Hebrews 11:4 (ASV)

Passage

By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he had witness borne to him that he was righteous, God bearing witness in respect of his gifts: and through it he being dead yet speaketh.

Nearby Context

Hebrews 11:2 For therein the elders had witness borne to them.

Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds have been framed by the word of God, so that what is seen hath not been made out of things which appear.

Hebrews 11:4 By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he had witness borne to him that he was righteous, God bearing witness in respect of his gifts: and through it he being dead yet speaketh.

Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and he was not found, because God translated him: for he hath had witness borne to him that before his translation he had been well-pleasing unto God:

Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to be well-pleasing [unto him]; for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that seek after him.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "faith", "abel", "offered", "excellent", "sacrifice", "than", "cain", and "through". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "faith" and "abel", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "By faith we understand that the worlds..." into verse 5's "By faith Enoch was translated that he...", so "faith" and "abel" belong inside that flow. In Hebrews context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "faith" and "abel" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.