Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Torah

AND SHE CONCEIVED AND BORE CAIN. The sense of it is that she gave birth to a son, and she called his name Cain [from the word kanah, acquisition], because she said, I have gotten a man with [the help of] the Eternal. In a similar sense is the verse, And she conceived and bore Enoch, and many similar verses in this chapter and in other places. “Eth Hashem (with the Eternal). When He created me and my husband He created us by Himself, but in the case of this one, we are co-partners with him.” Thus the words of Rashi. The correct interpretation appears to me to be that she said: “This son will be for me an acquisition for the Eternal, for when we shall die he will exist in our stead to worship his Creator.” This is also the opinion of Onkelos who translated eth hashem to mean “before the Eternal.” [The word eth in the following verses is translated] in a similar sense: And it shall be shown ‘eth hakohen’ (the priest), meaning to the priest; And David came near ‘eth ha’am’ (the people), meaning to the people. Or it may be that eth hashem has the same interpretation as in the verses: And Enoch walked ‘eth ha’elokim’ (with G-d); Noah walked ‘eth ha’elokim’ (with G-d)., 6:9. The sense here in the verse before us would thus be: I have acquired a man to walk with G-d. Now she [Eve] called one son by a name indicating “acquisition,” and the second one she called Abel, denoting “vanity” because man’s acquisition is likened to vanity. But she did not wish to say so explicitly. Therefore, no reason is written for the name of the second son. The secret received by tradition concerning Abel is very profound.

AND CAIN BROUGHT OF THE FRUIT OF THE GROUND AN OFFERING UNTO THE ETERNAL. 4. AND ABEL, HE ALSO BROUGHT. These men [Cain and Abel] understood the great secret of the sacrifices and the meal-offerings. So also did Noah, [who likewise offered sacrifices]. Our Rabbis have said that the first man also sacrificed a bullock. This should close the mouth of those who speak foolishness concerning the reason of the sacrifices. I will yet intimate a great principle concerning this matter with the will of the Holy One, blessed be He.

IS IT NOT THUS, IF THOU MENDEST ‘SE’EITH’. In the opinion of the commentators, this means there is a “lifting” or forgiveness of your sin. And in the opinion of Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra it means a “lifting” of your face in contrast to [the question G-d asked of Cain]: Why is thy face fallen? For he who is ashamed presses his face downward. Similarly, it is said, And the light of my countenance they cast not down, whereas one who honors him is as if he raises his face upward. This is the sense of the verses: Perhaps he will lift my face; Do not lift the face of the poor. In my opinion the verse means: “If you will mend your ways you will have your rightful superiority in se’eith (dignity) over your brother since you are the firstborn.” And this is the meaning of [G-d’s question to him]: Why art thou wroth? For by virtue of his feeling ashamed before his brother, his face fell, and because of his jealousy of him he killed him, and now the Eternal told him: Why art thou wroth regarding your brother, and why is thy face fallen on account of him? Is it not thus! If thou mendest, you will have superiority in dignity over your brother, and if thou dost not mend, evil will come upon you not only because of him [your brother], for at the door of your house your sin lurks causing you to stumble in all your endeavors. AND UNTO THEE IS ITS LONGING, for your sin longs to cleave to you at all times. Nevertheless thou mayest rule over it if you so desire, for you may mend your ways and remove it from upon you. Thus He taught him [Cain] concerning repentance, that it lies within his power to return anytime he desires and He will forgive him.

AND CAIN SPOKE TO ABEL HIS BROTHER. He began a conversation of argument and contention with him in order to seek a pretext against him and so kill him. This is the language of Rashi. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra said that the interpretation that appears most likely to him is that Cain related to Abel all the chastisements with which G-d had reprimanded him [and Cain accused Abel of having brought them upon him]. But in my opinion it is connected with the following words of Scripture: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, meaning that Cain said to Abel, “Let us go forth into the field,” and there he secretly killed him. It is possible that his intention in killing Abel was that the world be built up from himself for he thought that his father would not have any more children. He also feared that the main building up of the world might be from his brother, [which seemed likely since it was he] whose offering had been favorably accepted.

