The record of early religion, as conveyed through the opening chapters of Genesis, sets the stage for two opposing forms of worship that emerged soon after the creation of Adam in 4004 B.C.E. By tracing events from approximately 4004 B.C.E. to the Flood of 2168 B.C.E., one uncovers the initial seeds of disunity in human devotion. The Bible depicts how mankind’s original worship of the Creator transformed into a complex system of competing beliefs. According to scriptural chronology, Adam was expelled from the Garden of Eden about 3824 B.C.E., an event that introduced conflict, moral deterioration, and the formation of a counterfeit religious framework. The centuries bridging Adam’s creation to the Deluge offer clear indicators as to why humans developed widely divergent worship systems. By walking through these formative stages of humanity’s spiritual history, one understands how the shift away from the Creator’s guidelines contributed to a fractured religious landscape—one that endures to this day.

The Foundations of Worship from Eden Until 3824 B.C.E.

The divinely formed arrangement in Eden was founded on the Creator’s direct guidance. When Adam was created in 4004 B.C.E., he possessed the capacity to reflect God’s attributes and enjoy continuous worship. There was no confusion, no plurality of religions, and no philosophical speculation about alternative deities. The first man and woman intimately knew the One who created them. Genesis 2:16 (UASV) notes: “And Jehovah God commanded the man, saying, ‘From every tree of the garden you may freely eat.’” The implicit obedience expected of Adam and Eve formed the basis for the earliest religious outlook, free from human-determined standards.

This Edenic arrangement intended to foster a single mode of devotion: total reliance on God’s revealed standards. The earliest moments of human existence established a personal closeness to Jehovah. Because Genesis 1:27 teaches that man was made “in the image of God,” humans were hardwired to express reverence. The earliest humans did not evolve from lesser life forms, contrary to unsubstantiated evolutionary theories. Instead, they started off with a direct knowledge of the Creator. They were not guided by trial-and-error speculation; they heard God’s own words and directives. The result was a unified religious outlook with an intrinsic sense of moral clarity.

However, a second voice soon entered the picture. Genesis 3:1 reveals the serpent’s deceptive words to the woman, undermining the authority of her Maker. Although Adam and Eve were not specifically aware of the heavenly being acting behind the serpent, the misrepresentation introduced the possibility of living independently from God’s direct law. Genesis 3:4, 5 (UASV) quotes the serpent: “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened.” By yielding to this contrary counsel, the man and woman began forging the path that would fracture worship systems for centuries to come. Adam thus reoriented his devotion; rather than relying exclusively on God’s instructions, he chose self-determination, effectively placing a creature’s word above the Creator’s. So began the tragic narrative of disunity in worship.

When Adam and Eve willfully broke from divine guidance, their Creator cast them out of Eden in about 3824 B.C.E. Their departure from paradise was not merely a physical relocation. It symbolized humanity’s new standing before God—a removal from the original mode of worship. Religious disunity originated when man and woman stepped away from that unified relationship. They departed from Eden with the curse of sin and death. Their emotional anguish, combined with eventual physical deterioration, underlined the consequences of disobedience. Genesis 3:23 (UASV) reports: “Jehovah God sent him out from the garden of Eden.” That solemn moment marks the turning point in religious history, shaping all future conflicts in worship.

Diverging Paths: Abel and Cain

Adam and Eve’s children inherited the new state of imperfection. Their first two sons, Cain and Abel, developed distinct approaches to worship that further emphasized the shift away from a singular religious system. Genesis 4:3, 4 (UASV) describes both men presenting offerings: “Cain brought some of the fruit of the ground as an offering to Jehovah. And Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock.” God accepted Abel’s sacrifice, indicating it was aligned with proper devotion. Cain, however, did not receive divine approval. There was clearly a standard God expected, a demonstration that not all personal forms of worship are equally valid.

Cain’s reaction to God’s disapproval exposed a spirit of self-will. Rather than humbly adjusting his approach, he allowed anger and envy to fester. Genesis 4:8 (UASV) recounts the gruesome outcome: “Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.” Less than two centuries into human existence, worship-based conflict ended in the murder of a righteous man. Cain’s path symbolized man’s attempt to worship on his own terms. By rejecting the Creator’s standard of sacrifice, Cain unleashed wrath toward his own brother who had offered acceptable worship. The incident shows that from the earliest times, the existence of rival forms of worship produced strife and violence.

