11 And now art thou cursed H779 from the earth, H127 which hath opened H6475 her mouth H6310 to receive H3947 thy brother's H251 blood H1818 from thy hand; H3027
For G1063 as many as G3745 are G1526 of G1537 the works G2041 of the law G3551 are G1526 under G5259 the curse: G2671 for G1063 it is written, G1125 Cursed G1944 is every one G3956 that G3739 continueth G1696 not G3756 in G1722 all things G3956 which G3588 are written G1125 in G1722 the book G975 of the law G3551 to do G4160 them. G846
And the LORD H3068 God H430 said H559 unto the serpent, H5175 Because thou H859 hast done H6213 this, thou art cursed H779 above all cattle, H929 and above every beast H2416 of the field; H7704 upon thy belly H1512 shalt thou go, H3212 and dust H6083 shalt thou eat H398 all the days H3117 of thy life: H2416
But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken H8085 unto the voice H6963 of the LORD H3068 thy God, H430 to observe H8104 to do H6213 all his commandments H4687 and his statutes H2708 which I command H6680 thee this day; H3117 that all these curses H7045 shall come H935 upon thee, and overtake H5381 thee: Cursed H779 shalt thou be in the city, H5892 and cursed H779 shalt thou be in the field. H7704 Cursed H779 shall be thy basket H2935 and thy store. H4863 Cursed H779 shall be the fruit H6529 of thy body, H990 and the fruit H6529 of thy land, H127 the increase H7698 of thy kine, H504 and the flocks H6251 of thy sheep. H6629 Cursed H779 shalt thou be when thou comest in, H935 and cursed H779 shalt thou be when thou goest out. H3318 The LORD H3068 shall send H7971 upon thee cursing, H3994 vexation, H4103 and rebuke, H4045 in all that thou settest H4916 thine hand H3027 unto for to do, H6213 until thou be destroyed, H8045 and until thou perish H6 quickly; H4118 because H6440 of the wickedness H7455 of thy doings, H4611 whereby thou hast forsaken H5800 me.
Behold, thou hast driven me out H1644 this day H3117 from the face H6440 of the earth; H127 and from H5921 thy face H6440 shall I be hid; H5641 and I shall be a fugitive H5128 and a vagabond H5110 in the earth; H776 and it shall come to pass, H1961 that every one that findeth me H4672 shall slay me. H2026
Cursed H779 be he that setteth light H7034 by his father H1 or his mother. H517 And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543 Cursed H779 be he that removeth H5253 his neighbour's H7453 landmark. H1366 And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543 Cursed H779 be he that maketh the blind H5787 to wander H7686 out of the way. H1870 And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543 Cursed H779 be he that perverteth H5186 the judgment H4941 of the stranger, H1616 fatherless, H3490 and widow. H490 And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543 Cursed H779 be he that lieth H7901 with his father's H1 wife; H802 because he uncovereth H1540 his father's H1 skirt. H3671 And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543 Cursed H779 be he that lieth H7901 with any manner of beast. H929 And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543 Cursed H779 be he that lieth H7901 with his sister, H269 the daughter H1323 of his father, H1 or the daughter H1323 of his mother. H517 And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543 Cursed H779 be he that lieth H7901 with his mother in law. H2859 And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543 Cursed H779 be he that smiteth H5221 his neighbour H7453 secretly. H5643 And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543 Cursed H779 be he that taketh H3947 reward H7810 to slay H5221 an innocent H5355 person. H5315 H1818 And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543 Cursed H779 be he that confirmeth H6965 not all the words H1697 of this law H8451 to do H6213 them. And all the people H5971 shall say, H559 Amen. H543
And it come to pass, when he heareth H8085 the words H1697 of this curse, H423 that he bless H1288 himself in his heart, H3824 saying, H559 I shall have peace, H7965 though H3588 I walk H3212 in the imagination H8307 of mine heart, H3820 to add H5595 drunkenness H7302 to thirst: H6771 The LORD H3068 will H14 not spare H5545 him, but then the anger H639 of the LORD H3068 and his jealousy H7068 shall smoke H6225 against that man, H376 and all the curses H423 that are written H3789 in this book H5612 shall lie H7257 upon him, and the LORD H3068 shall blot out H4229 his name H8034 from under heaven. H8064 And the LORD H3068 shall separate H914 him unto evil H7451 out of all the tribes H7626 of Israel, H3478 according to all the curses H423 of the covenant H1285 that are written H3789 in this book H5612 of the law: H8451
O earth, H776 cover H3680 not thou my blood, H1818 and let my cry H2201 have no place. H4725
If my land H127 cry H2199 against me, or that the furrows H8525 likewise H3162 thereof complain; H1058 If I have eaten H398 the fruits H3581 thereof without money, H3701 or have caused the owners H1167 thereof to lose H5301 their life: H5315 Let thistles H2336 grow H3318 instead of wheat, H2406 and cockle H890 instead of barley. H8184 The words H1697 of Job H347 are ended. H8552
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Genesis 4
Commentary on Genesis 4 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 4
Ge 4:1-26. Birth of Cain and Abel.
