Inevitably, the question always comes up: “why did God accept Abel’s offering and not Cains”? Some commentators suggest that the offering had to be a blood sacrifice of a living animal, and plants are not an acceptable offering. Others suggest that it was because God knew that Cain’s heart was evil, and Cain’s offering was not presented in the right attitude. We will get to the reason later in this article, but first let’s examine the actual practice of sacrificial offerings to God. Why were Cain and Abel presenting an offering to God in the first place? How did they know they were even supposed to present an offering to God?
So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the LORD of the fruit of the ground. Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and for his offering; but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. Genesis 4:3-5
The Genesis account details that Cain and Abel were already presenting offerings to the Lord from the very beginning. Cain, the firstborn of Adam and Eve, we are told was a farmer. He tilled the ground and grew crops. Abel, the second born, tended flocks and raised sheep and/or goats. He was a shepherd or herdsman. At some point God had given instructions to Adam and Eve to present an offering, and had given clear instructions on when and how. These instructions in time were passed on to their children.
It is important to distinguish between an offering and a sacrificial offering however. The Hebrew word "minha" as used here can mean either an offering or a sacrificial offering. We do know that God provided the very first sacrificial sin offering on behalf of Adam and Eve.
“The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.” Gen. 3:21
It is this first example provided by God Himself that would have initiated the sacrificial sin offering practice from the very first, killing a lamb or goat to obtain the skin as a covering for Adam and Eve in their nakedness, due to their sin. Additionally, we see that the practice of presenting sacrificial offerings on altars is repeated throughout the book of Genesis, prior to God giving Moses very specific instructions on how offerings were to be made in conjunction with Tabernacle worship.
For instance, we see Noah presenting an offering after the ark comes to rest and they exit onto dry ground.
“Then Noah built an altar to the LORD, and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar.” Genesis 8:20
Prior to even entering the ark, God had instructed that seven of each clean animal be brought on board. Clean animals were later to be given as food to Noah and his family, but they were also obviously to be used for sacrificial offerings in addition.
God also instructed Abram to build altars and present sacrificial offerings several times in Genesis. As an example, Abram constructs an altar and presumably presents some type of offering on it to God in acknowledgement of the promise of land (the land covenant) with God.
“The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the LORD who had appeared to him.” Gen. 12:7
Of course, the most memorable mention of an altar and sacrificial offering associated with Abram (now called Abraham after God changes his name) is on Mount Moriah with his only son Isaac. There God instructed Abraham to offer up his only son as an offering. Abraham is prepared to faithfully obey God when a ram is instead provided in the place of Isaac. This of course is symbolic of the substitutionary sacrificial death and offering of Jesus, God’s only Son, in our place for our sins.
“Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” So the two of them walked on together. Then they came to the place of which God had told him; and Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood, and bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.” Gen. 22:8-9
But, there is no indication in Genesis 4:3-4 that an altar is present, and no indication that a sacrificial sin offering is what is being required by God.
We also know that offerings can include things other than the blood of a living animal. The Lord provided instructions to Moses in Leviticus on acceptable offerings, one of which was the Grain Offering. As we have seen, there is no indication that a sacrificial offering was being required, one that must shed the blood of an living thing. So, Cain's offering of his "fruit from the ground" would have been acceptable, if not for something else.
And this brings us to the initial question about Cain and Abel: why did God accept Abel’s offering and not Cains? I think the answer lies within the clues given in the verse itself. Abel’s offering was of the “firstlings”, the first born, of the flock. And, on top of that, he offered the “fat portions”, or the best. This may mean he gave the best of the firstborn sheep/goats, or maybe that he offered up the best portions, the fatty portions, of those firstborn sheep/goats. Either way, Abel offered to God the first and the best of what he had available.
Cain on the other hand gave simply “an offering”, without any mention of the first or best parts. You can imagine perhaps that Cain brought God the second or maybe even third harvest from his crops, and even then not the best portions, but rather the produce that was imperfect or not harvested when it should have been. Cain’s offering reflected disregard and disobedience towards God. The book of Hebrews makes this clear...Abel’s sacrifice was better than Cain’s.
“By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks.” Hebrews 11:4
So, here is the bigger question: What are you offering to God each day? We are told in Paul’s letter to the church at Rome that we are to be living sacrifices to God daily, offering ourselves as holy and acceptable sacrifices:
“Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” Romans 12:1
We are to be sacrifices which are to be “acceptable to God”, just as Abel’s offering was acceptable and found favor with God. And why did God regard Abel’s offering and find it acceptable again? Because Abel’s was the first and the best portions, just as our daily offering of ourselves must be. We need to offer the first of ourselves and the best parts of ourselves to God daily. Are we giving him the parts of our lives that are the leftovers? The parts that are not the quality “fatty” parts, but rather the “lean” unwanted portions? Is God an afterthought at the end of the day as we lay in our bed and start to fall asleep, or is He the very first thing on our minds in the morning when we wake. Let’s constantly, day by day, make our offerings to God acceptable: our first and our best parts of our lives.
