Many of the Bible’s critics love the question: “Where did Cain get his wife?” They see it as the ultimate “Gotcha!” question, as if a Christian’s failure to quickly and satisfactorily answer it results in the complete collapse of the Christian faith.
I can assure you this is not the case.
Christianity rests on Christ, not Cain – and not Cain’s wife.
Nevertheless, many people who read the story of Cain and Abel in the Bible are puzzled – some even troubled – at the sudden appearance of Cain’s wife. How could someone so jarringly just get dropped into the biblical Creation narrative?
In the first three chapters of Genesis, the only humans to whom we are introduced are Adam, Eve, Cain, and Abel – the latter two being of course the children of the former. And then, in the fourth chapter, lo and behold, we’re told Cain gets a wife.
Wait – what?
Cain’s Wife and the “Scopes Monkey Trial”
Perhaps the best example of this line of thinking stems from the famous 1925 Scopes “Monkey” Trial in Dayton, Tennessee, where legendary defense counsel Clarence Darrow aggressively cross-examined William Jennings Bryan on the witness stand.
Bryan, a former three-time presidential candidate, was a nationally known evangelical Christian leader and the lead prosecutor against John Scopes, a science teacher accused of breaking Tennessee law by teaching Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. Darrow was picked by the American Civil Liberties Union to help lead the defense of Scopes.
In the climactic moment of the trial (which, thanks to newspaper coverage and the advent of radio, became a national sensation), Clarence Darrow called William Jennings Bryan to the stand as an expert on the Bible. Darrow’s aim was to show that there were enough questions or ‘holes’ in the Bible to justify public schools entertaining origin theories or explanations outside the Bible.
Darrow tried to ridicule Bryan for his faith in the Bible, asking Bryan about the “whale” or “great fish” that swallowed Jonah and about Joshua making the sun stop in the sky and, of course, about Cain’s wife. The official court transcript of the exchange concerning Cain’s wife is as follows:
DARROW: Did you ever discover where Cain got his wife?
BRYAN: No sir, I leave the agnostics to hunt for her.
DARROW: You have never found out?
BRYAN: I have never tried to find.
DARROW: You have never tried to find?
BRYAN: No.
DARROW: The Bible says he got one, doesn’t it? Were there other people on earth at that time?
BRYAN: I cannot say.
DARROW: You cannot say? Did that never enter your consideration?
BRYAN: Never bothered me.
DARROW: There were no others recorded, but Cain got a wife. That is what the Bible says. Where she came from, you don’t know. All right.
H.L. Mencken and other critics of the Bible who were in Dayton that day chalked this, along with some other parts of the cross-examination, as evidence that fervent Bible-believers (such as Bryan) are illogical and clueless concerning their own faith. They argued (as many Bible critics do today) that the Bible simply cannot be taken seriously.
While I am an admirer of William Jennings Bryan (at least when it comes to his faith), it is unfortunate that he was not better prepared to answer this question. (I should point out, however, that if one reads a complete transcript of the Darrow v. Bryan cross-examination, Bryan did better on some questions than others, and generally held up as well as anyone could under the circumstances).
How to Understand the Bible
The truth is that this question about Cain’s wife is nowhere near the “Gotcha!” threshold that critics allege.
First, just because the Bible doesn’t provide an explanation for Cain’s wife doesn’t mean there isn’t one. That the Bible, in this case, doesn’t directly address where Cain got his wife means only and simply that the Bible doesn’t directly address or explain where Cain got his wife. That’s it.
To jump from the absence of such an explanation to an assumption that this represents a mistake in the Bible is an unfair leap. And it’s particularly outrageous to take the even greater leap of arguing that the entire Bible is therefore flawed or beyond credibility.
Don’t assume that the unexplained is unexplainable.
In their book When Critics Ask, Norman Geisler and Thomas Howe write: “No informed person would claim to be able to fully explain the Bible. However, it is a mistake for the critic to assume, therefore, that what has not yet been explained never will be explained.”
Another principle to keep in mind when trying to understand the Bible is that we must approach the text on its terms and not ours. This is true for any document, but shouldn’t it be especially true for the Bible?
And with that in mind…
The Bible isn’t always written in chronological order.
This is the case with the very first book of the Bible. The book of Genesis isn’t in perfect chronological order. It can sometimes jump back and forth. For example, Genesis 2 rewinds the tape a bit and goes more in-depth on the Creation narrative. Therefore, Genesis 1 and 2 overlap. The writer(s) of Genesis is (are) more concerned with topics and themes than with linear order.
