Cain's murder of Abel (Gen., ch. 4) Adam knew Eve, his wife; and she conceived and gave birth to Cain, and said, “I have acquired a man from the Lord.” 2And she gave birth to his brother Abel. And Abel was a shepherd of sheep, and Cain was a farmer. 3 After some time, Cain brought a gift from the fruits of the earth

Sacrifices of Cain and Abel. Genesis 4:2, 6-7 And Abel was a shepherd of the sheep, and Cain was a farmer. After some time, Cain brought a gift to the Lord from the fruits of the earth. And Abel also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord looked upon Abel and his gift, and on Cain and

2. And she gave birth to his brother Abel. And Abel was a shepherd of sheep, and Cain was a farmer "Abel" - the name of the second, known from the Bible, the son of Adam, is interpreted and translated differently: "breath, insignificance, vanity" or, as Josephus thinks - "crying." Similar to the previous name and it, throughout

4. And Abel also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord looked upon Abel and his gift, 5. But he did not look upon Cain and his gift. Cain became very upset, and his face drooped, “And the Lord looked upon Abel... but did not look upon Cain and his Gift...” Different in their own way

8. And Cain said to Abel his brother: (let's go into the field). And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against Abel, his brother, and killed him. “And while they were in the field, Cain rose up against Abel, his brother, and killed him...” Like death itself, appearing in the world as rent of sin, was an act of some

25. And Adam knew (Eve) his wife, and she gave birth to a son, and called his name Seth, because, (she said,) God gave me another seed, instead of Abel, whom Cain killed. "And Adam knew again his wife... and she gave birth to a son and called his name Seth..." In place of the two eldest children of Adam and

Abel's grave I woke up early - the roosters woke me up. Second or first? I lay awake for a long time until it was dawn and the “Descent into Hell” icon appeared on the wall. The risen Christ extends his hand to Adam, leading him out of hell. But these centuries, millennia since the time

The Man Who Killed the Devil There are many ways to ward off evil spirits and protect yourself from them - this is what Taoists believe. When a Taoist walks through the forest, he either sings or whistles because he believes that his music will stop the evil forest spirits from approaching him, since they don't like

The merciful God gave Adam and Eve children. The eldest son was Cain, and the other, Abel, was younger than him. Cain was a farmer, Abel was a shepherd. I have a very sad story to tell about these two brothers.

One day Cain and Abel made sacrifices to God, each on their own behalf. Cain lit a fire and put a sheaf of ripe ears of grain on it. Abel lit a fire, killed it, and put it on it the best lamb he had in his flock. Abel was kind and pious; he loved God and, making his earnest sacrifice, believed in the promised Savior. Cain sacrificed only for show, so that they would not say about him that he did not believe the promise of God and did not love Him. He made a sacrifice in the same way that we often pray to God because we are forced to, or go to church only because we are sent or taken there. How often do we read a prayer or stand in church, but we ourselves think about strangers, hurry to read the prayers as quickly as possible and can’t wait for the church service to end soon so that we can run away and play with our comrades.

Children! God sees what a person thinks. He saw Abel's zeal and faith, accepted his sacrifice and showed that it was pleasing to Him. The smoke from Abel's sacrifice rose to the sky, and the smoke from Cain's sacrifice spread across the ground. Yes! God did not accept the sacrifice from Cain and, so that Cain would henceforth pray with greater faith and zeal, showed him His displeasure. Well, children, do you think Cain has reformed? No! He became annoyed that his sacrifice was not pleasing to God, and he became very angry with his brother.

When Cain became more and more angry, the Merciful God said to him: “Why are you angry, Cain? And why do you have such a sad face? Stop being angry, it’s a sin.”

But Cain did not obey God and became more and more angry with Abel. And do you know, children, what he did because of his anger? He called Abel into the field, took him away from his parents’ home and killed his brother there. He didn't mind killing him; he did not want to hear when poor Abel, with tears in his eyes, asked him for mercy, he did not want to think that his father and mother would grieve and cry for the murdered Abel. This is what envy and anger brought Cain to. He killed a man, his own brother, ruined an innocent soul...

Cain goes home and thinks that no one saw him kill his brother. People did not see, but God saw, Who sees everything everywhere, from Whom we cannot hide anything, Who sees not only what we have done, but also what we still want to do. And so God Himself appears to Cain and, in order to induce him to repentance, asks: “Cain, where is your brother Abel?” Secretive and rude, Cain replies: “I don’t know where he is. Am I my brother’s keeper?”