1 John 3:12 underscores Cain’s deeper motivation: “He who was of the evil one slaughtered his brother.” The hostility captured in Cain’s murder of Abel highlights the presence of Satanic influence in promoting a counterfeit or self-determined religion. The apostle Paul explained this centuries later at 1 Corinthians 10:20, 21 (UASV): “The things which the nations sacrifice they sacrifice to demons, and not to God; and I do not want you to become sharers with the demons. You cannot be drinking the cup of Jehovah and the cup of demons.” By referencing demon-influenced worship, the Scriptures consistently show that any worship diverging from God’s truth eventually channels devotion toward the adversary.

Following the slaying of Abel, Cain drifted further from true worship. Even after God confronted him, the wayward son refused to repent or realign himself with Jehovah’s instructions. Genesis 4:16 (UASV) says: “Cain went out from the presence of Jehovah and settled in the land of Nod.” There Cain built a life far removed from the original worship system. Over generations, his lineage developed its own patterns of religious expression. Early on, the seeds of disunity evolved into fully distinct forms of worship. These forms were not based on God’s standards but on human preference and, behind the scenes, on demonic guidance.

Downward Spiral of Humanity After 3824 B.C.E.

As the human population grew, so did the divergence in worship. Genesis 4:26 (UASV) remarks that in Enosh’s days, “a start was made of calling on the name of Jehovah.” Abel had evidently invoked Jehovah’s name in genuine worship, so this new reference is understood to mean that people began employing God’s name hypocritically or in a debased manner. The devout invocation had turned into a hollow expression. The Jewish Jerusalem Targum paraphrased that they used the name of Jehovah for their idols, a shocking misapplication that further layered confusion. This shift exemplifies how worship can retain a superficial semblance to the truth while being fundamentally corrupted. Instead of unifying under the Creator’s revealed direction, groups began merging inaccurate teachings and idolatrous practices with God’s name. This religious mishmash, seemingly close to the truth, drifted steadily away from the teachings that Adam and Eve originally received.

Idolatry emerged early in human history, well before formal temples or complex rites were built. The moment humans replaced sincere worship with expressions tainted by self-interest, they set the stage for the myriad of contradictory religious systems that later enveloped the earth. Such idolatry was more than worship of physical statues. It encompassed the veneration of concepts, the enthronement of personal will, and the exaltation of revered creatures or rebellious angels. Because the standard of worship had fractured, many in Adam’s lineage found themselves caught in a continuous cycle of moral decline.

This pattern of spiritual decay is starkly illustrated by the time of Enoch, who prophesied during the first thousand years of human history. Jude 14, 15 (UASV) speaks of Enoch’s message: “Look! Jehovah came with his holy myriads, to execute judgment against all, and to convict all the ungodly concerning all their ungodly deeds that they did in an ungodly way, and concerning all the shocking things that ungodly sinners spoke against him.” Enoch’s prophecy set a vivid distinction: the majority had lapsed into blatant disobedience, while only a small contingent preserved genuine worship. The dire moral climate in Enoch’s day is demonstrated by his urgent message of judgment. Humanity’s relationship with the Creator had soured, overshadowed by widespread devotion to false practices, each presumably validated by cultural norms or personal choice.

As Enoch sounded the alarm, many turned an unhearing ear. Their disregard for true worship paralleled the erosion of moral principles on a grand scale. This highlights a central aspect of disunity: once the foundation of worship fractures, it becomes effortless for subsequent generations to compound religious distortions. Adam’s departure from Eden sowed seeds of confusion, and these seeds sprouted monstrous growths of spiritual corruption by Enoch’s era.

