The theme of Hebrews is the absolute supremacy and sufficiency of Jesus Christ and the New Covenant He inaugurated. The audience of Hebrews were primarily Jews whose lives had been surrounded by the Levitical system of daily and yearly sacrifices. They were largely unaware of the important role that faith played in their relationship with God.
They needed some examples from the past in Hebrews 11, but he will also point out in Hebrews 13:7 that there are current examples of faith as well. “Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith” (Heb. 13:7).
Our author had introduced back in 10:38-39 that “the just shall live by faith” and now he is explaining and illustrating how that works in Hebrews 11. To them our author writes:
By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead. (Hebrews 11:4)
Abel “still speaks.” But what is he saying? What was he saying to these first century people exposed to the gospel and what is he saying to 21st century believers today?
Admittedly, when you first read the story in Genesis 4, it is somewhat mysterious and enigmatic.
Abel is the first model of what the writer of Hebrews is now calling these Jewish Christians to—an active, living, vibrant faith, produced by grace, only placed in Jesus Christ, which then expresses itself in faithful obedience. And Abel is a profile of that trusting, obedient faith.
But why is Abel first in the list in Hebrews 11? Well, it does seem to be a chronological list, but still, why start with Abel?
Actually, Adam and Eve, in the purest sense of the word, were not people of faith. At least, at first they had walked by sight. They had lived in Eden and had a sensory experience of walking with God. There was little need for faith in pre-Fall Eden.
But Abel was born outside Eden. He had never experienced God’s presence like Adam and Eve had. Another reason Abel’s faith is so important in mentioning here is that (1) it had to do with his own salvation and (2) it cost him something. Both of these factors applied to these first-century believers.
And there are three features of this trusting, obedient faith:
- It responds to God’s revelation, thus trusting in His Word.
- It receives God’s commendation.
- It possesses a perpetual influence on others.
So, first, trusting, obedient faith responds to God’s revelation. What is obvious in this chapter is that Christian faith responds to the revelation of God. You will see this throughout this chapter.
Notice verse 4, “By faith Abel offered a better sacrifice than Cain did.
But what does this mean…a “better” sacrifice? Better in what way?
Well, we need to turn back to Genesis 4 for a little background. In verse 4 we read Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the LORD.”
So Cain is the firstborn. Then we read in verse 2 “And again, she bore his brother Abel.” So Cain and Abel were the second and third men on earth, after Adam. By the way, the name “Cain” comes from the verb caneh, which means “to get.” Eve had “gotten” a man-child.
Now, do you remember the promise, the first expression of good news in Genesis 3? As part of the curse against the malevolent serpent, God says, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
Both the serpent and Eve would have offspring. There would be constant enmity between these two and although the serpent’s seed would “bruise his heel,” the final, crushing blow would come from Eve’s offspring, who would “bruise your head.”
So, there would be a future seed (child) of Eve who would overcome the evil one. God was promising these two sinning parents that they would give birth to a deliverer. So, like all of us, being a little impatient and not realizing that God’s plan often takes a good bit of time to unfold, when Cain was born Eve shouted, “I’ve got him!” Roughly translated, “He’s here! The deliverer God has promised is here!”
But she was wrong. In fact, he would be the first taker of life, not the giver of life.
The second-born son was Abel. His name (hevel) means “breath,” which speaks both of his weakness and the brevity of his life. Was she being prophetic? Job spoke of life, in Job 7:16, as a breath. The Psalmist in Psalm 144:4 speaks of life as but a breath.
Significantly, Abel was “a keeper of sheep,” while Cain was “a worker of the ground.”
Why did Abel keep flocks? They were not meat-eaters yet. The only purpose of the flocks at that time was for sacrifices, and that, of course, is significant.
Cain “worked the soil” and brought God something from his labors. As a “working of the ground” his offering came from his own labors. Also, keep in mind that it came from the cursed ground (cf. Genesis 3:17).
So we read in Genesis 4:3-4, “In the course of time Cain brought to the LORD an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions.”
At some time of offering, Cain brought “an offering of the fruit of the ground” while Abel “brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portion.”
All seems good. But then we read…” And the LORD had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard.” (Genesis 4:4b-5)
But why? Why did God value the offering of Abel above what Cain had offered?
The writer of Hebrews interprets this passage and says, “By faith, Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain.” It was not better because it was more costly, or more abundant or because it came from a better person, but because it was qualitatively different. It was more pleasing to the Lord.