CURSED ART THOU FROM THE GROUND — more than it has already been cursed on account of its sin. In this, too, it has further sinned in that it hath opened its mouth to take thy brother’s blood. Therefore, I impose upon it an additional curse: it shall not continue to give unto thee her strength. Thus the words of Rashi. But this is not correct since here He did not curse the ground because of him as He did in the case of his father, rather He said that he be cursed through the ground. The explanation of the curse is that the earth shall not continue to give him its strength, and that he be a fugitive and a wanderer in it, and He further stated, “When thou tillest the ground with all your efforts to cultivate it properly by plowing and hoeing, and in all manner of service in the field and by properly sowing it, it shall not continue to give unto thee her strength. Instead, you will sow much and harvest little.” This then was the curse, in the same sense as in the verse: And I will curse your blessings. Thus He uttered the curse in connection with his occupation for he was a tiller of the ground, and so He cursed his work. This then is the sense of the expression, it shall not continue to give unto thee her strength, meaning, “It will no longer yield to you its full produce as it had done till now when you cultivated it.” And so did Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra explain it. It is possible that He also cursed him though the ground in that it should no longer yield its strength to him of its own accord; the fig-tree and the vine would not yield their strength in his estate, and the trees of the field would not yield him their fruit. Then He added, “Even when you work the ground by plowing and sowing, it will not continue to give you its strength as before.” Thus there were two curses relating to his occupation, and a third one — that he be a fugitive and a wanderer in the world. This means that his heart will not be at rest, and he will lack the tranquility to remain in one place on the earth; he will wander forever for the punishment of murderers is exile. The expression in that it hath opened its mouth to take thy brother’s blood means: “You have killed your brother and covered his blood with the earth, and I will decree upon it that it uncover its blood, and she shall no more cover her slain for it will be punished together with all that is covered up in it, such as seed and plant.” This is the punishment for all blood-letting on the earth, even as it is written, For blood, it polluteth the land. The pollution of the land consists of a curse upon its produce, as it is written: When one came to a heap of twenty measures, there were but ten; when one came to the wine vat to draw out fifty press-measures, there were but twenty.

MY SIN IS GREATER THAN I CAN BEAR. This is in the form of a question: “You bear the worlds above and below, and is it impossible for You to bear my sin?” Thus the words of Rashi quoting Bereshith Rabbah. The correct plain interpretation is that it is a confession. Cain said: “It is true that my sin is too great to be forgiven, and Thou art righteous, O Eternal, and upright are Thy judgments even though You have punished me exceedingly. And now behold, Thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the land for in being a fugitive and a wanderer unable to stay in one place, behold, I am driven from the land and there is no place where I can find rest. And from Thy face shall I be hid whereas I will not be able to stand before You to pray or bring a sacrifice and meal-offering for I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth. But what shall I do? Whosoever findeth me shall slay me, and You in Your manifold loving-kindness did not decree death upon me.” The sense of this is that Cain said before G-d: “Behold, my sin is great, and You have punished me exceedingly, but guard me that I should not be punished more than You have decreed upon me for by being a fugitive and wanderer and unable to build myself a house and fences at any place, the beasts will kill me for your shadow has departed from me.” Thus Cain confessed that man is impotent to save himself by his own strength but only by the watchfulness of the Supreme One upon him.

Now because Scripture says, And the Eternal appointed a sign for Cain, and it does not say, “and G-d gave him a sign,” or “made him a sign,” it indicates that He appointed for him a steady sign which would always be with him. Perhaps it indicates that as he wandered from place to place he had a sign from G-d indicating the way in which he should walk, and by that he knew that no misfortune would overtake him on that road. In Bereshith Rabbah the Rabbis similarly stated, “Rabbi Aba said: ‘He gave him a dog.’” Since he feared the beasts, He gave him one of them to walk before him, and wherever the dog turned to go, Cain knew that G-d commanded him to go there and that he would not be killed by any living creature. Now the Sages singled out a contemptible sign [a dog] as was befitting him, but the intent is that there was with him a perpetual sign showing him the way to go for such is indicated in the word vayasem (and He appointed).

AND CAIN WENT OUT FROM THE PRESENCE OF THE ETERNAL. The sense thereof is that he never stood before Him any more, as he meant when he said, and from Thy face shall I be hid, [as explained above]. And he dwelt in the land of Nod. The sense thereof is that Cain did not traverse the entire world, but he dwelt in that land, perpetually wandering therein and not resting at all in any one place thereof, and so it was forever called “the land of Nod (wandering)” after him.

AND HE BUILDED A CITY, AND CALLED THE NAME OF THE CITY AFTER THE NAME OF HIS SON ENOCH. For at first Cain thought that he would be childless on account of his sin, but after a child was born to him he began to build a city for his son to dwell therein. But because he himself was cursed and his works would not prosper, he called the city “Enoch,” thus proclaiming that he did not build it for himself since he has no city or dwelling place in the land because he was a fugitive and wanderer; rather, the building would be for Enoch, and it is as if Enoch had built it for himself. Now since it does not say vayiven ir (and he built a city) — [but rather, vayehi boneh ir, which literally means “and he was building a city,”] as it says elsewhere, vayiven (and he builded) Nineveh; And the children of Gad built Dibon — it indicates that he was building the city all his days because his works were cursed. Thus he would build a little with effort and toil, and then move and wander off from that place and return there and build a little more, but he would not prosper in his ways. The descendants of Cain and his works were recorded in Scripture in order to make known that G-d is long-suffering and that He prolonged the time of his punishment, for he begot children and children’s children, and then it relates how He visited the iniquity of the fathers upon the children,, Verse 7. and his descendants perished. Our Rabbis say that Cain lived many years and that he died in the flood. Thus his hoary head did not go down to the grave in peace, rather he saw his destruction and all his seed with him. It would appear that Cain’s descendants consisted of only six generations until the flood, while among the descendants of Seth [the third son of Adam] there were an additional two generations before the flood. [It may be that Cain’s descendants consisted of more than six generations before the flood, but Scripture] had no need to relate anything concerning them. It recorded only the names of those who began the building of cities, the grazing of sheep, the art of music, and the skill of working with metals. Scripture also recorded Lamech’s chastisement of his wives in order to tell us that he did beget children but his sons perished before they begot offspring.

