Bible Figure
Lamech
Biblical figure, descendant of Cain (Genesis 4)
Lamech was a descendant of Cain, husband of Adah and Zillah, and father of children associated with early cultural developments.
Biography
Genesis 4 presents Lamech as a descendant of Cain and the first man explicitly described as having two wives. Adah bore Jabal and Jubal, while Zillah bore Tubal-cain and Naamah. Lamech recited a poem to his wives boasting that he had killed a man for wounding him and invoking vengeance far beyond the protection announced for Cain.
Biblical Significance
Lamech's boast portrays the escalation of violence and self-assertion in Cain's line. He should be distinguished from the later Lamech in Seth's genealogy, the father of Noah.