sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life: 18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field. 19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, cause to bred. thou hast hearkened to the voice of thy wife. He excused the fault, by laying it on his wife, She gave it me: but God does not admit the excuse; she could but tempt him, she could not force him; though it was her fault to persuade him to eat it, it was his fault to hearken to her. Thus men's frivolous pleas will, in the day of God's judgment, not only be overruled, but turned against them, and made the grounds of their sentence, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee. God put marks of his displeasure on Adam in three instances. till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. 20 And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living. ↑ Chavah, living. p Acts 17. 26. never eat with pleasure, (Job 21. 25,) through sickness or I. His habitation is, by this sentence, cursed; Cursed is the ground for thy sake; and the effect of that curse is, Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth unto thee. It is here intimated that his habitation should be changed; he should no longer dwell in a distinguished, blessed paradise, but should be removed to common ground, and that cursed. The ground, or earth, is here put for the whole visible creation, which, by the sin of man, is made subject to vanity, the several parts of it being not so serviceable to man's comfort and happiness, as they were designed to be when they were made, and would have been if he had not sinned. God gave the earth to the children of men, designing it to be a comfortable dwelling to them; but sin has altered the property of it, it is now cursed for man's sin; that is, it is a dishonourable habitation, it bespeaks man mean, that his foundation is in the dust; it is a dry and barren habitation, its spontaneous productions are now weeds and briars, something nauseous or noxious; what good fruits it produces, must be extorted from it by the ingenuity and industry of man. Fruitfulness was its blessing, for man's service, ch. 1. 11, 29; and now barrenness was its curse, for man's punishment. It is not what it was in the day it was created. Sin turned a fruitful land into barrenness; and man, being become as the wild ass's colt, has the wild ass's lot, Job 39. 6; the wilderness for his habitation, and the barren land his dwelling, Ps. 68. 6. Had not this curse been, in part, removed, for aught I know, the earth had been for ever barren, and had never produced any thing but thorns and thistles. The ground is cursed, that is, doomed to destruction, at the end of time, when the earth, and all the works that are therein, shall be burnt up for the sin of man, the measure of whose iniquity will then be full, 2 Pet. 3. 7, 10. But observe a mixture of mercy in this sentence; 1. Adam is not himself cursed, as the serpent was, v. 14, but only the ground for his sake. God had blessings in him, even the holy seed; Destroy it not, for that blessing is in it, Is. 65. 8. And he had blessings in store for him; therefore he is not directly and immediately cursed, but, as it were, at second hand. 2. He is yet above ground; the earth does not open, and swallow him up, only it is not what it was: as he con-earth. [3.] That sin brought death into the world; if Adam tinues alive, notwithstanding his degeneracy from his primitive purity and rectitude, so the earth continues to be his habitation, notwithstanding its degeneracy from its primitive beauty and fruitfulness. 3. This curse upon the earth, which cut off all expectations of a happiness in things below, might direct and quicken him to look for bliss and satisfaction only in things above. II. His employments and enjoyments are all imbittered to him. 1. His business shall from henceforth become a toil to him, and he shall go on with it in the sweat of his face, v. 19. His business, before he sinned, was a constant pleasure to him: the garden was then dressed without any uneasy labour, and kept without any uneasy care; but now, his labour shall be a weariness, and shall waste his body; his care shall be a torment, and shall afflict his mind. The curse upon the ground, which made it barren, and produce thorns and thistles, made his employment about it much more difficult and toilsome. If Adam had not sinned, he had not sweat. Observe here, (1.) That labour is our duty, which we must faithfully perform we are bound to work, not as creatures only, but as criminals; it is part of our sentence, which idleness daringly defies. (2.) That uneasiness and weariness with labour are our just punishment, which we must patiently submit to, and not complain of, since they are less than our iniquity deserves. Let not us, by inordinate care and labour, make our punishment heavier than God has made it; but rather, study to lighten our burden, and wipe off our sweat, by observing Providence in all, and expecting rest shortly, 2. His food shall from henceforth become (in comparison with what it had been) unpleasant to him. (1.) The matter of his food is changed; he must now eat the herb of the field, and must no longer be feasted with the delicacies of the garden of Eden: having by sin made himself like the beasts that perish, he is justly turned to be a fellow-commoner with them, and to eat grass as oren, till he know that the heavens do rule. (2.) There is a change in the manner of his eating it; in sorrow, (v. 17,) and in the sweat of his face, (v. 19,) he must eat of it. Adam could not but eat in sorrow all the days of his life, remembering the forbidden fruit he had eaten, and the guilt and shame he had contracted by it. Observe, [1.] That human life is exposed to many miseries and calamities, which very much imbitter the poor remains of its pleasures and delights: some We must not go off from this sentence upon our first parents, which we are all so nearly concerned in, and feel from, to this day, till we have considered two things. First, How fitly the sad consequences of sin upon the soul of Adam and his sensual race, were represented and figured out by this sentence, and perhaps were more intended in it than we are aware of. Though that misery only is mentioned, which affected the body, yet that was a pattern of spiritual miseries, the curse that entered into the soul. 1. The pains of a woman in travail represent the terrors and pangs of a guilty conscience, awakened to a sense of sin; from the conception of lust, these sorrows are greatly multiplied, and, sooner or later, will come upon the sinner like pain upon a woman in travail, which cannot be avoided. 