The Bible Book

36

AM I MY

BROTHER’S

KEEPER?

GENESIS 4:9, CAIN AND ABEL

Death of Abel by Andrea Schiavone

(c.1510–1563) shows Cain committing

the first murder in the Bible. The

dying sheep depicted in the background

foreshadows the death of Abel.

IN BRIEF

PA S SAGE

Genesis 4:1–16

THEME

The first murder

SETTING

Primeval period The

unnamed land where Adam,

Eve, and their children live

after leaving the Garden

of Eden.

KEY FIGURES

Cain Eldest son of Adam and

Eve and the brother of Abel.

Like his father, Cain is an

agriculturalist.

Abel Second son of Adam

and Eve and younger brother

of Cain. Abel is a herdsman.

T

he story of Cain and Abel

is the second installment

of the Fall narrative,

describing the first manifestation

of evil in humankind. Genesis 4

tells how Adam and Eve’s elder

son, Cain, murders his brother,

Abel. It follows a similar pattern

to the previous chapter: ignoring

divine warnings and committing

a sin is punished, in this case with

exile. While Adam and Eve disobey

God’s specific command, Cain’s sin

is violent: his anger at God and

jealousy of Abel lead him to commit

an act of fratricide.

Sibling rivalry

Genesis 4 begins with the birth

of the two brothers to Adam and

Eve. When the boys reach

adulthood, they pursue different

occupations. The elder brother,

Cain, becomes an agriculturalist,

a tiller of the soil, like his father;

Abel, the second son, becomes

a pastoralist, a keeper of sheep

and goats. These were the chief

occupations during the time in

which the authors of Genesis were

writing, and tensions sometimes

flared up between agriculturalists

and pastoralists over the use of

the land. However, there is no

suggestion that disputes over

land use—or any inherent conflict

between the occupations—was

the source of the animosity

between Cain and Abel.

In the passage, both brothers

bring sacrificial offerings to God.

Abel takes “fat portions from some

of the firstborn of his flock,” while

Cain brings “some of the fruits of

the soil” (4:3). God responds

favorably to Abel’s offering, but

US_036-037_Am_I_my_brothers_keeper.indd 36 21/09/17 11:26 am