Waiyomer meh asita qol demey (bloods) ahhikha tsoaqim eylai min haadamah.
And he will SAY what you did DO Voice BOTHER you CRY.OUT TO me FROM the GROUND. Literal
Translation: And he said, what did you do, the voice of the bloodshed of your brother is crying out to me from the ground. Genesis 4:10. The Torah: A Mechanical Translation
The story that leads up to this passage is that Cain and Abel had given offerings (Hebrew word would be minchah, and it means gift) to YHVH. This could be like a thanksgiving gift, and not an atonement or sin offering. Abel sacrificed the better of his flock, and Cain offered his produce from the ground which perhaps could be a grain gift. YHVH would not accept Cain’s offering, and feeling slighted or whatever, he became angry. No details are given on why God rejected his offering only that Abel had given his choicest, and Cain had not. Though YHVH had spoken to Cain about his sin, he remained angry. Instead of repenting, Cain does the unthinkable, he devises a plan to murder Abel. The translation reads: And Qayin said to Hevel his brother, let us go out into the field, and it came to pass in their existing in the field, and Qayin rose to Hevel his brother and he killed him. Genesis 4:8. The Torah: A Mechanical Translation
The Hebrew word for rose is qum, and it means to stand, arise.
There is nothing in the Word that explains how Cain murdered him, only that he rose up. One can only speculate they perhaps argued with Abel shoving him to the ground, who knows, but that Cain rose up and murdered him. That was the plan anyway, and it was premeditated murder.
The story picks up with YHVH asking Cain: Where is Abel your brother? Cain replied he did not know, and asked if he was his brother’s keeper.
YHVH responds with the bloods of his brother, Abel, cries out from the ground.
It is unusual to read blood in the plural sense, the Hebrew manuscript has demey. The Strong’s Concordance has dam. The Blue Letter Bible has demey and dam, and preferring the singular dam over demey. It is one of those words that is difficult to explain why it is written in the plural.
Biblehub, under Matthew Poole’s commentary states: “In the Hebrew it is bloods, either to aggravate the crime, or to show the plenty of the blood spilt.”
The rabbis are more insightful concerning bloods. They view it as Abel’s blood and the blood of his potential descendants that would not be born to him. The Chumash
Surprisingly, Matthew Poole mentions this as well: “Or to charge him (Cain) with the murder of all those that might naturally have come out of Abel’s loins; which was a far greater crime in the nonage of the world, when the world greatly wanted people.”
Blood never dies. Abel’s life remained in the ground crying out to be avenged. From that time of murdering Abel, violence increased in the earth. The next story we see is of Lamech, who is the great, great grandson of Cain.
Genesis 4:23
Adah and Zillah, O hearken my voice, You wives of Lamech, give ear to my speech. For a man have I slain for my wound, a boy for my bruising.
So, Cain killed his one, and Lamech doubled it: a man and a boy.
Jewish legend has it that Lamech was out hunting with his son, Tubal-Cain. Lamech is said to have been blind and Tubal-Cain instructed him on how to aim his bow. The arrow flew and it struck what they thought was an animal. As they ran upon it, they discovered that it was Cain. Horrified it was his great, great grandfather, Lamech beat his hands together in grief and accidently struck Tubal-Cain, his own son, and killed him. Lamech is now having to tell his wives that he killed not only his great, great grandfather, but the son of Zillah.
From here, the earth becomes even more violently sadistic, Genesis 6:11.
Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence.
That period was eventually judged by the LORD, all the inhabitants were destroyed by water, except Noah, his family, and the animals that were sent on the ark. Had the Lord not destroyed them, there would have not been anyone left to inhabit the earth.
The rabbis also say something interesting about the ground that receives Abel’s blood.
Genesis 4:11
Therefore, you are cursed more than the ground, which opened it mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. Artscroll Library Beresheis.
The Hebrew Bible by Robert Alter has:
Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the soil. And so, cursed shall you be by the soil that gaped with its mouth to take your brother’s blood from your hand.
Ancient Roots Translinear Bible by Frances Werner has an interesting way of translating it:
Now you are reprimanded by the earth, which gaped its mouth to take your brother’s blood from your hand.
The teaching from the rabbis is that the ground opening its mouth was quite literal, and that it was an earthquake.
