Vecelli, Tiziano (Titian). Cain and Abel. 1542-44, Santa Maria della Salute, Venice.
This article is Part 2 of the FAI Publishing series Seeds and Generations, a Biblical survey of the theology of “Seed” and “Generation” throughout redemptive history to the end of the age.
CURSED GROUND, Labored Ground
The Voice of Roaring Waters resounded in Adam’s ears:
Cursed is the ground because of you!
In pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life.
By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.[1]
The animal was slaughtered, nakedness was covered, and the man and his wife were driven from the garden. And so the age-long struggle began. Adam began to “work the ground”[2] in painful toil, and Eve began to bear children in painful labor, so that both the ground and those formed from it were under a curse.
TWO SEEDS, TWO OFFERINGS
After their expulsion, the man and his wife conceived. In the course of time, the Mother of all the Living praised her Creator, for she had “brought forth a man” named Cain.[3] The first man born of woman was also the first born under Adam’s curse, and was therefore fathered “in his [Adam’s] likeness, after his image.”[4] Soon afterward, the first couple conceived again, and brought forth Abel, whose name is derived from the Hebrew for “vapor” or “breath,” often translated elsewhere as “vanity.” Whereas the first man was formed from the untainted ground and awakened with the “breath of life,” those conceived under the curse were formed by the “breath of vanity.”[5]
But would the offspring of Adam prove to be the prophesied seed of the serpent or the seed of the woman? Did the serpent’s seed ingested by Adam from the tree condemn all of the children of men to the serpent’s image? Only time would tell.
Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground. In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions.
And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard.[6]
The first brothers took different vocations. Cain was a “worker of the ground,” whereas Abel tended to flocks. Presuming some unwritten instruction, “in the course of time” both brothers knew to bring a portion of their livelihood as an offering to the Creator. For some reason, God regards the one, but rejects the other. We know that there is nothing inherently flawed in either kind of offering, as God would later instruct the children of Israel to bring offerings from both their fields and their flocks,[7] but the text hints at a crucial distinction in the quality of their offerings. The author explicitly mentions that Abel gave “from the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions.” In other words, Abel gave God both the first and best of what he valued. Centuries later, the same One who met Adam and Eve in the Garden would stand with Moses on Sinai and command the newborn nation of Israel to imitate Abel’s offering:
But the firstborn of an ox or the firstborn of a sheep or the firstborn of a goat…they are holy. You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar and shall offer up their fat in smoke as an offering by fire, for a soothing aroma to the Lord.[8]
In giving God his first and greatest treasure, Abel demonstrated a heart of loving obedience towards God. “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”[9] This is the character of the seed of the woman.
On the other hand, the text says nothing about the quality of Cain’s agricultural offering. The fruit could have been spoiled and rotten. Or the fruit could have been mediocre, even acceptable, at least by human standards. In any case, Cain’s offering wasn’t remarkable enough to describe as his first and best. Rather, the elder brother’s offering is only described as “fruit of the ground,” an odd choice of phrasing, as such offerings are most often described in the Book of Moses as “fruit of the tree” or “fruit of the land.”[10] The Hebrew word for “ground” is Adamah, and by using it, the author connects Cain’s offering with the Lord’s words to his father: “Cursed is the ground because of you!” Cain’s offering did not come from a fruitful tree, or a blessed land. It came from the cursed ground, because it came from an unclean heart.
Like the Pharisees, Cain was willing to perform enough outward observance to feign worship, but he was not willing to give his first and best to “worship in spirit and in truth.”[11] His worship was deceptive. His worship was a lie, and therefore Cain demonstrates the seed of the serpent. Jude, the half-brother of Jesus, would later describe this way of rebellion and blasphemy as “the way of Cain.”[12] But outward appearances don’t fool the One who “looks on the heart.”[13] The Lord saw that Cain’s offering was half-hearted and insincere, and He disregarded it. So, in the first generation after the curse, there were two brothers who represented the two seeds. Moreover, by accepting one and rejecting the other, the Lord fulfilled his promise to place enmity between the two. When Cain saw that his offering was rejected, he become “very angry” and “his face fell.” The stage was set for the first battle between the two seeds.
Cursed Ground, Bloody Ground
As Cain seethes against his brother, the Creator intervenes:
The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”[14]
The Righteous One did not leave Cain to his own devices without a redemptive confrontation. After all, why was Cain angry with his brother for his good offering? Shouldn’t Abel’s sincere gift provoke Cain to act the same instead of provoking him to anger? But this is not the nature of the seed of the serpent. Witnessing the Light of good deeds towards God does not provoke the serpent’s offspring to do likewise. Rather, he “hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.”[15] Cain certainly had the opportunity to repent from his empty observance and give an offering of his first and best, but his fallen heart was unwilling to do so. Rather than join his younger brother in true worship, Cain hated Abel, and the sin crouching at his door was ready to pounce.
Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him.[16]
In provoking enmity between the two seeds, God exposes the true nature of both. Cain’s external conformity is proven to be a lie. Just as he lied to God with his lackluster offering, so he lied when he “spoke to Abel his brother,” convincing him to join him in the field alone. Just as Cain hid anger and resentment towards his brother in his heart, so now his hatred was exposed in violence and murder. With lies and violence, Cain proves himself to be the offspring of the serpent, for the serpent “was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”[17] In his shocking fratricide, Cain became the prototype of the serpent’s seed who would persecute the seed of the woman. The Apostle John illuminates this dynamic for us:
Cain was of the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s were righteous.[18]
Abel, on the other hand,
offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks.[19]
In the temporal sphere of the carnal, it would appear that Cain had won the battle of the two seeds. His brother was dead, and his offerings were ceased from Cain’s view. But in the eternal sphere of the spiritual, Abel was the true victor, because “though he is dead, he still speaks.” Cain’s violence could not strip Abel of the “testimony that he was righteous.” Rather, the martyrdom of Abel proved that he was one “of whom the world was not worthy.”[20] Therefore, Abel became the archetype of all who would follow him in conquering “by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.”[21]
Finally, the Lord comes to Cain a second time, not to offer redemption, but to pronounce judgment.
Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?” And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”…Then Cain went away from the presence of the Lord and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden.[22]
The cursed ground was soaked in the blood of righteous Abel, crying out to God for justice. And so Cain was cursed from the cursed ground. He had refused to worship God with his first fruits, so now Cain would grow no fruit at all. Even what he had was taken away from him,[23] and he was condemned to wandering as an outcast, away from the presence of the Lord. In that sense, Cain received a double curse in judgment, becoming the model for all who will “suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord.”[24] And to make plain his identity as the cursed one, Cain is given a mark:
Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground, and from your face I shall be hidden. I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.’”Then the Lord said to him, “Not so! If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.’ And the Lord put a mark on Cain, lest any who found him should attack him.”[25]
By marking Cain, the Lord introduces a divine instrument which He will use throughout redemptive history to identify both the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman.
The first battle between the two seeds was fought in the second generation, and the Great Enmity had already risen to the level of murder. In the next installment, we will examine how the two seeds would form two generations. Abel’s blood would be the first of many to shout a righteous testimony from the cursed ground. But One is eventually coming whose blood “speaks a better word than the blood of Abel,”[26] and He will fulfill His own prophecy to crush the serpent’s head.
Maranatha.
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Gabe Caligiuri is a regular contributor to THE WIRE publication and podcast, as well as an occasional contributor to other FAI digital content on the subjects of history and geopolitics as they relate to the Great Commission. Gabe and his family live in California.
[1] Seth is derived from the Hebrew word for “placed” or “appointed.”
[2] Adam’s line to Lamech is recounted in Genesis 5:1-25
[3] Genesis 5:24
[4] Jude 14
[5] Matthew 24:30b
[6] Matthew 5:29, Noah derives from the Hebrew word for rest
[7] Genesis 5:4, the number of Adam’s children is mentioned by Flavius Josephus as “the old tradition” in his work Antiquities of the Jews, Book I, Chapter 2, footnote for paragraph 3
[8] Genesis 6:1-2,4
[9] Proponents of the view that the “sons of God” are human descendants of Seth co-mingling with wicked daughters of Cain will often proof-text Matthew 22:30 in support of this interpretation. However, Jesus was referring to “angels in heaven” who don’t marry or pro-create, and Genesis 6:1-4 is obviously referring to fallen beings engaging in aberrant behavior. For more on this topic, read The Unseen Realm by Dr. Michael Heiser, Lexham Press, 2015.
[10] The Book of Job uses the phrase “sons of God” three times in obvious reference to angelic/divine beings. The Ugaritic and Septuagint translations of the Hebrew Bible render the phrase using words for divine beings as well. All ancient sources between the third century BC and the second century AD interpret the “sons of God” as angelic beings.
[11] Genesis 6:5, 11-12
[12] Genesis 6:3,13-14a
[13] Genesis 6:9, 2 Peter 2:5
[14] Hebrews 11:7
[15] Genesis 6:22
[16] 1 Peter 3:20
[17] Genesis 7:11-12
[18] 2 Peter 3:9
[19] Isaiah 46:8-10
[20] Psalm 1:6
[21] Genesis 8:21
[22] Genesis 8:20
[23] Genesis 9:8-9
[24] Genesis 9:21-22
[25] Genesis 9:24-25
[26] Numbers 13:33
[27] Matthew 24:37