Later she gave birth to Cain’s brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, while Cain was a tiller of the soil.
Parallel translations
- WEB Again she gave birth, to Cain’s brother Abel. Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
- KJV And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
- NKJV Then she bore again, this time his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
- NASB And again, she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of flocks, but Cain was a cultivator of the ground.
- NLT Later she gave birth to his brother and named him Abel. When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Eve bears a second son, Abel, and the two brothers take up shepherding and farming. It introduces the first family and sets the stage for the first conflict.
Overview
Abel becomes a keeper of flocks and Cain a worker of the soil, both honest callings reflecting the labor of a fallen world. Their different occupations frame the offerings each will bring to God. The narrative quickly turns to how each brother relates to God, revealing that the heart, not the vocation, is what matters.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- 1 Jn 3:15Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that eternal life does not reside in a murderer.
- 1 Jn 3:12Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did Cain slay him? Because his own deeds were evil, while those of his brother were righteous.
- Luke 11:51from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, all of it will be charged to this generation.
- Gen 47:3“What is your occupation?” Pharaoh asked Joseph’s brothers. “Your servants are shepherds,” they replied, “both we and our fathers.”
- 1 Jn 3:10By this the children of God are distinguished from the children of the devil: Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is anyone who does not love his brother.
- John 8:44You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out his desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, refusing to uphold the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, because he is a liar and the father of lies.
- Ps 78:70–72He chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds;
- Exod 3:1Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.
- Gen 46:32–34The men are shepherds; they raise livestock, and they have brought their flocks and herds and all that they own.’
- Gen 3:23Therefore the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken.
- Gen 9:20Now Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard.
- Amos 7:15But the LORD took me from following the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to My people Israel.’
- Ps 127:3Children are indeed a heritage from the LORD, and the fruit of the womb is His reward.
- Gen 37:13Israel said to him, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flocks at Shechem? Get ready; I am sending you to them.” “I am ready,” Joseph replied.
- Gen 4:25–26And Adam again had relations with his wife, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, saying, “God has granted me another seed in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.”
- Gen 30:29–31Then Jacob answered, “You know how I have served you and how your livestock have thrived under my care.
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 4:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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