The Book of Jasher, an ancient text referenced in the Bible itself (Joshua 10:13 and (2 Samuel 1:1)8), offers some pretty fascinating, and sometimes unsettling, glimpses..
The chapter opens with a sense of renewal. After the tragedy of Abel's death, Adam and Eve have another son, Seth. It's in the hundred and thirtieth year of Adam's life, according to Jasher, when Seth is born, "in his likeness and in his image." Eve proclaims, "Because God has appointed me another seed in the place of Abel, for Cain has slain him."
Seth, in turn, has a son named Enosh. But here's where things start to take a dark turn. We read that "in that time the sons of men began to multiply, and to afflict their souls and hearts by transgressing and rebelling against God." It wasn't just a few bad apples; the text emphasizes that the "sons of men continued to rebel."
According to Jasher, this rebellion manifested in idol worship. "And the sons of men went and they served other gods, and they forgot the Lord who had created them in the earth." They crafted images of brass, iron, wood, and stone, bowing down to them. It's a stark picture of humanity straying from its original connection with the Divine.
The consequences were severe. The Lord brought forth a devastating flood, not the great deluge we typically associate with Noah, but a localized one caused by the river Gihon overflowing. This earlier flood destroyed a third of the earth! Yet, even this catastrophe wasn't enough to turn people from their wicked ways. "Notwithstanding this," Jasher tells us, "the sons of men did not turn from their evil ways."
Things get even worse. The land itself seems to suffer. "In those days there was neither sowing nor reaping in the earth; and there was no food for the sons of men and the famine was very great in those days." The seeds they sowed yielded only thorns and thistles, a grim echo of the curse placed upon the earth after Adam's sin.
Amidst this widespread corruption, a glimmer of hope appears in the form of Cainan, the son of Enosh. At forty years old, he becomes wise and knowledgeable, reigning over all the sons of men and leading them toward wisdom. Jasher paints him as a kind of prophet, someone who "knew by his wisdom that God would destroy the sons of men for having sinned upon earth, and that the Lord would in the latter days bring upon them the waters of the flood." He even writes down prophecies on stone tablets and places them in his treasures! What were these prophecies? The text doesn't say exactly, but the implication is clear: he foresaw the coming destruction.
Cainan manages to turn some people back to the service of God. But the overall picture remains bleak, and soon we're introduced to another key figure: Lamech. He marries two daughters of Cainan, Adah and Zillah. The story then veers into some pretty disturbing territory.
We learn that people began to defy God's commandment to "be fruitful and multiply." Some men, wanting their wives to maintain their figures, forced them to drink potions that would make them barren. The text is particularly harsh on this practice: "And the child-bearing women appeared abominable in the sight of their husbands as widows, whilst their husbands lived, for to the barren ones only they were attached."
Zillah, initially barren, eventually gives birth to Tubal Cain. And here, the narrative takes a truly shocking turn.
Lamech, now old and blind, is led by his son Tubal Cain into the field. Mistaking Cain (yes, that Cain, Adam's son!) for an animal, Tubal Cain directs Lamech to shoot him with an arrow. Lamech does so, killing Cain. When they discover their mistake, Lamech is overcome with grief and, in his distress, accidentally kills Tubal Cain as well!
The wives of Lamech, horrified by his actions, turn against him. They separate from him and refuse to listen to his pleas. Lamech then tries to convince them it was an accident and they eventually return to him, with the advice of their father Adam, though they bear no more children.
The chapter concludes with a brief mention of Mahlallel, the son of Cainan, and his son Jared, who fathers Enoch. And so, the story continues, leading us closer to the time of the great flood and the story of Noah.
What are we to make of all this? The Book of Jasher's Chapter 2 presents a world spiraling out of control, a world where humanity has lost its way and faces dire consequences. It's a cautionary tale about the dangers of straying from one's spiritual path and the importance of remembering our connection to something greater than ourselves. It also raises fascinating questions about free will, divine judgment, and the enduring power of prophecy.
