Genesis 4 is the record of the story of Cain and Abel, a listing of Cain’s genealogy, and the birth of Seth.
“And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord. And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. ” (Verses 1 – 2)
This is the first specific mention of conception in the Bible. The Bible does not say specifically how long Adam and Eve lived prior to having their first child. Some have deduced that they were about 100 years old, but we really don’t know. See post titled: “Who was Eve in the Bible?”
It is important to have a quick review for the purpose of this post to go back and review one of the two institutions that God established at creation, marriage (the other being the Sabbath). Just to note, Genesis 2:5-25 is a repeat and enlargement of the sixth day of creation. SO, we are told in Genesis 2, that God said it was not good for man to be alone (v. 18). After naming the animals, there was not any “help meet” for him. The Hebrew phrase עזר כנגדו (ezer kenegedo) is translated as “help meet for him,” meaning: “helper (ezer, Strong’s #5828), and the second word, כנגדו (kenegedo) is a little more complex. The base word is the word נגד (neged, Strong’s #5048), with the prefix כ (k) meaning “like,” and the suffix ו (o) meaning “of him” of “his.” The word נגד (neged) comes from the verbal root נגד (Strong’s 5046) meaning “to be face to face.” This verb is always used in the causative form where it would literally be translated as “to make to be face to face,” and is always used to mean “to tell” in the sense of causing another to come face to face in order to tell them something. LET’S put this together, God made a “helper like him to be face to face to tell her something”. Wow, how beautiful. NOW, we understand why Adam said, “a man shall cleave unto his wife, and they shall become one flesh”. This was representative of not only the intamate physical relationship, but in ALL aspects of the relationship they were to be partners. This union was included as part of God’s final summation of creation as “very good”. Genesis 2:18, 20-25
Back to the term “knew”, it is a way of saying they had sexual relations and the term is used often in the Bible in this sense (Genesis 4:17, 4:25, 38:26; Judges 11:39; 1 Samuel 1:19). This is a powerful way to describe sex. It shows the high, interpersonal terms in which the Bible sees the sexual relationship. Most terms and phrases people use for sex today are either coarse or violent, but the Bible sees sex as a means of knowing one another in a committed relationship. Knew indicates an act that contributes to the bond of unity and the building up of a one-flesh relationship.
Cain
The name Cain basically meant, I’ve got him or Here he is. One wonder’s if Eve thought that Cain might be the lineage in which the promised seed would come, the deliverer, the Messiah (Genesis 3:15). What Adam and Eve did not know, it that Cain would allow himself to be aligned with Satan, the wicked one (1 John 3:12). Cain was the first human murderer; however God identified Satan as not only the “father of lies” but also a “murderer from the beginning” (John 8:44).
A side thought to ponder. So, when was the beginning? Was it when he decived one-third of the heavenly host? Was it when he deceived Adam and Eve at the beginning of our creation? In both cases he lied and in both cases death has or will result. We are not sure when, but we are certain of the how and why.
Cain was a farmer (tiller of the ground) whose sacrifices were not pleasing to God. God told Cain that his sacrifice could be acceptable if he did it rightly
Abel
Agriculture (farming/gardening) and the domestication of animals (sheparding) were practiced among the earliest humans. Adam and his descendants did not spend tens of thousands of years living as hunter-gatherer cave dwellers.
Though there is not much known about Abel, what the Bible does tells us him is significant. Abel was righteous and did what was acceptable to God. Abel was a shepherd and his offering was pleasing to God. Abel gave God the best he had to offer. Also significant is that he gave a blood sacrifice, which has always been necessary to atone for sin (Hebrews 9:22; Genesis 3). Abel’s offering, the firstborn of his flock, was acceptable to God.
The Offering
At the gate of Eden, we read: “And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.” (Verses 3 – 7). Emphasis added.
Very early in the history of mankind, the Lord placed faith and works in their necessary relationship.
