Genesis 4A (2011) As we begin chapter 4, Adam and Eve begin their life outside the garden as married couple

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1 Genesis 4A (2011) As we begin chapter 4, Adam and Eve begin their life utside the garden as married cuple At first, life isn t t bad Adam and Eve had the beginnings f a great marriage He didn't have t hear abut all the men she culd have married and she didn't have t hear abut hw well his mther cked N in laws, n siblings, n nisy neighbrs Thugh they are under a curse, the full effect f that curse wn t be apparent fr many centuries But in case we were tempted t think that the sin f the garden didn t have an immediate effect n mankind, Gd gives us the events f chapter 4 Gen. 4:1 Nw the man had relatins with his wife Eve, and she cnceived and gave birth t Cain, and she said, I have gtten a manchild with the help f the LORD. The chapter pens with Adam and Eve having their first child Adam and Eve have relatins This is unlikely the first time Adam and Eve had been tgether in this way The reference t ne flesh in chapter 2 suggests that the marriage was cnsummated frm the start But here they cnceive and a child is brn With n prir experience with child birth, it must have been bth scary and awesme mment The first time ne human being gave life t anther Eve, the mther f the living is witness fr the first time t what Gd s prmise will mean fr her and all wmen The first baby is brn, and we wnder a little at hw they wuld have understd t care fr him 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

2 Genesis 4A! 2 They name him Cain (Kaian) which cmes frm the Hebrew rt kin, which means t give frm t, r give shape The Hebrew wrd fr gtten sunds very similar t the name Cain, s this is a play n wrds Then Eve adds that interesting phrase at the end The Hebrew in the last part f this verse is very imprtant t understanding it s meaning In Hebrew in that verse nly says I have received a by: Jehvah Translatrs have struggled t make sense f this statement, usually placing ther wrds in the verse t create a different meaning But the meaning is exactly as Mses stated Eve has annunced that she has given birth t Gd in the frm f a by child Remember Gd had prmised Eve that she wuld bring a child wh wuld crush Satan And s as this child is brn, Eve is verjyed in the birth mment and imagines she will have the privilege t birth the prmised Messiah This is a natural assumptin Befre lng, a secnd by arrives Hw was Eve t understand that it wuld be millennia befre the Messiah arrived Gen. 4:2 Again, she gave birth t his brther Abel. And Abel was a keeper f flcks, but Cain was a tiller f the grund. T put this verse in perspective with the prir verse, we need t lk at it in Hebrew as well The name Abel in Hebrew is Habel Which means vapr It can als be spelled Habal which means vanity 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

3 Genesis 4A! 3 We can see tw meanings in his name First, we can see a prphetic meaning in that Abel was fleeting like a vaper Secndly, we see Eve s realizatin that she was wrng abut Cain By nw Cain is prbably a tddler and Eve nticed that her Messiah was ging thrugh the terrible tws This can t be Gd she realized at sme pint Then she realized that the birth f Cain wasn t a ne time event She will birth many children wh will carry n that pattern She might have thught that the birth prcess was merely intended t prduce the Messiah S when Eve has a secnd by, she has learned her lessn S she declared that it was vanity n her part t assume she was giving birth t the Messiah And she names her secnd sn Abel (vanity) t remind herself that she had been vain when she made her declaratin cncerning Cain Gd ften frustrates men by nt chsing the ne we assume shuld be chsen Mses begins a pattern here that will cntinue thrughut the bk f Genesis The line f Messiah is in Gd s chsing, nt man s And He will cntinually make distinctins between the tw children t emphasize that fact Cain becmes a keeper f flcks while Abel farms We can understand the need fr farming, but what were the flcks fr? Since the eating f meat was nt yet permitted, we assume the flcks prduced milk And as we ll see nw, they als served a purpse in wrship 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

