The First Book of Adam and Eve
11 Now before they do that, I am telling you that you should kill your
brother. That way your sister will be left for you, and his sister will
be cast away."
12 And Satan departed from him. But the devil remained behind in
Cain's heart, and frequently aspired to kill his brother.
Chapter LXXVII - Cain, 15 years old, and Abel 12 years old, grow apart.
1 But when Adam saw that the older brother hated the younger, he
endeavored to soften their hearts, and said to Cain, "O my son, take of
the fruits of your sowing and make an offering to God, so that He might
forgive you for your wickedness and sin."
2 He said also to Abel, "Take some of your sowing and make an offering
and bring it to God, so that He might forgive you for your wickedness
and sin."
3 Then Abel obeyed his father's voice, took some of his sowing, and
made a good offering, and said to his father, Adam, "Come with me and
show me how to offer it up."
4 And they went, Adam and Eve with him, and they showed him how to
offer up his gift on the altar. Then after that, they stood up and
prayed that God would accept Abel's offering.
5 Then God looked at Abel and accepted his offering. And God was more
pleased with Abel than with his offering, because of his good heart and
pure body. There was no trace of guile in him.
6 Then they came down from the altar, and went to the cave in which
they lived. But Abel, by reason of his joy at having made his
offering, repeated it three times a week, after the example of his
father Adam.
7 But as to Cain, he did not want to make an offering, but after his
father became very angry, he offered up a gift once. He took the
smallest of his sheep for an offering and when he offered it up, his
eyes were on the lamb.
8 Therefore God did not accept his offering, because his heart was full
of murderous thoughts.
9 And they all thus lived together in the cave in which Eve had brought
forth, until Cain was fifteen years old, and Abel twelve years old.
Chapter LXXVIII - Jealousy overcomes Cain. He makes trouble in the
family. How the first murder was planned.
1 Then Adam said to Eve, "Behold the children are grown up; we must
think of finding wives for them."
2 Then Eve answered, "How can we do it?"
3 Then Adam said to her, "We will join Abel's sister in marriage to
Cain, and Cain's sister to Abel.
4 The said Eve to Adam, "I do not like Cain because he is hard-hearted;
but let them stay with us until we offer up to the Lord in their
behalf."
5 And Adam said no more.
6 Meanwhile Satan came to Cain in the figure of a man of the field, and
said to him, "Behold Adam and Eve have taken counsel together about the
marriage of you two; and they have agreed to marry Abel's sister to
you, and your sister to him.
7 But if it was not that I love you, I would not have told you this
thing. Yet if you will take my advice, and obey me, I will bring to
you on your wedding day beautiful robes, gold and silver in plenty, and
my relations will attend you."
8 Then Cain said with joy, "Where are your relations?"
9 And Satan answered, "My relations are in a garden in the north, where
I once meant to bring your father Adam; but he would not accept my
offer.
10 But you, if you will receive my words and if you will come to me
after your wedding, you shall rest from the misery in which you are;
and you shall rest and be better off than your father Adam."
11 At these words of Satan Cain opened his ears, and leaned towards his
speech.
12 And he did not remain in the field, but he went to Eve, his mother,
and beat her, and cursed her, and said to her, "Why are you planning to
take my sister to wed her to my brother? Am I dead?"
13 His mother, however, quieted him, and sent him to the field where he
had been.
14 Then when Adam came, she told him of what Cain had done.
15 But Adam grieved and held his peace, and said not a word.
16 Then on the next morning Adam said to Cain his son, "Take of your
sheep, young and good, and offer them up to your God; and I will speak
to your brother, to make to his God an offering of corn."
17 They both obeyed their father Adam, and they took their offerings,
and offered them up on the mountain by the altar.
18 But Cain behaved haughtily towards his brother, and shoved him from
the altar, and would not let him offer up his gift on the altar; but he
offered his own on it, with a proud heart, full of guile, and fraud.
19 But as for Abel, he set up stones that were near at hand, and on
that, he offered up his gift with a heart humble and free from guile.
20 Cain was then standing by the altar on which he had offered up his
gift; and he cried to God to accept his offering; but God did not
accept it from him; neither did a divine fire come down to consume his
offering.
21 But he remained standing over against the altar, out of humor and
meanness, looking towards his brother Abel, to see if God would accept
his offering or not.
22 And Abel prayed to God to accept his offering. Then a divine fire
came down and consumed his offering. And God smelled the sweet savor
of his offering; because Abel loved Him and rejoice in Him.
23 And because God was well pleased with him, He sent him an angel of
light in the figure of a man who had partaken of his offering, because
He had smelled the sweet savor of his offering, and they comforted Abel
and strengthened his heart.
24 But Cain was looking on all that took place at his brother's
offering, and was angry because of it.
25 Then he opened his mouth and blasphemed God, because He had not
accepted his offering.
26 But God said to cain, "Why do you look sad? Be righteous, that I
may accept your offering. Not against Me have you murmured, but
against yourself.
27 And God said this to Cain in rebuke, and because He abhorred him and
his offering.