The Influx of Fallen Angels and Growing Apostasy

The apostasy rampant prior to the Flood did not only arise from human inclination toward self-determined religion. The Bible recounts a chilling event that intensified mankind’s spiritual decline: certain angels forsook their heavenly station and took human form to cohabit with women. Genesis 6:4 (UASV) describes the results: “The Nephilim were on the earth in those days…these were the mighty ones who were of old, the men of fame.” This infiltration of rebellious angels did not merely degrade morality but likely fueled idolatrous practices. The unnatural offspring, the Nephilim, introduced more confusion and violence. The worship of powerful hybrid beings overshadowed devotion to God’s truth, further fracturing humanity’s religious unity.

Imagine the enthrallment that many must have felt observing beings of immense power. Rather than viewing these entities as abominations, a portion of the populace revered them. This scenario introduced yet another layer of religious chaos. Instead of drawing closer to Jehovah’s rightful dominion, men and women directed worship toward superhuman creatures, thus compounding the corrupt worship system set in motion by Adam and Eve’s rebellion. The voices promoting false worship multiplied, overshadowing the simple truth originally entrusted to humanity.

Scripture summarizes the situation succinctly. Genesis 6:5 (UASV) states: “Jehovah saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth.” Violence, idolatry, and immorality abounded. Far from uniting humanity in a single worship, the proliferation of gods and local rites only spurred greater discord. The idea that man could unify under a single false religious system never took hold. Instead, the pattern was one of perpetual fragmentation, each group claiming its own approach. By the time of Noah, the earth was saturated with “ungodliness,” precisely as Enoch had warned.

Noah and His Family as a Remnant of True Worship

In that deeply corrupted environment, Noah distinguished himself by remaining loyal to the original religious standard. Genesis 6:9 (UASV) portrays him as “a righteous man; blameless in his generation. Noah walked with the true God.” Despite living among thoroughly degenerate people, Noah adhered to Jehovah’s instructions. He built an ark to survive the impending cataclysm. Only eight souls—Noah, his wife, his three sons, and their wives—chose devotion to the Creator over the widely prevailing false worship.

The significance of Noah’s perseverance cannot be overstated. True worship was not dependent on geographical location or popular acceptance. Even though idolatry, demon worship, and moral confusion reigned, Noah’s faithfulness proved that genuine devotion could still exist. By answering the Creator’s warning of a destructive flood, Noah and his family publicly declared their reliance on Jehovah. Genesis 6:22 (UASV) says: “Noah did according to all that God commanded him.” This is a powerful statement of loyalty set against a vast sea of unbelief. His consistency validated the fundamental truth that only one form of worship is acceptable to the Creator, and it is the form that aligns with revealed standards rather than human-invented notions.

Many must have dismissed Noah’s obedience as narrow or naive, especially as he spent decades constructing the ark in anticipation of a universal Deluge. Yet their skepticism or outright hostility did not alter the reality that God’s judgment was swiftly approaching. The Flood would serve as an undeniable dividing line between those who conformed to God’s directives and those who resisted. Genesis 7:17 (UASV) affirms that the waters covered the entire inhabited earth, submerging the countless religious forms that had taken root. Only Noah and his family stood upon the ark’s decks, saved by their steadfast devotion.

The Deluge of 2168 B.C.E.: Judgment on a Violent World

The account of the Flood underscores the Creator’s view on the proliferation of false religion. Despite the many local variations and seemingly sincere practices, it all equated to false worship by virtue of ignoring or opposing divine requirements. Genesis 7:23 (UASV) recounts that “every living thing was blotted out.” This was not an indiscriminate action. It was a targeted judgment against the violent, demon-influenced, morally bankrupt civilization that had refused to respond to warning.

In 2168 B.C.E., as the ark rose above the chaotic waters, the entire religious landscape of the antediluvian world was swept away. The lines between genuine and false worship had been firmly drawn. By preserving Noah, the Creator validated the authenticity of that solitary worship system. All alternative forms, no matter how fervently practiced, perished along with the unrepentant population. As the floodwaters receded, Noah offered a sacrifice. Genesis 8:20, 21 (UASV) explains: “Then Noah built an altar to Jehovah…and Jehovah smelled the soothing aroma.” This post-Flood act confirmed the continuity of true worship, linking it back to the era when the earliest humans maintained a direct, untainted relationship with God. The catastrophic Flood therefore stands as a monumental testimony that the original worship introduced by the Creator is the only form He sustains and honors.

