Cain: The Story of the First Murder and the Birth of an Unstoppable Evil (The Fall of Man Book 1) by Brennan S. McPherson


Cain: The Story of the First Murder and the Birth of an Unstoppable Evil (The Fall of Man Book 1)
Title : Cain: The Story of the First Murder and the Birth of an Unstoppable Evil (The Fall of Man Book 1)
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : -
Language : English
Format Type : Kindle Edition
Number of Pages : 450
Publication : Published April 18, 2016

The murder was just the beginning.

Inflamed by jealousy and on the brink of madness, Cain—firstborn among men—brutally beats his twin brother, Abel, to death. As the family struggles to believe God hasn't abandoned them, Cain flees into the wilderness with the growing fear that murdering his brother might have birthed an unstoppable evil. Soon, all of life balances upon one perilous question: is the monster inside Cain the gateway to godhead or the end of mankind?

Cain is a daring, atmospheric novel—the first in a new biblical fiction series based on Genesis 1–11—drawn with visionary scope, literary depth, and immense respect for the biblical text.

Come, get lost in the wonders of Genesis.


Cain: The Story of the First Murder and the Birth of an Unstoppable Evil (The Fall of Man Book 1) Reviews


  • Daphne Self

    I started reading this with an open mind. It is categorized as speculative, and I give it that; but this is NOT Christian fiction. I guess fiction could be the operable word here. It is nothing but a work of fiction, but it takes the Bible and skews The Word until it doesn't resemble any of the Truth that is told in the Bible.

    Cain was banished. To Nod. There he took a wife.
    Abel was not his twin. Seth was born after Abel's murder.
    Cain was not redeemed at the end. He didn't "thirst for blood" (which I found to be that myth of Cain being a vampire).
    Adam and Eve never saw Cain again. And Nephilim...I won't go there.
    Rain. It never rained until Noah's time. Reason why people ridiculed Noah and mocked him.

    Too many of biblical untruths peppered this book.
    I enjoy a good sci-fi or fantasy, but not at the expense of Biblical truth.

    Would this have been a good story if it was more of an allegory? Yes, it would have been.
    But this isn't an allegory. It is fiction that borders blasphemy.

    On a more analytical note, the book was well written with only one exception: midway the reader is thrown into present tense as the story of Seth learning about the Shrine, the Music, Sands the keep the Waters of Time, Watchers, Chamber of Science, Mystery of Life, and so forth.

  • Loraine

    When looking at the reviews for this book, I found them to be at both ends of the extreme. I found myself at the low end, and I did not complete this book. I really enjoyed the first 20 chapters, but once Cain leaves as a wanderer after killing Abel the book went from enjoyable to bizarre IMHO. Cain drifts into what appears to be either a fantasy world or the realm of Satan. That would have been fine if it was only for a couple of chapters; but skimming through other chapters until almost the end, it continues on and he pulls the remainder of his family into it.

    I also found some of his writing not Biblical. Just one example, he has Cain and Able as twins, and the bible specifically says in Genesis 4:2 "She gave birth a second time to Cain's brother, Abel. Overall, there was just too much that bothered me to continue reading this book; and I would not recommend it.

  • David Larson

    Brennan McPherson writes like a literary Christopher Nolan and a modern day John Milton; Nolan in the tone and symmetry, and Milton in the endeavor to explore in Cain's story in such great detail. Part of the ambition behind the book is to explore the spirit realm, which I found to be original and thought provoking-especially in the middle of the book, where I see it shine the most. The book also does a great job at bringing us into the consequences of Cain's choices, especially on how it effects his family. I think it's also important that you read the author's forward and see the intent of the book; which reflects the forward John Milton himself wrote for Paradise Lost, where he said "I may assert eternal providence, and justify the ways of God to men". In closing, the book is a bold and daring work of art that both challenges, entertains, and inspires.

