Keep in mind that the creation stories in Genesis 1-3 grew out of a society quite different to our own. a polluter of the soil (the earth opens its mouth to Abel’s blood and will no longer give its bounty to Cain).inclined to evil (sin crouches at his door).stingy (Cain’s offering is not his best produce).There was constant tension between settled city or town dwellers, and the wandering herdsmen. They saw the farmers (Cain) as violent – which they often were. Naturally they told the story from their own point of view.Įgyptian wall painting with farmers ploughing and sowing seed Who originally told this story? The Patriarchs and Matriarchs, who were nomadic herdsmen. It asks us to think about the universal struggle between different ways of life. It would be a mistake to think this story is about one event, long ago, when two brothers quarrelled and came to blows. There was plenty of time in his day for telling stories and thinking about the meaning of life. His food was simple, but usually on permanent tap: milk, occasional meat, and whatever he could scrounge from the surrounding countryside. When one campsite became polluted and smelly, he simply moved to a new one.Ībel’s tent was made (by the women of his family) from wool fibres from his flocks. He was self-sufficient, not confined by anything except the needs of his animals and day-to-day necessities. He, his wife and his children all worked in the fields at certain times of the year.
He had a varied and fairly regular diet, but to get food he had to put in long days of work and a year-round cycle of chores. There were neighbours, buildings, the need to control sanitation and water supply.
His daily tasks were regulated by life in a village. He lived at close quarters with other people – see the reconstructed village houses and street in the picture at right.
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