How Did Religious Disunity Persist After the Flood?

One might expect that such a decisive judgment would have eliminated the possibility of false worship forever. Yet, not long after the waters subsided, the seeds of division reemerged. Noah’s descendants quickly multiplied and began drifting again from unadulterated devotion. The record of the Tower of Babel not far into the post-Flood era demonstrates how readily humans incorporate self-glorifying practices into their worship. Genesis 11:1–9 (UASV) describes how men sought to “make a celebrated name” for themselves by building a city and tower. By unifying around their own project rather than submitting to God’s instructions to fill the earth, they repeated the same pattern of self-determined religion. The outcome was confusion of languages and further fragmentation.

From that point forward, the lines of Shem, Ham, and Japheth spread across the earth. Each carried some vestige of truth from their forefather Noah, but many mingled it with their evolving cultural preferences, eventually generating the multiplicity of religious paths. The genealogical records highlight the rapid growth of nations, each forging distinct ideas about divine matters. Within a few generations, the world teemed with competing worship traditions, from localized deity cults to grand polytheistic systems. This is how disunity thrived.

Religious Disunity—Why It Matters

In light of this early chronology, the question arises: why does religious disunity matter for modern individuals? The experiences of humanity’s early centuries are not an irrelevant footnote. The biblical record draws a direct parallel between those antediluvian times and our own. Though thousands of years separate us from Cain, the idolaters of Enosh’s day, or the people of Babel, the motivations behind these ancient religious conflicts remain strikingly recognizable. Men and women continue to be swayed by the idea that truth is subjective. Spiritual truths often become overshadowed by personal inclinations, cultural norms, or the desire for social prestige. The subtle infiltration of demon-influenced beliefs also persists, cleverly cloaked under sophisticated philosophies or mainstream practices. In a world fractured by religious diversity, the roots of such division can be traced back to Eden’s rebellion.

Today, many wonder why there are countless denominations and sects, each professing to hold the truth. The historical mosaic (avoiding an unwanted word, see note) of Cain’s departure, Enosh’s corrupt invocation of Jehovah’s name, the infiltration of disobedient angels, the violence of the pre-Flood era, and Babel’s unifying rebellion clarifies that these are not disjointed phenomena. They each represent the entrenchment of a worship system contradictory to the Creator’s revelation. This explains why humans have never coalesced under a single global religion and why even attempts at unity often deteriorate into further sectarian splits.

Scriptural evidence underscores the principle found at 1 Corinthians 10:20, 21 that there are only two paths: genuine worship of Jehovah or worship offered to demons. While modern culture frames religion in a kaleidoscope of beliefs, the biblical worldview reduces the myriad to just two overarching categories. Either one worships in harmony with the moral and doctrinal standards revealed by God, or one immerses oneself in the traditions set forth by human or demonic influence.

The overarching lesson from the earliest centuries is that truth must be anchored in Scripture to endure. The line of descent from Adam to Noah highlights how the sincerity of worshipers like Abel, Enoch, and Noah stood in stark contrast to the majority’s deviance. True worship is not validated by numerical superiority or societal acceptance. Noah and his small family were practically alone in their righteousness, yet they alone secured divine favor.

The Place of the Creator’s Name in True Worship

One common thread from Eden through the Flood is the significance of God’s personal name, Jehovah. Genesis 4:26 depicts a time when men began misusing that name. After the Flood, Noah’s altar called on the name of Jehovah properly. This consistent prominence of God’s personal name suggests that an identifiable knowledge of the divine name is integral to worship. By remembering the grave misappropriation of God’s name in ancient times, sincere believers today maintain caution to avoid superficial or hypocritical worship. The use of “Jehovah” in sincere devotion merges the earliest scriptural precedent with genuine reverence for the Almighty. It stands apart from the pattern of adopting the name of God merely to decorate personal or cultural traditions.

Even in modern contexts, individuals can glean valuable lessons from the earliest instances of religious misalignment. If the reverential, rightful use of “Jehovah” once delineated proper worship from profane distortions, then it still carries significance for those who wish to align with biblical instructions. In the same manner that Noah’s family recognized this name and used it faithfully, worshipers today seek to honor the Creator by preserving that name’s sanctity and the doctrinal truths it represents.