Then the Merciful God said: “Cain! Cain! What did you do?! There lies your dead brother, covered in blood, crying out to Me. And because you killed your brother, be you cursed. Don’t you dare stay on this side, get away from your parents and run further from here. But wherever you come, you will have no peace anywhere. Your conscience will always torment you because you killed your brother without any guilt.” Then Cain said: “Yes, Lord, now I see that my sin is great and You will not forgive it to me.” And imagine, children, Cain, who killed his poor brother without any pity, began to fear that he himself would be killed. He says: “Everyone who meets me will kill me!” But the Lord marked Cain with a special sign so that no one who met him could kill him.

And so the unfortunate Cain went away from his native place, to a foreign land. But his heart always sank with fear, and his conscience constantly tormented him. A leaf fell from a tree, and he rushed to the side out of fear. Wherever he sat down to rest, everywhere it seemed to him that Abel was lying in front of him in blood. It seemed to him that behind every bush there was a killer who was about to kill him. But people, looking at this man groaning with remorse, shaking and wildly looking around, tried not to meet him and ran away when they saw Cain.

When were Cain and Ebel born?

Cain and Evel (Abel) are the children of the first man, Adam, and his wife Chava (in the Russian version - Eve).

The first man Adam was created by the Almighty on the sixth day of Creation, on Rosh Hashanah - the first day of the month of Tishrei ( Bereshit 1:27, 31; Rosh Hashanah 10b; Zohar 1, 37a).

Both day (daylight hours) and night (dark time of day) contain 12 hours. At the third hour of that day, the Almighty “made man from the dust of the earth” ( Bereshit 2:7), forming the corresponding organs, cavities and limbs ( Sanhedrin 38b; Seder Hadorot). And at the fourth hour the Creator “breathed a life-giving soul into his nostrils, and the man came to life” ( Bereshit 2:7; Sanhedrin 38b).

At the seventh hour of the day, the Almighty “took one of the parts” of the sleeping man and “transformed this part ... into a woman” ( Bereshit 2:21-22).

In answering the question when Cain and Ebel were born, the opinions of the sages were divided.

Some believe that Cain and Evel were born before the expulsion [from Gan Eden - the Garden of Eden. Editor's note.], and others - what after. For example, in the book Sefer Yuhasin the opinion is given that Cain was born in the 15th year from the Creation of the World, and Evel - in the 30th.

However, commentators often cite Haggadah from the treatise Sanhedrin (38 b), from which it follows that Cain and Evel were born on the first Friday, at the eighth hour [see. on the website: What is Haggadah].

At the eighth hour of the day, Adam and his other “half”, named by him in the holy language Isha(Woman), entered into intimacy. Adam and Isha “went up to the bed together, and came down from it in four” (Sanhedrin 38b) - as a result of their closeness, twins were born at the same hour: a boy who received the name Cain (Bereshit 4:1), and girl ( Rashi, Bereshit 4:1). Somewhat later, the woman gave birth to three more twins: a boy named Evel (Bereshit 4:2), and his two sisters ( Bereshit the servant 22:2-3; Rashi, Bereshit 4:1; Tosafot, Sanhedrin 38b).

Argument

As a result of the sin committed by the first man, [...] on the twelfth and last hour of that day, the Creator decided to expel Adam from the Garden of Eden ( Sanhedrin 38b). At the end of Shabbat, the Creator expelled Adam from the garden ( Bereshit 3:23-24).

Subsequently, for one hundred and thirty years, he [Adam] remained in fasting and repentance, abstaining from intimacy with his wife ( Eruvin 18b). Adam hoped to atone for the death sentence imposed on him and his descendants. But it was impossible to correct what he had done even with complete repentance, because his sin had already led to irreversible changes in the spiritual state of the Universe ( Mikhtav meEliyahu 2, p. 85).

During this time, Adam's sons married their sisters - the Almighty showed mercy to his creatures by allowing that generation a similar inbreeding marriage in order to “build” the world, as it is said ( Tehilim 89:3): “Peace is built by good will” ( Yerushalmi, Yevamot 11:1, Korban haeda). Cain married his sister Kelmana, and Evel married Belvira (Abravanel , Bereshit 4:1; Seder Hadorot).

Cain tilled the land, and Ebel tended the flocks ( Bereshit 4:2).

