Answers to Biblical Questions: For Philip Yaffe and All Who Are Interested - Part 1
Posted: Monday, July 20, 2009
by Teresa Ortiz
Freelance writer/Speaker
The purpose for this article is to answer some important questions regarding faith by one of our fellow Searchwarp family members and might be better understood after reading his article found here. As a firm believer in giving biblical answers to biblical questions, this piece will be filled with passages from the bible in order that it speak for itself.
It is important to note, this is written from my belief that the Bible is the complete and inerrant word of God, and as such will be written as fact, meaning, I will not use phrases like, "If the Bible is true then...".
As I mentioned to Philip in my comment to him, the word of God has at least three obvious dimensions: historical, doctrinal, and applicable. For this reason, many of the passages quoted will touch on other issues and will no doubt create new questions. However, I will only touch on how these passages relate to our subject at hand. I apologize up front for my shortcomings in delivery, and I pray its intended purpose will be fulfilled.
On Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, and the population of the earth –
It has long been understood that incest is not only morally wrong; it has proven to cause various types of birth defects.
The question was asked, if Adam and Eve were the only created beings, with whom did their children have relations to continue the human race? The biblical answer is simple - their siblings. The Bible tells us that Adam was 930 years-old when he died.
"This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God". He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind in the day they were created…So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died." Genesis 5:1-2, 5.
In this amount of time, he and Eve had plenty of time to have countless children. The bible does not mention complete genealogies, it does however, list the ones that are essential to what we need to know – and we know that their children lived a long time as well, giving ample time for many children, leading to cousins, second cousins, until they were far removed. It is quite possible that many of the marriages that came down the line were between perfect strangers – so distanced it was not like "family" at all. A key phrase to validate this is found in the story of Cain and Abel.
"Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, and said 'I have gotten a man from the LORD'." Gen 4:1.
Many people assume Cain was their first child, but if we think about what Eve said, we see that this was her first son, not necessarily her first child... This also falls in line with Jewish history in that it is generally the line of the man that is recorded and rarely the woman.
Let's continue the passage.
"Then she bore again, this time his brother Abel...And in the process of time, it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit..." Genesis 4:1-2a, 3
We are not told how long this "process of time" was. It had to be long enough for him to grow to an age where he learned the skill of a farmer. Or, it could have been 100 years, it makes no difference – we know that time past.
"Abel also brought of his firstlings of his flock and of their fat. And the LORD respected Abel and his offering, but he did not respect Cain and his offering… Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass when they were in the field, that Cain rose against his brother and killed him. Genesis 4:4 ,8.
As a result, God sent Cain away from the community in which he lived – for his protection.
The question was asked, "Where did Cain's wife come from?
It is evident that many years had past, and the population had grown, no doubt causing families to spread throughout the land. It is apparent his wife was a distant relative; one he had not known prior. Nevertheless, we still have the issue of incest – and God answers this for us as well.
In the beginning, God commanded Adam and Eve to multiply – which they did. Incest was not understood as we know it today, nor did it exist, because God had not forbidden it. In fact, after the flood, we have a similar situation, in that only eight people were spared –
"So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth." Genesis 9:1
"For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, who formerly were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is eight souls were saved through water." 1 Peter 3:18-20
With this information, we know that for a second time, relatives were instructed to repopulate the earth. It would be the last time this specific commandment would be necessary.
This leads us to the book of Leviticus, which is the book containing the moral, civil, and ceremonial laws set forth by God to his people the Israelites, after he led them out of bondage from Egypt. It was at that point God declared it as sin and it was forbidden.
"Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘I am the LORD your God, according to the doings of the land of Egypt, where you dwelt, you shall not do;…None of you shall approach anyone who is near of kin to him, to uncover his nakedness, I am the Lord.' Leviticus 18:1-3a.
Chapter 18 in its entirety gives details for every situation regarding sexual sin; I encourage you to read it. I'll share a few verses here.