2. The state of subjection which the woman was reduced to, represents that loss of spiritual liberty and freedom of will, which is the effect of sin. The dominion of sin in the soul is compared to that of a husband, Rom. 7. 1-5; the sinner's desire is towards it, for he is fond of his slavery, and it rules over him. 3. The curse of barrenness which was brought upon the earth, and its produce of briers and thorns, are a fit representation of the barrenness of a corrupt and sinful soul in that which is good, and its fruitfulness in evil. It is all grown over with thorns, and nettles cover the face of it; and therefore it is nigh unto cursing, Heb. 6. 8. 4. The toil and sweat bespeak the difficulty which, through the infirmity of the flesh, man labours under, in the service of God, and the work of religion; so hard is it now become to enter into the kingdom of heaven. 5. The imbittering of his food to him bespeaks the soul's want of the comfort of God's favour, which is life, and the bread of life. 6. The soul, like the body, returns to the dust of this world, its tendency is that way; it has an earthy taint, John 3. 31. Secondly, How admirably the satisfaction our Lord Jesus made by his death and sufferings, answered to the sentence here passed upon our first parents! 1. Did travailing pains come in with sin? We read of the travail of Christ's soul, Is. 53. 11, and the pains of death he was held by, are called voivat, Acts 2. 24, the pains of a woman in travail. 2. Did subjection 21 Unto Adam also, and to his wife, did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them. 22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever; 9 Is. 61. 10. Phil. 3. 9. r ver. 5. • Rev. 2. 7. come in with sin? Christ was made under the law, Gal. 4. 4. 3. Did the curse come in with sin? Christ was made a curse for us, died a cursed death, Gal. 3. 13. 4. Did thorns come in with sin? He was crowned with thorns for us. 5. Did sweat come in with sin? He sweat for us, as it had been great drops of blood. 6. Did sorrow come in with sin? He was a man of sorrows, his soul was, in his agony, exceeding sorrowful. 7. Did death come in with sin? He became obedient unto death. Thus is the plaster as wide as the wound; blessed be God for Jesus Christ! V. 20. God having named the man, and called him Adam, which signifies red earth; Adam, in further token of dominion, named the woman, and called her Eve, that is, life. Adam bears the name of the dying body, Eve of the living soul. The reason of the name is here given, some think, by Moses the historian, others by Adam himself, because she was, that is, was to be, the mother of all living. He had before called her Ishah, woman, as a wife: here he calls her Evah, life, as a mother. Now, 1. If this was done by divine direction, it was an instance of God's favour, and, like the new naming of Abraham and Sarah, it was a seal of the covenant, and an assurance to them, that, notwithstanding their sin and his displeasure against them for it, he had not reversed that blessing wherewith he had blessed them, Be fruitful and multiply; it was likewise a confirmation of the promise now made, that the Seed of the woman, of this woman, should break the serpent's head. 2. If Adam did it of himself, it was an instance of his faith in the word of God: doubtless it was not done, as some have suspected, in contempt or defiance of the curse, but rather in a humble confidence and dependence upon the blessing; (1.) The blessing of a reprieve, admiring the patience of God, and that he should spare such sinners to be the parents of all living, and that he did not immediately shut up those fountains of the human life and nature, because they could send forth no other than polluted, poisoned, streams; (2.) The blessing of a Redeemer, the promised Seed, to whom Adam had an eye, in calling his wife Eve, life; for he should be the life of all the living, and in him all the families of the earth should be blessed, in hope of which he thus triumphs. V. 21. We have here a further instance of God's care concerning our first parents, notwithstanding their sin. Though he correct his disobedient children, and put them under the marks of his displeasure, yet ho does not disinherit them, but, like a tender father, provides the herb of the field for their food, and coats of skins for their clothing; thus the father provided for the returning prodigal, Luke 15. 22, 23. If the Lord had been pleased to kill them, he would not have done this for them. Observe, 1. That clothes came in with sin; we had had no occasion for them, either for defence or decency, if sin had not made us naked, to our shame. Little reason therefore we have to be proud of our clothes, which are but the badges of our poverty and infamy. 2. That when God made clothes for our first parents, he made them warm and strong, but coarse and very plain, not robes of scarlet, but coats of skin. Their clothes were made, not of silk and satin, but plain skins, not trimmed, nor embroidered, none of the ornaments which the daughters of Zion afterwards invented, and prided themselves in. Let the poor that are meanly clad, learn hence not to complain; having food and a covering, let them be content; they are as well done to, as Adam and Eve were: and let the rich, that are finely clad, learn hence not to make the putting on of apparel their adorning, 1 Pet. 3. 3. 3. That God is to be acknowledged with thankfulness, not only in giving us food, but in giving us clothes also, ch. 28. 20. The wool and the flar are his, as well as the corn and the wine, Hos. 2. 9. 4. These coats of skin had a significancy. The beasts whose skins they were, must be slain, slain before their eyes, to show them what death is, and (as it is Ec. 3. 18) that they may see that they themselves are beasts, mortal and dying. It is supposed that they were slain, not for food, but for sacrifice, to typify the Great Sacrifice, which in the latter end of the world should be offered once for all: thus the first thing that died, was a sacrifice, or Christ in a figure, who is therefore said to be the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. These sacrifices were divided between God and man, in token of reconciliation; the flesh was offered to God, a whole burntoffering, the skins were given to man for clothing; signifying that Jesus Christ having offered himself to God a sacrifice of a sweet-smelling savour, we are to clothe ourselves with his righteousness as with a garment, that the shame of our nakedness may not appear. Adam and Eve made for themselves aprons of fig-leaves, a covering too narrow for them to wrap themselves in, Is. 28. 