generation

The period of time between the birth of parents and the birth of their children; all of the people alive during that time. The OT uses “generation” only loosely as a measure of time, and it is therefore difficult to use the term in exact chronological calculations. Although a generation sometimes covers up to a hundred years (Gen 15:13; Gen 15:16; Exod 12:40), most biblical writers seem to consider thirty to forty years to be a normal generation (Deut 2:14; Job 42:16; Ps 95:10). Usually “generation” simply refers to all of the people at a given time (Gen 6:9; Ps 14:5; Ps 24:6; Ps 49:19; Ps 112:2; Jer 2:3).