Sacred-texts Apocrypha Index Previous Next Book of Jasher, Chapter 2 1 And it was in the hundred and thirtieth year of the life of Adam upon the earth, that he again knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bare a son in his likeness and in his image, and she called his name Seth, saying, Because God has appointed me another seed in the place of Abel, for Cain has slain him. 2 And Seth lived one hundred and five years, and he begat a son; and Seth called the name of his son Enosh, saying, Because in that time the sons of men began to multiply, and to afflict their souls and hearts by transgressing and rebelling against God. 3 And it was in the days of Enosh that the sons of men continued to rebel and transgress against God, to increase the anger of the Lord against the sons of men. 4 And the sons of men went and they served other gods, and they forgot the Lord who had created them in the earth: and in those days the sons of men made images of brass and iron, wood and stone, and they bowed down and served them. 5 And every man made his god and they bowed down to them, and the sons of men forsook the Lord all the days of Enosh and his children; and the anger of the Lord was kindled on account of their works and abominations which they did in the earth. 6 And the Lord caused the waters of the river Gihon to overwhelm them, and he destroyed and consumed them, and he destroyed the third part of the earth, and notwithstanding this, the sons of men did not turn from their evil ways, and their hands were yet extended to do evil in the sight of the Lord. 7 And in those days there was neither sowing nor reaping in the earth; and there was no food for the sons of men and the famine was very great in those days. 8 And the seed which they sowed in those days in the ground became thorns, thistles and briers; for from the days of Adam was this declaration concerning the earth, of the curse of God, which he cursed the earth, on account of the sin which Adam sinned before the Lord. 9 And it was when men continued to rebel and transgress against God, and to corrupt their ways, that the earth also became corrupt. 10 And Enosh lived ninety years and he begat Cainan; 11 And Cainan grew up and he was forty years old, and he became wise and had knowledge and skill in all wisdom, and he reigned over all the sons of men, and he led the sons of men to wisdom and knowledge; for Cainan was a very wise man and had understanding in all wisdom, and with his wisdom he ruled over spirits and demons; 12 And Cainan knew by his wisdom that God would destroy the sons of men for having sinned upon earth, and that the Lord would in the latter days bring upon them the waters of the flood. 13 And in those days Cainan wrote upon tablets of stone, what was to take place in time to come, and he put them in his treasures. 14 And Cainan reigned over the whole earth, and he turned some of the sons of men to the service of God. 15 And when Cainan was seventy years old, he begat three sons and two daughters. 16 And these are the names of the children of Cainan; the name of the first born Mahlallel, the second Enan, and the third Mered, and their sisters were Adah and Zillah; these are the five children of Cainan that were born to him. 17 And Lamech, the son of Methusael, became related to Cainan by marriage, and he took his two daughters for his wives, and Adah conceived and bare a son to Lamech, and she called his name Jabal. 18 And she again conceived and bare a son, and called his name Jubal; and Zillah, her sister, was barren in those days and had no offspring. 19 For in those days the sons of men began to trespass against God, and to transgress the commandments which he had commanded to Adam, to be fruitful and multiply in the earth. 20 And some of the sons of men caused their wives to drink a draught that would render them barren, in order that they might retain their figures and whereby their beautiful appearance might not fade. 21 And when the sons of men caused some of their wives to drink, Zillah drank with them. 22 And the child-bearing women appeared abominable in the sight of their husbands as widows, whilst their husbands lived, for to the barren ones only they were attached. 23 And in the end of days and years, when Zillah became old, the Lord opened her womb. 24 And she conceived and bare a son and she called his name Tubal Cain, saying, After I had withered away have I obtained him from the Almighty God. 25 And she conceived again and bare a daughter, and she called her name Naamah, for she said, After I had withered away have I obtained pleasure and delight. 26 And Lamech was old and advanced in years, and his eyes were dim that he could not see, and Tubal Cain, his son, was leading him and it was one day that Lamech went into the field and Tubal Cain his son was with him, and whilst they were walking in the field, Cain the son of Adam advanced towards them; for Lamech was very old and could not see much, and Tubal Cain his son was very young. 27 And Tubal Cain told his father to draw his bow, and with the arrows he smote Cain, who was yet far off, and he slew him, for he appeared to them to be an animal. 28 And the arrows entered Cain's body although he was distant from them, and he fell to the ground and died. 29 And the Lord requited Cain's evil according to his wickedness, which he had done to his brother Abel, according to the word of the Lord which he had spoken. 30 And it came to pass when Cain had died, that Lamech and Tubal went to see the animal which they had slain, and they saw, and behold Cain their grandfather was fallen dead upon the earth. 31 And Lamech was very much grieved at having done this, and in clapping his hands together he struck his son and caused his death. 32 And the wives of Lamech heard what Lamech had done, and they sought to kill him. 33 And the wives of Lamech hated him from that day, because he slew Cain and Tubal Cain, and the wives of Lamech separated from him, and would not hearken to him in those days. 34 And Lamech came to his wives, and he pressed them to listen to him about this matter. 35 And he said to his wives Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice O wives of Lamech, attend to my words, for now you have imagined and said that I slew a man with my wounds, and a child with my stripes for their having done no violence, but surely know that I am old and grey-headed, and that my eyes are heavy through age, and I did this thing unknowingly. 36 And the wives of Lamech listened to him in this matter, and they returned to him with the advice of their father Adam, but they bore no children to him from that time, knowing that God's anger was increasing in those days against the sons of men, to destroy them with the waters of the flood for their evil doings. 37 And Mahlallel the son of Cainan lived sixty-five years and he begat Jared; and Jared lived sixty-two years and he begat Enoch. 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