The Bible

 

Genesis 4

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1 And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.

2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.

4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:

5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and Why is thy countenance fallen?

7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

9 And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?

10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.

11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;

12 When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.

13 And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear.

14 Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me.

15 And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.

16 And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.

17 And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.

18 And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begat Mehujael: and Mehujael begat Methusael: and Methusael begat Lamech.

19 And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah.

20 And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle.

21 And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ.

22 And Zillah, she also bare Tubal-cain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah.

23 And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt.

24 If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.

25 And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.

26 And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #367

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367. Apart from showing that charity is the 'brother' of faith and that 'field' means all that comprises doctrine, there is no need to confirm these considerations from similar usages in the Word. That charity is the brother of faith may be clear to anyone from the very nature or essence of faith. The brother relationship between these two was also represented by Esau and Jacob, and was the reason why they struggled for the birthright and the superior position this carried with it. The relationship was also represented by Perez and Zerah, the sons Tamar had by Judah, Genesis 38:28-30, where again the question of primogeniture arises. It was represented by Ephraim and Manasseh as well, Genesis 48:13-14, wherein a similar way the matter of the birthright and the higher position it carried occurs. And there are many other examples. Indeed these two, faith and charity, are both the offspring of the Church. Faith is called 'a man' (vir), as Cain is in verse 1 of this chapter, while charity is called 'a brother', as in Isaiah 19:2; Jeremiah 17:14 and in other places. In Amos 1:9 the union of faith and charity is called 'a covenant between brothers'.

[2] As has been stated, that which Jacob and Esau represented was similar to the meaning of Cain and Abel. The fact that Jacob in a similar manner wished to supplant Esau is also clear in Hosea,

He will make a visitation on Jacob over his ways and requite him according to his deeds; in the womb he supplanted his brother. Hosea 12:2-3.

But the fact that Esau, that is, charity represented by Esau, would nevertheless be the superior is clear from the prediction made through their father Isaac,

By your sword will you live, and you will serve your brother; but when you have dominion over him you will cast away his yoke from above your neck. Genesis 27:40.

Or what amounts to the same, a gentile or new Church is represented by Esau, and the Jewish Church by Jacob. This is why it was stated so many times that they were to recognize gentile nations as brothers. Charity was also the reason for everyone being referred to as 'a brother' in the gentile or Primitive Church, and for the Lord calling 'brothers' those who hear the Word and do it, Luke 8:21. Hearers of it are those who have faith, doers those who have charity. But those who are hearers, that is, say they have faith, but are not doers, that is, have no charity, are not brothers, for the Lord likens them to the foolish, Matthew 7:24, 26.

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