Why was Cain’s offering unacceptable to God?

There are two aspects of Cain’s offering, which found him unapproved before God: (1) his attitude and (2) the type of offering.

Eventually, Cain and Abel came before God with their offerings. “Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering to Jehovah.” (Gen 4:3, ASV) “Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions.” (Gen 4:4, ESV)

It is likely that both Cain and Abel were close to 100 years old at the time, as Adam was 130 years old when he fathered his third son, Seth. (Gen 4:25; 5:3)
We can establish that the two sons became aware of their sinful state, and sought our God’s favour.



How they garnered this knowledge is guesswork, but it is likely by way of the father, Adam. Adam likely informed them about the coming seed and the hope that lie before humankind.

Therefore, it seems that they had given some thought to their condition and stand before God, and realized that they needed to try to atone for their sinful condition. The Bible does not inform us just how much time they had given to this need before they started to offer a sacrifice.

Rather, God chose to convey the more important aspect, each one’s heart attitude, which gives us an inside look at their thinking.

Some scholars have suggested that Eve felt that Cain was the “seed” of the Genesis 3:15 prophecy that would destroy the serpent, “she conceived and bore Cain, saying, ‘I have gotten a man with the help of the LORD.’ ” (Gen 4:1)



It might be that Cain shared in this belief and had begun to think too much of himself, and thus the haughty spirit. If this is the case, he was very mistaken. His brother Abel had a whole other spirit, as he offered his sacrifice in faith, “By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts.” (Heb 11:4)

It seems that Abel was capable of discerning the need for blood to be involved in the atoning sacrifice, while Cain was not, or simply did not care.

Therefore, it was the heart attitude of Cain as well. Consequently, “but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.” (Gen 4:5, NIV) 

It may well be that Cain had little regard for the atoning sacrifice, giving it little thought, going through the motions of the act only. However, as later biblical history would show, Jehovah God is not one to be satisfied with formal worship. Cain had developed a bad heart attitude, and Jehovah well knew that his motives were not sincere.

The way Cain reacted to the evaluation of his sacrifice only evidenced what Jehovah already knew. Instead of seeking to improve the situation, “Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.” (Gen 4:5) As you read the rest of the account, it will become clearer as to the type of temperament Cain had before Jehovah God.


Author: Andrews, E. D.