Hebrews 11:4 - Joseph Benson’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

By faith In the divine command or appointment, signified unto him by some supernatural revelation, and by faith in the future Redeemer; Abel offered a more excellent sacrifice The firstlings of his flock, implying both a confession of what his own sins deserved, and a desire of sharing in the great atonement; than Cain Whose offering testified no such faith, but was merely a bare acknowledgment of God as the Creator. Macknight, after Kennicott, translates πλειονα θυσιαν, more sacrifice, observing, “In this translation I have followed the critics, who tell us that πλειονα, in the comparative degree, signifies more in number rather than more in value.” Accordingly it is said, (Genesis 4:4,) Abel ALSO brought of the firstlings of his flock, and of the fat thereof; “that is, beside the fruit of the ground, which was one of his gifts, he also brought the fattest of the firstlings of his flock; so that he offered a sin-offering as well as a meat or bread-offering, and thereby showed both his sense of the divine goodness, and of his own sinfulness. Whereas Cain, having no sense of sin, thought himself obliged to offer nothing but a meat-offering; and made it, perhaps, not of the first-fruits, or of the best of the fruits.” By which faith Abel obtained both righteousness, and a testimony of it, God testifying visibly that his gifts were accepted. Moses does not say in what manner God testified his respect to Abel and his offering, but from Cain's being very wroth, as we learn Genesis 4:5, we may believe it was by some outward visible sign. And as in after-times God testified his acceptance of particular sacrifices by sending down fire upon them to consume them, it is probable that he bore witness to Abel's in that way, thus giving a token that justice seized on the sacrifice instead of the sinner. It is of importance to observe, that God's acceptance of Abel's sin-offering is a proof that propitiatory sacrifices were of divine appointment, otherwise his offering, being will-worship, must have been offensive to God, and rejected. Besides, as Hallet justly observes, flesh not being permitted to be eaten by men till after the flood, Abel must have thought it unlawful to kill any animal, unless God had ordered it to be killed as a sacrifice. And by it By his faith; he, being dead, yet speaketh That a sinner is accepted only through faith in the great Sacrifice. See notes on Genesis 4:3-5.