FORGER OF EVERY CUTTING INSTRUMENT OF BRASS AND IRON. He was a forger and cutter of all brass and iron. Scripture thus states that he was a forger and cutter in all works of brass and iron. A similar [usage in transposing a word is found in the verse]: Forgive all iniquity, and accept that which is good. In the opinion of Onkelos, however, this is connected with the first verses, meaning he was the father of every forger and cutter in brass and iron. AND THE SISTER OF TUBAL-CAIN WAS NAAMAH. This is as if Scripture would say: “and a sister was born to him and her name was Naamah.” A similar sense is found in the verses: And Lotan’s sister was Timnah; And Miriam their sister; His sister’s name was Maacah. In Bereshith Rabbah there are some Rabbis who say that Naamah was Noah’s wife. “And why did they call her Naamah [which means lovely]? Because her deeds were lovely and pleasant.” By this the Rabbis meant to say that she was famous in those generations because she was a righteous woman and she gave birth to righteous children. This was why Scripture mentioned her. If so, a small remembrance of Cain was left in the world. However, if we say that she was not the woman from whom Noah begot his three sons, there is no reason for Scripture mentioning her. However, our Rabbis have another Midrash concerning her which states that she was the very beautiful woman in whom the bnei ha’elohim erred. This is hinted in the verse, And the ‘bnei ha’elohim’ saw the daughters of men,, Verse 2. as mentioned in Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer. But other sources have it that Naamah was the wife of Shamdon, the mother of Ashmedai, and it is from her that the demons were born for her name is indeed found in the writings of “the use of the demons.” Scripture hints and deals briefly with such hidden matters.

AND LAMECH SAID UNTO HIS WIVES. For the sense of this verse, the commentators have depended on the opinion of Onkelos who explained therefore whosoever slayeth Cain vengeance shall be taken on him ‘shivatha’im’ as meaning that at the end of seven generations, vengeance shall be taken on him [Cain], but not now because G-d would be long-suffering with him. Now Lamech’s wives feared to bear children because they would be the seventh generation to Cain, but he comforted his wives by saying that G-d would be forbearing with him for yet seventy-seven generations because he would pray before Him, for He is long-suffering and would have mercy upon him. Or it may be that Lamech’s words were an absurd a fortiori argument, in accordance with the Midrash that Rashi mentioned, [namely: “For if so, the Holy One, blessed be He, could never exact His debt nor fulfill His word.”] If so, Scripture is stating: “Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken of the seventh generation” and not in his days. And this is the translation of Onkelos: “All who would slay Cain! In seven generations, punishment will be exacted of him [Cain].” But if so, it would have been proper that the verse, And Lamech said unto his wives, appear before [Verse 20: And Adah — Lamech’s wife — bore Jabal]. In my opinion, the word shivatha’im does not mean “seven generations” because this word is not used for seven separate units but rather for the multiplying of one thing seven times, such as: refined ‘shivatha’im’ (sevenfold); restore ‘shivatha’im’ (sevenfold); and the light of the sun shall be ‘shivatha’im’, meaning doubled and redoubled seven times. But the meaning of therefore, whosoever slayeth Cain is, according to its real sense, that G-d said: “Therefore, whosoever slayeth Cain will have vengeance taken on him sevenfold, for I will punish his slayer seven times for his sin, since I have promised Cain that he will not be slain in view of his fear of Me and his confession before Me.” However, the matter of Lamech and his wives is not mentioned clearly in Scripture. We could also say that they feared lest Lamech be killed as a punishment for his ancestor’s sin since G-d did not tell Cain, “I have forgiven you.” Instead, He promised him only that he will not be slain, but He would collect His debt from his children, and they did not know when. And so indeed the matter happened. Lamech, however, comforted them by saying that G-d would have mercy on him even as He had mercy on Cain, for he had cleaner hands than Cain, and he also would pray before Him and He would hear his prayer. However, it appears to me that Lamech was a very wise man in every craft, and he taught his eldest son [Jabal] the business of pasturing according to the nature of the cattle. To the second son [Jubal] he taught the art of music, and he taught the third one [Tubal-Cain] to forge metals and to make swords, spears, javelins, and all instruments of war. His wives were then afraid that he might be punished because he brought the sword and murder into the world, and he thus retained in his hand the evil deed of his ancestor [Cain] since he was a descendant of the first murderer and he created the waster to destroy., 54:16. But he [Lamech] told them: “I did not slay a man by wounds, nor a child by bruises, as did Cain, and G-d will not punish me. Instead, He will guard me from being killed moreso than Cain” He [Lamech] mentioned this in order to say that man cannot kill only with the sword and javelin; death caused by wounds and bruises is a worse death than by the sword. Therefore, the sword is not the cause of murder, and there is no sin upon him who made it.