4 Genesis 4A! 4 Gen. 4:3 S it came abut in the curse f time that Cain brught an ffering t the LORD f the fruit f the grund. Gen. 4:4 Abel, n his part als brught f the firstlings f his flck and f their fat prtins. And the LORD had regard fr Abel and fr his ffering; Gen. 4:5 but fr Cain and fr his ffering He had n regard. S Cain became very angry and his cuntenance fell. In the curse f time Mses emphasizes that what happens next is accrding t the natural curse f events It suggests an inevitability arising frm the Fall in the Garden Here is a stry n the cnsequences f sin in the wrld Cain and Abel brught an ffering t Gd Sacrifices were already an understd necessity Gd had at sme pint revealed t Cain and Abel the necessity fr atnement This is befre the Law f Mses, but Gd s Law has always been in place Mses was merely the ne privileged t reveal it in the way Gd delivered it S Cain and Abel are directed t apprach Gd with these sacrifices Ntice that Gd and man are still in a relatinship thugh nw it s a different relatinship Where befre Gd and man wrked and lived tgether in the Garden Nw man is seen appraching Gd with payments and atning sacrifice in an effrt t appease Gd s wrath fr sin Obviusly, the relatinship between Gd and man has been injured thrugh sin And these tw bys are caught up in this prblem, thugh they had nthing t d with the riginal sin in the Garden 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

5 Genesis 4A! 5 Each man brings a different ffering and gains a different result with Gd (we need t lk clsely at this) Our first clue t understanding what happens is in nticing that Cain brings a grain ffering Just as in the Law that was prvided thrugh Mses, Gd cmmanded grain ffering, and Cain is giving his ffering here But under Gd s Law, the grain sacrifice was a tithe ffering We knw the Law had nt been given in its full frm at this pint, But Gd wuld have instructed these men in a way similar t what He gave Mses Our secnd clue is that Abel brings an animal sacrifice, specifically a first-brn animal that has already been killed and its fat was being burned This is the secnd majr type f sacrifice Animal sacrifices were atnement fr sin fferings Our third clue is fund in the Hebrew at the beginning f v.4 The Hebrew is limited t a few wrds, leaving rm fr interpretatin The Hebrew if Habel gam b, which is Abel als brught It likely means Abel brught grain like Cain and als brught an animal sacrifice Abel seems t understand the need t hnr Gd with tithes and t bring atnement fr his wn sin But Cain is limiting his actins t tithing nly We see cnfirmatin f this interpretatin in Heb 11 Heb. 11:4 By faith Abel ffered t Gd a better sacrifice than Cain, thrugh which he btained the testimny that he was righteus, Gd testifying abut his gifts, and thrugh faith, thugh he is dead, he still speaks. Abel is said t have presented gifts (plural) 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

6 Genesis 4A! 6 The next clue is fund in hw Gd respnds t Cain & Abel Gd has regard fr Abel, nt fr Cain In Hebrew, give regard is shaah - paid attentin, r gave His attentin t Abel s sacrifice Anther way t say it is made He face t shine upn Abel s sacrifice But Gd desn t have regard fr Cain s sacrifice In Hebrew, it s the same wrd as fr Abel but with a negative in frnt Why did Gd see the tw sacrifices differently, since bth types were cmmanded under the Law? Was Abel s cntributin better in sme way? Sme have speculated that the cause fr Gd respnding s differently was in the nature f the sacrifices themselves Maybe bld vs n bld Maybe fruit (ff) the grund vs firstlings That Abel als tithed like Cain, but Cain didn t bring an animal sacrifice like Abel First cnsider sme scripture 1Sam. 15:22 Samuel said, Has the LORD as much delight in burnt fferings and sacrifices As in beying the vice f the LORD? Behld, t bey is better than sacrifice, And t heed than the fat f rams. Hs. 6:6 Fr I delight in lyalty rather than sacrifice, And in the knwledge f Gd rather than burnt fferings. Hs. 6:7 But like Adam they have transgressed the cvenant; There they have dealt treacherusly against Me Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

7 Genesis 4A! 7 1Jhn 3:11 Fr this is the message which yu have heard frm the beginning, that we shuld lve ne anther; 1Jhn 3:12 nt as Cain, wh was f the evil ne and slew his brther. And fr what reasn did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brther s were righteus. Scripture teaches that sacrifice is made necessary by ur sin But Gd is mre interested in ur bedience s that it desn t require sacrifice in the first place In Hsea, Gd says His true delight is in having smene wh knws Him Rather than smene wh perfrms a ritual, wh sacrifices withut a faith Mre imprtantly, in speaking abut Cain and Abel, Jhn says that the key difference between the tw was that the actins f ne were evil and the ther righteus Jhn s cmmentary teaches us that there was smething unrighteus in Cain s actins and smething righteus in Abel s Gd is cndemning Cain s sacrifice because it was made with an unbelieving heart Cain is nt interested in knwing Gd r in lyalty, and Hsea said Abel s actins, n the ther hand, reflect faith What kind f faith are we talking abut in their cases? Specifically, Cain is nt believing in the prmises f Gd cncerning the need fr atnement Cain desn t accept the reality f sin and the fact that an atnement is necessary He is acting purely ut f pride and self-righteusness And Gd will nt accept much less be pleased by Cain s tithe ffering unless it cmes with faith in Gd s prmises Withut faith, it s impssible t please Gd Hw can we knw that Cain s lack f faith is the cause fr Gd s displeasure? Lk at what fllws Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

