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Genesis 4:1-16
New Living Translation
Genesis 4:1-16
New Living Translation
Cain and Abel
4 Now Adam[a] had sexual relations with his wife, Eve, and she became pregnant. When she gave birth to Cain, she said, “With the Lord’s help, I have produced[b] a man!” 2 Later she gave birth to his brother and named him Abel.
When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground. 3 When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the Lord. 4 Abel also brought a gift—the best portions of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The Lord accepted Abel and his gift, 5 but he did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and he looked dejected.
6 “Why are you so angry?” the Lord asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? 7 You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.”
8 One day Cain suggested to his brother, “Let’s go out into the fields.”[c] And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother, Abel, and killed him.
9 Afterward the Lord asked Cain, “Where is your brother? Where is Abel?”
“I don’t know,” Cain responded. “Am I my brother’s guardian?”
10 But the Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground! 11 Now you are cursed and banished from the ground, which has swallowed your brother’s blood. 12 No longer will the ground yield good crops for you, no matter how hard you work! From now on you will be a homeless wanderer on the earth.”
13 Cain replied to the Lord, “My punishment[d] is too great for me to bear! 14 You have banished me from the land and from your presence; you have made me a homeless wanderer. Anyone who finds me will kill me!”
15 The Lord replied, “No, for I will give a sevenfold punishment to anyone who kills you.” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain to warn anyone who might try to kill him. 16 So Cain left the Lord’s presence and settled in the land of Nod,[e] east of Eden.
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Genesis 4:1-16
New King James Version
Genesis 4:1-16
New King James Version
Cain Murders Abel(A)
4 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore [a]Cain, and said, “I have acquired a man from the Lord.” 2 Then she bore again, this time his brother [b]Abel. Now (B)Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3 And [c]in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit (C)of the ground to the Lord. 4 Abel also brought of (D)the firstborn of his flock and of (E)their fat. And the Lord (F)respected Abel and his offering, 5 but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell.
6 So the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is [d]for you, but you should rule over it.”
8 Now Cain [e]talked with Abel his [f]brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and (G)killed him.
9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?”
He said, (H)“I do not know. Am I (I)my brother’s keeper?”
10 And He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood (J)cries out to Me from the ground. 11 So now (K)you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth.”
13 And Cain said to the Lord, “My [g]punishment is greater than I can bear! 14 Surely You have driven me out this day from the face of the ground; (L)I shall be (M)hidden from Your face; I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth, and it will happen that (N)anyone who finds me will kill me.”
15 And the Lord said to him, [h]“Therefore, whoever kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him (O)sevenfold.” And the Lord set a (P)mark on Cain, lest anyone finding him should kill him.
The Family of Cain
16 Then Cain (Q)went out from the (R)presence of the Lord and dwelt in the land of [i]Nod on the east of Eden.
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- Genesis 4:1 Lit. Acquire
- Genesis 4:2 Lit. Breath or Nothing
- Genesis 4:3 Lit. at the end of days
- Genesis 4:7 Lit. toward
- Genesis 4:8 Lit. said to
- Genesis 4:8 Sam., LXX, Syr., Vg. add “Let us go out to the field.”
- Genesis 4:13 iniquity
- Genesis 4:15 So with MT, Tg.; LXX, Syr., Vg. Not so;
- Genesis 4:16 Lit. Wandering
Genesis 4:1-16
Christian Standard Bible
Genesis 4:1-16
Christian Standard Bible
Cain Murders Abel
4 The man was intimate with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain. She said, “I have had a male child with the Lord’s help.”[a] 2 She also gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel became a shepherd of flocks, but Cain worked the ground. 3 In the course of time Cain presented some of the land’s produce as an offering to the Lord.(A) 4 And Abel also presented an offering—some of the firstborn of his flock and their fat portions.(B) The Lord had regard for Abel and his offering,(C) 5 but he did not have regard for Cain and his offering. Cain was furious, and he looked despondent.
6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you furious?(D) And why do you look despondent? 7 If you do what is right, won’t you be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.”(E)
8 Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”[b] And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.(F)
9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”
“I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s guardian?”
10 Then he said, “What have you done? Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground!(G) 11 So now you are cursed, alienated from the ground that opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood you have shed.[c] 12 If you work the ground, it will never again give you its yield. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.”(H)
13 But Cain answered the Lord, “My punishment[d] is too great to bear! 14 Since you are banishing me today from the face of the earth, and I must hide from your presence and become a restless wanderer on the earth, whoever finds me will kill me.”(I)
15 Then the Lord replied to him, “In that case,[e] whoever kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.” And he placed a mark(J) on Cain so that whoever found him would not kill him. 16 Then Cain went out from the Lord’s presence and lived in the land of Nod,[f] east of Eden.
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Genesis 4:1-16
New International Version
Genesis 4:1-16
New International Version
Cain and Abel
4 Adam[a] made love to his wife(A) Eve,(B) and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.[b](C) She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth[c] a man.” 2 Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.(D)
Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil.(E) 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering(F) to the Lord.(G) 4 And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions(H) from some of the firstborn of his flock.(I) The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering,(J) 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry?(K) Why is your face downcast? 7 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;(L) it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.(M)”
8 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.(N)
9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”(O)
“I don’t know,(P)” 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.(Q) 11 Now you are under a curse(R) 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.(S) You will be a restless wanderer(T) on the earth.(U)”
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;(V) I will be a restless wanderer on the earth,(W) and whoever finds me will kill me.”(X)
15 But the Lord said to him, “Not so[e]; anyone who kills Cain(Y) will suffer vengeance(Z) seven times over.(AA)” 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(AB) and lived in the land of Nod,[f] east of Eden.(AC)
Footnotes
- Genesis 4:1 Or The man
- Genesis 4:1 Cain sounds like the Hebrew for brought forth or acquired.
- Genesis 4:1 Or have acquired
- Genesis 4:8 Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Masoretic Text does not have “Let’s go out to the field.”
- Genesis 4:15 Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew Very well
- Genesis 4:16 Nod means wandering (see verses 12 and 14).
Genesis 4:1-16
The Message
Genesis 4:1-16
The Message
4 Adam slept with Eve his wife. She conceived and had Cain. She said, “I’ve gotten a man, with God’s help!”
2 Then she had another baby, Abel. Abel was a herdsman and Cain a farmer.
3-5 Time passed. Cain brought an offering to God from the produce of his farm. Abel also brought an offering, but from the firstborn animals of his herd, choice cuts of meat. God liked Abel and his offering, but Cain and his offering didn’t get his approval. Cain lost his temper and went into a sulk.
6-7 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.”
8 Cain had words with his brother. They were out in the field; Cain came at Abel his brother and killed him.
9 God said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?”
He said, “How should I know? Am I his babysitter?”
10-12 God said, “What have you done! The voice of your brother’s blood is calling to me from the ground. From now on you’ll get nothing but curses from this ground; you’ll be driven from this ground that has opened its arms to receive the blood of your murdered brother. You’ll farm this ground, but it will no longer give you its best. You’ll be a homeless wanderer on Earth.”
13-14 Cain said to God, “My punishment is too much. I can’t take it! You’ve thrown me off the land and I can never again face you. I’m a homeless wanderer on Earth and whoever finds me will kill me.”
15 God told him, “No. Anyone who kills Cain will pay for it seven times over.” God put a mark on Cain to protect him so that no one who met him would kill him.
16 Cain left the presence of God and lived in No-Man’s-Land, east of Eden.
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New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson