Cain's Fear of Being Hunted by the Righteous

Midrash Aggadah Targum Pseudo-Jonathan on Genesis 4:14 View source

Curated by The Jewish Mythology Team · Published January 16, 2025

Cain's response to the curse, in Targum Pseudo-Jonathan on (Genesis 4:14), includes a nuance the Hebrew does not spell out. "Behold, Thou hast cast me forth today from the face of the earth, and from before Thee is it possible to be hidden? And because I am a wanderer and an exile in the earth, any just one who findeth me will kill me."

The Hebrew says "anyone who finds me." The Targumist sharpens it: any just one. Cain fears not random violence but the moral response of the righteous. The people most likely to kill him are the ones most capable of recognizing what he has done. The tzaddikim are the threat, because they uphold the very justice he has broken.

This is a remarkable window into Cain's mind. He has just denied there is a Judge, but he is now terrified that the righteous will become judges themselves. The moral universe he tried to deny has caught up with him.

Themes

Exile Divine justice Sin Repentance Righteousness

Biblical References

Genesis 4:14

Continue Reading

Midrash Aggadah The Mark of the Divine Name Sealed on Cain's Forehead What was the "mark of Cain"? The Torah only says God placed a sign on him so no one would kill him. Targum Pseudo-Jonath... Midrash Aggadah One Little Hour Would Destroy You - The Warning The divine command to remove the Sinai ornaments came with a startling explanation. Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, the Aramaic ... Midrash Aggadah Why Lamech Deserves Seventy-Seven Generations of Protection Lamech's argument continues in Targum Pseudo-Jonathan on (Genesis 4:24). He does a piece of theological arithmetic in fr... Midrash Aggadah Nimrod Leaves the Tower Builders and Founds New Cities Targum Pseudo-Jonathan on Genesis 10:11 adds a twist no one reading the plain Hebrew would expect. From that land went f... Apocrypha & Pseudepigrapha Adam and Eve's Penance After Expulsion from Eden Eve dreamed of blood. Her son's blood. Pouring into the mouth of his brother. After their expulsion from Paradise, Adam ... Ginzberg Why Sodom Was Destroyed at Dawn Jewish tradition is full of instances where the "when" is just as important as the "what." Take the story of the destruc... Midrash Aggadah Rabbi Yochanan Whoever occupies himself with the A disciple recited before R. Jochanan: "Whoever occupies himself with the study of the Torah and with the practice of lo... Midrash Aggadah The Forty-Five Righteous Who Keep the World from Collapsing The prophet Hosea was instructed to buy back his unfaithful wife for a price that seemed arbitrary — fifteen pieces of s... Midrash Aggadah The Earth That Opened Its Mouth to Receive Abel's Blood Targum Pseudo-Jonathan on (Genesis 4:11) continues the image. "Now because thou hast killed him, thou art cursed from th...