8 Genesis 4A! 8 Gen. 4:6 Then the LORD said t Cain, Why are yu angry? And why has yur cuntenance fallen? Gen. 4:7 If yu d well, will nt yur cuntenance be lifted up? And if yu d nt d well, sin is cruching at the dr; and its desire is fr yu, but yu must master it. These tw verses ffer ne f the mre inscrutable statements in all scripture Many have tried and failed t make sense f these wrds, especially in light f the cntext In fact, many interpretatins (and many translatins) f this verse are nnsensical We are ging t learn them prperly this mrning We shuld nte in passing that this is the first mentin in the Bible f anger Cain expressed anger against Gd because Gd des nt accept Cain s sacrifice We re left feeling that Cain arrived befre Gd s that he culd receive praise fr his tithe When the praise didn t cme, it angered him First, Gd asks why are yu angry? Why are yu disappinted? Why des Gd asks this questin? It s clearly rhetrical, but it begs a questin...why wuldn t Cain be angry abut Gd s rejectin Then lking at v.7 Gd says if yu (Cain) d well, will nt yur cuntenance be lifted up? But in Hebrew, mst f thse wrds aren t there In Hebrew, the verse reads: d well, be raised up Nw Gd s questin starts t make mre sense Gd says t Cain why are yu angry that I gave regard fr Abel s animal sacrifice? Animal sacrifices are fr sin 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

9 Genesis 4A! 9 Since yu didn t bring an animal sacrifice, yu must nt have felt yu needed atnement (i.e., yu dn t think yu have sin) S why wuld yu be angry with Me fr giving regard t yur brther s sacrifice if yu dn t even need t sacrifice? If yu d well (have n sin), yu will be raised up (resurrected) Then we reach the tughest part f the statement If yu d well, sin is cruching at the dr... Nt ding well here is the ppsite frm the earlier statement Ding well = nt sinning, s nt ding well must mean sinning If yu sin, then sin is cruching at the dr? This statement makes n sense At the very least, it s redundant The wrd fr sin in chattah, which is usually translated sin ffering Yu can see a similar applicatin in Greek in 2Cr 5:21 2Cr. 5:21 He made Him wh knew n sin t be sin n ur behalf, s that we might becme the righteusness f Gd in Him. Jesus, Wh knew n sin, became a sin ffering n ur behalf He didn t becme sin, but rather a sin ffering is implied in that verse In Cain s case, Gd is saying if yu sin, then a sin ffering is... The English translatin say cruching Hw des that wrd make sense here? Sin is waiting t get me? It s already gt me Sin is ready t tempt me? Gd said when Cain sins, it will be cruching (temptatin has already happened) 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

10 Genesis 4A! 10 There is n way t fit the wrd cruching int this cntext The wrd in Hebrew means lying dwn, but it s almst always used t described a fur-legged animal lying n the grund Like a gat r sheep lying dwn And finally, the wrd dr is prperly translated dr way S Gd tells Cain he shuld be angry that Abel s sacrifice is cunted wrthy If Cain is withut sin, he ll be raised up withut an animal sacrifice needed But if he sins, an animal sin ffering will be lying in the drway What des this image evke? It reminds us f Passver, when Gd places the bld f an animal sacrifice ver the dr f the hmes f Israel Finally, we lk at the end f verse 7 This is Gd s prclamatin f the Gspel t Cain in the frm f a prmise t prvide a sacrifice in the drway fr sin The end f the sentence is nly tw wrds in Hebrew: teshuqah, mashal Teshuqah means desire and it ccurs nly here and in Gen 3 (a wman s desire fr her husband) and Sng f Slmn This is the nly time f the three where the interpreters have assumed a negative cnntatin It shuld have remained psitive Mashal means a master r ruler With the earlier cntext, we see Christ emerge in this text Gd tells Cain t have a desire fr that master r King (i.e., Christ) The slutin t Cain s anger and dejectin is t accept Christ 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.