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The way of Cain: Anger and the human heart

Philip A. Gunther

“Of the seven deadly sins, anger is possibly the most fun. To lick your wounds, to smack your lips over grievances long past, to roll over your tongue the prospect of bitter confrontations still to come, to savour to the last toothsome morsel both the pain you are given and the pain you are giving back; in many ways it is a feast fit for a king. The chief drawback is that what you are wolfing down is yourself. The skeleton at the feast is you.”  – Frederick Buechner


Anger is alive and well in the hearts of humankind. From the beginning, this demon has infected, grown and prospered in human souls. Its insidious influence has seduced, enslaved and, as Frederick Buechner puts it, consumed people’s lives. We are not, of course, speaking about what Scripture understands as righteous or holy anger, for such anger, wrote J. Oswald Sanders, is the counterpart of love. No, this unrighteous anger comes from a dark human recess, and its motives and actions are sinister.

Scripture has much to say about anger, its sources, effects and consequences. To me, the most profound message about anger is found in the story of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4.

”Cain was very angry”

Adam and Eve gave birth to two sons, Cain and Abel. Abel was a keeper of sheep, while Cain was a tiller of the soil. Both Abel and Cain brought an offering to the Lord. Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock, while Cain offered fruits of the soil. God accepted Abel’s offering, and rejected Cain’s.

In Genesis, we are not given a very clear reason as to why God made such a decision. The New Testament, however, brings greater clarity: “By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings” (Hebrews 11:4). It appears that Abel’s offering was accepted because of the godly faith in which it was offered. Conversely, Cain’s offering was refused because it appears his attitude toward God was not right.

Having his sacrifice refused by God moved Cain to anger. It did not take long for his envy and anger to focus on his brother Abel.

“Sin is crouching at your door”

God confronted Cain regarding his attitude: “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 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” (Genesis 4:7). God’s words to Cain remind us today about the potential for anger to make us vulnerable to the power of sin. Is that not why the Psalmist counselled, “In your anger do not sin” (Psalm 4:4)?

Cain was at a crossroads. He could choose to heed God’s warning and conquer his bad attitude toward Abel and God, or he could choose to allow them to become a channel for sin. Cain was on the verge of being sin’s victim if he allowed his anger to erupt into something truly evil.

Murder

Cain did not master sin; it consumed him. As a result, he committed the first murder recorded in Scripture by killing his brother. Cain became the fool written about in the book of Proverbs: “A fool gives full vent to his anger” (29:11).

After the murder, God asked Cain, “Where is your brother?” Like Adam, Cain was held accountable for his actions – actions which had not gone unnoticed by God. “I don’t know,” Cain replied, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” The answer was so obvious that God did not even justify the question with a response. Rather, He said to Cain: “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground. Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth” (Genesis 10-12).

Cain chose to abandon God and His counsel, and now he reaped the fruit of this choice and ”went out from the Lord’s presence” (Genesis 4:16). Notice the irony of the punishment. Cain chose to butcher his sibling, and now his other siblings threatened his life. Cain spilt Abel’s blood into the ground, and now the ground would no longer yield crops for Cain. The apostle Paul warned: “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction” Galatians 6:7-8). Cain’s unrestrained anger reaped such destruction.

The way of Cain

In the New Testament, Jude, concerned about the destructive nature of false teachers who infiltrated and threatened to destroy the church, wrote, “Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain” (Jude 11). John counselled: “Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother” (1 John 3:12).

The way of Cain was uncontrolled envy transformed into uncontrolled anger. Second, the way of Cain was to reject God and His word. Third, the way of Cain was deceit; Cain deceived Abel and lied to God. Finally, the way of Cain led to murder.

Explosions of unrighteous anger concern God. Scripture warns people to beware of what Cornelius Plantinga Jr. referred to as “passionate againstness”. In The Breviary of Sin, he wrote, “Whether it burns hot or just smokes and stinks, anger always sets itself against what causes its displeasure.” Since the time of Cain, history has recorded countless examples of the consequences of uncontrolled anger.

Michael Green tells us a story about Alexander the Great, one of the greatest military geniuses in human history. A close friend of Alexander, a general in his army, became intoxicated and began to ridicule Alexander in front of his men. Blinded by anger, Alexander snatched a spear from a soldier and hurled it at his friend. Although he had only intended to scare the drunken general, the spear took the life of his childhood friend. Deep remorse followed his anger. Overcome with guilt, Alexander attempted to take his own life with the same spear, but he was stopped by his men. For days he lay sick, calling for his friend and condemning himself as a murderer. Green noted that Alexander conquered many cities and countries, but failed miserably to control his own spirit.

Examples of such unrestrained anger and its consequences have filled chapters of human history, and continue to fill new pages during our time. The way of Cain is being lived out too often today in our homes, schools, governments and churches.

“For anyone who is angry with his brother”

The way of Cain is often difficult to avoid, but that is precisely what we are called to do as Christians. The apostle Paul wrote, “’In your anger do not sin’: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry. . . . Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:26, 31-32). James warned, “Man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires” (James 1:20).

Perhaps the best counsel comes from Jesus Himself. In the Sermon on the Mount, He said: “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. . . . Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift” (Matthew 5:21-24). According to Jesus, mere anger against a brother makes us subject to judgement. Such accountability should cause us to acknowledge and deal with anger in our lives before it becomes dark and destructive. Jesus’ counsel to seek genuine reconciliation and to forgive is a very real alternative to following the way of Cain.

Anger like that of Cain originates in our hearts and, if left unattended, will take firm root, infect the soul, destroy our relationship to others and finally devour us. Ultimately, the way of Cain is a path which leads us away from God Himself.

Philip A. Gunther is senior pastor of Parliament Community Church in Regina.

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Last modified October 20, 2000.

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