![]() Both bring appropriate offerings, and both expect that their offerings will guarantee a good year. The sacrifices of Cain and Abel ratify the covenants negotiated for seed to plant and animals to breed. Parallel to “When Elohim began to create…” (Gen 1:1) and “When on high, no heaven had been named….” (Enuma), the Stories of Cain and Abel open with a sterility affidavit: “When the days of grazing were done, and the days of farming came to an end” (Hebrews: qes hayyamim). In response to widespread human complaints about farming and childbearing, creation stories ask “What does it mean to be human?” Their audiences want to live in an Eden where farming is effortless and only the divine create children. These stories do not indict Cain for cursing humanity with murder, but rather celebrate his household for blessing humanity with cities, tent making, herding, music, metal work, Yahweh worship and a system of justice seventy-seven times more efficient than the mark with which Yahweh tattooed Cain to protect him from his enemies. ![]() When the land fails, Cain sacrifices Abel to bring it back to life. ![]() The Stories of Cain and Abel (Gen 4:3-5:32) celebrate the founding of a new world, where humans can create.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |