Is ‘Supernatural’s Mark of Cain Real?

The Big Picture

• The Mark of Cain storyline in Supernatural was not an invention of the show, but actually has roots in biblical lore.
• However, Supernatural‘s interpretation of Cain and the Mark of Cain contradicts the Old Testament narrative.
• Supernatural often misrepresents biblical characters and stories, taking creative liberties with the source material.

The vast mythology behind Supernatural can sometimes be a bit convoluted. After all, over 327 episodes, even Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) are bound to make a mistake. But one bit of lore that ran between the show’s ninth and eleventh seasons and was particularly confusing revolved around the Mark of Cain. The only “big bad” in the show’s long-running history who isn’t a sentient person, the Mark is a curse that took over Dean and turned him into a killer. But is there really a Mark of Cain in biblical lore, or was this just another invention of the show? Truth is, the Bible really does speak of a mark given to Cain, but it’s not at all what you’d think.

The Mark of Cain Had Disastrous Consequences on ‘Supernatural’

In an effort to find the First Blade, one of the few weapons that can kill a Knight of Hell, the Winchesters eventually run into the biblical Cain (Timothy Omundson) in Season 9’s “First Born.” The episode ends with Cain transferring his infamous Mark to Dean, telling him that once his task is done, the Winchester will have to kill him (which he gets around to in Season 10’s “The Executioner’s Song”). Eventually, Dean is united with the First Blade and completes his mission, using the weapon to kill the demon Abaddon (Alaina Huffman). Unfortunately, Dean is later killed by the rogue angel Metatron (Curtis Armstrong), which activates the second function of the Mark: turning its wearer into a demon immediately upon death.

As a demon, Dean wreaks havoc at the beginning of Season 10, paling around with the King of Hell, Crowley (Mark A. Sheppard), and making a mess of things until Sam can cure him. Unfortunately, though Sam can turn Dean back into a human being, he can’t remove the Mark of Cain. The Mark’s power is too strong to be dissolved by any spell, and the Winchesters spend the entirety of the tenth season trying to manage it. During that time, Dean goes on more than one killing spree and eventually settles on ending his own life. But, after a pep talk from Death (Julian Richings), Dean decides instead to succumb to the curse and kill his brother, fitting given that’s exactly what Cain did to his own brother Abel (and what Lucifer and Michael attempted back in Season 5).

But as always, the Winchesters come out on top. They kill Death, remove the curse, and unwittingly release the Darkness upon the Earth. Unbeknownst to Sam and Dean, the Mark of Cain was originally a lock-and-key for the cage that God put his sister the Darkness (also named Amara) into at the beginning of time. According to Supernatural lore, Lucifer (Mark Pellegrino) was the original bearer of the Mark and gave it to Cain in order to make a deal. According to the show, Abel was actually worshiping the Devil, not God, and in order to ensure that his brother’s soul would enter Heaven, Cain took on the Mark as his own and killed Abel. If that doesn’t sound like the story you remember hearing at Sunday School, then you’d be right.

Cain’s Story on ‘Supernatural’ Is Completely Contradictory to the Old Testament Narrative

The way Cain explains what happened between him and his brother back at the dawn of time, he was not only justified in killing his brother, but it was the only right thing to do. To be fair, Supernatural notes that demons are compulsive liars, and their words are to be taken with a grain of salt. Cain himself is a Knight of Hell, and because of that, he classifies as a demon himself. However, there’s no evidence that Cain lies about what actually went on way back when, and other figures such as Death seem to only confirm his story.

Unsurprisingly, this is entirely contrary to what we read about Cain in the Old Testament. In the fourth chapter of the Book of Genesis, the biblical narrative reveals that Cain was the firstborn of Adam and Eve. From there, they had another son named Abel, and Abel worshiped God with a sacrifice from his heart, while Cain didn’t. But God gave Cain a choice, noting that if he did rightly, he too would be accepted like his brother. Instead, Cain took Abel into a field and killed him in a jealous rage. When God appears again to Cain, asking him where his brother is, the first murderer replies, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

Fans of Supernatural will note that the Season 10 finale in which Dean nearly kills Sam is also titled “Brother’s Keeper,” a thoughtful nod to this line in Genesis. In fact, there are plenty of episodes that relate back to the biblical narrative (“Proverbs 17:3” being the most obvious), though this is one of the most clever. Despite the fact that much of Supernatural‘s lore actually runs contrary to that of the Bible (more on that later), “Brother’s Keeper” is a notable example of a time when the show actually honored the biblical tradition, particularly concerning Dean’s struggle to kill Sam. Although Dean wasn’t jealous of his brother, he did feel compelled to kill him for a moment there, not unlike what Cain did to Abel out in the fields.

