And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. 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: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 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.

Genesis 4:1-7

Hebrews 11:4 tells us that it was by faith that Abel offered a better offering than Cain.

Cain’s offering was not regarded by the Lord, as it is written, without blood there is no remission of sins (Hebrews 9:22).  It required blood, in which the Lord said the life of a thing was, in order to atone for the sin of another.  And, it was through the eyes of faith that Abel could perceive this.  And, for whatever reason, Cain’s lack of faith, or lack of using his faith, was his failure to see.

Much could be said about the offerings, and many good things could be learned.  but, it particularly Cain’s response to his offering being rejected that is of my current interest.  He could have changed, could have responded many different ways, but the basic response of his heart was to receive it as rejection.  This made him angry, as the rejection turned towards rebellion, and it says his “countenance fell”.

But, here, the LORD spoke to Him, wanting him to succeed.  He asked Cain, Why are you wroth, or angry?  Why he was downcast.  And, the LORD’s words to him were simple and to the point, that if he did well, he would be accepted.

Here is the basic problem.  The man tried to do the right thing, but did not.  The LORD simply told him to do the right thing and he would be accepted.  But, Cain chose another road.  As the LORD told him, sin was lying at the door.  We see that this thing called sin was waiting right there, wanting to take hold of him.

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.

Genesis 4:8

Cain chose rather to respond out of his rebellion, and slew his brother.

However you choose to interpret it.  Whether it was pride, jealousy, fear of inadequacy, or whatever other pain or shame had come upon Cain, it brought him to this point, and he became the first murderer among men.

But, God loved Cain.  His instructions to him had only been for his help.  Do good, and you will be accepted.  But, now, Cain was forever changed, and nothing can be hid from the Lord, especially that.  In verse 11, God cursed Cain, and he was cut off from it.  The land would no longer yield its strength to him, and he was cursed to forever be a fugitive and a vagabond.

So, not only do we see one of the earliest and clearest cases of rejection in the heart of man, which led to rebellion, and finally to open sin, we see how its fruition brought about the curse of poverty and the wandering spirit, and constant flight.  All from one sin.

And, Cain recognized what had been pronounced upon him,

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

Genesis 4:13-14

Yet, even in this, the principles of the Kingdom, the mystery of the Kingdom hidden throughout all the ages, including this one, had come into effect.  Cain, in his discovery of his judgment, was a broken man.  There is perhaps little more humbling than when something is irrevocably broken, and you’re standing there looking at it with nothing in the world to do.

Yet, in that place called poverty of Spirit, God’s mercy prevailed, and He said to Cain,

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.

Genesis 4:15

The LORD preserved Cain’s life with a mark, which demanded a seven-fold vengeance.  Though he would have to live his entire life separated from true life in his flesh, his life was spared through his mark, and he was saved.

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

Genesis 4:16

Certainly, the lessons are numerous from the life of Cain, most notably, of humility and perfection.  Yet, even in Cain’s failure, God worked a way to bring even Cain mercy, that, as it is written in Acts,

…having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us;

Acts 17:26b-27

And, as Paul found out on the Road to Damascus…  Even if you’re a murderer like Cain, and even a persecuter from the church, He is not far from each one of us.