Genesis is loaded with people who compete for attention. Sons want the attention of their father and wives want the attention of their husbands. The first competition for attention in Genesis is not about husband or father attention, but a competition over God's attention. Even though the focus of attention is different, it is the same dynamic in every case.
As the competition between Cain and Abel were the first of all of Genesis' competitions, it served as the prototype for all the others.
In the case of Adam and Cain, they both bring offerings to God. Cain brought from his harvest and Abel brought from "the best" of his flock. What's the difference? Those two words "the best."
Cain got jealous because his brother's sacrifice was the one God liked the best. This made him angry and in this anger he killed his brother to get rid of the competition and to fulfill his need to act on his anger.
Even though jealousy and competition for attention was repeated throughout the book of Genesis, there was only one time that any solution for it was mentioned. When God spoke to Cain He said, "If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.”
Sin was like a lion that waits to pounce on its victim.
Genesis offered the solution to jealousy and competition in Genesis, and He offered it to Cain while he was feeling his jealous anger and before he had killed his brother. He never again tells anybody in Genesis, but time and time again Cain's jealous rage will be repeated in with Sarah, Isaac, Reuben, and Joseph's brothers. None of them controlled their jealousy. Sin pounced on each of them.
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