In my introduction to Genesis I stated that I would strive to use the principle of Ockham's Razor (also known as the law of parsimony) in these studies.  There is so much in the early chapters of Genesis that is not said, and we have to read between the lines and make assumptions.  We have to draw the  most likely conclusions based upon what we know today about human behavior, and about science.

Some of the interpretations are solely mine.  They are what I believe is the simplest explanation drawing upon information from the rest of the Bible, and other sources as well, but you have to draw your own conclusions.  That is true not only here in Genesis but throughout the entire Bible as well.  Don't hesitate to challenge my conclusions (or anyone else's), and don't be afraid to tell me about what you think.  You just may be correct and we can both learn that way.  My email address is at the bottom of every lesson, and on every page.

In chapter 3 the serpent, the shining one, beguiled (or seduced) Eve, and in this chapter we will see the result.  The first verse in this chapter shows that Cain was the result.

The word LORD is translated from the name of God, Yahweh (Strong's No. 3068).  Its usage here may be troubling to some because of Ex. 6:33.

The author of Genesis and Exodus was presumably Moses, and he definitely knew God by the name of Yahweh, the I AM.  So did his scribe, if he used one, and one of them actually wrote God's name here in verse 1 but it doesn't have to be incorrect.

True, the three main patriarchs of Israel did not know the name Yahweh, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Eve did not?  It's possible that Adam and Eve knew more about God and His plans than anyone then, or after them, because He was speaking face to face with them almost on a casual basis.  You might say that they were personal close friends of His.

Most Bible scholars and students assume that the first clause of this verse means that Adam had sexual relations with his wife, and that Cain was the son of Adam.  I can understand why they think that based upon the way the verse is translated, but other scriptures indicate that it is not correct.  Adam indeed knew his wife.  All husbands have sexual contact with their wives but in this case someone else also knew her, or I should say, had already known her.  There are other scriptures in the Bible corroborating this conclusion.

John puts it very clearly     Cain was the literal offspring of Lucifer. 

1 John 3:12 Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous.

In the parable of the tares in Matthew 13, Jesus taught that the devil has children.  Cain was his firstborn and it was through him that the tares came.  The are called Kenites in the scriptures.  Kenite translated basically means "descendant of Cain".

Matt. 13:38  The field is the world;  the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;

Matt. 13:39  The enemy that sowed them is the devil;  the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.

To learn more about the tares study the lesson entitled, Who Are The Tares? at ourfathersword.org.

Now, let's go back to up Gen. 4:1 and  look closely at the last clause.  The Hebrew transliterated is, qanah ish eth Yahweh, which could also be translated, [I] have acquired a man, even Yahweh.  If that indeed was what she said, then Eve thought that the male child she had just given birth to was the  promised Messiah.  But in reality what she had gotten was Cain, son of the devil himself.

So, how could this happen that an evil one such as Cain could be the first child born to Adam and Eve?  They were created for a special purpose     to bring forth the Messiah.  They had to know that.  The Creator was their friend and confidant.  He surely would have informed them of their destiny.  It all demonstrates the powerful influence that Lucifer (and his offspring) can have on humanity.

Eve was a fine woman and the perfect wife for Adam, as least as is humanly possible.  She would not have simply given in to someone unless she was convinced that it was the right thing to do.  That is true even for the dazzling and mesmerizing Lucifer, but he found a way to get to her anyway.  He  lied to Eve in a very convincing way.  He suggested that God had actually deceived her and Adam, and that they could be like the 'elohim if they would only listen to him and do what he said.  He convinced her that if she would couple with him they could bring forth a messiah immediately as her firstborn child.

To truly understand this you have to consider the intensive persuasiveness of the great communicator, Lucifer.  He can come at us from a thousand different directions all the while pretending to be so good and so righteous.  The last clause of verse 1 is concerning the birth of Cain, and based on the alternate translation that I suggested above, it would indicate that she believed him and submitted herself to him.  First, mentally (spiritually, if you prefer) and then physically.  Of course, Cain was not the Messiah, he was the son of the devil himself and from henceforth his offspring, the tares, would be a bane to the Adamic race, and in fact, to the entire world. 
Some teach that verses 1 and 2 indicate that Cain and Abel were fraternal twins.  That is a possibility  but it doesn't have to be so.  There is no direct statement by the author that she had twins inside her like in other places in Genesis     vis-a-vis, Gen. 25:24 and Gen. 38:27.    Regardless of whether they were in the womb together or separately, it is obvious that Cain preceded Abel.  
Why did they do this?  The scriptures thus far have said nothing about God requiring offerings and such.  These offerings appear to be freewill offerings, but the wording almost gives the idea that this was done on a special day, or schedule.  Hummm?  Wonder if this might have something to do with the signs and seasons that were mentioned back on day four of creation?  A harvest celebration, as it were, or something like that.

