FIRST BOOK OF AḎAM AND ḤAWWAH 77

Qayin, 15 years old, and Heḇel 12 years old, grow apart.

1 BUT when Aḏam saw that the elder brother hated the younger, he endeavoured to soften their hearts, and said unto Qayin, “Take, O my son, of the fruits of thy sowing, and make an offering unto Elohim, that He may forgive thee thy wickedness and thy sin.”

2 He said also to Heḇel, “Take thou of thy sowing and make an offering and bring it to Elohim, that He may forgive thy wickedness and thy sin.”

3 Then Heḇel hearkened unto his father’s voice, and took of his sowing, and made a good offering, and said to his father, Aḏam, “Come with me, to show me how to offer it up.”

4 And they went, Aḏam and Ḥawwah with him, and showed him how to offer up his gift upon the altar. Then after that, they stood up and prayed that Elohim would accept Heḇel’s offering.

5 Then Elohim looked upon Heḇel and accepted his offering. And Elohim was more pleased with Heḇel than with his offering, because of his good heart and pure body. There was no trace of guile in him.

6 Then they came down from the altar, and went to the cave in which they dwelt. But Heḇel, by reason of his joy at having made his offering, repeated it three times a week, after the example of his father Aḏam.

7 But as to Qayin, he took no pleasure in offering; but after much anger on his father’s part, he offered up his gift once; and when he did offer up, his eye was on the offering he made, and he took the smallest of his sheep for an offering, and his eye was again on it. ‘

8 Therefore Elohim did not accept his offering, because his heart was full of murderous thoughts.

9 And they all thus lived together in the cave in which Ḥawwah had brought forth, until Qayin was fifteen years old, and Heḇel twelve years old.