“[1] Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the LORD.” [2] And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground.”
ADAM KNEW EVE
We’re not spending much time here. But have you ever really thought about why Scripture uses the word “knew” regarding the activity that leads to conception? It’s the same word used in chapter 3 when Adam and Eve’s eyes were opened and they “knew that they were naked.” So, it’s a term that conveys intellectual knowledge, a deep and true understanding of something.
I think this pushes back against the idea of sex being an impersonal thing. It’s not causal, nor is it self-serving. In a world that intends to make sex casual, God teaches us that it’s deeply intimate and personal. It’s not something simply designed for pleasure and power; it’s something intended to heighten a relational union. It’s an opportunity to learn one another better, an opportunity to serve one another selflessly in the most vulnerable and intimate way.
IS HE THE MESSIAH?
Now, once Eve gives birth to Cain, she declares her excitement over his arrival— “I have gotten a man with the help of the LORD!” The language used here in Hebrew could be a bit confusing. Most traditional translations, like the ESV, translate this to say, “I have gotten a man with the help of the LORD.” But, the literal rendering says, “I have gotten a man— the LORD.” Because of this, some think that Eve believes Cain is the promised deliverer, the offspring who would crush the serpent's head. She’s declaring something with joyful excitement. This is no ordinary child; this is the one who will make things right. As John Calvin put it, “She hoped that he would be the man who should repair the ruin inflicted by Satan.” But, as we will see in a moment, he is not the one. Eve rightly believed that God’s word would be true. However, she misinterpreted and misapplied his promise at this time.
GOD HAS ALWAYS BEEN WORTHY OF WORSHIP
In verse 2, we see that she gave birth to another son named Abel. Abel was the keeper of sheep, and Cain was a worker of the ground. So, we catch a glimpse into their occupation, which reiterates the point that work is good! It’s a God-glorifying endeavor!
As we continue to read, we see the first offering made to the LORD in the Bible— “[3] In the course of time Cain brought to the LORD an offering of the fruit of the ground, [4] and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and his offering, [5] but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. [6] The LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? [7] If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, and you must rule over it.”
Notice first how worship existed long before the law was ever given. Before Israel existed as a nation, before the tabernacle or temple were built, before the priesthood was established, and before the Levitical system was revealed, offerings were made to the LORD as an act of worship. From the very beginning of time, mankind knew that God was worthy of worship.
We don’t know what birthed this action. God may have instructed them elsewhere to do it. No matter the motive, they recognized the need to bring something before God as an act of sacrificial worship.
AN OFFERING OF FAITH VS AN OFFERING OF WORKS
Now, when you examine how their offerings are described, I think you will find distinctions being made between the two. Cain’s offerings were “of the ground,” which signifies they were a part of his crops. They were the fruit of his labor. Abel’s offerings were “of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions,” which means they were a part of his harvest, too. But the difference was that Abel brought his best. God had regard for Abel and his offering, but not for Cain and his offering.
Notice that God accepted the person before he accepted the gift. He rejected the person before he rejected the gift. The major difference between Cain and Abel’s offerings was not that one was a fruit basket while the other was a juicy platter of meat. It was the heart in which they brought them. Cain’s offering was an expression of works, while Abel’s offering was an expression of faith. Cain viewed the offering as a checklist, while Abel viewed it as an expression of worship. Cain viewed the offering as a means to benefit himself, while Abel viewed the offering as a declaration of God’s glory and worth.
If I were to ask you, which offering is better: $1,000,000 or $1? The only correct answer is the one offered in faith. The acceptance and rejection of Cain and Abel stemmed from their heart and motives. God always cares more about our hearts than he does our actions— “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise (Ps. 51:17).”
Hebrews 11:4 says, “By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks.” So, Abel’s sacrifice was righteous and acceptable because it was done in faith. It was rooted in trust in God’s mercy; it was rooted in worship of God’s greatness, and it was a display of humble adoration of God’s provision. Cain’s offering, however, wasn’t rooted in faith. It was self-serving.
Church, it’s essential for us to remember that it’s possible to do the right thing with the wrong motives and still be doing the wrong thing. You may have been doing “good” religious things your whole life, not out of faith, but out of works, not out of worship, but out of performance. It’s possible that you are far more selfish than you want to admit.
