Tubal-Cain
“Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron1” (Gen. 4:22).
Tubal-Cain is a character cloaked in myth. One traditional, non-Biblical version of his story involves his father, Lamech, accidentally killing a young man through the misuse of weapons, which he forged. A variation of this story has Tubal-Cain as the young man who is slain. Neither version is, however, confirmed by the Bible. Genesis merely states that Tubal-Cain was an artificer of bronze and iron.
Gen 6:11 says that by the time of the Flood, “the earth was filled with violence,” indicating that, in addition to personal conflicts, there was also war. As has already been discussed, there was a population explosion in the 8th generation. From the example of Abraham and Lot, it is possible to see how conflicts, large or small, may have occurred:
“Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together. And quarrelling arose between Abram’s herders and Lot’s” (Gen 13:5-7).
Just as the land could not support both Abram and Lot’s herds, we may surmise that the available land around Eden and Nod grew smaller as the inhabitants and their livestock multiplied, and as cities expanded. And, like Abram and Lot, conflicts arose between antediluvian families or tribes in competition for space and resources. These conflicts may have intensified with the advent of Tubal-Cain’s armaments. A family/tribe possessing iron or bronze weapons would certainly have a military advantage over another which was likely wielding inferior weapons — probably wood or a combination of wood and stone. Thus, in the course of this great transitory moment in history, with space growing smaller and populations of humans and domesticated animals increasing, wars broke out. Not only were Tubal-Cain’s weapons used in these conflicts, but their very existence may have even encouraged the use of violence in settling conflicts, since the military advantages iron and bronze weapons provided would almost certainly have been exploited by those in possession of them. As such, wars arose, or as Gen 6:11 says, “the earth was filled with violence.” Thus “man of war” is an appropriate moniker for Tubal-Cain, a man whose weapons gave the means for people to slaughter one another en masse.
While we may think of Tubal-Cain as the man of war, the first part of his name, Tubal, means “thou will be brought of.” The latter part of his name, Cain, is either a direct reference to his great ancestor or carries the same meaning as Cain’s name does: “acquire” or “get.” The latter suggests that his name be expressed as, “thou will be brought of/acquired,” while the former suggests his name be expressed as, “thou will be brought of Cain.” Other ways to phrase this are: “thou will manifest Cain,” or “thou will manifest/bring forth an aspect of Cain.” However the interpretation, “thou will be brought of/acquired,” is vague and therefore meaningless, providing us with no useful information. Thus we must look for an alternative interpretation — one of which can be found when Tubal-Cain’s name is expressed as “thou will manifest an aspect of Cain.”
Cain is notorious for having murdered his brother. As such, Cain and murder are synonymous. Thus the “Cain” part of Tubal’s name invokes the memory of his ancestor, in particular his most defining characteristic: murder. Therefore Tubal Cain’s name should be expressed as: “thou will bring forth murder, an aspect of Cain.” This confirms that Cain continued to be remembered, even in the 8th generation, as the father of violence. It also is an appropriate choice of name for a man whose iron and bronze weapons enabled mankind to “fill the earth with violence.”
Tubal-Cain’s name demonstrates the powerful legacy that Cain’s actions wrought upon the earth. From his name, we can see that Cain’s murder of Abel continued to resonate down through time.
Finally, Tubal-Cain is the last male descendant recorded in Cain’s genealogy. How fitting then that Cain’s lineage begins and ends with bloodshed: Cain murdered his only brother and Tubal-Cain developed the means for mankind to murder thousands of his “brothers.”
Naamah: mother of beauty
Zillah also had a daughter: “Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.” (Gen 4:22)
The first and only mention of a woman in either genealogy should pique our curiosity. We are obviously meant to notice her inclusion and derive a particular meaning from it.
Naamah’s name means “beauty” or “pleasure.” Tradition credits her with cosmetics/ cosmetology or the sensual arts, depending upon which meaning of her name is used. Regardless, within the framework for this study either meaning suggests a worldly, not spiritual, connection. Naamah may have been extraordinarily beautiful or a particularly pleasure-seeking individual, but the fact that her brothers, Jabal, Jubal, and Tubal-Cain, are mentioned in the genealogy in relation to their discoveries — or what they “fathered” — suggests that she also made a significant contribution to the 8th generation. And has also been shown, Naamah’s brothers ‘contributions’ in the 8th generation are not only noted in Genesis 4, but also in Genesis 6. Thus we can expect that whatever her contribution was, it will also be referred to in Genesis 6.
As noted, Naamah means “beauty” or “pleasure.” These may not seem as important as Jabal’s migration, Jubal’s music, or Tubal-Cain’s weapons of bronze and iron, but their significance to the antediluvian world — in particular to the 8th generation — is revealed in Genesis:
“When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. … When the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them” (Gen 6:1-4).
