**Do you just make shit up for kicks; or is it a habitual foible that you can’t break?**
Classy! (No, I won’t go to the mods. I’m probably thicker skinned than you.)
My point is you APPEARED to assume that Abel was weaker than Cain, in your comparison to the Uke-Rus tragedy. There is no scripture that points to Abel being weaker than Cain. And there is no scripture that shows they locked horns. The Bible says that Cain rose up and slew his brother.
There had been no murders yet. I believe Abel had no reason to expect something that had never happened. And being jealous about who had presented the better offering certainly wouldn’t appear to be anything close to the stunt Jacob and Rebekah pulled on Esau. I don’t blame Esau for being angry about how that turned out.
Stay classy.
“My point is you APPEARED to assume that Abel was weaker than Cain, in your comparison to the Uke-Rus tragedy.”
Per the Bible, Cain was older than Abel. Per the Bible, Cain worked and tilled the soil (hard, back-breaking labor, especially back in antiquity), whereas Abel was a shepherd (compared to farming, an almost leisurely job, and historically often performed by youngsters). Strength was essential for farming; it was not essential for sheep herding.
The Bible, especially the Old Testament, is heavy on metaphor. Thus, older equates to larger and stronger (physical labor, power); while younger equates to smaller and weaker (i.e., lamb-like). Abel himself is but a metaphor for the lamb (gentleness, peacefulness); and so is Cain a metaphor for power (physicality, domination). Artists throughout the ages recognized this, and often portrayed the two accordingly: Cain — big, strong, and aggressive; Abel — small, not strong, and gentle.
So, it’s just not me.