What’s more, not every event that took place during that time period is recorded in Genesis. For example, Adam lives 930 years (according to Genesis), but Genesis only records a FEW of the things Adam said and did in his very long life span. The same is true with Eve, Seth, Abel, Cain, and all the other people in Genesis.
Don’t make the mistake of assuming that only the things explicitly recorded in Genesis are what happened. Many events which transpired in the ancient past were not recorded in Scripture. This includes events dealing with the lives of people mentioned in the Bible.
Therefore, when it comes to understanding the Bible, you must understand the following:
Not everything that happens in Bible times is recorded in the Bible and that which is recorded isn’t always presented in chronological order.
If you fail to grasp the above truth, you will struggle in correctly understanding the Bible, especially books like Genesis.
Once again, we must approach the Bible on its terms, and not ours.
Where Did Cain Get His Wife?
Okay, you say, that’s all well and good but where did Cain get his wife?
Short answer: The Bible doesn’t say.
At least not explicitly.
But we have a clue in Genesis 4. Let me explain.
Look at how the story begins:
And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord. And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.
Genesis 4:1-3, KJV
Note the phrase at the beginning of verse 3: “And in the process of time it came to pass…”
That’s a significant phrase as it tells us that a period of time passed between the birth of Cain and Abel and when Cain murdered Abel. How much time? We’re not told. But it could be significant, especially when you consider the long lifespans of early Genesis.
At the very least, it seems highly likely, based on the text itself, that Cain and Abel have reached their teen or adult years by the time Cain does his evil deed. So, I would say we’re looking at a minimum of a 15 to 20-year gap between their birth and Abel’s murder — and quite possibly a gap much longer.
In fact, my money’s on “much longer,” and you’ll see why.
Let’s jump to the aftermath of Cain murdering Abel (verse 8) and look at God’s punishment:
And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper? And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground. And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand; When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. And the Lord said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden. 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.
Genesis 4:9-17, KJV
People are wondering about Cain’s wife, but when I first read the story – as a boy a long time ago – my first question was not about Cain’s wife, but rather: Who was Cain afraid of?
Look at Cain’s complaint in verse 14: “I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me.”
Wait-what?
If there’s only Adam and Eve and then Cain and Abel, then couldn’t God just tell Adam and Eve: “Don’t kill Cain.” And that would be that.
But, no. Cain is worried about being a “fugitive” with people hunting for him to exact vengeance.
What people?
There are only two explanations.
Either God created other human beings outside of Adam and Eve and Cain and Abel — a theory or view favored by some (but not me). Or…
Adam and Eve had sons and daughters other than Cain and Abel — sons and daughters not previously mentioned — and the human race had already spread (apparently by a lot) by the time we come to Cain murdering Abel.
According to this view, Genesis 5 rewinds the tape a bit and overlaps with Genesis 4 (just as Genesis 2 does with Genesis 1). And I find this the most likely explanation.
During the passage of time referred to in Genesis 4:3, Adam and Eve have additional sons and daughters as we’re told they did in Genesis 5:1-4. Now, I will grant that it’s implied Seth is called out significantly as a “replacement” (if you will) for Abel. And so I’m inclined to grant that Seth comes after Cain and Abel, but this doesn’t mean there weren’t other siblings to Cain and Abel before Seth comes along.
And so, if those of us who hold this view are correct, Adam and Eve and their descendants were populating the earth (as God told them to do, mind you) before Cain murdered Abel. Thus, by the time Cain kills Abel, the human population had spread throughout the region.
This means that Cain certainly married a relative — perhaps a sister (I know…ewww) or maybe a niece (still ewww) or a cousin (still ewww for me, but acceptable in many countries in the world today as well as in 14 states in the United States today, plus the District of Columbia – if my research is correct).
As distasteful as it is to most of us today, incest is not forbidden by God until the time of Moses. There just wouldn’t have been any other way for the human race to multiply if we all began with Adam and Eve.
Fortunately (for them), when the human race restarted with Noah and his family, the sons had wives (who were not sisters). But that’s Genesis 9. We’re talking about Genesis 4 and 5.
And it seems that, as awkward and distasteful as it is, the second generation of human reproduction included incest and Cain married a relative (probably a sister, niece, or cousin).
If the issue of Cain’s wife is important to you and this article didn’t satisfy your concerns, then you can make that one of your first questions to God when you get to heaven. As for me, though, I’m okay to leave it at: Only God knows for sure and that’s good enough for me.
I’ll simple say: Thank You!