Cain and Abel each offered a sacrifice to God. Gen 4:3-5
God accepted Abel’s sacrifice, but God did not accept Cain’s sacrifice. Gen 4:3-5
God does not accept … sacrifices that [are] not from the heart … # 2100
By faith Abel offered to God a sacrifice greater than Cain’s. Hebrews 11:4
Cain had an attitude problem. God warned him.
… the LORD said to Cain: “Why are you so resentful …? … sin is a demon lurking at the door: his urge is toward you, yet you can be his master.”
Even after this divine guidance
Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let us go out in the field.” When they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. Gen 4:6-8
Sin had quickly gone from eating forbidden fruit to murder.
Why did [Cain] slaughter [Abel]? Because [Cain’s] own works were evil, and those of his brother righteous. Do not be amazed, (then,) … if the world hates you. 1 John 3:12-13
… for trying to be righteous.
We humans proceeded to live without revelation from God, following our own inclinations and
… the world [was] virtually inundated by sin. … universal corruption … [followed] in the wake of sin. # 401
God, in the meantime, immediately began working to bring us back to Him.
The gathering together of the People of God began at the moment when sin destroyed the communion of men with God… # 761
[God] never ceases to call every [human being] to seek him, so as to find life and happiness. # 30
God did not have much to work with. So …
God [communicated] himself to [us human beings] gradually. # 53
God progressively revealed … the mystery of creation. # 287
It was like the way we human beings learned math:
first we figured out counting;
then, a few centuries later, we figured out addition and subtraction;
then, a few centuries later, we figured out multiplication and division;
a few centuries later algebra;
a few centuries later calculus;
and so on.
Each of us individually learn math slowly and in pieces. And we human beings as a whole learned math through the centuries slowly and in pieces. Our spiritual development was just as slow and piece meal.
God saw one success in the early days …
Then Enoch walked with God, and he was no longer here, for God took him. Gen 5:24
But God saw mostly failure – we humans lived immorally.
We did not know right from wrong.
For example …
Lamech (Cain’s great great great grandson) said to his wives: … I have killed … a boy for bruising me. Gen 4:23
That is our natural inclination. You hurt me a little; I hurt you a lot! Revenge is a sinful reaction that spreads the misery.
And, did I say wives, plural? Oh YES.
… the sons of heaven saw how beautiful the daughters of man were, and so they took for their wives as many of them as they chose. Gen 6:1-2
Polygamy, having multiple wives, was very common. And there was not a lot of difference between being a wife and being a slave.
Few were sharing a mutual love with God. Everyone was miserable.
When the LORD saw how great was man’s wickedness on earth, … [God’s] heart was grieved. Gen 6:5-6