Human Instinct to Worship—A Divine Imprint

Genesis offers the perspective that humans are inherently inclined to worship. Created “in the image of God,” mankind instinctively seeks a higher authority. Historical studies corroborate that no known human society lacks religious sentiment. The problem lies not in having a desire to worship, but in whether such worship aligns with the revealed will of the Creator. If the earliest human pair had maintained integrity and observed the single path of worship, the catastrophic fracturing across subsequent generations would never have taken place. Humans would have remained united in truth. Instead, once Adam and Eve stepped outside divine boundaries, a long trajectory of religious confusion began.

A basic reflection on the human condition shows that unresolved spiritual longing drives individuals across all societies to seek meaning. The opening chapters of Genesis pinpoint how that longing was corrupted early on. By understanding this ancient setting, one appreciates why the subsequent thousands of years produced innumerable worship systems, each claiming legitimacy. This dispersal of religious beliefs, historically rooted in humanity’s earliest rebellion, helps clarify the present disunity.

After the Flood: A Brief Unification and Renewed Division

In the immediate aftermath of the Flood, the situation might have looked hopeful. Eight individuals, newly delivered from cataclysm, presumably recognized Jehovah’s sovereignty. They had personally witnessed how the Creator’s warning came to pass and how His power overwhelmed the entire planet. With one voice of worship, it may have seemed that a unified and pure devotion would be the permanent state of affairs among Noah’s descendants.

Yet that optimism was short-lived. Genesis 9:20–27 reveals that even within the family of Noah, moral lapses occurred. Ham’s irreverent attitude toward his father set a pattern of disrespect. As generations multiplied, the tendency to deviate from pure worship reared its head once more. The building of the Tower of Babel exemplifies a collective effort at forging a name for mankind above obedience to God. Their attempt to unify in defiance of divine command ironically led to a forced scattering. Religious divergences multiplied as families migrated, each adopting unique forms of worship. That is how, within just centuries of the Flood, the earth again bristled with conflicting religious ideas. This phenomenon explains the subsequent rise of highly developed religious systems in ancient civilizations—Egypt, Mesopotamia, Indus Valley, and beyond—each blending fragments of ancient truths with local myths.

This quick resurgence of disunity highlights a critical lesson: the mere spectacle of God’s intervention is not sufficient to keep subsequent generations loyal. The post-Flood society had an unparalleled demonstration of God’s power, yet that memory alone did not prevent further fracturing. Without a personal resolve to maintain biblical standards, humanity slides back into the swirl of contradictory religious thought. This mirrors the fundamental reason that spiritual uniformity remains elusive: humans often place pride, culture, and convenience above obedience to the Creator.

Religious Conflicts—From Ancient Times to Today

The murder of Abel by Cain exemplifies a pattern: religious disagreements often ignite hostility. Throughout the centuries between Adam’s expulsion and the Deluge, clashes of faith triggered violence. By the time the angels rebelled and produced the Nephilim, the wickedness of mankind was so great that “the earth became filled with violence” (Genesis 6:11, UASV). Post-Flood, Babel’s tower building project inflamed God’s displeasure, causing further fracturing. Subsequent generations persisted in forming localized cults and pantheons. The biblical record and historical data align with the observation that religion—when divorced from God’s truth—can fan the flames of conflict rather than quell them.

Contemporarily, many acknowledge that religion is often implicated in wars and violence. While disclaiming that all religion is inherently destructive, the early biblical accounts demonstrate that any worship not grounded in the Creator’s instructions inherently fosters division. Because it elevates human or demonic influence, it invariably erodes unity. Cain’s wrath toward Abel was incited by the personal bitterness stemming from God’s rejection of Cain’s offering. This illustrates how dissatisfaction with God’s standard can provoke violence. Instead of adjusting one’s approach to please God, people often lash out at those adhering to truth. Thus, the wellspring of religious conflict is not mere misunderstanding; it is deeply rooted in rebellion.

