Bible Story (Genesis Edition; Part I)

Brothers

The next great tragic story cometh from the next generations of Adam & Eve; the Cain & Abel story. We all know how this goes, because although it ends tragically, the story is quite popular, especially in the country that has a dominant figure of Christian religion, like the European & the USA. Although the story is well-known by the Christ-believers, it's still misinterpreted by some people as 'another moral story' in the bible. A story that tells us 'Don't be a bad guy & always try to be nice'. Well, it's the problem of reading the bible story, not just Cain & Abel. People tend to oversimplify the main moral messages of it, and I think that's why people tend to get bored when they're reading the bible. Well, let's dig in a little deeper, shall we?

We can all agree that sibling relationship is complicated, isn't it? Yes, we sometimes love them and be comfortable to their energy, but sometimes we hate each other & could get really annoyed by them, easily. Here's a story from mine; when I was writing this notes, I was sitting beside my sister & she ate quietly for a few minutes, then when I tried to start a conversation, she'll always go with a high-pitch tone and a little robust volume, so I assume that she got annoyed when I talked to her. Well, it's my hundred trials to get to know her a little deeper & better. Turns out not so great, right?

So as in the story of Cain & Abel. It must've been a hard situation for Cain, to accept the fact that his offering had not been respect by God. Well, although no one knows for sure why his tribute had not been respect, we can say that his response is quite shocking. Instead of figuring out what's wrong with his offerings, or trying to give a better one for God, or even gently, admit & praise for his brother's offering, he believes that it's better to kill him. He blames his brother for his failure & therefore, Cain was drowned by bitterness & vengeful spirits.

And so, the good brother died in the hands of his own siblings, and Cain had lost control of himself. And as quickly as it goes, God came unto him and ask a stupid question to Cain; "Where's your brother?". Even Cain answer Him with more stupid answers; I don't know am I my brother's keeper? (Well, yeah Cain. You're his brother!). And so, as the consequences as his behavior, God give him a very bad luck. Yup, a bad fortune for his future. God didn't punish him, by killing him instantly, because it would not be a proportionate consequences. He wanted him to live with his mistakes, and to contemplate it, until the end of his day. Yup, that's a more proper punishment. Well, it's not a pretty good story to tell to the kids, right?

But to make things better, we can point out a good message that lies in this story. This is not just about the sibling jealousy. It's more than that. It's about how much that God loves both Cain & Abel. Yeah, we all know that God loves Abel & his offering, but why did God love Cain? Cain is a bad brother! If we look at the text where Cain is getting wroth & angry, we'll see that God is there with Cain. God spoke to Cain! God didn't even speak to Abel! God was near him, before he decide to murder his brother. God gave him a warning & a suggestion for him, to not let his inner demon take control of him.

Even when God told Cain that he was punished by his mistakes, God still protected him, wherever he went, and whatever that he did. God even let Cain to have a family, an ultimate mercy that Cain could have. He had a wife, a son, and therefore, God let Cain to experience love, and the sweetness of having a great life. Although if we look closer, we'll see that not all of Cain's children are good children; one of them was the first blacksmith(The inventor of weapons & perhaps violence), and Lamech was the first man that was practicing polygamy in the world. Nonetheless, God still love him, and therefore He never chose to end Cain's live, giving him a chance to redeem himself to be a better person in his time.