Life Goes On

It is easy to skip over passages like this as we move straight on from the creation stories to the flood stories, but interim sections like this are there for a reason! This one tells us that people were born and lived, some apparently without any recognition of God and some acknowledging the part that God continued to play in their ongoing lives. We see the population growing, cities built and the development of business and cultural life. We read of nomadic farming, musical instruments and the making of tools. We see Lamech not only following Cain’s murderous example but actually reveling in what he has done. It prepares us for the information given in Genesis 6 about the level of wickedness in the developing society. However, we also see Eve recognizing God’s hand in the birth of Seth and we learn of others who recognize and affirm the Lord (Yahweh). Exodus 3 explains the origin of the name Yahweh, but by the time this passage was written it was in common usage and is used quite naturally here to say that people were acknowledging God. As we look out on the society we live in, we see the population growing, cities being built and all kinds of cultural and technical developments, many of them instituted by people who refuse to acknowledge God in any way. It is tempting to think that the common assumption that God either does not exist or is only involved with those who believe in him might be right, but God the Creator is also God the Sustainer. He was as much involved in the births of Cain’s descendants as he was in the birth of Seth. This section helps us to recognize that.

In what ways do you see God working in and through people you know who refuse to acknowledge him? In what ways can God reveal himself to them through you?