In the fortieth year from the Creation of the world, on the fifteenth day of the month Nissan, the sons of Adam, following his advice, made sacrifices to the Almighty: Cain laid flaxseed on the altar, and Ebel - the best sheep from his flock. The Creator accepted only Evel’s sacrifice, but “was not pleased with Cain and his gift” ( Bereshit 4:5; Tanhuma, Bereshit 9; Pirkei Derabi Eliezer 21; Yalkut Shimoni, Bereshit 35).

Bearing a grudge, Cain invited his brother to divide the world: he took all the land for himself, and Evel took the herds. And immediately a quarrel broke out between them, caused by the fact that Ebel led his herd through Cain’s arable land. Cain reproached Ebel for grazing his cattle on his land. And Evel reproached his brother for dressing in clothes made from the skins of his sheep ( Bereshit servant 22:7; Tanhuma, Bereshit 9; Sefer Ayashar). Another reason for the conflict was that Cain sought to take away Evel’s wife, who was the most beautiful of all the sisters ( Pirkei Derabi Eliezer 21).

In the fight, Cain dealt a fatal blow to Evel ( Bereshit 4:8) - and Adam mourned his son (Pirkei derabi Eliezer 21).

With the death of Evel, another historical opportunity was missed: after all, Adam was worthy that the twelve tribes of Israel would come from him, but after the death of Evel, the Most High said: “I gave him only two sons, and one of them killed the other - how could I can I produce twelve tribes from him?!” ( Bereshit the servant 24:5).

Cain had many children, and the land gradually began to be populated ( Bereshit 4:17-22).

In the one hundred and thirtieth year from the Creation of the world, Cain was killed by his descendant Lemekh, who mistakenly mistook him for an animal in the forest ( Bereshit 4:23, Rashi; Yagel Libeinu 11) [ - editor's note.].

After the death of his second son, Adam "knew his wife again" ( Bereshit 4:25), and they had a son, Sheth. And after Sheth they had many more children ( Bereshit 5:4; Seder Hadorot).

Who are Cain and Abel?

In the Abrahamic religions, Cain and Abel are the sons of Adam and Eve, born after the expulsion of their first parents from Eden. As God commanded, Cain and Abel worked on the earth and ate the fruits of their hard labor. Cain was a farmer, and Abel was a shepherd.

The story of Abel and Cain is the story of the first murder on Earth. The earth at that time was still very young, but had already undergone influence. Cain was the first man born on the young Earth, Abel the first man to die.

The story of Cain and Abel is told in chapter four. You can read or listen to the chapter about Cain and Abel by following the link:

The names Cain and Abel: meaning.

Name Cain comes from either the Hebrew root KANA, which means “to create / bring into being,” or from the root KINA, which means “envy.” The first version is supported by the lines of the Bible in which Eve says about Cain, “I made man.” The name Cain became a household name. Today it is customary to call an evil and envious person capable of meanness.

Name Abel(Hevel) probably goes back to the Hebrew word “hevel” - breath. However, many modern scholars say that the name Abel comes from the Akkadian “ablu”, which means son.

Why did Cain kill Abel?

Cain the farmer and Abel the herdsman brought the fruits of their labors as a sacrifice to God. God favorably accepted Abel’s sacrifice, since it was offered with a pure heart. Cain's sacrifice was rejected, since Cain sacrificed only out of habit, without love for God. Out of envy and anger, Cain kills Abel, thereby committing the first crime on the young Earth.

The story of Cain after the fratricide.

After the murder, Cain tried to hide his sin before God. When God asked Cain where his brother was, he replied that he did not know, since he was not his brother’s keeper. It is believed that God asked Cain this question in the hope of confessing his sin, but Cain showed no desire to repent.

Cain and Abel. Zhitnikov Mikhail.

After the murder, Cain was cursed by God from the land on which the blood of Abel was shed. According to God's word, the earth will not give strength to Cain. And he must become an exile and a wanderer on earth. And Cain was sent to the land of Nod.

Cain cries out to God, saying that his punishment is more than he can bear, and that anyone who meets him will be able to kill him.

And the Lord [God] said to him: therefore, whoever kills Cain will be avenged sevenfold. And the Lord [God] made a sign for Cain, so that no one who met him would kill him.

Cain is the father of Enoch and the founder of his line. He also founded a city and named it after his son ENOCH. Who was Cain's wife? There is no mention of this in the Bible, but there are two opinions, both based on the Book of Jubilees:

• Cain's wife was his sister Avan;
• Cain's wife was Sheba.