May the story of Genesis 4 serve as a warning to us. May these verses extend to us the warning that we may be able to convince the people around us that we are “righteous” by doing “righteous things.” But we cannot fool the God who sees the heart. The Christian life is not a performance for God; It is a personal relationship with God. We get to offer our best to the LORD because he is worthy of our best!
SIN IS CROUCHING
God accepted Abel's offering but rejected Cain's. And look at how Cain responded. He didn’t respond with humble repentance. He responded with anger and rage. His face fell with rejection.
Look at what the LORD says to Cain after he grew angry and his face fell, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, and you must rule over it.” God is graciously correcting Cain, encouraging him to correct the posture of his heart. In doing so, he’s warning him of the danger of his present situation. He portrays sin as a beast waiting to devour him. Like a lion ready to pounce on its prey, sin is crouching at the door of his heart, desiring to rule over him. Sin’s mouth is watering, longing to control him. But, he must be careful not to let it devour him. He must rule over the sin in his heart. Cain can either master sin through obedience and humility, or he can be mastered by sin through jealousy and pride.
Saints, may we not move on too quickly from this warning. Are we aware of the reality that sin is lurking? Do we understand that we can either master sin or be mastered by it? We must always take sin seriously; it’s crouching at the doors of our hearts, trying to destroy us.
Be careful, brothers and sisters, not to let sin devour you. It starts as a speck and grows into a mountain. What began as a religious performance evolved into anger and jealousy, and as we will see in a moment, anger and jealousy evolved into murder. The sins of the heart don’t often stay in the heart. But, many of us think that we can live with sin in the same way that someone could live with a Lion as a pet. Sin is a beast waiting to devour us. You can either put it to death or be put to death by it.
PREMEDITATED MURDER
Notice that Cain doesn’t say a word in response to God. He doesn’t take heed to the warning God gives. Instead of responding to God, Cain speaks to Abel. He turns his back on God and goes to his brother— “Cain spoke to Abel, his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him.”
This wasn’t accidental. This was premeditated murder. His jealousy and anger led him to murder his brother. As God was warning Cain about the state of his heart, Cain was planning to take matters into his own hands. The sin of the heart evolved into the sin of his hands. Anger and jealousy led to murder.
1 John 3:11-12 says, “[11] For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. [12] We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous.” I think the warning in 1 John 3 tells us that we are all a little closer to Cain than we are to Abel. Our hearts gravitate toward hate more than it does love. Therefore, we must be careful to make sure we’re walking in love.
How is your heart today, friends? Is it full of love? Or is it full of hate? Is jealousy brewing in there? Has God’s blessing on someone else caused your face to fall? “Sin is crouching at the door. It’s desire is for you, and you must rule over it.”
GRACE IN JUDGMENT
Following this, the LORD said to Cain, “Where is Abel, your brother?” Like in the garden, this isn’t a question of ignorance. It’s a probing question intended to get to the heart of the matter at hand. Cain responds with one of the most audacious responses imaginable. He says, “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?” To which the LORD responds, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground. And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”
So, the LORD pronounces judgment against Cain. He will continue to work, but his productivity will be significantly reduced compared to before. And he will be sent out from the presence of the LORD and will be a homeless wanderer for the rest of his life. And Cain, like a child who just got grounded, throws his hands up and says, “That’s not fair!” He said to the LORD, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground, and from your face I shall be hidden. I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.”
But God, filled with grace and mercy, responds, “Not so!” If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.” And the LORD put a mark on Cain, lest any who found him should attack him. Then Cain went away from the presence of the LORD and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden.
Please do not miss the grace of God here! We don’t know what the mark left on Cain was here. Some think it was a physical, visible mark given by God, like a horn on his forehead, or a letter from God’s name inscribed on him, or the bright shining of his face. Others believe it was an invisible sign, an inward or moral mark that represented guilt and alienation from God. Either way, no matter what this mark was, it was an act of grace, a sign of protection on the most undeserving. In the face of murder, God protected the guilty, preventing Cain from experiencing the fruit of the very sin he’s guilty of.
From the jump, we learn two things here: (1) man is far more sinful than we realize, and (2) God is far more gracious than we realize. God is both just and gracious.