1. Eve said, I have gotten a man from the Lord—that is, "by the help of the Lord"—an expression of pious gratitude—and she called him Cain, that is, "a possession," as if valued above everything else; while the arrival of another son reminding Eve of the misery she had entailed on her offspring, led to the name Abel, that is, either weakness, vanity (Ps 39:5), or grief, lamentation. Cain and Abel were probably twins; and it is thought that, at this early period, children were born in pairs (Ge 5:4) [Calvin].
2. Abel was a keeper of sheep—literally, "a feeder of a flock," which, in Oriental countries, always includes goats as well as sheep. Abel, though the younger, is mentioned first, probably on account of the pre-eminence of his religious character.
3. in process of time—Hebrew, "at the end of days," probably on the Sabbath.
brought … an offering unto the Lord—Both manifested, by the very act of offering, their faith in the being of God and in His claims to their reverence and worship; and had the kind of offering been left to themselves, what more natural than that the one should bring "of the fruits of the ground," and that the other should bring "of the firstlings of his flock and the fat thereof" [Ge 4:4].
4. the Lord had respect unto Abel, not unto Cain, &c.—The words, "had respect to," signify in Hebrew,—"to look at any thing with a keen earnest glance," which has been translated, "kindle into a fire," so that the divine approval of Abel's offering was shown in its being consumed by fire (see Ge 15:17; Jud 13:20).
7. If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?—A better rendering is, "Shalt thou not have the excellency"? which is the true sense of the words referring to the high privileges and authority belonging to the first-born in patriarchal times.
sin lieth at the door—sin, that is, a sin offering—a common meaning of the word in Scripture (as in Ho 4:8; 2Co 5:21; Heb 9:28). The purport of the divine rebuke to Cain was this, "Why art thou angry, as if unjustly treated? If thou doest well (that is, wert innocent and sinless) a thank offering would have been accepted as a token of thy dependence as a creature. But as thou doest not well (that is, art a sinner), a sin offering is necessary, by bringing which thou wouldest have met with acceptance and retained the honors of thy birthright." This language implies that previous instructions had been given as to the mode of worship; Abel offered through faith (Heb 11:4).
unto thee shall be his desire—The high distinction conferred by priority of birth is described (Ge 27:29); and it was Cain's conviction, that this honor had been withdrawn from him, by the rejection of his sacrifice, and conferred on his younger brother—hence the secret flame of jealousy, which kindled into a settled hatred and fell revenge.
8. And Cain talked with Abel his brother—Under the guise of brotherly familiarity, he concealed his premeditated purpose till a convenient time and place occurred for the murder (1Jo 3:12; Jude 11).
9. I know not—a falsehood. One sin leads to another.
10. the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me—Cain, to lull suspicion, had probably been engaging in the solemnities of religion when he was challenged directly from the Shekinah itself.
11, 12. now art thou cursed from the earth—a curse superadded to the general one denounced on the ground for Adam's sin.
12. a fugitive—condemned to perpetual exile; a degraded outcast; the miserable victim of an accusing conscience.
13, 14. And Cain said … My punishment is greater than I can bear—What an overwhelming sense of misery; but no sign of penitence, nor cry for pardon.
14. every one that findeth me shall slay me—This shows that the population of the world was now considerably increased.
15. whosoever slayeth Cain—By a special act of divine forbearance, the life of Cain was to be spared in the then small state of the human race.
set a mark—not any visible mark or brand on his forehead, but some sign or token of assurance that his life would be preserved. This sign is thought by the best writers to have been a wild ferocity of aspect that rendered him an object of universal horror and avoidance.
16. presence of the Lord—the appointed place of worship at Eden. Leaving it, he not only severed himself from his relatives but forsook the ordinances of religion, probably casting off all fear of God from his eyes so that the last end of this man is worse than the first (Mt 12:45).
land of Nod—of flight or exile—thought by many to have been Arabia-Petræa—which was cursed to sterility on his account.
17-22. builded a city—It has been in cities that the human race has ever made the greatest social progress; and several of Cain's descendants distinguished themselves by their inventive genius in the arts.
19. Lamech took unto him two wives—This is the first transgression of the law of marriage on record, and the practice of polygamy, like all other breaches of God's institutions, has been a fruitful source of corruption and misery.
23, 24. Lamech said unto his wives—This speech is in a poetical form, probably the fragment of an old poem, transmitted to the time of Moses. It seems to indicate that Lamech had slain a man in self-defense, and its drift is to assure his wives, by the preservation of Cain, that an unintentional homicide, as he was, could be in no danger.
26. men began to call upon the name of the Lord—rather, by the name of the Lord. God's people, a name probably applied to them in contempt by the world.