Men in the Bible: Cain and the First Lie Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s…
Men in the Bible: The First Liar
Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” – Genesis 4:9
Cain set another undesirable record by telling the first lie in the annals of history, as recorded in the Holy Bible.
Having lost control of himself, which gave room for all manners of negative emotions, disappointment, bitterness, anger, jealousy and sadness, his resolve became compromised, such that when violence came knocking to be added to the list, he could do nothing to stop it. Thus, resulting in him killing his innocent brother. Having lost it to this point, it was no surprise either that Cain was past recovery and would not stop at anything to save his face.
Therefore, when God asked him about his brother’s whereabouts, he did not think twice before boldly lying, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” With this, he uttered the first lie. With hindsight, one can see how silly this must have sounded even to his own hearing because he was actually talking to the omniscient God.
The interesting thing is that his parents, Adam and Eve, even in their mistake, did not lie to God when He called them out. They only confessed they were in hiding because they were naked and afraid of what God might do to them. But this was not the case with Cain, his lack of self-control had weakened whatever noble resolve he still had left in him, and only the base part was in active play at this point. That was why he had no gumption in committing a murder in the first place, killing his own brother to boot, and then lying about his whereabouts when asked.
This sequence of events happened just like God had warned him when the whole attitude issue started:
God spoke to Cain: “Why this tantrum? Why the sulking? If you do well, won’t you be accepted? And if you don’t do well, sin is lying in wait for you, ready to pounce; it’s out to get you, you’ve got to master it.” – Genesis 4:6-7 (The Message)
By not heeding this golden warning to nip the negativity in the bud, Cain allowed it to fester until he became the willing domain for all kinds of social vices.
Men in the Bible: Cain – The Profile of A Fratricide Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that…
Men in the Bible: Cain – The Profile of A Fratricide
Now 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 killed him. – Genesis 4:8
We are still exploring the character of Cain, the son of Adam and Eve. This term, we will be shining the spotlight on him as the first murderer and fratricide in recorded history, as seen in the Holy Bible.
Our meditation will not be on the details of his heinous act per se. Rather, we will try to explore the inner workings of his mind as they culminated into him deciding that taking someone else’s life was the best solution to calm his frayed nerves, something that no other person had done until then.
So, what could have led to Cain succumbing to the emotion that drove him to the edge? Let us examine some of the profiles below:
He was not rigorous
One of our early introductions to the person of Cain was when he was to offer a sacrifice to God. While we do not know the details of the sacrifice he offered, we know that he offered from his livestock, since he was a shepherd. We can also infer from the developments that followed the offering that Cain did not offer the same kind of quality sacrifice that his brother offered to God, and that was why he was rejected.
Now, how he picked which livestock he would offer to God betrayed that he was neither painstaking nor rigorous in his ways, and that would explain why he did not choose the choice ones among his animals as sacrifice to God.
This carefreeness on his part also betrayed a character flaw that later culminated in him committing a fratricide. Because he was not deliberate or painstaking in doing things, he also lacked the moral fortitude to control his emotions and deal with the anger and sorrow that were welling up in his heart.
Men in the Bible: Adam – A Man of Understanding And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of…
Men in the Bible: Adam – A Man of Understanding
And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said: “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman because she was taken out of Man.” – Genesis 2:21-23
Another attribute of Adam was understanding. Despite being a lonely figure with no forbear for him to study or a mate for him to hobnob, he was nonetheless enamored with mental acumen that helped him to make a sense of his world.
We read yesterday how intelligence helped him to appraise and name all other creatures in accordance with his assessment of their nature and characteristics. We also established how his verdict was so accurate that neither God nor any of the creatures he named contested the names he assigned. Today, we will be exploring another mental acuity that he displayed, which is understanding.
Having been presented with hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of creatures to name, Adam found no connection with any of them. But when the last creature that God brought for him to name was presented before him, he had his “Aha’ moment. He knew this was it.
“This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh!” He exclaimed. Note the emphasis on the word “now”. That confirms that he had mentally eliminated all the other creatures that were brought to him as potential partner. it also affirms our earlier note that he had to refuse God by not choosing any of those creatures as his mate.
However, immediately he saw this latest creature, he did not hesitate to identify her as one more closely associated with him than the other creatures he had seen (‘bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh’) and in labeling her in association with himself (‘she shall be called Woman because she was taken out of Man’). That is understanding at work.
Understanding helped Adam to both describe the nature of the woman and her unique identity. Another word for understanding is insight. While knowledge is common, as anyone can acquire knowledge by reading, listening, or being exposed to useful information; understanding is not so commonplace. It is a step higher than the realm of knowledge. But that does not mean it is not attainable for anyone who desires it. You just need to be more attentive to develop understanding and grow in it.
Thankfully, the first man had great understanding, and we all share the same DNA with him. Therefore, this presupposes that we also have the potential to develop understanding beyond the basic level.
Men in the Bible: Adam – A Man of Intelligence and Wisdom
Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. – Genesis 2:19-20
Another admirable trait about Adam was intelligence. He was an intelligent man. From our reference passage, God brought all the creatures He had made to Adam to see what he would call them, and Adam did not disappoint. He named every one of them without leaving any without an identity. That was intelligence.
