Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, and you must rule over it.”

Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him (Genesis 4:3-8).

In this text, the Lord acknowledges Abel’s offering and showers him with divine favour, while Cain’s offering is ignored.

Many have attempted to explain why Cain’s offering was rejected, though the text itself does not explain.

Some have argued that Cain’s offering was disregarded because it was not the first fruits of his harvest.

Although the text does make this subtle distinction between the sacrifices of the two brothers, firstfruits of the ground were only required at the Harvest festival, which is not the setting of our text.

Others have suggested that Cain’s offering was rejected on account of his wickedness, or because his cereal offering was inferior to Abel’s sacrifice of livestock. However, the text offers no confirmation of these theories.

Why he killed Abel

While we may not know the reason why Cain’s offering was rejected, we do know why he killed his brother, Abel.

Inspired by his brother’s pious offering, Cain offers a sacrifice from his own harvest. However, when this sacrifice is rejected, Cain feels cheated.

I think we can all empathise with Cain. Sometimes, life seems unfair. Even though we do everything right, things can still go wrong.

Anger‘s consequences

At this point, when Cain feels cheated and angry, the Lord challenges him to shift his focus from the blessing he did not receive to his response to it.

If Cain chooses the path of non-violence, all will be well. However, Cain’s anger drives him to kill his own brother.

He is then driven away from the Lord’s presence (which symbolises divine blessing) and destined to a life of futile labour, as the cursed ground refuses to yield a bountiful harvest.

Choosing a better path

When we become fixated on what we have lost, and how unfairly we have been treated, anger grows and impairs our ability to choose what is right and helpful.

Anger and rage lead to suffering and death.

But laying aside the resentment of the past empowers us to move forward and choose a better path, one that leads to health and prosperity.

• Dr Simon Skidmore is a Brisbane-based biblical scholar and educator. He is the creator of The Mimetic Exegete podcast, which applies mimetic theory to biblical texts, offering unique insights and practical applications. His recent book, Capital Punishment in the Pentateuch, explores ritual killing through René Girard’s mimetic theory.