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Genesis 4
New International Version
Genesis 4
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)
17 Cain made love to his wife,(AD) and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city,(AE) and he named it after his son(AF) 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(AG) two women,(AH) 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(AI) and pipes.(AJ) 22 Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged(AK) 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(AL) a man for wounding me,
a young man for injuring me.
24 If Cain is avenged(AM) seven times,(AN)
then Lamech seventy-seven times.(AO)”
25 Adam made love to his wife(AP) again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth,[h](AQ) saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.”(AR) 26 Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.(AS)
At that time people began to call on[i] the name of the Lord.(AT)
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 4:22 Or who instructed all who work in
- Genesis 4:25 Seth probably means granted.
- Genesis 4:26 Or to proclaim
Genesis 4
Good News Translation
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.”
Genesis 4
EasyEnglish Bible
Genesis 4
EasyEnglish Bible
Cain and Abel
4 Adam had sex with his wife, Eve. She became pregnant. She gave birth to Cain. She said, ‘With the Lord's help, I have given birth to a son.’[a]
2 Some time later, Eve gave birth to Cain's brother. She called him Abel. When they had grown to become men, Abel took care of sheep. Cain worked on the land as a farmer.
3 One day, it was time for the harvest. Cain brought to the Lord some of his crops as an offering. 4 But Abel brought to God some of the first lambs that his sheep had given birth to. He brought pieces of fat from the best of his lambs to offer them to God. Abel and his gift pleased the Lord.[b] 5 But God was not pleased with Cain and his gift. So Cain became very angry. His face looked sad.[c]
6 Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? Why do you look sad? 7 If you do what is right, I will accept you. But if you do not do the right thing, sin will be very near to you. It will be like a wild animal at your door that is ready to eat you. But you must become its master.’[d]
Cain kills Abel
8 One day Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘We should go out to the fields.’ While they were in the fields, Cain attacked his brother Abel. He killed Abel.
9 Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Where is Abel, your brother?’ Cain replied, ‘I do not know where he is. Must I always keep my brother safe?’
10 Then the Lord God said, ‘Why have you done this bad thing? Now your brother's blood is lying there on the ground. That is like his voice which is shouting to me for help. 11 The ground received your brother's blood when you killed him. As a result, the ground no longer accepts you. It has brought a curse on you. 12 When you work hard to dig the ground, no plants will grow in it for your food. You will travel from place to place. You will not have your own home.’[e]
13 Cain said to the Lord, ‘That punishment is too much! It will give me too much pain. 14 Now you are making me leave my home here on the land. I will be far away from where you are. I will be a traveller without a home. If someone sees me, they will kill me.’
15 But the Lord said to Cain, ‘No! If anyone kills Cain, I will punish that person seven times more than I have punished you.’
Then the Lord put a special mark on Cain. This was to tell other people that they must not kill Cain.
16 Cain went away from the Lord. He went to live in the land called Nod, which is east of Eden.
The descendants of Cain
17 Cain had sex with his wife. She became pregnant and she gave birth to Enoch. Cain started to build a city. He called the city Enoch because that was his son's name. 18 Enoch became the father of Irad. Irad became the father of Mehujael. Mehujael became the father of Methushael. Methushael became the father of Lamech.
19 Lamech married two women. One was called Adah. The other was called Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal. Jabal became the father of people who live in tents and they take care of animals.
21 Jabal had a brother called Jubal. Jubal became the father of people who make music with harps and flutes.
22 Zillah gave birth to a son. His name was Tubal-Cain. He used bronze and iron to make tools. Tubal-Cain had a sister. Her name was Naamah.
23 Lamech said to his two wives,
‘Adah and Zillah, listen to me!
My wives, hear my words!
A man attacked me, so I killed him.
Yes, I killed a young man because he hurt me.
24 If someone kills Cain, God will punish that person seven times more.
But if someone attacks me, I will punish that person 77 times more!’[f]
The birth of Seth
25 Adam again had sex with his wife, Eve. She gave birth to another son. She called him Seth. Eve said, ‘God has given me another child to take the place of Abel, because Cain killed Abel.’ 26 Later Seth had a son and he called him Enosh.
At that time, people began to use the name of the Lord to worship him.
Footnotes
- 4:1 Eve knew that God has authority over life and death.
- 4:4 Abel chose the firstborn young animals to give to God. He killed them, and then he gave God the fat pieces. This is the best part of the meat from the animal.
- 4:5 Cain was angry because God was not happy with him and his gift. Cain did not try to learn what God really wanted as a gift. Instead, Cain showed God that he was angry.
- 4:7 God told Cain that, if he continued to do wrong things, sin would destroy him. God told Cain that he must turn away from his sins. Then he would accept Cain.
- 4:12 God's question to Cain is like the question that he asked Adam and Eve. That was when they hid in the garden. God knew that Cain had killed Abel. He wanted Cain to say that he is sorry. But Cain was not sorry that he had killed his brother.
- 4:24 Lamech is proud because he killed the young man. He wants to tell people what he has done. He does not think that he has done anything wrong. This shows that sin has become much worse in the world.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
Good News Translation (GNT) 
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.
EasyEnglish Bible (EASY)
EasyEnglish Bible Copyright © MissionAssist 2019 - Charitable Incorporated Organisation 1162807. Used by permission. All rights reserved.