If a genesis is true and the beginning of mankind, how did this work with just one woman?

Question

People have argued to promote the bible as a science and for it to be taught in schools, yet surely the fundamental flaw is that Adam and Eve had two children, both boys, one of whom died at a young age. Just how did the species propogate? I am not having a go at the church or religions, I just have a genuine interest and I am sure there will be someone out there to explain this to me.

Ok, now I am worried about those that simply seem to accept incest as an option. It is genetically proven than incest is not good. And the guy who suggests that the dislike of incest is a North American thing - well I have been to 60 something countries and I can tell you its though of as icky all places I have been to. Maybe he can write me and let me know where incest is socially accepted.
As for others created by God, its an option, but you think more would have been mentioned about them being created in the bible. How old was Adam when he was created, i assume he was not a child?

If genesis is, as many of you have said including apparrent believers, an allagory and not to be taken literally, then surely it follows that everything else in the book should be treated likewise. Can you pick and choose which bits are true and disgard the rest as fiction?

Answer 1

I have always wanted to know the answer to this question and have even been kicked out of church for asking it before.

Answer 2

This is the story of Cain& Abel,why would the author mention anyone else,it would be irrelevant to the story;what would Cain killing Abel have to do with the other possible children?People make too many assumptions;there's nothing in the bible stating that these 2 boys were their only children..It actually sys in the beginning of the second chapter that Adam had another son named Seth.Who's to say he hadno daughters?Remember,the bible has been chopped up and rewritten MANY times.Women in the biblical days kept having kids until they were well into their hundreds!It also doesnt specify on whether or not God created other humans either!If not,the only explanation fo any other procreation after Adam would be incestuous......

Answer 3

There is reference in the bible that Adam and Eve had a lot of children. here is the reference..

Gen 5:3 And Adam lived a hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:
Gen 5:4 and the days of Adam after he begat Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters.

Then you can imagine how many sons and daughters he would have in those remaining years..

And well, to add the the fundamental flaw of science.. which of the following is more probable to happen according to science..

1. The whole world at present coming from one man and one woman....

OR

2. The whole world as we know coming from a bacteria

Think logically and you know the answer...

Answer 4

The bible is not meant to be taken completely literal. It is meant to tell the stories of the past, but that does not necessarily mean that every detail is as it happened years ago.

For example when it says that God created the world in 7 days... that does not mean in 168 hours...one day could have been 24 hours or 5 billion years.

When reading the bible or questioning the validity of it, just remember that not everything is meant to be taken literal, and things weren't the same back then as they are now.

Answer 5

The thing is, you can't look to the Bible for scientific explanations. The Bible does not compete with Darwinism; they have two very different functions. Science and Darwin give explanations of how the world works and how things are the way they are. The Bible has a much broader function, addressing questions such as spirituality, philosophy, sociology, psychology, ethics, etc. The Bible is not 'true' or 'false.' True and false do not apply here, because it's not to be taken as a literal scientific history.

Answer 6

Having only one "family" happened both with Adam and Eve, and with Noah and his immediate familty. According to the Bible, both times there was no one but them (since God wiped out the population with a flood), and they had to re-start populating the planet. So, we are more closely related to the line that went through Noah's family.
Don't forget, this idea of "incenst" being a bad thing is mostly North American, and only relevant in later history. It was not a problem for them, and you can't compare the abundance of available mates now, with how they must have lived in the past.

Answer 7

In Genesis 5:3, it says "And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters." So Adam and Eve had many children -- it just tells a story about Cain and Abel, so mentions them specifically.

Answer 8

In alot of cultures, there's a belief that one couple created the entire race. The closer to the number "one" you get, the more holy it is, because the one represents the closest to God. In all myths, there's a grain of truth. But how we interpret it is where we arrive at our fundamental differences. To dismiss their stories as myths is to dismiss their god, their whole foundation for their beliefs Some will stubbornly refuse to admit to the disparity, some will reinvent or reinterpret the myths.Or take to their famous hide- all,"Do not ask questions".

Answer 9

Adam and Eve had other children..

Genesis 5:3 When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image; and he named him Seth. 4 After Seth was born, Adam lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. 5 Altogether, Adam lived 930 years, and then he died.

Answer 10

You already know the answer to this question: Genesis is an allegory for the beginning of civilization, and the awakening of sentience and conscience in human beings.

It's not a genealogy; the smallest number of people needed for a viable population base is in the neighborhood of 160 or so. Not one kid and his (ugh) mom.

Answer 11

It also says in the bible that Cain went to the land of Nod (I think) to seek a wife. It says that Adam and Eve were the first created, so if Cain was able to go seek a wife elsewhere, it's pretty obvious to me that Adam and Eve were prototypes. :)