Exploring the Personality of the World's First Murderer

(1) And the man knew Eve his wife; and she conceived and bore Cain, and said: ‘I have acquired a man with the the LORD.’

Kayin: Heb. קַיִן, based on קָנִיתִי, I acquired.

Et Hashem: like עִם יהוה, with the Lord. When He created me and my husband, He alone created us, but with this one, we are partners with Him. — [from Gen. Rabbah 22:2, Mid. Tadshei, Niddah 31a]

(2) ותלד את קין, she bore a son whom she called Kayin, to symbolise what she meant when she said קניתי איש את ה'. Even though the word קין is a composite of 2 different roots, such a construction is quite common.

'קניתי איש את ה, the meaning of these words is: “I have now produced a human being in this world who was not the result of a direct activity by His Creator, which makes me a partner to G’d the Creator...The word קניתי as used by Chavah here is similar to G’d being described asקונה שמים וארץ by Avraham in Genesis 14,22 where it meant that G’d owns heaven and earth because He made it, produced it. The reason why Chavah attributed production of the child to herself was that she, rather than her husband, provided the home for the fetus during the whole period of its development. .

(1) ויהי הבל רועה צאן, Hevel chose this vocation as it required more intelligence and involved one’s mental activities more that farming.

(2) וקין היה עובד אדמה, as a result of each having his own vocation, they each brought different offerings to G’d.

Of the most inferior (Gen. Rabbah 22:5), and there is an Aggadah that states that it was flaxseed (Mid. Tan. Bereishith 9, Targum Jonathan). (Another explanation: of the fruit From whatever came to his hand, not the best and not the choicest.)

מפרי, the Torah is vague about precisely what the offering consisted of, other than saying that it was part of the fruit produced by the earth. We know nothing about the quality or quantity of this offering. Seeing that when describing Hevel’s offering the Torah adds the words: “from the firstborn of his sheep and from their best ones,” it is reasonable to assume that Kayin’s gift, by comparison, was stingy, in fact represented an insult to G’d rather than a grateful acknowledgment of G’d’s part in making the earth produce a crop for him. This is why his offering was not welcome, was rejected. Had Kayin at least brought of the best quality of the produce he had grown, the Torah would have mentioned this to his credit, just as it had done in the case of Hevel’s offering.

(1) והבל הביא גם הוא, this could have been before Kayin brought his offering, or it could have been after Kayin had brought his offering. In the event that Hevel had brought his offering first, we must understand the words גם הוא, “also he,” as referring to the story as such, not to the specific incident.

(1) אל הבל ואל מנחתו, seeing that Hevel was pleasing in the eyes of G’d, his gift was also pleasing, seeing that it consisted of the type of product welcome to G’d as an offering.

(1) ואל קין ואל מנחתו לא שעה, He did not turn to Kayin the donor, as he was not pleasing in the eyes of G’d; He also did not turn with favour to his offering seeing the nature of the offering was not designed to make it welcome;

(1) ואל קין ואל מנחתו לא שעה, but to Kayin and to his offering G’d did not turn benevolently. His intention had not been good and pure; G’d does not need to accept gifts proffered reluctantly, as He is not in need of them. How did Kayin find out that G’d had not looked with favour on his offering? He found out that Hevel’s offering had been accepted, fire descending on it from heaven and consuming it. Nothing of that kind happened to Kayin’s offering. This caused Kayin dismay and anger and his face became downcast. The expression נפלו פניו, describes that someone feels insulted, depressed..

(8) And Cain said to Abel his brother, "Come and let us both go outside." When they both went outside, Cain turned and said to Abel, "I see that the world was created in compassion, but it (the world) is not conducted based on the fruits (i.e. offerings) of good servants [of God], and that there is favor exercised in [God's] judgement. For why was your offering accepted and my offering from me was not accepted [by God] with pleasure?" Abel answered Cain and said, "The world was created in compassion, and it is conducted based on the fruits (i.e. offerings) of good servants [of God], and there is no favor exercised in [God's] judgement. And because the fruits of my labor were better than yours, and [that my offering] preceded yours, my offering was accepted [by God] with pleasure." Cain answered and said to Abel, "There is no judgement, and there is no judge, there is no next world, and good rewards will not be given to the righteous, and punishment will not be exacted on the wicked." Abel answered and said to Cain, "There is judgement, and there is a judge, and there is a next world, and good rewards will be given to the righteous, and punishment will be exacted from the wicked." And in dealing with these matters they argued on the face of the field, and Cain arose onto Abel his brother and sank a stone into his forehead and killed him.

(9) And the LORD said unto Cain: ‘Where is Abel thy brother?’ And he said: ‘I know not; am I my brother’s keeper?’

Am I my brother’s keeper: Heb. הֲשֹׁמֵר. This is a question asked in astonishment, as is every “hey” prefix vowelized with a “chataf pattach.”

(10) And He said: ‘What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto Me from the ground. (11) And now cursed art thou from the ground, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand. (12) When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a wanderer shalt thou be in the earth.’ (13) And Cain said unto the LORD: ‘My punishment is greater than I can bear.

(1) גדול עוני מנשוא, after Kayin finally realised how G’d in Heaven supervises every detail which goes on down on earth, he was convinced that G’d must know that his sole motivation in doing repentance was to escape punishment. Even this type of repentance was wrung from him only after G’d had pressured him to display penitence. He was embittered, and this is what prompted him to exclaim that the severity of his sin was such there was no hope to obtain forgiveness which would protect him against retribution in kind.