Sáng Thế Ký 4

Cain and Abel

¹The man was intimate with his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “With the help of the LORD I have brought a man into being.”^{a 2}Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Abel kept flocks of sheep and goats, and Cain worked the ground. ³In the course of time Cain brought some of the produce of the ground as an offering to the LORD. ⁴And Abel also brought an offering: some of the firstborn of his flock, with their fat portions. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, ⁵but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. ⁶Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? ⁷If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door. It wants to have you, but you must master it.”^{b 8}Cain spoke to his brother Abel. And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.^{c 9}Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I do not know,” he answered. “Am I my brother’s keeper?” ¹⁰The LORD said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground. ¹¹Now you are cursed, driven from the ground that opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. ¹²When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.” ¹³Cain said to the LORD, “My punishment is more than I can bear.^{d 14}Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence. I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.” ¹⁵But the LORD said to him, “Because of this, whoever kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.” Then the LORD put a mark on Cain, so that no one who found him would kill him.^{e 16}So Cain went out from the LORD’s presence and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden. ¹⁷Cain was intimate with his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was building a city, and he named it Enoch, after his son. ¹⁸Enoch had a son named Irad, Irad was the father of Mehujael, Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech. ¹⁹Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. ²⁰Adah gave birth to Jabal. He was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. ²¹His brother’s name was Jubal. He was the father of all who play the lyre and the flute. ²²Zillah also had a son, Tubal-cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. Tubal-cain’s sister was Naamah. ²³Lamech said to his wives, “Adah and Zillah, listen to me; wives of Lamech, hear my words: I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me. ²⁴If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times!” ²⁵Adam was intimate with his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, saying, “God has given me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.” ²⁶Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh. At that time people began to call on the name of the LORD.