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Where was the Rainbow before the great flood?
In The Torah Portion, Noach Gen 6:9-11:32 we read that the rainbow suddenly appears, as if it where not something seen in the pre-flood days.
Genesis 9:13 (KJV)
13 I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.
We shall closely examine the Scriptures in an attempt to uncover why this rainbow is absent from Eden, if at all, and try to understand why it suddenly appears for Noah. There will probably be more questions than answers.
Genesis 4:1-16 (KJV)
1 And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.
- Why is Eve so surprised about producing a man?
- Did Eve have daughters before ever having Cain?
- It seems Eve prayed for a male child for a long time, and when he arrives she credits this to the LORD.
- The Hebrew meaning of the name and the root of the word may give us a clue about Cain, and his nature.
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H7014 (Strong)
קַיִן
qayin
kah’-yin
The same as H7013 (with a play upon the affinity to H7069); Kajin, the name of the first child, also of a place in Palestine, and of an Oriental tribe: – Cain, Kenite (-s).
Total KJV occurrences: 19 -
H7013 (Strong)
קַיִן
qayin
kah’-yin
From H6969 in the original sense of fixity; a lance (as striking fast): – spear.
Total KJV occurrences: 1 -
H6969 (Strong)
קוּן
qûn
koon
A primitive root; to strike a musical note, that is, chant or wail (at a funeral): – lament, mourning woman.
Total KJV occurrences: 8- This might have prophetic significance regarding Eve’s mourning the loss of both sons?
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H7069 (Strong)
קָנָה
qânâh
kaw-naw’
A primitive root; to erect, that is, create; by extension to procure, especially by purchase (causatively sell); by implication to own: – attain, buy (-er), teach to keep cattle, get, provoke to jealousy, possess (-or), purchase, recover, redeem, X surely, X verily.
Total KJV occurrences: 84
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2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
- Abel is the second born male child, and it appears he is not a twin, as some suppose. Again let us examine his name and its root for clues about Abel’s nature.
- H1893 (Strong)
הֶבֶל
hebel
heh’-bel
The same as H1892; Hebel, the son of Adam: – Abel.
Total KJV occurrences: 8 - H1892 (Strong)
הֲבֵל הֶבֶל
hebel hăbêl
heh’-bel, hab-ale’
From H1891; emptiness or vanity; figuratively something transitory and unsatisfactory; often used as an adverb: – X altogether, vain, vanity.
Total KJV occurrences: 73 - H1891 (Strong)
הָבַל
hâbal
haw-bal’
A primitive root; to be vain in act, word, or expectation; specifically to lead astray: – be (become, make) vain.
Total KJV occurrences: 5
- H1893 (Strong)
3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
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From what we are given in the text thus far, we are not told of any laws or rules given Adam. We can assume Adam taught Cain and Abel this practice.
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Perhaps it comes from the wisdom acquired from the tree of knowledge,
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or it was the only way Cain and Abel knew to express to the LORD, their gratitude for the success of their labors?
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Did they do this on a regular basis? Or was this the first time for them both? Perhaps Cain did make offerings while Abel was just a baby, and his offerings where always accepted, then comes along Abel, with a first offering, and for reasons we can only speculate on, Cain’s offering was rejected while little Hăbêl’s is accepted.
- The LORD gives us only what is sufficient, the rest is left up to us to seek as if for hidden treasures, in a search, and study of his Word. Let us continue reading.
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4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
- We know the LORD established a dress code for Adam & Eve in Genesis 3:21 so the lamb’s skin would provide clothing, but many assume from Genesis 1:29 that Adam and Eve and their children would be vegetarians; however, it appears here that Abel feels the need to provide the part of the lamb that is considered a delicacy by some cultures today. If the lamb’s skin used for clothing was the purpose for keeping herds, then offering the flesh would not be a sacrifice at all, so we can safely conclude here that the flesh of these clean animals was eaten by The Adam’s family.
5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
- We must ask why Cain’s offering is rejected, and toward whom is his anger?
6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
- We know the LORD rejected Cain’s offering because he knows our hearts, so Cain is here being asked to search himself for the true reason of his anger, trusting in the LORD’s rejection of his offering, as evidence to a flaw in himself.
7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
- Here, the LORD is telling Cain that he truly has it within himself, the capacity to find and overcome his flaw, and to do so is the reward of the LORD’s acceptance of, not his offering, but of him. However for Cain to fail, in this request, is for him to become a slave to that which caused his rejection. We must note: Cain did offer up a sacrifice to the LORD, and it may have been the best it could possibly have been, exceeding that of Abel’s, in Cain’s devotion and efforts, thus all the more reason for Cain to feel a great amount of anger, especially if he expected his efforts to pay off, only to find they where for nothing. This therefore makes it all the more difficult for him to actually take heed of LORD’s warning.