In any case, Abel's offering was graciously accepted by God, but...
Some have taught that the reason for God rejecting Cain's offering was that it was the scraps and culls left over from his harvest and threshing.  That's possible however unlikely, but there could be more to it than that.  God does not like man hybridizing the things He created.  Remember, when he looked at His creation, "behold, it was very good" (Gen. 1:31).  It was perfect just as He had made it, and there was no reason for man to try and improve upon it.  It is entirely possible that Cain, a blasphemous hybrid himself, and very intelligent, began to experiment with cross-pollinization of his produce.  Why not?  It is done today on widespread basis.  In fact, nearly everything we consume from the fields is hybridized or genetically altered.  Not good!  Not good at all!

Some have thought that Cain's offerings was inferior because it was not in animal form.  But, we don't know that to be true because so far in Genesis there have been no commandments or instructions written concerning offerings.  So, who decided that vegetables or grain is inferior to animals as an offering anyway?

Some have said that God rejected Cain's offering because he had a bad attitude, and that he brought his offering reluctantly.  But, look at who is mentioned first as bringing an offering to God.  Absolutely, it was Cain first, and then Abel followed suit.  It doesn't look like he was reluctant to me.  He became murderously jealous when his brother's offering was accepted and his rejected.  To me that shows that he genuinely wanted to be accepted by  God, but he wasn't following the rules which would make him acceptable.  Like his father Lucifer, he had a better way of doing things.

There is some possibility that, although Cain is mentioned as bringing his offering first, he may have brought it on the wrong day.  That is not stated, but it is possible.  When God set the heavens in day four of creation to allow man to see and keep track of the signs and seasons*, He may have later informed Adam and his children about them, and when and how they should be observed.  Perhaps Cain had resorted to using the moon cycles to calculate them instead of using God's solar calendar.  That is the way it is done today, and as a result they are almost universally celebrated on the wrong day of the year by those who observe them.

(*Late note:  I meant for signs and seasons here to include God's holydays but that was not made clear so I am adding this late note to correct that error of omission.)  

Whatever the reason, God rejected Cain's offering because it was contrary to His wishes or prior instructions in some fashion.

Consider the following New Testament comments concerning Cain.

His works were evil.  That means he was doing things contrary to God's way.  Remind you of any other prominent figure in the Bible?  Like maybe his father, Lucifer?  Lucifer was jealous over Yahweh (the I AM) who later became Jesus Christ, and he had Him murdered through his offspring, the Kenites.  Cain also murdered his brother because he was jealous.  Abel was following the rules while Cain did not, and the same was true of Yahweh and Lucifer respectively.

The result of Cain's works were unacceptable to God, inferior, and probably polluted or profane.
What the exact way of Cain was is not stated but it obviously was contrary to God's wishes.  Balaam practiced religion for money, or wealth, and Core (Korah) sought to perform a coup d'etat and seize power from Moses almost immediately after the children of Israel exited Egypt.
To say that Cain was upset would be an understatement.  It just occurred to me that Cain may have thought that he was special.  He was the firstborn of Eve and that did give him a special status.  Could it be possible that he also thought that he actually was a messiah?  Did he anticipate being favored by God when he brought his sacrifice?  If so, what a stunning jolt it must have been to be rejected.
Cain was in a jealous rage, not so much toward God, but toward his brother.  After all, wasn't he the  firstborn?  Shouldn't he be accepted over his brother?
Siblings, males and females, always fight when they are young, but these two were grown men.  Cain has always been called a murderer and I have always thought of him in that way, but it is possible that when Cain confronted Abel he no real intention of killing him.  Sibling jealousy seldom ends in death for either party even when they fight.

But, The Companion Bible says that some words are missing, or are different from this verse in some of the MSS.  It suggests that the words and it came to pass , when they were in the field should read:  let us go into the field.  That wording would definitely imply premeditation, but not necessarily for Cain to kill his brother.

And, in The Interlinear Bible (Green's) the literal translation of this verse says:  And talked Cain with Abel his brother; and as they were in the field, rose up Cain against Abel his brother and killed him.

Nothing in these verses gives hard evidence saying that it was premeditated murder.  Verse 8 says that Cain and Abel talked, and they probably argued.  A jealous argument often leads to violence, and in this case someone was killed.

