Why Didn't God Prosecute Cain For Murder?

[WebersHome]

All association with God was lost.

At Gen 4:14 Cain said "I will be hidden from your presence"

However; God said nothing of the kind. Cain embellished God's statements
just like when Eve embellished God's statements when she said "you must
not touch it" at Gen 3:2.

No; Cain walked out on God, not the other way around.

"So Cain went out from Yhvh's presence" (Gen 4:16)

Cain's departure from the presence of the Lord wasn't a forced eviction as
had been the Adams' departure from the garden. And even though the
Adams were driven from the garden, they weren't driven from God. The
family kept that connection and brought up their boys to keep it too.

Cain's self-imposed exile has the aura of a dreadful finality. He renounced
God, and his native religion, and was content to forego its privileges so that
he might not be under its control. He forsook not only his kin but also their
worship, and cast off all pretenses to the fear of God-- apparently putting
out of his mind God's statement: "If you do what is right, will you not be
accepted?"

Gen 4:16 is a terrible epitaph upon the tombstone of Cain's life, and you can
almost feel the concussion of a dreadful thud as the mighty doors of
perdition close solidly behind him; sealing his passage into permanent
darkness.

Why didn't God plead with Cain to stay in touch? Well, that would be like
throwing good money after bad. God had already tried at Gen 4:7; and like
Einstein once remarked: Insanity can be defined as doing the same thing the
same way over and over again and expecting a different result. Well; God's
not insane; He knows when to say when. Sadly, there are people for whom
it can be said: That was the last straw.

Of all the things that Cain had done up to this point, walking out on God was
his worst mistake. Yes, he would have to scrounge for food; but that was
just a bump in the road; not the end of the road. People need to think that
over. No matter how harsh your circumstances are, and no matter what life
has thrown in your face, loss of contact with your maker is much worse. It is
wise to stay in touch with God even if your life is a train wreck and God
seems oblivious to your circumstances.

"The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in
steadfast love. He will not contend forever, or nurse His anger for all time . .
As a father has compassion for his children, so The Lord has compassion for
those who fear Him. For He knows how we are formed; He is mindful that
we are dust." (Ps 103:8-14)

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[oldhermit]

At Gen 4:14 Cain said "I will be hidden from your presence"

However; God said nothing of the kind. Cain embellished God's statements
just like when Eve embellished God's statements when she said "you must
not touch it" at Gen 3:2.

No; Cain walked out on God, not the other way around.

Well, that is possible. I was thinking more in line with the statement that Cain made in verse 14, "You have driven me this day from the face of the ground; and from Your face I will be hidden." This does not seem to be self imposed but simply an acknowledgement of a fact. I would suggest that whether it is self imposed or passively imposed the end result is the same. He is now outside of God's presence. What do you think?

 

[Kerry]

Simple there was no law. Every man did what was right in his own eye. The law did not exist. Sometimes we have to think.

 

[Kerry]

I must clarify.

God had not yet said thou shall not kill. The only commandment given at that time was to not eat of the tree in the midst of the garden. Doe's that help. God could not put Cain to death for something that He had not told him not do.

 

[oldhermit]

Simple there was no law. Every man did what was right in his own eye. The law did not exist. Sometimes we have to think.

Although the Law of Moses was not yet in place, there was still law. There has always been law. This is confirmed by Paul in Rom. 5:13, "for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law."

 

[kennethcadwell]

The thing that people miss is that even though when the mosaic law was in place, and even before that, and even now.
God made a point in not having Cain, David, and others not put to death and so on because He always wanted us to show mercy to others.
Lord Jesus made that clear when He said if you truly understood what this means, I required mercy not sacrifice.

 

[phil112]

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Why Didn't God Prosecute Cain For Murder?

God is a judge, not a prosecutor.

There is no plaintiff nor defendant. The evidence is incontrovertible and judged accordingly.

 

[WebersHome]

God made a point in not having Cain, David, and others not put to death and
so on because He always wanted us to show mercy to others. Lord Jesus
made that clear when He said if you truly understood what this means, I
required mercy not sacrifice.

If the common interpretation of Hos 6:6 were true, it would mean that God,
as far back as Hosea's day, revised the covenant that Yhvh's people agreed
upon with God as per Deut 29:9-15 by annulling the entire God-given book
of Leviticus; and then in Jesus' day, annulled the use of the God-given cross
as a basis for the forgiveness of sins; which I know He didn't because 1John
2:2 says that Jesus Christ is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only
for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

I'm going to tamper with Hos 6:6 just a bit to bring out a point.

"I desire to be merciful; I do not desire sacrifice"

No; that is NOT what God said; but that's how people's minds hear it said.

