Genesis 4:3

‘And after a certain amount of time had passed Cain brought to Yahweh an offering of the fruit of the ground.'

The cereal offering was an acknowledgement of God's blessing and an expression of human gratitude. It would later be quite acceptable to God, so that there is no reason here to assume it was unacceptable here. It was what Cain had laboured for. Why then was it not accepted? The word for ‘offering' is ‘minchah' meaning ‘a gift'.

It is noticeable that Cain's offering is described very blandly in comparison with Abel's. There is no mention of the first fruits, and it is described as ‘after a passage of time'. Thus there may be a hint that Cain's offering was somewhat half-hearted. And this gains backing from Genesis 4:7 where it is suggested that Cain has not ‘done well', and has ‘sin crouching at the door'. Certainly there appears to be the idea of a late and careless offering.

However, his not having ‘done well' may also indicate a number of other factors. It could indicate his not having been so diligent over his work, which would help to explain a possible meagre level of production (see below), and indeed it may relate to his general behaviour and attitude. What seems sure is that the problem was related to Cain's overall attitude of mind and heart.