![]() ![]() Punishments for abortion in other situations were less concrete elsewhere in the Old Testament. If a man suspected his wife of having slept with another man, he could take her to a priest, who would give her ‘bitter water’ to drink and then perform a curse over her in order to induce a miscarriage. Whether or not this ritual ever accomplished its purpose is difficult to say, since the only ingredients spelled out in the text are water, dirt, and ink (and of course ‘a curse’). But the intent of the punishment is clear: For her alleged infidelity, the Bible says her pregnancy should be terminated. In Numbers 5 we are told there are circumstances under which Yahweh actually instructed his people to perform an abortion. “One more passage about abortion in the Bible must be noted before we can move on. In his post, titled “Episode 17: What Does the Bible Say About Abortion,” he writes: Neil Carter, in an engrossing September 28 post in his Godless in Dixie blog on the Patheos hub, talked about this dichotomy. In fact, early Christian theologians had mixed views on the sinfulness, or not, of abortion, and, in fact, the Bible says little about it except when God himself demanded it. This religious corruption of ancient actualities is also seen in modern-day conservative Christian views on abortion. Proponents of veiling - hijab (hair covered) and niqab (head and face covered) - have told me that its modern continuation stems from the fact that Islam’s prophet, Mohammad, had his wives veil in public as a sign of their special status, not for modesty. In other words, it’s an ancient social custom that over time has come to be viewed as a divinely decreed religious edict. I was also told the holy Quran only prescribes female general “modesty” and chastity, much as Christianity does, not oppressive dress codes. Hendrickson Publishers Book 1, Chapter 2, verse 3 footnote. Published 2005 by: Ibis Press, Berwick, Maine. Original publishers: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, UK. The Book of Jubilees or the Little Genesis. The total number of Adam’s children is not given in this work however, it is found as a footnote in The Works of Josephus where it states: “The number of Adam’s children, as says the old tradition, was 33 sons and 23 daughters.” In view of their longevity, these appear to be reasonable figures while it would have to be said that, sinners though they were, Adam and Eve had faithfully obeyed God’s first commission to: “be fruitful and multiply …”. Eve’s second child, Abel, was born seven years later – between the years 71-77 anno mundi. Then Eve gave birth to her first child, Cain, between the ages of 64-70, or the same numbers as the age of the Earth, anno mundi. and states that Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Paradise seven years. The Book of Jubilees, whose author is unknown, was written in the second century B.C. ![]() Interestingly, two ancient books written about the time of Christ but not having the authority of inspired Scripture confirm these figures. ![]() At a rate of only one child every seven years, this would result in 50 children for Adam’s immediate family. Proportionately, the female period of fecundity – today 30 to 35 years – would then be about 350 years. Living over 900 years means living ten times longer than we do today. In each instance, the record simply gives the name of the first son, then adds “and begot sons and daughters.” With these words, the minimum number of children per family then becomes five. With the exception of Enoch, all of these pre-flood descendants of Adam lived a minimum of 777 years, while most were over 900 years. Genesis chapter five presents the genealogies of the descendants of Adam where we are simply given the father’s name, his age when he “begot” the first son and the total number of years he lived. However, accepting that Adam, and likely Eve, lived for 930 years, seven children would be the minimum number, but does this seem reasonable? ![]() Therefore, according to Scripture, Adam and Eve’s family consisted of sons Cain, Abel and Seth, plus a minimum of two other sons and two daughters, giving a total of seven children. This same passage also tells us that Adam lived for 930 years. All we are told about Adam’s offspring is that the first son was named Cain, the second son named Abel, then after Abel’s murder, another son named Seth was “begotten when Adam was 130 years old.” After that, Adam “begot sons and daughters”. The Author’s intention is seemingly to present the grand picture first and then add certain details throughout the rest of Scripture this is called Progressive Revelation. The early chapters of Genesis are concerned with the origin of the Earth and all life, including man. ![]()
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