  • L.K. Simonds

    This may be a book that's best appreciated during the second read because the world of Cain is so different from ours, as indeed it must've been. I'm quite certain there isn't a person alive today who has any inkling what daily life was like for humanity's first family experiencing their first family crisis. We, who are two millennia downstream from a revolution in which good crushed evil, surely would need to put aside assumptions we don't even realize we have to understand that world. Kudos to Brennan McPherson for taking a stab at imagining a story set there. Mr. McPherson takes his readers on the ride of their lives into an era during which the physical and the spiritual weren't very far apart. He spins an epic drama with many elements that are common to dramas: Murder, brother against brother, and heartbreaking loss.But in Mr. McPherson's story, each of these elements is primal: the FIRST murder, the FIRST brother against brother, the FIRST heartbreaking loss of a loved one. My advise is to lay aside your assumptions and enjoy the ride.

  • Coco.V

    FREE on Amazon today (11/10/2017)!

  • Carolyn

    Going by the reviews, this book is like Marmite... you'll either love it or hate it. For me, although I didn't hate it, I really didn't like it. I found the writing style difficult and jarring which did not allow me to picture-the-scene in my head (especially within the supernatural realms). I do applaud the authors vision as he endeavoured to capture the truth of the Word through this one story. There were elements that held my attention, namely the conversation between Cain and Satan, and the exchange between Seth and God. If more of the book had been written in this vain it would have been much more engaging (for me).

  • Joshua

    Though I don't agree with some of the choices Brennan S. McPherson decides to take concerning some of the biblical concepts, he still did a great job of taking a well known story, and grounding it for a modern audience. He writes an intense story that isn't afraid to ask hard questions which not enough Christian fiction does.

  • Lynn's

    I hate giving a book a low rating and would never want to be a discouragement to an author, especially one that is just starting their writing career. However, for readers like me, who would see a book with the title “Cain” and think, “Ooo! Biblical Fiction!” in a historical sense - I feel the need to write an informative review of McPherson’s first work of fiction in the Christian market.

    When I bought “Cain,” I did not realize that the story was in the Speculative genre. I assumed, because the title shared that of a Bible character and written by a Christian, that is was a Historical Biblical Fiction novel. I confess, that was totally my bad! So, you may ask, “How does ‘Speculative’ differ from what we’d call ‘Biblical Fiction’?” My definition for this specific case would be: “Cain” begins with an outline of a familiar Biblical story, but, because we know so little of that story the author used creative licence to bend the plot we know into something completely fictional. This story delved into being controlled by demons, re-creating the Garden of Eden by supernatural power and even had some creatures taken from pre-Islamic Arabian and later Islamic mythology that warred against humanity. I have no doubt that there are a lot of readers who would enjoy this kind of story, but if you’re thinking along the lines of author’s like Mesu Andrews, Jill Eileen Smith and Connilyn Cossette, you’ll need to keep in mind that “Cain” is more Science Fiction than Biblical Fiction.

    As mentioned above, McPherson didn’t follow what the Bible says happened to Cain. He took the people and places of the Bible and used them to create his own story, using much creative licence. For example, what stood out to me the most was that we never got to see Cain banished and build his city. I kept waiting for that to happen in the story, and it never did. Though Cain was banished in McPherson’s story, the plot was more about Cain returning to his family to take over as their leader. Another thing that was completely the author’s imagination was Seth’s death and resurrection. I know that Jesus came through Seth’s line, but still, that part of the story was a little creepy for me. Seth wasn’t Jesus and there’s no account in Genesis suggesting that Seth died and came back to life. (Sorry for the spoiler…) If you’re thinking about reading this book, just realize that the Cain you’re going to read about is not the same story from the Bible.

    Conclusion: “Cain” was by far the most unusual and strange book I’ve read set in Biblical times. It reminded me a lot of C.S. Lewis’s “Space Trilogy,” though I must confess I liked Lewis’s Sci-Fi a lot more. The thing I had the most trouble accepting was the idea of combining a Sci-Fi story with the Bible and then using a lot of creative license that made the Biblical story unrecognizable. It’s not that the book was written poorly - because that’s not the case. The story was well thought out and quite intriguing, I just wish the author would have written a Sci-Fi without mixing the people, places and stories of the Bible in with such a dark story of his own. To close, if you enjoy Biblical Fiction from author’s where the lead character are women who experience redemption and romance, I would not recommend “Cain.” However, if you’re into Sci-Fi, you may enjoy this book!

  • Holly

    For those of my friends who enjoy fantasy fiction and digging into the mysteries of Scripture and who, like C.S. Lewis, love a good "supposal," Cain is worth a read. It is a steam-punky flight of exotic, extra-biblical fancy.

