Charles Ellicott Commentary Genesis 4:2

"And again she bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground." — Genesis 4:2 (ASV)

Abel. Regarding this name, Dr. Oppert imagined that it was the Assyrian Abil, meaning "a son." In reality, it is Hebel; and there is no reason why we should prefer an Assyrian to a Hebrew etymology. An Akkadian derivation would have been significant, but Assyrian is only a Semitic dialect, and Abil is the Hebrew ben. Hebel means something unstable, not enduring, like a breath or vapor.

We can hardly suppose that Eve called her child this from a premonition of evil or a mere passing depression of spirits; it was more probably a title given to him after his untimely death. Giving names to children would become common only when the population increased, and it was not until a religious rite was instituted for their dedication to God that they received names in their infancy.

Even then, Esau’s name was changed to Edom, and Jacob’s to Israel. Previously, names like Eber and Peleg, and even earlier, Jabal and Jubal, must have been given to those who bore them based on what they became. Names such as Esau, Jacob, and most of those borne by Jacob’s children also seem to have been playful titles. These were given in the women’s tents by quick-witted nurses who picked up on any chance words of the mother, until eventually it became the Jewish custom for women to name their children.

Probably, therefore, it was only after Abel’s death that his sorrowing relatives called him the Breath that had passed away.

Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. As Adam was 130 years old when Seth was born (Genesis 5:3), there was a long period for the growth of Adam’s family , and also for the development of the characters of these two eldest sons.

In the one, we seem to see a rough, strong nature, who took the hard work as he found it and subdued the ground with muscular energy. In the other, we see a more refined and thoughtful nature, making progress upwards.

Adam had already tamed animals in Paradise. Abel devoted himself to these, tended them carefully, and gained from them ample and easy sustenance, higher in quality even than the fruits of Paradise.

The other sons and daughters of Adam grouped themselves around these two, and Cain already seems to have had a wife when he murdered his brother (Genesis 4:17).