Many people have heard of Cain from the Bible but don&#;t know much about him. The Old Testament figure is central to one of the Bible&#;s earliest and most famous stories about a fractured family relationship involving envy, greed, and anger. Many have also heard of the &#;mark of Cain,&#; which a few Bible readers have poorly interpreted in the past. So who was Cain?
Cain was the first child born to Adam and Eve. Eve then gave birth to Abel, making Cain an older brother. Later in life, when God accepted Abel&#;s offering but not Cain&#;s, Cain killed Abel. Besides punishing Cain, God gave him a mark to protect him from others seeking retaliation.
Why did God reject Cain&#;s offering? Why did he kill his brother Abel? What is the mark of Cain? What does the New Testament say about him? Keep reading to learn the answers to these questions and others.
Also, see Who Is Balaam in the Bible? to learn more.
God Rejects Cain&#;s Offering
Cain and Abel are the main characters of Genesis 4. The Old Testament doesn&#;t mention Cain outside that chapter. The New Testament mentions him three times, in Hebrews, 1 John, and Jude (more below).
In Genesis, the story of Cain and Ab
The Bible tells of one person, Cain, killing another, Abel, in one of its first stories, the fourth chapter of Genesis (Gen ). Cain is the first son of Adam and Eve, and his brother—his only sibling at the time—was Abel. Yet despite the bond of brotherhood, Cain kills Abel. The placement of this story so early in the Bible’s narrative shows that homicide was considered terribly heinous. The horrific nature of killing is revealed by the appalling rupture of family ties when one brother slays another.
The Bible condemns Cain’s act. But generations of readers have wondered what motivated Cain. The text seems to explore this point, and it devotes several verses to exploring Cain’s inner life and the nature of the impulse to sin.
Why did Cain kill Abel?
The biblical text does not explicitly say why Cain killed Abel. It implies that Cain was profoundly chagrined when God preferred Abel’s sacrifice over his and that Cain resented Abel so much that he sought to kill his brother. The details offered about their sacrifices may give a hint as to the differing temperaments of Cain and Abel: Cain makes an offering from “the fruit of the ground,” whereas Abel offers choice portions “of t
Who was Cain in the Bible?
Answer
Cain was one of the sons of Adam and Eve. His birth is the first one recorded in Scripture, leading us to believe that Cain was Adam and Eve’s firstborn: “Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, ‘With the help of the Lord I have brought forth a man’” (Genesis ). The name Cainis based on the Hebrew root word qanah, which means “possession.” Cain was a rebellious man who rejected God’s plan, ignored God’s warnings, and received God’s judgment.
Cain is most infamous for being the world’s first murderer. When his sacrifice was rejected by God while his brother Abel’s was accepted, Cain grew angry (Genesis –5). God warned Cain against further sin, but Cain spurned God’s warning and killed his brother Abelin a field (verses 6–8). God punished Cain by increasing his hardship and banishing him from society (verse 10–12). But God also marked Cainin some way to protect him from being killed by revenge-seekers (verse 15). Cain settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden, married a sister (or cousin or niece), and had descendants that are listed in the Bible to the sixth generation. Cain b
Topical Encyclopedia
Cain is a significant figure in the Bible, known primarily as the firstborn son of Adam and Eve and the perpetrator of the first murder. His account is recounted in Genesis , where he is depicted as a farmer who becomes envious of his brother Abel, a shepherd.Birth and Occupation
Cain was the first human born after the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. Genesis states, "Now Adam had relations with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain. 'With the help of the LORD I have brought forth a man,' she said." Cain's occupation was that of a tiller of the ground, reflecting the agrarian lifestyle that humanity adopted after the Fall.
The Offering
The narrative of Cain and Abel centers around their offerings to God. Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground, while Abel brought the firstborn of his flock and their fat portions. Genesis notes, "And the LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but He had no regard for Cain and his offering. So Cain became very angry, and his countenance fell." The text does not explicitly state why God favored Abel's offering over Cain's, but it is often interpreted that Abel's of
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