Cain's tribe has 7 generations. It is believed that Cain's family did not survive the Great Flood. In the apocryphal book of Enoch it is written that the soul of Abel became the head of the martyrs and persecuted the descendants of Cain.

“This is the spirit that came out of Abel, who was killed by his brother Cain; and he complains against him until his (Cain’s) seed is blotted out from the face of the earth and his seed is destroyed from the seed of men.”

The story of Cain and Abel. Manuscripts and interpretations.

The oldest known copy of the biblical narrative containing the story of Cain and Abel is the Dead Sea Scrolls (Qumran Manuscripts). The main body of Qumran manuscripts dates from 250 BC. e. before 68 AD e. The scroll containing the story of Cain and Abel dates back to the first century BC.

The story of Cain and Abel has also come down to us in a number of other texts (24 manuscripts in total). This story is subject to various interpretations.

The image of Abel is interpreted both as the first murder victim and as the first martyr; while Cain is seen as both the first murderer and the ancestor of evil. Some scholars suggest that the biblical story of Cain and Abel is based on an ancient Sumerian tale of a conflict between nomadic shepherds and sedentary farmers.

The image of Cain is reflected in Kabbalah, where he is considered the son of the angel Samael and Eve, as well as in Gnosticism, where he is considered the son of Satan and Eve.

An interesting fact is that, following the story of Cain and Abel, the idea of ​​God preferring the youngest son is observed more than once in the Bible:

• The story of Esau and Jacob;
• The story of Joseph and his eleven brothers;
• The story of David and his older brothers, etc.

The story of Cain and Abel has become the archetype of fratricide. This story is interpreted in literature and other forms of art.

A medieval legend says that Cain was sent by God to the Moon so that from there he could see all the delights of earthly life and not be able to return. According to this legend, on a full moon, looking at the moon you can see the image of Cain killing Abel. Cain with a bundle of brushwood is synonymous with the moon in Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy.

...Two hemispheres and beyond Seville into the waves

Cain descends, holding his brushwood

There is an interesting interpretation of the story of Abel and Cain, according to which this story explains the source of all wars. How is it that blood brothers who worship the same God become mortal enemies? According to the author of the theory, wars, including religious ones, are led not by differences in dogmas or rituals, but by “claims to equality” or “denial of hierarchy” (

Who are Cain and Abel? What is the meaning of the parable about two brothers, one of whom is a fratricide? What does she teach us? You will learn about this from our article!

Night is painful on earth outside of Eden.
The mortal abyss flows through the veins.
Whispers and cries, falling to his knees,
Old Adam to Dying Eve:
"Who
will he step over the abyss?
Who
will restore Abel's family?
Who,
paving a road through the sky,
will say the words
to the person
and to God?
Who will break the torment of parting -
Tree by tree,
By hand - by hand?..”

An ancient Sumerian myth told how the heavenly goddess Inanna chose the shepherd out of the two young men who sought her hand, rejecting the farmer. It was the shepherd who entered into a happy and divine marriage and joined, in the concept of the inhabitants of Ancient Mesopotamia, divine life, divine immortality.

But this kind of “divine marriage” was a violation of allegiance to the God of Israel.

“Sue your mother, sue; for she is not My wife, and I am not her husband; let her put away fornication from her face and adultery from her breasts... And I will punish her for the days of serving the Baals, when she burned incense to them and, adorning herself with earrings and necklaces, went after her lovers, and forgot Me, says the Lord" (Hosea 2:2 ;13).

The story, found in one of the opening chapters of the book of Genesis, also tells about a shepherd and a farmer. But they do not compete for the goddess Inanna (as Abraham’s relatives did for centuries who did not leave Ur) - they make a sacrifice to the Living God, who will then reveal himself to Abraham. The story of the farmer Cain, the elder brother, and the shepherd Abel, the younger brother, is a foretaste of the story of the calling of Abraham, and the story of the Exodus, and - foreshadowed by them - the Great Exodus of Christ, His Passover...

...They make a sacrifice - and in the sacrifice their separation occurs in the face of God. Actually, the entire history of the human race, according to Genesis, is a history of division, so that the separated holy people could begin their difficult path to hearing the Living God, until the time when He Himself stands among His people in “an equal place” (Luke 6). :17) and will divide by His appearance those who recognized the Messiah in Him and those who did not.

“...Cain brought a gift to the Lord from the fruits of the ground, and Abel also brought from the firstlings of his flock and from their fat. And the Lord looked upon Abel and his gift, but did not look upon Cain and his gift. Cain was greatly saddened, and his face fell” (Gen. 4:3-5).

