The Tale of Two Cities – Genesis 4:1-26

A Tale of Two Seeds

The week before, I preached the first five verses of Genesis 4 and made two points: God is very much concerned with your worship, and God responds to your worship by accepting some and rejecting other offerings. I paused to say something about money. The first act of worship in the Bible is bringing an offering. I know pastors get uneasy talking about it, and some churches make it sound like they are out for the money, but Jesus said where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. He did not say where your quiet time is. We are meeting budget, and this is not about needing more. We want proper worship. And if you are new, partner with us for the cause of Christ.

Then I asked how God responds to people who fail in their worship, and we read the rest of the chapter. Cain’s sin spills into his family. God warned him, and he ignored the warning, murdered his brother, and refused to repent. The Bible says he went away from the presence of the Lord. The story is more about Cain than Abel. How does God respond to those who do not worship him the way they should? I see four things.

God Pleads with the Ungodly

In verse 7 God says if you do well, will you not be accepted? He offers Cain a way out. But if he does not, “sin is crouching at the door,” and sin is like a wild beast that will destroy you. David Livingstone, I was told, was on a lion hunt in Africa when a lion jumped him and almost tore off his arm. “If you don’t deal with sin it will seek to destroy you.” Cain answered God not with words but with actions, and he killed his brother in the same field where he had brought his offering. It was premeditated, first degree murder.

Yet God keeps asking questions. Why are you angry? Where is your brother? What have you done? They are like the questions he asked Adam and Eve. He knew where Abel was. He wanted Cain to acknowledge his sin. Even his judgment in verses 11 and 12 is merciful, since Genesis 9:6 would have allowed the murderer’s life to be taken. Cain’s response is a whine: my punishment is greater than I can bear. “Fear my friends is not repentance guilt is not repentance remorse is not repentance.” He is bothered by the penalty, not the sin. And don’t quote a murderer, by the way. We are our brother’s keeper.

God Restrains Sin and Offers Protection

Cain worried that whoever found him would kill him. God said, not so. The word mark is really a sign, mentioned 75 times in the Old Testament. I believe God gave Cain a sign that he would be protected. Some say Cain was paralyzed and some say he grew horns. I do not know where that comes from. God holds justice in his right hand and mercy in his left. Romans 2:4 says God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance. A man in our church said people think God is off his medication in the Old Testament and then on it in the New. But look at how God dealt with Adam and Eve and Cain. God is far kinder than some of us would have been.

God Allows the Ungodly to Prosper

In verses 17 through 24, Cain’s line has children, builds a city, and succeeds in livestock, music, and metalworking, which was more advanced than we assume. Lamech was the first bigamist in the Bible, and that is not a compliment. He names his wives pleasure, shade, and loveliness. He brags about killing a man and says his vengeance is seventy-sevenfold. We struggle with that. Job asked why the wicked live to old age. Jeremiah asked why the way of the wicked prospers. Asaph said his feet had almost slipped when he saw the prosperity of the wicked. David said, fret not because of evildoers. This is what theologians call common grace. God sends rain on the godly and the ungodly. Hebrews 12:24 says the blood of Jesus speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. Pastorally, then: “don’t be angry towards sinners be kind be gracious,” and pray for them. “Don’t forget what you were and what God has done in your life.” Ephesians 2 says we were dead in trespasses, but God, rich in mercy, made us alive in Christ.

Focus on Your Own Heart

A lady told her pastor she was leaving church because of the hypocrites, the gossips, and people on their phones. He asked her to walk around the church three times carrying a full glass of water without spilling. When she finished he asked if she saw any gossips or hypocrites. She hadn’t. “You were focused on the glass to make sure you didn’t stumble and spill any water.” “When we keep our eyes on Jesus we don’t have to have time to see the mistakes of others.”

God Has a Plan for the Godly

Verse 25 closes the chapter. Eve says, God has appointed for me another offspring instead of Abel, for Cain killed him. There is growth: it was her, now it is all God. She still remembers Cain killed her other son, and what heartache for a mom. The name Enosh means frail, mortal, unlike Lamech with all his pride. And in verse 26, at that time people began to call upon the name of the Lord. The white space between Cain’s line and Seth’s, as James Montgomery Boice said, shows that Lamech’s civilized, lawless family is never heard of again.