"The nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father, or the daughter of your mother, whether born at home or elsewhere, their nakedness you shall not uncover…The nakedness of your son's daughter or your daughter's daughter…you shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law – she is your son's wife…" Leviticus 18:9-10,15.
No matter what our biblical question, we need to understand that it is a spiritual book, and according to its word, we cannot understand the things of God without the spirit of God indwelling our hearts and minds.
"These things [doctrines] we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches, but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with the spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." 1 Corinthians 2:13-14.
When we read the Bible in its entirety and allow it to explain itself, we can find the answers we are looking for. The question is will we accept them as truth; and will we admit we need God.
Our conscience tells us when we have done wrong; we feel guilty – guilt is a gift from God. It helps us to understand sin and disobedience to Him.
I say this because it is the basis for the second set of questions asked by Philip – which is regarding the tree of knowledge in the garden. It will be discussed in conjunction with God's provision and resolution for rebellion.
Thank you for enduring to the end. This topic does not carry a simple answer. If you have further questions regarding this subject, I will do my best to answer them. I welcome thoughts and input from others who can shed more light on this issue.
You may also visit www.answersingenesis.org for more information.
Part 2 – Did God purposely tempt Adam and Eve – soon to follow.
© Teresa Ortiz
As I mentioned to Philip in my comment to him, the word of God has at least three obvious dimensions: historical, doctrinal, and applicable. For this reason, many of the passages quoted will touch on other issues and will no doubt create new questions. However, I will only touch on how these passages relate to our subject at hand. I apologize up front for my shortcomings in delivery, and I pray its intended purpose will be fulfilled.
On Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, and the population of the earth –
It has long been understood that incest is not only morally wrong; it has proven to cause various types of birth defects.
The question was asked, if Adam and Eve were the only created beings, with whom did their children have relations to continue the human race? The biblical answer is simple - their siblings. The Bible tells us that Adam was 930 years-old when he died.
"This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God". He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind in the day they were created…So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died." Genesis 5:1-2, 5.
In this amount of time, he and Eve had plenty of time to have countless children. The bible does not mention complete genealogies, it does however, list the ones that are essential to what we need to know – and we know that their children lived a long time as well, giving ample time for many children, leading to cousins, second cousins, until they were far removed. It is quite possible that many of the marriages that came down the line were between perfect strangers – so distanced it was not like "family" at all. A key phrase to validate this is found in the story of Cain and Abel.
"Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, and said 'I have gotten a man from the LORD'." Gen 4:1.
Many people assume Cain was their first child, but if we think about what Eve said, we see that this was her first son, not necessarily her first child... This also falls in line with Jewish history in that it is generally the line of the man that is recorded and rarely the woman.
Let's continue the passage.
"Then she bore again, this time his brother Abel...And in the process of time, it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit..." Genesis 4:1-2a, 3
We are not told how long this "process of time" was. It had to be long enough for him to grow to an age where he learned the skill of a farmer. Or, it could have been 100 years, it makes no difference – we know that time past.
"Abel also brought of his firstlings of his flock and of their fat. And the LORD respected Abel and his offering, but he did not respect Cain and his offering… Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass when they were in the field, that Cain rose against his brother and killed him. Genesis 4:4 ,8.
As a result, God sent Cain away from the community in which he lived – for his protection.
The question was asked, "Where did Cain's wife come from?
It is evident that many years had past, and the population had grown, no doubt causing families to spread throughout the land. It is apparent his wife was a distant relative; one he had not known prior. Nevertheless, we still have the issue of incest – and God answers this for us as well.
In the beginning, God commanded Adam and Eve to multiply – which they did. Incest was not understood as we know it today, nor did it exist, because God had not forbidden it. In fact, after the flood, we have a similar situation, in that only eight people were spared –
"So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth." Genesis 9:1
"For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, who formerly were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is eight souls were saved through water." 1 Peter 3:18-20
With this information, we know that for a second time, relatives were instructed to repopulate the earth. It would be the last time this specific commandment would be necessary.
