Adah - Woman of the Bible

 Adah — Genesis 4:19–23

Adah was one of the two wives of Lamech, a descendant of Cain. Her name (Hebrew עָדָה, ʿĀdâ) is commonly associated with the idea of ornament, adornment, or beauty.

Genesis 4:19 records an important development in Cain's lineage:

“And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah...” — Genesis 4:19

Adah became the mother of Jabal and Jubal. Jabal is associated with those who dwelt in tents and kept livestock, while Jubal is identified as the ancestor of those who played the harp and organ (Genesis 4:20–21). Through her sons, Adah's family became associated with significant developments in pastoral life and music.

Her appearance in the narrative is also significant because Lamech's marriage to Adah and Zillah is the Bible's first recorded instance of polygamy, contrasting with the one-man, one-woman marriage pattern established in Genesis 2:24.

Adah's brief account therefore belongs to the larger picture of Cain's developing civilization—a society displaying remarkable cultural advancement while the narrative simultaneously reveals increasing departure from God's original order.