    The gospel truths are spot-on and never did the words, "Sin is crouching at your door and its desire is for you," come more to life for me in a novel! So, those are two strong elements in this story's favor.

    I see wisps of Tolkien (Galadriel, specifically) in a few of the lines in the book and I get some whiffs of N.D. Wilson in terms of the bizarre elements of this story, which makes me feel a kinship with the author. I am betting we could hang out at a church picnic and chat it up for hours talking about all the books we both treasure.

    For me personally, there are elements in the story that I did NOT enjoy. . .there are graphic descriptions of gore and violence which might challenge the squeamish with delicate gag-reflexes like myself. However, the orcs in Middle Earth gross me out, too, and I read through LOTR every year without permanent scarring!

    I would not personally consider this a book for children who are not yet solidly catechized in Biblical orthodoxy. . .this isn't Narnia, or even the Shire. . .but older teens who have their worldview screwed on right and who enjoyed Lewis' Space Trilogy, or MacDonald's Phantastes, will most assuredly dig it. (And if, like my 16yo son, your kids have been reading N.D. Wilson for a while they will not be as unsettled by the action/gore as this ol' Marmee was! Wilson's Ashtown series is right at the threshold of what I can handle!)

    For the theologically minded, there are many wonderful conversations to be had upon finishing Cain. Genesis 6, anyone? I'm always up for a good Genesis 6 throw down!

  • Andrew Scholes

    I was expecting a book like Paul Maier's "Pontius Pilate" and "A Skeleton in God's Closet". Those are novels that, where they intersect with scripture, they are true to the Word. These rest of those novels are speculative which is what navels are to be. With "Cain" I was sorely disappointed. There were a number of instances in which any semblance to accounts in scripture are purely coincidental.

    1. The books states that Cain and Abel were twins (Gen 4:1-2); In the Author's Note he states that "Some scholars believe the original Hebrew implied that Cain and Abel were twins". I have never heard that, not saying that I have heard everything. My questions are, How many are "Some" and who are they?

    2. Shortly after Abel was killed, it talks about Seth and his wife. Since Seth was not born until after Abel was killed, it don't think that was possible (Gen 4:25);

    3. As Cain dies, Adam cradles his head "as if to repent for turning his back on him all those years ago out of pride and shame." Ummmm, What? I can't find the pride and shame anywhere.

    4.Also as Cain dies Adam "curled his arms under him final son's body." Adam had other sons and daughters (Gen 5:4)


    This is a very bloody book, a lot of killings. It reminded me of the Illead but it was not near as good.

    I got the book through BookBub and got out of it the same that I paid for it $ 0.00.

  • Christie

    I was expecting Biblical fiction based on Adam: The Mirror of the Almighty. This is not. In fact, I would say this is borderline science fiction, especially considering the time period this was set in. Yes, Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, Cain killed Abel. That��s about where the Biblical truth ends. By the time I got to the half-way point, I was seriously considering whether I’d finish this book, which speaks volumes for me. Once I’m a few chapters in, there is no turning back, but this book caused me to seriously consider it. I did finish. It didn’t get any better as it went along. I’ve read Biblical fiction before and loved it. Those stories left me feeling like there is a chance that that’s the way the story may have actually happened thousands of years ago. This one makes way too many leaps to leave anyone with that feeling, in addition to the Biblical inaccuracies. One could argue it’s about the symbolism and deeper meaning. Generally, those type of books cause me a great deal of introspective thought. This book caused none of that either. Basically, the only feelings I was left with were disgust and self-pity, that I had subjected myself to hours of reading this book.

  • Lynne Modranski

    This is just a review of the first 10 chapters . . . still not sure I'm going to finish it. I won't mention the things I see as just a bit off scripture because I can see where they could be my opinion. However, this author so far has missed the opportunity to build characters. He jumped from the birth of Cain to 150 years after the fall. Really?! There's so much to be said about how the boys are raised and how they interact as youth. Not to mention, if you didn't know scripture, the whole sacrifice problem would be tremendously confusing.

    Additionally, there are just too many words . . . unnecessary description to fill up space, while the characters go undefined.

    As I said, not sure I'm going to finish this book, but I'm going to give it a little bit more of an opportunity to catch my attention.

