I'm going to try posting before the lesson this week, see how that goes...
Lesson 5 contrasts the lives of Cain and Enoch. I'll look at Cain this time around and see if I have time to cover Enoch later in the week.
Adam and Eve had high hopes for their son Cain. If we read the Genesis account, it sounds like Cain is their first son, but in Moses it's clear that they had several sons and daughters already (see Moses 5:12). By the time Cain comes along, it sounds like there are many who have chosen not to follow the Lord, and Eve's desire for Cain was that "he may not reject [the Lord's] words..." but sadly his attitude was, "Who is the Lord that I should know him?" (Moses 5:16)
Adam and his posterity had been commanded of the Lord to "offer the firstlings of their flocks, for an offering unto the Lord..." as "... a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten..." (Moses 5:5, 7). We need to know that part before the next part makes sense.
Satan told Cain to "Make an offering unto the Lord" (Moses 5:18). Either the record left out a few parts, or Cain could be trusted to mess it up on his own. Instead of offering the firstling of the flock, he brought some of his crops.
This doesn't make sense, why would Satan tell Cain to do something righteous? Because he either knew Cain wouldn't do it right, or he told him to offer crops instead of the required firstling. It wasn't exactly a suggestion from the Lord that if you happen to have a firstling kicking around, that'll work. Otherwise, whatever you have will be fine. God specifically set forth the terms of an acceptable sacrifice, it had to be specific if it was going to be symbolic of the Savior's great sacrifice.
When God approved of Abel's offering but not Cain's, Satan was happy and Cain was "very wroth" (Moses 5:21). This confused me a little too. Why would Cain be so upset that God didn't approve of his offering, which Satan told him to do in the first place? Cain "loved Satan more than God" (Moses 5:18), so you wouldn't imagine approval from God would be high on his priorities.
A scripture from the Book of Mormon helped a little. Mormon saw the sorrow of his people and was hopeful they would repent and turn from their wickedness.
"But behold this my joy was vain, for their sorrowing was not unto repentance, because of the goodness of God; but it was rather the sorrowing of the damned, because the Lord would not always suffer them to take happiness in sin" (Mormon 2:13, emphasis added).
There is no happiness or divine approval to be found outside of the Lord's commandments. Satan knows this and Cain just learned the hard way.
Satan makes a deal with Cain saying, "If you swear your allegiance to me, I'll hand over your brother Abel and you can do whatever you want to him" (paraphrasing Moses 5:29).
Medium story short, Cain does, Satan does, and Abel winds up murdered. Cain exclaims, "I am free" (Moses 5:33). Just as Cain learned there is no happiness in sin, he now learns there is no freedom in wickedness. He is cursed to roam the earth as a fugitive and vagabond.
One of the other questions which came to me was, "Why didn't the Lord warn Abel?" Abel was clearly a righteous man, that has to count for something, right? 'Hey Abel, your brother wants to kill you for a few sheep.' Abel gets to live, Cain gets upset but doesn't kill anyone, seems like a happy ending.
We sometimes get caught up in the idea that faithfulness somehow equals an easier ride through life. Ask Job how that worked for him. He was allowed to be tried and tested because he was so righteous and faithful.
Amulek asked a similar question of Alma as they watched the many faithful women and children being thrown into the flames by the wicked judges.
"But Alma said unto him: The Spirit constraineth me that I must not stretch forth mine hand; for behold the Lord receiveth them up unto himself, in glory; and he doth suffer that ... the people may do this thing unto them, according to the hardness of their hearts, that the judgments which he shall exercise upon them in his wrath may be just; and the blood of the innocent shall stand as a witness against them, yea, and cry mightily against them at the last day" (Alma 14:11).
In the end, Cain is forced to wander the land and doesn't get his brother's flocks like he thought he would. Apparently he didn't read the fine print on his contract, "Terms and conditions apply. Subject to change without notice. Dealer may sell for less, or just walk away altogether and leave you to take the blame for everything."