At first glance of the text above, it may not seem fair because Cain brought what was at his disposal, the fruit of the ground. As did Abel who tended sheep, but notice carefully the wording of verse four, “Abel also brought”…the firstling of his flock… (a lamb).
According to Hebrews 11:4, God testified of Abel’s give saying “By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his (Abel’s) gifts (plural)…” Note, these two quotations regarding the “offerings” they were to offer and learn of the relationship each bears to the other.
Cain was not willing to adheard and follow the plan that God had set forth. There had to be a plan for God gave a response as to the acceptability of each offering. As one reads the scripture, Abel “also brought” a lamb. One may ask, in addition to what? Understanding the context, it can be nothing other that “the fruit of the ground”. The plan to be followed was to procure a lamb and offer it with the fruit of the ground. Faith and obeidence was essential to the acceptance of the offering.
Self Justification
Cain’s actions proposed to justify himself by his own works, his own way, his own definition of how to present an offering. So then, he was attempt to earn salvation by his own merits, whereas Abel’s offering was a demonstration of faith and obedience.
God has established the relationship between:
- Faith and Works
- Cause and Effect
- Action and Reaction
The sacrifice of His shed blood on Calvary is the cause of our salvation; a fact that becomes ours by faith (John 15:5). Whatever “good works” performed after the fact are but the natural result – the effect of what He has already done for us. We cannot improve on it for “he that heareth my word and believeth on Him that sent me hath (present tense) everlandign life…but is passed from death unto life.” (John 5:24).
When we possess the faith, the natural effect / reation will be his good works wrought out in our daily life. “By works was faith made perfect.” James 2:22 (see also James 2:17-26).
God’s Conversation with Cain
After Cain was told that his offering was not acceptable, he became full of rage and his appearance validated and signaled the rage in his heart. God’s counsel to Cain to “do well” and he would be accepted. What did “do well” mean? It was a matter of an unhumbled heart, sincereity, and his lack of faith. Abel is a benchmark for this assessment. God told Cain if he chose not to “do well” that sin lies ahead.
God reminds Cain that if he does not obey His Word, then sin (the attitude of unbelief and the action of not obeying by bringing a lamb) is present. Sin wants to control and dominate Cain. Who is really behind this? Satan, for he wants to kill the seed. However, the LORD God tells Cain that he can overcome it. Cain can still do right if he so chooses. Cain can walk by faith in God’s Word to him, and have victory over sin.
Notice again how the LORD God is very patient with Cain, and lovinging confronted the stubborn works-religion man that he is. God is very generous in allowing ample time for Cain to get right. The reproof, is a demonstration of a faithful God dealing patently with a most headstrong sinner!
Notice again how the LORD God is very patient with Cain, the stubborn works-religion man that he is. God is very generous in allowing ample time for Cain to get right. He wanted Cain to know the condition of his own heart and to resist the pull toward violence and anger within. God warned Cain about the destructive power of sin. Cain had a choice, he could resist sin and find blessing, or he could give in to sin and be devoured by it. The lesson to be learned was allow God to master us first, we can then prevent sin from ruling over us. Without God as our master, we will be slaves to sin.
Cain’s Decision
Cain willfully disregarded His Word, and as we know remained in his unbelief, waywardness, pride, ill natured attitude, and filling himself full of malice and revenge. He vented this hatred of what God told him at his innocent brother who was a faithful follower, but Cain’s rage was in actuality against God (Matt. 10:22, 2 Tim. 3:12, John 15:18, 1 Peter 5:8).
The sense is that Cain planned to catch Abel by surprise, lulling him with pleasant conversation. This shows Cain committed premeditated murder, and therefore clearly ignored God’s way of escape (verse 8).
The downward course of sin among the young human race progressed quickly. Satan was pleased that Cain was enraged and murdered Abel. Could the prophecy of God regarding a “seed” to come that would crush his head be in jeopardy? Could man’s moral condition plumet, where there would be no faithful remenant? Satan knew if sin wasn’t stopped at the root of man’s moral condition, then sin could not be contained.
