“Answers for a study in the book of Genesis” is a weekly post in addition to the regular “apologetics” posts on the weekend where the original questions can be found at the bottom of the study, and then answers appear here mid-week. This gives you time to do your own research, and then check your answers. Keep in mind these will be basic answers with a little depth, but you can go much deeper for discussion if you’d like.
Note: The answers will focus on what the text of the Bible says, and commentaries and speculative answers will be noted as such. There are many scholarly commentaries out there but it will be important, as students of the Bible, to keep the text of the Bible as our first source. Commentaries can be used, keeping in mind that they are human thoughts about God’s Word. Scripture references here are taken from the NASB, unless otherwise noted.
The Goal for the notes, questions and answers: Share and reuse to lead your own Bible study!
Note: Class presentation, videos, reflections and Bible study questions are posted on the weekend – Bible study answers (like these) are posted mid-week.
Review and Bible Study
Always remember to pray before you study and ask the Holy Spirit to teach you and lead you into the truth found in God’s Word – pray for protection from the evil one who will try to discourage, distract and deceive us when we commit to growing closer to the LORD.
Questions are taken directly from the chapters, and answers should be found and cited from the Scripture text in order to be Biblically accurate (unless asked to summarize in your own words). Study Bibles, commentaries and your own thoughts can be used for Discussion or Going Deeper questions. If you use these kinds of sources share them with your group.
1. Review of Class Topic: With your table group, discuss today’s presentation by summarizing what you learned, commenting or asking any questions.
Answers will vary…
Read Genesis Chapter 4 with your group then, to the best of your ability, answer the following questions:
2. Compare and contrast Cain and Abel by answering the following (4:1-7):
- Who were they?
The sons of Adam and Eve. Cain is firstborn and he was a “Tiller of the ground” while Abel was a “Keeper of the flocks.” Note: Eve said “I’ve gotten a manchild with the help of the LORD.” Many Bible scholars say that Eve most likely believed that this was the “seed” that God promised for salvation, but that seed would actually come later on in Seth whose line would ultimately lead to Jesus.
- What offerings did they bring to God?
Cain brought “an offering to the LORD of the fruit of the ground.” Abel “brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions.”
- How did God respond to each of them concerning their offering?
“The LORD had regard for Abel and for his offering; but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard.” In other words, there was something about what Cain did that was not right. In the book of Genesis, we are not told what was expected in an offering at this time, but it seems, from other Scripture later on, that it was a ‘heart’ issue toward God.
- Did God give Cain a choice to consider, if so, what was it?
God gave Cain a choice by saying “If you do well will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.” Cain could have given it another try, but he obviously did not have a real love for God, otherwise he would have tried again, instead he took his frustration out on his brother.
- Discuss: Why do you think Cain’s offering was unacceptable and Abel’s was? Cross-reference by reading Hebrews 11:4 and 1 John 3:12
“By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks.” Hebrews 11:4
“For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous.” 1 John 3:11-12
To summarize from these verses: Cain’s character was not one of love for his brother and his deeds were evil, (it even says he was of the evil one/Satan). This would seem to imply that his offering was with wrong intentions/motives, and that his heart was bent on evil. Abel, on the other hand, was said to be a man of “faith” and his offering was with right motives because, at the Scripture says, “he still speaks” to us today.
Note: The “Law” had not yet been given by God to humans concerning sacrifices. This would come much later during the time of Moses, so it had to be a “heart” issue, where Cain’s was bent on evil, according to 1 John 3:12, and not an issue of breaking the Law.
3. What happened between Cain and Abel after the offering; and how did Cain respond when God confronted him (4:8-10)? Discuss: Do we ever try to justify ourselves to God? (If comfortable share an example)
“Cain told Abel his brother. And it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against his brother and killed him.” This implies Cain told Abel what happened with God. Cain rose up and killed his brother, which also implies that they may have been arguing. It is also important to note that no human had died yet, and Cain may not have known that what he did in anger would result in his brother’s death. Some will say that it looks like Cain pre-meditated the confrontation with his brother. In either case, or both, this was the first murder.
God asked Cain (like a parent would ask a child, already knowing full well the answer), “Where is Abel your brother?” Cain answered God (like a child who knows they have done something wrong) “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”
God then said to Cain “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying out from the ground.” God then cursed Cain and banished him saying “Now you are you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand.” This curse included the fact that Cain would no longer be able to cultivate the ground as he did before; he would now be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth. Cain said that his punishment was great and would be hard to bear because he would no longer be able to see God’s face, let alone bring any yield from the earth.
It is so astonishing that Cain actually had direct access to God, yet like Satan, he disregarded and disrespected God. Like Satan, his heart was full of pride because all he cared about was his own reputation and life, as seen in his reply when he said “anyone who finds me will kill me.” I believe we all have the issue of pride at times, some more than others, and it will negatively affect our relationship with God and others.
4. How did Cain react to God’s discipline, what happened to him and how did God continue to take care of him even though he never repented (4:11-17)?Discuss: Why did God take care of Him, and what does this say about God’s character?
Through God’s mercy He took care of Cain, by “appointing a sign for Cain, so that no one finding him would slay him.” God also said, “whoever kills Cain, vengeance will be taken on him sevenfold.”
From the rest of the story, we see that Cain was able to find a wife, have children and prosper through them, (remember Adam and Eve had many other children and lived 900 years, the DNA was still pure, the Law had not yet been given, and Cains wife would have been any female relative from a sister, to a niece, to a cousin). I believe God showed His unconditional love for all humans by his actions with Cain. God would (later on) put in place the “Law” through Moses, and the penalties for both accidental killing and murder would be established. Cain may not have known that his actions against his brother would result in his brother’s death (since this was the first human death), but Cain still had a choice until his own death to turn back to God and ask for forgiveness, through the gift of freewill. However, it appears that he never did. In fact, the evidence shows that evil continued to grow through Cain’s family line until the time of Noah and the Flood.
Please continue to join us as we read and study the Bible as part of our Christian Apologetics’ class each week!
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You will not find this material in the public school curriculum even though it is based on solid evidence and grounded in research. It is ironic that following the evidence to where it leads stops at the door of our public schools as they will not let a “Divine footprint” in! Join us as we examine evidence for Christianity and learn how to become a thoughtful defender and ambassador of your faith.
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Teri Dugan
TeriDugan@truthfaithandreason.com
1 Peter 3:15
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