And the LORD said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I do not know!” he answered. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh said to Cain, “Where is Abel, your brother?” He said, “I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”
- KJV And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper?
- NKJV Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”
- NASB Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” And he said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”
- NLT Afterward the Lord asked Cain, “Where is your brother? Where is Abel?” “I don’t know,” Cain responded. “Am I my brother’s guardian?”
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
God asks Cain where Abel is, and Cain lies, denying responsibility for his brother. It exposes sin compounded by deceit and callous indifference.
Overview
God's question gives Cain another chance to confess, but he answers with a lie and a dismissive question, denying any duty toward his brother. His words reveal a hardened heart unwilling to own his guilt. Scripture answers his cynical question throughout, teaching that we are indeed called to love and care for one another.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Prov 28:13He who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.
- 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 9:12For the Avenger of bloodshed remembers; He does not ignore the cry of the afflicted.
- Ps 10:13–14Why has the wicked man renounced God? He says to himself, “You will never call me to account.”
- Acts 5:4–9Did it not belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? How could you conceive such a deed in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God!”
- Gen 37:32They sent the robe of many colors to their father and said, “We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son’s robe or not.”
- Gen 3:9–11But the LORD God called out to the man, “Where are you?”
- Job 22:13–14Yet you say: ‘What does God know? Does He judge through thick darkness?
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 4:9 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.