Genesis 4
Question: Were there humans besides Adam and Eve and their children by the time Cain was of marital age?
I've heard from here and there that there were other people besides Adam and Eve that populated the earth, but where is the evidence in the bible? I think it is more likely that there was incest. All of mankind is said to be descendents of those first two humans, who both lived a long while and had 20+ children of each gender. I recently came to a conclusion after a discussion with some friends: there are no real morals outside of the Bible. There are human tendencies, and social norms, but no universal morals because rules change with time and culture. The main reasons incest is not acceptable today is because of 1) biological consequences: mutations and 2) the bible says it's wrong.
To address reason #1, lets start with the fact that Adam and Eve were made in God's image. God is perfect, and His works were also perfect. The only source of corruption that could have caused the original mutations was external, such as sin. And, while sin is sneaky, it doesn't necessarily have an instant effect. Therefore, many, many generations would need to pass for any mutations to accumulate in the genome to such a degree as to be detrimental to humans. In fact, people in Genesis lived MUCH longer than any
modern humans. Currently, not withstanding accidents, people die around
70-80 years of age, when their bodies give way. Not to say that Adam's
immediate line didn't experience stress, but their bodies then were more
perfect than ours now. By 2013, there have been over 3000 years
of transformation and rearrangement of the original genes and sequences that
were given to Adam and Eve by God. We are a generation that is lucky to
live to 100. Without biological consequences, there was one less reason to avoid incest.
As for the Bible upholding that incest is wrong, "The law forbidding marriage between close relatives was not given until the time of Moses (Leviticus 18-20). Provided marriage was one man to one woman for life (based on Genesis 1 and 2), there was no disobedience to God's law originally when close relatives (even brothers and sisters) married each other." (http://www.christiananswers.net/q-aig/aig-c004.html). I think that's really interesting, but weird. Incest was okay by all standards in the time of Cain and his siblings. I feel like a lot of people aren't happy about this... about how God let something happen but then seemed to ban it on a whim. I don't actually know if I would be accepting of the way things played out without my faith. But the God I believe in does not make mistakes.
I believe the only reason God makes rules of any kind is for the sake of humans. Even with my limited experience as a student, daughter, friend, etc., I already know that just because we dislike something now doesn't mean it's not the best thing for us in the moment (not that I like incest. . .o.o;). Anyway, yes, incest was allowed for the population of the Earth, and God watched it happen. And yes, God decided to ban it after letting it happen for a while. But it was banned because God knew it was coming to a point where incest could physically and mentally debilitate future generations. Who knows the repercussions of the future? No one except God-- so I think it's best we just accept that He did (and continues to do) what is best for us.
Lastly, this will be a straight up copy & paste of something I've always found fascinating.
A short geneology of man from Adam is this: Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, and Noah.
"Methuselah
The Flood of Noah did not come as a surprise. It had been preached on
for four generations. But something strange happened when Enoch was
65, from which time "he walked with God." Enoch was given a prophecy
that as long as his son was alive, the judgment of the flood would be
withheld; but as soon as he died, the flood would be sent forth.
Enoch named his son to reflect this prophecy. The name Methuselah comes from two roots: muth, a root that means "death"; and from shalach, which means "to bring," or "to send forth." Thus, the name Methuselah signifies, "his death shall bring."
And, indeed, in the year that Methuselah died, the flood came.
Methuselah was 187 when he had Lamech, and lived 782 years more. Lamech
had Noah when he was 182. The Flood came in Noah's 600th year. 187 + 182 + 600 = 969, Methuselah's age when he died.
It is interesting that Methuselah's life was, in effect, a symbol of
God's mercy in forestalling the coming judgment of the flood. It is
therefore fitting that his lifetime is the oldest in the Bible,
symbolizing the extreme extensiveness of God's mercy." (http://www.khouse.org/articles/2000/284/)
Moreover, if you translate each of the names from Adam to Noah, it reads:
Man Appointed Mortal Sorrow The Blessed God Shall come down Teaching His death shall bring The despairing Rest, or comfort. (http://www.khouse.org/articles/2000/284/)
In other words: God will come down as a mortal and teach the world His ways... and his death will be both sorrow and comfort (we will lose a great man, but gain eternal life).
Now THAT, my friends, is the prophecy of Jesus Christ in Genesis Chapter 5.
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