EasyEnglish Bible 2018
Hebrews 11:4
4Abel believed God. So he offered a better sacrifice to God than Cain did. And because of Abel's faith, God accepted him as right with him. God said that he was happy with Abel's gifts. Because Abel trusted God, we can still learn from his faith. Abel died long ago, but it is like he is still speaking to us.
Hebrews 11:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.
- New International Version (NIV)By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.
- English Standard Version (ESV)By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks.
- New King James Version (NKJV)By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.
Context of Hebrews 11:4
2It was because of their faith that God said good things about the people of long ago. 3Because of faith, we understand about how God made the universe. He spoke his word to make it happen. In that way, God made all the things that we can see. He made them from things that nobody could see. Abel believed God. So he offered a better sacrifice to God than Cain did. And because of Abel's faith, God accepted him as right with him. God said that he was happy with Abel's gifts. Because Abel trusted God, we can still learn from his faith. Abel died long ago, but it is like he is still speaking to us. 5Enoch also believed God. Because of Enoch's faith, God took him away to heaven. He did not die like other people. As a result, nobody could ever find him, because God had taken him away. Before God took him away, it was clear that Enoch had made God happy. 6Unless we trust God, it is impossible for us to make God happy. Anyone who comes to God must believe that God is there. They must also believe that God helps everyone who wants to know him.
Read all of Hebrews 11Hebrews 11:4 word by word
Πίστει πλείονα θυσίαν Ἅβελ παρὰ Κάϊν προσήνεγκεν τῷ θεῷ, δι᾽ ἧς ἐμαρτυρήθη εἶναι δίκαιος μαρτυροῦντος ἐπὶ τοῖς δώροις αὐτοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ· καὶ δι᾽ αὐτῆς ἀποθανὼν ἔτι λαλεῖ.¶Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- By faithπίστιςpistis · faithG4102
- AbelἌβελAbel · AbelG6
- offeredπροσφέρωprospherō · to bring toG4374
- unto Godὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- unto Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
- aθυσίαthusia · sacrificeG2378
- more excellentπλείων, πλεῖονpleiōn pleion pleon · greaterG4119
- thanπαράpara · from/with/besideG3844
- CainΚάϊνKain · CainG2535
- byδιάdia · through/because ofG1223
- whichὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
- he obtained witnessμαρτυρέωmartureō · to testifyG3140
- that he wasεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- righteousδίκαιοςdikaios · justG1342
- ofἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
- hisαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- giftsδῶρονdōron · giftG1435
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- he being deadἀποθνήσκωapothnēskō · to dieG599
- yetἔτιeti · stillG2089
- speakethλαλέωlaleō · to speakG2980
Cross-references for Hebrews 11:4
- Genesis 4:3One day, it was time for the harvest. Cain brought to the Lord some of his crops as an offering.
- 1 John 3:11Yes, we must love one another. That is the message which you have heard from the beginning.
- Hebrews 9:22God's Law taught that blood was necessary to make almost everything clean. We see that God does not forgive people for their sins unless there is blood from a death.
- Proverbs 15:8When wicked people offer sacrifices to the Lord, he hates it. But he is pleased when good people pray to him.
- Proverbs 21:27The Lord hates it when wicked people offer sacrifices to him. He hates it even more when they do it with an evil purpose.
- Jude 1:11It will be terrible for them! They have lived in the way that Cain lived. They have made the same mistake that Balaam made, because they wanted to get money for themselves. Like Korah, they have refused to obey God. So God will destroy them.
- Leviticus 9:24Then the Lord sent a fire to show that he accepted the gifts. It completely burnt all the fat and the offerings that were on the altar. The people were very happy when they saw this. They shouted and they fell down with their faces to the ground.
- 1 Kings 18:38Then the Lord sent fire down from above. It burned the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the dirt. It made all the water in the hole around the altar disappear!
- Matthew 23:35Because of all this, God will punish you for all the good people that you and your ancestors have killed. Long ago, Abel was the first of those good people. You also killed Zechariah, the son of Berekiah. He died in the yard of the temple near the altar.
- Luke 11:51Abel was the first to die like this and Zechariah was the last. They even killed Zechariah in the yard of the temple, near the altar. Yes, God will punish the people who are alive today for all those murders.
- Hebrews 12:1So we have learned about many people who trusted God long ago. They are like a very big crowd all round us and we should copy their example. We must be like people who run in a race. We must throw away everything that stops us from running well. The sins that we do make us fall down very easily. We must not let those sins rule us. God has prepared the way that is in front of us. We must continue to be strong while we run along that way. We must choose to run that race well.
- Genesis 4:10Then the Lord God said, ‘Why have you done this bad thing? Now your brother's blood is lying there on the ground. That is like his voice which is shouting to me for help.
Commentaries on Hebrews 11:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4By faith Abel offered - a more excellent sacrifice - · More sacrifice; as if he had said: Abel, by faith, made more than one offering; and hence it is said, God testified of his Gifts, . The plain state of the case seems to have been this: Cain and Abel both brought offerings to the altar of God, probably the altar erected for the family worship. As Cain was a husbandman, he brought a mincha, or eucharistic offering, of the fruits of the ground, by which…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4By faith Abel offered - see Genesis 4:4-5. In the account in Genesis of the offering made by Abel, there is no mention of “faith” - as is true also indeed of most of the instances referred to by the apostle. The account in Genesis is, simply, that Abel “brought of the firstlings of his flock, and the fat thereof, and that the Lord had respect to Abel and his offering.” Men have speculated much as to the reason why the offering of Abel was accepted, and…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-7Verses 4-7 Here follow some illustrious examples of faith from the Old Testament. Abel brought a sacrifice of atonement from the firstlings of the flock, acknowledging himself a sinner who deserved to die, and only hoping for mercy through the great Sacrifice. Cain's proud rage and enmity against the accepted worshipper of God, led to the awful effects the same principles have produced in every age; the cruel persecution, and even murder of believers. By…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4Abel: See Genesis 4:3–5. By faith he was commended as righteous: Compare with Hebrews 10:38. he still speaks: The story of his faith challenges us, and his blood testifies to his righteousness and the injustice of his murder (see 12:24).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. more excellent sacrifice--because offered in faith. Now faith must have some revelation of God on which it fastens. The revelation in this case was doubtless God's command to sacrifice animals ("the firstlings of the flock") in token of the forfeiture of men's life by sin, and as a type of the promised bruiser of the serpent's head (Ge 3:15), the one coming sacrifice: this command is implied in God's having made coats of skin for Adam and Eve (Ge…Read the comment
Topics related to Hebrews 11:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Hebrews 11
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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