Peacemkr45 t1_iw1d0p4 wrote
Reply to comment by Cetun in TIL 'The Land of Nod' is originally a biblical reference of a sort of purgatory where Cain was exiled after murdering Abel -- rather than a 'dreamland' sleepytime dealie as it is now colloquially known. by quicxly
Any way you want to look at it, there is no adequate explanation of the people of Nod. Adam and eve created 2 offspring, Cain and Abel; Both males. There is no other mention of any other people on the planet, just those 4 people (unless you count Lilith which opens a whole other can of worms). Abel gets killed by Cain who goes to live with THE PEOPLE of Nod. That is the Biblical account based on the Abrahamic religions (Christianity, Judaism and Islam). I've had long theological discussions with multiple clergy over this and the honest ones say they have no answer. It's not like it's the only flaw in the scriptures about Creation. It's just one I like to point out to the zealots.
DharmaCub t1_iw1y06r wrote
In the ancient Canaanite religions that the Semitic religions evolved from were polytheistic with many patron gods of cities or tribes. Eventually, a main God (YHWH- Yahweh) won out and became the only God, while many of the others (Baphomet, Azazel, Bael, Moloch etc) became demons.
YHWH was just the God of the Israelites at one point way way back, but other peoples had other Gods and this was accepted.
So most likely these other people (whom I believe to be ancient Scythian or other Eurasian steppe peoples) were merely followers "created by" another God.
marmorset t1_iw4ocb4 wrote
Monotheism is a modern conception, and the word "god" originally just meant divine being. The thing that's different about Yahweh is that He's the only creator. Also, Yahweh is the only god that isn't part of a pantheon, the divine beings with Yahweh are His subordinates, they're not offspring or equals. That's much different from all the other beliefs.
Another difference is that God has a singular relationship with people. There's no give and take, it's Yahweh's way of the highway. All of the other gods rely on humans and do favors for humans if they get something in return.
It was generally acknowledged, and mentioned in the Bible, that God has a council and he addresses other divine beings--angel is a job description, the word means "messenger." Only in modern times did Jewish and Protestant leaders invent monotheism, the notion that there's only one divine being. The Bible itself notes that there are divine beings, angels, who assist Yahweh, and divine beings, demons, that oppose Yahweh, but He's the one God.
Cetun t1_iw1exre wrote
Well I think the explanation is two fold. First that Adam and Eve were perfect, therefore they lived much longer. You have other historical biblical figures living for well over 150 years, it stands to reason that Adam and Eve likely lived longer, it never says how old they are or when they die or even when they had children.
Second of all it doesn't say Adam and Even had only two children, only that Cain and Abel were two of their children. It could be Eve was popping them out every 9 months or something, it doesn't say she wasn't so maybe they had a couple hundred kids, some went to live in the land of Nod.
The ultra conservative view you will find very few clergy defend in the United States at least. Most say they are just stories to get a message across and to not take the whole 7 days to create earth and Garden of Eden thing literally, they are just stories to teach people important lessons about God and humanity.
Gewt92 t1_iw1ka43 wrote
It also doesn’t say God didn’t create other people
Cetun t1_iw2as1p wrote
Their reply to that would be "God created man not men"
Gewt92 t1_iw2wvj0 wrote
Yeah but after that it doesn’t say what he did
marmorset t1_iw4olq3 wrote
It is mentioned that Eve is the mother of mankind, which suggests that all people come from her, it's not just an honorary title. But Genesis also mentions that Adam and Eve have other children after Cain and Abel, it just doesn't mention what happens to them.
dr69ons6mur6i t1_iw241ha wrote
>Well I think the explanation is two fold. First that Adam and Eve were perfect, therefore they lived much longer. You have other historical biblical figures living for well over 150 years, it stands to reason that Adam and Eve likely lived longer, it never says how old they are or when they die or even when they had children.
>Second of all it doesn't say Adam and Even had only two children, only that Cain and Abel were two of their children. It could be Eve was popping them out every 9 months or something, it doesn't say she wasn't so maybe they had a couple hundred kids, some went to live in the land of Nod.
Genesis 5:3-5 says Adam was 130 when Eve gave birth to Seth who was born after Cain killed Abel, then lived for another 800 years fathering more children. It doesn’t say how long between their creation and when they were kicked out of the garden, but it’s reasonable to assume there was enough time between their exile and when Abel was killed they had time to knock boots a few times.
Faelix t1_iw1znvj wrote
To call it a flaw is your very subjective interpretation. To me, God makes it clear that outside of Eden, there were primitive people, wanderers, beduins, who would kill any trespassers they came upon.
When God evicts Adam and Eve, he makes them clothing of Animal Skin. So that put's us in time. The conflict of Cain and Abel, are the hunter/gatherer, vs the Farmer. The Farmer creates much more produce, than the hunter/gatherer.
It all puts us in a specific time of human history.
I, who did find God, is very glad that the Allmighty, puts this on the table, I am not one to accept time as absolute, and will not use the Bible generations, to date earth, as some do. Time is relative, and God created all things in 6 days, on the seventh day he rested.
marmorset t1_iw4lmb9 wrote
>there is no adequate explanation of the people of Nod. Adam and eve created 2 offspring, Cain and Abel; Both males. There is no other mention of any other people on the planet, just those 4 people
You're wrong. Not only does Genesis say that Adam and Eve had other sons and daughters, it specifically mentions a son named Seth.
It doesn't mention when those other children were born or what happened to them, only that that the first two children were Cain and Abel. And it clearly says that Eve is the mother of mankind in general so the other people are all the descendants of Adam and Eve.
I'm sure the zealots love it when someone who doesn't know what the Bible says and doesn't believe in it, tries to share his "knowledge."
Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments