Sixty-six books, close to 50 authors – the Bible is a vast collection of knowledge and covers an amazing array of history, wisdom, poetry and theology. That’s why it’s extra fun when, out of all the possible passages at our disposal, one particular piece of the puzzle shows up in multiple places in the course of one week. This week, that piece of the puzzle is the short-lived life and death of Abel, son of Adam.

Perhaps you’ve noticed that the Hebrew writer skips over the first three names in recorded history, as he links together his list of those who lived by faith? We pass directly from cre...