The same Greek word is used by Jesus in the following passages:
- “is not life more important [same word] than food?”
- “one greater than [same word] Solomon here…”
Abel’s offering was of greater value. But why? The answer is tightly connected to the prepositional phase that began Hebrews 11:4, “by faith.” It is a dative of manner, speaking of the way he acted.
Sure, it was better (1) because it was a blood sacrifice, imitating the sacrificed animal to provide covering for Adam and Eve (cf. Gen. 3:21), which ultimately is a type of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice in our behalf; and (2) because he brought the “firstborn of his flock” which revealed his heart attitude in giving God the very best no matter what the cost. And Abel was doing all this hundreds of years because Moses codified it in the laws of Israel!
In Abel’s sacrifice, the way of the cross was first prefigured. The first sacrifice was Abel’s lamb—one lamb for one person. Later came the Passover—with one lamb for one family. Then came the Day of Atonement—with one lamb for one nation. Finally came Good Friday—one Lamb for the whole world (The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Hebrews [Moody Press], p. 301).
But ultimately the reason God accepted Abel’s sacrifice and not Cain’s is that Cain’s was not an exercise of faith. It may represent the best of human reason and industry, but it does not express faith.
And as we learned last time, faith demands an object. It is not faith in faith itself. It is not positive thinking. Biblical faith demands an object, and that object is God’s revealed promises, especially the promise of Jesus Christ as the ultimate deliverer. Faith, therefore, presupposes revelation from God. And faith is a right reflex in response to God’s Word, in other words, it trusts and obeys.
Evidently, God had given Cain and Abel instructions about this act of worship. It may have come through Adam and Eve, but ultimately God had indicated how he wanted to be worshiped. God does not leave something as important as worship up to us and our whims.
We see this from several facts in the text.
First, there seems to have been an established place for bringing sacrifices. They both “brought” their sacrifices somewhere. It think it’s quite possible that that “somewhere” was at the door of Eden where the cherubim now stood guard, prohibiting them from entering in, reminding them of their sin. Also remember that the mercy seat in the tabernacle (and later the temple) were protected by cherubim.
Secondly, notice that there must have been some instruction about a certain time for bringing sacrifice. Verse 3 begins “in the course of time.” Usually in the book of Hebrews that phrase is used to express the idea of the end of days, literally, at the end of a certain prescribed time it was now time for sacrifice. Maybe it was a precursor to what would later be called Yom Kippur, the day of atonement.
And this makes it quite likely, therefore, that there was also a prescribed manner for bringing the sacrifices. I would imagine that this wasn’t the first time the family had brought sacrifices. Maybe they had seen their father do it many times. It has been estimated that Cain was 129 years old at this time! It is likely, therefore, that they both knew not only where and when, but also how sacrifices were to be made.
They had likely watched their father Adam as they grew up, but it was also quite possible that God had spoken to them individually (just like he does to Cain after the offerings were made).
Paul affirms to us that “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17). You cannot put your faith in something you know nothing about, so God must have revealed something for Abel to offer his offerings “by faith.”
Whether or not God had spoken instructions, they had definitely learned about the proper way to offer sacrifices from Adam and Eve. Surely they had heard the story many times about how God had covered Adam and Eve in the skin of a slain animal. “Death for sin, death for sin. The provision of a substitute, God has given” would be ringing in their ears. The very fact that Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel were all clothed and not naked, was a signal to everyone of the reality of sin and the requirement of a substitute.
Four things are intimated by the fact that God made cloaks of animal skin for them, “(1) sinners need to be covered in order for a sinner to stand accepted before a holy God, (2) it couldn’t be of human manufacture, they had already made a covering of leaves, and God said, “No, I think I’ll design the covering.” (3), God had to provide it himself, and (4) it was obtained only by death, an innocent animal had to die.
So even though more instruction will be given to Moses in Leviticus, even at this point in history they could clearly understand the importance of a blood sacrifice to take care of sins.
While it is true that the categories of ritual animal sacrifices were not established until Moses’ time, the earliest believers nevertheless met at the altar on the basis of blood sacrifice (Genesis 8:20–22; 15:1–11).
By the way, there is nothing wrong with grain and fruit sacrifices. There was a place and purpose for them.
Leviticus 19:24 says, “And in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy, an offering of praise to the LORD.” And there are other places that recommend offerings that involved grain or fruit. But, you were never supposed to bring fruit first. The first offerings were the sin offerings and the sin offerings always had to involve blood, as Hebrews 9:22 reminded us, “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.”
