Who and what is…
Abel
Meaning: a breath, vapor, or vanity / Hebrew: “Hebel” (Hebhel)
In the Bible, this was the name of a man and 2 places.
Abel, son of Adam
He offered a sacrifice God accepted and was murdered for it, becoming the 1st martyr of faith (Genesis 4; Hebrews 11:4). He is also the first person in the human race to physically die.
He is the 2nd son of Adam and Eve. He was murdered by his elder brother Cain (Genesis 4:1-16).
Guided by the instruction of their father, the 2 brothers were trained in the duty of worshipping God. On the Sabbath, each of them offered up to God from the first-fruits of his labors. Cain, as a tiller of the ground, offered the fruits of the field; Abel, as a shepherd, offered from the best of his flock.
“…The LORD respected Abel and his offering, but He did not respect Cain and his offering.” (Genesis 4:3-5 NKJV excerpt).
For this reason, Cain was angry with his brother, and eventually killed him (Genesis 4:8-9. Compare 1 John 3:12).
Question: Why was Abel a shepherd if animals were not given to people to eat until after the Flood (Genesis 9:3)?
Answer: The purpose of raising the sheep at that time was for sacrifice, wool, and possibly milk (see Genesis 3:21).
There are several references to Abel in the New Testament. Our Savior speaks of him as “righteous” (Matthew 23:35). “The blood of sprinkling” is said to speak “better things than that of Abel” (Hebrews 12:24); i.e., the blood of Jesus is the reality of which the blood of the offering made by Abel was only a symbol. The comparison here is between the sacrifice offered by Christ and that offered by Abel, and not between the blood of Christ calling for mercy and the blood of the murdered Abel calling for vengeance, as has sometimes been supposed.
It is also said that “Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain” (Hebrews 11:4). This sacrifice was made “by faith;” this faith rested in God, not only as the Creator and the God of providence, but especially in God as the great Redeemer, whose sacrifice was symbolized by the sacrifices which were offered from the days of Adam downward. Because of that “faith” which looked forward to the great atoning sacrifice, Abel’s offering was accepted by God. Cain’s offering had no such reference, and therefore was rejected.
Read the story of Cain and Abel—GO… (in our multilingual God’s Story section)
Q & A
- What is faith and why is it very important to God?
- What does the Bible say about faithfulness?
- Answers about sacrifices in the Bible
- About murder in the Bible
- Has death always existed? Why does it exist?
- How did humanity fall into evil and depravity?
- What is sin and wickedness?
What was Adam, the first man, really like? Learn the amazing facts about this unique man from whom we all descended!- Who is Eve in the Bible?
- Who is Cain?
Abel, meadows
Abel (Hebrew: 'abhel), a grassy place, a meadow. This word is used in the composition of the following place names:
- What is Abel-beth-maachah?
- What is Abel-Cheramim?
- What is Abel-Meholah?
- What is Abel-Mizraim?
- What is Abel-Shittim?
- Places in the Bible
Abel, a great stone
Hebrew: 'abhel), lamentation
This was the name given to the great stone in Joshua’s field where the ark of the covenant was “set down” by the Levites after its return on a cart by the Philistines who were struck with a plague for taking it and displaying in their false god’s temple.
…The large stone on which they set the ark of Yahweh is a witness to this day in the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite. —1 Samuel 6:18 excerpt LSB
Q & A
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