Religious Factions—Sincerity Is Not Enough

The numerous parallels between Adam’s early descendants and modern religious movements reveal that sincerity alone does not guarantee acceptance by God. Cain was sincere in offering produce from his agricultural labor, but sincerity did not rectify the fact that he disregarded a divinely established principle. Similarly, Enosh’s contemporaries may have invoked Jehovah’s name, but their invocation was marked by hypocrisy. Good intentions are overshadowed when the worshiper fails to align with God’s precise instructions. In the post-Flood era, many presumably believed that building a tower to unify mankind was a noble endeavor, but it was directly contrary to God’s directives to fill the earth. The sincere intentions of the Babel builders did not mitigate the arrogance of their cause.

The scriptural pattern is that genuine worshipers follow God’s revealed will without substituting their own reasoning. Noah’s unwavering obedience—despite the nonsensical prospect of a cataclysmic flood—proved faith combined with submission to God’s guidelines yields the Creator’s favor. This stands in contrast to a world that frequently prides itself on broad-minded acceptance of a plethora of religious traditions. The biblical record strongly suggests that the diversity of worship results from an initial departure from truth, not from a divine desire to cultivate varied worship systems.

Preserving the Memory of Creation in a Flooded World

Interestingly, many cultures around the globe maintain flood legends. These stories reflect the historical reality of a once-united worship that found itself severely narrowed to a single family saved upon an ark. While these narratives are adulterated with local lore, they confirm that a universal flood left an indelible mark on humanity’s collective memory. It is not surprising that these legends also contain threads of creation references and the notion of early paradise. That pattern lines up with the Bible’s depiction of an original, pure worship soon distorted by rebellious angels, idolatry, and human ambition.

By identifying these common threads, one gains appreciation for the reliability of the Genesis account. Far from being myth or allegory, the story of the Flood resonates across multiple civilizations, testifying to a shared origin. The divergences in modern religion reflect not an evolutionary progression of spiritual ideas, but a deviation from the single source of revealed truth. As the genealogies from Noah’s sons branched out across the earth, they carried fragments of memory while collectively drifting further from the single path.

Religious Disunity as a Warning

The chaos of the pre-Flood world underscores a solemn truth: when worship is uprooted from God’s revealed words, society veers toward moral and spiritual anarchy. The biblical record at Genesis 6:5 says: “Jehovah saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth.” The multiple religious perspectives, each claiming authenticity, did not produce peace or unity. They cultivated brutality and widespread corruption. The biblical narrative stands as a clear warning: persistent disregard for divine standards eventually reaps judgment. Just as the ancient society faced the Flood, so modern society is moving toward a confrontation with the Creator’s set times and ways. Luke 17:26–27 references the days of Noah as a forewarning for those living when final judgment arrives.

Seeing the parallels helps a modern reader evaluate his or her religious stance. Is it shaped by personal preference, cultural heritage, or the traditions of men? Or does it align with the original guidance that the Creator consistently reaffirms through Scripture? The Scriptures show that the principle behind disunity is reliance on human or demonic influences. Those who truly desire the Creator’s favor must consciously choose the path that Noah walked—obedience to divine instructions, even if that path seems narrow or unpopular.

A Return to Edenic Unity?

The catastrophic outcome of Adam and Eve’s choice implies that humans cannot restore Edenic unity on their own. Since the original break from God’s direct rule, attempts at unity apart from God’s standards have failed. Early men tried forging alliances, but unifying around human ambitions always led to confusion, as exemplified by Babel. Centuries later, humankind remains splintered along religious lines. The Bible promises that Jehovah will ultimately reintroduce the pure worship lost in Eden, not by merging all religions into one, but by removing the influence of Satan and cleansing the earth of false worship. Revelation 12:9 identifies Satan as the “great dragon,” who “is misleading the entire inhabited earth.” Hence, the solution to disunity must address the root cause: rebellious angelic influence combined with human willfulness.

Until that resolution arrives, discerning individuals align themselves with the faith exemplified by Abel, Enoch, and Noah. They reject personal or cultural traditions that deviate from biblical teachings, recognizing that disunity originated the moment man opted for self-determination over God’s standards. Each generation, whether before or after the Flood, faced a similar choice: follow the Creator’s directives or craft their own path. The scriptural record makes plain that forging one’s own path inevitably leads to further spiritual disarray.

