Genesis 4 · Verse 7

Genesis 4:7

If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

Genesis 4:7, King James Version

Genesis 4:7 in other translations

BSB	If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you refuse to do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires you, but you must master it.”
WEB	If you do well, won’t it be lifted up? If you don’t do well, sin crouches at the door. Its desire is for you, but you are to rule over it.”
ASV	If thou doest well, shall it not be lifted up? and if thou doest not well, sin coucheth at the door; and unto thee shall be its desire; but do thou rule over it.
YLT	Is there not, if thou dost well, acceptance? and if thou dost not well, at the opening a sin-offering is crouching, and unto thee its desire, and thou rulest over it.'
DARBY	If thou doest well, will not thy countenance look up with confidence? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door; and unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
BBE	If you do well, will you not have honour? and if you do wrong, sin is waiting at the door, desiring to have you, but do not let it be your master.
Webster	If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And to thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

What does Genesis 4:7 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

7. If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?--A better rendering is, "Shalt thou not have the excellency"? which is the true sense of the words referring to the high privileges and authority belonging to the first-born in patriarchal times. sin lieth at the door--sin, that is, a sin offering--a common meaning of the word in Scripture (as in Ho 4:8; 2Co 5:21; He 9:28). The purport of the divine rebuke to Cain was this, "Why art thou angry, as if unjustly treated? If thou doest well (that is, wert innocent and sinless) a thank offering would have been accepted as a token of thy dependence as a creature. But as thou doest not well (that is, art a sinner), a sin offering is necessary, by bringing which thou wouldest have met with acceptance and retained the honors of thy birthright." This language implies that previous instructions had been given as to the mode of worship; Abel offered through faith (He 11:4). unto thee shall be his desire--The high distinction conferred by priority of birth is described (Ge 27:29); and it was Cain's conviction, that this honor had been withdrawn from him, by the rejection of his sacrifice, and conferred on his younger brother--hence the secret flame of jealousy, which kindled into a settled hatred and fell revenge.

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 7 If thou doest well - That which is right in the sight of God, shalt thou not be accepted? Does God reject any man who serves him in simplicity and godly sincerity? But if thou doest not well, can wrath and indignation against thy righteous brother save thee from the displeasure under which thou art fallen? On the contrary, have recourse to thy Maker for mercy; לפתח חטאת רבץ lappethach chattath robets, a sin-offering lieth at thy door; an animal proper to be offered as an atonement for sin is now couching at the door of thy fold. The words חטאת chattath, and חטאת chattaah, frequently signify sin; but I have observed more than a hundred places in the Old Testament where they are used for sin-offering, and translated ἁμαρτια by the Septuagint, which is the term the apostle uses, 2Cor 5:21 : He hath made him to be sin (ἁμαρτιαν, A Sin-Offering) for us, who knew no sin. Cain's fault now was his not bringing a sin-offering when his brother brought one, and his neglect and contempt caused his other offering to be rejected. However, God now graciously informs him that, though he had miscarried, his case was not yet desperate, as the means of faith, from the promise, etc., were in his power, and a victim proper for a sin-offering was lying (רבץ robets, a word used to express the lying down of a quadruped) at the door of his fold. How many sinners perish, not because there is not a Savior able and willing to save them, but because they will not use that which is within their power! Of such how true is that word of our Lord, Ye will not come unto me that ye might have life! Unto thee shall be his desire, etc. - That is, Thou shalt ever have the right of primogeniture, and in all things shall thy brother be subject unto thee. These words are not spoken of sin, as many have understood them, but of Abel's submission to Cain as his superior, and the words are spoken to remove Cain's envy.

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 4:7 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.

הֲל֤וֹאha.Lo'¿ notH3808

אִם\־'im-ifH518

תֵּיטִיב֙tei.Tivyou will do wellH3190

שְׂאֵ֔תse.'Etlifting upH7613

וְאִם֙ve.'Imand ifH518

לֹ֣אlo'notH3808

תֵיטִ֔יבtei.Tivyou will do wellH3190

לַפֶּ֖תַחla.Pe.tachto the doorH6607

חַטָּ֣אתcha.TatsinH2403

רֹבֵ֑ץro.Vetz[is] crouchingH7257

וְאֵלֶ֙יךָ֙ve.'e.Lei.khaand [is] to youH413

תְּשׁ֣וּקָת֔וֹte.Shu.ka.Todesire itsH8669

וְאַתָּ֖הve.'a.Tahand youH859

תִּמְשָׁל\־tim.shol-you will ruleH4910

בּֽוֹ\׃boover <the> it

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

Cross references for Genesis 4:7

James 1:15
Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
Romans 2:6-10
Who will render to every man according to his deeds: To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; …
Isaiah 3:10-11
Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.
Romans 6:16
Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
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.
Numbers 32:23
But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord: and be sure your sin will find you out.
Romans 7:8-9
But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead. For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.
Romans 12:1
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Proverbs 21:27
The sacrifice of the wicked is abomination: how much more, when he bringeth it with a wicked mind?
Malachi 1:13
Ye said also, Behold, what a weariness is it! and ye have snuffed at it, saith the Lord of hosts; and ye brought that which was torn, and the lame, and the sick; thus ye brought an offering: should I accept this of your hand? saith the Lord.
Ecclesiastes 8:12-13
Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him: But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God.
Malachi 1:10
Who is there even among you that would shut the doors for nought? neither do ye kindle fire on mine altar for nought. I have no pleasure in you, saith the Lord of hosts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

If thou doest well.
19:21; 2Sa 24:23; 2Ki 8:28; Job 42:8; Pr 18:5; Ec 8:12,13
Isa 3:10,11; Jer 6:20; Mal 1:8,10,13; Ac 10:35; Ro 2:7-10; 12:1
Ro 14:18; 15:16; Eph 1:6; 1Ti 5:4; 1Pe 2:5
be accepted. or, have the excellency.
Job 29:4; Pr 21:27; Heb 11:4
sin.
8-13; Ro 7:8,9; Jas 1:15
unto thee, or, subject unto thee.
3:16; *marg:

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

Context

Genesis 4:6
And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
Genesis 4:7
If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
Genesis 4:8
And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

Read all of Genesis 4

Genesis 4:7 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Si bien hicieres, ¿no serás ensalzado? y si no hicieres bien, el pecado está á la puerta: con todo esto, á ti será su deseo, y tú te enseñorearás de él.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Si tu fais bien, ne seras-tu pas agréé? Et si tu ne fais pas bien, le péché est couché à la porte. Et son désir sera tourné vers toi, et toi tu domineras sur lui.
German Elberfelder 1871	Ist es nicht so, daß es sich erhebt, wenn du wohl tust? Und wenn du nicht wohl tust, so lagert die Sünde vor der Tür. Und nach dir wird sein Verlangen sein, du aber wirst über ihn herrschen.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	nonne si bene egeris, recipies: sin autem male, statim in foribus peccatum aderit? sed sub te erit appetitus ejus, et tu dominaberis illius.