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{{short description|Biblical figure, descendant of Cainan, Descendent of Seth, brother of Cain and Abel}} {{short description|Biblical figure, descendant of Cainan, Descendant of Seth, brother of Cain and Abel}}
{{For|the person in Genesis 5|Lamech (father of Noah)}} {{For|the person in Genesis 5|Lamech (father of Noah)}}
]]]
'''Lamech''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|l|eɪ|m|ɪ|k}};<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lamech|title=the definition of Lamech|website=Dictionary.com}}</ref> {{langx|he|לֶמֶךְ}} ''Lémeḵ'', in ] {{Script/Hebrew|לָמֶךְ}} ''Lā́meḵ'') is a figure appearing in the Old Testament's ], where he is the seventh generation from ] and father of ], the first breeder of livestock, ], the first metalworker, ], the first musician, and ]. This Lamech appears in the ] genealogy (the line of Cain); the ] has another ] who is the father of ].{{sfn|Rogers|2000|p=784}}


This Lamech is distinguished as an insolent man in the Abrahamic texts.
'''Lamech''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|l|eɪ|m|ɪ|k}};<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lamech|title=the definition of Lamech|website=Dictionary.com}}</ref> {{lang-he|לֶמֶךְ}} ''Lémeḵ'', in ] {{Script/Hebrew|לָמֶךְ}} ''Lā́meḵ'') is a person in ]'s genealogy in the fourth chapter of the ]. His father was named ]. This Lamech is distinguished from the other ] mentioned subsequently in Genesis, who was a descendant of ]'s third son ].


==Biblical context== == Character ==
Sandwiched between two genealogical lines, the passage describing Lamech, son of Methushael, descendant of Cain and his children is fairly substantive:


Lamech is generally characterized in a poor light in the verses that mention him, highlighting him as polygamous and viciously murderous.
:19 And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one '''' Adah, and the name of the other Zillah.
:20 And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and '''' cattle.
:21 And his brother's name '''' Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ.
:22 And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructor of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain '''' Naamah.
:23 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.
:24 If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.<br>—{{bibleref2|Genesis|4:19–24|KJV}}


==Names== ===Polygamy===
There are various suggestions of the correct translations for the names:


Lamech is the earliest instance of polygamy in the Abrahamic narrative. Biblical verse Genesis 4:19 states
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Name!!Hebrew!!Possible translations
|-
|Lamech||{{Script/Hebrew|לֶמֶךְ}},<br /> in ] {{Script/Hebrew|לָמֶךְ}}||''Powerful''? (cf. Arabic ''yalmak'' = powerful),
|-
|]||{{Script/Hebrew|עָדָה}}||''Ornament''
|-
|]||{{Script/Hebrew|צִלָּה}}||''Shadow'' (])
|-
|]||{{Script/Hebrew|יָבָל}}|| ''leader'', ''stream''?
|-
|]||{{Script/Hebrew|יוּבָל}}|| ''led'', ''stream''?
|-
|]||{{Script/Hebrew|תּוּבַל קַיִן}}|| Tubal = probably ''leading, leadership''. Tubal-Cain = Tubal of/from Cain. The name ''Cain'' is probably added, to distinguish from Tubal son of Japheth in Genesis 10. Cain means "smith" but can also mean "gotten"<ref>{{cite book |last1=Alter, Robert |title=The Five Books of Moses: A Translation with Commentary |date=17 October 2008 |publisher=W. W. Norton & Company (2008). |isbn=9780393070248}}</ref> He was the first blacksmith. See the older text of ], where his name is simply ''Thobel''.
|-
|]||{{Script/Hebrew|נַעֲמָה}}||''Beautiful'', ''Pleasure''<ref name=Naamah>According to ], p. 56, Naamah was the wife of ], the son of the ].{{snd}} </ref>
|-
|}


<blockquote>''Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah.''</blockquote>
===Interpretation===
When fully translated, the text resembles mythology concerning the origin of the various forms of civilization, the shepherds and musicians being products of the day, and pleasure being a product of the night. Blacksmiths, in carrying out their trade, are also associated with the darkness. Lamech could be interpreted as a ].<ref>{{cite book |last=Stuart |first=Kelly |author-link= |date=2018 |title=The Minister and the Murderer: A Book of Aftermaths |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XbpDDwAAQBAJ&dq=lamech+culture+hero&pg=PT62 |location= |publisher=Granta Books |page= |isbn=978-1847089243}}</ref> Some speculate the names demonstrate punning - Jabal, Jubal, and Tubal rhyme, and possibly derive from the same root - JBL (YVL in modern Hebrew): ''to bring forth'', (also) ''to carry''. A similar description existed amongst ]ns.