Religion’s Future—and Yours

In the immediate sense, the future of man-made religion is bleak, as indicated by the pattern of judgment seen in the Flood account. The lesson from 2168 B.C.E. is that the Creator eventually brings an end to widespread corruption. However, for those who choose the path of true worship, there is hope for deliverance, similar to Noah’s salvation in the ark. The post-Flood altar Noah built signified God’s continued willingness to favor those who truly serve Him. This reality should prompt every sincere reader to scrutinize personal convictions. The question is not which religion best suits personal taste, but which conforms to the biblical pattern.

Moreover, the modern era stands in a precarious position. Just as Enoch’s prophecy foretold the destruction of the ungodly in pre-Flood days, the Scriptures forecast a judgment upon the present system of things. 2 Peter 3:5–7 points to the Flood as a foretype for the coming global reckoning. Religious disunity, rather than being a sign of God’s approval, demonstrates the breadth of deviation from the original worship. Many centuries later, Jesus stated at Matthew 7:13, 14 that the road leading to life is narrow, whereas many walk the broad path to destruction. The biblical record from Eden to the Flood is a living illustration of how most chose the broad path of self-guided religion, while only a few clung to the narrower way.

The key question raised by these passages and historical examples is: Which path do you choose? Each person stands at a crossroads similar to the choice made by Adam and Eve. One may reassert personal independence and worship in ways that seem right individually, or one can submit to the authority of the Creator and embrace the single worship arrangement He finds acceptable. The first choice inevitably leads to further disunity and moral confusion; the second promises alignment with the Creator’s purposes and ultimate salvation, mirroring Noah’s experience. Cain’s example warns us that adopting a personal style of worship that ignores divine directives ends in tragedy. Abel’s devotion reveals how unwavering faith in God’s guidelines is rewarded, even if met with opposition.

Conclusion

From 4004 B.C.E. to the Flood of 2168 B.C.E., the seeds of religious disunity sprouted as mankind moved away from the original standard of worship bestowed in Eden. Adam and Eve’s defiance, the murder of Abel by Cain, the profane invocation of Jehovah’s name, the infiltration of rebellious angels, and the final judgment in the Deluge all highlight how quickly and drastically humanity can stray from a singular devotion. These events underscore that there have always been only two forms of worship: one acceptable to the Creator and one shaped by human or demonic distortion.

Through the record of Genesis, the Creator’s perspective is consistent and unwavering. He regards only the worship that aligns with His revealed instructions as valid. From the earliest moments of human history, the principle rings clear: sincerity alone cannot sanctify worship that diverges from God’s established parameters. The catastrophic outcome of the Flood testifies that a proliferation of religious forms does not equate to divine endorsement. Indeed, the Flood validated the correctness of Noah’s worship. As the waters receded, the reestablishment of true devotion in a post-Flood world confirmed that God does indeed identify and preserve pure worship.

Religious disunity—continuing from 4004 B.C.E. onward—originated in the Garden of Eden and expanded as generations slipped further from the original truth. The fundamental point is that worship deviating from God’s explicit guidelines leads to fragmentation. Many centuries of human history, from Adam’s expulsion in 3824 B.C.E. to the destruction of the pre-Flood world in 2168  B.C.E., demonstrate how profoundly the single system of true worship can fracture when humans exalt their own thinking. For those living now, the lesson is that returning to the Creator’s standards is the only remedy for religious division. Just as Noah clung to God’s instructions and survived the Flood, so individuals who cleave to scriptural standards can find hope for surviving any future judgment. The biblical account offers more than a historical record—it provides a blueprint for genuine unity. That blueprint hinges on humbly accepting the Creator’s revealed will, rather than forging a self-guided path. In a modern world beset by religious conflict, the record from 4004 to 2168 B.C.E. stands as a cautionary reminder of religion’s earliest beginnings and a clarion call to restore the kind of worship that found acceptance in Eden and was validated by God through the preservation of Noah and his family.

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