Daniel P. Barron

1 And the man knew ⁱ Eve his woman and she conceived and bore Cain ⁱⁱ and said, “I have acquired ⁱⁱⁱ a man from Yehvah.” 2 And she added to bearing, his brother, Abel. ^iv And Abel was a keeper of sheep and Cain was a worker of the ground.

3 And it came to pass at the end of days, ^v Cain brought from the fruit of the ground an offering to Yehvah. 4 And Abel, he also brought from the first born of his flock, and from their fat. ^vi And Yehvah looked ^vii to Abel and his offering, 5 and to Cain and his offering he did not look. So Cain was very angry and his countenance fell. 6 And Yehvah said to Cain, “Why are you angry and why has your countenance fallen? 7 Is it not dignity, ^viii if you do good. But if you do not do good, sin ^ix lies at the door, and its desire is for you, and you should rule over it.”

8 And Cain spoke ^x to Abel his brother, and it came to pass, while they were in the field, Cain ^xi rose up against Abel his brother and killed him. ^xii 9 And Yehvah said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” And he said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” 10 And he said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground. 11 And now, cursed are you from the ground which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it will not increase giving its strength to you. A vagabond ^xiii and a wanderer ^xiv you shall be on the earth.” 13 And Cain said to Yehvah, “My punishment is too great to bear. 14 Behold, you have driven me out today ^xv from the face of the ground and from before your face. I shall be hidden. And I will be a vagabond and a wanderer on the earth, and it shall be that anyone who finds me will kill me.” ^xvi 15 And Yehvah said to him, “Therefore, anyone who kills Cain, vengeance will be taken sevenfold.” So Yehvah put a mark on Cain so anyone who found him would not kill ^xvii him.

16 So Cain went out from before Yehvah and dwelt in the land of Nod, ^xviii east of Eden. 17 And Cain knew his woman and she conceived and bore Enoch. ^xix And he built a city and called the name of the city according to the name of his son, Enoch. 18 And to Enoch was born Irad, ^xx and Irad begot Mehujael; ^xxi and Mehujael begot Methushael; ^xxii and Methushael begot Lamech. ^xxiii

19 And Lamech took for himself two women. ^xxiv The name of the one was Adah ^xxv and the name of the second was Zillah. ^xxvi 20 And Adah bore Jabal. ^xxvii He was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. 21 And the name of his brother was Jubal. ^xxviii He was the father of all who play the harp ^xxix and pipe. ^xxx 22 And Zillah also bore Tubal-Cain, ^xxxi an instructor ^xxxii of every craftsman of bronze ^xxxiii and iron. And the sister of Tubal-Cain was Naamah. ^xxxiv 23 And Lamech said to his women, Adah and Zillah, “Hear my voice women of Lamech, listen to my saying. For I have killed a man for wounding me and a boy ^xxxv for striking me. 24 If Cain is avenged sevenfold, then Lamech seventy seven.” ^xxxvi

25 And Adam knew his woman again and she bore a son and called his name Seth, ^xxxvii “Because Gods, he put to me another seed in place of Abel, because Cain killed him.” 26 And Seth, to him also was born a son; and he called his name Enosh. ^xxxviii Then began a calling on the name of Yehvah.

