Killing Abel!

The first person murder in human history was killing Abel. He was the second person to be born and was the son of Adam and Eve. He was the younger brother of Cain.

Nothing is known about Abel, except that he was a “keeper of flocks” (Genesis 4:2). In other words, he raised sheep and/or goats. In verse 4, we’re told, “Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and for his offering.”

The fact that God had “regard for his offering” is the reason he was murdered by his brother, Cain. By itself, this episode can be very confusing. When asked, most people do not understand why Cain murdered Abel. A review of other Scripture brings this tragic event into focus. For instance, in Genesis 3:21 we read that God made clothing for Adam and Eve from animal skins. However, we’re told in verse 7 of the same chapter that they made clothes for themselves from fig leaves. This begs the question; why did God feel the need to clothe them if they were already covered?

Killing Abel – Penalty of Sin

We learn in Genesis 2:25 that when Adam & Eve were created, they were naked and “…were not ashamed.” It was only after they rebelled against God, by eating the forbidden fruit, that their nakedness was of any concern. It was for this reason that they felt the need to make coverings from fig leaves. The fruit from which they ate was from the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” (Genesis 2:17) Obviously, this new knowledge of good and evil was the cause of their shame about their nakedness. Killing Abel is related to the covering for sin.

Their changed view about nakedness was directly linked to their rebellious act. Nakedness was now representative of their sinful nature. Their attempt to “cover their sin” (atonement) was insufficient by God’s standard. The only acceptable way to make atonement for sin was by the shed blood of an innocent substitute. Man’s effort to cover his sins is futile. This principle is made clear throughout all of Scripture. “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29)

In Genesis 3:15, God made it clear to Satan that the “seed” (singular) of the woman would “bruise you on the head.” The Hebrew word for “bruise” is “shuph”, which is translated “to break.” This “seed of the woman” would come to be known as “the Lamb of God (the Lord Jesus Christ).” The sacrificial animals could only cover the sins of man until such time the “seed” would come and “take away” the sins of man.

Paying for Sins

Adam and Eve understood that the shed blood of an innocent substitute would be the only access to God for the remission of sins. Evidently, they passed this knowledge on to their sons in terms of approaching a Holy God for the forgiveness of sin. God had “regard” for Abel’s offering (sacrifice) because he brought the shed blood of an innocent substitute. The Hebrew word for regard is “shâ‛âh”, which means “to have respect for.” In short, Abel’s sacrifice, and therefore, Abel himself, was acceptable to God.

Abel complied with the demands of God’s word and found righteousness before Him. Cain, we’re told, brought the “fruit of the ground” as his offering (Genesis 4:3). His sacrifice was summarily rejected by God. Cain sought salvation another way, other than that ordained by God (the shed blood of an innocent substitute). In John 14:6, we read these words in relation to the approved way of salvation: “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.’”

It was the shed blood of Jesus’ sacrifice on Calvary that opened the door to salvation for all – He was the innocent substitute. Peter would later say, “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)

True Apostolic Doctrine & Killing Abel

The writer to Hebrews illuminates the two ways beautifully in chapter 11:4: “By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks.”

The unsaved man or woman cannot grasp the importance of finding favor in the sight of God through the finished work of the Lord Jesus on the Cross – The Lamb of God. He or she (like Cain) strives in futility to please God by self-effort, thereby rejecting the ordained way of salvation by God.

It’s interesting to note that, in Genesis 4:7, God gave Cain a second chance to approach Him in faith, by the shed blood of an innocent substitute. Cain refused, and instead, murdered his own brother out of jealousy. It didn’t have to be that way. It only required Cain to humble himself before God and seek salvation on His terms. Killing Abel was the result of his pride, which led to this murderous act of rebellion against God.

Assurance of Heaven

Psalm 51:17 says: “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.” How tragic that Cain would not adopt this principle.

What about you? Will you forsake the arrogant and prideful way of Cain and confess to a Holy God that you have nothing of value to offer for your own salvation. “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

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