Little is said about Abel and his mysterious righteousness. He is accepted by God in spite of everything - despite the fact that he is not the firstborn, despite the fact that in his very name his mother, so inspired by the birth of her firstborn, Cain, expressed all the disappointment that befell her. Just as Cain is not the promised seed of the woman, so is his younger brother, even more so, futility and vapor, and one cannot rely on him. If Cain, “a man from the Lord” (Gen. 4:1), failed and did not return the entire human race with the power of his reason and cunning to Eden, and did not manage to please God, then what about Abel and his sheep!

But God judged differently, and Cain’s shock knew no bounds. The Genesis account is mysterious and difficult to interpret, but it is clear that it seems to center on the person of Cain, the elder brother. As if in the beginning of insanity, Cain hears the words of God - from afar, from the distant coolness of paradise, the words with which God is trying to protect him.

“And the Lord [God] said to Cain: Why are you upset? and why did your face droop? If you do good, don’t you lift your face? and if you do not do good, then sin lies at the door; he draws you to himself, but you must rule over him” (Gen. 4:6-7)

One translation of this passage sounds like this: “It [sin] desires you, you will be its master.”(Gen. 4:7)

...It is very difficult to protect a person. For this, God must die. But the time has not come yet...

Cain hears the words of God, but his mind, accustomed to seeing not a loving God, but an idol created according to his own ideas, bestowing power, understands them terribly and destructively for both brothers.

“You rule over him,” Cain hears, and says strange words to Abel.

Perhaps Cain felt a certain delight and perceived it as a divine revelation. Everything was given to Cain for dominion - even Abel's righteousness! Indeed, what else is a younger, unsightly brother needed for, if not for the great cause of the elder brother, who, perhaps, will fulfill the mother’s hope in this way, become a liberator and the long-awaited “seed of the wife,” returning to the lost paradise?! His sacrifice is small - which means that God wants to strengthen it by giving Abel himself, who was pleasing to God with his sacrifices! What a brilliant and terrible paradox! Only a great, extraordinary man, the savior of all mankind, can step over human, through brotherly blood! This is what Cain wanted to become. And he stabbed Abel.

And the Lord said:

“What have you done?” (Gen. 4:10)

Cain realizes what he has done. But he does not commit suicide - his long future life in fear and mental confusion will end with the fact that he, as some ancient interpreters said, will be killed by his descendant Lamech - he will take the unfortunate man hiding in the thicket for a forest animal...

It seems that the salvation of mankind is lost forever. If anyone could save him, it would be the unearthly Abel or someone from his seed. But Abel had no seed left. Seth, who was born instead of Abel to the primordial couple, stood too firmly on the earth in his piety without going beyond reasonable boundaries - he no longer sought to save the world, he was prudent. Adam and Eve understood with anguish that there would be no one like Abel on earth again. And even the ascended Enoch was not a suffering victim who completely surrendered himself - no, not to the cruelty of his brother, but to the mysterious call of God, who sought to come to earth to share his death, and - so far could not.

He came down - thousands of years later. He became a sacrifice, and it was not without reason that He mentioned the name of Abel and the shedding of His blood (Matthew 23:35; Luke 11:50-51).

There is no time for God. He united His human blood, shed by the hands of cruel warriors and the cunning of the high priestly minds, who believed that “it is better for one person to die than for the whole people to perish” - united it with the blood of Abel, becoming voluntarily his descendant.

More than reason and hope - Christ is a descendant of Abel. He is the Son and Seed of the Woman, a Man from the Lord. He sacrificed himself, without seeking sacrifices from others. He did not need power over his brothers - He gave Himself for the brothers...

And his perfect Sacrifice reconciles all the brothers scattered across the face of the earth, who have lost all hope of the return of God to earth, who will speak to them in the coolness of paradise.

Ax to the root! Will she give birth?
desert manna and honey?
Son of Abraham prayers
and will offer sacrifices for sin.

But something has become under the sun
not like centuries ago:
put his hand on the roof
unrecognized younger brother,

will turn up the earth with a plow,
will shed the blood of lambs,
sea, north, south
looking for his brother, he will pass.

Smyrna is full of backgammon
His robe and head.
Will fulfill all righteousness,
the words of the women will be fulfilled.

The rocks will part. Kreen
in the sand they will bloom forever.
The only Son of Mary,
From the Lord - Man.