God Asked, “Where is Abel your brother?
God knew the answer to this question. He asked Cain because He wanted to give him the opportunity to confess his sin and start to do right after having done wrong, it was not too late.
How futile it was for Cain to lie to God! It was madness for him to think God didn’t know where Abel was, or that he could actually hide his sin from God. Cain’s famous reply, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” He challenges God’s right to question him, as if he was saying he is not my responsibility he is Yours. This demonstrated that Cain determined his path and revealed the state of his heart. The fact of the matter is that he was supposed to be his brother’s keeper, but was instead his brother’s murderer.
Jude 11 warns of the way of Cain, which is unbelief, empty religion leading to jealousy, persecution of those truly godly, and murderous anger.
Here, it was one lamb for a man. Later, at the Passover, it will be one lamb for a family. Then, at the Day of Atonement, it was one lamb for the nation. Finally, with Jesus, there was one Lamb who took away the sin of the whole world (John 1:29).
Cain’s Curse
And He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground. So now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth.” (Verses 10-12).
The idea of blood crying out to God from the ground is later repeated in the Bible, in Numbers 35:29-34, which describes how the blood of unpunished murderers defiles the land. So, the blood of Abel speaks to judgment. Thinking forward, the blood of Jesus also speaks of judgment as we recall the prophecy of God in Genesis 4:15. The serpent’s head was crushed. Moreover it speaks of better things (Hebrews 12:24), such as grace, atonement, and a promise fulfilled through His death and resurrection.
Cain’s curse was twofold: No longer could Cain be a farmer because the soil would not produce for him. The curse upon Cain was that Adam’s curse would be amplified in regard to him. If bringing forth food from the earth would be hard for Adam (Genesis 3:17-18), it would be impossible for Cain (who was a farmer). If Adam were driven from Eden (Genesis 3:24), Cain would find no resting-place on all the earth. He was driven from the face of God – living as a fugitive and vagabond.
The fact that Cain has been cursed represents an important development in the Genesis story. In spite of Adam’s act of disobedience and subsequent exile from the garden, he was not cursed. In Gen 3:14–19, Adam and Eve are told of the particular hardships that they will each have to endure as a result of eating the forbidden fruit, but it is the serpent (3:14) and the ground (3:17) that is cursed by God not humanity. But Cain’s crime of murdering his brother alters the state of affairs. A comparison of God’s words in 3:14 with 4:11 reveals an important parallel. Language similar to that used to curse the serpent is used to curse Cain.
- Cursed are you more than (from) all beasts (Gen 3:14). (מכל־הבהמהאתהארור)
- Cursed are you from (more than) the ground (Gen 4:11).(מן־האדמהאתהארור)
Cain, it seems, has surpassed his father. His transgression is greater and he brings down the curse on himself. Not only is he the first human murderer, he is also the first human being to fall under a curse. The parallel verses points out that Cain, in many ways, represented the serpent. In fact, the Bible tells us Cain “was of the wicked one” in 1 John 3:12.
Cain Laments that His Punishment is to Great
And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. (Verses 13-14).
Cain complains about his punishment that it is to great. God took away his livlihood and Cain feared that someone would kill him. There is not remorse for his sin, bringing death to his innocent brother, or the grief brought upon his parents. His chief concern was himself. Unfortunately, this attitude did not end with Cain; like him, history reveals many people only feel bad about their punishment, not their sin.
James Montgomery Boice stated, “One of the clearest marks of sin is our almost innate desire to excuse ourselves and complain if we are judged in any way.”
Donald Grey; Barnhouse wrote, “One of the consequences of sin is that it makes the sinner pity himself instead of causing him to turn to God. One of the first signs of new life is that the individual takes sides with God against himself.”
God’s Response
And the Lord said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. (Verse 15).