Genesis 3 - Genesis 5

Translated by Darwin Fish. See original pdf. ^xxxix

1. “knew” - This kind of language is used for sexual intercourse (e.g. Genesis 4:17, 25; 38:26; Judges 11:39; 19:25; 1 Samuel 1:19; Matthew 1:25; and Luke 1:34). ^
2. “Cain” - קַיִן (qayin) - This name for this man is found in Genesis 4; Hebrews 11:4; 1 John 3:12; and Jude 11 (Greek, kain, Kain). There is also “Kain” NKJV (same Hebrew name) in Numbers 24:22; Joshua 15:57 (a city); Judges 4:11 (used in reference to “Kenites” NKJV, a “Kenite” קֵּינִי [qêyniy] is mentioned in this verse). This word is used for “spear” in 2 Samuel 21:16 קֵינוֹ (qêyno) “his spear.” ^
3. קָנִיתִי (qâniytiy) "I have aquired" ^
4. “Abel” - הָבֶל (hâvel) - In the Greek New Testament Abel (abel, abel) is found in Matthew 23:35; Luke 11:51; Hebrews 11:4; 12:24). In the Hebrew, this name is only found in Genesis 4, in 1 Samuel 6:18 for a stone, and in 2 Samuel 20:14-18 for the name of a town. ^
5. “and it came to pass at the end of days” וַיְהִי מִקֵּץ יָמִים (vayhiy miqqêts yâmiym) - this phrase is more literally rendered, “and it was from the end of days.” ^
6. See also Hebrews 11:4; and 12:24. ^
7. “looked” - יִּשַׁע (yyisha`) - Examples of this same word can be found in Exodus 5:9 (regard); 2 Samuel 22:42; Job 7:19; 14:6; Psalm 119:117 (observe); Isaiah 17:7-8; 22:4; and 31:1. ^
8. “dignity” - שְׂאֵת (se'êt) - This word is found in Genesis 49:3 (dignity); Leviticus 13:2, 10, 19, 28, 43 (swelling); Job 13:11 (excellence); 31:23; 41:25 (Hebrew 41:17, raises); Psalm 62:4 (high position); and Habakkuk 1:7 (dignity). ^
9. “sin” - חַטָּאת (chatâ't) - Sin is here personified as it is in Romans 7:7-11, 17, & 20. The verb for sin, חָטָא (châtâ'), means to sin or miss (the right way), as is illustrated in the Hiphil form in Judges 20:16 for “not miss” (אלֹ יַחֲטִא ['lo yachati']) and in Genesis 31:39 where Jacob “missed” the torn (NKJV “I bore the loss of it”, אֲחַטֶּנָּה ['achatennâh]). See also Job 5:24 where NKJV translates אלֹ תֶחֶטָא [('lo techetâ') as “find nothing amiss”, or more literally, “you shall not miss” [anything]. See also Job 41:25 (H17) in the Hithpael (reflexive) form for “they are beside themselves” (NKJV), or i.e. “they miss themselves”, יִתְחַטָּאוּ (yitchattâ'u). ^
10. The Septuagint (LXX) gives, at least in part, what Cain said to Abel, “Let us go out into the field.” (διελθωμεν εις το πεδιον, dielthomen eis to pedion) ^
11. Cain was of the wicked one (1 John 3:12), yet he was a worshipper of Yehvah (Genesis 4:3). ^
12. Abel is the first martyr (see Matthew 23:35 and Luke 11:49-51). ^
13. “vagabond” - נָע (nâ`) - This word is used similarly in Psalm 59:15 (wander); 109:10 (vagabond) and Amos 4:8 (wander). ^
14. “wanderer” - נָד (nâd) - This word is also found in Jeremiah 4:1 (moved). ^
15. “today” הַיּוֹם (hayyom) ^
16. Cain expresses fear of being killed (like what he did to his brother)! He complains about being driven from God! Moreover, he appears to believe God’s word (what the Lord said to him in Genesis 4:11-12). The wicked can believe what God says, yet still be wicked (e.g. Ahab, 1 Kings 21:27-29; Jehu, 2 Kings 9:24-26, 34-37; 10:8-10, 29-31). ^
17. “kill” - הַכּוֹת (hakkot) - This word is used for smiting or striking (e.g. Exodus 21:15, 18-19; Numbers 22:23, 25, 27, 28, 32) even fatally (e.g. Exodus 21:12, 20; 2 Samuel 1:15; 2:23; etc) giving it the idea of “killed” as well (e.g. Deuteronomy 1:4; Job 1:15, 17; 1 Samuel 11:11). ^
18. “Nod” - נוֹד (nod) - Note the similarity of this word to נָד (nâd) “wanderer” in verse 12. ^
