Adam and Eve bore Cain and Abel. Cain was a farmer and Abel a shepherd. And each of the brothers brought an offering to God and God was pleased with Abel's but not Cain's. We aren't sure why, perhaps Cain's was not the best of the crop. Cain in a jealous rage kills his brother. God curses Abel and he leaves for the land of Nod, east of Eden. Cain has several children and grand-children who are instrumental in beginning cities, cattle herding, art, technology. Adam and Eve have another son, Seth who has a child Enosh and then men begin to worship God.
So many interesting questions prompted by this chapter: What was Cain’s sin against God? What was the sign placed upon Cain? Was Cain and his descendants wiped out completely by the flood or did one of them become one of the wives of Noah’s sons? What was Lamech’s boast about and what prompted it? What does it mean that people began to call upon the name of the Lord (and why Lord and not God)? Why mention that the sons of Cain were creators of music and technology – is there something evil about entertainment and technology? All of these questions have prompted a lot of speculation, discourse, and argument.
What I found interesting is that Cain talks to God directly with God, possibly appearing to him in the form of a man and that he is seemingly not fearful of Him. Also, that Cain was truly evil in that he premeditatedly invited Abel to the field specifically to kill him.