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Genesis 4

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1 And the man knew Eve his wife, and she conceiveth and beareth Cain, and saith, `I have gotten a man by Jehovah;'

2 and she addeth to bear his brother, even Abel. And Abel is feeding a flock, and Cain hath been servant of the ground.

3 And it cometh to pass at the end of days that Cain bringeth from the fruit of the ground a present to Jehovah;

4 and Abel, he hath brought, he also, from the female firstlings of his flock, even from their fat ones; and Jehovah looketh unto Abel and unto his present,

5 and unto Cain and unto his present He hath not looked; and it is very displeasing to Cain, and his countenance is fallen.

6 And Jehovah saith unto Cain, `Why hast thou displeasure? and Why hath thy countenance fallen?

7 Is there not, if thou dost well, acceptance? and if thou dost not well, at the opening a sin-offering is crouching, and unto thee its desire, and thou rulest over it.'

8 And Cain saith unto Abel his brother, [`Let us go into the field;'] and it cometh to pass in their being in the field, that Cain riseth up against Abel his brother, and slayeth him.

9 And Jehovah saith unto Cain, `Where [is] Abel thy brother?' and he saith, `I have not known; my brother's keeper -- I?'

10 And He saith, `What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood is crying unto Me from the ground;

11 and now, cursed [art] thou from the ground, which hath opened her mouth to receive the blood of thy brother from thy hand;

12 when thou tillest the ground, it doth not add to give its strength to thee -- a wanderer, even a trembling one, thou art in the earth.'

13 And Cain saith unto Jehovah, `Greater is my punishment than to be borne;

14 lo, Thou hast driven me to-day from off the face of the ground, and from Thy face I am hid; and I have been a wanderer, even a trembling one, in the earth, and it hath been -- every one finding me doth slay me.'

15 And Jehovah saith to him, `Therefore -- of any slayer of Cain sevenfold it is required;' and Jehovah setteth to Cain a token that none finding him doth slay him.

16 And Cain goeth out from before Jehovah, and dwelleth in the land, moving about east of Eden;

17 and Cain knoweth his wife, and she conceiveth, and beareth Enoch; and he is building a city, and he calleth the name of the city, according to the name of his son -- Enoch.

18 And born to Enoch is Irad; and Irad hath begotten Mehujael; and Mehujael hath begotten Methusael; and Methusael hath begotten Lamech.

19 And Lamech taketh to himself two wives, the name of the one Adah, and the name of the second Zillah.

20 And Adah beareth Jabal, he hath been father of those inhabiting tents and purchased possessions;

21 and the name of his brother [is] Jubal, he hath been father of every one handling harp and organ.

22 And Zillah she also bare Tubal-Cain, an instructor of every artificer in brass and iron; and a sister of Tubal-Cain [is] Naamah.

23 And Lamech saith to his wives: -- `Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; wives of Lamech, give ear [to] my saying: For a man I have slain for my wound, Even a young man for my hurt;

24 For sevenfold is required for Cain, And for Lamech seventy and sevenfold.'

25 And Adam again knoweth his wife, and she beareth a son, and calleth his name Seth, `for God hath appointed for me another seed instead of Abel:' for Cain had slain him.

26 And to Seth, to him also a son hath been born, and he calleth his name Enos; then a beginning was made of preaching in the name of Jehovah.

   

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Genesis 4 - Synopsis

Napsal(a) Bradley Sheahan, New Christian Bible Study Staff

This chapter recounts the story of Cain and Abel, the first two sons of Adam and Eve.

Here’s a brief chapter outline:

  • Cain and Abel are the sons of Adam and Eve. Cain is the firstborn. He becomes a farmer, a "tiller of the ground". Abel is born second, and he becomes a shepherd. Each son brings an offering to Jehovah. Jehovah accepts Abel’s gift, but not Cain’s. Cain is enraged, and argues with Abel, and kills him. (Genesis 4:1-8)
  • Jehovah rebukes Cain, curses him, but puts a mark on him to protect him from vengeance. (9-15)
  • Cain leaves Eden, and the chapter traces four generations of his descendants. (16-24)
  • At the end of he chapter, Adam and Eve have a third son, Seth. Seth's son was named Enos, and they were both men who walked with God. (25-26)

The Most Ancient Church, represented by Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, had a closeness to God that no other people in history had ever attained. But subsequent generations, represented by Cain and his wrath, lost this connection to God as they abandoned the teachings of their forefathers, and got more attached to self love, worldly knowledge, and a faith without charity. This chapter describes in greater detail how the degeneration and falsification of teachings split people into different sects and heresies under the name of Cain and his descendants.


Spiritual lessons from this chapter: In this chapter we learn about the basic truth of following God: love the Lord and love the neighbor. Cain represents faith in God, and Abel represents love to other people. These should go hand in hand but when we separate them, bad things happen. Cain (faith) kills his brother Abel (love). This story describes how the ancient peoples developed a doctrine that put the tenets of faith above love and charity, thus leading to the eventual death of any semblance of charity toward the fellow man. If you fast forward to the New Testament, there are several stories where the scribes and Pharisees - also in a hollowed-out faith - are angered when Jesus heals a person on the Sabbath day. (See Luke 6:6-11)

Ze Swedenborgových děl

 

Arcana Coelestia # 193

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193. But they perceived that they were under the influence of evil. From the residue of perception left to them, which is meant by the statements about their eyes being opened and their hearing the voice of Jehovah, verses 7-8, and from the fig leaves with which they made themselves girdles, verse 7; also from their sense of shame or hiding themselves in the middle of the tree of the garden, verses 8-9, as well as from their acknowledgement and confession, verses 10-13 it is evident that natural goodness remained with them.

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.