20. Such are all the rags of our own righteousness. But God made them coats of skins, large, and strong, and durable, and fit for them; such is the righteousness of Christ, therefore put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ. V. 22-24. Sentence being passed upon the offenders, we t ver. 19. u Ps. 80. 1, &c. 99. 1. 1 Chr. 21. 16. to Heb. 10. 20. have here execution, in part, done upon them immediately. Observe here, I. How they were justly disgraced and shamed before God and the holy angels, by that ironical upbraiding of them with the issue of their enterprise," Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil. A goodly god he makes! Does he not? See what he has got, what preferments, what advantages, by eating forbidden fruit!" This was said, to awaken and humble them, and to bring them to a sense of their sin and folly, and to repentance for it, that seeing themselves thus wretchedly deceived by following the Devil's counsel, they might henceforth pursue the happiness God should offer, in the way he should prescribe. God thus fills their faces with shame, that they may seek his name, Ps. 83. 16. He puts them to this confusion, in order to their conversion. True penitents will thus upbraid themselves, "What fruit have I now by sin? Rom. 6. 21. Have I gained what I foolishly promised myself in a sinful way? No, no, it never proved what it pretended to, but the contrary." II. How they were justly discarded, and shut out of paradise, which was a part of the sentence implied in that, Thou shalt eat the herb of the field. Here we have, 1. The reason God gave why he shut him out of paradise; not only because he had put forth his hand, and taken of the tree of knowledge, which was his sin; but lest he should again put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, (which is now forbidden him by the law,) and should dare to eat of that tree, and so profane a divine sacrament, and defy a divine sentence, and yet flatter himself with a conceit that thereby he should live for ever. Observe, (1.) There is a foolish proneness in those that have rendered themselves unworthy of the substance of Christian privileges, to catch at the signs and shadows of them. Many that like not the terms of the covenant, yet, for their reputation's sake, are fond of the seals of it. (2.) I is not only justice, but kindness, to such, to be denied them; for by usurping that which they have no title to, they affront God, and make their sin the more heinous; and by building their hopes upon a wrong foundation, they render their conversion the more difficult, and their ruin the more deplorable. 2. The method God took, in giving him this bill of divorce, and expelling and excluding him from this garden of pleasure. He turned him out, and kept him out. (1.) He turned him out, from the garden to the common. This is twice mentioned, v. 23, he sent him forth, and then, v. 24, he drove him out. God bade him go out; told him that that was no place for him, he should no longer occupy and enjoy that garden: but he liked the place too well to be willing to part with it, and therefore God drove him out, made him go out, whether he would or no. This signified the exclusion of him, and all his guilty race, from that communion with God, which was the bliss and glory of paradise; the token of God's favour to him, and his delight in the sons of men which he had in his innocent estate, were now suspended; the communications of his grace were withheld, and Adam became weak, and like other men, as Samson when the Spirit of the Lord was departed from him; his acquaintance with God was lessened and lost, and that correspondence which had been settled between man and his Maker, was interrupted and broken off. He was driven out, as one unworthy of this honour, and incapable of this service. Thus he and all mankind, by the fall, forfeited and lost communion with God. But whither did he send him, when he turned him out of Eden? he might justly have chased him out of the world, Job 18. 18, but he only chased him out of the garden. He might justly have cast him down to hell, as the angels that sinned were, when they were shut out from the heavenly paradise, 2 Pet. 2. 4. But man was only sent to till the ground, out of which he was taken. He was sent to a place of toil, not to a place of torment. He was sent to the ground, not to the grave; to the workhouse, not to the dungeon, not to the prisonhouse; to hold the plough, not to drag the chain. His tilling of the ground would be recompensed by his eating of its fruits; and his converse with the earth whence he was taken, was improvable to good purposes, to keep him humble, and to remind him of his latter end. Observe then, that though our first parents were excluded from the privileges of their state of innocency, yet they were not abandoned to despair; God's thoughts of love designing them for a second state of probation upon new terms. (2.) He kept him out, and forbade him all hopes of a reentry; for he placed at the east of the garden of Eden a detachment of cherubims. God's hosts, armed with a dreadful and irresistible power, represented by flaming swords which turned every way, on that side the garden which lay next to the place whither Adam was sent, to keep the way that led to the tree of life, so that he could not either steal or force an entry; for who can make a pass against an angel on his guard, or gain a pass made good by such a force? Now this intimated to Adam, [1] CHAPTER IV. In this chapter, we have both the world and the church in a family, in a little family, in Adam's family; and a specimen given of the character and state of both in afterages, nay, in all ages to the end of time. As all mankind were represented in Adam, so that great distinction of mankind into saints and sinners, gully and wicked, the children of God and the children of the wicked one, was here represented in Cain and Abel; and an early instance is given of the entity which was lately put between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent. We have here, 1. The birth, names, and callings, of Cain and Abel, v. 1, 2. II. Their religion, and different success in it, v. 3, 4, and part of v. 5. III, Cain's anger at God, and the reproof of him for that anger, v. 5-7. IV, Cain's murder of his brother, and the process against him for that murder. The murder committed, v. 8. The proceedings against him. 1. His arraignment, v. 9, former part. 2. His plea, v. 9, latter part. 3. His conviction, v. 10. 