A Biblical Record of Major Crimes: First-Degree Murder

A Biblical Record of Major Crimes: First-Degree Murder. 

“Tell all the truth, but tell it slant. Truth in indirection lies.” (Emily Dickenson).

A Different Look to a True Story. Emily Dickenson’s advice was to come at the truth from different angles; reveal the truth while approaching it sideways. There are times when only an indirect story will effectively grab a reader’s attention and will inspire a fresh perspective on an ancient truth. There are occasions when coming at a truth from the side through a story will go further than a didactic, systematic study using logic and reason. We seem to be created in a way in which truth can often be better understood from the side instead of head-on through a blunt statement of raw truth. This fictional story below is intended to reveal the truth of a biblical crime story in a way that brings a fresh perspective, an unexpected layer of meaning, to a familiar story. Perhaps we can learn something new in this indirect approach to the true story of Cain and Abel (Genesis 4).

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A long time ago we see a desolate married couple, homeless and completely alone in the world, stepping out into the wildernesses. They were not voluntary pioneers, they were expelled from their first home together after a tragic and thoughtless mistake. They disobeyed the landlord and broke his house rules. And now here they were, striking out on their own into parts unknown. After a long, difficult trek through unsettled territory, they finally found a land that seemed to be what they needed. They could build a cabin, plant a garden, raise a few animals, and build a life together. So that’s what they did, knowing that somewhere there was a forgiving God who refused to give up on them.

Soon enough, the wife became a mother, and they were both thrilled to be starting a family of their own. They expected one child but they got two, and twin boys were born to them in their little cabin in the wilderness. They named the boys Jed and Billy, and right from the start they were as different as night and day. As is so often the case, one wonders how two children from the same parents can be so wildly different. Jed grew into a consistently obedient son who was happy to do what his parents instructed him to do. He also seemed to develop a spiritual intuition, an inner awareness of this distant but loving God who watched over the family and was honored by his parents. Jed took naturally to raising animals, and he worked hard at tending the sheep and the cows and making sure there was always a provision of fresh meat on the dinner table. Billy, on the other hand, didn’t share Jed’s good-natured ways. He had a rebellious streak a mile long and a fierce temper too. Billy grew into a stubborn young man who wouldn’t listen to his parents, learn from his mistakes, or even listen to any talk about this distant God. Billy would get violently angry at the slightest provocation and stay that way for far too long. He was a natural at farming, though, and he worked hard at tending his vegetable garden and his crops of grain.

Apart from their personalities, a major difference between the two boys was that Jed understood the secret of honoring his God by obeying his parents. He realized that God was the creator who deserved to be respected, and that is best done by cherishing God’s representatives on earth, his parents. Billy, though, understood no such thing, and he somehow developed the habit of ignoring any impulse to either honor God or obey his parents. Billy would listen to no one but himself.

The family would meet together every Sunday and remind themselves of God’s goodness and how worthy He is to serve and honor. Jed was happy to bring as his gesture of honor a big plate of deliciously prepared mutton and beef for the family to enjoy. This was Jed’s way of giving thanks to God and his parents. Billy was indifferent, he did not want to do anything special in honor of anyone but himself, so he tended to bring some of the older, rather imperfectly formed vegetables to the Sunday meal. He thought it would be embarrassing not to bring anything, so his thoughtless offering that was supposed to honor God and parents was half-hearted and was obviously a meaningless gesture.

After another frustrating Sunday meal full of stale vegetables from Billy, the father finally had reached his limit. “You need to know something, Billy. I fully accept Jed’s gifts to us because he is genuinely thankful to us and our God. Jed has chosen to give us the very best of his work. But you give us nothing but the worst of your efforts. I completely reject your empty attempts to offer gifts here on Sundays. You can just keep your old vegetables, since you don’t mean anything by them. These gifts are unacceptable, Billy, so don’t even try to do this again, because I’ll just go and reject them again!”

Billy flew into an uncontrollable rage after his father’s words of rejection, and he followed his brother out into the field, full of jealous anger and prideful resentment. They were standing a little way from the cabin when Billy lost his temper once again. “I can’t believe this! He accepts your stupid gifts to the Sunday meal and he rejects mine! How dare he do that to me! And who do you think you are, Jed, thinking you’re better than me!” So Billy lifted up a rock and struck Jeb on the back of his head as hard as he could. Billy was still breathing hard as he leaned over and tried to figure out why Jed wasn’t moving. And then the horrible truth hit him… he had killed his brother! Billy quickly dug a grave to bury his dead brother’s body in the field. He tried to cover up the grave as best as he could and then he returned to the cabin without saying anything about the tragic thing that had just happened.

Mother told Billy that it’s almost time for dinner, and she asked Billy where his brother was. Billy snidely answered her that he had no idea and that he wasn’t his brother’s babysitter. So both parents went outside to search for Jed. The father came across what appeared to be a makeshift grave in the field and noticed blood in the grass surrounding the grave. The father’s heart sank as he came to realize what had happened. Billy had murdered his brother in cold blood. So the heartbroken father dug his dead son out of that terrible grave and dug a special grave for Jed in another part of the field.

Both parents were appalled that their own son had murdered their other son in a fit of a childish temper tantrum. In a broken voice that was barely audible, the father told Billy that he didn’t have to do such an evil thing. What he did was senseless and thoughtless. “I had warned you time and again, Billy, that your temper would get you into trouble, that if you didn’t master your emotions, they would master you. And now look what you’ve done. And this is something that can never be undone!”

So father and mother immediately kicked Billy out of their house and sent him into the unsettled wilderness far away. Billy’s punishment was to wander alone as far away from his home as possible, never to see his parents again. But Billy said that it was unfair to punish him in a way that was so unbearable. “What if someone sees me and finds out I killed my brother…. They’ll hang me from the highest tree!” The father reminded Billy of that God that Billy had ignored all his life, and the father told him that we’ll have to let God take it from here. The Lord’s will be done. But then the father told Billy, “Have you noticed that awful twitch in your face ever since you killed your brother? That just might be God’s way of allowing you to survive your life in exile from us. Your nervous twitch just might be a result of your conscience telling you deep inside that what you did was horribly wrong, and your guilt is causing you to disfigure your face everywhere you go. So it could be that when others see you, they will have pity on you because of your condition and leave you alone. Your punishment will actually be your means of protection.” 

So Billy left home in an impudent huff, still thinking he was being unfairly persecuted, and he wandered alone for a long time. He eventually settled into an area that was soon developed into the first large city in that part of the world. But Billy still did not learn his lesson. Billy’s city ended up becoming the perpetual enemies of his parents’ family for many generations to come. What a pity it had to end this way.