Lamech is recorded taking on two wives simultaneously.
The names are instead interpreted in the ] as an attack on ]. ''Adah'' is there interpreted as ''the deposed one'', implying that Lamech spurned her in favour of Zillah, whose own name is understood to mean ''she shaded herself ''. The Midrash consequently regards Adah as having been treated as a slave, tyrannised by her husband, who was at the beck and call of his mistress, Zillah. It further goes on to claim that part of the immorality, which had led God to flood the earth, was the polygamy practised by Lamech and his generation.<ref name="">{{Cite web|title=Bereishit Rabbah 23:2|url=https://www.sefaria.org/Bereishit_Rabbah.23.2|access-date=2021-03-29|website=www.sefaria.org}}</ref>


===Murder===
The rabbinical tradition is just as condemning of Naamah. While a minority, such as ], see Naamah as having become Noah's wife,<ref name=Naamah/> and being so named because her conduct was ''pleasing to God'', the majority of classical rabbinical sources consider her name to be due to her singing ''pleasant songs in worship of idols''.{{Citation needed|date=October 2014}}


Furthermore, biblical verse Genesis 4:23-24 states
The pedigree assigned to Lamech in the ] bears similarities to that given for ], and it has been suggested that they represent different versions of the same original pedigree.<ref>{{cite book|last=Bandstra|first=Barry L.|title=Reading the Old Testament: An Introduction to the Hebrew Bible|url=https://archive.org/details/readingoldtestam00band_309|url-access=limited|publisher=Wadsworth|year=2009|pages=-60|isbn=9780495391050}}</ref>


<blockquote>
==Song of the Sword==
Lamech said to his wives:<br><br>
The last part of the account of Lamech ({{bibleverse||Genesis|4:23–24|HE}}), takes the form of a brief poem, which refers back to the ]. In the poem, Lamech's stance resembles that of a supreme warrior, able to avenge himself absolutely. However, no explanation of who Lamech supposedly killed is ever given in the ]. Some scholars have proposed that it is connected to the invention, contextually by Tubal-Cain, of the ], for which reason the poem is often referred to as the '''Song of the Sword'''. The poem may originate from the mysterious ], though the greater context for it is likely to remain obscure.{{Citation needed|date=October 2014}}
''Adah and Zillah, listen to me; wives of Lamech, hear my words.''<br>
''I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for injuring me.''<br>
''If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.''
</blockquote>


Here Lamech admits to killing a young man in retaliation for striking him. Lamech further boasts of his wrath of vengeance as eleven times worse than Cain's wrath of vengeance.
] in ] (France) depicts Lamech hunting with his son Tubal-Cain. They accidentally shoot and kill Cain. ХII century.]]However, this paucity of context did not stop a rabbinical tradition growing up around it. The ] and ] present an extensive legend, told, for example, by ],<ref>. Sefaria. Accessed 17 February 2021.</ref> in which Lamech first loses his sight from age, and had to be led by Tubal-Cain, the seventh generation from Cain. Tubal-Cain saw in the distance something that he first took for an animal, but it was actually Cain (still alive, due to the extensive life span of the ]s) whom Lamech had accidentally killed with an arrow. When they discovered who it was, Lamech, in sorrow, clapped his hands together, accidentally striking and killing Tubal-Cain. In consequence, Lamech's wives desert him. A similar legend is preserved in the pseudepigraphic ], Chapter XIII; in this version Tubal-Cain is not named, but is instead referred to as "the young shepherd." After Lamech claps his hands he strikes the young shepherd on the head. To ensure his death, he then smashed his head with a rock.


== Comparative religion ==
An alternate form of this negative attitude towards Lamech (such as Targum Pseudo-Jonathan) claims that even though Lamech did not kill anyone, his wives refused to associate with him and denied him sex, on the grounds that Cain's line was to be annihilated after seven generations. The poem is then given by Lamech to allay their fears. Other classical sources, such as ], see the word ''seventy-seven'' as the number of sons which Lamech eventually had.


The Adam progeny list is ] to the ancient Mesopotamian tradition of seven pre-flood heroes who originate arts and culture.{{sfn|Rogers|2000|p=784}}
Extending on this classical view of Lamech is the ], regarded in ] as ]. According to this ] text, Lamech entered into a secret pact with ], as had Cain before him, becoming a second ]. When ] (an ancestor of Lamech) learned his secret and began to publicise it, Lamech murdered him. News of the murder was spread by Lamech's two wives, leading to his being cast out of society.