Recall that prior to the 6th generation the righteous (sons of God) did not marry the unrighteous (daughters of men). Gradually, however, this changed. Inter marrying began to occur in the 6th generation, and as this trend continued, so too did the ecclesia’s decline. Gen 6:1-4 states that the defining reason that the sons of God began to marry the daughters of men was that they found them to be “beautiful.” Yet it is difficult to imagine that the daughters of God were somehow uglier than the daughters of men.
The word for “beauty” in this passage is towb, and it has a variety of uses, including an association with that which is spiritual (ethically/morally) good (Isa. 5:20); that which is physically beautiful (Isa 5:9); and that which smells good (Psa 133:2).
In the first sense: if the morals of the sons of God had been corrupted, then they would, indeed, perceive the morals of the daughters of men as good; since they would no longer be able to distinguish between good and evil from the LORD’s perspective. But what specific role Naamah would have played in this is obscured. That she, alone, could have corrupted the sons of God seems unlikely. Rather, it is more probable that she, in some way, contributed to the ongoing corruption of the sons of God.
The second, possibly third, possibilities for the meaning of her name and her association with the 8th generation provide more satisfactory explanations. In the second sense, the “beauty” the sons of God saw in the daughters of men was likely superficial; one created from cosmetics, jewelry, perfumes, and apparel. Paul’s writing to Timothy illustrates the contrast between the appearance of godly women and worldly women:
“I desire therefore that… women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, but which is proper for women professing godliness, with good works” (1Tim 2:9).
Women in Christ were meant to emphasize their inner, not outward beauty, which was contrary to a Roman world that, for the most part, only valued women for their procreative and attractive qualities. Since God’s requirements for the transformation of our inner character have not changed since the foundation of the world, we may safely assume that what was intended for women in the 1st century ecclesias would have also been intended for women in the antediluvian ecclesia.
Thus, there would have been a notable difference in the appearance of godly and ungodly antediluvian women. This difference was likely the result of Naamah’s cosmological contributions and/or in the arts of pleasure (“sensual arts”) that would continue to be taught to courtesans and prostitutes for thousands of years.
Thus Naamah’s name “beauty” or “pleasure” signifies that the daughters of men made themselves superficially attractive: either by painting their eyes and adorning themselves in jewels, perfumes, and fine clothes, and/or who were skilled in the arts of seduction.
The third possibility — beauty as related to scent — plays on the second idea, perhaps hinting that Naamah had discovered/created perfume. But to think that perfume alone had the power to steal the sons of God away from the daughters of God is too simplistic. Instead, perfume is likely representative of cosmetology in general, which, once more, leads back to the second idea — that the “beauty” referred to in Gen 6:1-4 was a superficial one.
Since “beauty” as ethically/morally good, provides no real explanation of how Naamah, alone, could have contributed to the intermarrying of the sons of God and the daughters of men, this explanation should be rejected. That leaves the second (the third is really part of the second) as the only viable explanation for the meaning behind Naamah’s name: superficial beauty and/or sexual “pleasure,” i.e. the sensual arts.
Thus by making the daughters of men look superficially or sexually attractive, Naamah’s crafts seduced the already spiritually weak sons of God. And, by their admittance into the ecclesial body through marriage, the daughters of men had the opportunity to corrupt – whether intentional or unintentional – the community’s ideas and practices. This further weakened an already weak ecclesia, and thus hastened its decline.
End of the line
Although Seth’s genealogy extends into the 9th and 10th generations, Lamech’s children — Jabal, Jubal, Tubal-Cain, and Naamah — are the last of Cain’s descendants mentioned in the genealogy of Genesis 4. This is because Genesis is not an all-encompassing history book. It only deals with those people, places, and events that affect the progress of God’s plan and purpose. And for a time, Cain’s legacy had just such an effect: in relation to Seth’s descendants, Cain’s legacy illustrated the contrast between the spirit and the flesh; it explained how violence “filled the earth;” and why those who “called on the name of the LORD,” gradually disappeared. In regards to the latter, Cain’s legacy provides the motive for God’s decision to destroy the earth in a Flood, since without His intervention, the faithful would surely have died out, been utterly corrupted, or murdered, as was almost Enoch’s fate.
Moreover Genesis does not chronicle Cain’s descendants past the 8th generation because intermarrying had erased any significant distinction between his and Seth’s lineage, excepting two individuals: Lamech, Noah’s father, and Noah. Although human progress continued, Genesis considered their discoveries and inventions immaterial in relation to the corruption and violence that consumed the earth.
When the Flood erupted, Cain’s descendants were destroyed. Although dead, Cain’s spirit of ignorance, pride, and jealousy, combined with the worship of a god he neither knew nor understood, emerged 4,000 years later, when, among the Christian brethren of the first century, division grew and Cain’s spirit manifested itself as hatred and fratricide.
- [Editor] Some might argue that iron was not available in those days, for the “Iron Age” did not begin until at the earliest 1500 BC. But it can be shown that iron from meteorites was available and used from the earliest times: see for example “Iron is taken out of the earth, and brass is molten out of the stone” (Job 28:2). The only form of iron existing in its natural state is meteoritic iron.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One