Why was Abel's offering accepted and Cain's offering rejected?"Abel was a keeper of flocks, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the LORD of the fruit of the ground. Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and for his offering; but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance [face or facial expression] fell. Then the LORD said to Cain, 'Why are you angry? And why has your countenance [face or facial expression] fallen? If you do well, will not your countenance [face or facial expression] be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.'" Genesis 4:2b-7
Is it possible that Cain's offering was the wrong type of offering? Possibly, but we are not given that information. To claim that this is absolutely the case is inference and conjecture. While Leviticus 4:25-26, 17:11, and Hebrews 9:22 clearly state the connection between the shedding of blood and the atonement of sin, nevertheless there is nothing mentioned in this passage of such a requirement.
Is it possible that Cain's offering was the wrong quality of offering? Possibly, but we are not given that information. To claim that this is absolutely the case is inference and conjecture. While Abel "brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions," which accords to the law of Moses requiring the sacrifice of the firstborn of livestock (Ex. 13:2; 34:19) and the inclusion of the fat (Lev. 3:9-10, 16; 4:19-20, 25-26), nevertheless the passage does not say that Cain did not bring forth the firstfruits of his harvest, which was also a requirement of the law (Lev. 2:14).
Is it possible that Cain's offering was the wrong heart matter in offering? Possibly. If we look at two other verses of Scripture, some light is shed on the situation.
"By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks." Hebrews 11:4"That we should love one another; not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother's were righteous." 1 John 3:11b-12
Keeping both verses in mind, we are told that Abel's offering was more excellent, being offered by faith, whereas we are told that Cain's works were evil. Which works? Obviously the murder of Abel was evil, but Scripture states his works were evil before Cain murdered his brother. Any evil works we might consider prior to and/or including Cain's offering are merely inference and conjecture. We do not know for certain that his offering definitely was evil.
There is nothing in Scripture to support the idea that Cain and
Abel were given instructions, either directly from God or through their
parents, with regard to sacrifice. There is nothing in this passage to indicate that Cain and Abel were presenting sin offerings to the Lord. If we assume that Abel's offering was for the covering of sin, then a blood sacrifice is consistent with the rest of Scripture. Nevertheless, Scripture does not say that God had required them to make a sacrifice, nor that He had specified the type of sacrifice.
If God had given them specific instructions to make a sacrifice, and the type of sacrifice they were to offer, then Cain's reaction makes absolutely no sense: "So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell." If he knew the type and quality of sacrifice God was looking for, then he had no reason to become angry. In becoming angry, God had provided Cain a way out, but through pride and stubbornness he allowed sin to rule over him. Rather than be repentant, Cain became indignant. He wanted to make the rules and he did not want to change his ways. The same is true of many of us, including professing Christians.
Since Abel's offering pre-dates the law given by Moses, one cannot turn to the law for support against Cain's offering. Even Abraham's sacrifice pre-dates the law given by Moses, but at least we have a command from God given to Abraham for him to make sacrifice. We see no such command given in Scripture for Cain and Abel. The only information that we are given is that they presented an offering and that Abel's was accepted because it was done by faith.
If God had given them specific instructions to make a sacrifice, and the type of sacrifice they were to offer, then Cain's reaction makes absolutely no sense: "So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell." If he knew the type and quality of sacrifice God was looking for, then he had no reason to become angry. In becoming angry, God had provided Cain a way out, but through pride and stubbornness he allowed sin to rule over him. Rather than be repentant, Cain became indignant. He wanted to make the rules and he did not want to change his ways. The same is true of many of us, including professing Christians.
Since Abel's offering pre-dates the law given by Moses, one cannot turn to the law for support against Cain's offering. Even Abraham's sacrifice pre-dates the law given by Moses, but at least we have a command from God given to Abraham for him to make sacrifice. We see no such command given in Scripture for Cain and Abel. The only information that we are given is that they presented an offering and that Abel's was accepted because it was done by faith.
It may be possible that Cain's offering was entirely composed of all three elements: being the wrong type, the wrong quality, and having the wrong heart matter. However, there is nothing in the passage that supports the idea of them making a sacrifice, nor is there anything in the passage to suggest the type of offering was the cause for God's acceptance and rejection. The passage makes it clear that they had brought an offering (a gift) and not a sacrifice. The passage is silent with regard to the type or the quality of Cain's offering. All we can really do is take the passages Scripture has given us and work with them. If we take, "If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it" (Gen. 4:7), and, "By
faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which
he obtained the testimony that he was righteous" (Heb. 11:4), it would seem that the problem with Cain's offering lies with his attitude. Furthermore, the passage says "for Cain and for his offering [the LORD] had no regard" (Gen. 4:5a), not just his offering, which hints at there being something wrong with Cain's attitude. Observe what Proverbs has to say:
"The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination; How much more when he brings it with evil intent?" Proverbs 21:27Cain's offering was made entirely by the work of his hands. Based on the New Testament verses, Cain's offering appears to be one of works righteousness (being right before God), an attempt to work his way into heaven. It appears that Cain's offering was not done out of faith. Scripture even tells us, "without faith it is impossible to please Him" (Heb. 11:6).