Genesis 4 · Verse 10

Genesis 4:10

And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground.
Genesis 4:10, King James Version

Genesis 4:10 in other translations

BSB“What have you done?” replied the LORD. “The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground.
WEBThe LORD said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries to me from the ground.
ASVAnd he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground.
YLTAnd He saith, ‘What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood is crying unto Me from the ground;
DARBYAnd he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood is crying to me from the ground.
BBEAnd he said, What have you done? the voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the earth.
WebsterAnd he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth to me from the ground.

What does Genesis 4:10 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
10. the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me--Cain, to lull suspicion, had probably been engaging in the solemnities of religion when he was challenged directly from the Shekinah itself.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 10 The voice of thy brother's blood - It is probable that Cain, having killed his brother, dug a hole and buried him in the earth, hoping thereby to prevent the murder from being known; and that this is what is designed in the words, Thy brother's blood crieth unto me From The Ground - which hath opened her mouth to receive it from thy hand. Some think that by the voice of thy brother's blood the cries of Abel's widow and children are to be understood, as it is very probable that he was father of a family; indeed his occupation and sacrifices seem to render this probable, and probability is all we can expect on such a subject. God represents these as calling aloud for the punishment of the murderer; and it is evident that Cain expected to fall by the hands of some person who, from his consanguinity, had the right of the avenger of blood; for now that the murder is found out, he expects to suffer death for it. See Gen 4:14.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Genesis 4:8-15

Malice in the heart ends in murder by the hands. Cain slew Abel, his own brother, his own mother's son, whom he ought to have loved; his younger brother, whom he ought to have protected; a good brother, who had never done him any wrong. What fatal effects were these of our first parents' sin, and how must their hearts have been filled with anguish! Observe the pride, unbelief, and impenitence of Cain. He denies the…

Read the full comment on Genesis 4:8-15 →

Genesis 4:10 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיֹּ֖אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
מֶ֣הmehwhat?H4100
עָשִׂ֑יתָ'a.Si.tahave you doneH6213
ק֚וֹלKol[the] voice ofH6963
דְּמֵ֣יde.Mei[the] blood<s> ofH1818
אָחִ֔יךָ'a.Chi.khabrother yourH251
צֹעֲקִ֥יםtzo.'a.Kim[are] crying outH6817
אֵלַ֖י'e.Laito meH413
מִן\־min-fromH4480
הָֽאֲדָמָֽה\׃Ha.'a.da.Mahthe groundH127

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Genesis 4:10

  • Hebrews 12:24

    And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

  • Psalms 72:14

    He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in his sight.

  • Hebrews 11:4

    By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.

  • Isaiah 5:7

    For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.

  • James 5:4

    Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.

  • Psalms 9:12

    When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them: he forgetteth not the cry of the humble.

  • Numbers 35:33

    So ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are: for blood it defileth the land: and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it.

  • Revelation 6:9-10

    And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

  • Job 31:38-39

    If my land cry against me, or that the furrows likewise thereof complain; If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money, or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life:

  • Job 16:18

    O earth, cover not thou my blood, and let my cry have no place.

  • Genesis 9:5

    And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man’s brother will I require the life of man.

  • Psalms 50:21

    These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself: but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
What.
3:13; Jos 7:19; Ps 50:21
blood. Heb. bloods. crieth.
18:20; Ex 3:7; 2Ki 9:26; Job 16:18; 24:12; 31:38,39; Ps 9:12; 72:14
Isa 5:7; Ac 5:3,9; Heb 11:4; 12:24; Jas 5:4; Re 6:10

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Genesis 4:9

    And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper?

  • Genesis 4:10

    And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground.

  • Genesis 4:11

    And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand;

Read all of Genesis 4

Genesis 4:10 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y él le dijo: ¿Qué has hecho? La voz de la sangre de tu hermano clama á mí desde la tierra.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et il dit: Qu’as-tu fait? La voix du sang de ton frère crie de la terre à moi.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und er sprach: Was hast du getan! Horch! Das Blut deines Bruders schreit zu mir vom Erdboden her.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Dixitque ad eum: Quid fecisti? vox sanguinis fratris tui clamat ad me de terra.