The testimony of the ancient rabbis is that Cain and Abel married their sisters. This paraphrased account of Scripture highlights a very common misconception related to where Cain got his wife. God created Adam and Eve, and then they gave birth to Cane who killed his brother Abel, and went to the land of wandering then found a wife. That is to assume that Adam and Eve had a great number of children and that Cain married one of them. The Bible does not tell us when Cain found a wife and so it is unknown whether he married a sister, or niece or even a grand-niece. I have only seen only one reasonable explanation which does not require bending the biblical text. In Genesis 5:4 we see that Adam had other sons and daughters. Where did Cain's wife come from in Genesis 4:17 if Adam and Eve only had three children? I guess the Bible writers just forgot to mention all of that, or that Cain and his wife were related. Genesis 4:16-17: “So Cain went out from the LORD’s presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden. After Cain had killed Abel, he departed from the land where he and Abel had lived. Cain had intercourse with his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Pastors Bud & Betty Miller on Cain’s Wife Who Was Cain’s Wife, Where Did She Come From. Many Christians tend to cast their scepticism on the fact that Cain married a woman after killing his brother Abel; bearing in mind that Adam & Eve (their parents) were the first man and woman on earth. Where did this woman come from? She could not have come from another “race” of people and must be one of Adam’s descendants. Cain, in the Bible (Hebrew Bible, or Old Testament), firstborn son of Adam and Eve who murdered his brother Abel (Genesis 4:1–16). 17 Cain made love to his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Q: I recently ran into a question and wanted to get the Catholic teaching and answer, please. The Bible record is found in Gen. 4:16,17. Cain and Abel. He also built a city which he also named Enoch. The answer is simple: Cain married either his sister or a niece. Genesis 4:17 And Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. The famous biblical story of Cain, history’s first murderer, includes this old Bible head-scratcher about who his wife could have been. This also means that Cain’s wife was a descendant of Adam. Cain feared that in his exile he could be … Cain and Abel are traditional English renderings of the Hebrew names. Learn how your comment data is processed. One important thing we should remember is that in the book of Genesis, humans lived much longer than they do now. This may have also been what happened with Noah’s family after the flood. Not a Neanderthal that was nearly human but had no soul. Needless to say, more genetic disorders have erupted in the world population since the time of Moses, and thus it is even more important to avoid marrying a close relative. Since Adam, Eve, and their sons are the only humans the Bible has mentioned so far, the sudden appearance of Cain’s wife has troubled readers from ancient times to the present. * 3 In the course of time Cain brought an offering to the LORD from the fruit of the ground, 4 … And Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and born Enoch. The book of Genesis is understood to be symbolic in nature and not scientific, there are varieties of beliefs that can be accepted that do not contradict the spiritual meaning of the text. Cain likewise was shown mercy, and his bloodline was preserved. Translation notes. Rom. If He had made others, these people would not have been able to be saved from their sins, since only descendants of Adam can be saved—that’s why it was so important for Jesus to be Adam’s descendant. Cain married his sister, niece, or great niece. I mean what family does the wife belong to?”. He moved to Nod, a land east of Eden. Some commentators have opined that Cain could have married someone else not of Adam and Eve’s family—viz., a woman of other people whom God had created. The first woman. This may sound awkward; however, it is the most realistic option. The Bible says that after he killed his brother Abel, Cain married a wife. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch.”. Now my question is HOW??? A better explanation is that the Hebrews were henotheistic, meaning that although they worshipped only one deity (the one who created Eden and years later came to lead them out of Egypt), they believed in the existence of others, who would have created other lands of other … This question is often sometimes thought to be among the “hard questions” pertaining to the Bible. With this, God protected His people by later instituting strict laws against incestuous marriages in the eighteenth chapter of Leviticus. Christianity thus far has insured that such rules be carried out even in the face of modernity. –F. In any case, one female offspring could later have become Cain’s wife. In accordance with the logic of the book of Genesis, Adam and Eve had … RE-TELLING THE STORY A staunch Roman Catholic and an Apologist of the Christian faith. While it is true the Bible is not specific on this matter, there is