In our second article, “He Speaks in Volumes,” we were introduced to the first ten members of Christ’s lineage and their ability to form an evangelical statement from the Hebrew meaning of each member’s name. The collective meaning of their names forms the following sentence:
Christ-line Summary Statement
“Man appointed mortal sorrow, [but] the Bless God shall come down teaching His death shall bring 'the Despairing' rest.”
From the previous article, “He Speaks of His Firstborn Son,” we were surprised to learn how the framework of the first family naturally places Adam's offspring into two fixed family positions on the stage of Biblical prophetic history. The first position is the firstborn line of the family of fallen man as represented by Cain. This position is placed first because it holds a legal status within the family. The second fixed position is the younger line as represented by Abel only to be replaced by the new son and appointed seed as represented by Seth.
The other surprise we learned in the last article is that the Cain-line can also form an evangelical statement like the Christ-line. It reads as follows:
Cain-line Summary Statement
“Man, acquired [as a] dedicated-teaching fleet of witnesses, [decline as] fugitives, smitten by God, who is of God, powerfully humbled [as] “the Despairing,” leads a joyous jubilee.”
When viewed on a prophetic scale, the Cain and the Christ line represent two fixed positions of the family. These are: (1) the firstborn branch, and (2) the younger branch.
The Cain-line's summary statement appears to suggest that this line is “of God,” yet as a massive group (about the size of a city) become fugitives and are “smitten by God” for the purpose to become “powerfully humbled” as representatives of God as a subgroup called “the Despairing" to lead a "joyous jubilee.”
If we take this message at face value, it seems that the Cain-line statement makes a declaration that defies the traditional viewpoint of Christianity. Unlike the Christ-line statement that addresses the world at large and in a general sense, the focus of this line seems to celebrate a destiny given to Adam’s Firstborn, no matter how undeserving that line may seem to be to us.
Also note how the Cain-line ends in the eighth generation while the Christ-line ends on the tenth generation. This next chart will make that clear.
The Cain and Christ-Line Genealogy Charts Compared (Gen. 4:17-24 and Gen. 5:1-24)
Generational Cain-Line Christ-Line Number(s) Members Members
1st generation Adam (1st member) Adam (1st member) “Man” “Man” 2nd generation Cain (2nd member) Seth (2nd member) “Acquired” “Appointed” 3rd generation Enoch (3rd member) Enosh (3rd member) “Witness by dedicated “Mortal” teaching/instruction/ discipline” 4th generation Irad (4th member) Kenan (4th member) “Fugitive, city of “Sorrow” witness, fleet” 5th generation Mehujael (5th member) Mahalalel (5th member) “Smitten by God” “The Blessed God” 6th generation Methusael (6th member) Jared (6th member) “Who is of God” “Shall come down” 7th generation Lamech (7th member) Enoch (7th member) “The despairing" “Witness dedicated (powerfully teaching/instruction/ humbled/lowered) discipline” 8th generation Jabal (8th member) Methuselah (8th member) “Leading/conducts, “His death shall bring” flowing stream"
Tabal (9th member) “Joyous Trumpet Sounds of Jubilee” Tubal-Cain (10th member) “Flowing forth from Cain to the world/earth” 9th generation Lamech (9th member) “The despairing" (powerfully humbled/lowered) 10th generation Noah (10th member) “Rest or comfort”
From the above comparison, you can see there is a natural break point in Cain’s line, which is caused by Lamech. He is the seventh descendant from Cain, but the first to have two wives who gave him a total of three sons and one daughter. Together, Lamech’s three sons account for the eighth generation of Cain yet extending the total count of the genealogical record to ten, just like the Christ-line' total count of ten.
Additionally, there are other interesting factors to note about the Cain-line. The first aspect relates to the similarities of the names of Lamech’s three sons. Basically, the distinction between “Jabal, Jubal, and Tubal,” is one character in the Hebrew alphabet. The three names come from the same Hebrew root. Scholars maintain that the three names are basically an extension of the other. To substantiate this thought, the Jewish sages would often compare the three brothers as three hands of a clock as in hours, minutes, and seconds. From that view, the three son’s contributions were never assessed separately.
The second aspect about these three sons of Lamech relates to their complementary collective skill set. The first two brothers encompass the structure of a human society. Jabal’s industry was artificial shelter, as he was a tent maker and kept livestock. And Jubal’s industry was musical expression as he was a music maker.
The first son’s occupation of husbandry and tent making are a perfect fit for the Cain-line’s nomadic lifestyle. By adding the second son’s musical talent, all the major elements needed to hold worship services were available in their day, not to mention a means of personal enjoyment and trade. But, when you add the influence of the third brother, Tubal Cain, human society becomes complex enough to begin to have a global impact. As a forger of bronze and iron, which assumes items such as weapons, buildings, and agricultural tools, Tubal Cain, completes the essential trades necessary for the expansion of cities, states, and nations even in our world today.
Most intriguing is how Lamech’s sons extend the Cain-line’s reach to a national level. It gets even more interesting when you compare the eighth generation of both lines and see how each left a lasting legacy. For example, the eighth member in the Christ-line is Methuselah. We discover in that generation that upon his death the flood came that forever changed the world. Compare this to the eight generation of the Cain-line. Their skill set and knowledge continues to this day without getting washed out by the flood (pun intended).
Even the structure of the two lines proves to be invaluable in terms of Biblical typology. Notice how the Cain-line has a unique eight-to-ten structure, with ten members in the line that ends at the eight generation. The use of these two numbers (eight and ten) as we learned from the Numbers Chart, not only point to a global reference but also to a “new beginning.” This is exactly what the Cain-line’s summary statement suggests.
The Christ-line, on the other hand, is not as obvious because it has a ten-to-ten structure. From a quick glance back at the Numbers Chart, notice how the number ten also indicates the end of a cycle, in addition to having a global reference. Its summary statement is meant to address the world at large on a global prophetic timeline, while the Cain-line’s statement speaks only the firstborn line and its destiny to begin anew to impact the world.
Note too how both the Cain and the Christ-lines have three names in common: Adam, Enoch, and Lamech. Adam is first because he fathered both lines in “mortal sorrow.” Enoch means “teaching,” and represents the time as to when each line receives the “teaching about the blessed God.” And lastly, Lamech means “despairing, powerfully humbled or lowered.” The use of his name in both lines indicate that both lines are make up the whole group known as “The Despairing."
From our findings so far, it appears that Cain-line is begging us to include him in our considerations as we begin to trace HIS-Story through HIS-Blood. After all, both lines are from one father who fathered the whole human race. Maybe both lines exist to serve as a valid testimony to the world? And according to the Cain-line’s summary statement, his line is given a new beginning to “lead a joyous jubilee.” But prior to that time, this firstborn line decline in such a way that they become “smitten of God," but later known as "of God.”
Could this “smitten of God” status be the reason why the Cain-line has received such undue hate and prejudice by both Jews and Christians alike? Is it possible that the plan of God for the Firstborn line has been misunderstood that has caused undue bias and gross misinterpretation of scripture and by the world? Stay tuned to the HIS-Story Channel for the next edition of HIS-Story as we learn the father and his two lost sons.
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