This leads us to the book of Leviticus, which is the book containing the moral, civil, and ceremonial laws set forth by God to his people the Israelites, after he led them out of bondage from Egypt. It was at that point God declared it as sin and it was forbidden.
"Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘I am the LORD your God, according to the doings of the land of Egypt, where you dwelt, you shall not do;…None of you shall approach anyone who is near of kin to him, to uncover his nakedness, I am the Lord.' Leviticus 18:1-3a.
Chapter 18 in its entirety gives details for every situation regarding sexual sin; I encourage you to read it. I'll share a few verses here.
"The nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father, or the daughter of your mother, whether born at home or elsewhere, their nakedness you shall not uncover…The nakedness of your son's daughter or your daughter's daughter…you shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law – she is your son's wife…" Leviticus 18:9-10,15.
No matter what our biblical question, we need to understand that it is a spiritual book, and according to its word, we cannot understand the things of God without the spirit of God indwelling our hearts and minds.
"These things [doctrines] we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches, but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with the spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." 1 Corinthians 2:13-14.
When we read the Bible in its entirety and allow it to explain itself, we can find the answers we are looking for. The question is will we accept them as truth; and will we admit we need God.
Our conscience tells us when we have done wrong; we feel guilty – guilt is a gift from God. It helps us to understand sin and disobedience to Him.
I say this because it is the basis for the second set of questions asked by Philip – which is regarding the tree of knowledge in the garden. It will be discussed in conjunction with God's provision and resolution for rebellion.
Thank you for enduring to the end. This topic does not carry a simple answer. If you have further questions regarding this subject, I will do my best to answer them. I welcome thoughts and input from others who can shed more light on this issue.
You may also visit www.answersingenesis.org for more information.
Part 2 – Did God purposely tempt Adam and Eve – soon to follow.
© Teresa Ortiz
This Article has been viewed 1,280 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
More commentsI enjoyed this, Teresa. It was a good mix of scripture and commentary. Your thoughts about Adam and Eve's firstborn vs. firstborn son, as well as your thoughts on the passage of time were all thought provoking. Thanks for contributing this.Hi Debbie, welcome to searchwarp. Nice to meet you. Thank you for reading and taking a moment to leave a comment. I am not the "preacher" type, but hopefully ther "informer" type. :-)Your comment helps me to see that I am heading in the right direction as an infomer. Blessings to you! TeresaP.S., I am going to read your articles.
The more I hear individual interpretations of the Bible, the more I appreciate the fact that Catholics have never been encouraged to delve into it by the church.Hi Donald, welcome to Searchwarp! I appreciate your input and respect your opinion, but I know many Catholics who started reading the Bible later in their lives and are amazed at the riches they were missing out on.I agree there are many interpretations to ambigous passages of Scripture, but many of them are clear in there message and meaning and there is no room for private interpretation. They say what they mean and mean what they say. It's up to us if we are going to accept them or not. Many blessings to you, thanks for stopping by. Teresa
Good effort, but once again, lots of conjecturing. 20,000 Christian sects or opinions tell us so. But I'll stick with the known: love our fellow man. This law is all we need. Peace!Hi Jeff, like I said in the paragraph, add some insight, it has to mean something :-) How would you read those Scriptures. My conjecture is based on what it says.I agree, love your fellow man, but God says to learn of Him and His words. Like Jesus said, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.Blessings to you :-) Teresa
