Genesis 4-5 Do You Give God What He Likes?
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Psalm 2:1-12 The Wise Kiss The Son
The Triumphant Messiah
1 Why do the nations rage
and the peoples plot in vain? 2 The kings of the earth set themselves,
and the rulers take counsel together,
against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying, 3 “Let us burst their bonds apart
and cast away their cords from us.”
4 He who sits in the heavens laughs;
the Lord holds them in derision. 5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath,
and terrify them in his fury, saying, 6 “As for me, I have set my King
on Zion, my holy hill.”
7 I will tell of the decree:
The LORD said to me, “You are my Son;
today I have begotten you. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
and the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You shall break them with a rod of iron
and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.”
10 Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
be warned, O rulers of the earth. 11 Serve the LORD with fear,
and rejoice with trembling. 12 Kiss the Son,
lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,
for his wrath is quickly kindled.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
Observation
2:1-12 After God finishes laughing at the kings of the earth seeking to rebel against Him, He will level them with His judgment. God has a plan to submit them under His Son, the Davidic King, (and eventually the Messiah). Emperors (called Suzerains) would install a king over a territory (called a Vassal) to rule on their behalf. Ancient Near East archaeology has uncovered a number of Suzerain-Vassal treaties. The process of becoming a vassal was likened to becoming a son, who owed filial (son-like) fidelity and loyalty to the “father.” The “father had covenant obligations (hesed) to the “son” as well, such as protecting him. Part of hesed was looking out for each other's interests. When God made the Davidic Covenant (2 Samuel 7) with David, He portrayed Himself as the Suzerain and David (and his faithful descendants) as the vassal. An unfaithful vassal was deposed (deprived of power, and “put to death” sometimes literally, or metaphorically). When the Messiah is installed in Zion, He will rule rebels with a rod of iron, and destroy those who don't submit. Therefore the wise course of action is to serve Yahweh, and His Son with fear and trembling. Usually one kissed the feet of the ruler as an act of obeisance. On the flip side, those who sought humble refuge in Him would be blessed (see Psalm 1).
Application
It is wise to fear and submit to God's rule of our lives, otherwise the rod of iron will descend.
Prayer
Proverbs 1:10-14 Just Say "No"
do not consent. 11 If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood;
let us ambush the innocent without reason; 12 like Sheol let us swallow them alive,
and whole, like those who go down to the pit; 13 we shall find all precious goods,
we shall fill our houses with plunder; 14 throw in your lot among us;
we will all have one purse”
—
Application
Don't hang around people you don't want to be like, because you will become like them, and suffer their fate.
Prayer
God, help me unmask the deceptions of sin and embrace the value system You've revealed for me. Amen.
Genesis 4-5 Do You Give God What He Likes?
Genesis 4 What's the first thing God said to man after kicking him out of the Garden?
Cain and Abel
1 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the LORD.” 2 And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground. 3 In the course of time Cain brought to the LORD an offering of the fruit of the ground, 4 and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and his offering, 5 but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. 6 The LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”Application
If you're wallowing in the swill of sin and self-pity, do what's right and master sin. See "Sanctification: It Ain't Gonna Reign No More" on Truthbase.net. Memorize Romans 6.
Prayer
God, thank You that You spell out what we need to do and make available the grace to do it. Show me how to master sin and live the spiritually victorious life, which pleases You. Amen.
Genesis 4 Sibling Rivalry and Retribution
Cain Murders Abel
8 Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. 9 Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?” 10 And the LORD said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. 11 And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.” 13 Cain said to the LORD, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14 Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground, and from your face I shall be hidden. I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.” 15 Then the LORD said to him, “Not so! If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.” And the LORD put a mark on Cain, lest any who found him should attack him. 16 Then Cain went away from the presence of the LORD and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden.Question
What's difficult about your life? Is it a consequence of your attitude or actions?
Genesis 4 Looking for Worth in the Wrong Places
“Adah and Zillah, hear my voice;
you wives of Lamech, listen to what I say:
I have killed a man for wounding me,
a young man for striking me. 24 If Cain's revenge is sevenfold,
then Lamech's is seventy-sevenfold.”
