Adah, Lamech's first wife, bore Jabal and Jubal. Jabal was the father of cattle-raising (4:20). He invented cattle-raising for the purpose of making a living. He became a nomad, wandering from place to place, because he had no land that would yield to him its strength. No one in the United States is willing to be a nomad, because the land in this country is very fertile. Thus, there is no need for anyone here to be a nomad. However, Jabal found that the land would not yield its strength to him. This forced him to be a wanderer and to keep cattle that he might make a living. The matter of making a living for one's self is a main aspect of man's culture. The city was invented for man's existence, and cattle-raising was invented for man's living.
Jubal invented music (4:21). He invented harps and pipes. In fact, the very name Jubal means "jubilee" or "a joyful sound" or "music." What is music? Music is a type of amusment which makes people joyful. Why does man need such amusement? Because he has lost God as his joy. God is man's true enjoyment. A number of times in the past when my friends invited me to attend the movies with them, I said to them, "I don't need that. I have something much better than your movie." I don't even need to watch television, for I have a heavenly television. Everything in the New Jerusalem has been televised to me. I can never forget an experience I had when visiting the city of Houston. A friend was taking me on a tour of the city. However, I told him, "As long as I have seen the New Jerusalem, I don't need to see any earthly city." I am not speaking nonsense. I really mean it.
One day, in the year 1937, I was preaching the gospel in the capital city of Nanking. It was a good time of preaching, and the gospel was prevailing. After one of the meetings, a smart young lady, dressed in a very worldly and fashionable way, came to me and said, "Mr. Lee, I have been convinced by your preaching. I would even decide to believe in your Jesus. But this decision depends upon one thing. I am a lover of the theater. Tell me, after becoming a Christian, will I still be allowed to attend the theater?" That question bothered me a great deal. I realized that she was convinced and that she was willing to believe in the Lord Jesus. However, if I answered her question in a negative way, she would not decide for the Lord. Nevertheless, as a gospel preacher, how could I answer her in the affirmative? As I was considering the way to answer her, I looked to the Lord for a wise reply, and He gave me one. I said to this young lady, "You have your young son with you. Suppose that one day he plays with a sharp knife, and you feel that it is dangerous for him to do this. How would you deal with him? Would you force him to drop the knife, or would you grab the knife out of his hand?" She said, "No, I would simply throw some candies or apples on the floor. I'm sure that he would drop the knife and pick up the candies and apples. The knife would be gone because his hands would be filled with better things." Then I said, "It is exactly the same with you in attending the theater. If you will take Jesus, He will fill you up, and you will have no capacity for anything else." She said, "Marvelous, I will believe." Then I told her, "You must do it now." She replied, "Yes, I will do it now. I believe in the Lord Jesus." She was saved.
Why do people attend the movies and go dancing? Because they are empty. They do not have God as their joy. The reason I do not attend the movies is not because the church has a regulation against it. The church does not have a list of commandments against such things. However, although there is no such prohibition, I would not attend a movie even if you paid me thousands of dollars to do it. I have something better. I am filled with Christ and I have no capacity for anything else.
Jubal invented music because, at that time, man was empty. He was in vanity, and nothing could satisfy him. Since nothing could amuse him, he had to devise some amusement for himself. The principle is the same with every kind of entertainment today. People need entertainment because they do not have God.
Some of you are familiar with the story of the Welsh Revival which occurred approximately seventy years ago. During that time, in the whole island of Wales, all the theaters and amusement places were closed because all the people were saved. They had something better than worldly entertainment. They had Christ.
Lamech fulfilled his lusts, and Adah adorned and beautified herself with ornaments. Of these two parents Jubal, the inventor of music, was born. Here we see a family composed of lust, adornment, and amusement. What a family it was! Many families today are the same: the fathers fulfill their lusts, the mothers care for their dress and adornment, and the children pursue amusement. Is not this the modern family?
In Genesis 4 we can see two families in opposition to one another. Adam's family was a gospel-believing family. The father cut the way of believing in the gospel, the mother paved the way, and the son, Abel, walked on this way. But Lamech's family was a world-pursuing family. The father fulfilled the lusts, the mother cared for adornment, and the son, Jubal, pursued amusement. What a contrast! I do not like to be a member of Lamech's family. Praise the Lord, we are members of the gospel-believing family!
The seed sown in Genesis 4 will continue to develop until it becomes a harvest in the Great Babylon. Revelation 18 enumerates many items of merchandise, all of which are for three things—to fulfill lusts, to adorn people, and to amuse people. If you remove these things from human society, all of the department stores will be closed. What do department stores sell? They sell things for the gratification of man's lust, for the adornment of women, and for the amusement of young people. This is the reason that whenever I enter a department store I have the deep conviction that I am going into hell. My wife can testify that for over three years I have not gone into one department store. Thus, modern society is an enlargement of the record in Genesis 4. The principle of each item remains exactly the same.