4. The sentence passed upon him, v. 11, 12. 5. His complaint against the sentence, v. 13, 14. V. 15, 16. V. The family and posterity of Cain, v. 17-24. VI. The birth of 6. The ratification of the sentence, v. 15. 7. The execution of the sentence, another son and grandson of Adam, v. 25, 26. i. e. gotten, or, acquired. ↑ Hebel. I a feeder. at the end of days. That God was displeased with him; though he had mercy in store for him, yet, at present, he was angry with him, was turned to be his enemy, and fought against him, for here was a sword drawn, Num. 22. 23, and he was to him a consuming fire, for it was a flaming sword. [2.] That the angels were at war with him; no peace with the heavenly hosts, while he was in rebellion against their Lord and our's. [3.] That the way to the tree of life was shut up, namely, that way which, at first, he was put into, the way of spotless innocency. It is not said that the cherubims were set to keep him and his for ever from the tree of life; (thanks be to God, there is a paradise set before us, and a tree of life in the midst of it, which we rejoice in the hopes of;) but they were set to keep that way of the tree of life, which hitherto they had been in; that is, it was henceforward in vain for him and his to expect righteousness, life, and happiness, by virtue of the first covenant, for it was irreparably broken, and could never be pleaded, nor any benefit taken by it. The command of that covenant being broken, the curse of it is in full force; it leaves no room for repentance, but we are all undone, if we be judged by that covenant. God revealed this to Adam, not to drive him to despair, but to do him a service by quickening him to look for life and happiness in the promised Seed, by whom the flaming sword is removed. God and his angels are reconciled to us, and a new and living way into the holiest is consecrated and laid open for us. NOTES. CHAP. IV. V. 1, 2. Adam and Eve had many sons and daughters, ch. 5. 4. But Cain and Abel seem to have been the two eldest; and some think they were twins, and, as Esau and Jacob, the elder hated, and the younger loved. Though God had cast them out of paradise, he did not write them childless; but to show that he had other blessings in store for them, he preserved to them the benefit of that first blessing of increase. Though they were sinners, nay, though they felt the humiliation and sorrow of penitents, they did not write themselves comfortless, having the promise of a Saviour to support themselves with. We have here, I. The names of their two sons. 1. Cain signifies possession; for Eve, when she bare him, said, with joy and thankfulness, and great expectation, I have gotten a man from the LORD. Observe, Children are God's gifts, and he must be acknowledged in the building up of our families. It doubles and sanctifies our comfort in them, when we see them coming to us from the hand of God, who will not forsake the works and gifts of his own hand. Though Eve bare him with the sorrows that were the consequence of sin, yet she did not lose the sense of the mercy in her pains. Comforts, though allayed, are more than we deserve; and therefore our complaints must not drown our thanksgivings. Many suppose that Eve had a conceit that this son was the promised Seed, and that therefore she thus triumphed in him; it may indeed be read, I have gotten a man, the LORD; God-man. If so, she was wretchedly mistaken, as Samuel, when he said, Surely the LORD's anointed is before me, 1 Sam. 16. 6. When children are born, who can foresee what they will prove? He that was thought to be a man, the LORD, or, at least, a man from the LORD, and for his service as priest of the family, became an enemy to the LORD. The less we expect from creatures, the more tolerable will disappointments be. 2. Abel signifies vanity: when she thought she had obtained the promised Seed in Cain, she was so taken up with that possession, that another son was as vanity to her. To those who have an interest in Christ, and make him their all, other things are as nothing at all. It intimates likewise, that the longer we live in this world, the more we may see of the vanity of it; what, at first, we are fond of, as a possession, afterward we see cause to be dead to, as a trifle. given to this son is put upon the whole race, Ps. 39. 5. Every man is at his best estate, Abel, vanity. Let us labour to see both ourselves and others so. Childhood and youth are vanity. II. The employments of Cain and Abel. Observe, 1. They both had a calling. Though they were heirs apparent to the world, their birth noble, and their possessions large; yet they were not brought up in idleness. God gave their father a calling, even in innocency, and he gave them one. Note, It is the will of God that we should every one of us have something to do in this world. Parents ought to bring up their children to business: Give them a Bible, and a calling; (said good Mr. Dodd ;) and God be with them. 2. Their employments were different, that they might trade and exchange with one another, as there was occasion. The members of the body politic have need one of another; and mutual love is helped by mutual VOL. I.-6 The name ND Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conAceived and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. 2 And she again bare his brother 'Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. 4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of had respect unto Abel, and to his offering: his flock, and of the fat thereof. And the LORD a Num. 18. 12. sheep, or, goats. b Lev. 3. 16, 17. c Heb. 11. 4. commerce. 3. Their employments belonged to the husbandman's calling, their father's profession; a needful calling, for the king himself is served of the field; but a laborious calling, which required constant care and attendance: it is now looked upon as a mean calling, the poor of the land serve for vinedressers, and husbandmen, Jer. 52. 