ANSWER: In Genesis 4:16-17, we learn that Cain traveled to the east of Eden into the land of Nod, which simply means a “place of wandering.” The passage does not teach that Cain got his wife in this “place of wandering.” The phrase “knew his wife” does not mean that he met her east of Eden. It only means that they engaged in marital sex in that place, which resulted in the birth of their firstborn son, Enoch (See also Genesis 4:1). It appears most likely that Cain already had his wife and took her with him when he traveled to the east of Eden!

In Genesis 5:4, we are told that Adam “begat sons and daughters.” Clearly, from these, Cain found his wife, and from these came those who eventually inhabited the city that Cain built in the “place of wandering,” which he named after his firstborn.