We see this with Korach who stood in opposition to Moses in the wilderness. His grievances were that he was never chosen to be promoted to any leadership position in his Levitical tribe. He also assembled others to confront Moses. Upon seeing this rebellion, Moses instructed the other Israelites to stay clear of the tents of Dathan, Abiram and Korach, so that they would not be consumed with these rebels. Accordingly, Moses foretold the crowd the earth would open its mouth and swallow them alive. No sooner had he spoken, the ground that was under them split apart, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households and every human being that was Korah’s, and all the possessions. And they went down, they and all that was theirs, alive to Sheol, and the earth covered over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly. And all of Israel that was round about them fled at the sound of them, for they thought, ”Lest the earth swallow us.” Numbers 16, The Hebrew Bible by Robert Alter
When humankind becomes ungovernable, and unrestrained, the earth eventually mirrors the behavior of its inhabitants. Perhaps because they are both made of earth. I find it clever the way Dr. James Tabor translates the account of the creation of Adam (from adamah which means earth or ground) by saying: And ELOHEIM created the soil-creature in his image: in the image of Elohim he created him, a male and a female he created them. Genesis 1:27, The Book of Genesis
All the vegetation and animals sprang forth from the soil. The fowls and marine life were created together on day five. Would it make sense the earth is sensitive to its life-breathing relatives? All life-breathers come from the soil and upon expiration returns to the soil.
How did the earth react to the crucifixion of Yeshua? It was with an earthquake. The earth received His blood. Before His death, He spoke of earthquakes before His return.
Luke 21:
But when you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified: for it is necessary for these things to come first, but the end is not right away. 10 Then He was saying to them, “Heathen will rise against heathen and kingdom against kingdom, 11 there will be great earthquakes and in places famines and pestilences, and horrors and there will be great signs, terrifying portents, from heaven. 12 But before all these things happen they will seize you and they will persecute you, handing you over in public gatherings and jails, leading you before kings and governors because of My name.” One New Man
He made a point that after the persecution and martyrdom of His people, there would be great earthquakes, famines, pestilences, and horrors. In that generation, in Jerusalem, came all these sufferings. The events that happened in Jerusalem, I believe, also serves as a prophetic pattern of the coming of Yeshua.
Revelation 16:4-6
Then the third (angel) poured out his vial into the rivers and the fountains of the waters, and they became blood. And I heard the angel of the waters saying, You are righteous, the One Who is and Who was, the Undefiled, because You have judged these things, because they poured out the blood of saints and prophets and You have given them blood to drink, of which they are deserving. One New Man Version
Following this are verses 17-21:
Then the seventh poured out his vial upon the air and a loud voice came out of the Sanctuary from the throne saying: “It is finished.” And there were lightnings and sounds and thunders and there was a violent earthquake, such as had not happened since mankind came upon the earth, so powerful an earthquake as this. Then the great city was split in three parts and the cities of the heathens fell. And Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give to her the cup of the wine of the wrath of His punishment. Then every island fled and mountains were not found. 21 And great hail as heavy as talents came down from the sky on mankind, and mankind blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because this plague is exceedingly great.
The earthquake in chapter 16 is in response to the Great Harlot in chapter 17 who is drunk on the blood of the saints and those testifying about Y’shua. Chapter 17 expands on the narrative given in chapter 16. Revelation does this frequently. The woman is characterized as being drunk on the blood of the saints, and this may very well be in some literal sense that she is a blood drinker, a cannibalistic blood drinker. Hollywood has certainly glamorized it with movies of vampirism, zombies, and the music industry promoting satanic rituals and cannibalism. Kay Perry’s music video Bon Appetit is worthy of a cringe. The reality is all the nations are involved in this in some way. Disturbing videos of finding children whose organs had been harvested. China harvests organs from Christians and any unfortunate soul that is young. A friend sent me information on adrenochrome, how it is harvested from children. I suppose the wealthy look to adrenochrome as an elixir to maintain youthfulness. And historians portray Rome as barbaric, rightly so, but what I see today is worse than disturbing. The nations are hardly civilized societies.
