Genesis 4:3

Genesis 4:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.
• English Standard Version (ESV)In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground,
• New King James Version (NKJV)And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord.
• New Living Translation (NLT)When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the Lord.

Context of Genesis 4:3

1Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth a man.” 2Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. 4And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

Genesis 4:3 word by word

וַֽיְהִ֖י מִקֵּ֣ץ יָמִ֑ים וַיָּבֵ֨א קַ֜יִן מִפְּרִ֧י הָֽאֲדָמָ֛ה מִנְחָ֖ה לַֽיהוָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And in processקֵץqêts · endH7093
• of timeיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• it came to pass, that Cainקַ֫יִןqayin · CainH7014
• broughtבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): bringH935
• of the fruitפְּרִיperîy · fruitH6529
• of the groundאֲדָמָה'ădâmâh · land: soilH127
• an offeringמִנְחָהminchâh · offeringH4503
• unto the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068

Cross-references for Genesis 4:3

• 1 Kings 17:7Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land.
• Nehemiah 13:6But while all this was going on, I was not in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I had returned to the king. Some time later I asked his permission
• Leviticus 2:1“ ‘When anyone brings a grain offering to the Lord, their offering is to be of the finest flour. They are to pour olive oil on it, put incense on it
• Numbers 18:12“I give you all the finest olive oil and all the finest new wine and grain they give the Lord as the firstfruits of their harvest.

Commentaries on Genesis 4:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3In process of time - ימים מקץ mikkets yamim, at the end of days. Some think the anniversary of the creation to be here intended; it is more probable that it means the Sabbath, on which Adam and his family undoubtedly offered oblations to God, as the Divine worship was certainly instituted, and no doubt the Sabbath properly observed in that family. This worship was, in its original institution, very simple. It appears to have consisted of two parts…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-16Verses 1-16 - Section IV - The Family of Adam - Cain and Abel 1. קין qayı̂n Qain (Cain), “spear-shaft,” and קנה qānah “set up, establish, gain, buy,” contain the biliteral root קן qan “set up, erect, gain.” The relations of root words are not confined to the narrow rules of our common etymology, but really extend to such instinctive usages as the unlettered speaker will invent or employ. A full examination of the Hebrew tongue leads to the conclusion…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3There was nothing wrong with offering grain to the Lord (Leviticus 2:14; Deuteronomy 26:2–4). But Cain only gave a small portion of his crops. God requires the first and best (Exodus 23:16, 19; 34:22, 26). Cain's attitude made his offering less valuable than Abel's (Hebrews 11:4). So, God did not accept Cain's offering.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. in process of time--Hebrew, "at the end of days," probably on the Sabbath. brought ... an offering unto the Lord--Both manifested, by the very act of offering, their faith in the being of God and in His claims to their reverence and worship; and had the kind of offering been left to themselves, what more natural than that the one should bring "of the fruits of the ground," and that the other should bring "of the firstlings of his flock and the fat…Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 4:3

• Abel
• Antediluvians
• Cain
• Martyrdom

In the dictionaries

• Cain
• Abel
• Adam
• Agriculture
• Blood
• Burnt offering
• Call
• Cursed
• Fall
• Fat

Commentaries on Genesis 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings