Why did Cain need to be marked if no-one was around to harm him when he left Eden?

Question

Back to Genesis 4:15-17 again, dezmodnar pointed out that 'nod' is really a mistranslation of 'fugitiveness'. Yet, the land of 'fugitiveness' is clearly stated to lie to the east of Eden, and was clearly already inhabited. If it weren't, Cain would not have needed a mark to keep people from killing him (you also have to wonder how people would know what the mark meant, or why they would kill him if they didn't already know what killing was about).

You know, "I don't know" is always better than just making a bunch of crap up.

Answer 1

Well GOD had so much uncoditional love that he decide to spare a murder. But as we know GOD is a moody being and he wiped humans during the flood. As i noticed most decisions of god is like flipping coins since god is nto intelegent and was high on marihuanna he forgot that he did not make more ppl and just trow another nonsence.

I love when all Christian togheter invent the story that there more children around, Adma and eve was screwing each other like rabots and so on. I wander where do they get thier ideas? Whichfull for reality? Bible does not say this so it's a pure creation of primitive minds. If we would go by thier own idea of rabits than GOD in great flood genocide bigger population than we have now. imagine over 6 billion ppl GOD murdered and torture? Wow god must be one bloody beast.

Answer 2

Nod is NOT a mis-translation of fugitiveness.
It is an OLD translation.
Language is in a contant state of flux.

Why did Cain need a mark?
Future generations.
They lived long life-times at that stage and some young up-start could take it upon himself to avenge.
It happens.
Israel and Palestine are fighting today over supposed injustices from centuries ago.

Yes, the land to where Cain was bannished definitely was to the east of Eden, but why do you say it is clear that it was already inhabited? Its not clear to me.
If he was set up in a town, why did he “engage in building a city,” Genesis 4:17

Answer 3

Who was Cain fearful of? (Genesis 4:14)
Some claim that there had to be lots of people on Earth other than Adam and Eve’s descendants, otherwise Cain would not have been fearful of people wanting to slay him for killing Abel.
First of all, in the days before civil government was instituted to punish murderers (Genesis 9:6), someone would want to harm Cain for killing Abel only if they were closely related to Abel! Strangers could hardly have cared. So the people Cain was afraid of could not have been another race of people.
Second, Cain and Abel were born quite some time before Abel’s death. Genesis 4:3 states:
‘And in the course of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering to the Lord.’
Note the phrase ‘in the course of time.’ We know that Seth was born when Adam was 130 years old (Genesis 5:3), and Eve saw him as a ‘replacement’ for Abel (Genesis 4:25). Therefore, the period from Cain’s birth to Abel’s death may have been 100 years or more—allowing plenty of time for other children of Adam and Eve to marry and have children and grandchildren. By the time Abel was killed, there could well have been a considerable number of descendants of Adam and Eve, involving several generations.

Answer 4

Actually, he wasn't in Eden. God had Adam and Eve leave Eden when they sinned.

Also, Even had been continuously bearing children at this time. Cain was "grown-up", so since Eve was the "mother of all living", she had lots and lots of babies. yes, Cain must have taken a sister to wife. God made Adam and Even's gene pool perfect, and with so many combinations that birth defect wasn't a problem.
Anyway, all that to say there were other peaple grown up too, and would have wanted to kill Cain because they were so mad about him killing Abel

Answer 5

Adam and Eve had a lot of kids, grandkids, etc., so Cain had sisters & brothers, neices and nephews, cousins, etc., which might have been a tad angry that he murdered Abel. They understood death, that Cain had caused Abel's death, they just had never encountered a murder before. They may have had the desire to exact vengence, to stone him to death or something, so God put the mark on him so they'd leave him alone. Why they knew what the mark meant, I don't know, maybe it was some ancient taboo thingy, who knows?

Answer 6

Adam and eve had other kids and they all didnt stay together in one area. One of his sibligs started the town of nod, and God put it in their relatives mind, with this mark, that he killed a brother or uncle. He knew that his family would want to avenge able which is what he was scared of. The bible doesnt say he met his wife in nod but it says, in the KJV, he new his wife there which means sexually. He either took his wife there when he fled or he did actually meet her there.

Answer 7

it was literally written in the Bible that adam and eve were the first two beings.
however,who's to say that God didnt create other humans during the period of time where Cain and Abel were born?

another thing to be considered is,that the Bible is written by humans not God,therefore the interpretation is of humans as well.Although the Bible holds much truths,the person who was experiencing what God showed to him might just be expressing what he saw(not what God did entirely).

this holds true for 'dinosaurs' as well

Answer 8

Well think about it....Adam and Eve probably had a crapload of kids. You learn one brother killed another, and you might want to avenge them.

Then again, Maybe God just liked drawing marks on people and thought it would be a good way to do it without anyone calling him on it.

Answer 9

There were other family members out there, because Adam and Eve had other children that the Bible does not mention. Iwondered the same thing and I asked my pastor and that was the answer that I got. You can ask someone else if you chose to.

Answer 10

He was afraid his brothers (and possibly his father, Adam) would want to kill him for his crime. The mark was to show them (and remind them later) that God didn't want them to kill Cain.