28 And Cain came down from the altar, his color changed and with a sad
face, and came to his father and mother and told them all that had
befallen him. And Adam grieved much because God had not accepted
Cain's offering.
29 But Abel came down rejoicing, and with a gladsome heart, and told
his father and mother how God had accepted his offering. And they
rejoiced at it and kissed his face.
30 And Abel said to his father, "Because Cain shoved me from the altar,
and would not allow me to offer my gift on it, I made an altar for
myself and offered my gift on it."
31 But when Adam heard this he was very sorry, because it was the altar
he had built at first, and on which he had offered his own gifts.
32 As to Cain, he was so resentful and so angry that he went into the
field, where Satan came to him and said to him, "Since your brother
Abel has taken refuge with your father Adam, because you shoved him
from the altar, they have kissed his face, and they rejoice over him,
far more than over you."
33 When Cain heard these words of Satan, he was filled with rage; and
he let no one know. But he was laying wait to kill his brother, until
he brought him into the cave, and then said to him:--
34 "O brother, the country is so beautiful, and there are such
beautiful and pleasurable trees in it, and charming to look at! But
brother, you have never been one day in the field to take your pleasure
in that place.
35 Today, O, my brother, I very much wish you would come with me into
the field, to enjoy yourself and to bless our fields and our flocks,
for you are righteous, and I love you much, O my brother! But you have
alienated yourself from me."
36 Then Abel consented to go with his brother Cain into the field.
37 But before going out, Cain said to Abel, "Wait for me, until I fetch
a staff, because of wild beasts."
38 Then Abel stood waiting in his innocence. But Cain, the forward,
fetched a staff and went out.
39 And they began, Cain and his brother Abel, to walk in the way; Cain
talking to him, and comforting him, to make him forget everything.
Chapter LXXIX - A wicked plan is carried to a tragic conclusion. Cain
is frightened. "Am I my brother's keeper?" The seven punishments.
Peace is shattered.
1 And so they went on, until they came to a lonely place, where there
were no sheep; then Abel said to Cain, "Behold, my brother, we are
tired from walking; for we see none of the trees, nor of the fruits,
nor of the flourishing green plants, nor of the sheep, nor any one of
the things of which you told me. Where are those sheep of thine you
told me to bless?"
2 Then Cain said to him, "Come on, and you shall see many beautiful
things very soon, but go before me, until I catch up to you."
3 Then went Abel forward, but Cain remained behind him.
4 And Abel was walking in his innocence, without guile; not believing
his brother would kill him.
5 Then Cain, when he came up to him, comforted him with his talk,
walking a little behind him; then he ran up to him and beat him with
the staff, blow after blow, until he was stunned.
6 But when Abel fell down on the ground, seeing that his brother meant
to kill him, he said to Cain, "O, my brother, have pity on me. By the
breasts we have sucked, don't hit me! By the womb that bore us and
that brought us into the world, don't beat me to death with that staff!
If you will kill me, take one of these large stones and kill me
outright."
7 Then Cain, the hard-hearted, and cruel murderer, took a large stone,
and beat his brother's head with it, until his brains oozed out, and he
wallowed in his blood, before him.
8 And Cain repented not of what he had done.
9 But the earth, when the blood of righteous Abel fell on it, trembled,
as it drank his blood, and would have destroyed Cain because of it.
10 And the blood of Abel cried mysteriously to God, to avenge him of
his murderer.
11 Then Cain began at once to dig the ground wherein to lay his
brother; for he was trembling from the fear that came over him, when he
saw the earth tremble on his account.
12 He then cast his brother into the pit he made, and covered him with
dust. But the ground would not receive him; but it threw him up at
once.
13 Again Cain dug the ground and hid his brother in it; but again the
ground threw him up on itself; until three times the ground thus threw
up on itself the body of Abel.
14 The muddy ground threw him up the first time, because he was not the
first creation; and it threw him up the second time and would not
receive him, because he was righteous and good, and was killed without
a cause; and the ground threw him up the third time and would not
receive him, that there might remain before his brother a witness
against him.
15 And so the earth mocked Cain, until the Word of God, came to him
concerning his brother.
16 Then was God angry, and much displeased at Abel's death; and He
thundered from heaven, and lightnings went before Him, and the Word of
the Lord God came from heaven to Cain, and said to him, "Where is Abel
your brother?"
17 Then Cain answered with a proud heart and a gruff voice, "How, O
God? Am I my brother's keeper?"
18 Then God said to Cain, "Cursed be the earth that has drunk the blood
of Abel your brother; and as for you, you will always be trembling and
shaking; and this will be a mark on you so that whoever finds you, will
kill you."
19 But Cain cried because God had said those words to him; and Cain
said to Him, "O God, whosoever finds me shall kill me, and I shall be
blotted out from the face of the earth."
20 Then God said to Cain, "Whoever finds you will not kill you;"
because before this, God had been saying to Cain, "I shall put seven
punishments on anyone that kills Cain." For as to the word of God to
Cain, "Where is your brother?" God said it in mercy for him, to try and
make him repent.