Genesis 4:2 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground.

NIV: Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil.

NASB: And again, she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of flocks, but Cain was a cultivator of the ground.

CSB: She also gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel became a shepherd of flocks, but Cain worked the ground.

NLT: Later she gave birth to his brother and named him Abel. When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground.

KJV: And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

NKJV: Then she bore again, this time his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

After Cain's birth, Adam and Eve conceive again. Abel, Cain's brother, is born. The story jumps forward in time in this verse, leaving quite a few details unanswered. This is normal for the book of Genesis, which often describes major portions of history in just a few summary verses.

Among the unanswered questions of this particular verse is whether or not Adam and Eve had additional children in the meantime. Ancient genealogies often only mention the "important" offspring, so to speak. So, it's likely, but not certain, that Cain and Abel had other siblings prior to their conflict. A major point in favor of this view is Cain's fear of other people in Genesis 4:14, and the mention of his wife in Genesis 4:17. These imply that there were other people alive at the time of his conflict with Abel, meaning other children of Adam and Eve.

That being said, nothing in the text, or the story, requires that there were other siblings, nor does it demand that there were not. This is simply an open point on which Scripture does not provide clear details.

This verse reveals the brothers' professions. Abel keeps sheep. Cain farms, working the ground for crops. Both were respectable and necessary professions among the second generation of pioneering humans.

Genesis 4:1–16 tells the beginning of human history in the wake of Adam's and Eve's sin and separation from God. This passage details the murder of Abel by his older brother Cain, the first son of Adam and Eve. Cain and Abel work the ground and tend sheep. They worship God, but Cain kills Abel in a fit of envy over God's rejection of Cain and his offering. The first human born on earth becomes the first murderer. God forces Cain to leave his family and wander the earth, but God also marks Cain with a promise of great vengeance on anyone who would kill him.

The consequences of sin become apparent in chapter 4: envy, arrogance, rebellion, murder, punishment, separation from family, and separation from God. Adam and Eve's firstborn son, Cain, jealously murders his brother Abel and loses everything. Adam and Eve lose them both. Cain's descendants amplify his sinfulness. Still, God provides help for Eve in childbirth and even provides protection for Cain in his wandering. Eve remains a woman of faith, even in her loss. And the sons of Seth, born after the murder of Abel, become a people who proclaim the name of the Lord.

The first three chapters of Genesis explain the creation and loss of paradise, as Adam and Eve are separated from God both physically and spiritually. Their relationship with Him does not end, however. Eve recognizes His help in bearing her son Cain and later Seth. Cain and Abel both worship God until Cain kills Abel. God provides protection for Cain, whose descendants become innovative, artful, arrogant, and violent. The descendants of Seth, however, begin to call on the Lord's name. This chapter bridges the story of Genesis from our ultimate origins to the story of Noah, introduced in the next chapter.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.