16. But the calling was far from being a dishonour to them; rather, they might have been an honour to it. 4. It should seem, by the order of the story, that Abel, though the younger brother, yet entered first into his calling, and probably his example drew in Cain. 5. Abel chose that employment which most befriended contemplation and devotion, for, to these a pastoral life has been looked upon as being peculiarly favourable. Moses and David kept sheep, and in their solitudes conversed with God. Note, That calling and that condition of life are best for us, and to be chosen by us, which are best for our souls; that which least exposes us to sin, and gives us most opportunity of serving and enjoying God. V. 3-5. Here is, I. The devotion of Cain and Abel. In process of time, when they had made some improvement in their respective callings, Heb. At the end of days, either at the end of the year, when they kept their feasts of in-gathering, or, perhaps, an annual fast in remembrance of the fall; or, at the end of the days of the week, the seventh day, which was the sabbath-at some set time, Cain and Abel brought to Adam, as the priest of the family, each of them an offering to the Lord; for the doing of which we have reason to think there was a divine appointment given to Adam, as a token of God's favour to him, and his thoughts of love toward him and his, notwithstanding their apostacy. God would thus try Adam's faith in the promise, and his obedience to the remedial law; he would thus settle a correspondence again between heaven and earth, and give shadows of good things to come. Observe here, 1. That the religious worship of God is no novel invention, but an ancient institution. It is that which was from the beginning, (1 John 1. 1 ;) it is the good old way, Jer. 6. 16. The city of our God is indeed that joyous city whose antiquity is of ancient days, Is. 23. 7. Truth got the start of error, and piety of profaneness. 2. That it is a good thing for children to be well taught when they are young, and trained up betimes in religious services, that when they become to be capable of acting for themselves, they may, of their own accord, bring an offering to God. In this nurture of the Lord parents must bring up their children, Eph. 6. 4. ch. 18. 19. 3. That we should every one of us honour God with what we have, according as he has prospered us. According as their employments and possessions were, so they brought their offering. See 1 Cor. 16, 1, 2. chandise and our hire, whatever it is, must be holiness to the Lord, Is. 23. 18. He must have his dues of it in works of piety and charity, the support of religion and the relief of the poor; thus we must now bring our offering with an upright heart; and with such sacrifices God is well-pleased. 4. That hypocrites and evil-doers may be found going as far as the best of God's people in the external services of religion. Cain brought an offering with Abel; nay, Cain's offering is mentioned first, as if he were the more forward of the two. A hypocrite may, possibly, hear as many sermons, say as many prayers, and give as much alms, as a good Christian; and yet, for want of sincerity, come short of acceptance with God. The Pharisee and Publican went to the temple to pray, Luke 18. 10. Our mer II. The different success of their devotions. That which is to be aimed at in all acts of religion, is, God's acceptance; we speed well if we attain that, but in vain do we worship if we miss of that, 2 Cor. 5. 9. Perhaps to a stander-by, the sacrifices of Cain and Abel would have seemed both alike good. Adam accepted them both, but God did not, who sees not as man sees, God had respect to Abel and to his offering, and showed his acceptance of it, probably, by fire from heaven; but to Cain and to his offering he had not respect. We are sure there was a good reason for this difference; the Governor of the world, though an absolute sovereign, does not act arbitrarily in dispensing his smiles and frowns. 1. There was a difference in the characters of the persons offering. Cain was a wicked man, led a bad life, under the reigning power of the world and the flesh; and therefore his sacrifice was an abomination to the Lord, Prov. 15. 8, a vain oblation, Is. 1. 13. God had no respect to Cain himself, and therefore no respect to his offering, as the manner of the expres sion intimates. But Abel was a righteous man, he is called righteous Abel, Matt. 23, 35, his heart was upright, and his life was pious; he was one of those whom God's countenance beholds, Ps. 11. 7, and whose prayer is therefore his delight, Prov. ( 41 ) 5 But unto Cain, and to his offering, he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. 6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? or, have the excellency. 15. 8. God had respect to him as a holy man, and therefore to his offering as a holy offering. The tree must be good, else the fruit cannot be pleasing to the heart-searching God. 2. There was a difference in the offerings they brought. It is expressly said, Heb. 11. 4, Abel's was a more excellent sacrifice than Cain's: either, (1.) In the nature of it. Cain's was only a sacrifice of acknowledgement offered to the Creator; the meat-offerings of the fruit of the ground were no more, and, for aught I know, might have been offered in innocency: but Abel brought a sacrifice of atonement, the blood whereof was shed in order to remission; thereby owning himself a sinner, deprecating God's wrath, and imploring his favour in a Mediator: or, (2.) In the qualities of the offering. Cain brought of the fruit of the ground, any thing that came next to hand, what he had not occasion for himself, or what was not marketable; but Abel was curious in the choice of his offering; not the lame, or the lean, or the refuse, but the firstlings of the flock, the best he had, and the fat thereof, the best of those best. Hence the Hebrew doctors give it for a general rule, that every thing that is for the name of the good God, must be the goodliest and best, It is fit that he who is the first and best should have the first and best of our time, strength, and service. 3. The great difference was this, that Abel offered in faith, and Cain did not. There was a difference in the principle upon which they went. Abel offered with an eye to God's will as his rule, and God's glory as his end, and in dependence upon the promise of a Redeemer: but Cain did what he did, only for company's sake, or to save his credit, not in faith, and so it turned into sin to him. Abel was a penitent believer, like the Publican that went away justified: Cain was unhumbled; his confidence was within himself; he was like the Pharisee who glorified himself, but was not so much as justified before God. III. Cain's displeasure at the difference God made between his sacrifice and Abel's. Cain was very wroth, which presently appeared in his very looks, for his countenance fell; which bespeaks, not so much his grief and discontent, as his malice and rage. His sullen churlish countenance, and a down-look, betrayed his passionate resentments: he carried ill-nature in his face, and the show of his countenance witnessed against him. This anger bespeaks, 1. His enmity to God, and the indignation he had conceived against him for making such a difference between his offering and his brother's. He should have been angry at himself for his own infidelity and hypocrisy, by which he had forfeited God's acceptance; and his countenance should have fallen in repentance and holy shame, as the Publican's, who would not lift up so much as his eyes to heaven, Luke 18. 