Divine insight BY HUMPHREY MTANDWA
The Bible carries the life and testimony of Cain, and how he was cursed for killing his brother. The Bible also shows that there was already another curse that was already active.
This was the curse that had been placed on the ground because of his father Adam’s sin. Genesis 3:17-19: “And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”
God had said the ground would be cursed because of Adam’s sin, and would now produce thorns and thistles, which would make it less productive. Cain was a farmer and he grew up when the ground was already cursed he had not farmed or tilled in the Garden of Eden, so the life of toil and hard work had become normal to him.
Harare East legislator Tendai Biti once said on Twitter that Zimbabwe was cursed. Are we a cursed nation or victims of a mismanaged system? What then is a curse and can it affect a whole nation? Biti was looking at the bad state of our nation.
But the very Cain we are told in the Bible was cursed, built the first city recorded in the Bible called the city of Enoch. Genesis 4:16-17: “And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden. And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.”
When you look at the curse pronounced upon Cain, it said from that day the ground would not yield its strength to him — meaning the capacity of the earth to produce for him and his seed had been reduced.
Remember, already the ground had been cursed and it was even hard to farm and produce. Farming was Cain’s source of livelihood and God made it even harder for him yet he built a city. I discovered this handicap brought upon by the curse did not stop Cain from being productive, but pushed him to shift and open himself up to new areas.
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A city is a place of trade. Cain had recognised his new weakness and how he could no longer be productive in his former place of work. He then built a place where farmers would bring their produce and he would tax them. He built a city which, I believe, allowed him to overcome his handicap.
Cain’s curse said the ground would not produce for him, but it did not say he could not do business or trade in the city.
Zimbabwe as a nation has gone through the most trying times. It’s people have suffered. Even some of its leaders do not see a way out. Yet we learn from Cain who was cursed building a city. The curse on his life did not stop him from building a city and nothing can stop Zimbabwe from rising again.
Cain was able to rise above his handicap. Likewise, Zimbabwe needs to stop focusing on its weakness and misfortunes and focus on economic growth and revival.
Prophetess Cindy Jacobs said Zimbabwe shall be the Switzerland of Africa. Several other prophets have also spoken of Zimbabwe rising out of the ashes. In some instances, these prophets have even spoken of the measures that should be put in place to facilitate the revival of the nation.
It’s time to see the nation rise again and Zimbabwe restored despite what has happened in the past. If Cain, who was extremely cursed, could build a city, what about a nation with God-fearing individuals like us?
In response to MP Biti, I tweeted: “With all due respect, sir, we are not cursed.”
As a nation we may have gone through trying times, but Zimbabwe is a blessed nation. May 2019 be a prosperous year for us.
God bless our nation.
Humphrey Mtandwa is an anointed minister of the gospel and teacher of the Word based in South Africa. He has written several books including The Enoch Generation, Truthfulness and Theophany. He blogs at mtandwa.blogspot.com and can be contacted via e-mail or WhatsApp on +27 610286350.
