Six Days of Creation (1:1 – 2:3)
Genesis 1-2 are not technical manuals or scientific reports. These are narratives meant to communicate theological truths about the origin of the universe. The writer does not seek to answer many of the questions we usually ask: how many hours were in each day, what were the physics of the first few minutes, where do dinosaurs fit, and various other curiosities. We will strive to learn the questions that the text is trying to answer.
1:1) Emphasizes the totality of creation by one all-powerful God. This would set the Hebrew account apart from many—if not all—other origin accounts. Consider the beauty and awe conveyed in passages like Psalm 19:1 or Psalm 8:3-4.
1:2) Presents a picture of chaos, disorder. This is the point. It is not for us to figure out what “void” and other things mean in a scientific way. The glory of Genesis 1 is the bringing of order out of chaos.
The Pairs of Ordering. Like many literary works, Genesis 1 has a structure to it. It is a structure that aligns two sets of actions. The first set (Days 1-3) involve God’s act of ordering by separation. The second set (Days 4-6) involve God’s act of ordering by filling. You will see that the second set aligns with the first set. For instance, on Day one God separates day from night. On Day four God fills day and night with lights to govern them.
Day 1 (v. 3-5) Darkness / Light
Day 4 (v. 14-19) lights, days, seasons
Day 2 (v. 6-8) waters above / below
Day 5 (v. 20-23) creatures of waters, expanse
Day 3 (v. 9-13) waters / land
Day 6 (v. 24-31) creatures of the land
1:14) Signs and Seasons. The Hebrew word for “seasons” is used extensively in the Torah to refer to God’s appointed feast days (Leviticus 23:2, 4). Celestial bodies, then, regulate calendar seasons and days of worship. Passover, the Feast of Tabernacles, and Yom Kippur are set by creation’s chronology. Being raised in this theological mindset, it is not surprising that Solomon would write, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted” (Ecclesiastes 3:1–2, ESV). Part of God’s covenant with Noah was a promise of seasonal change: “As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease” (Genesis 8:22).
Deuteronomy 4:19 warned the Hebrew people not to worship the sun and the stars. Babylonians and Egyptians were advanced astronomers for their day. What set them apart were religions that deified the celestial bodies. The Hebrew Bible reminds us that the sun, moon and stars are not to be worshiped, as they are part of the created order. We do not worship the creation, but the Creator.
1:20) hay nephesh or nephesh hayim is Hebrew for “living being.” It means something basic, but particular. This is not said about plant life, but about creatures and humans. It is that which has breath. It is the same word and meaning in 2:7 (also Paul’s reference in 1 Corinthians 15:45).
1:26-28) Discuss Wesley’s understanding of “in the image of God.”
Wesley helpfully espoused a threefold picture of the Image of God—political, moral, and natural—that incorporates the best of what came before him in the history of interpretation. The natural Image is understood as the divine gift that makes humanity capable of entering into relationship with God. The fall caused this capacity to be corrupted, and as we will soon see affects all the rest of Creation.
The political Image enables humanity to lead, manage, or steward God’s creation. Humans are set as God’s agents among the created order. This is about governance of God’s creation, i.e. stewardship. Language of “rule over” or “have dominion” is sometimes interpreted (no doubt because of human self-centeredness) as “use it however you please.” This should also remind us that even our bodies are given as a stewardship.
The moral Image is humanity made for living in God’s will, in loving relationship with God and others. Having God’s moral image we are called to demonstrate the character and will of God through our own actions.
Jesus Christ manifests all three dimensions of the Image (ref. Colossians 1:15; John 14:9).
2:1-3) “It could not be said more clearly that the covenant purposes of God for his people are rooted in the creative purposes of God for his world. God’s creative purposes and God’s covenanted love belong together. This is part of what the sabbath tells us.”1
God’s sabbath is an invitation for us to share in fellowship with God. (Hebrews 4 talks about entering God’s sabbath.)
As we transition from the first creation account to the second, we will notice a difference in tone between the two. The first account (Genesis 1:1 – 2:3) is intended to give us the panorama of God’s glorious work. By contract, the second account (Genesis 2:4-25) is personal, with an emphasis on relationship.
Eden (2:4-25)
2:4-7) This is kind of a summary restatement of Genesis 1. Verse 4 contains a narrative formula, found also at 5:1 and 10:1. It is like a tool the writer uses to indicate we are moving into another phase of the narrative.
We will see that day in Genesis 2:4 is not used in the same way as through chapter 1 (although it is the SAME Hebrew word). “Day” is a marking of a divine act, and will be used in this way many more times in scripture.
God’s forming of man is like an artist forming something of beauty, like a potter and clay. God took special care in our creation. We ARE the work of his hands (ref. Ephesians 2:10). This reminds us that our bodies are important, and that our bodies do belong to God.
2:9) Two particular trees are mentioned. Neither are defined nor given further comment. We can go ahead and note that trees have a prominent role in scripture, often a positive symbol of God’s blessing. Psalm 1:3 likens the righteous person to “a tree firmly planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season.” The image carries forward to Ezekiel’s vision of restoration (Ezekiel 47), and ultimately to Revelation 22.
2:10-14) Location of Eden described. Two rivers presently locatable, two are not. The river Pishon flows around Havilah (v. 11), which is associated with the land southwest of the Euphrates River, likely in modern Iraq or Saudi Arabia. The river Gihon flows around Cush (v. 13), which is the area southwest of the Red Sea, probably including south Egypt, Eritrea, Sudan, and maybe others. These verses are interesting as they give us a physical location for Eden. It is not specific enough to identify an exact location. Nevertheless, it is the writer’s way of telling us that the human story originates in that general region. This is not surprising, as other geographic markers in the coming chapters will be in the same region.
2:15-17) Even from the beginning, we are under the Lordship of God. It is covenant before covenant becomes a defined term. Freedom is not limitless. Absolute freedom brings about our destruction. God gets to be God; we do not.
2:18-25) Adam given a “suitable” partner, literally one “corresponding to” him.
2:25) This detail is an interesting inclusion, a detail that would not be given if someone were writing in real time. As with many historic events, some details are only seen as pertinent when we look back on them. Adam and Eve would not have had any idea of why they might be embarrassed. In fact, they would not have understood the concept of nakedness. Other clues from the text serve with this verse to remind us that the writer knew what was yet to come. We are not reading an eyewitness report, but an account that had already been passed down for a long, long time.
- David Atkinson, The Message of Genesis 1–11: The Dawn of Creation, ed. J. A. Motyer and Derek Tidball, The Bible Speaks Today (England: Inter-Varsity Press, 1990), 17-18. ↩︎
The Winding Path 