Pre-Flood Generations (4:1-6:4)

B. Pre-Flood Generations (4:1-6:4)

Genesis 4:1-6:4 fills the gap between the first couple, Adam and Eve, and the story of Noah. These chapters tell two stories: one of the growth of population and culture, and the other of the growth and development of sin. The narratives of the pre-flood heroes and villains come from the Yahwist narrative. Taken with the story of Adam and Eve they explain why God sent the flood. Yet, at the same time these aberrations were occurring human culture was developing, including the construction of cities, the domestication of animals, and the rise of the fine arts.

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Cain and Abel, by Titian (1477-1576) Santa Maria della Salute, Venice -- CGFA

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    There are two genealogies in these chapters, one in chapter 4 and one in chapter 5. The genealogy in Genesis 4 comes from the Yahwist narrative and tracks the growth of humanity through Cain. The one in Genesis 5 comes from the Priestly source and extends from Adam to Noah. A genealogy is a record or table of the descent of a person, family, or group from an ancestor or ancestors; in other words it is a family tree. Most readers would probably rather ignore genealogies completely. On the surface they appear boring, but they are rather important to the overall scheme of Genesis (see Chapter 1.3 and 2.4).
    The genealogies of Genesis 1-11 accomplish at least two things. First, they give evidence that humanity did in fact multiply and fill the earth, as God mandated. This is evidence of blessing. Second, they establish the connection between Adam and Abraham so that the line of continuity between Israel and its origin can be traced all the way back to creation (see Wilson 1977 for the social functions of genealogies).