CAIN AND ABEL—CHIASM

This 9th Post accompanies Gospel Doctrine lesson 5. "If Thou Doest Well, Thou Shalt Be Accepted".

Today's linked article shows a Hebrew poem about Cain and Abel found in Genesis 4.

Moses 5:2-3 tells us Adam and Eve had "sons and daughters" who "began to divide two and two in the land . . . and they also begat sons and daughters."

The births of Cain and Abel are not mentioned until verse 16. This suggests they were not the first children born to Adam and Eve.

Moses 5:28 tells us Cain married one of his nieces. They named their son Enoch.

In Moses 6:10 we read that Adam's great-great-great-great grandson was also named Enoch. If I did my arithmetic right, Enoch was born when Adam was 622 years old—well, 622 years after the fall, anyway. Enoch was the sixth generation after Adam, but you'll find some sources that say he was the fourth generation after Adam. Bless their hearts. That probably comes from Enoch being Adam's great-great-great-great grandson. Writers count those four greats and forget the grand and the son. Adam had reached middle age by then. He still had more than 300 years of mortality ahead of him.

Adam 130
Seth 105
Enos 90
Cainan 70
Mahalaleel 65
Jared 162
Enoch

I'd like to think that Abel had a wife and children when Cain slew him. But we are not told about Abel's posterity.

The Midrash tells us that Cain had a twin sister, and that Adam had triplet sisters. It says Cain married his twin and Abel married one of his triplets, and that the conflict between Cain and Abel arose over who should marry Abel's other triplet sister.

The painting below reflects the idea expressed in most commentaries that Abel was very young when he was murdered. That is one explanation for there being no mention of any descendants.

Cain Leadeth Abel to Death by James Tissot (1836-1902)

We are truly blessed to have modern scriptures and prophets to dispel so many false sectarian notions.

None of this has anything to do with the main idea in the Sunday School lesson, which is about the importance of obeying God’s commandments.

We are commanded to read the Book of Mormon.