God saw that people's hearts were only evil, all of the time (v5). We are not good people needing a bit of affirmation from God. We do not just need a bit of encouragement to raise our self esteem. We are sick and we need a saviour.Noah wasn't righteous (v9) because of his actions. If he was, then he was Jesus - someone able to follow all of God's law (unwritten at the time). He was righteous because he found favour with God (v8). We are made righteous by what Jesus did, by grace, not because we were the one good person in a crowd of bad people and God recognised us. Everyone was only evil, all the time, and God gave grace.
Why did God recieve Abel's offering but not Cain's? It's not mentioned but presumably it's to do with the attitude of his heart. It's possible to go through the motions and do the right things in worship but if the heart isn't right, then there's no point. God rebukes Cain and, if he'd repented, then things might have turned out very differently. Instead, he gets angry and kills Abel, not in the heat of the moment, but premeditated. How do I respond to rebukes from other people or God. Do I humbly listen, or get angry? Even though there are consequences to Cains sin, God still offers him mercy - no sin is too big for God to deal with. Unfortunately, the seeds of disobediance to God had been sown, and within a few generations, Lamech pops up who has multiple wives, boasts about killing someone and assumes that God is on his side. My actions now have an impact on future generations.
