Today, we're diving into one of those fascinating, lesser-known works: the Book of Jasher. Now, it's important to understand that this isn't part of the Tanakh. Its authenticity and origins are disputed by scholars. But it's still a rich source of tradition and storytelling, referenced in the Bible itself (Joshua 10:13 and (2 Samuel 1:1)8), suggesting it was once a well-known text.
So, let's open Chapter 1 and see what it has to tell us, starting right at the very beginning:
"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and God created man in his own image." Just like Genesis. God forms man from the ground, breathes life into his nostrils, and he becomes a "living soul endowed with speech." The nefesh (the vital soul) chayah, the living soul, has the power of language right from the start!
Then comes the famous line, "It is not good for man to be alone; I will make unto him a helpmeet." God puts Adam into a deep sleep, takes a rib, and fashions woman. Adam awakens and proclaims, "This is a bone of my bones and it shall be called woman, for this has been taken from man; and Adam called her name Eve, for she was the mother of all living." The text emphasizes their shared origin, their connection. They are called Adam and Eve, blessed, and told to "be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth."
Life in the Garden of Eden is idyllic. Adam and Eve are placed there "to dress it and to keep it." They are free to eat from any tree, except one: "the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." The consequences are clear: "for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die."
And then enters the serpent. The Book of Jasher tells us that the serpent was created with them on Earth, and its sole purpose was to incite them to disobey God. It succeeds. The serpent persuades Eve to eat from the forbidden tree. She does, and then gives some to Adam, who also eats.
The transgression is complete. God knows, is angered, and curses them. They are driven from the Garden "to till the ground from which they were taken." Adam and Eve then have two sons and three daughters. The firstborn is named Cain, because Eve says, "I have obtained a man from the Lord." The second is named Abel, "for she said, In vanity we came into the earth, and in vanity we shall be taken from it." A poignant reflection on mortality.
As the boys grow, Cain becomes a tiller of the ground, and Abel a keeper of sheep. After some years, they both bring offerings to God. Cain brings "from the fruit of the ground," and Abel brings "from the firstlings of his flock from the fat thereof." God favors Abel's offering. A fire comes down from heaven and consumes it. But God does not turn to Cain's offering, because he brought "from the inferior fruit of the ground."
And here’s where the story takes a dark turn.
Cain becomes jealous of his brother. He seeks a pretext to kill him. One day, they are in the field together. Cain is plowing, and Abel's flock wanders onto the ploughed land. Cain is angered by this.
An argument ensues. Cain asks Abel, "What is there between me and thee, that thou comest to dwell and bring thy flock to feed in my land?" Abel retorts, "What is there between me and thee, that thou shalt eat the flesh of my flock and clothe thyself with their wool?" He demands Cain remove the wool and compensate him for what he has eaten.
The argument escalates. Cain says, "Surely if I slay thee this day, who will require thy blood from me?" Abel responds that God will avenge his cause, "for the Lord is the judge and arbiter, and it is he who will requite man according to his evil."
Hearing this, Cain's anger explodes. He grabs "the iron part of his ploughing instrument" and strikes Abel, killing him. Cain spills Abel’s blood upon the earth.
The text tells us that Cain then repents, is grieved, and weeps. He digs a hole and buries Abel's body, covering it with dust. But God knows what Cain has done. God asks Cain, "Where is Abel thy brother that was with thee?" Cain dissembles, "I do not know, am I my brother's keeper?"
God then pronounces the consequences. Cain is cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive Abel's blood. When Cain tills the ground, it will no longer give him its strength. He will be "moving and wandering in the earth until the day of thy death."
Cain goes out from the presence of the Lord and dwells east of Eden. He has a son named Enoch and begins to build a city, which he also names Enoch. The text says that in those days, the Lord gave him rest upon the Earth, so he did not move about and wander as in the beginning.
So, what can we take away from this version of the story? Well, it offers a more detailed account of the events leading up to the first murder, highlighting the themes of jealousy, resentment, and the consequences of disobedience. The dialogue between Cain and Abel humanizes them, giving us a glimpse into their relationship and the tensions that ultimately led to tragedy. The immediate remorse Cain feels paints a more complex picture of him.
And the fact that Cain eventually finds rest and even builds a city raises questions about justice, forgiveness, and the enduring nature of humanity, even after the most terrible acts.
The Book of Jasher, even in just its first chapter, gives us a lot to think about, doesn't it? It invites us to explore the nuances of these ancient stories, to grapple with their complexities, and to find new meaning in their enduring messages.