Lesson 5 contrasts the lives of Cain and Enoch. I'll look at Cain this time around and see if I have time to cover Enoch later in the week.
Adam and Eve had high hopes for their son Cain. If we read the Genesis account, it sounds like Cain is their first son, but in Moses it's clear that they had several sons and daughters already (see Moses 5:12). By the time Cain comes along, it sounds like there are many who have chosen not to follow the Lord, and Eve's desire for Cain was that "he may not reject [the Lord's] words..." but sadly his attitude was, "Who is the Lord that I should know him?" (Moses 5:16)
Adam and his posterity had been commanded of the Lord to "offer the firstlings of their flocks, for an offering unto the Lord..." as "... a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten..." (Moses 5:5, 7). We need to know that part before the next part makes sense.
Satan told Cain to "Make an offering unto the Lord" (Moses 5:18). Either the record left out a few parts, or Cain could be trusted to mess it up on his own. Instead of offering the firstling of the flock, he brought some of his crops.
This doesn't make sense, why would Satan tell Cain to do something righteous? Because he either knew Cain wouldn't do it right, or he told him to offer crops instead of the required firstling. It wasn't exactly a suggestion from the Lord that if you happen to have a firstling kicking around, that'll work. Otherwise, whatever you have will be fine. God specifically set forth the terms of an acceptable sacrifice, it had to be specific if it was going to be symbolic of the Savior's great sacrifice.
When God approved of Abel's offering but not Cain's, Satan was happy and Cain was "very wroth" (Moses 5:21). This confused me a little too. Why would Cain be so upset that God didn't approve of his offering, which Satan told him to do in the first place? Cain "loved Satan more than God" (Moses 5:18), so you wouldn't imagine approval from God would be high on his priorities.
A scripture from the Book of Mormon helped a little. Mormon saw the sorrow of his people and was hopeful they would repent and turn from their wickedness.
"But behold this my joy was vain, for their sorrowing was not unto repentance, because of the goodness of God; but it was rather the sorrowing of the damned, because the Lord would not always suffer them to take happiness in sin" (Mormon 2:13, emphasis added).
There is no happiness or divine approval to be found outside of the Lord's commandments. Satan knows this and Cain just learned the hard way.
Satan makes a deal with Cain saying, "If you swear your allegiance to me, I'll hand over your brother Abel and you can do whatever you want to him" (paraphrasing Moses 5:29).
Medium story short, Cain does, Satan does, and Abel winds up murdered. Cain exclaims, "I am free" (Moses 5:33). Just as Cain learned there is no happiness in sin, he now learns there is no freedom in wickedness. He is cursed to roam the earth as a fugitive and vagabond.
One of the other questions which came to me was, "Why didn't the Lord warn Abel?" Abel was clearly a righteous man, that has to count for something, right? 'Hey Abel, your brother wants to kill you for a few sheep.' Abel gets to live, Cain gets upset but doesn't kill anyone, seems like a happy ending.
We sometimes get caught up in the idea that faithfulness somehow equals an easier ride through life. Ask Job how that worked for him. He was allowed to be tried and tested because he was so righteous and faithful.
Amulek asked a similar question of Alma as they watched the many faithful women and children being thrown into the flames by the wicked judges.
"But Alma said unto him: The Spirit constraineth me that I must not stretch forth mine hand; for behold the Lord receiveth them up unto himself, in glory; and he doth suffer that ... the people may do this thing unto them, according to the hardness of their hearts, that the judgments which he shall exercise upon them in his wrath may be just; and the blood of the innocent shall stand as a witness against them, yea, and cry mightily against them at the last day" (Alma 14:11).
In the end, Cain is forced to wander the land and doesn't get his brother's flocks like he thought he would. Apparently he didn't read the fine print on his contract, "Terms and conditions apply. Subject to change without notice. Dealer may sell for less, or just walk away altogether and leave you to take the blame for everything."
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