Genesis 4
1599 Geneva Bible
4 1 The generation of mankind. 3 Cain and Abel offer sacrifice. 8 Cain killeth Abel. 23 Lamech a tyrant encourageth his fearful wives. 26 True religion is restored.
1 Afterward the man knew Eve his wife which [a]conceived and bare Cain, and said, I have obtained a man [b]by the Lord.
2 And again she brought forth his brother Abel, and Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain was a tiller of the ground.
3 ¶ And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought an [c]oblation unto the Lord of the fruit of the ground.
4 And Abel also himself brought of the firstfruits of his sheep, and of the fat of them, and the Lord had respect unto (A)Abel, and to his offering,
5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had no [d]regard: wherefore Cain was exceedingly wroth and his countenance fell down.
6 Then the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance cast down?
7 If thou do well, shalt thou not be [e]accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the [f]door: also unto thee his [g]desire shall be subject, and thou shalt rule over him.
8 ¶ Then Cain spake unto Abel his brother. And (B)when they were in the field, Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
9 Then the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? Who answered, I cannot tell. [h]Am I my brother’s keeper?
10 Again he said, What hast thou done? the [i]voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me, from the earth.
11 Now therefore thou art cursed [j]from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thine hand.
12 When thou shalt till the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength: a [k]vagabond and a runagate shalt thou be in the earth.
13 Then Cain said to the Lord, [l][m]My punishment is greater than I can bear.
14 Behold, thou hast cast me out this day from [n]the earth, and from thy face shall I be hid, and shall be a vagabond, and a runagate in the earth, and whosoever findeth me shall slay me.
15 Then the Lord said unto him, Doubtless whosoever slayeth Cain, he shall be [o]punished seven fold. And the Lord set a [p]mark upon Cain, lest any man finding him, should kill him.
16 Then Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod toward the East side of Eden.
17 Cain also knew his wife, which conceived and bore Enoch: and he built a [q]city, and called the name of the city by the name of his son, Enoch.
18 And to Enoch was born Irad, and Irad begat Mehujael, and Mehujael begat Methushael, and Methushael begat Lamech.
19 ¶ And Lamech took to him [r]two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah.
20 And Adah bare Jabal, who was the [s]father of such as dwell in the tents, and of such as have cattle.
21 And his brother’s name was Jubal, who was the father of all that play on the harp and [t]organs.
22 And Zillah also bore Tubal-Cain, who wrought cunningly every craft of brass and of iron: and the sister of Tubal-Cain was Naamah.
23 Then Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice, ye wives of Lamech; hearken unto my speech: [u]for I would slay a man in my wound, and a young man to mine hurt.
24 If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech [v]seventy times sevenfold.
25 ¶ And Adam knew his wife again, and she bare a son, and she called his name Seth: for God, said she, hath appointed me another seed for Abel, because Cain slew him.
26 And to the same Seth also there was born a son, and he called his name Enosh. Then began men to [w]call upon the name of the Lord.
Footnotes
- Genesis 4:1 Man’s nature, the estate of marriage, and God’s blessing were not utterly abolished through sin, but the quality or condition thereof was changed.
- Genesis 4:1 That is, according to the Lord’s promise, as Gen. 3:15, some read, To the Lord, as rejoicing for the son which she had born, whom she would offer to the Lord as the firstfruits of her birth.
- Genesis 4:3 This declareth that the father instructed his children in the knowledge of God, and also how God gave them sacrifices to signify their salvation, albeit they were destitute of the sacrament of the tree of life.
- Genesis 4:5 Because he was an hypocrite, and offered only for an outward show without sincerity of heart.
- Genesis 4:7 Both thou and thy sacrifice shall be acceptable to me.
- Genesis 4:7 Sin shall still torment thy conscience.
- Genesis 4:7 The dignity of the firstborn is given to Cain over Abel.
- Genesis 4:9 This is the nature of the reprobate when they are reproved of their hypocrisy, even to neglect God and despite him.
- Genesis 4:10 God revengeth the wrongs of his Saints, though none complain: for the iniquity itself crieth for vengeance.
- Genesis 4:11 The earth shall be a witness against thee, which mercifully received that blood which thou most cruelly sheddest.
- Genesis 4:12 Thou shalt never have rest: for thine heart shall be in continual fear and care.
- Genesis 4:13 He burdeneth God as a cruel judge because he did punish him so sharply.
