Monday, April 12, 2021

Genesis 4 Devotional Bible Study by Steve Wilson

Genesis 4


Adam[a] made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.[b] She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth[c] a man.” Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.

 

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

 

Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”

 

Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”[d] While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.

 

Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”

 

“I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

 

10 The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. 11 Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.”

 

13 Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is more than I can bear. 14 Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.”

 

15 But the Lord said to him, “Not so[e]; anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. 16 So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence and lived in the land of Nod,[f] east of Eden.

 

17 Cain made love to his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch. 18 To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.

 

19 Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. 21 His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments and pipes. 22 Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of[g] bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.

 

23 Lamech said to his wives,

 

“Adah and Zillah, listen to me;
    wives of Lamech, hear my words.
I have killed a man for wounding me,
    a young man for injuring me.
24 If Cain is avenged seven times,
    then Lamech seventy-seven times.”

 

25 Adam made love to his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth,[h] saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.” 26 Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.

 

At that time people began to call on[i] the name of the Lord.

 

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 4:1 Or The man
  2. Genesis 4:1 Cain sounds like the Hebrew for brought forth or acquired.
  3. Genesis 4:1 Or have acquired
  4. Genesis 4:8 Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Masoretic Text does not have “Let’s go out to the field.”
  5. Genesis 4:15 Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew Very well
  6. Genesis 4:16 Nod means wandering (see verses 12 and 14).
  7. Genesis 4:22 Or who instructed all who work in
  8. Genesis 4:25 Seth probably means granted.
  9. Genesis 4:26 Or to proclaim

 

 

Giving God Our Best

Genesis 4:2-5

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord.And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering,but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

 

Why did God look with favor on Abel's offering but not Cain's? 

 

The Scripture says Abel brought his offering from the firstborn of his flock, indicating he brought the best of what he had. Cain only brought "some" of the produce he had grown, and probably not the best of his crop.

 

When are you tempted to not give God your best in life?

 

What makes you want to give God your best?

 


Notice that Abel was perfectly happy when he gave his best to God. Cain, on the other hand, was angry, depressed, and prone to commit more sin. One sin leads to another. This shows us the difference in attitude between someone who is serving God with their whole heart and someone who isn't. When you serve God, you're happy. When you don't, you're not. Which would you rather have, God's approval and joy in your life or God's disapproval and inner turmoil?

 

Commit today, and every day, to giving God your best in all things, and know that He will smile upon you.

 

 

“Then the Lord Said to Cain…”

Genesis 4:6-7

Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”

 

God comes to Cain and warns him. How gracious is it of God to reach out to us when we were the ones who did wrong!

 


How does God warn you?

 

God often speaks through our conscience, Scripture, circumstances, other people, and His Spirit speaking to our spirit. Are you looking for those warning signs? Are you sensitive to God's movement in your life?

 

Unfortunately, Cain didn't heed God's warning and ended up regretting it. Let's not follow his example, but let us pay attention to God's warnings and thank Him for them.

 

 

The Mark of Cain

Genesis 4:13-15

Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is more than I can bear.14 Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.”

 

15 But the Lord said to him, “Not so; anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him.

 

God punishes Cain for what he's done, but he also disallows anyone else from taking revenge on Cain. The mark of Cain is a call for others to forgive Cain rather than perpetuate the cycle of sin he created. God always interrupts sin with grace and forgiveness.

 


What cycle of sin is God wanting to interrupt in your life? Who has hurt you? Who do you need to forgive? Imagine them having the mark of Cain not as a sign of their sin but as God's call for you to forgive them.

 

 

Went Out from the Lord’s Presence

Genesis 4:13-16

Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is more than I can bear.14 Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.”

 

15 But the Lord said to him, “Not so; anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. 16 So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden.

 

Cain committed sin and was exiled from God's Presence. Have you felt as though you had been separated from God, as if His Spirit was no longer in communion with your spirit because of some sin you had committed? What restored your relationship with God?

