Hi Lyndon,

Here is Young's rendering of those verses. I think it helps to show that when God did not accept Cain's offering, it was much more of a big deal to Cain than it was to God, and all the fault was on Cain's side for not being willing to receive correction from Him. God even warned Cain that if he didn't do better, sin was waiting to leap on him.

I think the Young's use of the phrase 'sin-offering' is interesting, in that it may be Abel offered his best, partly in acknowledgement of an awareness of personal sin. Abel set out to please God in the first place.

Then we see that even when Cain [i]knows[/i] he hasn't 'pleased' God, he is [u]un[/u]willing to put things right. If this was the case with his opportunity to maintain a peace with God over that single instance and other sins, then what was he like the rest of the year?

(Young) Genesis 4
1 And the man knew Eve his wife, and she conceiveth and beareth Cain, and saith, `I have gotten a man by Jehovah;'

2 and she addeth to bear his brother, even Abel. And Abel is feeding a flock, and Cain hath been servant of the ground.

3 And it cometh to pass at the end of days that Cain bringeth from the fruit of the ground a present to Jehovah;

4 and Abel, he hath brought, he also, from the female firstlings of his flock, even from their fat ones; and Jehovah looketh unto Abel and unto his present,

5 and unto Cain and unto his present He hath not looked; and it is very displeasing to Cain, and his countenance is fallen.

6 And Jehovah saith unto Cain, `Why hast thou displeasure? and why hath thy countenance fallen?

7 Is there not, if thou dost well, acceptance? and if thou dost not well, at the opening a sin-offering is crouching, and unto thee its desire, and thou rulest over it.'


I think this last phrase 'and thou rulest over it' shows clearly that Cain did not have to settle for his offering having not been acceptable to God. He could have taken the offensive and made another, better offering.

Genesis 4:7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

Since Able was the younger, and if Cain would do what is right, Able would be in submission unto Cain. It would also be Able's desire to do so, since God already new Able's heart by his sacrifice. This was also said so Cain could in his own heart realize that God was still for Cain, and all would be well if Cain would would do well and not get hot tempered by what he was already feeling about the whole thing being Able's fault.

Cain went to talk to Able with none of the desire in his heart to do what God said, Cain went with the things that he had already seen and had been warned him about. Genesis 4:6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? Cain went to Able, jealous and burning in anger. (wroth) Cain's face had been set like flint and he was going to overthrow and overwhelm what he believed, his countenance set against what his brother Able had done to him. The same lie to all who blame others, surly God knows you will be just like Him and you can make your own decisions and take things into your own hands.

Genesis 4:8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

Cain charged and challenged his brother with these deceptive wrong feelings not coming from God, which God had already given, Cain used in his heart the deceptive feelings that were being enraged and burned into his own feelings and disregarding God completely, just like his father had fallen to the lie.

Cain continued and endured the lie of the enemy of his soul and killed his brother.
This is a picture of what man is and what he would always be, killing and blaming his innocent brother because of his own evil thoughts and his own evil heart which is the heart of Satan who was his spiritual father chosen by his own father Adam. A perfect picture of even the first son of Adam and Eve, what happened when they disobeyed God and ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

The only thing related to the shedding of Blood is the crying out from the ground to God the innocent blood that was shed, the same blood that cries out to God now, that is the Blood shed at the bottom of the Cross on the last altar, the earth that Christ died for to cleanse the sin of the world. All we have to do is believe it.

No juvenile pleading of the blood here, but the true heart of God being presented in the further revelation of what Jesus Christ would do when God, choosing the fullness of time to give Him Birth through His own Seed placed in Mary by the Holy Spirit, that we might have Him in our believing the Jesus is the Son, that we would be born again unto a new Life Spirit, Jesus Christ with Satan defeated and cast out and Christ birthed in us.

In Christ: Phillip

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Phillip

Most Christians today have no understanding of the sacrifices that took place in the Old Testament, and in the purpose for them. We all study the New Testament, and leave the Old Testament alone. There are nuggets of gold found in the Old Testament. Like the saying goes: "The Old Testament is the New Testament concealed, and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed". The problem is, unless we study (not read) the Old, as well as the New, we cannot see the beauty of God's sacrificial system that was set up in the Old Testament in "type", and "fulfilled" in the New Testament with the actual "blood sacrifice" of His Son on Calvary.

There is only one sacrifice in the sacrificial system set up by God at Mt. Sinai that provides for the SKIN OF THE ANIMAL to be given to the PRIEST for his personal use.

In all of the sacrifices that occur in the Old Testament, PRIOR to the sacrificial system set up by God in Leviticus, ALL are referred to as “burnt offerings”. See Noah 8:20; Job 1:5; 42:8

The complete understanding of the Burnt Offering can be found in Leviticus chapter 1 (all of chapter 1); Leviticus 6:8-13; Leviticus 8:18-28. Reference to the allocation of the skin of the sacrifice to the priest is found in Leviticus 7:8

The Burnt offering represents complete surrender unto God, and represents the person of Christ. The entire sacrifice was burned to ashes upon the altar and portrays our Lord's perfect submission to the Father. He was obedient unto death. The sacrifice was always an unblemished male firstborn Bull, Lamb, goat, dove or pigeon—representing the final sacrifice of Jesus Christ as our unblemished, perfect first born sacrifice. His blood was sprinkled on the altar and he was cut in pieces and wholly burned. The skin was given to the Priest.