  • Matt Starr

    Very thoughtful and thought provoking. Quite a bit of religious and/or philosophical research went in to this story. Plus, the battle with the Jinn was as fun as it was brutal.
    That being said, the battle takes a long time to get to. The narrative lags between Cain’s murder of Abel and the aforementioned battle. The thought-provoking nature of the story causes the narrative to drag out. At times, I felt like it was more of a treatise than a story.

  • John W


    Cain The Story of the First Murder and the Birth of an Unstoppable Evil (Fall of Man, #1) by Brennan S. McPherson
    Brennan S. McPherson

  • Jamie (The Kansan Reader)

    I am going through my TBR and closely looking at books that drop below a 3.5-star rating. This is the first one I found with a 3.38 rating. I looked a little deeper into it and have found bad news.

    First off the synopsis gives this away but this book doesn't follow the bible closely. So I think I will bypass it.

  • Val Shaw

    I have to say, this one was rough. I loved Noah! This one though was too much. It didn't invoke the feeling of God being present and in control like Noah did, even through the bad stuff, it was just bad stuff. Sorry Brennan.

  • Richard H. Ross

    Mr. McPherson is a good writer. I really enjoyed Flood when I read it back a ways. But I did not enjoy reading Cain. The subject material was not interesting to me. I wouldn't be too surprised that hell and the demons operate the way they are shown but I just did not enjoy it.

  • Trick Wiley

    It was just so far fetched from the Bible,didn't even finish the book!!

  • Amy Crutchfield

    Couldn’t finish it. It was pretty good until about chapter 19 and then it just lost my interest.

  • Marcia Richardson

    Great story

    This story was moving and made me stop and think about what really happened to mankind when Cain killed Abel. Go read it for yourself.

  • Blubonnet1

    02/20/2022

  • Tyrean

    This extra-Biblical fantasy novel gave Cain, Abel, Seth, Adam, Eve, and many other extra-Biblical characters a heart-wrenching depth. The action and character development are spotless. The struggle Cain has with evil is excellently done. Although many readers might not like the veering off into supernatural (paranormal style) fantasy for the creature of evil who tempts Cain, I felt it was an interesting, fantastical style into a possible spiritual realm. The unknown and otherworldly places and creatures were fascinating throughout the book - they weren't comfortable places, but they made "sense" in a unearthly way.
    I did have trouble with the presense of a Lilith character (I put the book down for a bit when she showed up). I feel like nearly every extra-Biblical fantasy has a Lilith character although this one wasn't the source of all evil this time. The timeline and the presence of a City of God created by God outside the Garden of Eden was one that I struggled with a bit, too, along with the timing of Seth's birth - although Seth's "birth" timing made more sense by the end of the book.
    The Bible verses at the beginning of each chapter were perfectly chosen to fit the sequence of events and helped explain some of the author's more creative exploits in a way that showed he had done is Biblical research and was immersed in a relationship with Christ as he wrote this novel.
    All in all, for readers of Christian fantasy - especially those who like extra-Biblical Christian fantasy - this is a good read that I recommend.
    Note - even with putting down the book at Lilith, i did read it in one day - so it is riveting!

  • Mary

    I'm not sure how you could call this Biblical fiction, except that there are Bible verses at the beginning of each chapter. There are so many un-Biblical concepts in this book that I found myself reading just to see if it would all straighten out in the end, and it didn't. I think the one that bothered me the most was the concept of the "jinn," murderous demon creatures that attacked and killed the characters at every chance. I am an avid reader and often enjoy books that require quite a bit of thinking, but this was just so abstract and out there that I couldn't get into it and simply plodded through to the end.

  • Brennan McPherson

    When I first started studying Genesis to write Cain, I was surprised how little I knew, and just how deep and ambiguous the original Hebrew text is. Please, before you post a review criticizing the “accuracy” of my novelization of the story of Genesis 4, read the text of Genesis 4 pasted below, along with some points about common misconceptions about Genesis. For your convenience, I’ve also added some links to other great resources by respected scholars that will shine light on why I interpreted Genesis 4 the way I did. And keep in mind, I studied the original Hebrew text of Genesis for 4 straight years while writing this book.

