Genesis 4
16 Dec 2025 - Theology
Cain and Abel
Names have a deeper meaning in Hebrew culture. They are believed to represent a person’s character and their life’s purpose.
Cain = firstborn, name means ‘acquisition’
Eve ‘acquired’ Cain with the help of the Lord (1). This indicates a dependence on the Lord, acquiring being not something that someone starts on their own.
Genesis 4:4-5 - “…And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect…”
Why did the Lord accept Abel’s offering but not Cain’s offering? What can we learn about who the Lord is from this story?
Problems:
- The Lord does not give parameters for the offerings
- The Lord does not detail what makes an offering worthy or not worthy of respect
- What does respect (or favor) even mean in this context?
If Cain trusts the Lord, then he will acquire with His help. If Cain instead is afraid, then he will see threats to his acquisition.
Cain views the Lord’s respect and love as limited, so he is angry when Abel receives respect from the Lord and he does not.
The Lord’s view on humanity has not changed because of sin. The Lord barred Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden, but we see in this story that He is still here with them!
“… sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire…” (7)
desire - the same theme in Adam and Eve’s story
Part of what it means to be human is that we must ‘know when to say enough’, to refuse to give in to desire.
The Lord asks Cain, “Why are you upset? and why is your countenance fallen?” (6). The Lord knows this is not Cain’s “last chance”, or his one shot to prove his faith that he messed up with. We must not allow our fear and shame to effect our emotions, our countenance, and our actions. There will be plenty more chances for us!
One day Cain and Abel were in the field, and Cain killed Abel. (8)
Genesis 4:9-10 - “And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper? And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground.”
Human = adam
blood = dam
earth = adamah
When blood is spilled, the blood cries out from the ground - and the cries of the blood summon the Lord. In other words, the same Lord who gives humanity life wants to be sure that the stuff of life (blood) is never wasted. It is a sin for human beings “to spill blood” (to take life).
References
- The Hebrew - Greek Key Study Bible (KJV Version)
- The BEMA Podcast, Episode 3: Master the Beast
- The Torah Portion-by-Portion by Rabbi Seymour Rossel (2007)