The Burnt offering was a "Voluntary" sacrifice. Those that gave this sacrifice wanted a deeper, more personal walk with God. The Husband (father) would bring the sacrifice to the Tabernacle and bring it up to the altar. He would lay his hands on the head of the animal, to become one with the animal, thus symbolically transferring his sin and that of his family as well, into the substitute, and would then slit the animals throat. The Priest would then put the blood on the altar. The sinner would cut the animal up into small pieces, and the Priest would place them on the altar to burn to ashes. The Priest was allowed to keep the skin (Lev 7:8)

Before Leviticus, the husband was the "Family Priest", and until the Jewish sacrificial system was established by God in Leviticus that established a formal "Priesthood", the husband WAS THE PRIEST. All of the early sacrifices mentioned in the Genesis & Job were BURNT OFFERINGS (Check out Noah, and Job). Until the time that God formally set up the sacrificial system, the husband assumed all of the duties of "Priest".

Hence, when Adam & Eve received the skin of the animals, we can see that this was the point
in time where God showed them WHAT HE REQUIRED OF THEM. The fact that God gave them animal skins to wear should reveal to us that the skins were part of the BURNT OFFERING, that HE required to “cover” sin until Messiah.

When we see in Genesis 4:4 that Abel brought the firstlings (first born) of his flock, AND THE FAT THEREOF as an OFFERING.

“4. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering:”

If we understand our Old Testament, and the sacrifices demanded by God in Leviticus, we can see that God always considers "THE FAT" part of the offering to be a “SWEET SAVOR” to the Lord. GOD'S PORTION in ALL of the sacrifices is the “FAT OF THE INNER PARTS, KIDNEYS & LIVER”. This part was always placed on the altar and burned to ashes, and was ALWAYS GOD'S PORTION.

Therefore, since Abel brought the firstborn and the fat as a sacrifice, we know that he can only be OFFERING A BURNT OFFERING since this is the only sacrifice where the animal, as well as the fat were offered on the altar!

In the Burnt offering, the entire animal, including the fat, was burned to ashes, and thus the entire animal, other than the skin, was offered to God.

By this understanding we can clearly see that God had prophesized to Adam and Eve in the Garden about a coming redeemer. We can see that God provided (gave to) Adam and Eve skins to cover themselves. These skins were the result of the burnt offering that God instructed them to perform.

We can see from Genesis 4 that Abel believed his parents when they told him of their encounter with God in the Garden, and in the fall of mankind, and what was required of all believers. Cain did not believe God, and cared not about what was required. The New Testament gives us more understanding of the sacrifice Abel made to God, in comparison to that of Cain.

[Hebrews 11:4]
“4. By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent [b][color=990000]SACRIFICE[/color][/b] than Cain, by which he OBTAINED WITNESS THAT HE WAS RIGHTEOUS, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.”

Strongs tells us that the meaning of the word sacrifice, as found here in the New Testament means [b][color=990000]BLOOD SACRIFICE:

Strong's Number: 2378
Transliterated: thusia
Phonetic: thoo-see'-ah

Text: from 2380; sacrifice (the act or the victim, literally or figuratively): --sacrifice. [/color][/b]


This tells us that Abel was judged to be “righteous” by God because of his “BLOOD SACRIFICE, HIS BURNT OFFERING”.

The New Testament further tells us that Cain was of the wicked one, but Abel was considered righteous before God because of the sacrifice that he offered. This tells me that Abel believed God, and Cain believed in himself. Abel was looking to Messiah as the author and finisher of his faith, while Cain was looking to himself. Cain, like Sinatra, did it his way, and not God’s way. [ I can picture in my mind Cain offering his vegetables on the altar to the Lord as being an abomination to Him (the Lord)]

[1 John 3:12]
“12. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous.”

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Cains "works" referred to here is the sacrifice that he made---a sacrifice of the fruit of the ground. God required a blood sacrifice, a burnt offering. "Without the shedding of blood is no remission of sin."

Abels "works" were considered "righteous" before the Lord. Abels sacrifice WAS A [b][color=990000]BLOOD SACRIFICE= A BURNT OFFERING[/color][/b]. Based upon the fact that he offered the FIRSTBORN AND THE FAT, we can see that it was a BURNT OFFERING! Cains "sacrifice" was "the fruit of the ground."

"there is no remission without the shedding of blood!"


God bless,

Stever :-D

P.S.
[b][color=990000]The New Testament tells us that the offering involved a VICTIM:

Strong's Number: 2378
Transliterated: thusia
Phonetic: thoo-see'-ah

Text: from 2380; sacrifice (the act or the VICTIM, literally or figuratively): --sacrifice. [/color][/b]

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Ron Bailey

Stevers'

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Ron Bailey

Hi Ron,

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Robert Wurtz II

Quoting from EW Bullinger:

With Cain, the LORD at once put the matter on its true ground "If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?" ( Gen. iv.7). This is rendered in the Septuagint Translation "if thou offer correctly."

This is what it means. " If Cain offered correctly;" i.e. what God had told him, he would have done "well", and his offering would have been accepted.

There was 'no difference" between the two men. All the difference lay in their offerings, which proved that the one believed God, and that the other did not.

Abel did "well" because he believed, and hence, obeyed God. Cain did "not well;" because he did not offer correctly, though a sin-offering lay at the door ready to his hand. (End EWB's Quote)

Like RobertW said, "Cain did not do what he knew". [i]He did his own thing,[/i] so to speak?

mml

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Robert Wurtz II