In this
week’s short Torah portion we will examine the life of Qayin and seek to
understand his influence over people and nations.
We know that
Qayin was the first murderer recorded in the Torah, but we also see that there
were righteous men who came from him for example – Noach and Yitro.
This once
again affirms the fact that we cannot blame the evil in people on their genetic
inheritance or even in the environment in which they were raised. YHVH has
allowed righteous choices of individuals to play an extremely critical role as
to the outcome of their lives. Without choice we are not able to love YHVH with
all our hearts, beings and increase.
The spirit
of Qayin is alive and well on planet earth – even within the Messianic
restoration.
Jud 1:11
Woe to them! Because they have gone in the way of Qayin …… today a
brother or sister may not be able to kill you with a spear instead some will
try to destroy your reputation through slander.
Torah portion:
Gen 4:1 And Aḏam
knew Ḥawwah his wife, and
she conceived and bore Qayin, and said, “I have gained a man from יהוה.”
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א וְהָאָדָם, יָדַע אֶת-חַוָּה אִשְׁתּוֹ; וַתַּהַר, וַתֵּלֶד אֶת-קַיִן, וַתֹּאמֶר, קָנִיתִי אִישׁ אֶת-יְהוָה.
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Rashi claims that because
the Hebrew verbs are in the past perfect tense – it follows that the conception
and birth of Cain had occurred before the sin and expulsion of Adam and Chava
from the garden – “Adam had known his wife and she did conceive and she did
give birth….”
The sages believe that
because Qayin was the first born Chava decided to dedicate him to the service
of YHVH – the root word “kana” can also mean “acquired or gained,” (see S 7069)
This word can also imply that Chavah gained a man to serve her own agenda of defiance
against YHVH – we see this pattern repeated in the account of Nimrod, also one
of Qayin’s offspring.
We also see here the
beginning of a pattern where YHVH does not always choose the first born for His
purposes.
We also see here how
this spirit of Cain has influenced future generations.
Jud 1:11 Woe to them! Because they have gone in the
way of Qayin, and gave themselves to the delusion of Bilʽam for a reward, and
perished in the rebellion of Qoraḥ.
The name “Qayin” has roots in the languages and culture
of the ancient Semitic world.
In Arabic this name
refers to someone who works with iron – “a Smith” – implying someone who forges
or changes the shape of iron – The implication that such people don’t accept
the way things should be and forcibly set out to reshape things for their own
purposes see Strongs 7014 – “Smiths”.
Moshe’s father in law
Yitro was related to the ancient Kenite tribe, who were known to be workers
with iron. The ancient Nabatians are also known to have come from this Kenite
tribe and who were also responsible for building the ancient desert fortress of
Petra. In Judges 4:11. Here we see that Yitro also called “Chovav” is connected
to the Kenite tribe who were known to be “smiths”.
Yet in spite of all
these connections with Qayin – Yitro is the name given to Parashat 17 – Matan
Ha Torah – the giving of the Torah –
perhaps one of the most important Torah portions.
“According to the critical
interpretation of the Biblical data, the Kenites were a clan settled on the
southern border of Judah, originally more advanced in arts than the Hebrews,
and from whom the latter learned much. In the time of David the Kenites were
finally incorporated into the tribe of Judah (I Sam. xxx. 29; comp. ib.
xxvii. 10). Their eponymous ancestor was Cain (Kain), to whose descendants in Gen. iv. attributes the invention of the
art of working bronze and iron, the use of instruments of music, etc. Sayce has
inferred (in Hastings, "Dict. Bible," s.v.) that the Kenites
were a tribe of smiths—a view to which J's statements would lend support.”
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/9279-kenites
The same spelling as
Qayin can also mean “spear” Strongs 7013 see 2Sam 21:16.
The spear was the
assumed instrument of choice for the first murderer of Hevel by his brother
Qayin. This same spirit continues to manifest itself against those chosen by
YHVH –
Note the context of how Qayin is referred to in this Apostolic
Scripture/Second Writings (wrongfully called New Testament):
1Jn 3:1 See what love the Father has given us, that
we should be called children of Elohim! For this reason the world does not know
us, because it did not know Him.
1Jn 3:2 Beloved ones, now we are children of Elohim.
And it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is
revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
1Jn 3:3 And everyone having this expectation in Him
cleanses himself, as He is clean.
1Jn 3:4 Everyone doing sin also does lawlessness, and
sin is lawlessness.
1Jn 3:5 And you know that He was manifested to take
away our sins, and in Him there is no sin.
1Jn 3:6 Everyone staying in Him does not sin.
Everyone sinning(continually practicing lawlessness or Torahlessness) has
neither seen Him nor known Him.1 Footnote: 1See 2:4 &
3 John v. 11.
1Jn 3:7 Little children, let no one lead you astray.
The one doing righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous.1
Footnote: 1See 2:29.
1Jn 3:8 The one doing sin is of the devil, because
the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of Elohim was
manifested: to destroy the works of the devil.1 Footnote: 1See
Titus 2:14.
1Jn 3:9 Everyone having been born of Elohim does not
sin, because His seed stays in him, and he is powerless to sin, because he has
been born of Elohim.
1Jn 3:10 In this the children of Elohim and the
children of the devil are manifest: Everyone not doing righteousness is not of
Elohim,1 neither the one not loving his brother. Footnote: 1See
3 John v. 11.
1Jn 3:11 Because this is the message that you heard
from the beginning, that we should love one another,
1Jn 3:12 not as Qayin who was of the wicked one and
killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because his works were wicked but those
of his brother were righteous.
1Jn 3:13 Do not marvel, my brothers, if the world
hates you.1 Footnote: 1See John 15:18-19, John 17:14.
1Jn 3:14 We know that we have passed out of death into
life, because we love the brothers. The one not loving his brother stays in
death.
1Jn 3:15 Everyone hating his brother is a murderer,
and you know that no murderer has everlasting life staying in him.
1Jn 3:16 By this we have known love, because He laid
down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the
brothers.
Gen 4:2 And again,
she gave birth to his brother Heḇel. And Heḇel became a keeper of sheep, but Qayin became a tiller of
the ground.
“Abel or “Havel” means
“breath” and he was a shepherd – “ro eh” Like the patriachs, Moshe and Dawid
who chose a profession that permitted them to spend more time in solitude and
contemplation of spiritual matters. Qayin chose an occupation though essential,
could lead its practitioners to worship nature and enslave others to do the
hard work on the fields” – Hirsch.
The cultivation of the
fields seems best when done in harmony with YHVH’s redemptive appointments –
moadim and commandments of Torah – (Shmitah and leaving gleanings for the poor)
Gen 4:3 And it
came to be, in the course of time, that Qayin brought an offering of the fruit
of the ground to יהוה.
Gen 4:4 And Heḇel
also brought of the first-born of his flock and of their fat. And יהוה looked to Heḇel and
his offering,
Gen 4:5 but He did
not look to Qayin and his offering. And Qayin was very wroth, and his face
fell.
This gives rise to the
question as to how we should worship YHVH and what kind of worship is
acceptable to Him and what is not. Nowhere does YHVH give us the specifics as
to how to conduct a worship service - except that we should gather together on
Shabbat and other appointed times, bringing psalms and hymns and instruction in
YHVH’s Word.
1Co 14:26 What then is it, brothers? Whenever you come
together, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation,
has an interpretation. Let all be done for upbuilding.
1Co 14:27 If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be
two or at the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret.
1Co 14:28 And if there is no interpreter, let him be
silent in an assembly, and let him speak to himself and to Elohim.
1Co 14:29 And let two or three prophets speak, and let
the others discern.
1Co 14:30 And if there should be a revelation to
another who sits by, let the first be silent.
1Co 14:31 For you are all able to prophesy one by one,
so that all learn and all be encouraged.
1Co 14:32 And the spirits of the prophets are subject
to the prophets.
1Co 14:33
For Elohim is not Elohim of disorder but of peace, as in all the
assemblies of the set-apart ones.
Yahshua gave us some
insightful instruction as to how to worship YHVH.
Joh
4:23 “But the hour is coming, and now
is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth, for
the Father also does seek such to worship Him.
Joh
4:24 “Elohim is Spirit, and those who
worship Him need to worship in spirit and truth.”
