WHERE CAIN SECURED A WIFE.
By F. C. Gilbert
Modern infidelity has acted a great deal like the foxes in the desert, and when chased from one position, has fled to another. The Word of God is so powerful as to close their mouths against almost any opposition; but now, when its simple truths are shown to be consistent and harmonious, the modern skeptic finds himself badly cornered; he draws himself up several inches taller, and, with great bluster, propounds the question, “Where did Cain get his wife?” He feels that now he has gained a great victory; for this problem can not be explained to harmonize with other statements of the Bible relative to the beginnings of the human race. And many professed Christians feel quite troubled because they can not answer this question as they think it ought to be answered, and at times almost think the Lord has not given sufficient testimony concerning the circumstances and location of Cain’s matrimonial venture. We have no disposition to satisfy any person’s inquisitiveness; but we believe the Bible clears itself upon this point so definitely and distinctly that he who will may run and read. If the Word of God was studied more and picked to pieces less, mines of valuable knowledge would be gained which would prepare the lover of the Word always to give an answer to every man. Let us, then, note the circumstances connected with this narrative as recorded in Genesis 4. Cain and Abel had each brought an offering to the Lord. The Lord had accepted the latter’s, because it was pleasing to Him and in harmony with His wish. But the former’s was refused, because it was not given in faith. This made Cain very wroth; and, tho God told him the cause of his non-acceptance, he harbored a spirit of revenge against his brother. Some time after this they were both in the field at their various occupations, and a contention seems to have arisen between them. Cain became very furious, and in his wrath he arose and slew his brother. The Lord then called upon the murderer, and informed him of the guilt of his deed, and immediately pronounced his doom: “And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand; when thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.” Verses 11, 12. Cain then felt the weight of his guilt, and appealed to the Lord for mercy, saying, “My punishment is greater than I can bear.” Verse 13. He was promised that his life would not be taken in revenge; and, as a pledge of that promise, the Lord placed a mark upon him which would warrant his protection. The trial having ended, the record says, “And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.” Verse 16. The word rendered “Nod” in this passage in verses 12 and 14 is translated vagabond, and has no reference to any particular spot or territory. As Cain himself expresses it in verse 14, “Behold, Thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from Thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me.” The thought in verse 16 is this: After the murderer had received his sentence, he left the presence of God, and went out, wandering, or vagabonding, conscious of the fact that he must thus spend the remainder of his life. The word in the Hebrew for Nod is in its participial form, and a literal translation of the text would read, “And Cain went forth from the presence of the Lord; and dwelt in the land, wandering on the east side of Eden.” But I hear some one querying, Is it not recorded that he went to a definite spot on the east of Eden? and therefore is not this the name of a literal country? To the first question we reply in the affirmative, but negatively to the second. This difficulty will be removed, however, by reading the last verse of chapter 3: “So He drove out the man; and He placed at the east of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.” From this it appears that when Cain’s parents were driven from their Edenic abode, they located eastward of the garden, and there made their home. When the divine sentence was rendered upon Cain, he merely left the field where God had met him, and went wandering about in the region where his parents lived. The Scriptures do not say that Cain married after this experience; he may have been married before he committed the crime. Of course he would have to wed his sister, as there were no other people in the world besides his own family. Some time after this, how long we do not know, neither is it necessary to learn, he built a city, and called it after the name of his son. And he spent the rest of his life in wandering, or vagranting, as the divine sentence declared he should. The word “Nod,” like many other words in the Bible, has never been translated, but simply transferred. It is found but three times in the whole Bible, twice referring to Cain’s vagabondage (verses 12, 14), and the third time mentioned in verse 16. Thus we see the harmony that exists in the Word of God on this point, as on all others. But while many will spend much time quibbling about such minute points, which are in nowise essential nor particularly helpful, the plan of salvation is clearly stated and simple to comprehend, and they would be amply repaid for the time devoted to its study. Let us, therefore, study more to learn of the wonderful life of God, of the divine life of Christ, of the life of the soul, and such trivial things will not be considered worthy of so much thought and discussion. F. C. GILBERT.