Cain and Saul: Seed of the Serpent

I enjoy learning from Scripture each new day. This is one of the reasons I am taking an advanced Hebrew class each week. We are translating and exegeting our way through the Hebrew text of 1 Samuel.

From a canonical standpoint, I have observed that King Saul, clearly associated with the seed of the serpent mentioned in Genesis 3:15, is cast as another Cain, the very first seed of the serpent in Genesis 4. 1 Samuel contains some obvious clues and connections between Saul, Cain, and the seed of the serpent.

Both men—Cain and Saul—display anger, jealousy, envy, and homicidal tendencies toward men who are depicted as forerunners of the ultimate seed of the woman, Jesus Christ (Genesis 3:15). Cain’s anger, envy, and murderous tendencies, originating at worship, are directed at Abel his own brother. Saul’s anger, jealousy, and homicidal desires, evidenced in his home, zero in on David, another forerunner of the seed of the woman. Both seeds of the woman (Abel and David) are identified as Shepherds, Pastors, as both men are said to “tend sheep.”

There are many other connections to Old Testament characters that spring from the stories in 1 Samuel, but the predominant connection is to the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman. The book of 1st Samuel shows us that the family chain of the seed of the serpent proceeds from one generation to the next. And they are true to form: they mistreat shepherds in varying degrees. It’s a pattern repeated in every generation.

And so also the family tree of the seed of the woman—not always a biological family tree—proceeds from one generation to the next. The ultimate seed of the woman is Jesus Christ, also a shepherd and mistreated by his own people—leaders who—in various degrees--act just like the seed of the serpent of old. It can happen at worship as in the case of Cain. It can occur at home as in the story of Saul.

Thank you for reading.

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