Adam slept with Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She was amazed, she was able to produce life just like the Lord had done. She named her son Cain and thanked the Lord for giving her a son. She then had another son, Abel.
When the two boys became adults, they chose different occupations. Abel became a herdsman and Cain a farmer. They both brought an offering to the Lord. Cain merely fulfilled an obligation by bringing some of his harvest, but Abel did his best to honour the Lord, bringing some of the best animals from his herd. God approved of Abel’s offering, but not Cain’s. This made Cain furious. He was red hot with anger.
The Lord tried to warn Cain. He told him his uncontrolled rage would lead to violence. Cain refused to listen He tricked his brother by inviting him into one of his fields, and then he killed him.
The Lord knew what Cain had done but asked him a rhetorical question, “Where is your brother, Abel?” Cain defiantly lied and said he didn’t know. He then expressed his contempt for the Lord with his own rhetorical question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
The Lord told Cain there was an eyewitness to his crime. It was his brother’s blood, crying out from the ground. Because of Cain’s heinous murder of his own brother, the Lord banished him from the ground he had cultivated for his livelihood. Realising he could not survive as a homeless wanderer. Cain was desperate. He complained that his punishment was more than he could endure. Someone would undoubtedly kill him if he was a homeless wanderer. The Lord understood and assured Cain of special protection. Cain was satisfied, but he refused to stay in the presence of the Lord. He went east and lived in the land of Nod (which means ‘land of wandering’)
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