    Genesis 4:1-17

    1 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord.” 2 And again, she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a worker of the ground. 3 In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, 4 and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, 5 but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. 6 The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.” 8 Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. 9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?” 10 And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. 11 And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.” 13 Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14 Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground, and from your face I shall be hidden. I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.” 15 Then the Lord said to him, “Not so! If anyone kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.” And the Lord put a mark on Cain, lest any who found him should attack him. 16 Then Cain went away from the presence of the Lord and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden. 17 Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. When he built a city, he called the name of the city after the name of his son, Enoch.

    Now to tackle some common misconceptions:

    1. “Cain and Abel were NOT twins!” Actually, many scholars believe they were. The reason why is that the motif throughout the book is to say, “So and so knew his wife (had sexual relations with her) and she conceived and bore so and so.” It mentions consummation, conception, and birth. In verse 1 above, we see that done for Cain. However, in verse 2, neither consummation nor conception are mentioned in reference to Abel, implying that he was born shortly thereafter from the same womb, a twin.

    2. “Cain’s offering was rejected because it was supposed to be a blood sacrifice!” Actually, the Bible never says that they were expected to bring a blood sacrifice. Read Genesis 1-4 and you’ll never find one statement to that effect. In Levitical law later in the Old Testament, offerings of fruit and grain were completely acceptable (Leviticus 19:24). It could be that Cain was expected to bring a blood sacrifice, but we have no reason to believe that. Indeed, we have more reason to believe that the primary reason his sacrifice was rejected was his prideful attitude. Looking at other areas of the Old Testament, such as when King Saul pridefully sacrificed animals, his sacrifice was good but God said, “I don’t want your sacrifice, I want your heart, you fool!” And he was rebuked for it (1 Samuel 13). Interestingly enough, there are a number of parallels between King Saul and Cain. Both started out with a blessing on their lives, one as king and one as firstborn; both became prideful and jealous of a young upstart they tried to murder; and both ended up rebuked by God and wandering, dogged by demonic oppression.

    3. “God banished Cain to Nod!” In the original Hebrew, Nod means “wandering.” And when you look at Genesis 4:10-12, you’ll see God never banishes him to a particular place. He claims that Cain will be a “wanderer.” And so Cain wandered. God could be seen as a liar if Cain settled in one particular region for the rest of his life.

    4. “Cain built a city.” Yes, yes, I understand why this one is tough for people. In the English translations we have, it seems to make it completely clear that Cain was the one to build the city. The problem is that in the original Hebrew, it’s completely unclear. It actually could be interpreted that his son, Enoch, was the one to build the city. Furthermore, scholars think there’s benefit to this interpretation, because God cursed Cain to wander, seemingly indefinitely. If Cain settled in a particular area and successfully built a city, would that make God a liar? I’m not certain it’s so black-and-white, but I certainly see the benefit, after studying the original Hebrew, of not putting all my stock in English translations. So much of the meaning is missed because of the poetic imagery and symbolic language used. You really can’t understand this unless you study the Hebrew for yourself.

    5. “Cain killed Abel because he was jealous of his brother getting his sacrifice blessed.” This one is not so much a misconception as it is an oversimplification. Because it’s obviously true that the sacrifice episode plays directly into Cain’s violent intentions. However, we must keep in mind that these were real people who had already lived many years of their lives, and had a complex familial relationship mirroring any other brother-to-brother relationship. Add to this that they were the world’s first and only family, that God had given Eve the promise that the seed of her womb would crush the serpent’s head (be their Savior) in Genesis 3, and things start looking a little different. If Cain felt the pressure to be their Savior, yet God rejected his sacrifice, and if Abel was born his twin just moments after him, he could have seen Abel as being a potential usurper of his position as firstborn and Savior. Could it be that Cain thought his identity and future lay in the balance?

    6. “Adam and Eve never saw Cain again.” The Bible never says this. In fact, it merely falls silent about Cain and his relationship to Adam and Eve after Cain is cursed to wander. It could be that Adam and Eve saw Cain again, many times.

