-
Cain's Sin in Gen. 4:1-7: Oracular Ambiguity and How to Avoid It
- Prooftexts
- Indiana University Press
- Volume 25, Number 3, Fall 2005
- pp. 258-275
- 10.1353/ptx.2006.0022
- Article
- Additional Information
This paper reviews traditional interpretations of Cain's murder of his brother Abel and proposes a factor that cuts across them all: the possibility of God's collusion. This approach is based on a textual ambiguity that smacks of oracular double-talking both in the Hewbrew Bible and in ancient literature.