13. But instead of that, he flies out against God, as if he were partial and unfair in distributing his smiles and frowns, and as if he had done him a deal of wrong. Note, It is a certain sign of an unhumbled heart, to quarrel with those rebukes which we have, by our own sin, brought upon ourselves. The foolishness of man perverteth his way, and then, to make bad worse, his heart fretteth against the Lord, Prov. 19. 3. 2. His envy of his brother, who had the honour to be publicly owned. Though his brother had no thought of having any slur put upon him, nor did now insult over him to provoke him, yet he conceived a hatred of him as an enemy, or, which is equivalent, a rival. Note, (1.) It is common for those who have rendered themselves unworthy of God's favour by their presumptuous sins, to have indignation against those who are dignified and distinguished by it. The Pharisees walked in this way of Cain, when they neither entered into the kingdom of God themselves, nor suffered those that were entering, to go in, Luke 11. 52. Their eye is evil, because their master's eye, and the eye of their fellowservants, are good. (2.) Envy is a sin that commonly carries with it, both its own discovery in the paleness of the looks, and its own punishment in the rottenness of the bones. V. 6, 7. God is here reasoning with Cain, to convince him of the sin and folly of his anger and discontent, and to bring | him into a good temper again, that further mischief might be prevented. It is an instance of God's patience and condescending goodness, that he would deal thus tenderly with so bad a man, in so bad an affair. He is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Thus the father of the prodigal argued the case with the elder son, Luke 15. 28, &c. And God with those Israelites, who said, The way of the Lord is not equal, Ez. 18. 25. God puts Cain himself upon inquiring into the cause of his discontent, and considering whether it were indeed a just cause, Why is thy countenance fallen? Observe, I. That God takes notice of all our sinful passions and discontents. There is not an angry look, an envious look, or a fretful look, that escapes his observing eye. II. That most of our sinful heats and disquietudes would soon vanish before a strict and impartial inquiry into the cause of them. "Why am I wroth? Is there a real cause, a just cause, a proportionable cause for it? Why am I so soon angry? Why so very angry, and so implacable?" To reduce Cain to his right mind again, it is here made evident to him, 1. That he had no reason to be angry at God, for that he 7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And 'unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. 8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother and it d 1 John 3. 12. Tor, subject unto thee. had proceeded according to the settled and invariable rules of government, suited to a state of probation. He sets before men life and death, the blessing and the curse; and then renders to them according to their works, and differences them according as they difference themselves-so shall their doom be. The rules are just, and therefore his ways, according to those rules, must needs be equal, and he will be justified when he speaks. (1.) God sets before Cain life and a blessing. "If thou does well, shalt thou not be accepted? No doubt, thou shalt, nay, thou knowest thou shalt ;" either, [1,] "If thou hadst done well, as thy brother did, thou shouldest have been accepted, as he was.' God is no respecter of persons, hates nothing that he has made, denies his favour to none but those who have forfeited it, and is an enemy to none but those who, by sin, have made him their enemy: so that if we come short of acceptance with him, we must thank ourselves, the fault is wholly our own; if we had done our duty, we had not missed of his mercy. This will justify God in the destruction of sinners, and will aggravate their ruin; there is not a damned sinner in hell, but if he had done well, as he might have done, had been a glorified saint in heaven. Every mouth will shortly be stopped with this. Or, [2.] "If now thou do well, if thou repent of thy sin, reform thy heart and life, and bring thy sacrifice in a better manner, if thou not only do that which is good, but do it well; thou shalt yet be accepted, thy sin shall be pardoned, thy comfort and honour restored, and all shall be well." See here the effect of a Mediator's interposal between God and man; we do not stand upon the footing of the first covenant, which left no room for repentance, but God is come upon new terms with us. Though we have offended, if we repent and return, we shall find mercy. See how early the Gospel was preached, and the benefit of it here offered even to one of the chief of sinners. (2.) He sets before him death and a curse. "But if not well," that is, "Seeing thou didst not do well, not offer in faith, and in a right manner; sin lies at the door," that is, “sin was imputed to thee, and thou wast frowned upon and rejected as a sinner. So high a charge had not been laid at thy door, if thou hadst not brought it upon thyself, by not doing well.' Or, as it is commonly taken, "If now thou dost not do well, if thou persist in this wrath, and, instead of humbling thyself before God, harden thyself against him; sin lies at the door," that is, [1.] Further sin. Now that anger is in thy heart, murder is at the door." The way of sin is down hill, and men go from bad to worse. They who do not sacrifice well, but are careless and remiss in their devotion to God, expose themselves to the worst temptations; and perhaps the most scandalous sin lies at the door. They who do not keep God's ordinances, are in danger of committing all abominations, Lev. 18. 