The first two sins
After the first sin man no longer has to love and serve God, but can do so with the option of going against Him. The implications of the sins of Adam and Eve and Cain ultimately define their importance. Without the first sin humanity could never truly show God obedience and love, but would instead be automatons of his will. Before they eat of the tree of knowledge, they have no choice of whether to disobey God or not, save eating from the tree. God, by not allowing them to eat from the tree, also does not allow them the knowledge to know any better than to eat it. The first sin also makes the second sin possible. Man would never have been tending flocks and working to get food from the earth had Eve and Adam not eaten from the forbidden fruit. Jealousy was also a trait man would not have without the ability to tell good from bad. Cain's sin is also more than just an act of jealousy. By God giving Cain such harsh punishment, the readers of the bible are treated to just how seriously the bible goes against murder. Had the first murder not been chronicled and dealt with, murder may not have had the baneful reputation the Christian and Jewish religions have given it. Neither sin is unimportant for t
hese reasons, but the first sin is more important. This makes the love of God genuine as opposed to Adam and Eve being robots of God before the fall of humankind. Immediately after Cain kills Abel, God asks him where his brother is. Cain lies to God saying he does not know, and God, being Omniscient among other things, immediately cries to Cain that he has killed his brother. He punishes Cain by decreeing that the ground will not grow anything for him, and that he will be a restless wanderer of the Earth. Cain himself is upset by this conversation with God even more than the last one, and lets Him know this time. God feels some pity on him and gives him a mark that will make sure no one attempts to kill him because of his sin, and anyone who does would suffer vengeance seven times over whatever is done to Cain. Cain goes on to have a family and start a city and has among his offspring the ancestors of all musicians, and shepherds. However, one of his sons is also the second murderer in history. There is obviously both deception and secrecy about the sin of Cain. This implies that Cain knew that the act was wrong, and that he did it anyway. The most obvious difference between the first and second sin is that the second was premeditated as a crime; something to be done covertly. The most obvious reason for this difference is that man now has the ability to tell between good and bad because of the first sin. In both the first and second sins the consequences are instant and severe from God. God punishes immediately and harshly in both cases, but God punishes only Cain after the second sin and He gives all of humanity the same punishment as Adam and Eve. Banishment is common ground between the first and second sins, as Adam and Eve are exiled from Eden and Cain is to wander endlessly over the earth. Adam and Eve's punishments seem harsher than Cain's does, although their sin does not seem as bad as the murder of Abel. The message relayed is that obedience of God, as seen in the story of the tree of knowledge, transcends human affairs and is most important. The motives for the second sin are somewhat less obvious than the motives behind the first. Cain i
Some common words found in the essay are:
Adam Eve, Adam God, Eve Cain, Eve Adam, God God, God Cain, Abel Adam, Eve Adam's, Adam Eve's, Cain Cain, adam eve, tree knowledge, god punished, fruit tree, cain's sin, eat tree, eve listening serpent, listening serpent, eating tree, motives sin, sins adam eve, god found, tree knowledge adam, ability tell bad, fruit tree knowledge,
Approximate Word count = 1475
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