ABEL, A SHADOW OF CHRIST
Now, before we begin to unpack what happens when Cain leaves, I want to circle back to Abel real quick. Jesus described Abel as the first martyr who suffered for righteousness' sake. He was walking in righteousness and suffered at the hands of the unrighteous. This reminds us of the reality that doing the right thing will not always be celebrated. The righteous will be hated by the unrighteous. No one demonstrated this better than our Savior, Jesus. Jesus walked in perfect obedience to the Father and was unjustly killed by the hands of sinners. So, we must always take heed to Jesus’ words, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Sometimes people won’t like us for doing what’s right, but Jesus was faithful even when it was hard.
TWO FAMILY TREES
Cain went away from the presence of the LORD and settled in the land of Nod, which means wandering. Then Moses begins to describe Cain’s family tree. And as he describes it, he’s setting up a contrast to a different line, a better line. One will culminate in greater wickedness than before, while the other will culminate in the praise of God.
Genesis 4:17-24 says, “[17] Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. When he built a city, he called the name of the city after the name of his son, Enoch. [18] To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad fathered Mehujael, and Mehujael fathered Methushael, and Methushael fathered Lamech. [19] And Lamech took two wives. The name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah. [20] Adah bore Jabal; he was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. [21] His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all those who play the lyre and pipe. [22] Zillah also bore Tubal-cain; he was the forger of all instruments of bronze and iron. The sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah.
So, Cain had Enoch. Enoch had Irad. Irad had Mehujael. Mehujael had Methushael. Methushael had Lamech. Lamech takes two wives. From his first wife, Adah, he had two sons: Jubal and Jubal. And from his other wife Zillah, he had a son named Tubal-Cain. Jubal #1 was the father of those who dwelled in tents. Jubal #2 was the father of all who played musical instruments, the lyre and pipe. Tubal-Cain was the forger of all instruments of bronze and iron. Then in verse 23, we see Lamech declare a poem, a spoken word to summarize the weight of his wickedness.
[23] Lamech said to his wives:
“Adah and Zillah, hear my voice;
you wives of Lamech, listen to what I say:
I have killed a man for wounding me,
a young man for striking me.
[24] If Cain’s revenge is sevenfold,
then Lamech’s is seventy-sevenfold.”
This poem is intended to relay to us the weight of sin present in the line of Cain. If the punishment of Cain’s sin would be repaid sevenfold, then the punishment for Lamech’s is seventy-sevenfold. Cain’s sin has spread drastically through his family tree. It didn’t stop with Cain; it bled through his descendants. As their city grew, its morality decayed.
Side note: When Jesus was asked how many times someone ought to forgive someone, Jesus said, “not seven times, but seventy times seven.” This could be a wordplay Jesus used to draw his disciples' attention back to this story. As Lamech used this phrase to describe the severity of sin, Jesus used it to describe the severity of our forgiveness of sins.
But, in contrast to Cain’s descendants, another family tree is established. Genesis 4:25-26, “[25] And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Seth, for she said, “God has appointed for me another offspring instead of Abel, for Cain killed him.” [26] To Seth also a son was born, and he called his name Enosh. At that time people began to call upon the name of the LORD.”
There are a few things that have changed here in Eve’s declaration. First, she intentionally omits Cain as one of her children. Cain has forfeited his place in God’s plan of redemption. A new line has been established. Second, notice how her language has shifted from human effort to divine provision. At the birth of Cain, Eve declared, “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord.” At the birth of Seth, Eve declared, “God has appointed for me another offspring.” Her efforts have fallen short, but God has made another way. He has appointed another offspring for her. Salvation doesn’t rest upon the shoulders of human effort; it rests on the shoulders of God’s gracious provision. A new seed has been planted. A new family line has been birthed. All according to God’s sovereign plan, a reset in the story has begun. It’s from the line of Seth that the serpent crusher would be born. It’s from the line of Seth that Christ would be born. When it seems like there’s no hope, we must remember that God is always working out his good plan. Unlike Cain’s family line, which was littered with hate, jealousy, and murder, it’s through the line of Seth that we see people beginning to call upon the name of the LORD. And it’s from Seth’s family tree that the Savior is born. And through the coming of this Savior, God is making a diverse and united people from all over the world that will call upon the name of the LORD.
Will you call upon his name today?