In a way, when you think about it, this may be the first instance of blood being spilled over a religious cause.  Since that day it has never stopped.  Some aver that most wars throughout man's history have been fought over religion.  That may be true.  Look at what is happening right at this moment in time.  Many have turned this so-called war against terror into a war again Muslims.  Listen to the rhetoric streaming through the media and you will find that is so. 
It is never stated what Cain did with the body of his murdered brother.  Nor did Cain admit what he had done.  
There are no unsolved crimes in Heaven today, nor was there then.  Everyone will answer for their sins eventually.
In verse 12, substitute refugee for fugitive, and immigrant for vagabond.  Wanderer and emigrant would also be appropriate.  Fugitive is translated from the Hebrew word nuwa' (Strong's No. 5128) which is a primitive root meaning to waver.  Figuratively it can mean continually, fugitive, be gone away, remove, and scatter among other things.  The word vagabond is translated from nuwd (Strong's No. 5110) which is a primitive root meaning to nod.  Figuratively to wander, flee or disappear.
It is because of this verse that some teach that Cain and his descendants, the Kenites, cannot farm, but that doesn't seem reasonable when one considers that God is natural, and the soil is natural.  What it produces basically depends on its condition, composition, moisture, temperature, and proper amounts of sunshine.  Farming methods also play into what the soil will yield to the farmer, not who the farmer is genetically.

It is possible for God to withhold rain from a particular area, or even a particular person's fields, but that is unlikely to occur based on genetic considerations.  So why did God say that the soil would not "yield unto thee her strength"?  There are numerous possibilities.

First, if Cain, and his progeny, were to be wanderers and refugees in the Earth they probably would never be able to farm at all except for relatively short periods of time.  They would always be moving about and that would certainly upset the sowing, growing, and harvest cycles.
 
Second, it may go back to Cain's sacrifice which was not acceptable to God.  Why?  His farming methods were probably contrary to nature, and it is entirely possible that he was crosspollinating and hybridizing to create larger and larger yields?  What is the result of crosspolinization and hybridizing?  Hybrids are not natural as God created them with the proper levels of nutrition.  Their nutritive components, while still there, are not in the proper balances as they were originally.  In an oblique way, that is one example where the ground would not yield unto thee her strength.

Third, Cain and his descendants have always had to keep their bags packed for a fast getaway.  As a result, when they were able to settle down for a while they may have resorted to aggressive farming practices like "forcing the soil".  The  soil in many places on Earth today does not provide the proper nutrients anymore because of such things.  In other words, it does not yield unto thee her strength because it was forced unnaturally to produce, usually by the heavy use of fertilizers.

Fourth, Cain was being forced to leave the area where he and his family lived.  They all probably lived in close proximity to Eden and in the Tarim Basin in central Asia.  Who knows what it was like in those days?  The soil was likely to have been very productive in the bottom of the Basin where four rivers are located with their nourishing silt deposits and fresh water.  Wherever Cain went the soil was not as likely be as rich in nutrients.

There are other possiblities also.  Work with it.
The Companion Bible says that the last clause of this verse should read:  Is my iniquity too great to be forgiven?
Cain realized that when he left the place of safety where he lived near Eden that he would encounter other people who may not be friendly.  This verse is testimony to the fact that there were other people on the Earth, and very likely also in the Tarim Basin where Adam and his family lived.
Every Bible student has wondered about this so-called mark of Cain.  It is translated from the Hebrew word 'owth (Strong's No. 226) and means a signal.  It is translated sign(s) 60 times, token(s) 14 times, ensign(s) 2 times, miracles 2 times, and mark only once, and that is in this verse.

The exact nature of it is not revealed but God placed some kind of sign upon Cain, a warning as it were, to leave him alone.  That warning sign not only applied to Cain de facto but also to all of his descendants.  Even today, if someone takes it upon themselves to harm the Kenites the same rule applies just like it did to Cain himself.  Throughout history they have been decimated from time to time, but those who did it were always severely chastised.  See my work at ourfathersword.org entitled, Who Are The Tares? for more on Cain's offspring, the Kenites.