"It is important to note, this is written from the belief that the Bible is the complete and inerrant word of God, and as such will be written as fact. It is for informational purposes and not intended for debate."First of all, if this is all there is, then we are in a heap of trouble. Second, this "fact" has resulted in 20,000 interpretations. Third, interpretaion always leads to debate. It was when the Luther and Calvin got the good book into people's hands that things changed for the better but resulted in lots of interpretation and argument; thus there not being one church of one mind but hundreds of differing mind.Good effort, but once again, lots of conjecturing. 20,000 Christian sects or opinions tell us so. But I'll stick with the known: love our fellow man. This law is all we need. Peace!(entered seperate because editor timed out)Hi Again, I meant that this particular article was not intended for debate I did not mean to insinuate that I was intolorant of debate. As my opening paragraph said, this was to help answer Philip's questions. I believe the passages speak for themselves.We can never fully understand the things of God, but it doesn't mean we shouldn't try. Especially those of faith in Jesus Christ, since he himself quoted Scripture throughout his ministry. If it helps, next time I will be sure and add that there are many thoughts and opinions on the same passages - this way no one will think I am leaving them out. Again, I welcome other insights to the passages, yours included.Blessings to you. Teresa
Teresa, thanks so much for linking to answersingenesis.org. I have loved this ministry for many years. It really is possible to defend the Bible as God's Holy Word from the very first verse.One other thought about Cain's wife that Ken Ham mentions is the fact that incest wasn't really condemned until many years after Adam and Eve and Cain and Abel, etc. In those early years, the gene pool would have been a lot more pure and free from corruption, and closer relatives could have married without terrible results in their offspring. See Ken's booklet entitled "Where did Cain get His Wife?"Hi Glen, thanks for reading and the comment. The book sounds great! I think I am going to order it.Good thoughts on the gene pool, thanks for adding it and sharing about the book. Also, before God condemned this, the result of birth defects due to this specific act, would not be possible - only after God condemned it as sin, then the consequences of this sin would be in place. Although, due to the original sin of Adam and Eve, all fell consequence to their choices.Thanks again, BlessingsThanks again, Teresa,By the way, you are probably aware of this, but the Answers in Genesis web site also has some great onlince resources that people can download for free, as long as they don't resell.Just look at the top menu on the site, I think it's called Resources or Online Resources. You'll find it.In the Lamb of God,Glen Averilloh yes, thanks for pointing that out to. It is a great place for resources. Have agreat evening!
22 July 2009Dear Teresa,Perhaps I spoke too rashly. It's only because over the years, every time I have asked these questions of biblical literalists, the hoped-for dialogue has always degenerated into the unproductive assertion "Believe what I tell you, because I am in touch with God and you aren't." It has also often degenerated into obtuse personal attacks, already evident in exchanges with at least one other respondent to my article: "This guy is not sincere, he's playing everyone. He's already admitted that he's on the opposite side of the pole, he just wants attention."You, however, seem to be different. Our interaction has been amicable and your first article calm and thoughtful. Given our different ideas about the literal truth of the Bible, I still think it unlikely that we can ever come to much of an agreement. I will nevertheless continue reading your articles. And perhaps comment on them if there seems to be a reasonable chance of our coming to a meeting of minds.Philip YaffeHi Philip,I understand where you are coming from and I am glad you see something different in me. That is not my style, nor is it my heart. There are no strings attached to my taking the time to answer questions, no will it ever be. My confidence in the Bible may come out in my style of writing, but it is never intended to mean that I know everything and you (anyone) know nothing. I will never forget my days of unbelief and confusion and I have asked countless questions and I remember being treated as you were by some. It sent me running the other way and reinforced what I had already thought of most Christians - or any religious group. But then, I came across others who were patient with my scoffing, frustration, and sincere questioning, and I thought, if I ever become a Christian, I want to be like these people, not the others.(I wrote an article last year, "How to be a successful ineffective witness for Christ", it will give you some insight to my philosphy of ministry, check it out if you want.)It has been my prayer that I would never forget that. I am not trying to pat myself on the back, I only say this to let you know, that you will never hear my tone change, I will not get angry, nor will I make you feel inferior to me, you are worth my time -- even if we never come to an agreement. My desire is that you come in agreement with God, not me.Enough about me - thanks for reconsidering :-) Blessings. I am working on Part two now, and should have it posted by Thursday evening/Friday morning. Blessings to you! Teresa
