THE CREATION FAMILY TREE GROWS

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Cain made love to his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch.

Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.

Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments and pipes. Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.

Lamech said to his wives, “Adah and Zillah, listen to me; wives of Lamech, hear my words. I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for injuring me. If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.”

Adam made love to his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.” Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.

At that time people began to call on the name of the Lord.

Genesis 4:17-26

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

In the first chapter of Genesis, the creation story, we read this:

So God created mankind in His own image, in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them.

God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth. Vv.27-28

The command here was really focused on reproduction, making love and making children who would populate and “fill the earth”.

After the great fall in Eden and the introduction of sin into the world, Genesis chapter 4 begins and ends with God’s created people carrying out His orders and in doing so, growing His family tree that will always trace back to Adam and Eve, the first married couple.

The first created man and woman got things started in chapter 4 by bringing two sons into the world, Cain and Abel:

Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth a man.” Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Vv.1-2

We know what happened next. Over the past few messages, the scriptures have taken us through the tragic consequence of the transgressions brought into the world by Adam and Eve as their firstborn son committed the first premeditated murder, killing his brother Abel out of sheer jealousy and envy after God favored his offering more (Vv.3-16).

Of interest, we saw where God condemned Cain and imposed punishment but allowed him to live and even answered the guilty party’s cries of fear over being killed with a promise of marked protection, mercy and graced that wasn’t earned but yet granted because this is God’s nature. It was true at the very onset of creation and it’s still true today.

Well, God’s act of compassion on the murderous Cain didn’t end with the promise of shielding from murder. For as we see in today’s scripture passage from the closing verses of Genesis, chapter 4, God permitted even Cain to be fruitful and multiply, growing the family tree. Look again at those words here:

Cain made love to his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch.

Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.

Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments and pipes. Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.

Lamech said to his wives, “Adah and Zillah, listen to me; wives of Lamech, hear my words. I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for injuring me. If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.”

Adam made love to his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.” Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.

At that time people began to call on the name of the Lord. Vv.17-26

Here we find Cain and his wife were allowed the blessing of childbirth by the Lord and they brought forth a son named Enoch. The scriptures tell us that Cain built a city and named it after his firstborn son.

From there, more branches to the creation genealogy tree were created as Enoch had a son named Irad who then fathered Methushael who in turn had a son, Lamech.

We read where Lamech married two wives and had offspring with both. His wife Adah bore two sons, Jabal and Jubal, with each defined by the special skills that God gave them. The Word tells us that Jabal “was the father of those who live in tents” and raised “livestock” while his brother, Jubal, “was the father of all” who were musically inclined, those who played “stringed instruments and pipes”.

Of interest, we find an exchange between Lamech and his wives where he confesses to have killed a young man who had wounded him. Obviously aware of the mark of protection that had been placed on Cain, Lamech boldly proclaimed the following:

“I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for injuring me. If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.”

God doesn’t rebuke Lamech for saying this so we can assume that it was the truth and he was protected for acting in self defense.

The chapter ends by going back to where it started, Adam and Eve making love and having another son who they named Seth. This blessing led to Eve giving thanks as she said:

“God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.”

And so it was. We read where Seth went on and had a son who “he named” Enosh and this branch of the initial family tree of mankind would go on to be very significant. For if we fast forward to the bloodline of Jesus as found in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 3. There, we find this:

Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph, the son of Heli, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melki, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai, the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josek, the son of Joda, the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri, the son of Melki, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon, the son of Amminadab, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel, the son of Kenan, the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God. Vv.23-38

Here we see that although the creation family tree was expanding through Cain, it was the third son born to Adam and Eve through which the branch emerged that would eventually lead to Jesus, the Son of God and Savior of the world.

From that time on, the scriptures tell us that “people began to call on the name of the Lord.”

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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