Bible Analysis: Cain & Abel
The story of Cain & Abel is characterized by most Christians as a story of jealousy and the ultimate sin, rage against man- murder! This story is the first action thriller described in the Old Testament...only this thriller is about as long as an early 20th century silent movie. Cain, elder brother of Cain, presents an offering to God. Why? We do not know. Cain, a farmer, oversaw plant based foods. Why this is important? Not quite sure. He presents "the first fruits of his harvest" to God. God is pleased. Abel then presents his offering. Abel, a shepherd/hunter, oversees the animals, meat. He presents the best of his herd/flock to God. God likes Abel's offering better. (Commentary: meat vs veggies/fruits? hmmm, perhaps God was craving meat and veggies just didn't hit the spot that day). Cain suddenly becomes infuriated feeling as if his offering has been rejected. He strikes his brother kill him. With what? Genesis doesn't identify the object used to kill Abel. Genesis also does not indicate if death was truly the intent of Cain, though biblical scholars have ruled the killing was murder not manslaughter. At first glance, there really is no build up revealing why Cain would attack his brother...especially over an offering. As thrilling as this story is, at face value, there's just not much to it.
As far as we know, there were no other people on the planet at the time of the murder other than Adam and Eve...so there was no point in reference detailing that if you strike someone hard enough that that act could result in murder.
So let's look at C&A contextually and possibly check out additional text that didn't make the cut. Perhaps then we can make sense of this story.
Genesis 1-3 focus on the Creation of the Earth, mankind, and Adam & Eve's (A&E's) expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Then the timeline fast-wards and focuses on adult C&A in chapter 4. Archaeologists/Historians have identified a text that explains what occurred between the expulsion and the birth of Cain. This text is called "The Book of Adam and Eve," one of the Forgotten Books of Eden. According to this book, Adam was hellbent on getting back into the Garden. He would wail and wallow in rivers, attempt to jump off a cliff or drown himself, and even perform acts to appease God. Uh oh, looks like we have a clue!!!
So if I could pose a question to A&E, I'd ask, where did the idea of giving an offering originate? Did the idea come from you or did C&A come up with it all by their lonesome? What was the purpose? What were the terms of this offering given that the Hebrew/Jewish communities were not yet formed to determine the guidelines of giving? If there were terms outlined, did your sons understand these terms? Did you yourself give an offering or was this moment the first offering ever made in human history? Was this offering another of Adam's ingenious schemes to get on God's good side so he could reenter paradise? Did Abel get so fed up with Adam's obsession that he went ballistic on his brother? (<--"misplaced hate brings disgrace to races"~Tupac). What kind of parents were you? Did you parent at all or were you so uber concerned with getting back to paradise that you neglected your first born? Or maybe it wasn't neglect...maybe you oppressed your first child with your obsession (your dream) and murder was his way of rejecting you?
Funny, no one ever questions the parents role in this story. Proverbs 22:6- "Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it."
Cain was a farmer not a hunter. Yet, the tables turned when he allegedly hunted down his brother as an act of vengeance. The Book of Enoch describes Cain's descendants thereafter as carnivorous killers infecting the world with sin. Accordingly, Cain and his people could not produce anything but death, sin, destruction, EVIL. What a way to live. Darkness.
Headline: Vegetarian kills Carnivore
A chef grows thirsty for blood after a food critic writes up his Caesar salad as so-so compared to his competitor's tasty lamb chop.
hmmmm
