After they left the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had two sons: Cain and Abel.

Cain was a farmer.  He grew vegetables and grains.  Abel was a shepherd who looked the family's herds.  Cain and Abel were like most brothers -- they didn't always get along.  But they were brothers and did love each other very much, despite their occasional fights.

Adam and Eve told Cain and Abel about the message God gave them that they should make a sacrifice to show how much they appreciated all God had done for them and how sorry they were for their sins.

Abel chose his very best lamb.  It was hard to give up his very best, but he wanted God to know how much he loved the Lord.

Cain thought giving the best to God was sort of silly. He decided to give God a sacrifice, but he thought his left-over straw would be good enough.

Cain watched as the lamb burnt up completely on the altar, while his left over straw was too damp and just smoldered without burning.

God was honored by Abel's sacrifice, but he was not pleased with Cain's.

Cain didn't think about how his choice of what to sacrifice was why God responded differently to their sacrifices.  He was just mad at Abel for outdoing him.

Cain was still angry when they went out to the fields. He struck Abel so hard that it killed him. Cain thought no one had seen him, but the Lord knew what he had done.  God asked,"Cain, where is your brother?"

Cain shrugged, "I don't know.  Am I my brother's keeper?"

God told Cain that killing his brother Abel was the most terrible thing to do.  He told Cain that he would be punished for the rest of his life - his crops would not grow well, and he would never be able to settle down and have a home.

Cain cried that the punishment was too much for him to handle, but that did not change God's mind.  However, even after Cain killed his brother God said He would protect Cain so that no one would kill him.  Cain would have to live a lonely and difficult life, and live with the punishment he deserved for killing his brother, but God would not allow Cain to die at the hands of others.