30. Or, [2.] The punishment of sin. So near akin are sin and punishment, that the same word in Hebrew signifies both. If sin be harboured in the house, the curse waits at the door, like a bailiff, ready to arrest the sinner whenever he looks out. It lies as if it slept, but it lies at the door where it will soon be awaked, and then it will appear that the damnation slumbered not. Sin will find thee out, Num. 32. 23. Yet some choose to understand this also as an intimation of mercy. "If thou doest not well, sin, that is, the sin-offering, lies at the door, and thou mayest take the benefit of it." The same word signifies sin, and a sacrifice for sin. "Though thou hast not done well, yet do not despair; the remedy is at hand; the propitiation is not far to seek; lay hold on it, and the iniquity of thy holy things shall be forgiven thee." Christ, the great sinoffering, is said to stand at the door, Rev. 3. 20. And those well deserve to perish in their sins, that will not go to the door for an interest in the sin-offering. All this considered, Cain had no reason to be angry at God, but at himself only. 2. He shows him that he had no reason to be angry at his brother; “Unto thee shall be his desire, he shall continue his respect to thee as an elder brother, and thou, as the first-born, shalt rule over him as much as ever." God's acceptance of Abel's offering did not transfer the birthright to him, (which Cain was jealous of,) nor put upon him that excellency of dignity and excellency of power which are said to belong to it, ch. 49. 3. God did not so intend it; Abel did not so interpret it; there was no danger of its being improved to Cain's prejudice; why then should he be so much exasperated? Observe here, (1.) That the difference which God's grace makes, does not alter the distinctions which God's providence makes, but preserves them, and obliges us to do the duty which results from them: believing servants must be obedient to unbelieving masters. Dominion is not founded in grace, nor will religion warrant disloyalty or disrespect in any relation. (2.) That the jealousies which civil powers have sometimes conceived of the true worshippers of God as dangerous to their government, enemies to Cæsar, and hurtful to kings and provinces, (on which suspicion persecutors have grounded their rage against them,) are very unjust and unreasonable. Whatever may be the case with some who call themselves Christians, it is certain that Christians indeed are the best subjects, and the quiet in the land; their 10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. e 1 John 3. 12. Jude 11. Ps. 9. 12. bloods. g Heb. 12. 24. Rev. 6. 10. desire is toward their governors, and they shall rule over them. 11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, 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 vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. 13 And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear. for, mine iniquity is greater than that it may be forgiven. Matt. 12. 31. that it is not only become innocent and inoffensive to those that die in Christ, but honourable and glorious to those that die for him. Let us not think it strange concerning the fiery trial, nor shrink if we be called to resist unto blood; for we know there is a crown of life for all that are faithful unto death. V. 9-12. We have here a full account of the trial and condemnation of the first murderer; civil courts of judicature not being yet erected for this purpose, as they were afterward, ch. 9. 6. God himself sits Judge; for he is the God to whom vengeance belongs, and who will be sure to make inquisition for blood, especially the blood of saints. Observe, I. The arraignment of Cain; The Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? Some think Cain was thus examined, the next sabbath after the murder was committed, when the sons of God came, as usual, to present themselves before the Lord, in a religious assembly, and Abel was missing, whose place did not use to be empty; for the God of heaven takes notice who is present at, and who is absent from, public ordinances. Cain is asked, not only because there was just Abel, and having been last with him, but because God knew him to be guilty; yet he asks him, that he might draw from him a confession of the crime; for those who would be justified before God, must accuse themselves; and the penitent will do so. V. 8. We have here the progress of Cain's anger, and the issue of it in Abel's murder; which may be considered two ways. I. As Cain's sin; and a scarlet, crimson sin it was, a sin of the first magnitude, a sin against the light and law of nature, and which the consiences even of bad men have startled at. See in it, 1. The sad effects of sin's entrance into the world, and into the hearts of men. See what a root of bitterness the corrupt nature is, which bears this gall and wormwood. Adam's eating forbidden fruit seemed but a little sin, but it opened the door to the greatest. 2. A fruit of the enmity which is in the seed of the serpent against the seed of the woman. As Abel leads the van in the noble army of martyrs, Matt. 23. 35, so Cain stands in the front of the ignoble army of persecutors, Jude 11. So early did he that was after the flesh, persecute him that was after the spirit; and so it is now, more or less, Gal. 4. 29, and so it will be, till the war shall end in the eternal salvation of all the saints, and the eternal perdition of all that hate them. 3. See also what comes of envy, hatred, malice, and all uncharitable-cause to suspect him, he having discovered a malice against ness; if they be indulged and cherished in the soul, they are in danger of involving men in the horrid guilt of murder itself. Rash anger is heart-murder, Matt. 5. 21, 22. Much more is malice so; he that hates his brother, is already a murderer before God and if God leave him to himself, he wants nothing but an opportunity of being a murderer before the world. II. Cain's plea; he pleads not guilty, and adds rebellion to his sin. For, 1. He endeavours to cover a deliberate murder with a deliberate lie; I know not. He knew well enough what was become of Abel, and yet had the impudence to deny it. Thus, in Cain, the Devil was both a murderer, and a liar, from the beginning. See how sinners' minds are blinded, and their hearts hardened by the deceitfulness of sin: those are strangely blind, that those are strangely hard, that think it desirable to conceal them from a God who pardons those only that confess. 