==Family tree==
{{chart top|collapsed=yes |Family tree}}
{{chart/start |align=center}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | | | | ADA |y| EVE | | |ADA=]|EVE=]}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | |,|-|-|-|-|+|-|-|-|-|.| |}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | |!| | | | ABE | | | SET |ABE=]|SET=]}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | |!| | | | | | | | | |!| |}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | |!| | | | | | | | | ENS |ENS=] (Enosh)}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | |!| | | | | | | | | |!| |}}
{{chart|border=0 |boxstyle=background:palegreen; | | | | | | | CAI | | | | | | | | KEN |CAI=]|KEN=] (Kenan)}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | |!| | | | | | | | | |!| |}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | |ENC | |7| | |S|P| |MAH |ENC=]|MAH=]|boxstyle_ENC =background-color: lavender;|boxstyle_MAH =background-color: seashell;}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | |!| | |:| |S|Z| | | |!| |}}
{{chart|border=0 |boxstyle=background:lightyellow;| | | | | | | IRA | |L|~|a2|~|7| | JAR |IRA=]|JAR=]}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | |!| | | |S|Z| |:| | |!| |}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | |MEH | |P|Z| | |L| |ENO |MEH=]|ENO=]|boxstyle_ENO =background-color: lavender;|boxstyle_MEH =background-color: seashell;}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | |!| | | | | | | | | |!| |}}
{{chart|border=0 |boxstyle=background:lightcyan;| | | | | | | MEL | | | | | | | | MEH |MEL=]|MEH=]}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | |!| | | | | | | | | |!| |}}
{{chart|border=0 | | ADA |y|~|LAH |~|y| ZIL | | |LAM |LAH=Lamech|ADA=]|ZIL=]|LAM=]|boxstyle_LAH =background-color: pink;|boxstyle_LAM =background-color: pink;}}
{{chart|border=0 | |,|-|-|^|.| | | |,|^|-|-|.| | | |!| |}}
{{chart|border=0 | JAB | | JUB | | TUB | | NAA | | NOA |JAB=]|JUB=]|TUB=]|NAA=]|NOA=]}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |)|-|-|-|v|-|-|-|.|}}
{{chart|border=0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | SHM | | HAM | | JPH|SHM=]|HAM=]|JPH=]}}
{{chart/end}}
{{chart bottom}}


==See also== ==See also==
* ] * ]


==References== ==Citations==
{{Reflist|20em}}

==Bibliography==
{{Refbegin|30em}}

* {{cite book
| last1 = Rogers
| first1 = Jeffrey S.
| chapter = Lamech
| editor1-last = Freedman
| editor1-first = David Noel
| editor2-last = Myers
| editor2-first = Allen C.
| title = Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible
| publisher = Eerdmans
| year = 2000
| chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=qRtUqxkB7wkC&pg=PA784
| isbn = 9781250088703
}}


{{Refend}}

{{Commons category|Lamech}} {{Commons category|Lamech}}

<references />
{{Adam to David}} {{Adam to David}}
{{Authority control}} {{Authority control}}
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] ]
]

Latest revision as of 14:35, 25 October 2024

Biblical figure, descendant of Cainan, Descendant of Seth, brother of Cain and Abel For the person in Genesis 5, see Lamech (father of Noah).
Lamech and Cain, 1524 engraving by Lucas van Leyden

Lamech (/ˈleɪmɪk/; Hebrew: לֶמֶךְ Lémeḵ, in pausa לָמֶךְ‎ Lā́meḵ) is a figure appearing in the Old Testament's Book of Genesis, where he is the seventh generation from Adam and father of Jabal, the first breeder of livestock, Tubal-Cain, the first metalworker, Jubal, the first musician, and Naamah. This Lamech appears in the Yahwist genealogy (the line of Cain); the Priestly source has another Lamech who is the father of Noah.

This Lamech is distinguished as an insolent man in the Abrahamic texts.

Character

Lamech is generally characterized in a poor light in the verses that mention him, highlighting him as polygamous and viciously murderous.

Polygamy

Lamech is the earliest instance of polygamy in the Abrahamic narrative. Biblical verse Genesis 4:19 states

Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah.

Lamech is recorded taking on two wives simultaneously.

Murder

Furthermore, biblical verse Genesis 4:23-24 states

Lamech said to his wives:

Adah and Zillah, listen to me; wives of Lamech, hear my words.
I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for injuring me.
If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.

Here Lamech admits to killing a young man in retaliation for striking him. Lamech further boasts of his wrath of vengeance as eleven times worse than Cain's wrath of vengeance.

Comparative religion

The Adam progeny list is comparable to the ancient Mesopotamian tradition of seven pre-flood heroes who originate arts and culture.

See also

Citations

  1. "the definition of Lamech". Dictionary.com.
  2. ^ Rogers 2000, p. 784.

Bibliography

  • Rogers, Jeffrey S. (2000). "Lamech". In Freedman, David Noel; Myers, Allen C. (eds.). Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible. Eerdmans. ISBN 9781250088703.


Adam to David according to the Hebrew Bible
Creation to Flood
Patriarchs after Flood
Tribe of Judah to Kingdom
Names in italics only appear in the Greek Septuagint version
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