Genesis 4:1-16. The Narrative of Cain and Abel. (J.) The vivid interest, which this section inspires, sometimes causes it to be forgotten that we have here the only tradition relating to the family life of Adam and Eve. The narrative, as we have it, is evidently intended to describe the spread of... [ Continue Reading ]
_Cain … gotten_ Heb. _ḳanah_, to get. The word "Cain" does not mean "gotten"; but Eve's joyful utterance gives a popular etymology, which derived the proper name from the verb whose pronunciation it resembled. The word "Cain" (_Ḳayin_) means in Hebrew "a lance"; and by some the name is interpreted t... [ Continue Reading ]
_Abel_ Heb. _Hebel_= "breath," or "vapour," a name suggestive of fleeting life, cf. Job 7:16. No better explanation of the name is given. Assyriologists have suggested that the name reproduces the Assyrian _aplu_= "a son." But it is doubtful whether the resemblance is anything more than accidental.... [ Continue Reading ]
_in process of time_ Lit. "at the end of days," a phrase for a period of quite indefinite length; LXX μεθ ʼ ἡμέρας; Lat. _post multos dies_. _of the fruit of the ground_ Probably the best, or the earliest, of the fruit, corresponding to the "firstlings" in Abel's offering. Cf. Numbers 18:12, "All t... [ Continue Reading ]
_the firstlings_ i.e. "the firstborn," regarded as the best and choicest, cf. Exodus 34:19; Numbers 18:17; Proverbs 3:9. _the fat_ i.e. the fatty portions, which were regarded as choicest for the purpose of a banquet (cf. 1 Samuel 2:16), or for burning in sacrifice, Isaiah 1:11, "the fat of fed bea... [ Continue Reading ]
_but unto Cain_ In what way the Divine displeasure was conveyed is not recorded. The suggestion that fire from heaven consumed the offering of Abel, but left that of Cain untouched, is a pure conjecture based upon the group of passages in the O.T., in which the fire from God attested the approval of... [ Continue Reading ]
_And the Lord said_, &c. Whether Jehovah appeared in a visible form, or spoke to Cain in a dream or vision, is not recorded. The importance of the interrogation lies in the fact, that Jehovah mercifully intervenes to arrest the progress of evil thoughts, by simple words demanding self-examination.... [ Continue Reading ]
_If thou doest well_, &c. A verse well known for its difficulties. The rendering in the marg. "shall it not be lifted up?" should be followed. Literally the first clause runs thus: "Is there not, if thou doest well, to lift up?" The infinitive "to lift up" must be taken as an infinitival substantive... [ Continue Reading ]
_told_ Heb. _said unto_, which is the only possible meaning of the original. The rendering "told" implies that Cain repeated to Abel, his brother, the words spoken to him by Jehovah. But this is not the meaning of the original, which is, "Cain said unto Abel his brother"; some words, which are wanti... [ Continue Reading ]
_And the Lord said_, &c. The condensed narrative does not say whether Cain tried to conceal the body of Abel, or had fled at once from the spot. Apparently Jehovah speaks to him suddenly, when at a distance from the scene of the murder. The process of interrogation may be compared with that in Genes... [ Continue Reading ]
_What hast thou done?_ The same question as that put to Eve (Genesis 3:13). This question has been put by the voice of conscience to every murderer since Cain; it had a special force in reference to the first man done to death by his brother. _the voice of thy brother's blood_ Probably it would be... [ Continue Reading ]
_from the ground_ The meaning is not quite obvious. Probably, we should not understand, that the curse is to come from the ground upon Cain, but that Cain is driven by Jehovah's curse from the ground. The emphasis is on "the ground" (_hâ-adâmâh_). It is the _ground_which Cain tilled, the _ground_who... [ Continue Reading ]
_when thou tillest_, &c. The meaning is, that when, or if, after this curse, Cain continues to till the ground, the ground will refuse to give a return for his labour. Therefore, he will not be able to live on the cultivated ground. He must leave it and wander forth. _her strength_ That is, "her fr... [ Continue Reading ]
_And Cain said_ The bitter cry of Cain is not that of repentance for his sin, but of entreaty for the mitigation of his doom. _My punishment_ Better than marg. _mine iniquity_. The Hebrew word is used to denote both guilt and its penalty, and consequently is sometimes ambiguous, e.g. 1 Samuel 28:10... [ Continue Reading ]
_Behold, thou hast_, &c. Cain accepts Jehovah's sentence as a banishment from the cultivated ground. "And from thy face shall I be hid," Cain recognizes that banishment from the land, in which Jehovah's presence was manifested, implied expulsion from Jehovah's presence. In the desert to which he was... [ Continue Reading ]
