Bible Strands
Genesis 4:22
And Zillah gave birth to Tubal-cain, a forger of every implement of bronze and iron. And the sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator records a genealogical entry within Cain's line, placing Zillah's childbirth between Jubal's musical legacy and Lamech's subsequent boast.
The words — The text names Tubal-cain as a לֹטֵשׁ (lo.Tesh), literally a "sharpener" or one who works metal, and identifies Naamah as his sister.
The thread — The verse's mention of bronze and iron craftsmanship parallels later biblical references to these metals in tabernacle offerings, warfare, and the promised land (Exodus 25:3; Numbers 31:22; Deuteronomy 8:9).
Why it lands — The passage lists the development of human industry and family ties, requiring the reader to note how post-Fall culture advances without the narrator providing moral evaluation.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And Zillah, she also bare Tubal–cain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubal–cain was Naamah.
Cross-references
- Exodus 25:3 This is the offering you are to accept from them: gold, silver, and bronze;
- Numbers 31:22 Only the gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead—
- Deuteronomy 8:9 a land where you will eat food without scarcity, where you will lack nothing; a land whose rocks are iron and whose hills are ready to be mined for copper.
- Deuteronomy 33:25 May the bolts of your gate be iron and bronze, and may your strength match your days.”
- 2 Chronicles 2:7 Send me, therefore, a craftsman skilled in engraving to work with gold and silver, with bronze and iron, and with purple, crimson, and blue yarn. He will work with my craftsmen in Judah and Jerusalem, whom my father David provided.