We turn next to Lamech’s other wife, Zillah. We see a few interesting things here.
One of her sons was Tubal-Cain. Several people believe this is the heathens’ “Vulcan,’ as both ere skilled with the production of weapons, and of smithing iron in general. Others had done it before, but he raised it to an art form. Hence, this term is different than the verses which describe Jabal and Jubal. Tubal-Cain is said to be an instructor of every maker of brass and iron things. This implies that there were makers before. He simply introduced many new ways.
Naamah, one sister, was known for her beauty according to many, and some believe she was the inspiration for the heathen Venus or Minerva.
God’s reason for introducing these two is uncertain; especially Naamah, about whom nothing else is said. John Gill, in his commentary on this verse, does an excellent job of considering a variety of different identities for Naamah, I invite readers who are interested to look into that further, as he lists where some of these ideas came from. However, as a number of sources point to her as the wife of Noah, or of Ham, let me address these two possibilities here.
First, God would not have let unrighteous flesh on the Ark, when the mind of man was on evil continually. Of course, there is none righteous; no, not one. (Rom. 3:10) Noah was found to be “perfect” in his generation because he’d kept the commands of God, and trusted in God for forgiveness when he sinned. Like Abraham, he believed God, and that was what was counted to him for righteousness. It’s unlikely that someone who followed God that closely would allow his son to marry someone who wasn’t following God. It’s highly unlikely that someone following God that closely would marry someone who was totally away from God. However, it’s impossible that a perfect and holy God, who was destroying all flesh off the face of the earth, would allow some of that evil onto the very ark that was being used to start the world anew.
Now, that doesn’t mean that someone couldn’t have been saved out of the line of Cain. Descent from Adam caused the sin nature that we all have; and, which even Noah had. They would have had to commit totally to God’s principles, and turn away from idolatry 100%. But, someone saved out of that line would explain why the world quickly slipped back into darkness later, if that person chose to turn back to idolatry. One need only look at Moses’ brother Aaron, who was goaded by the people into making a golden calf to worship at the time of the Exodus. On the other hand, it doesn’t take a bad influence from the outside to get people to fall into sin. We are perfectly capable of that ourselves, sadly enough.
So, could Naamah have been Noah’s wife? She is a couple generations before Noah, if one counts the number of generations. However, that isn’t as important. We don’t know how long it took for people to marry in the line of Cain. We don’t even know what generation her mother Zillah was from; it’s possible Lamech chose a much younger woman. So, she could actually have been from the same generation as Noah. We also have the fact Noah didn’t have Shem, Ham, and Japheth till he was 500 years old, though he could have had others before that. So, it’s possible, but by no means certain, that he waited that long for a wife. However, as noted above, it’s not very likely. There are more “traditions” that state she was Ham’s wife than ones stating she was Noah’s; of course, traditions are not always true.
So, what about Ham? While a wife of Noah would have possibly influenced all three children in a negative way, the wife of Ham would be a much more logical person on whom to place blame for one person in particular – Canaan. Canaan’s children (Gen. 10:15-18) were the fathers of the people who did all the horrible things, including child sacrifices, that God eventually punished by allowing the Israelis to conquer them. Another of Ham’s son’s, Cush, begat Nimrod, the first man to try and build a world empire, as we’ll see later. The age thing, while more of a problem and a lot harder it was for Noah, isn’t impossible to overcome, if one argues that Naamah was Ham’s wife.
There is, then, some credible argument for Naamah being Ham’s wife, if indeed she turned back to her idolatrous ways. However, it is also possible that Naamah was like Ruth, a convert who stayed true to the faith, and that Noah simply waited a long time for her.
Finally, it is quite possible, perhaps likely, that Naamah married neither, but instead perished in the Flood. The apocryphal book Tobit is not Scripture. It has things that don’t mesh with the other 66 books of the Bible, which agree perfectly. But, according to Gill, Tobit mentions an evil spirit who mother was supposedly Naamah.
This is untrue, as a person would not literally give birth to an “evil spirit.” However, it shows the conjecture that exists. One might also note that the writer of another apocryphal book, Jubilees, gives a name for Ham’s wife that is very similar. This is much less fanciful than the Tobit example, but if it’s true, it’s merely a coincidence that an apocryphal book mentions it.
We don’t know why Scripture mentions Naamah, with Adah and Zillah the only women mentioned by name all the way from Eve to Sarah, despite many generations. Perhaps the best conclusion is that God has reasons which we don’t always understand. It can be fun to consider what that reason was. However, the important part must never be lost on people. God’s Word exist for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness. Naamah’s presence should remind us that God remembes all our deeds, whether good or evil, whether open or hidden. Just because nothing more is known to us about her, doesn’t mean anything was hidden from God. He knew her, and judged her according to her knowledge of Him and whether she ever received His forgiveness for her sins by faith that He would one day send a Redeemer for her.
