Our family enjoys going to the Art Institute of Chicago to appreciate great paintings and sculptures. In one gallery hangs Grant Wood’s American Gothic (1930), an iconic representation of a farming couple. A dour-looking man grips his pitchfork, while a similarly unsmiling woman looks into the distance.
The first farmer in the Bible, as you may know, was Cain. Technically, it was probably Adam and Eve, laboring obediently in the Garden of Eden before the Fall, but Cain is the first person specifically identified as a farmer. He “worked the soil” while his brother Abel cared for livestock (v. 2). When Cain brought an offering of the “fruits of the soil,” however, God “did not look with favor on it” (v. 5). Abel gave from the “firstborn” of his flocks (v. 4), which honored the Lord (Heb. 11:4). There’s no indication in the text that there was anything wrong with the content of Cain’s offering, which points to his attitude and lack of faith as the problem. This is confirmed by his angry response to Abel’s acceptance and his own rejection. He was so angry, in fact, that he was considering premeditated murder. No wonder the apostle John later wrote that Cain “belonged to the evil one” (1 John 3:12).
God hadn’t punished Cain at that point, only rejected his offering. He also mercifully gave him a direct warning to resist the temptation he was contemplating (vv. 6–7). Cain murdered his brother anyway (v. 8). Part of God’s judgment evokes the curse on Adam: “When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you” (v. 12). When Cain and his descendants thus became wandering nomads, they, ironically, probably had to become shepherds to survive.
Go Deeper
What might we learn from the Cain and Abel narrative? What strategies do we use to fight against or resist temptation?
Pray with Us
Each of us struggles with temptation in many ways. We are grateful, Lord, that You do not abandon us, and faithfully “provide a way out” (1 Cor. 10:13). Help us always seek You in our time of need.
When you work the ground, it will no longer yield crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.Genesis 4:12