The Mark of Cain Represents Divine Mercy in the Bible

The way Supernatural describes the Mark of Cain, it gives the bearer eternal life, an insatiable thirst for blood, and turns them into a demon upon death. In many ways, it’s a curse on the person who wears it, one made even stronger by proximity to the First Blade, the jawbone-based weapon that Cain used to kill Abel. Interestingly enough, the Book of Genesis never mentions how Cain killed Abel, and the First Blade itself seems to be more of a reference to the Old Testament figure Samson, who used the jawbone of a donkey to kill a thousand men, as seen in the Book of Judges, chapter 15. Nevertheless, the idea that the Mark of Cain is actually a curse isn’t something supported by the Bible either.

When God punishes Cain for killing his brother, he tells the murderer that he’s cursed and that, as a result, he will work the ground to no avail. Additionally, he will be a fugitive and wanderer among the peoples of Earth. But Cain tells God that, as a wanderer and a fugitive, he will be killed by the first person who finds him in retribution for what he did to Abel. It’s then that God shows Cain undeserved mercy, vowing that to whoever kills him, “vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.” It’s then that God gives him the famed Mark of Cain, which was meant to be a symbol of God’s protection over him.

To this day, many biblical scholars and theologians debate as to what the actual Mark of Cain might’ve been. In times past, some have erroneously thought it was the color of one’s skin, though the Bible itself doesn’t actually support that notion. Additionally, God only gives the mark to Cain. Neither Genesis nor any other Old Testament book explains that the symbol was passed on to his descendants, and likewise, it’s clear that Cain didn’t live forever (or turn into a demon). The Great Flood spoken of in Genesis chapter 6 (which also first mentions the Nephilim, the angel/human hybrids that appear on Supernatural) notes that, aside from Noah and his seven family members, no human beings survived. If Cain was still alive by then, he’d most certainly have drowned.

‘Supernatural’ Often Misrepresented Biblical Characters and Stories

It’s all the rage nowadays to pick and choose something from the Bible or the greater Christian tradition and flip it on its head. Instead of honoring the religious material that they pull from, oftentimes it’s warped and twisted into something that’s unrecognizable. Supernatural is probably one of the greatest offenders concerning its adaptation of biblical lore and misses the mark too often to count. The Mark of Cain aside, Supernatural actually makes God the villain in the final season of the show through Chuck (Rob Benedict), a maniacal stand-in for divine authority who is a vast departure from the God we read about in the Bible.

Of course, the depiction of God himself isn’t the only clear issue that Supernatural has when pitted against the Judeo-Christian tradition. While the show introduces the concept that there can only be one prophet at a time, the Bible often has several prophets and seers operating within the same timeframe. The Archangel Michael (played most significantly by Jake Abel) is portrayed as the originator of all religions, while the biblical narrative barely mentions the character. And let’s not even start on the show’s depictions of Heaven, Hell, the Nephilim, and the idea that God has a sister out there.

Whenever one adapts a particular story (including true stories), there’s always some significant artistic license or creative liberties taken to make the story more dramatic and better flesh out the characters. While Supernatural is certainly not the only series to get the traditional Bible stories wrong, it is one of the longest-running shows that consistently did so. For many, the show’s ever-expanding (and often contradictory) mythology is part of the reason that the show’s earliest seasons are considered among its best. Nevertheless, no matter how many creative freedoms Supernatural took with its source material, we always stuck with the Winchesters for the ride.

Could ‘Supernatural’ Return for Another Season?

Recent comments by series stars Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles have suggested that Supernatural may be returning sometime down the line. While we don’t know exactly how the show could return, or in what form, it’s possible that it would be in a more limited capacity (not unlike The X-Files‘ shortened revival seasons). Either way, this is potentially great news for Supernatural fans, and while we’re unlikely to ever re-examine or explore the Mark of Cain again, there are likely countless other biblical stories that the show could pull from for a sixteenth season. Although, maybe it would be better if the show returned to its horror roots and did what it always did best: saving people, and hunting things.

Supernatural can be streamed in its entirety on Netflix.

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