Genesis 4 · Verse 3

Genesis 4:3

And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.

Genesis 4:3, King James Version

Genesis 4:3 in other translations

BSB	So in the course of time, Cain brought some of the fruit of the soil as an offering to the LORD,
WEB	As time passed, Cain brought an offering to the LORD from the fruit of the ground.
ASV	And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto Jehovah.
YLT	And it cometh to pass at the end of days that Cain bringeth from the fruit of the ground a present to Jehovah;
DARBY	And in process of time it came to pass that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering to Jehovah.
BBE	And after a time, Cain gave to the Lord an offering of the fruits of the earth.
Webster	And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering to the LORD.

What does Genesis 4:3 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

3. in process of time--Hebrew, "at the end of days," probably on the Sabbath. brought ... an offering unto the Lord--Both manifested, by the very act of offering, their faith in the being of God and in His claims to their reverence and worship; and had the kind of offering been left to themselves, what more natural than that the one should bring "of the fruits of the ground," and that the other should bring "of the firstlings of his flock and the fat thereof" [Ge 4:4].

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 3 In process of time - מקץ ימים mikkets yamim, at the end of days. Some think the anniversary of the creation to be here intended; it is more probable that it means the Sabbath, on which Adam and his family undoubtedly offered oblations to God, as the Divine worship was certainly instituted, and no doubt the Sabbath properly observed in that family. This worship was, in its original institution, very simple. It appears to have consisted of two parts: 1. Thanksgiving to God as the author and dispenser of all the bounties of nature, and oblations indicative of that gratitude. 2. Piacular sacrifices to his justice and holiness, implying a conviction of their own sinfulness, confession of transgression, and faith in the promised Deliverer. If we collate the passage here with the apostle's allusion to it, Heb 11:4, we shall see cause to form this conclusion. Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering - מנחה minchah, unto the Lord. The word minchah is explained, Lev 2:1, etc., to be an offering of fine flour, with oil and frankincense. It was in general a eucharistic or gratitude offering, and is simply what is implied in the fruits of the ground brought by Cain to the Lord, by which he testified his belief in him as the Lord of the universe, and the dispenser of secular blessings.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Genesis 4:1-7

When Cain was born, Eve said, I have gotten a man from the Lord. Perhaps she thought that this was the promised seed. If so, she was wofully disappointed. Abel signifies vanity: when she thought she had the promised seed in Cain, whose name signifies possession, she was so taken up with him that another son was as vanity to her. Observe, each son had a calling. It is the will of God for every one to have something…

Read the full comment on Genesis 4:1-7 →

Genesis 4:3 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.

וַֽיְהִ֖יvay.Hiand it happenedH1961

מִקֵּ֣ץmi.Ketzfrom [the] end ofH7093

יָמִ֑יםya.MimdaysH3117

וַיָּבֵ֨אvai.ya.Ve'and he broughtH935

קַ֜יִןKa.yinCainH7014

מִפְּרִ֧יmi.pe.Risome of [the] fruit ofH6529

הָֽאֲדָמָ֛הha.'a.da.Mahthe groundH127

מִנְחָ֖הmin.Chahan offeringH4503

לַֽיהוָֽה\׃la.Yah.wehto YahwehH3068

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

Cross references for Genesis 4:3

Numbers 18:12
All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine, and of the wheat, the firstfruits of them which they shall offer unto the Lord, them have I given thee.
Leviticus 2:1-11
And when any will offer a meat offering unto the Lord, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon: And he shall bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests: and he shall take thereout his handful of the flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar, to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord: And the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’: it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the Lord made by fire. And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baken in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil. …

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

A.M. 129. B.C. 3875. in process of time. Heb. at the end ofdays. Either at the end of the year, or of the week, i.e., on the Sabbath.
1Ki 17:7; Ne 13:6
the fruit.
Le 2:1-11; Nu 18:12

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

Context

Genesis 4:2
And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
Genesis 4:3
And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.
Genesis 4:4
And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering:

Read all of Genesis 4

Genesis 4:3 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Y aconteció andando el tiempo, que Caín trajo del fruto de la tierra una ofrenda á Jehová.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Et il arriva, au bout de quelque temps, que Caïn apporta, du fruit du sol, une offrande à l’ Éternel.
German Elberfelder 1871	Und es geschah nach Verlauf einer Zeit, da brachte Kain dem Jehova eine Opfergabe von der Frucht des Erdbodens;
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Factum est autem post multos dies ut offerret Cain de fructibus terræ munera Domino.