Genesis 4:20
in Genesis 4Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who dwell in tents and raise livestock.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents and have cattle.
KJV
And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle.
⋯
This verse in Genesis 4
Commentary
5 notes on this verseJabal - was the father - The inventor or teacher, for so the word is understood, 1Sa 10:12. He was the first who invented tent-making, and the breeding and managing of cattle; or he was, in these respects, the most eminent in that time. Though Abel was a shepherd, it is not likely he was such on an extensive scale.
This site's exposition
the father of those who dwell in tents
on Genesis 4:20-22
Jabal fathers the herdsmen in tents, Jubal the players of harp and flute, and Tubal-cain the forgers of bronze and iron. These are real gifts, and they arose in the line of the man who went out from the presence of the LORD. Naamah is named, and the name is all the verse gives.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
The text runs: "Methushael begot Lamech, who took two wives: the name of the one was Ada, and the name of the other Sella. And Ada brought forth Jobel; who was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of herdsmen. His brother's name was Jubal. He was the father of all those who play the psaltery and cittara. Sella bore Tobel; he was the forger of all instruments of bronze and iron. The sister of Tobel was Noema." This is as far as the line of descent from Cain is carried. There are eight generations in all, including Adam. The seventh is that of Lamech, who was the husband of two wives; the eighth is that of his children, among whom is the woman who is mentioned by name. What is here delicately intimated is that to the very end of its existence the earthly city will be propagated by physical births proceeding from the union of the sexes. This is why we are given the proper names of the wives of the last man mentioned as begetting children—a practice unheard of before the flood, except in the case of Eve.
The Medieval Church1 voice
He begot, he says, Ada Jabal, who was the father of those who dwell in tents and shepherds, and the name of his brother was Jubal. He was the father of those who play the harp and organ.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And Adah bare Jabal,.... According to Hillerus (m), this name, and Jubal and Tubal, after mentioned, all signify a river; why Lamech should call all his sons by names signifying the same thing, is not easy to say.
The words behind it
10 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַתֵּ֥לֶד | vateled | and she bore | H3205 → | 496 times |
| עָדָ֖ה | ʾadah | Adah | H5711 → | 8 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| יָבָ֑ל | yaval | Jabal | H2989 → | |
| ה֣וּא | hu' | he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| הָיָ֔ה | hayah | he was | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| אֲבִ֕י | ʾavi | [the] father of | H1 → | 1212 times |
| יֹשֵׁ֥ב | yoshev | dweller[s] of | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| אֹ֖הֶל | ʾohel | tent | H168 → | 345 times |
| וּמִקְנֶֽה׃ | umikneh | and livestock | H4735 → | 76 times |
וַתֵּ֥לֶדand she bore
vateledH3205 →496 times
עָדָ֖הAdah
ʾadahH5711 →8 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
יָבָ֑לJabal
yavalH2989 →
ה֣וּאhe
hu'H1931 →1879 times
הָיָ֔הhe was
hayahH1961 →3559 times
אֲבִ֕י[the] father of
ʾaviH1 →1212 times
יֹשֵׁ֥בdweller[s] of
yoshevH3427 →1079 times
אֹ֖הֶלtent
ʾohelH168 →345 times
וּמִקְנֶֽה׃and livestock
umiknehH4735 →76 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Hebrews 11:9By faith he dwelt in the promised land as a stranger in a foreign country. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.
it leads to
- Genesis 12:8
From there Abram moved on to the hill country east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel to the west and Ai to the east. There he built an altar to the LORD,…
- Genesis 13:18
So Abram moved his tent and went to live near the Oaks of Mamre at Hebron, where he built an altar to the LORD.
- Genesis 13:3
From the Negev he journeyed from place to place toward Bethel, until he came to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had formerly been pitched,
- Acts 7:5–6
He gave him no inheritance here, not even a foot of ground. But God promised to give possession of the land to Abraham and his descendants, even though he did not yet have a…
- Hebrews 6:17
So when God wanted to make the unchanging nature of His purpose very clear to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath.
- Genesis 12:8
Through
Genesis 4:2Later she gave birth to Cain’s brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, while Cain was a tiller of the soil.
it leads to
- 1 John 3:15
Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that eternal life does not reside in a murderer.
- 1 John 3:12
Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did Cain slay him? Because his own deeds were evil, while those of his brother were righteous.
- Luke 11:51
from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, all of it will be charged to this generation.
- 1 John 3:15
Where this verse is studied
About Genesis
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Augustine of Hippo, City of God 15.17; Bede, Commentary on Genesis (Hexaemeron); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.