Genesis 4:1-26

Cain, Abel, and Seth

1Now Adam[a] slept with his wife, Eve, and she became pregnant. When the time came, she gave birth to Cain,[b] and she said, "With the LORD's help, I have brought forth[c] a man!" 2Later she gave birth to a second son and named him Abel.

When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain was a farmer. 3At harvesttime Cain brought to the LORD a gift of his farm produce, 4while Abel brought several choice lambs from the best of his flock. The LORD accepted Abel and his offering, 5but he did not accept Cain and his offering. This made Cain very angry and dejected.

6"Why are you so angry?" the LORD asked him. "Why do you look so dejected? 7You will be accepted if you respond in the right way. But if you refuse to respond correctly, then watch out! Sin is waiting to attack and destroy you, and you must subdue it."

8Later Cain suggested to his brother, Abel, "Let's go out into the fields."[d] And while they were there, Cain attacked and killed his brother.

9Afterward the LORD asked Cain, "Where is your brother? Where is Abel?"

"I don't know!" Cain retorted. "Am I supposed to keep track of him wherever he goes?"

10But the LORD said, "What have you done? Listen--your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground! 11You are hereby banished from the ground you have defiled with your brother's blood. 12No longer will it yield abundant crops for you, no matter how hard you work! From now on you will be a homeless fugitive on the earth, constantly wandering from place to place."

13Cain replied to the LORD, "My punishment[e] is too great for me to bear! 14You have banished me from my land and from your presence; you have made me a wandering fugitive. All who see me will try to kill me!"

15The LORD replied, "They will not kill you, for I will give seven times your punishment to anyone who does." Then the LORD put a mark on Cain to warn anyone who might try to kill him. 16So Cain left the LORD's presence and settled in the land of Nod,[f] east of Eden.

17Then Cain's wife became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and they named him Enoch. When Cain founded a city, he named it Enoch after his son.

18 Enoch was the father of[g] Irad.

Irad was the father of Mehujael.

Mehujael was the father of Methushael.

Methushael was the father of Lamech.

19Lamech married two women--Adah and Zillah. 20Adah gave birth to a baby named Jabal. He became the first of the herdsmen who live in tents. 21His brother's name was Jubal, the first musician--the inventor of the harp and flute. 22To Lamech's other wife, Zillah, was born Tubal-cain. He was the first to work with metal, forging instruments of bronze and iron. Tubal-cain had a sister named Naamah.

23One day Lamech said to Adah and Zillah, "Listen to me, my wives. I have killed a youth who attacked and wounded me. 24If anyone who kills Cain is to be punished seven times, anyone who takes revenge against me will be punished seventy-seven times!"

25Adam slept with his wife again, and she gave birth to another son. She named him Seth,[h] for she said, "God has granted me another son in place of Abel, the one Cain killed." 26When Seth grew up, he had a son and named him Enosh. It was during his lifetime that people first began to worship the LORD.



Dig Deeper

We are told that Abel's sacrifice was more acceptable to God than was Cain's. We are not told specifically why, however. It may have been in the attitude of the sacrifice or it may have been that God had given previous instructions on sacrifice, and that Abel followed these instructions while Cain did not.


Regardless of the reason, Cain's response is the main problem described in this passage. He gets angry, pouts, and eventually kills Abel, presumably due to jealousy. God warned Cain to respond in the correct way because sin was waiting to attack him if did not, but Cain did not listen to God's warning.


God's punishment could rightly have been death, but instead He shows grace by punishing him to banishment. Again, Cain's response is inappropriate. He responds to God's gracious discipline with self-pity.


Many people wonder from where Cain got his wife, if there was only Adam, Even, Cain, and Abel. The Bible makes a practice of only recording people who are central to the account being given. Adam and Even had many children that are not mentioned (56 according to Jewish tradition), so it is probable that Cain married his sister. This was not against God's law well after the flood. Adam was 130 when Seth was born so he and Eve could easily have had hundreds of children, grandchildren, etc., by the time Cain killed Abel.


We are also told that Cain built a city in the land of Nod, which means "wandering." We should not confuse this with a modern city. The point is that Cain built a permanent settlement for his family despite God's pronouncement that he should be a homeless fugitive.


This passage demonstrates a truth that we all, sadly, have experienced in our own lives. Sin immediately corrupted the relationships between human beings, as the relationship between humans quickly spiraled into envy, jealousy, hatred, and violence. Rather than humans serving the purpose of helping one another, sin pits them against one another. Genesis clearly has shown that three of the four major purposes for which man was made have been corrupted by sin. In tommorow's reading we will see the effects of sin on the final purpose of man.

Devotional Thought

One of Cain's big problems what that he responded poorly when things didn't go the way he wanted them to. Do you ever have that problem? In what ways do you tend to act poorly when things don't go as you might have wished? Spend some extra time praying that God will help you to be more controlled in situations that don't go your way.