Seth and Enosh
25 And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Seth, for she said, “God has appointed for me another offspring instead of Abel, for Cain killed him.” 26 To Seth also a son was born, and he called his name Enosh. At that time people began to call upon the name of the LORD.Genesis 5 Adam Dies (finally) and Enoch Disappears
The Descendants of Adam
1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. 2 Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them Man when they were created. 3 When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. 4 The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years; and he had other sons and daughters. 5 Thus all the days that Adam lived were 930 years, and he died. 6 When Seth had lived 105 years, he fathered Enosh. 7 Seth lived after he fathered Enosh 807 years and had other sons and daughters. 8 Thus all the days of Seth were 912 years, and he died. 9 When Enosh had lived 90 years, he fathered Kenan. 10 Enosh lived after he fathered Kenan 815 years and had other sons and daughters. 11 Thus all the days of Enosh were 905 years, and he died. 12 When Kenan had lived 70 years, he fathered Mahalalel. 13 Kenan lived after he fathered Mahalalel 840 years and had other sons and daughters. 14 Thus all the days of Kenan were 910 years, and he died. 15 When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he fathered Jared. 16 Mahalalel lived after he fathered Jared 830 years and had other sons and daughters. 17 Thus all the days of Mahalalel were 895 years, and he died.God Takes Up Enoch
18 When Jared had lived 162 years, he fathered Enoch. 19 Jared lived after he fathered Enoch 800 years and had other sons and daughters. 20 Thus all the days of Jared were 962 years, and he died. 21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. 22 Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters. 23 Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. 24 Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.From Methuselah to Noah
25 When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he fathered Lamech. 26 Methuselah lived after he fathered Lamech 782 years and had other sons and daughters. 27 Thus all the days of Methuselah were 969 years, and he died. 28 When Lamech had lived 182 years, he fathered a son 29 and called his name Noah, saying, “Out of the ground that the LORD has cursed, this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the painful toil of our hands.” 30 Lamech lived after he fathered Noah 595 years and had other sons and daughters. 31 Thus all the days of Lamech were 777 years, and he died. 32 After Noah was 500 years old, Noah fathered Shem, Ham, and Japheth.Digging Deeper
If you want to make fiction believable, you don't have Methuselah (longest living) be 969; the candles on the birthday cake would incinerate it. The Sumerians (lived in Mesopotamia, same region) had a list of kings, eponymously called The Sumerian King List. It records a list of the rulers who lived a really long time, which is amazingly parallel to the list of the Patriarchs in Genesis once you correct for a base 60 cuneiform slip of the stylus. Some think these were ancient astronauts, but a saner view accounts for the longevity due to superior genes, and a vapor canopy that surrounded the earth, protecting its inhabitants from cell degenerating UV light, until the flood (next chapter). According to the genealogy, Noah's father could have known Adam, and Abraham could have known Noah.
Questions
How were Cain and Abel supposed to know what God wanted? What happened to Enoch? Did he walk next to God or a couple paces behind?
Observation
The Bible doesn't tell us every single thing about God's interaction with humankind, only what we need to know, to do what we need to do.
4:3-6 Cain and Abel were suppose to know what God wanted because He either told them, or they should have figured it out. He tells Cain that he didn't do what was right. So either He gave extra-Biblical revelation (cf Genesis 15:16), or Cain should have known that God was worthy of our lives (blood sacrifice) or our best. God doesn't like being Lord of the Leftovers (see Malachi, last book of the OT). While you're jumping ahead, 1 John 3:12 sheds some light on Cain and Abel.
4:7 The entire “Word (instruction) of God” for a thousand years between the expulsion from the Garden to Noah's cruise, consisted of this verse, and “don't kill Cain” (4:15).A quiet time in those days was pretty simple:
Enoch: “Hmmm, let's see, what does God have for me today. Gen 2:16, “don't eat the fruit” Fine, I'll grab a burger for lunch. Gen 4:15 “don't kill Cain,” I don't even know a Cain. That leaves, Gen 4:7 “master sin or be mastered by it” Ouch, sounds difficult...Wait, wasn't there something about being fruitful and multiplying?”
4:8 Why did Cain kill Abel? He must have emotionally short-circuited. How was killing his brother result in God being pleased (the original problem)? Was he blaming his brother for his problems? (No brother, no problem.) The fruit doesn't fall far from the tree (Genesis 3:12-13). His jealousy, springing from his lust for significance (because he wasn't getting props from God, because he wasn't giving God what He wanted) ruined his life. Glad that doesn't happen today.
In Greek “mythology” Cain is the good guy, Seth is the bad guy (Parthenon Code). If our perspective on life is purely secular, we might need to do a 180 to see things from God's perspective.
Application
Like Adam and Cain, we think God doesn't know what's going on, and we can deceive Him. What about omniscient don't you understand?
Better Application
Are you giving God what pleases Him? What's that? Beyond that, how are you planning to master sin. Failing to plan, is planning to fail.
Prayer
God, open my eyes to what You want, so I can do it. Help me feel your pleasure as I do the things for which you created me. Amen.
Quote
“I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure.” - Eric Liddell, “The Chariots of Fire”
5:1-2 Of all the things God could have repeated about Genesis 1-3, what did He repeat?
5:3 Our offspring are in our image, just like we are in God's image. Reasoning backwards, what can you infer about God, from us? Confirm your speculations with the rest of Scripture.
God in a nutshell: Knows what's going on and still asks questions; likes righteous offerings, invites us to “resubmit” what He doesn't like; gives man the choice of mastering sin or being mastered by it, sovereignly sets the rules; just, yet gracious in His punishments; capable of being called upon and walked with.
Us in a nutshell: some pleasing to God, others not so much; tendency to get worth and value from the temporal realm, rather than the eternal realm; must master sin or be mastered by it (not pretty).
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