2. He impudently charges his Judge with folly and injustice, in putting this question to him, Am I my brother's keeper? He should have humbled himself, and have said, Am not I my brother's murderer? But he flies in the face of God himself, as if he had asked him an impertinent question, which he was no way obliged to give an answer to, "Am I my brother's keeper? Surely he is old enough to take care of himself, nor did I ever take any charge of him." Some think he reflects on God and his providence, as if he had said, "Art not thou his keeper? If he be took to keep him." Note, a charitable concern for our brethren, as their keepers, is a great duty, which is strictly required of us, but is generally neglected by us. They who are unconcerned in the affairs of their brethren, and take no care, when they have opportunity, to prevent their hurt in their bodies, goods, or good name, especially in their souls, do, in effect, speak Cain's language. See Lev. 19. 17. Phil. 2. 4. Many were the aggravations of Cain's sin. (1.) It was his brother, his own brother, that he murdered; his own mother's son, Ps. 50. 20, whom he ought to have loved; his younger brother, whom he ought to have protected. (2.) He was a good brother; one who had never done him any wrong, nor given him the least provocation, in word or deed, but one whose desire had been always towards him, and who had been, in all in-think it possible to conceal their sins from a God that sees all; and stances, dutiful and respectful to him. (3.) He had fair warning given him, before, of this; God himself had told him what would come of it, yet he persisted in his barbarous design. (4.) It should seem that he covered it with a show of friendship and kindness. He talked with Abel his brother, freely and familiarly, lest he should suspect danger, and keep out of his reach. Thus Joab kissed Abner, and then killed him. According to the Septuagint, he said to Abel, Let us go into the field; if so, we are sure Abel did not understand it (according to the modern sense) as a challenge, else he would not have accepted it, but as a brotherly invitation to go together to their work. The Chaldee Paraphrast adds, that Cain, when they were in dis-missing, on thee be the blame, and not on me, who never undercourse in the field, maintained that there was no judgment to come, no future state, no rewards and punishments in the other world; and that when Abel spake in defence of the truth, Cain took that occasion to fall upon him. However, (5.) That which the scripture tells us was the reason for which he slew him, was a sufficient aggravation of the murder; it was because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous, so that herein he showed himself to be of that wicked one, I John 3. 12, a child of the Devil, as being an enemy to all righteousness, even in his own brother; and, in this, employed immediately by the destroyer. Nay, (6.) In killing his brother, be directly struck at God himself; for God accepting of Abel was the provocation pretended; and for that very reason he hated Abel, because God loved him. (7.) The murder of Abel was the more inhuman, because there were now so few men in the world to replenish it. The life of a man is precious at any time; but it was in a special manner precious now, and could ill be spared. II. As Abel's suffering. Death reigned ever since Adam sinned, but we read not of any taken captive by him till now; and now, 1. The first that dies, is a saint, one that was accepted and beloved of God; to show that though the promised Seed was so far to destroy him that had the power of death, as to save believers from its sting, yet that still they should be exposed to its stroke. The first that went to the grave went to heaven; God would secure to himself the first-fruits, the first-born to the dead, that first opened the womb into another world. Let this take off the terror of death, that it was betimes the lot of God's chosen, which alters the property of it. Nay, 2. The first that dies is a martyr, and dies for his religion; and of such it may more truly be said than of soldiers, that they die in the field of honour. Abel's death has not only no curse in it, but it has a crown in it ; so admirably well is the property of death altered, It may be proper to state, for the information of some readers, that the LXX, or Septuagint, is the name of a Greek version of the Old Testament, supposed to be the work of seventy-two Jews, who are usually called, in a round number, the Seventy, and who made this version, at the desire of Ptolemy Philadelphus, about 200 years before Christ.-Christ and his Apostles usually quote from this version.-ED. III. The conviction of Cain, v. 10. God gave no direct answer to his question, but rejected his plea as false and frivolous; "What hast thou done? Thou makest a light matter of it; but hast thou considered what an evil thing it is; how deep the stain, how heavy the burden, of this guilt is? Thou thinkest to conceal it; but it is to no purpose, the evidence against thee is clear and incontestable, the voice of thy brother's blood cries." He speaks as if the blood itself were both witness and prosecutor; because God's own knowledge testified against him, and God's own justice demanded satisfaction. Observe here, 1. Murder is a crying sin, none more so. Blood calls for blood, the blood of the murdered for the blood of the murderer; it cries, in the dying words of Zechariah, 2 Chr. 24. 22, The Lord look upon it, and require it; or in those of the souls under the altar, Rev. 6. 10, How long, Lord, holy and true? The patient sufferers cried for pardon. Father, forgive them; but their blood cries for vengeance. Though they hold their peace, their blood has a loud and constant cry, which the ear of the righteous God is always open to. 2. The blood is said to cry from the ground, the earth, which is said, v. 11, to open her mouth to receive his brother's blood from his hand. The earth did, as it were, blush to see her own face stained with such blood, and, therefore, opened her mouth to hide that which she could not hinder. When the heaven revealed his iniquity, the earth also rose up against him, (Job 20. 27,) and groaned for being thus made subject to vanity, Rom. 8. 20, 22. Cain, it is likely, buried the blood and the body, to conceal his crime; but murder will out. He did not bury them so deep but the cry of them reached heaven. 3. In the original, the word is plural, thy brother's bloods, not only his blood, but the blood of all those that might have descended from him. Or, the blood of all the seed of the woman, who should, in like manner, seal the truth with their blood: Christ puts all on one score, Matt. 23. 35. Or, because account was kept of every drop of blood shed, How well is it |