Genesis 4:1–12

Cain Murders Abel

¹Adam made love to his wife Eve. She became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “I have gotten the man that the Lord promised.” ²Then she gave birth to another child, Abel, Cain’s brother. Abel was a shepherd, and Cain was a farmer. 

³Later Cain brought some crops from the land as an offering to the Lord. ⁴Abel also brought some choice parts of the firstborn animals from his flock. The Lord approved of Abel and his offering, ⁵but he didn’t approve of Cain and his offering. So Cain became very angry and was disappointed. ⁶Then the Lord asked Cain, “Why are you angry, and why do you look disappointed? ⁷If you do well, won’t you be accepted? But if you don’t do well, sin is lying outside your door ready to attack. It wants to control you, but you must master it.” 

⁸Cain talked to his brother Abel. Later, when they were in the fields, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. 

⁹The Lord asked Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” 

“I don’t know,” he answered. “Am I supposed to take care of my brother?” 

¹⁰The Lord asked, “What have you done? Your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground. ¹¹So now you are cursed from the ground, which has received the blood of your brother whom you killed. ¹²When you farm the ground, it will no longer yield its best for you. You will be a fugitive, a wanderer on the earth.”