(The Founders of the Cainite Arts)
The name Adah appears twice in the King James Version of the Bible, identifying two distinct women separated by vast stretches of early biblical history and genealogy.
Adah, Wife of Lamech (The Founder of Arts)
The first and more prominent figure named Adah is found in the lineage of Cain before the Great Flood. She is significant for her role in the first recorded instance of polygamy and as the mother of the patriarchs of early civilization’s great innovations.
Adah was one of the two wives of Lamech, the son of Methusael, who was the great-great-grandson of Cain. The biblical record introduces her in a passage detailing Lamech’s household:
“And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah.” (Genesis 4:19, KJV)
Adah bore Lamech two sons, each of whom founded a major profession:
- Jabal: He was “the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle” (Genesis 4:20, KJV), establishing the nomadic, pastoral way of life.
- Jubal: He was “the father of all such as handle the harp and organ” (Genesis 4:21, KJV), pioneering musical arts and instruments.
Her story is also linked to Lamech’s boastful and violent speech to his wives, where he declares his intent to be avenged far more than Cain:
“And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: For I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt. If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.” (Genesis 4:23-24, KJV)
Adah, Wife of Esau (Mother of Edomite Chiefs)
A second woman named Adah is found in the genealogy of Esau (who is called Edom), the elder son of Isaac. She was one of the three wives Esau took from the surrounding Canaanite tribes.
“Esau took his wives of the daughters of Canaan; Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Aholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite; And Bashemath Ishmael’s daughter, sister of Nebajoth.” (Genesis 36:2-3, KJV)
This Adah was the mother of Esau’s firstborn son:
“And Adah bare to Esau Eliphaz; and Bashemath bare Reuel; and Aholibamah bare Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah: these are the sons of Esau, which were born unto him in the land of Canaan.” (Genesis 36:4-5, KJV)
Her son, Eliphaz, became a duke among the chiefs of the Edomites, the descendants of Esau, who were an antagonistic nation to the children of Israel.