When Abel did what God said, he revealed his trusting and obedient faith. He acknowledged his own sinfulness through his sacrifice. Cain, although offering a sacrifice, did not acknowledge his sinfulness.
The life of faith begins with the acknowledgement of personal sin and the need and desire for forgiveness from God. It begins with the admission that you are a sinner in need of forgiveness and then it relies on Another for that forgiveness.
Cain didn’t believe in Another; he relied upon himself. He neither realized his need for forgiveness, nor how that forgiveness could be obtained.
R. Kent Hughes notes:
He came his own way—“the way of Cain.” By refusing to bring the prescribed offering, and instead presenting his garden produce, he was saying that one’s own good works and character is enough. Cain may have reasoned, “What I am presenting is far more beautiful than a bloody animal. I myself would prefer the lovely fruits of a harvest any day. And I worked far harder than Abel to raise my offering. It took real toil and sweat. And it is even of greater market value! Enough of this animal sacrifice business, God. My way is far better!” [Cain’s theme song was, “I did it my way.”}
Cain’s offering was a monument to pride and self-righteousness—“the way of Cain.” Abel, on the other hand, believed and obeyed God: “By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain.” He brought God what God wanted. This was acceptable worship.
It is true that the smell of Cain’s sacrifices would have been more pleasant to the human olfactory senses than the smell of Abel’s burnt animals. But it was not man’s estimation but God’s that mattered.
In addition to a blood sacrifice what made Abel’s sacrifice more worthy in God’s eyes was the fact that it represented the very best that could be offered. What made Abel’s offering superior to Cain’s was evidently its being an offering of the firstborn, and its inclusion of the fat (Gen. 4:4). Ancient Near Easterners commonly held that a deity deserved the first of whatever man, beast, or crop brought forth. The fat, likewise, represented the best part of an animal offering. Along the same line, by offering a blood sacrifice, Abel offered the most precious thing that life supplies: life itself.
But again, ultimately the chief difference between the two sacrifices is the heart attitude of Abel. He expressed faith in God’s revelation and the reality of a blood sacrifice being necessary to cover sins.
William Lane says, “”The general tenor of Scripture indicates that the superior quality of Abel’s offering derived from the integrity of his heart rather than from the nature of the offering itself. This is the clear implication of Gen 4:7, where the Lord says to Cain, ‘If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?'” (William Lane, Hebrews 9-13, p. 334)
It is interesting throughout the rest of Scripture that Abel is referred to as a “righteous” person. Remember, “the just shall live by faith.” For example, in Matthew 23:35 it speaks of “the blood of righteous Abel” and 1 John 3:12 contrasts Abel’s actions with that of Cain and calls Abel’s behavior “righteous.”
It simply means that he was faithfully obedient to the Word of God that had been communicated to him. He obeyed God because He believed God’s Word. This is important because it is the single most distinctive feature of the Christian faith.
Real faith in a Christian’s life will always produce obedience. The person who says they believe in Christ, but has a total absence of the transforming power of grace through faith, will fail to produce obedience in their lives. But real Christian faith takes God at His Word and that Word then shapes his or her life.
There is no real barrier between faith and works. Yes, they are distinctive and they are not interchangeable, but they cannot be separated. Faith obeys; faith responds; faith perseveres!
There is, at the end of the day, a quantum difference between faith in God and believing God. Many have faith in God—that there is a deity out there to be found. To say you “believe in God” allows a distance to remain. It only acknowledges His existence and does not demand a personal relationship with Him.
But to believe God, to trust His Word, involves you personally with God. It means that you trust in and rely upon that God personally and immediately.
This is the characteristic of authentic Christian faith—not merely believing that God exists, but trusting God and His Word and allowing His word to shape you through obedience to it.
That is what made Abel’s faith exemplary.
St. Augustine understood it and penetrated to its very core in his famous City of God when he explained: “Cain was the first-born, and he belonged to the city of men; after him was born Abel, who belonged to the city of God” (t. Augustine, The City of God , Book 15, Chapter 1, in Philip Schaff, ed., The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, vol. 2, trans. Marcus Dods (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1973), p. 284). Augustine correctly saw that each was representative of radically different approaches to religion and to God. There was the way of Cain—a way of unbelief and of self-righteous, man-made religion. Jude 11 warns, “Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain.” In contrast was the way of Abel—a way of faith described in the present text: “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. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks” (11:4).
Grace Still Amazes 