Teresa-Thanks for sharing! It was very informative and thorough! I am sure that many have asked these same questions over the years! Thanks for the clarification on the subject matter!Thanks Laura! I appreciate the support. I think we all have to rely on the Holy Spirit for wisdom and understanding in God's word, but some things speak for themselves. The more we seek, the more we learn. We will never know it all until we meet our Lord face to face.Let's keep searching! :-)
Teresa I am delighted in your zeal for the Lord, however after spending a really long time investigating any number of issues I find there are so many variations of belief that it becomes overwhelming. We are sadly back to who is right and who is wrong, is black really balack and who said so. Now one Lord, one Word yet all these interpretations. We can't even agree on literal or not. I prefer Pauls teaching, bascically, you go your way I'll go mine as long as we are going in the same direction. The rest, well one word delusion. best wishes my friend you do a darn good job!Hi Robert, thanks for the comment. Yes, one Lord, one word. Our job is to seek the truth as the Bible teaches. Even though there are many intrepretations, there are some truths in God's word that are plane as day, and no way to mis-interpret.What I like to see are other perspectives on these passages noted here to open up more of a biblical perspective. It's not about who is right and wrong, its about coming together and examing the Scriptures together. Paul is very specific that there is only one way - where does he say, "you go your way, I'll go mine". I would very much like to know what you believe the passages in this article say. I value your input and respect you as a brother and student of the word.It's not enough to say there are differences of thought - please share yours :-) Thanks for all your support. Lord bless you always dear friend! Teresa
"Well you go your way I'll go mine are my words as I gave them to you, not as scripture but just to provide a poor example of how many think differntly. I apologize if you took it that way as scripture. No Paul basically saying what he did in Romans Chapter 13, the weak and the strong. Trying to place it into the perspective we all have our beliefs and how we individually worship God. That is Jesus, since he was talking to believers. I won't rehash the Chapter I am sure you are well versed in it. Now what I was trying to get across is we can place before all of mankind the scriptures that we believe in, in our own beliefs and by providing text right from the bible, yet as you can see by the replies we, individually, cannot convince anyone we are right. We can only give them the Word as we interpret it and believ in it. Each person has the choices we have, that is to read God's Word, accept them or reject them. yet one Jesus. Now it is true, and we cannot deny that there is much contention between believers. We both can sit for hours and debate yet we believe in one Lord, the same. However, as witnessed by one of your replies, that is why so many turn away, confused. As you see many reject the Word and that is fullfillment / confirmation of the word by itself. Yes and some very educated and professional on this site. Once again their choice. So, you always make excellent scriptural points and as you noted they may open more questions, but as I have found out and you know it is up to God to draw the person to it, to accept or reject. How we all got here a major point of discussion for many since Adam and Eve and that has not been settled to this date. We both believe the Word is God and was made flesh. How the Word is used, presented, the literary style, the langauage of the day, its meaning varies between scholars of all churches. That is why these scholars from both sides of the isle can never seem to reconcile. So we are literally back between believers to who is right? Sad but true yet both right on one thing. The key thing and that is where all the rest go wrong. Thatis why I speak to Paul Chapter 13. Now this is where I believe when Jesus prayed he prayed we would all be one. Not in how, but belief. Blessing my good and dear friend.HI Robert, now this is a clearer response :-) I never write to convince and say I am right only to offer information because in the end it matters that the person is pointed toward Christ. In this all geniune Christians agree. But there are those who place stock in religion instead of relationship and this is why the church such sadness in the church.Lord bless you! Teresa
Teresa, thanks for your insight into an often misunderstood timeframe Biblically. I think you did a great job of letting the Scripture speak for itself.Hi Rob,Thank you for the encouraging comments. My desire is not to convince people that I am right, but rather lead them to consider the Scriptures.I don't think I am right, I think the Bible is right, and I align my thinking and understanding to God's word and in this, rely on the Holy Spirit to deepen not only knowledge, but my application. Blessings to you! Teresa
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