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Cain, in the biblical story, might have known that feeling all too well. We all know the story: Cain and Abel, brothers, offering sacrifices to God. Abel's offering is accepted. Ca...
The Torah, in its infinite wisdom, speaks to that very human experience. Consider the loaded question in Genesis 4:8, after Cain has just slain his brother Abel. God confronts him,...
And it's a question that surfaces in the story of Cain and Abel, especially in God's words to Cain right before the first murder. "And unto thee shall be his desire?" (Genesis 4:7)...
We get a glimpse into the story of the very first murder in the Torah, but the text leaves so much unsaid. What drove Cain to such a horrific act? Was it simply jealousy over God f...
The Midrash of Philo grapples with this very point. It’s not about God needing information. It’s about something far deeper: confronting Cain with the enormity of his actions. See,...
God asks him, "Where is your brother Abel?" And Cain replies, cool as you please, "I do not know: am I my brother's keeper?" (Genesis 4:9). Now, this moment, this exchange, gets so...
What does it symbolize? The Torah is full of these deceptively simple questions that open up to reveal universes of meaning. Take the story of Cain and Abel. A primal scene. Siblin...
The ancient sages certainly did. And they found answers in the most unexpected places. Take, for instance, the story Philo, the 1st century Jewish philosopher from Alexandria, tell...
This comes from the story of Cain, right after, well, you know. He's just murdered his brother Abel, and God confronts him. The earth itself is now cursed because of the spilled bl...
