At about the time I turned 50 during the mid-’00s, I decided to deepen my Bible study. I wanted to study comparatively unfamiliar areas of the book, and I especially wanted to gain a better sense of its canonical interconnections (prophecies, allusions, historical connections, etc.). I had a then-30-year-old Bible that was a worse-for-wore hodgepodge of notes, jottings, and cross-references. I had also purchased a new NRSV. My old and new notetaking comprised both a midlife resolution and an enjoyable, renewed devotion to study.
Eventually, I incorporated my notes into a Blogspot site, “Changing Bibles,” and three WordPress sites, “The Love of Bible Study,” “Psalm 121,” and “Bible Connections.” They are all still open, though not updated.
Then, the notetaking evolved into my book, Walking with Jesus through the New Testament (Westminster John Knox Press, 2015). It’s the most recent of several Bible study books and articles that I’ve published, although the others were for Abingdon Press. (See my website, cleverly titled paulstroble.com, if you're interested.)
THEN, in 2017-2018, I did another series of notetaking as an effort to study the Bible start to finish. I posted those notes on my main blog, “Journeys Home.” Once finished, I put the notes into one file (215 pages!) and posted that file onto “Journeys Home” and “Changing Bibles.” I think I also shared these notes onto my other personal blog, “Grace, Place, and the Like” on WordPress.
My initial resolution to read the Bible as a midlife project clearly got out of hand, but in a good way.
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Lately I’ve wanted to start a new Bible study project. I’ve been studying a wonderful book, Rabbi Barry H. Block, ed., The Social Justice Torah Commentary (New York: CCAR Press, 2021). But I didn’t take notes for blog posts.
But I remembered that I have this poster on the back of my office door! It connects the names of Old Testament people starting (of course) with Adam and Eve. The shaded or colored sections are the twelve tribes of Israel. Judah is in the middle, leading to David and to Jesus. I saw this chart at a Bible book store years ago, regretted that I didn’t purchase it, and then ordered it from eBay.
The genealogies aren't compelling reading, but they serve important purposes.
* In Genesis, they frame the stories, in order to show how God is preparing for the well-being of his people over time.
* 1 Chronicles 1-9 is comprised of a long list of names, beginning with Adam. 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah comprise a "secondary history" of the Old Testament, following the "primary history of Genesis-2 Kings. 1 Chronicles compresses pre-exilic history via this list of names, to illustrate God's providence through the generations and to pay homage to the earlier people of Israel's history.
* Census records, like those of Numbers, list men available for military service, and also illustrates the large number of people for whom God cared during the Exodus period.
* The genealogies of Matthew and Luke connect Jesus with the heritage of his Jewish scriptures.
I decided to devote my next Bible study project following the Bible’ many genealogies. This will keep me busy with Bible study for several months What are some interesting things about certain persons named throughout the Old Testament?
Genesis 4 gives us a genealogy of Cain. Genesis 5 gives us the beginning of the genealogy of Seth, which is the family with which the rest of the Old Testament is concerned.
The first genealogy we come to is Genesis 4. I’ll use the KJV because it’s in the public domain.
Genesis 4:16 And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.
17 And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.
18 And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begat Mehujael: and Mehujael begat Methusael: and Methusael begat Lamech.
19 And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah.
20 And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle.
21 And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ.
22 And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah.
23 And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt.
24 If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.
The first family genealogy in Genesis!
My old Clark’s Commentary notes that name Enoch means “instructed, devoted, initiated.” It’s perhaps an indication that Cain devoted his son to God in some way.
I have no answer to the perennial question, Where did all these people come from to populate the city that Cain built.
Lamech is the first person in the Bible to have more than one wife. Clark indicates that other ancient culture assigns mythical importance to the first forgers and the first musicians. In focusing upon a single God, the Bible “demythologizes” origin stories and simply names the innovators: Tubalcain was the first artificer in brass and iron, Adam was the first nomadic shepherd and herder, and Jubal was the first musician.
Scholars like the author of the NIB commentary note that the “mark of Cain” is not an indication of shame (as we use the phrase today) but of protection. In answering Cain’s despairing prayer, God also wants to stop the increase of violence and retribution. But in being wounded in some kind of conflict, Lamech takes vengeance into his own hands—and is happy about it! This foreshadows the increase of human violence in the years before the Flood.
This is the extent of the genealogy of Cain's family. When 1 Chronicles begins with lists of biblical names, it omits Cain's descendants and begins with Adam then Seth.
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