 

It nowhere says that Cain repented, only that he feared his punishment. Sin separates us from God. If we continue in our sin, God will not be present in our lives. God hates sin and refuses to be around it. He will continue to reach out to us from time to time but will not be an abiding Presence with us unless we repent. 

 

Eventually, if we continue in our sin until death, we will be exiled from God's Presence, just as Cain was. With God is comfort, joy, peace, and love. Without Him is emptiness and despair. Let us not trade our fleeting sin for the continual joyful experience of having God's Presence with us in life, and in death.

 




The Value of the Non-Christian

Genesis 4:19-22

Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah.20 Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. 21 His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments and pipes. 22 Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.

 

In the latter part of Genesis 4, we are given a snapshot of Cain's descendants. Though we cannot know for sure, because they are Cain's descendants, we are probably meant to assume this family line does not acknowledge God in the same way that his younger brother Seth's family will.

 

Notice though that not everything the Scripture says about Cain's line is negative. In verses 19-22, it enumerates some of the many accomplishments and societal advancements Cain's line contributed to the world. From nomadic shepherding to music-making to metallurgy, Cain's descendants certainly made some important discoveries.

 

And yet, Seth's line would probably still regard their Cainite relatives negatively because of Cain's family's godlessness.

 


How do you feel about your relatives who are non-Christians?

 

It's often difficult (and rightly so) for a Christian to respect the life choices or perspectives of a non-Christian. We simply don't see things the same way, and we want more than anything for that family member to understand the truth that we do.

 

At the same time, we know we cannot keep "hounding" our non-believing family members to accept Christ when they're not ready to do so, or else we will only make them resent our religion and push them further away from it.

 

So, what do we do?

 

We keep praying for them and sensitively bringing up the topic of God when it seems the time might be right. We keep living as a godly example. But the hard truth is that some people will never acknowledge God in this life.

 

So, as Christians, rather than allowing our religious views to separate us from our non-Christian family members, we should embrace them all the more. We will not have them with us in Heaven like we will have our fellow Christian brothers and sisters. Our time with them might be short. Enjoy it while you can, and acknowledge and focus on the good that they do, just as Genesis 4 highlights the good of Cain's line.

 

 

Seventy-Seven Times

Genesis 4:23-24

Lamech said to his wives, “Adah and Zillah, listen to me; wives of Lamech, hear my words. I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for injuring me. 24 If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.”

 

In verses 23-24, Lamech, one of Cain's descendants, boasts about the vengeance he has taken on another man who hurt him in a fight. He refers to the fact that Cain was to be avenged seven times if someone killed him and then makes himself greater than Cain by saying that he has, and will, take vengeance seventy-seven times.

 

Lamech lashed out in anger against someone who hurt him physically. Putting this in the more common application, how do you react when someone hurts you emotionally? 

 

It's interesting how Jesus contrasted this seventy-seven times' vengeance taken by Lamech. In Matthew 18:21-22, Peter asks if it is enough to forgive someone who sins against him seven times. Jesus tells him to forgive seventy-seven times.

 


As Christians, we know that people will sin against us and hurt us, but our command is to forgive them, not to seek vengeance or to harbor resentment. 

 

Notice that in Genesis 4:15, it says Cain will be avenged, but not that Cain was to take vengeance himself as Lamech did. If there is a punishment to be dealt, God will take care of it, not us. As Romans 12:19 says, "Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord."

 

 

“God Has Granted Me Another”

Genesis 4:25

Adam made love to his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.”

 


Eve acknowledges that God has given her Seth as a replacement for Abel. Whereas we wouldn't think of people as being replaceable, the grace of this statement is that God does see our hardships in life and works to turn them around.

 

When has God turned your hardships around?

 

God always knows what we're going through and will work to bless us again. Have hope that He is the God who grants "another." Another season of hope. Another season of joy. Another season of prosperity. God is not working for our good in the afterlife only, but also in this life.

 

Do you have another insight into Genesis 4? Please share below!

 


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