8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
- Cain’s premeditated murder of Abel is a testament to what he thought of the advice and warning the LORD gave him. He did exactly the opposite, and ruminated on what he might be able to do, to force the LORD to have no other choice but to accept his way, as if he could manipulate the LORD’s will to fit his own.
9And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper?
- Cain’s answer to the LORD reveals his true feelings not only toward his brother but toward the LORD. He shows a complete lack of shame and remorse for what he did, along with a complete lack of reverence and fear for the LORD. Cain literally thinks he can murder and lie to the LORD’s face, and get away with it. He not only hated his little brother, but …
10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground. 11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand; 12 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.
- The punishment Cain gets is about the worse thing that could have happened to him. Not only did the LORD take from him the very career he was trained in, by causing the ground to give him no yield, but he would become like a fool, wandering about with no where to settle.
13 And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14 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.
- It is as if Cain now has the very job his brother Abel had, only now he must do it somewhere outside of the site of his parents.
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This banishment from his father and mother makes one wonder if the wife of Cain was an influence, as Eve influenced Adam to forsake his parents.
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“Adam’s parents?” You may ask. Yes, Adam gives us a prophecy of not only what would happen to his sons throughout all of history, but to himself as well:
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Genesis 2:23-24 (KJV) And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
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15 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.
- The fact that the LORD protects Cain with a mark, and a seven fold curse to anyone else who tries to kill him, is a testament to how important Cain actually is to the LORD. This sounds dreadfully familiar! Let’s list a few facts about Cain, that might give us a hint to his importance:
- Cain is the first male child out of the womb of Eve.
- We do not know for sure if Eve gave birth to daughters first, but we do know Cain has a wife in his wanderings. Although Genesis 5:4 says Adam had sons and daughters, daughters are just not mentioned in the genealogy of Adam’s line through Seth, but implied.
- I say this because of Eve’s apparent surprise of having a son.
- Cain’s name has meaning to it, in relation to his birth being a prayer answered.
- As mentioned by Josephus his name also fits with his nature, as someone who was more concerned with forcing things to go his way, then one who relied on the LORD to be the source of his success. qayin can mean a lance (as striking fast): – spear A primitive root; to erect, that is, create; by extension to procure, especially by purchase.
- Does this not remind you of the rich, and the entitlement they have because of their great possessions?
- The warning given Cain was somewhat cryptic and perhaps the LORD wanted to allow Cain a chance to chew on it knowing that if not Cain, perhaps his offspring down the line might one day see the error of their father, and thus themselves and repent.
- The meaning of Abel’s name seems to imply he had a lower status, not only in the eyes of his parents, but as we know, in the eyes of Cain. Hebel can mean emptiness or vanity; figuratively something transitory and unsatisfactory.
- Did Abel have a disability? Was Abel mentally slow, and therefore what we might consider a poor person?
16 And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.
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This verse is proof that Eden is a special place! The Land of Eden is to Cain as the Land of Canaan is to the Jews. We know from Revelation 2.7 that the garden with the tree of life in its midst is still in existence, but we clearly have no access to it in our current state, as if it is a place invisible to our eyes.
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Is it both scientifically and Biblically possible for a location to exist on the Earth and remain invisible to our eyes?
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We know of various scriptures where something or someone was invisible to the observers.
- Balaam’s Donkey and the Angel, see Numbers 22:22-41
- Elisha opens his servant’s eyes to Horses and Chariots of Fire see 2 Kings 6:8-6:23;
-God Protects Hagar and Ishmael see Genesis 21:8-21 - And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering see Genesis 22
- Jesus Heals a Man with a Demon see Mark 5:1-20
- On the Road to Emmaus see Luke 24:13-35
- The Conversion of Saul Acts 9:1-18
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Scientifically we know of various examples in psychology and physics of objects being invisible to our eyes yet exist in space-time.
- Optical illusions
- inattentional blindness
- hallucinations
- dark matter
- entangled particles
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Conclusion: It’s possible, for us to exist alongside other locations outside of our ability to detect.
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So what’s my point?
- Just as the garden of Eden was no longer accessible to Adam and his offspring, the Land of Eden was no longer accessible to Cain and his offspring. I do not know if Adam or any of his offspring after Abel were able to leave Eden and visit Cain in the land of Nod, although Scripture hints at it. Let us continue.
Genesis 4:17-21 (KJV)
17 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.
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18 And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begat Mehujael: and Mehujael begat Methusael: and Methusael begat Lamech.
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19 And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah.
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20 And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle.
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21 And his brother’s name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ.
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22 And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah.
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23 And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt.
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24 If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.
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25 And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.
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26 And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.
