Question:
Where did Cain get his wife (Genesis 4:17) if, as it is written, there were only Adam, Eve, and Cain upon the earth at that time?
Answer:
There are some things which it is worthwhile to settle for all time. One of these is that no part of the Bible was written to satisfy our curiosity. Another is that the one great purpose of the Bible is to warn, save, and instruct men in the way of righteousness. (See 2 Timothy 3:16). Hence, many things in the narrative seem incomplete, sometimes contradictory, which would be plain and clear if we had the omitted details. The Bible does not say that Adam, Eve, and Cain were the only people on earth then. It gives an account of the birth of Cain and Abel, Abel’s death, and then a history of Cain and his posterity for six generations. It then returns and records the birth of Seth and others. But we have no more ground, except uncertain probability, for saying that Cain’s marriage preceded Seth’s birth than we have to say that Tubalcain’s birth preceded Seth’s. In fact, Seth was probably born, and other sons and daughters of Adam, and perhaps of Seth, before Cain became so fearful that his life would be taken, and the Lord promised him immunity. (Genesis 4:10-16). Cain’s wife may have been a daughter of Adam or, perhaps, of Seth; within 300 years, Adam’s and Seth’s sons and daughters may have numbered fifty or more.