As significant as God’s judgment against Cain was, God did not want Cain killed by others. Instead of being put to death, Cain was forced to live the rest of his life with unfruitful work and the guild of having killed his brother.
It was later when God instituted it a captial crime for murder (Genesis 9:6 – Noah’s time). The death penalty was codified in the Mosaic Law in Numbers 35:30-31, 33.
Cain Left the Presence of the Lord
And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.
And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch. And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begat Mehujael: and Mehujael begat Methusael: and Methusael begat Lamech. And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah. And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. And his brother’s name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah. And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt. If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold. (Verses 16-24).
Enoch was Cain’s firstborn son, Enoch was also the first city dweller. When we get to Lamech (name means conquerer), we are given additional information about him. There is no explicit reason for this, but the information seems to be focused on the spiritual flaws in Lamech and his family. Many scholars see Lamech’s choice to marry two women as a rebellion against God’s design for marriage as described in Genesis 2:24. So, he is the first to commit polygamy, as history unfolds, we see this as a problem even among God’s people. was a murderer and the first to commit polygemy.
Adah means pleasure, ornament, or beauty; and she bore Jabal and Jubal. Zillah means shade, possibly refering to luxureous covering of hair; and she bore Tubal-cain. Naamah, Lamech’s daughter, means lovliness. This is an indication of their commitment to external physical and outward beauty.
We get a glimpse of the origins of various social developments as they take place in this era of history.
- Jabal invents tents that allow nomads to take their home with them and also the keeping of cattle for commercial purposes.
- Jubal which means “sound”. His ability produced both stringed and reed instruments and the development of this art.
- Tubal-cain. We are not sure of his name but he developed metal uses and products.
The descendants of Cain no longer farmed but began to earn their living through commerce and manufacturing (in a basic way).
Lamech brags about killing another man, displaying his arrogance. This was not self-defense, for the Hebrew word Lamech uses is the same used to describe Cain’s killing of Abel. Not only will Lamech boast about his crime, he will claim even greater immunity than Cain. This blatantly evil, anti-God attitude sets the stage for the upcoming story of Noah, and God’s judgment on a depraved society. He boasts of his strength as a warrior and the fact that he has killed someone for attacking him.
- He boasts that he is greater than his ancestor Cain because God would only avenge Cain’s killer seven times.
- Anyone attacking him would give back 70 times that much.
In these developments we see the “seed” of Cain (influenced by Satan) and the steady deterioration not only of one man, but of society as well. They are looking less and less like the people in the Garden and within seven generations later we read of the decay in the human family.
Seth
And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the Lord. (Verses 25-26).
Adam and Eve had many children who were not specifically named in the Biblical record, but Seth was worthy of mention because he in some sense replaced Abel and was the one to whom the promise of a deliverer from the seed of the woman (Genesis 3:15) would be passed.
We also understand that a remenant is preserved, “then began men to call upon the name of the Lord”. Here we have two distinct generations, one committed to doing evil in the sight of men and God, the other committed to following God and bearing His image. Two seeds, one imaging the serpent and the other imaging God; and we find this is the case all through human history – and will continue until the day Christ returns.
Final Thoughts
God did not intervene to stop either Satan or Adam and Eve from following their desires. Adam and Eve had an opportunity to stay true to God. They failed, as have all their progeny. Only Christ has succeeded. Once Satan is fully revealed and sin has reached its ultimate climax, will God put a stop to it. God knows at what point itsin reaches its fullness, and because of the degradation and violence it brings to the human family, it will never rise again (Nahum 1:9).
Unless one is converted and under Christ’s blood, Satan continues to hold this power even to this day. But we are not defenseless; we have Christ to help us in this battle.
The Apostle John remarks in 1 John chapter 3: “[11] For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. [12] Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one [Satan!], and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous. [13] Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hates you.”
Where is Jesus?
Abel, who was a keeper for the sheep, was slain for his righteousness; just like Jesus is a keeper of the sheep who was slain for His righteousness (verses).