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About the Book
Table of Contents
Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV
Part V
Part VI
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Part VI: Cain's Wife: And the Penalty
of Incest
Chapter 2
Was Cain's Wife of
the Line of Adam?
AT
THE TIME this is written, the official position of anthropology
is that man is half a million or more years old. The actual figure
is of no consequence -- it is its order of magnitude that counts.
The biblical chronology has been worked out by evangelical scholars
like John Urquhart, Martin Anstey, Philip Mauro, F. A. Jones,
and of course Bishop Ussher, who have concluded that the period
which has elapsed since the creation of Adam is between 6,000
and 10,000 years. The conflict here between secular science and
the Bible seems irreconcilable; one assumes that the data of
one or the other are being mistakenly interpreted or that there
were other human beings besides Adam who not only far antedated
him but also probably survived to be his contemporaries.
One of the earliest presentations
of the latter alternative is to be found, curiously enough, in
a book which was published before any fossil remains had been
unearthed and actually labeled as pre-Adamite man. This book
was published originally in 1862 and went through at least five
editions. It was written by a Mrs. George J. C. Duncan and is
titled Pre-Adamite Man: Or the Story of Our Old Planet and
Its Inhabitants Told by Scripture and Science. The publisher
was Nisbet and Co., London. Mrs. Duncan argued first that the
evidence that this earth is very old was unquestionable, and
she therefore adopted the view that the days of Genesis were
ages. From this she concluded that the age in which Adam appeared
may have seen many other creatures not unlike himself but not
of his line; it was such creatures as these whom Cain feared
would murder him and from among whom he took his wife. She also
believed that they were sinful but "not after the similitude
of Adam" (Romans 5:14). Some of these "people"
may have been brought to Adam as potential mates but he, in his
perfect state, did not accept any of them as suitable. Although
such non-Adamic races may have multiplied considerably,
 pg
1 of 3 
they
were presumably overwhelmed by the Flood. Nevertheless, some
of their "blood" must be assumed to remain with us
to this day, conveyed over the Flood in the family of Noah. Even
in the time of Cain this extra-Adamite population may have been
large enough that Cain would think to build a city as a defense
against suspected attack. Such in very broad outline was Mrs.
Duncan's thesis, and for a while it appears from newspaper reviews
of the time to have been much discussed. Yet in the long run,
very few Bible students took it up seriously -- partly because
it created some critical problems for the theology of redemption.
In 1871 a book was published anonymously,
entitled Primeval Man Unveiled: Or the Anthropology of the
Bible. The publisher was Hamilton, Adams of London, and the
author was probably James Gall. In this volume the author --
who had not at the time of writing it seen Mrs. Duncan's volume,
though he acknowledges having seen it while his own work was
on press -- took the view that Satan was lord of a created order
of beings who were angels in spirit but enjoyed also the possession
of man-like physical bodies. When these beings were condemned
and Satan robbed of his privileged position as lord of creation,
these beings who acknowledged Satan's lordship were as it were,
disembodied and reduced to that state which brings them to our
notice in the New Testament as demons. This author therefore
held that we might expect to find human-like creatures ante-dating
the appearance of Adam. These again intruded unnaturally into
the physical order through the agency of some of Adam's descendants
especially at the time of the Flood.
Both these volumes are of
interest; both were written by people who had great reverence
for the Word of God and sought to bring to bear upon it usefully
what they considered relevant findings of geologists and anthropologists.
Of the two, it appears to me that James Gall created fewer theological
problems. But at present I am persuaded that the attribution
to fossil remains of (a) human status and (b) tremendous antiquity
is not yet completely justified. Neither the methods of establishing
genetic relationships of fossil remains nor the methods of dating
these remains yet allow of absolute certainty. Until this certainty
is achieved, it is too soon to decide the issue one way or the
other; it is better to hold fast to a faith in the Word of God
which has often been challenged in similar ways in the past only
to be completely vindicated when sufficient evidence became available,
as has happened so frequently from Archaeology. It is true that
we may still be troubled with problems of interpretation of the
Word of God. But if the past teaches us anything, it is surely
this
pg.2
of 3
that
whenever the evidence from Archaeology is unmistakable, it tends
always to support the most literal interpretation of Scripture
that can be allowed in the light of other Scripture. Archaeology
has not supported allegorical interpretations of Scripture, but
it has encouraged the most literal interpretation that
the text will allow. At the present moment there is little agreement
among anthropologists as a whole. They are still searching for
a time-frame within which to arrange their data, a time-frame
that is sufficiently dependable to compel assent among authorities
of all schools. At present the diversity of opinion is
considerable.
I am persuaded that the student
of the Bible will do well to hold his ground in the meantime.
pg.3
of 3
Copyright © 1988 Evelyn White. All rights
reserved
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