Nobody knows to a certainty where Nod (the land of Wandering) was but here it is said to be east of Eden, and that way lies the vastness of China and Mongolia.
This is the first mention in the Bible of anyone building a city.  The next seven verses are the generations of Cain.  It is separate from Adam's geneology, as you will see, which is another indicator that Cain was not the son of Adam.
Whether Kenites can farm or not is subjective, but they certainly can herd animals as they move from place to place.
Organ here should probably read pan flute, or perhaps pan pipe.  When God created Lucifer, he made him the full measure, and within him is the greastest musical talent that has ever existed.  His children through Cain have in large measure inherited his musical talents, and you can hear and enjoy the result of those talents everywhere today.
No one really knows exactly when Tubal-cain was born, but using the Bible timeline starting with Adam, and for the sake of illustration let's say it was 3500 BCE (+/- 100 years or so).  That would be close enough for our needs here.  My handy-dandy Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia says that the bronze age of human civilization began about 3500 BC.  So if we substitute bronze for brass, the timeline would be just about right.  Bronze is a mixture of copper and tin, and those two metal ores are often found together.  Brass is a mixture of copper and zinc, and those two ores are also sometimes found together.  So, it is possible that both bronze and brass could have been made in crude form in the days of Tubalcain.

Iron is another matter because the iron age didn't begin until about 1000 BCE, or about 2,500 years later.  That would seem to leave out iron, but hold on.  "Iron was used by primitive mankind", again according to my Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia.

Consider also the following statement concerning iron from that same encyclopedia.  


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From Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia © 1998 The Learning Company, Inc.

It would have been a remarkable achievement for Tubal-cain to know about iron at this early stage, but it is possible that he was using it in some crude form.  He had expert help and instruction according to the ancient book of Enoch, a book of the Old Testament pseudepigrapha.

The following is taken from Volume 1 of The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, edited by James H. Charlesworth, and published by Doubleday.  It is from the ancient Book of Enoch.

I included all of chapter 8 to show some of the other things that the fallen angels taught the people during those times, but the part that I think applies to bronze and iron is underlined.  It is all "very interesting" as Arte Johnson of Laugh In used to say.

Now, back to Genesis.
According to The Companion Bible the last two clauses in verse 23 should actually read:  "I can kill a man for wounding me, and a young man for hurting me".  It also states that "shall be avenged" should be added on the end of verse 24.  If these are correct assertions then they could indicate that Lamech was speaking to his wives in a threatening manner here.  If so, it makes you wonder what caused him to speak to them in that manner.  But, maybe his comments were not because of anything they were doing.  Maybe his son Tubal-cain had given him some of the weaponry that he had fashioned and Lamech was proudly bragging about it.  Weapons, or any armaments made of metal were high tech back then.  Almost any man would have been proud of them.

According to ancient stories and legends, Cain was killed about this time in history.  I can't readily remember the source but one tells that Cain was killed by Tubal-cain, and another found in the ancient Book of Jubilees tells that he was killed when his house fell in on him during an earthquake.  He was killed by a stone, or rock, in the same manner that he had killed Abel in the field.

Whether either story is true or not is subjective, but if he was murdered by Tubal-cain, or Lamech, or anyone else, it makes me wonder if these verses are not a corrupt reference to that event.  Considering the timeline here, it also makes me wonder if he died (for any reason) when he was 666 years old.  Or even 666 years after Adam was created.  "Very interesting!"

Have you noticed by now that this whole chapter concerns itself with the subject of Cain, and seven generations of his descendants?  Actually, there are six generations if you don't count Cain, but Lamech had two wives and they each produced offspring.  It reveals the beginning linage of Cain for seven generations to show that it was separate from that of Adam.  That is important, because Cain was not the son of Adam.  You will see that in the next chapter in which the generations of Adam are given, and Cain is not among them for that reason.     
We are still on the subject of Cain here.  Cain killed Abel and Seth is being shown here as his replacement.  That is not to say for certain that he was the first child, boy or girl, that was born to Adam and Eve after Abel was killed, but he was the first son that would be in the lineage of Jesus Christ.  Why do I say that he may not have been the first child born after Abel was killed?  Because the book of Jubilees states that 28 years passed between Abel and Seth, and that is a lot of time for a young virile couple to go childless.
Okay, verse 25 was written to show that Seth replaced Abel whom Cain had murdered, but why is  verse 26 specifically mentioning Enos, and Yahweh?  Enos and Seth are both listed in the next chapter in the generations of Adam, so there has to be something important here that Moses was saying to us.

Verse 26 in the KJV, ASV, NSV, and the Phillips all say essentially the same thing with only slight differences in the wording.  The Companion Bible is different.  It says in the notes that men began to profane the name of Yahweh at that time, or that men began to call themselves by that name.

The literal translation of verse 26 from Hebrew to English would look something like the following:

 
This may have been the beginning of practicing religion among the Adamic people.  They began to use God's name in profane ways and to pollute the true knowledge of him.  Seth and Enos are not said to be guilty of these things, but that it started in their days.  Work with it.

Next we'll see the generations of Adam.  Don't miss it.