    7. “Cain never received redemption.” We do not know this, and shouldn’t presume to take God’s position of deciding whether someone will or did receive forgiveness. But we should keep in mind that the story itself shows God offering mercy and protection to Cain. The rest of the narrative implies that Cain’s disposition toward violence is passed down generation by generation, but we do not know whether Cain continued pursuing God or whether he totally abandoned him for the rest of his life. Actually, we’re never even told that Cain died, or how old he was, or what he did after he murdered Abel and wandered away.

    8. “Cain and Abel didn’t have wives when Abel was murdered.” This is never stated. Again, most of the misconceptions have arisen out of faulty assumptions not based on the explicit text of the Hebrew narrative of Genesis. It is not only wrong to build ideas based off assumptions, it’s theologically dangerous, and self-defeating.

    9. “Abel didn’t have any children.” We do not know this. The text never says whether he did or didn’t, and so he could have had children.

    10. “Adam and Eve worshipped God all their lives.” Interestingly enough, the text of Genesis 4 implies that Adam and Eve rejected God for a time after Abel was murdered. Genesis 4:26 says that after Seth’s son was born, the family began to seek after the Lord. But we know that the family was sacrificing to God and seeking after him just before Cain killed Abel. The implication has two obvious potential interpretations. Firstly, because the narrative is not completely chronological, Seth, and Seth’s son, could have been born before Abel was killed, and Eve’s statement about Seth being a gift because Abel was taken from her could have been made long after he was born. The Hebrew text is wide open for this interpretation, so before you start thinking that’s a ridiculous conclusion based on your English translation, go study the Hebrew. Secondly, Adam and Eve could have rejected God after Abel was murdered because of the doubt that arose in the wake of their loss. Why would God not bring Abel back to life? How could a good God allow this to happen? Of course, both could be true, or neither. The text of the novel explores both possibilities.

    11. “Cain and Abel and Seth did not marry their sisters, that’s disgusting!” Nearly all biblical scholars who hold to a Christian viewpoint believe that Adam and Eve’s children married each other. It wasn’t until thousands of years later in the book of Leviticus and the time of Moses that God formed laws regarding siblings marrying each other (Leviticus 18). You need to be careful weighing what you’re comfortable with against the actual text of the Scriptures. It is theologically important that Adam and Eve were the only people ever directly created by God, for reasons that are too complex to get into here. That means that Adam and Eve had children, and there was no one for them to marry but each other. God told them to be fruitful and multiply, so that’s what they did. And it was a good thing, whether you’re comfortable with it or not.

    12. “It didn’t rain before the flood.” Read Genesis 1-6 straight through (which takes you up to the account of the Noah and the flood), and you’ll never once find any verse stating that it didn’t rain before the flood. In fact, read the Bible straight through from beginning to end, and you’ll never find anything that supports this erroneous idea that defies the laws of physics. It is impossible for it to not have rained before the flood, because air can only hold so much moisture before that moisture has to condense and fall to the earth. Genesis 2:6 says, “and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground.” That’s rain. Rain is water falling to the ground. For more information, read this:
    https://answersingenesis.org/creation...

    13. “The Nephilim were just people.” I’m the first one to admit that there has been far too much useless speculation about the Nephilim mentioned in Genesis 6. It can be entertaining to project crazy ideas about demons having weird children with human women. In fact, in my full-length novelization of Cain’s story, I tackle one particular interpretation of the Nephilim. But we need to keep in mind that no one knows what the Nephilim were. No scholars can agree on an accurate interpretation, so any ideas about the Nephilim have to remain in the realm of fantasy speculation. This also means that people should hesitate to say, “The Nephilim weren’t the offspring of demons!” Because we don’t know. Or do you know more than the scholars? That’s a pretty prideful position to take.

    14. “Nothing that isn’t mentioned in the Bible could have happened.” The narrative of Genesis is wide open to other events not mentioned. The purpose of the story of Cain and Abel being included in Scripture is to show God’s faithfulness and man’s unfaithfulness. It is not a moral tale. It’s purpose is not to be mere history. It is a story of God’s grace and man’s evil. Many other events happened in the 900 years of Adam’s life. Much of it would be very interesting, I’m sure. But none of it’s talked about because it isn’t important to make the points the book of Genesis attempts to make.

    For more detailed commentaries by Hebrew scholars, refer to the following link (this is just one of the myriad resources I studied in great depth for 4 straight years while writing Cain):
    http://shammai.org/genesis_4_commenta...