Abel is the fourth person mentioned in the Bible, the second son of Adam and Eve and the younger brother of Cain. Not much is presented in the original story of Abel, but his life and story is still worth examining.
Abel, though his deeds are mentioned little, is the first member of the "hall of faith" in Hebrews. So let's jump into this man's life to see just who he is.
References to Abel
Abel the man is referenced 9 times in the Bible. 5 of those times come in Genesis 4, and the rest come in the New Testament.
The first two New Testament references come from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, where Jesus is speaking on the same subject. Jesus is calling out the Pharisees for doing to Him what the Jewish leaders did to all of the prophets God had sent before Him. He says that from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the last prophet of the Old Testament, they are guilty of killing all those God had sent. Jesus is telling them that the same bloodguiltiness falls on them for what they are doing to Him.
The final two references of Abel come from the book of Hebrews. Hebrews 11:4 speaks of Abel's faith. Abel is the first person mentioned in Hebrews' "hall of faith," a list of Old Testament figures who were commended by God as righteous for their faith in Him.
Abel specifically was commended for his offering to the Lord. The Bible says that he was commended as righteous through God's accepting of his gift out of faith. Here we see that Abel's righteousness is not out of his deeds alone, but his righteousness in the eyes of God comes from his heart of faith in which he made his sacrifice, not in the sacrifice itself. Hebrews says that " through his faith, though he died, he still speaks."
The second reference in Hebrews is in the next chapter. It contrasts the blood of Jesus with that of Abel. In this section of Hebrews 12, the author is mentioning that the mountain we have come to, Mount Zion, is not a mount that will destroy them if they touch it. Here, it is referring to Mt. Sinai, which Moses commanded the people not to touch or they would die. Exodus 19 talks about Mt. Sinai. Instead, Christians have come to Mt. Zion, AKA Jerusalem, the city of God. Mt. Sinai was the place from which the old covenant was given. The law was given to Moses at Mt. Sinai. This scripture therefore, might indicate that we are not under that law anymore, but instead we have come to the feet of our savior, Jesus Christ, whose blood covers us and our sins. Whereas Mt. Sinai brings death, Mt. Zion brings life, because it refers to the covenant of Jesus Christ, through whom we have life everlasting. Therefore, the blood of Jesus Christ is much greater than the blood of Abel. Because while Abel's righteous blood called for vengeance, achieved through the curse of Cain, Jesus' righteous blood brings reconciliation to those who believe.
Abel's Story
Abel is not described in great detail, even within his own story. In fact, Cain is given a much more in-depth description. This is odd, as Abel is the character regarded as righteous in the story. If we are merely looking for some kind of moral lesson in this story, then it seems odd that the morally superior character is hardly mentioned. The story instead seems to revolve around Cain.
We have no verses of God speaking with Abel. No reference of Abel's relationship with God. No description of the meaning behind Abel's name. We know that Abel was born second. We know that he gave an offering of fat portions from the firstborn of his flock, and that God accepted his offering and not his brother's. And we know that he died in a field at the hand of his brother Cain. That is all we know.
Where does Jesus come into this?
If this story is written to teach us a lesson, then why is Abel hardly mentioned? Why is Genesis 4 more the story of Cain the wicked than that of Abel the righteous? After all, aren't we called to imitate those who came before us who walked righteously (Heb. 13:7)?
Quite simply, the Bible's main objective is not to give us lessons on morality. Certainly, the Bible reveals to us how to live a life that is pleasing to God, but that is not its main intention. Instead I would argue that the Bible is written not purely to make us better people, but to point us to the power, worth, and perfection of God, and our utter need for His grace. While we as Christians should live in a way that is pleasing to the Lord, Scripture was not written as a self-help book. It was not written so that we could have our "best life now."
The story of Cain and Abel points to our nature as wicked and corrupt humanity, the monstrosity and ease of our sin, its horrid consequences to a perfectly righteous God, and our need for a savior that cannot come from ourselves. The moral lesson of Genesis 4 is that we despise morality. We condemn those who are upright and exalt those who are wicked. And we love it. We are backwards. Opposed to the will of God from conception, and all equally deserving of His righteous wrath (Eph. 2:3). But God is not just perfectly and immutably righteous. He is also perfectly and immutably loving. So while he is just in condemning us for our sin, he has provided a way out.
That way out is only found through faith in Jesus Christ, His only Son, who took the wrath that we deserve so that we might not be condemned. This faith is purely given by providence of God. If it were from ourselves, we might have a reason to be proud of ourselves. But we, as sinful and broken human beings, are utterly incapable of living lives that please God on our own. But praise God, who not only has brought us out of condemnation for our depravity through faith alone in Jesus Christ, but who has also provided us with His Holy Spirit, who convicts us of our sin, and sanctifies us, bringing us closer to the image of Christ despite the flesh that clings to us while we are still here. The Holy Spirit is also called a seal, guaranteeing our inheritance until "the redemption of those who are God's possession" (Eph. 1:14).
Though previously we were unable to stand upright before God, through faith like Abel's we can be called righteous in His eyes. And through faith, though our earthly bodies are subject to death, may our lives be a testament to what Christ has done for us so that like Abel, though we die, we still speak, not of what we have done, but of God's grace and provision for us.
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