Who Was Cain's Wife and How Was the Earth Populated?
This is a common question since Cain's parents, Adam and Eve, were the first humans in God's creation and Cain had killed his brother Abel (Genesis 4:8). Cain was angry that his offering was not accepted by the Lord while Abel's was. Cain was the first child of Adam and Eve (Genesis 4:1) while Abel was the second child (Genesis 4:2). The Bible mentions Cain's wife in Genesis (4:17) but does not mention her name or where she came from. Since Adam and Eve had more more sons and daughters (Genesis 5:4), it is likely that Cain's wife was his sister. Adam and Eve's third child was named Seth (Genesis 4:25). Another important point is the long lifespans of humans at this time. Adam lived 930 years before his death (Genesis 5:5) and this long lifespan would have enabled him to have many children. Adam's third son Seth was born when Adam was 130, therefore there was time to have more children with a life expectancy of over 900 years.
Why would Cain be allowed to marry his sister? First of all, in order to populate the Earth the children of Adam and Eve must have intermarried. God could have created more people just like Adam and Eve but this is not mentioned in the Bible. Therefore, we can only assume that Adam and Eve's children intermarried. However, creationists believe that this would have been biologically acceptable since Adam and Eve were the first humans and had no disease or bad genes to pass down. Adam and Eve were perfectly created by God and did not have any genetic disorders, and therefore their children could intermarry without and birth disorders in their children. Over time, however, as the generations came and went disease and mutations would occur and siblings would not be able to have children without birth defects.
Theologically, Cain and Abel lived before the ceremonial laws were given later by God to Moses in the Book of Leviticus and therefore sibling marriage had not been forbidden yet. Therefore, sibling marriage was acceptable at this time theologically. Some have suggested that there were other people living on Earth at the same time as Adam and Eve, however, according to the scripture, Adam named his wife Eve "because she was the mother of all living." (Genesis 3:20) Therefore, according to the scripture, there could not have been any more unrelated people on earth before or during the existence Adam and Eve. Any attempt to explain or imply the existence of other non-related human groups living before or during the time of Adam and Eve would be theologically and Biblically inaccurate.
Why would Cain be allowed to marry his sister? First of all, in order to populate the Earth the children of Adam and Eve must have intermarried. God could have created more people just like Adam and Eve but this is not mentioned in the Bible. Therefore, we can only assume that Adam and Eve's children intermarried. However, creationists believe that this would have been biologically acceptable since Adam and Eve were the first humans and had no disease or bad genes to pass down. Adam and Eve were perfectly created by God and did not have any genetic disorders, and therefore their children could intermarry without and birth disorders in their children. Over time, however, as the generations came and went disease and mutations would occur and siblings would not be able to have children without birth defects.
Theologically, Cain and Abel lived before the ceremonial laws were given later by God to Moses in the Book of Leviticus and therefore sibling marriage had not been forbidden yet. Therefore, sibling marriage was acceptable at this time theologically. Some have suggested that there were other people living on Earth at the same time as Adam and Eve, however, according to the scripture, Adam named his wife Eve "because she was the mother of all living." (Genesis 3:20) Therefore, according to the scripture, there could not have been any more unrelated people on earth before or during the existence Adam and Eve. Any attempt to explain or imply the existence of other non-related human groups living before or during the time of Adam and Eve would be theologically and Biblically inaccurate.
