Genesis 4

Cain and Abel

1And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. 2And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. 4And 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: 5but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. 6And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 7If 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. 8And 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.

9And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper? 10And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. 11And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; 12when thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. 13And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14Behold, 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. 15And 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.

16And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden. 17And 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. 18And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begat Mehujael: and Mehujael begat Methusael: and Methusael begat Lamech.

19And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah. 20And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. 21And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. 22And Zillah, she also bare Tubal-cain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah. 23And Lamech said unto his wives,

Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice;

Ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech:

For I have slain a man to my wounding,

And a young man to my hurt.

24If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold,

Truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.

25And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. 26And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.

Rights in the Authorized (King James) Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Published by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

Learn More About King James Version

Berĕshith (Genesis) 4

1And Aḏam knew Ḥawwah his wife, and she conceived and bore Qayin, and said, “I have gained a man, יהוה.”

2And again, she gave birth to his brother Heḇel. And Heḇel became a keeper of sheep, but Qayin became a tiller of the ground.

3And it came to be, in the course of time, that Qayin brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to יהוה.

4And Heḇel also brought of the first-born of his flock and of their fat. And יהוה looked to Heḇel and his offering,

5but He did not look to Qayin and his offering. And Qayin was very wroth, and his face fell.

6And יהוה said to Qayin, “Why is he wroth towards you? And why is your face#Lit. faces. fallen?

7Is it not if you do good, you are to be accepted? And if you do not do good, towards the door is a sin.#Or, sin-offering (feminine). He is lying#Or, reposing or crouching (masculine). and towards you is his desire, and you must rule over#Lit. in. him.”

8And Qayin told Heḇel his brother. And it came to be when they were in the field, that Qayin rose up against Heḇel his brother and killed him.

9And יהוה said to Qayin, “Where is Heḇel your brother?” And he said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s guard?”

10And He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground.

11“And now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand.

12“If you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”

13And Qayin said to יהוה, “My punishment is too great to bear!

14See, You have driven me from the face of the ground today, and I am hidden from Your face. I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and it shall be that anyone who finds me kills me.

15And יהוה said to him, “Well, if anyone kills Qayin, vengeance is taken on him sevenfold.” And יהוה set up a sign for Qayin, lest anyone finding him strikes him.

16So Qayin went out from the presence of יהוה and dwelt in the land of Noḏ on the east of Ěḏen.

17And Qayin knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Ḥanoḵ. And he built a city, and called the name of the city after the name of his son, Ḥanoḵ.

18And to Ḥanoḵ was born Iraḏ. And Iraḏ brought forth Meḥuya’ĕl, and Meḥuya’ĕl brought forth Methusa’ĕl, and Methusa’ĕl brought forth Lemeḵ.

19And Lemeḵ took for himself two wives, the name of one was Aḏah, and the name of the second was Tsillah.

20And Aḏah bore Yaḇal. He was the father of those who dwell in tents, with livestock.

21And his brother’s name was Yuḇal. He was the father of all those who play the lyre and flute.

22As for Tsillah, she also bore Tuḇal-Qayin, a smith of all kinds of tools in bronze and iron. And the sister of Tuḇal-Qayin was Na‛amah.

23And Lemeḵ said to his wives, “Aḏah and Tsillah, hear my voice! Wives of Lemeḵ, listen to my words! For I have killed a man for wounding me, even a young man for hurting me.

24For Qayin is avenged sevenfold, and Lemeḵ seventy-sevenfold.

25And Aḏam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Shĕth, “For Elohim has appointed me another seed instead of Heḇel, because Qayin had killed him.”

26And to Shĕth, to him also a son was born. And he called his name Enosh. Then it was begun to call on the Name of יהוה.#The first record of “calling on the Name of יהוה.”

Learn More About The Scriptures 2009