Sacred-texts Apocrypha Index Next Book of Jasher, Chapter 1 1 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and God created man in his own image. 2 And God formed man from the ground, and he blew into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul endowed with speech. 3 And the Lord said, It is not good for man to be alone; I will make unto him a helpmeet. 4 And the Lord caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept, and he took away one of his ribs, and he built flesh upon it, and formed it and brought it to Adam, and Adam awoke from his sleep, and behold a woman was standing before him. 5 And he said, This is a bone of my bones and it shall be called woman, for this has been taken from man; and Adam called her name Eve, for she was the mother of all living. 6 And God blessed them and called their names Adam and Eve in the day that he created them, and the Lord God said, Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. 7 And the Lord God took Adam and his wife, and he placed them in the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it; and he commanded them and said unto them, From every tree of the garden you may eat, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die. 8 And when God had blessed and commanded them, he went from them, and Adam and his wife dwelt in the garden according to the command which the Lord had commanded them. 9 And the serpent, which God had created with them in the earth, came to them to incite them to transgress the command of God which he had commanded them. 10 And the serpent enticed and persuaded the woman to eat from the tree of knowledge, and the woman hearkened to the voice of the serpent, and she transgressed the word of God, and took from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and she ate, and she took from it and gave also to her husband and he ate. 11 And Adam and his wife transgressed the command of God which he commanded them, and God knew it, and his anger was kindled against them and he cursed them. 12 And the Lord God drove them that day from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which they were taken, and they went and dwelt at the east of the garden of Eden; and Adam knew his wife Eve and she bore two sons and three daughters. 13 And she called the name of the first born Cain, saying, I have obtained a man from the Lord, and the name of the other she called Abel, for she said, In vanity we came into the earth, and in vanity we shall be taken from it. 14 And the boys grew up and their father gave them a possession in the land; and Cain was a tiller of the ground, and Abel a keeper of sheep. 15 And it was at the expiration of a few years, that they brought an approximating offering to the Lord, and Cain brought from the fruit of the ground, and Abel brought from the firstlings of his flock from the fat thereof, and God turned and inclined to Abel and his offering, and a fire came down from the Lord from heaven and consumed it. 16 And unto Cain and his offering the Lord did not turn, and he did not incline to it, for he had brought from the inferior fruit of the ground before the Lord, and Cain was jealous against his brother Abel on account of this, and he sought a pretext to slay him. 17 And in some time after, Cain and Abel his brother, went one day into the field to do their work; and they were both in the field, Cain tilling and ploughing his ground, and Abel feeding his flock; and the flock passed that part which Cain had ploughed in the ground, and it sorely grieved Cain on this account. 18 And Cain approached his brother Abel in anger, and he said unto him, What is there between me and thee, that thou comest to dwell and bring thy flock to feed in my land? 19 And Abel answered his brother Cain and said unto him, What is there between me and thee, that thou shalt eat the flesh of my flock and clothe thyself with their wool? 20 And now therefore, put off the wool of my sheep with which thou hast clothed thyself, and recompense me for their fruit and flesh which thou hast eaten, and when thou shalt have done this, I will then go from thy land as thou hast said? 21 And Cain said to his brother Abel, Surely if I slay thee this day, who will require thy blood from me? 22 And Abel answered Cain, saying, Surely God who has made us in the earth, he will avenge my cause, and he will require my blood from thee shouldst thou slay me, for the Lord is the judge and arbiter, and it is he who will requite man according to his evil, and the wicked man according to the wickedness that he may do upon earth. 23 And now, if thou shouldst slay me here, surely God knoweth thy secret views, and will judge thee for the evil which thou didst declare to do unto me this day. 24 And when Cain heard the words which Abel his brother had spoken, behold the anger of Cain was kindled against his brother Abel for declaring this thing. 25 And Cain hastened and rose up, and took the iron part of his ploughing instrument, with which he suddenly smote his brother and he slew him, and Cain spilt the blood of his brother Abel upon the earth, and the blood of Abel streamed upon the earth before the flock. 26 And after this Cain repented having slain his brother, and he was sadly grieved, and he wept over him and it vexed him exceedingly. 27 And Cain rose up and dug a hole in the field, wherein he put his brother's body, and he turned the dust over it. 28 And the Lord knew what Cain had done to his brother, and the Lord appeared to Cain and said unto him, Where is Abel thy brother that was with thee? 29 And Cain dissembled, and said, I do not know, am I my brother's keeper? And the Lord said unto him, What hast thou done? The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground where thou hast slain him. 30 For thou hast slain thy brother and hast dissembled before me, and didst imagine in thy heart that I saw thee not, nor knew all thy actions. 31 But thou didst this thing and didst slay thy brother for naught and because he spoke rightly to thee, and now, therefore, cursed be thou from the ground which opened its mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand, and wherein thou didst bury him. 32 And it shall be when thou shalt till it, it shall no more give thee its strength as in the beginning, for thorns and thistles shall the ground produce, and thou shalt be moving and wandering in the earth until the day of thy death. 33 And at that time Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, from the place where he was, and he went moving and wandering in the land toward the east of Eden, he and all belonging to him. 34 And Cain knew his wife in those days, and she conceived and bare a son, and he called his name Enoch, saying, In that time the Lord began to give him rest and quiet in the earth. 35 And at that time Cain also began to build a city: and he built the city and he called the name of the city Enoch, according to the name of his son; for in those days the Lord had given him rest upon the earth, and he did not move about and wander as in the beginning. 36 And Irad was born to Enoch, and Irad begat Mechuyael and Mechuyael begat Methusael. 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