Perhaps Qayin’s worship
required more effort and organization and so he decided for himself what was
acceptable to offer to YHVH. Havel’s
worship was spontaneous but he wanted to offer up to YHVH what was acceptable
in YHVH’s Eyes.
Shaul also gives us instruction about the true kind of
worship.
Rom 12:1 I call upon you, therefore, brothers, through
the compassion of Elohim, to present your bodies a living offering – set-apart,
well-pleasing to Elohim – your reasonable worship.
Rom 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you prove what is that good
and well-pleasing and perfect desire of Elohim.
The evidence of true worship is knowing the perfect will
of the Father.
Ultimately true worship will release the fragrance of
Messiah.
2Co 2:14 But thanks be to Elohim who always leads us
on, to overcome in Messiah, and manifests through us the fragrance of His
knowledge in every place.
2Co 2:15 Because we are to Elohim the fragrance of
Messiah among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.
2Co 2:16 To the one we are the smell of death to
death, and to the other the fragrance of life to life. And who is competent for
these?
2Co 2:17 For we are not, as so many, adulterating the
Word of Elohim for gain – but as of sincerity, but as from Elohim, in
the sight of Elohim, we speak in Messiah.
Gen 4:6 And יהוה said to Qayin, “Why are you wroth? And why
is your face fallen?
Gen 4:7 “If you do
well, is there not acceptance? And if you do not do well, sin1 is
crouching at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should master it.”
Footnote: 1Sin (transgression of the law) was already then known, as
we also read in 39:9.
Gen 4:8 And Qayin
told Heḇel his brother. And it came to be when they were in the
field, that Qayin rose up against Heḇel his
brother and killed him.
Gen 4:9 And יהוה said to Qayin, “Where is Heḇel
your brother?” And he said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s guard?”
Gen 4:10 And He
said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me
from the ground.
In the Hebrew
original, the words for "blood" and "cries" are written in
the plural form, Why? Because this sad pattern would repeat itself again and
again in history.
Gen 4:11 “And now
you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your
brother’s blood from your hand.
Gen 4:12 “If you till
the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. You shall be a
fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”
Gen 4:13 And Qayin
said to יהוה, “My punishment is too great to bear!
Gen 4:14 “See, You
have driven me from the face of the ground today, and I am hidden from Your
face. I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and it shall be that
anyone who finds me kills me.”
Gen 4:15 And יהוה said to him, “Well, if anyone kills Qayin,
vengeance is taken on him sevenfold.” And יהוה set up a sign
for Qayin, lest anyone finding him kills him.
Gen 4:16 So Qayin
went out from the presence of יהוה and dwelt in
the land of Noḏ (Heb – wondering) on the east of Ěḏen.
Gen 4:17 And Qayin
knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Ḥanoḵ. And
he built a city, and called the name of the city after the name of his son, Ḥanoḵ.
Gen 4:18 And to Ḥanoḵ was
born Iraḏ. And Iraḏ brought forth Meḥuya’ĕl,
and Meḥuya’ĕl brought forth Methusa’ĕl, and Methusa’ĕl brought
forth Lemeḵ.
Gen 4:19 And Lemeḵ took
for himself two wives, the name of one was Aḏah,
and the name of the second was Tsillah.
Gen 4:20 And Aḏah
bore Yaḇal. He was the father of those who dwell in tents, with
livestock.
Gen 4:21 And his
brother’s name was Yuḇal. He was the father of all those who play the lyre and
flute.
Gen 4:22 As for
Tsillah, she also bore Tuḇal-Qayin, a smith of all kinds of tools in bronze and iron.
And the sister of Tuḇal-Qayin was Naʽamah.
Gen 4:23 And Lemeḵ said
to his wives, “Aḏah and Tsillah, hear my voice! Wives of Lemeḵ,
listen to my words! For I have killed a man for wounding me, even a young man
for hurting me.
Gen 4:24 “For Qayin
is avenged sevenfold, and Lemeḵ seventy-sevenfold.”
Gen 4:25 And Aḏam
knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Shĕth, “For Elohim
has appointed me another seed instead of Heḇel,
because Qayin had slain him.”