Revelation 17
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven vials came and spoke with me saying, “Come here, I shall show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits upon many waters, with whom the kings of the earth did fornicate and those who dwell on the earth did become drunk from the of her idolatry.” And he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting upon a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, which had seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was clothed in purple and scarlet and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a gold cup filled with detestable and unclean things of her idolatry and a name had been written upon her forehead, “Mystery, Babylon the Great, the Mother of the Fornications (idolatry) and of the Detestable Things of the Earth.” And I saw a woman drunk from the blood of the saints and from the blood of those testifying about Y’shua.
Mentioned in Revelation are seven earthquakes, but only three are said to be great earthquakes.
The first great earthquake is the sixth seal and it affects the celestial bodies. The sun becomes as black as sackcloth and the moon like blood. This is the inauguration of God’s wrath and the text tells us that the kings of the earth and the great men and the military leaders and the rich and the powerful and every slave and the free people hid themselves in caves and in the rocks of the mountains and they were saying to the mountains and to the rocks, You must fall on us and you must hide us from the face of the One Who sits upon the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb, because the great Day of Their wrath has come, and who is able to stand. Revelation 6:12-1,7 One New Man
Even the wicked understand they have provoked God, and there would be no turning back. The second great earthquake occurs after the two witnesses, who are killed, are resurrected. This earthquake destroys the tenth of the city and seven thousand people are killed because of it. This is the seventh seal, the sixth trumpet and the second woe. Revelation 11:3-13, One New Man
The third great earthquake takes place under the seventh bowl, and it splits the great city into three parts, and the cities of the nations fall. Revelation 16:17-20, One New Man
Babylon, which are the nations, are guilty of spilling the blood of the prophets, and the messengers of God. All the nations are under the influence of the antichrist spirit, therefore, all nations come under the judgment of the Lord.
Isaiah 24:19, 20
19. The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly. 20. The earth will reel to and fro like a drunkard and will be removed like a cottage and its transgression will be heavy upon it, and it will fall and not rise again.
Luke 21:25
And there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars and on the Earth anguish of heathens in bewilderment, and the roar and tossing of the sea, 26 Then people will stop breathing from fear and expectation of things that are coming in the inhabited world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 And then they will see the Son of Man as He comes in a cloud with power and great glory. One New Man
Creation has often been used as a tool to reprimand, and at times to destroy cities and nations. Egypt experienced plagues that left them with a broken kingdom. They were harassed with locusts, frogs, hail, decimated crops, bloody water, the dead to bury, and their gods paralyzed. Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim were destroyed in the plain. Zoar was spared because of Lot, but then he and his two daughters fled from there to the mountains. These cities with their inhabitants were destroyed by brimstone and fire. The inhabitants of these cities were in their last days and did not know it.
Moses also warns Israel that if they would depart from their Covenant with God, and serve other idols, they would meet the same fate.
Deuteronomy 28
Your children will rise up after you against this land and the stranger who will come from a distant land and will see the blows against this land and its ills with which the LORD afflicts it, brimstone and salt, all the land a burning, it cannot be sown and it cannot flourish and no grass will grow in it, like the overturning of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah, and Ziboiim which the LORD overturned in His wrath and in His anger. Robert Alter The Hebrew Bible
One may speculate concerning the destruction of the cities in the plain, the word is clear that it rained down brimstone and fire from the LORD from the heavens. Genesis 19:22
Pompeii met its demise with Mt. Vesuvius. The people there were in their last days and did not know it.
Accompanied with the great, or violent earthquake, in Revelation 16:18 were the hailstones found in verse 21: And great hail as heavy as talents came down from the sky on mankind, and mankind blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because this plague is exceedingly great.
Judgment is a repeated pattern that does not have to happen. The nations, people, have lost the fear of the Lord and His Teachings. We are definitely living in perilous days; all one has to do is follow some of the social networks to see that certain cities have succumbed to bloodshed. The news networks seldom even mention it. As the cities become more violent, the earth’s contractions will also increase causing more instability. The seas will convulse, and earthquakes will become more frequent. There will definitely be a shaking before the return of Yeshua the Anointed One.
I John 2:18, 2:22, 4:1-3; 2 John 2:7; 2 Thessalonians 2:7
What Does Babylon Mean? Bible Definition and References (biblestudytools.com)