As easy as it may seem to name something, it is noteworthy that apart from the ones done by God hitherto, this was the first naming exercise in the Bible or recorded history. No one apart from God had attempted to name anything or anyone before Adam. So it was a novelty for him.
Also, apart from the newness of it all, he must have spent a great deal of time observing and analyzing each of the creatures God led to him before he could name them based on his assessment of their idiosyncrasies. Now, imagine how many creatures he named. They must be hundreds of thousands, if not millions of them. Imagine what each of them must have looked like when they were brought to him, the big, the tiny, the monstrous looking, the benign, the flat, the rotund, the straight, the bent, and so on. All for him alone to name as he saw them to be.
The good news is that Adam obviously got all the names right as the Bible did not tell us that God disputed with him about any of the names he gave. It is also remarkable that none of the creatures he named contested the name he gave them, as they could have done at that time. Rather, both God and the creatures agreed with him. So, whatever Adam called anyone stayed.
While the process of nomenclature is loosely done in our present days, particularly among people with little understanding of the implications of names, and in parts of the world where there is little appreciation of cultural identity. It is important to note that a name should never be a random affair. It is something that must be done with intentionality and understanding because everything is in a name. A name can define the identity, the attributes, the personality, the destiny, the path, and the destination of so named.
Adam obviously knew this, and he must have taken time to carefully study every creature before him to see how they were, what they looked like, what they could be and the role they would play in this hemisphere before labelling them. it takes intelligence to do this. The fact that he also evaluated all these creatures and did not identify any of them that could partner with him even when he was in dire need of one at the time was another indication of intelligence.
Knowing how important a name can be, what are you going to do differently with the way you name henceforth?
Men in the Bible: Cain – The Man that God Did Not Respect And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the…
Men in the Bible: Cain – The Man that God Did Not Respect
And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord… And the Lord…did not respect Cain and his offering. – Genesis 4:3-5
Another man in the Bible that we will consider today is Cain, the firstborn of Adam and Eve. Cain was a farmer, a tiller of the ground, while his brother Abel was a shepherd.
At some point, Cain and Abel decided to present an offering to God from their produce. But while God accepted the offering of the younger Abel, there was a poignant twist to the sacrifice of Cain, as the Bible records that God neither respected him nor his offering.
This is a heartbreaking development for anyone. Imagine making so much fuss about offering a sacrifice to God, with all the ceremonies of picking and preparing the offerings, only to get to the place of worship and receive a verdict of “not accepted” from God. May that not be your portion in Jesus Name.
But then, what could be the reasons Abel’s offering was accepted by God, whereas Cain had both his person and his sacrifice rejected? While there have been many submissions on what might be responsible, the Bible does not expressly provide a detailed background on what led to what. However, there is a reason to draw a strong inference from the events leading to that point to help us know why Abel was accepted and Cain was rejected.
Another lesson we can learn from God is His disposition to a balancing act. He is not a God of extremes. Even though some who profess to follow Him go to extremes in His name or make extreme claims on His behalf, extreme is not a label that one can pin on God. He balances the acts.
Understanding God: He is Not Moved by Sentiments
Another lesson we can learn from the personality of God is that sentiments do not move Him. Therefore, He cannot be deceived into making a wrong judgment or call, as humans tend to do.
Understanding God: He is A Creator
He is a Creator. This is not to be interpreted loosely, particularly in the light of our contemporary use of the word. God is the ultimate Creator, as He created all things, even the ends of the earth (Isaiah 40:28).
Understanding God: God of the Beginning
There is no better way to begin this journey of exploring the people and entities in the Bible than to start with God. He is not just the beginning but is the origin of all things.
Women in the Bible: A Paragon of Beauty
What made Sarah’s beauty so compelling that kings and nations took notice? Explore the deeper layers of grace, favour, and mystery surrounding one of Scripture’s most unforgettable women — and discover why her story still provokes wonder today.
Men in the Bible: A Man of Ambition and Adventure
Terah may not have reached Canaan, but his courage to start a life-changing journey laid the foundation for Abraham’s destiny. Discover how ambition and bold steps mark a life of significance.
Men in the Bible: An Impetuous and Impudent Man
A revealing glimpse into a man whose choices exposed deeper issues of character, showing how hastiness and entitlement can quietly shape a destiny, and why his story still speaks to us today.
Men in the Bible: A Man with Little Foresight
Sometimes what looks like a smart choice can hide the seed of a mistake. This reflection from Scripture invites us to think again about how foresight — or the lack of it — shapes a man’s story.
Men in the Bible: The First Man to Tithe
Before laws, temples, or traditions, one man honoured God with his substance. Abraham’s tithe was not commanded, demanded, or enforced. It flowed from reverence.
Fathers in the Bible: A Destiny-Shaping Father
What makes a man a truly aware father? Discover how one man’s prophetic foresight shaped his son’s destiny and changed generations forever.
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