Genesis 4
4
Cain and Abel gave things to God
1Adam and Eve slept together, like a man does with his wife, and then Eve had a baby boy. Eve said, “God has helped me make another human.” So she gave him the name Cain. That name means make. 2After that, they had another son, and she gave him the name Abel.
Abel grew up, and he looked after sheep and goats all the time. Cain grew up, and he became a gardener. He dug the ground and grew plants for people to eat.
3One day, Cain brought a gift to give to God. He brought some food from his garden. 4And Abel brought a gift to give to God too. He gave God some of his young sheep and goats. They were the first ones born to their mothers. Abel brought the best bits of meat from those sheep and goats. And God was happy with Abel, and with his gift.#Hebrews 11:4 5But God was not happy with Cain, or with his gift. Then Cain got very angry. His face changed, and he looked very sad.
6God said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why do you look sad? 7If you do the right thing, I will be happy with you. But, if you don’t do the right thing, look out, you will always want to do more bad things. But you have to control yourself and stop doing bad things.”
8After that, Cain went to his brother, Abel, and said, “Let’s go for a walk.” So Cain and Abel went out bush together. While they were there, Cain hit his brother, and killed him dead.#Matthew 23:35; Luke 11:51; 1 John 3:12
9Later, God said to Cain, “Where is your brother, Abel?”
Cain said, “I don’t know where my brother is. It’s not my job to look after him.”
10God said to Cain, “You did a really bad thing. Your brother’s blood is on the ground. It’s like his blood is calling out to me. It is telling me you killed him.#Hebrews 12:24 11So now I’m going to curse you. You killed your brother, and his blood is on the ground. So I will make the ground bad for you. 12If you try to grow plants in the ground, nothing will grow for you. You will go away from me. And you will walk around in lots of places, but you will not have a home.”
13Cain said to God, “God, you are too hard on me. 14If you make me leave this land where I grow my food, and if you make me go away from you, and if you make me walk around everywhere, so I will not have a home, then somebody will find me and finish me.”
15God said, “I will not let that happen. I’ll tell everybody that if they kill you, then I will punish them 7 times more than I punished you.” So God put a mark on Cain’s head, so that everybody will know that they can’t kill him.
The people born into Cain’s family
16After that, Cain went away from God and went to live in a place called Nod. That country was on the east side of Eden. 17Cain slept with his wife, like married people do together, and then she had a baby boy, called Enok. Cain built a town, and he also called it Enok, after his son. 18Enok grew up, and he had a son, called Irad.
Irad grew up, and he had a son, called Mehujayel.
Mehujayel grew up, and he had a son, called Methushayel.
Methushayel grew up, and he had a son, called Lamek.
19Lamek grew up, and he married 2 women. One wife’s name was Adah, and the other wife’s name was Zillah.
20Lamek’s wife Adah had a baby boy, called Jabal. Jabal grew up and he was the first person to go around with mobs of cows and bulls, just living in a tent, not a house.
21Adah had another son, called Jubal. Jubal grew up and was the first person to play musical instruments. He played a harp and a flute.
22Lamek’s other wife, Zillah, had a son called Tubal Cain. Tubal Cain grew up and made tools from iron and from a brown metal called bronze.
Zillah also had a daughter, called Namah.
23One day, Lamek said to his 2 wives, “Adah and Zillah, listen to me properly. A young man hit me and hurt me, so I killed him dead. 24God said that if anyone killed Cain, he will punish that person 7 times more than he punished Cain. I reckon I’m more important than Cain. So if somebody kills me for killing that young man, I reckon God will punish that person 77 times more than he punished Cain.”#Matthew 18:22
Adam and Eve had another son
25Adam and Eve slept together again, like a man does with his wife, and they had another son, and they gave him the name Seth. That name means gave. Eve said, “God gave me another son to take the place of Abel, our son that Cain killed.”
26Seth grew up, and he had a son too, and he gave him the name Enosh. At that time people started to call God by his special name Yahweh when they showed respect to him.
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Genesis 4
4
Cain and Abel
1Adam#4:1 Or The man made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.#4:1 Cain sounds like the Hebrew for brought forth or acquired. She said, ‘With the help of the Lord I have brought forth#4:1 Or have acquired a man.’ 2Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.
Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. 4But Abel also brought an offering – fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favour on Abel and his offering, 5but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favour. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
6Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.’
8Now Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘Let’s go out to the field.’#4:8 Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Masoretic Text does not have ‘Let’s go out to the field.’ While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.
9Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Where is your brother Abel?’
‘I don’t know,’ he replied. ‘Am I my brother’s keeper?’
10The Lord said, ‘What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. 11Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.’
13Cain said to the Lord, ‘My punishment is more than I can bear. 14Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.’
15But the Lord said to him, ‘Not so#4:15 Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew Very well; anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.’ Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no-one who found him would kill him. 16So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence and lived in the land of Nod,#4:16 Nod means wandering (see verses 12 and 14). east of Eden.
17Cain made love to his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch. 18To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.
19Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. 20Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. 21His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments and pipes. 22Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of#4:22 Or who instructed all who work in bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.
23Lamech said to his wives,
‘Adah and Zillah, listen to me;
wives of Lamech, hear my words.
I have killed a man for wounding me,
a young man for injuring me.
24If Cain is avenged seven times,
then Lamech seventy-seven times.’
25Adam made love to his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth,#4:25 Seth probably means granted. saying, ‘God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.’ 26Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.
At that time people began to call on#4:26 Or to proclaim the name of the Lord.
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