The Hebrew word for "mercy" in Hos 6:6 is checed (kheh'-sed) which
means: kindness.

The Jews in Hosea's day, and the Pharisees in Jesus' day, were hard
hearted. In point of fact; they were so callous in Jesus' day that they
actually tried to stop him from healing folk on the Sabbath day; the
meanwhile they were tithing up a storm, attending Temple services on a
timely basis, bringing all the sacrifices and offerings that Israel's covenanted
law required, and observing all the feasts and holy days without fail. Well
that is the very thing that disgusts God and makes Him sick to His tummy.
When Jews are insensitive; He despises their religion even when its the religion
that He himself instituted. (cf. Jas 1:26-27)

Sad to say Christians are no better. They treat their fellow men, and even
their own families, like dirt all week long and then expect God to let them
make up for it by attending church on Sunday, singing the hymns,
supporting missions, and contributing their fair share to the church budget.

†. Matt 5:7 . . Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

The koiné Greek word for "merciful" in that verse is eleemon (el-eh-ay'
mone) which means: compassionate. The word for "mercy" is just like it. In
other words; people lacking compassion will not get even one ounce of
sympathy from God no matter how many hours they spend in church, nor how
many hours they spend in prayer, nor how may pages of the Bible they read per
day, nor how much money they give.

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[jeff_peacemkr]

Although the Law of Moses was not yet in place, there was still law. There has always been law. This is confirmed by Paul in Rom. 5:13, "for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law."

like he said. there was no law yet. paul says as taught by jesus there was indeed SIN. not law. SIN before the law was given.
and SIN IS NOT COUNTED where there is no law.

 

[Kerry]

Although the Law of Moses was not yet in place, there was still law. There has always been law. This is confirmed by Paul in Rom. 5:13, "for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law."

Thank you, you have reinforced my argument.

 

[oldhermit]

Thank you, you have reinforced my argument.

You obviously do not understand Paul's argument. The fact that sin was imputed from the beginning proves there was law from the beginning otherwise sin would not have been counted. This argument is given to show that there has always been law. The fact that sin was counted from the beginning is reinforced in verse 12, "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned" From the beginning, sin was counted and sin was punished. All men sinned so all men were punished with death. If there had been no law sin would not have been counted.

 

[WebersHome]

SIN IS NOT COUNTED where there is no law.

That legal point is so simple; yet it's missed by a pretty good number of
civilized Jews and Christians alike. I mean, it only stands to reason that if
something isn't illegal, then it isn't a crime to do it. Everybody knows that
but for some strange reason a lot of people have trouble applying that
principle to Cain's situation.

There was no law against murder in his day; so as a legal matter of fact,
Cain didn't commit a crime when he terminated Abel's life. He committed a
sin, yes; but there again: God could not charge Cain with a sin because God
had not yet expressed His feelings about taking human life.

This principle applies in a really big way to people who have undergone the
baptism described at Rom 6:3-11. Their status "in Christ" positions them
where the covenant that Yhvh's people agreed upon with God does not
apply. So then, people in Christ have 110% immunity from the curses listed
at Lev 26:3-38, Deut 27:15-26, and Deut 28:1-69 which are curses that God
is obligated to bring down upon His people for breaching the covenant.

In a nutshell: where there is no covenant; there is no covenant to breach.

Q: If Cain didn't commit a crime, and if he broke no law, and if God did not
charge him with a sin; then why did God take away Cain's green thumb and
pretty much force him to become a nomad?

A: To teach him a lesson. The same thing goes on between the Father and
His children. When God lowers the boom on them for conduct unbecoming,
it's not retribution; no, it's discipline; which can be defined as training that
corrects, molds, and perfects the mental faculties and/or moral character.
(Heb 12:5-13)

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[MaggieMye]

My thought would be that Cain was still punished. After all he was cursed and forced to wander the world. As to why God did not just kill Cain right then and there, I think it is because Cain begged for a degree of mercy (especially on the point of himself being slain), and God is merciful.

In addition, If Cain had not been sent away and had been killed per capital punishment, there would not have been a people group that would be Israel's enemy; there would be none to fight with Israel, no pagans. Without them, God could not fulfill HIS plan.
Also, capital punishment was not instated until AFTER Cain's murder...generations after.
Maggie

 

[GodIsSalvation]

In addition, If Cain had not been sent away and had been killed per capital punishment, there would not have been a people group that would be Israel's enemy; there would be none to fight with Israel, no pagans. Without them, God could not fulfill HIS plan.
Also, capital punishment was not instated until AFTER Cain's murder...generations after.
Maggie

All of ancient Israel's enemies were distant relatives of them. All the nations that went up against Israel were born of Noah and his three sons.