- Genesis 4:13 Or, my sin is greater than can be pardoned.
- Genesis 4:14 Hebrew, from off the face of.
- Genesis 4:15 Not for the love he bare to Cain, but to suppress murder.
- Genesis 4:15 Which was some visible sign of God’s judgment, that others should fear thereby.
- Genesis 4:17 Thinking thereby to be sure, and to have less occasion to fear God’s judgments against him.
- Genesis 4:19 The lawful institution of marriage, which is, that two should be one flesh, was first corrupted in the house of Cain by Lamech.
- Genesis 4:20 Or, first inventor.
- Genesis 4:21 Or, flutes, and pipes.
- Genesis 4:23 His wives seeing that all men hated him for his cruelty, were afraid, therefore he braggeth that there is none so lusty that were able to resist, although he were already wounded.
- Genesis 4:24 He mocked at God’s sufferance in Cain, jesting as though God would suffer none to punish him and yet give him license to murder others.
- Genesis 4:26 In these days God began to move the hearts of the godly to restore religion, which a long time by the wicked had been suppressed.
Genesis 4
Good News Translation
Cain and Abel
4 Then Adam had intercourse with his wife, and she became pregnant. She bore a son and said, “By the Lord's help I have gotten a son.” So she named him Cain.[a] 2 Later she gave birth to another son, Abel. Abel became a shepherd, but Cain was a farmer. 3 After some time Cain brought some of his harvest and gave it as an offering to the Lord. 4 (A)Then Abel brought the first lamb born to one of his sheep, killed it, and gave the best parts of it as an offering. The Lord was pleased with Abel and his offering, 5 but he rejected Cain and his offering. Cain became furious, and he scowled in anger. 6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why that scowl on your face? 7 If you had done the right thing, you would be smiling;[b] but because you have done evil, sin is crouching at your door. It wants to rule you, but you must overcome it.”
8 (B)Then Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let's go out in the fields.”[c] When they were out in the fields, Cain turned on his brother and killed him.
9 The Lord asked Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”
He answered, “I don't know. Am I supposed to take care of my brother?”
10 (C)Then the Lord said, “Why have you done this terrible thing? Your brother's blood is crying out to me from the ground, like a voice calling for revenge. 11 You are placed under a curse and can no longer farm the soil. It has soaked up your brother's blood as if it had opened its mouth to receive it when you killed him. 12 If you try to grow crops, the soil will not produce anything; you will be a homeless wanderer on the earth.”
13 And Cain said to the Lord, “This punishment is too hard for me to bear. 14 You are driving me off the land and away from your presence. I will be a homeless wanderer on the earth, and anyone who finds me will kill me.”
15 But the Lord answered, “No. If anyone kills you, seven lives will be taken in revenge.” So the Lord put a mark on Cain to warn anyone who met him not to kill him. 16 And Cain went away from the Lord's presence and lived in a land called “Wandering,” which is east of Eden.
The Descendants of Cain
17 Cain and his wife had a son and named him Enoch. Then Cain built a city and named it after his son. 18 Enoch had a son named Irad, who was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael had a son named Methushael, who was the father of Lamech. 19 Lamech had two wives, Adah and Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal, who was the ancestor of those who raise livestock and live in tents. 21 His brother was Jubal, the ancestor of all musicians who play the harp and the flute. 22 Zillah gave birth to Tubal Cain, who made all kinds of tools[d] out of bronze and iron. The sister of Tubal Cain was Naamah.
23 Lamech said to his wives,
“Adah and Zillah, listen to me:
I have killed a young man because he struck me.
24 If seven lives are taken to pay for killing Cain,
Seventy-seven will be taken if anyone kills me.”
Seth and Enosh
25 Adam and his wife had another son. She said, “God has given me a son to replace Abel, whom Cain killed.” So she named him Seth.[e] 26 Seth had a son whom he named Enosh. It was then that people began using the Lord's holy name in worship.
Footnotes
- Genesis 4:1 This name sounds like the Hebrew for “gotten.”
- Genesis 4:7 you would be smiling; or I would have accepted your offering.
- Genesis 4:8 Some ancient translations Let's go out in the fields; Hebrew does not have these words.
- Genesis 4:22 who made all kinds of tools; one ancient translation ancestor of all metalworkers.
- Genesis 4:25 This name sounds like the Hebrew for “has given.”
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
