve names, according to the text, because "God has appointed for me another child instead of Abel". Seth is significant chiefly as the ancestor through whom Genesis traces its genealogy from Adam to Noah, distinct from and parallel to the separately recorded line of Cain.
This article follows the biblical account in Genesis. Where later Jewish, Christian or Islamic tradition adds detail not found in the text itself, the article identifies it as such.
Family
Birth and naming
Genesis 4:25 records Seth's birth and the meaning Eve gives his name, connecting him directly to the loss of Abel. Genesis 4:26 adds that in the time of Seth's own son Enosh, "people began to invoke the name of the Lord", marking a notable moment in the text's account of early religious practice.
The genealogical line
Genesis 5 gives a formal genealogy from Adam through Seth down to Noah, listing each descendant's age at the birth of the next and total lifespan, a structured list distinct in form from the shorter, less formal genealogy given for Cain's line in Genesis 4. This Sethite line is the one through which the biblical narrative continues after the flood.