no difficulty in suggesting a reasonable solution that does no violence to Scriptural interpretation. This would have served as evidence - or even proof - to the ancients that Jehovah was a merciful god. But where did Cain’s wife come from?” – Anthony (Karonga Diocese – MALAWI) RESPONSE. God did not create other people groups from which Cain chose a wife, as we are all made of one blood (Acts 17:26). Remember, however, that incest itself was outlawed ONLY with the coming of the Mosaic covenant (Leviticus 18). This question even came up in the Scopes trial in 1925: Clarence Darrow asked his opponent, William Jennings Bryan, “Did you ever discover where Cain got his wife… According to (Genesis 5:5) Adam lived for nine hundred and thirty years; before he died. Also, the Law of Moses was not in effect at this point in salvation history, and so sexual relationship between close relations was not only not forbidden but moreover necessary for God’s plan to unfold. In the day when God created man, He made him in the … Some of these had apparently moved away and settled east of Eden, in Nod, where Cain and his wife moved to. Someone posted on my timeline yesterday, and her question goes thus: “Good day! The Bible indicates that Adam and Eve's first son, Cain, slew his younger brother Abel because of jealousy over the acceptance of his brother's offering over his own. Cain killed Abel, was exiled by God, and then in Genesis 4:17, we read that Cain had relations with his wife. Since Adam, Eve, and their sons are the only humans the Bible has mentioned so far, the sudden appearance of Cain’s wife has troubled Biblists, Theologians even Readers from ancient times to the present. According to (Genesis 5:5) Adam lived for nine hundred and thirty years; before he died. After that [when God put a mark on Cain], Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, to the east of Eden. But it should be taken into account that more recent Church documents who have not commented on the issue, have left the door open to other possibilities based on recent developments in science. 5:19-20 and Josephus, the Jewish historian who lived around the time of Christ, claimed they had thirty-three sons and twenty-three daughters. It was part of God’s initial plan in order to populate the earth. (Genesis 4:17) states that Cain got to know his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Cain left and went to live in the land of Nod: What the Bible Says about Cain’s Wife. Where did Cain’s wife come from in Genesis 4? Some may link up harmful genetic traits with this kind of marriage (since it involves close blood – just as our biological knowledge would point out), however, it should be understood that there was no harmful genetic traits emerged at that point. As St. Paul says, “[S]in came into the world through one man” (Rom. Come to think of it how did Cain find a wife already? “This is the book of the generations of Adam. But where did Cain’s wife come from? Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch. Come to think of it how did Cain find a wife already? Lastly, as it happens with plenty of this kind of stories, we don’t really know who exactly Cain married. Where did Cain get his wife? If Cain was the firstborn of Adam and Abel the second, then how could Cain have found a wife and built a city? Not minding which generation Cain found a wife, someone at some point had to get married to his own sister. In the Bible, all the people on earth at that time were directly descended from Adam and Eve. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Many Questions Since Adam and Eve were the first (and only) human beings, their children would have no other choice than to intermarry. Where did the people in the land of Nod come from? In conclusion, it is justifiable to affirm that even though by the time the Genesis story reaches chapter 4:17 where there is the mention of Cain’s wife, only four individuals have been mentioned in the story, the sacred author presupposes that other human beings were living at the time. There is a theory known as polygenism which argues that there were different groups of humans that existed independently of each other, and not from an original couple. However, Genesis 5:4 makes us to realize that that Adam was the father of “other sons and daughters”. But wait a second. In that case, according to some Jewish traditions, Adam had 33 sons and 23 daughters. 5:12; cf. So the obvious question, where in the world did Cain’s Wife come from? Where did this woman come from? One important thing we should remember is that in the book of Genesis, humans lived much longer than they do now. The most plausible solution is to propose that Cain married a near relative—perhaps his sister. And Cain knew his wife and she conceived and bore Enoch. Having established all these, I believe you have come to understand how and where Cain, the brother of Abel (son of Adam and Eve) got his wife. Original sin is passed on to all human beings from our first parents, Adam and Eve. Only one conclusion is possible. Who did Cain marry? Genetically, many biblical scholars agree that Adam and Eve were without defect (asides from original sin), and so the marriage between the two successive generations would not have produced genetically defective children. There is every indication that by the time Cain was able to take a wife… But what follows from the narrative of the book is that if Adam and Eve were the first parents of all humanity, then Cain must have married a relative. Far from that, many atheists tend to use this particular verse to dismiss the Genesis account of the origin of humans, rendering the biblical story null and void. And he built a city, and called the name of the city after the name of his son - Enoch (Genesis 4:17). Where, then, did Cain find his wife? Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3 And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the LORD. WHERE AND HOW DID CAIN GET HIS WIFE IN GENESIS? Apparently, some other biblical scholars believe there were other humans that existed besides Adam and Eve and that when Cain left Eden, he found other humans not related to him. Because the Bible does not always address certain questions or issues … Who was Cain's wife? Thank you. Origins Etymology. God did not forbid inter-family marriage until much later when there were enough people to make intermarriage unnecessary (Leviticus 18:6-18). THE UNFAILING NOVENA TO OUR LADY UNDOER OF KNOTS, FOR THE YEAR 2021: DAY 9 – UNDOING THE KNOT OF DESPAIR, THE UNFAILING NOVENA TO OUR LADY UNDOER OF KNOTS, FOR THE YEAR 2021: DAY 8 – UNDOING THE KNOT OF OBSTINACY IN SIN, THE UNFAILING NOVENA TO OUR LADY UNDOER OF KNOTS, FOR THE YEAR 2021: DAY 7 – UNDOING THE KNOTS OF FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES AND POVERTY. The fact that Genesis 3:20 says, “Then the man—Adam—named his wife Eve, because she would be the mother of all who live,” is proof enough she was ultimately the one responsible for Cain’s wife as well as for Cain himself. Observations about population growth Chinaka Mbaeri's Reflections Copyright © 2021. Hence, there was no need for strict laws on marriage partners in the early Patriarchal Epoch. Having established the possibility of the source of Cain’s wife, I believe many people would immediately see a problem with this kind of marriage, rendering it incestuous in nature. The Bible says Adam and Eve were the first two humans and bore Cain and Abel, after which Cain slew Abel. 3.) Where Did Cain’s Wife Come From? Am I supposed to intuitively know that God made Cain's wife? It then says Cain went to live among the people in the land of Nod. Cain, a farmer, became enraged when the Lord accepted the offering of his brother, a shepherd, in preference to his own.He murdered Abel and was banished by the Lord from the settled country. It has been proposed that the etymology of their names may be a direct pun on the roles they take in the … Genesis 4 tells of Cain’s … The Bible makes it plain in Genesis 3:20 that Eve was the “mother of all living”. The fact that I am asked about Cain’s wife so often by Christians and non-Christians, tells me three things: First, the church, by and large, either has not given, or cannot give the answer to his question; Second, this question is obviously a problem to many Christians, and the fact that they cannot answer it, causes many, I believe, to doubt that they can defend the book of Genesis. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Clearly if there were only one man and woman created by God, then their children … Cain’s Brothers and Sisters After Cain murders his brother Abel, “Cain went away from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, east of Eden” (Genesis … In light of Scripture, this is not a possibility. We are told in specific terms that Adam and Eve had three sons—Cain, Abel, and sometime later, Seth. Where did Cains wife come from? Immediately after being banished to the east in the land of Nod, Cain found a wife and raised a family and founded a "city" called Enoch. But what comes from the narrative of the book is that since Adam and Eve were the first parents of all humanity, then Cain may have married a relative. 18 To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech. And later in the land of Nod, Cain took a wife and she gave birth to a son who was named Enoch. Abel became a herder of flocks, and Cain a tiller of the ground. Hence, if Adam was the first man (1 Corinthians 15:45) and if Eve was the mother of all, then it is clear that there were no “other people” left for Cain to marry, apart from one of the children of Adam and Eve (his sister). This is a fairly common question. None of those details are to be found in the text. Cain, the first-born of Adam and Eve.His name is derived‚Äû according to Gen., iv, 1, from the root kanah, to possess, being given to him in consequence of the words of his mother at his birth: “I have possessed a man by the favor of the Lord”.No very serious objection can be urged against this derivation. For us Catholics, it’s even part of the “Precepts of the Church” – “NOT to marry within certain degrees of kindred” This is also logically inferred from the Church’s doctrine on original sin. 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