OK- So this leaves me wondering a few things. How did Cain know that God didn't find favor with his offering? Did God continue to appear to them as he had to Adam and Eve? Were these offerings made in person? When did God actually stop appearing? Has he actually stopped? (Maybe Joan of Arcadia was based on some people's real life experiences.) What was wrong with Cain's offering? As I mentioned, I'm using the NIV Study Bible which offers this explanation, "The contrast is not between an offering of plant life and an offering of animal life, but between a careless, thoughtless offering and a choice, generous offering. Motivation and heart attitude are all-important, and God looked with favor on Abel and his offering because of Abel's faith."
Genesis 4:18 The begats begin...
Genesis 4:25 Adam & Eve have another son, Seth. (I never knew this...or I forgot this.)
5:1 The beginning of more begatting down Adam's line. Adam was 130 when he had Seth. He lived 800 more years and had other sons & daughters. 5:1-32 Tells the lineage of Adam to Noah. It mentions how old each one was when he had his first son, how many more years he lived & that he had more sons and daughters. It summarizes he lived so many years "and then he died". It says this for each one down the line with one exception. Adam> Seth> Enosh> Kenan> Mahalalel> Jared> Enoch. Enoch is the exception. At 65 years (one of the youngest fathers of the bunch!) he became the father of Methuselah. "After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God for 300 years. Instead of saying, "And then he died" it says, "And then he was no more because God took him away." My Bible notes that Lamech, the 7th from Adam in the genealogy of Cain was evil personified & Enoch, the 7th from Adam in the genealogy of Seth was commended as one who pleased God. So I guess his reward was that he never experienced death.
I don't know how I would understand all of this without a study Bible! This is one of the reasons I think it's important to go to church--to help make sense of what we're reading in the Bible! Please feel free to comment and even to disagree or point things out or mention what stood out to you when reading these passages. Again- you don't need to be Christian to comment, but please be kind!
The begatting is where the bible loses me. I have trouble keeping track of my immediate family's begatting...is it wrong to skip over certain parts? Thanks for boiling it down for us Jen! :)
ReplyDeleteThis really gives you something to think about. The key to being a Christian is Faith (the faith Abel had. Not the presumptious attitude of Cain) which is "the trust in God and in His promises." Although, I know I am a Christian and I believe in God and His promises through Christ and the Scriptures, I often wonder is my "Faith" strong enough. I can only pray that each day brings me a little(or maybe I should say a lot) closer to the unfailing faith of Abel.. Noah... Issac..etc. Like you said, Jen, we cannot build faith without reading scripture, going to church, bible study and Sunday school. I think it is great that you are doing this and sharing. God Bless!!
ReplyDeleteMary & Tracey- Thanks for commenting! Mary- I have skipped those parts before, but this time I'm determined to read it all! This time around it wasn't so bad (mybe because I'm familiar with some of the people), but I know there will be more that are longer and less familiar! Tracey- my faith falters at times and I remind myself that all we need is a faith the size of a mustard seed. Have you ever seen a mustard seed? They are so teeny tiny. I just try to remind myself that I always have at least THAT much faith!
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