Gen 4:26 And to
Shĕth, to him also a son was born. And he called his name Enosh. Then it was
begun to call on the Name (Strongs 2490 – Heb “chalal” or profane” of יהוה1. Footnote: 1The first record of “calling on
the Name of יהוה”
Midrash:
Qayin’s
descendents had and continue to have a major impact in the world.
Let’s look at Canaans
descendants:
Ham had four sons – Cush,
Mizraim, Put and Canaan.
Cush – perhaps the most notorious descendent of
Cush was Nimrod. The commentators tell us that before Nimrod there were neither
wars nor Monarchs. Nimrod subjugated the Babyolonians until they crowned him,
after which he went to Assyria and built large cities. The Torah calls him a
mighty hunter, which many believe must be interpreted figuratively. Nimrod
ensnared men with his words and incited them to rebel against Elohim. He was
the forerunner of the hypocrite who drapes himself in robes of piety in order to deceive the masses
(Hirsh). His first conquest, which laid
the basis for his subsequent empire building, was Babel, which became the
center of Nebuchadnezzars Babylonian Empire – see also Gen/Ber 10:8-12.
“Genesis
4:16-24 is a record of Cain's descendants who were as carnally and intellectually
minded as Cain. The Bible records that they were either great builders
of BIG or PROMINENT monuments and cities, or great artificers and
inventors of BEAUTIFUL metal objects, musical instruments, tools and
weapons. They were also as RELIGIOUS as they could be.
As such, it
is indeed absurd to say that the Sethites only began to worship YHVH after Enosh
was born. As it was only a short span of time between the two generations of
Adam and Seth, how could they have forgotten how to worship YHVH? True
worship could not have begun only after Enosh was born. It began
when Adam was created and has continued ever since. Ancient Jewish records
rendered that the “men” refers to the Cainic race who “began
profanely to call upon the name of YHVH”.
See S2490
After the
Flood the serpentine nature was more markedly manifested in Ham and his
descendants. One of them was Nimrod, a son of Cush. Nimrod was the builder of Babylon
and the Tower of Babel (a name which means `the gate of the
god' and also `confusion'). He was also the one who introduced the
worship of Baal.
Enosh'
name, in itself, was a revelation that the Cainites were spiritually 'incurable,
sick, frail and weak', especially when they profaned the Name of YHVH. Seth
gave his son that name 'Enosh' as a witness to that generation of evil people.
Moreover, Enoch, the seventh from Adam, was raised up to prophesy of YHVH's
judgment upon their unrighteousness (Jude 14,15.) ““ Cain's MARK was his ability to deceive the people spiritually, making them religious. Always bear in mind that Cain was of the Evil and Wicked One, the Adversary of YHVH and His people. Satan has always been a DECEIVER. He is good at transforming himself into an angel of Light to hoodwink the spiritually weak worshippers. For those who enjoy sweet talk, he is a great guy. He is good at tickling those who have itchy ears, too. “
Parallel to Ham's incest with his mother was Nimrod's marriage to his own mother, Semiramis. According to historian Alexander Hislop, author of 'The Two Babylons', Nimrod was killed by his great uncle, Shem, who could not tolerate his evil practices of the occult and baby sacrifice. Then his evil mother-wife deified him. In fact, he was the first human to be deified. Hislop stated “that Nimrod was the actual Father of the gods, as being the first of deified mortals”. His mother was later deified based on the argument that if Nimrod was a god, then his mother-wife must also be a goddess. “
That was how Papal Rome founded their worship of mother Mary and child Jesus.
Hence, we see the same Mark of Cain upon the Hamites: big physically, great intellectually. And their religion? As 'great' and 'beautiful', but full of deceit, evil and wickedness to the core.”
The Talmudic definition of a “Qayin” Someone with large genitals.
Conclusion.
May YHVH
give us the discernment to discern when the spirit of Qayin is manifesting
itself through us. If we are bound by some form of iniquity may we find and receive
help to be free of this spirit.
Next week’s
Torah portion contains a hidden code in the genealogy of the messianic people
and their Messiah.
‘Man is placed in a mortal condition. The one
whom Eloha praises went down, he teaches man. His death sends the despairing
one comfort’.
Please
note these notes are under construction and are subject to correction and are
in no way a final authority on any subject