The Two Brothers

Adam and Eve had two sons. The first was named Cain, and the second was named Abel. When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd who kept sheep, and Cain became a farmer who worked the ground. One day the brothers brought gifts to the Lord. Cain brought some of the food he had grown. Abel brought the very best of his firstborn lambs. God looked upon Abel and his gift — but to Cain and his gift, God paid no regard. Cain was filled with sorrow, and his face fell. The Lord God said to Cain, “Why are you so sad? Why has your face fallen? If you brought your gift rightly but did not divide it rightly, was that not a sin? Be still.”

But Cain did not listen to God. He said to his brother, “Let us go out to the field.” And out in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” And Cain answered, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” But God said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.”

So Cain had to leave his home and his family, and go far away to live in another land. The ground would not grow good crops for him anymore. Cain was afraid, but God set a mark on him so that no one who found him would kill him. But God gave Adam and Eve another son in place of Abel, and they named him Seth. Seth had a son named Enosh, who hoped to call on the name of the Lord God. Many, many years went by, and their children’s children filled the land.