Story #4 - Caine and Abel's Story
Not to be confused with "Michael Caine" the actor. This was simply a mispelling on my part of Cain's name. I added an "e" by mistake. Sorry, about that.
Chapter 1: - Am I My Brother's Keeper?
And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said,
"I have gotten a man from the LORD."
Here we see Adam and Eve in having their first child. After Eve had just given birth to Cain, she said
"I have gotten a man from the LORD."
Wow. How different times have changed. Who actually says that today? Everyone just thinks they are the center of the universe and they make things to happen and not God. Eve was not giving herself the credit here but she was giving the credit to God. Too many times we see people (Even self professing Christians) who walk by sight and not by faith in the unseen. They think God is uninvolved in our current affairs. But Eve didn't think that way. She perfectly knew where the credit belonged in her having a child.
One of the reasons Eve said this is because her and Adam talked with God. They knew Him; And this was the first time a child has ever been born into this world. For Adam and Eve were created out of the dust from the ground directly by God during the six day creation. Things were different back then. Yes, Adam and Eve are no perfect than you and I; But they knew God (Unlike many today).
And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
Abel was a type of Jesus Christ. He was a keeper of sheep and he obeyed God properly in keeping the right sacrifice. He also was betrayed by his brother and killed. Just as Jesus Christ was betrayed by his brother Judas and killed.
And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
And the LORD said unto Cain,
"Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him."
Cain offered the wrong offering. He disobeyed God by offering the fruit from the ground and not an animal sacrifice as God wanted. In other words, Cain was the first person who partaken in the concept of what we would call a Biblical cult. He offered a sacrifice but it was not a sacrifice that God wanted. He was the first to man to twist the truth of God's ways.
Also, God knows what evil Cain is going to do, but God is still loving with Cain and desires him to see that his actions will have consequences. That if he does good, he will be accepted, and if he does not do good, he will give way to open the door to sin whereby he will be ruled by it. Paul in the New Testament speaks about being a slave to sin in Romans chapter 6. However, Paul encourages us to be slaves to righteousness and not sin. For Paul asks the question,
"Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?"
Paul replies,
"God forbid."
Paul then shortly asks the question,
"Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?"
In other words we have a choice. Free will. To decide one way or the other (With there being consequences to a certain action that we take).
And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
Cain killed his brother. John talks about how that no murderer has eternal life abiding in them. John also says to hate your brother is the equivalent of murdering him. No doubt Cain had hate towards his brother before murdering him. For we see Cain getting angry by the fact that his sacrifice not accepted by God. No doubt this hatred was focused upon Abel because he did what was right in the sight of the Lord.
The same thing happens today. Religious men hate those who obey God's Word. They may not murder them, but we do see a hatred in them like Cain over those true believers who seek to love God and to love all others (Including their enemies) (According to his Word).
And the LORD said unto Cain,
"Where is Abel thy brother?"
And he said,
"I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?
Again, this question asked by God does not mean God does not know where Abel's brother is at. The Lord here is trying to get Cain to confess his wrong. For Jesus wants us to love our brothers. For Jesus said to Peter several times, "Do you love me?" When Peter replies in convincing the Lord that he does love him, Jesus then replies in saying to: "Feed his sheep." The sheep are our brothers and sisters in Christ. Abel was a shepherd or a keeper of sheep. Cain needed to have the spiritual attitude in being a shepherd to his brother. To look after to him and to care for him. To be a fellow companion in obeying God. To protect him. To feed and cloth him (If ths situation called for it). In other words, Cain was to love Abel. To know where he is at is to care about him. For Jesus seeks to go after in just one stray sheep that is lost. Jesus is a true shepherd and true brother.
Jesus is the ultimate keeper of the brethren. For Jesus can truly say, "I am my brother's keeper" because He will never leave us, nor forsake us. For even His disciples had scattered when he was captured. But Jesus is always with us no matter what.
And he said,
"What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth."
"The blood of sprinking, that speaketh better things than that of Abel." (Hebrews 12:24).
Abel offered animal sacrifices. But we know the blood of goats and bulls never took away sin. Only Jesus blood paid the price for the sins of the entire world so that man can accept His free gift of salvation.
Also, Abel's blood cried out from the ground in vengeance. For God responds in punishing Cain for taking Abel's life by cursing him and banishing him away so as to be a vagabond in the Earth.
But Jesus blood did not cry out for vengeance, though. Jesus blood brings peace and salvation to all who believe and follow Him.
And Cain said unto the LORD,
"My punishmentis greater than I can bear. Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me."
Notice how Cain does not get it? He is focused on little ole "ME." But he is not focused on what he did wrong. From the beginning he is concerned with only himself. He offers his own sacrifice and not God's sacrifice. He takes Abel's life because he is angry at him. When asked by God (The Most Hight God who is Holy and perfect and all powerful), Cain doesn't break down in tears and sob and confess his sin. Cain again thinks only of himself and shows his lack of concern when he says, "Am I my brother's keeper?" Then when God does cast Judgment upon him for his sin, he is again concerned for only himself and thinks of how he might be killed now. He is selfish and not selfless like a true child of God who seeks to love God and all others.
And the LORD said unto him,
"Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him."
Cain was given a mark by God. This was not the same type of mark of protection like the 144,000 will be given in the future (As we read in Revelation). Cain's mark was a mark of vengeance. That those who did slay him, would face God's vengeance seven fold. In a way this could have been a deterrent to certain foes against Cain, but it was not a 100% guarantee that nobody could harm him, though.
And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden. And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch. (
Genesis 4:1-17).
Cain went out from the presence of the Lord. This is suggestive that Cain was on his own now. He made his bed and it was without God.
Cain continues to have a life elsewhere and has a son named Enoch. In fact, instead of Cain naming a city after God, Cain shows the path he has taken, by focusing on that which is carnal, and names a city after his son (Enoch). This is not the same Enoch in the line of Seth that walked with God.