_Therefore_ i.e. on account of Cain's entreaty, Jehovah's mercy is shewn to the first murderer. Cain has no friend: Jehovah, by an act of benevolence and authority, will protect him, and undertake his cause even in the desert. A slight variation in text accounts for LXX οὐχ οὕτως, Lat. _Nequa-quam... [ Continue Reading ]
_from the presence of_ Cf. 14, "from thy face." Cain going out "from the presence of" Jehovah, quits the land in which that presence was revealed. Jonah in fleeing from Palestine fled "from the presence of the Lord" (Jonah 1:3). _in the land of Nod_ That is, _Wandering_, cf. the word "wanderer" (_n... [ Continue Reading ]
_his wife_ On the question, Who was Cain's wife? see note at the beginning of the chapter. If the narrative be homogeneous, she must have been either a daughter of Eve, or of a family of whose contemporaneous origin and existence this narrative in Genesis gives no account. But the compilation of our... [ Continue Reading ]
The Descendants of Cain: The Genealogy of the Cainites. (J.) See the Special Note on "the Antediluvian Patriarchs," see below. The traditions preserved in this section probably belong to a different J source from that of the verses immediately preceding. This will explain how it is that Cain, who h... [ Continue Reading ]
_And unto Enoch_, &c. The genealogy of Cain is a framework of names, each of which may have been connected with traditions that either had been forgotten, or were not deemed suitable for preservation in this context. It is a mistake, into which some commentators have been betrayed, to endeavour to e... [ Continue Reading ]
_Lamech_ The seventh of the Cainite line has three sons, as Noah, the tenth of the Sethite line, has three sons. _two wives_ Lamech is the first recorded instance of polygamy. The custom, prevalent in patriarchal times and in the days of the kings (e.g. David, Solomon), was recognized in the Law of... [ Continue Reading ]
_Jabal_ The meaning of this name is doubtful. Dillmann conjectures "a wanderer." Jabal, like Abel (see note, on Genesis 4:2), is a founder of the shepherd's and herdsman's life. _father of_ i.e. the founder, or originator, of nomad life. To the Hebrews, to live in tents was the alternative to life... [ Continue Reading ]
_Jubal_ The originator of musical instruments. Music is thus regarded as the most ancient art. For the name, compare the word "Jubilee"; _yôbêl_is "the ram's horn." _harp and pipe_ i.e. the simplest of stringed and wind instruments used by shepherds. LXX ψαλτήριον καὶ κιθάραν : Lat. _cithara et org... [ Continue Reading ]
_Tubal-cain_ The double name is strange, and presumably means "Tubal of the family of Cain." Tubal is traditionally supposed to have given his name to the people mentioned in Genesis 10:2 (see note). "Tubal" in Ezekiel 27:13; Ezekiel 32:26; Ezekiel 38:2; Ezekiel 39:1 is associated with Javan and Mes... [ Continue Reading ]
_a man for wounding me_ Lamech boasts that he has slain a man who had wounded him and a young man who had bruised him. Whether "a man" and "a young man" are the same person, or whether they mean a man and his son, cannot be decided. Lamech has exacted the vengeance of death for the insult of a blow... [ Continue Reading ]
The Song of the Sword. These verses are written in a poetical style, with the parallelism of clauses characteristic of Hebrew poetry. It is the first instance of Hebrew poetical composition in the Bible 1 [10]. It contains (1) the address of Lamech to his wives; (2) the announcement of a recent expl... [ Continue Reading ]
_seventy and sevenfold_ Cf. Genesis 4:15. Lamech boasts that seventy and seven deaths should be the penalty of revenge if he were slain. The first note of warfare is sounded in this fierce exultation in a deed which has exceeded the limits of self-defence and passed into the region of the blood-feu... [ Continue Reading ]
_called his name_ Here, as in Genesis 4:1 (see note), the mother gives the name. _God_ Elohim (not Jehovah, as in Genesis 4:1), probably because of Genesis 4:26. _hath appointed_ Heb. _shath_. As was pointed out in the note on Genesis 4:1, the resemblance to a Hebrew word in the sound of a proper... [ Continue Reading ]
The Line of Seth These two verses begin the line of Seth which is parallel to that of Cain. The more complete genealogy, found in ch. 5, comes from a different source (P). But it is not unlikely that they are derived from the same materials as the previous section.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Enosh_ This word, used in Hebrew poetry, means "man," and is thus to be compared with Adam. _then began men_ In the Hebrew it is impersonal, "then was a beginning made." The origin of Jehovah worship is here connected with the line of Seth, and is probably intended to be contrasted with the origin... [ Continue Reading ]