19. “Enoch” - חֲנוֹךְ (chanokh) - LXX, ενωχ (evok) - There are other men named Enoch. There is Enoch, the son of Jared, the father of Methuselah (Genesis 5:19-24; 1 Chronicles 1:3; Jude 14-15). Also, there is Enoch the son of Midian (Genesis 25:4, see footnote; 1 Chronicles 1:33) and Enoch the son of Rueben (Genesis 46:9; Exodus 6:14; Numbers 26:5; 1 Chronicles 5:3). These last two are transliterated “Hanock” in the NKJV (“Hanoch” KJV), but the Hebrew spelling is exactly the same (חֲנוֹךְ, hanokh). ^
20. “Irad” - עִירָד (iyrâd) - is only found here. ^
21. “Mehujael - מְחוּיָאֵל (mehuyâ'êl) - is only found here. ^
22. “Methusael - מְתוּשָׁאֵל (methushâ'êl) - is only found here. ^
23. “Lamech” - לָמֶךְ (lâmekh) - This name is spelled here (verse 18) slightly different than in verses 19, 23 & 24 where it is spelled, Jm,l, (lemekh). This same name (and spelling) is found in Genesis 5:25-31 for the father of Noach (see also 1 Chronicles 1:3 and Luke 3:36). ^
24. Lamech is the first recorded polygamist. See our report on Polygamy. ^
25. “Adah” - עָדָה (âdhâh) - There is one other Adah in Scripture, the wife of Esau (Genesis 36:2-16). ^
26. “Zillah” - צִלָּה (tsillâh) - is only found here. ^
27. “Jabal” - יָבָל (yâvâl) - is found only here. ^
28. “Jubal” - יוּבָל (yubâl) - is only found here. ^
29. “harp” - כִּנּוֹר (kinnor) - This may also be translated “lyre” (e.g. NAS). It appears to be something one can carry (e.g. 2 Samuel 6:5; Isaiah 23:16). This word is used extensively throughout the Old Testament. ^
30. “pipe” - עוּגָב (ugâv) - This word is found only here and in Job 21:12; 30:31; and Psalm 150:40. ^
31. “Tubal-Cain” - תּוּבַל קַיִן (tubhal qayin) - is found only here. ^
32. “instructor” - לטֵשׁ (lotêsh) - This is more literally a “sharpener” as can be seen in its usage in 1 Samuel 13:20; Job 16:9; and Psalm 7:12. ^
33. נְתֹשֶׁת (nechoshet) “bronze” - also in its raw form, “copper” (e.g. Deuteronomy 8:9). ^
34. “Naamah” - נַעֲמָה (na`amâh) - This is also the name of the mother of Rehoboam (1 Kings 14:21, 31; 2 Chronicles 12:13), and the name of a city in Joshua 15:41. ^
35. “boy” - יֶלֶד (yeled) - This word expresses youth and offspring. For example, Genesis 21:8, 14-16 it speaks of a boy. In Genesis 30:26 in the plural it speaks of “children,” and in Job 38:41 it speaks of the young offspring of a raven. ^
36. Cain killed Abel because he was evil and Abel was righteous (1 John 3:12). Lamech justifies his murder by the fact that it was provoked by violence. Thus Lamech believes he is justified with an even greater vengeance if he is killed. Lamech exemplifies perverted thinking (see Genesis 9:6; Exodus 21:22-27; Numbers 35:20-21). ^
37. “Seth” - שֵׁת (shêt) - From what Eve says, and from the Hebrew spelling of Seth, it appears Seth means “appointed” or “appointed one.” Eve uses the Hebrew word, שָׁת (shât) for “appointed” in her statement. Moreover, “Seth” can be found only in Genesis 5, 1 Chronicles 1:1 and Numbers 24:17 where the NKJV translates “sons of Seth” as “sons of tumult.” This translation of “Seth” as “tumult” is apparently because of the similar passage in Jeremiah 48:45. But in Jeremiah 48:45 “Seth” is not found in the Hebrew. Instead, it is the actual Hebrew word for “tumult,” שָׁאוֹן (shâ'on). The LXX follows the Hebrew with “Seth” (σηθ, sath) in Numbers 24:17. The NAS & NIV both translate Numbers 24:17 with “Sheth.” ^
38. “Enosh” - אֱנוֹשׁ (enosh) - This name is actually a Hebrew word meaning “man” or “mankind.” As the name of this “man,” it is only found here and in Genesis 5 and 1 Chronicles 1:1. Every other place it can be found follows: Deuteronomy 32:26 (singular in the Hebrew, plural in translation in the NKJV, “men”); 2 Chronicles 14:11 (in the Hebrew, verse 10); Job 4:17; 5:17; 7:1, 17; 9:2; 10:4-5; 13:9; 14:19; 15:14; 25:4, 6; 28:4, 13; 32:8; 33:12, 26; 36:25; Psalm 8:5; 9:20-21; 10:18; 55:14; 56:2; 66:12; 75:5; 90:3; 103:15; 104:15(2x); 144:3; Isaiah 8:1; 13:7, 12; 24:6; 33:8; 51:7, 12; and Jeremiah 20:10. ^
39. Mirrored here. ^