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1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.

The word "host" is often used to mean angels, as in: "the host’s of heaven" (1 Kings 22:19; 2 Chronicles 18:18, Luke 2:13) and is also used in relation to stars (Deuteronomy 4:19, Nehemiah 9:6, Jeremiah 33:22).

You can distinguish between angels and stars by the context of the passage, or by the Hebrew word used in the verse. The Hebrew word for star is ___, and the Hebrew word for angel is mal'ach and ángelos the Greek.

We are not told here what day the angels were created, though we know it was during the previous 6 days (not before, not after).

Colossians 1: King James Version (KJV) 16 "For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him"

Thrones, dominions, principalities and powers are all types of angels.

The angels were formed on or after Day 1, but before day 3 (being present as the "foundations of the earth", were laid - ("The Genesis Record" by Henry Morris pg 57, see also Psalm 104:5).

You can read more about angels by clicking Here or click Here to open a new browser window

Heavens?

There are three "heavens" in scripture. The atmospheric "heaven" where the birds fly:
"I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled."
Jeremiah 4:25 (King James Version)

the stellar heaven, where the stars and other planets are (Isaiah 13:10), and the third Heaven which is where God lives:
"For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us"
Hebrews 9:24(King James Version)

Paul (or someone Paul knew) was caught up to the third Heaven, and was shown Paradise.

"I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven. And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter. Of such an one will I glory: yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities. 2 Corinthians 12:2-5 (King James Version)

God finishes Creating

2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.

Is the Seventh Day an Eternal Day?

God completed the creation on the 6th day and rested on the 7th. This does not say that God is "resting", but that he "rested". Nor are we in the seventh day today. The seventh day was a literal day just as the previous six were.

Adam was created on day 6. If the 7th day was not a 24 hour day then it would conflict with the genealogies of Genesis, when we are told Adams age. Had God meant that the 7th day was continuing, or that we are still in it he would have said so.

After the first six days of creation the bible says "there was evening and morning", but it does not say this for the seventh day. Some have claimed that this means it was not a literal day. But the reason God said this in the previous days is to confirm that these were not long periods of time.

There was nothing created on Day 7 or Day 8, so there is no reason to state evening and morning.

God said the Creation was finished on Day 6. Chapter 2 verse 6 specifically says: "God ended his work which he had made". So those who believe that God used and is using evolution as a form of Creation have no Biblical basis for this belief.

God said "My word is true from the Beginning" - yet many people compromise scripture from the first few pages. They try to add millions of years or evolution to the bible. If the truth does not begin in Genesis, then where does the truth begin?

God established our 6 day work week here. If he had meant each day to be a long period of time (like millions of years), then you might want to cancel your next vacation. You've still got a lot of work to do.

God blesses the 7th day

3 "And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made."

God blessed the 7th day and made it Holy. This is why we observe one day a week to go to church.

Exodus 20:11 also confirms the 6 days of Creation. This verse was not merely inspired by God, He literally wrote it on a tablet of stone himself.

4 "These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created,

The words "These are the generations of" indicate the end of one authors writing, and the beginning of another’s. The previous chapters were written by the only witness to the creation of the heaven and the earth, the Lord God.

Adam's testimony

Chapter 2 verse 4b through Genesis 5:1 was written by Adam (the very first man) and gives his testimony of the events of Creation.

4b "in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,"

The word "Genesis" (comes from the word ____) means generations. The first book of the bible is called Genesis, because it tells of the generations of man starting with Adam and his descendants. This is important because it will later establish Christ’s bloodline through David.

Original root system

5 "And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground."

A mist from the ground

6 "But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground."

Here we see that the plant life of the earth was watered by a mist from the ground rather than by rain from above. These plants would have had a different root system prior to the first rainfall (many years later at the time of the flood). The plants we have today are less complex forms of those in Eden. See notes on Genesis chapter 3 verse 18.

God breathes life into man

7 "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul."

God formed man from the dust of the ground instantly, not through millions of years of evolution.

Is dust symbolic of apes?

A man suggested to me that the dust was merely symbolic of mans ape ancestors. He did not see the inconsistency in his logic. God tells us that we were created from dust, and we will return to dust when we die:
"for dust you are and to dust you will return." Genesis 3:19

For the "dust" to be symbolic of mans primitive ancestors, then it would also mean that we would become apes again when we die. You can see right away how impossible this interpretation is.

God "breathed" a soul and spirit into Adam directly, rather than indirectly as he did with the animals. (H. Morris pg 9, Defenders study Bible).

There were no "soulless men" on the earth at this time (or at any time) during earth's history. Claims of some such as Hugh Ross that Neanderthals were "soulless humans" must be rejected. These people were true humans and descendants of Adam and Eve.

God places Adam in the Garden of Eden

8 "And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed."

In contrast to speaking the previous plants into existence, here we see God planting them in the Garden directly. Adam was created just west of the Garden and then placed in the Garden by God.

9 "And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil."

God caused trees to grow in front of Adam's eyes demonstrating to man his power. Of these trees 2 in particular stand out: the tree of life (See notes on Genesis 3:22), and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

Adam knew "good" directly from God, but would encounter evil through his own actions by eating of the tree.

10 "And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads."

11 "The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold;"

These rivers do not presently exist, as Eden and its rivers were destroyed in the flood. It is likely that Noah's descendants named post flood rivers and cities after those they resembled before the flood ("The Genesis Record" Henry Morris, pg 90).

12 "And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone."

The fact that the gold in this land was described as "good", implies that the gold we have today is not as good. The city in heaven will be made of precious stones and gold.

"And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass." Revelation 21:19-21 (King James Version)

The gold in heaven is described as "pure" and transparent. It only makes sense that the gold in Eden was this pure as well. Our gold is no longer pure it has a yellowish color which is caused by impurities. Microelectronic manufacturing has allowed us to purify gold. The results were that the gold had the appearance of glass. The bible described this truth thousands of years before science could verify it.

13 "And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia."

14 And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates.

15 And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

16 "And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:"

God gave man a free will. the ability to choose to obey or disobey God. God wanted a true love relationship with the man he created. He did not want robotic humans programmed without choice. True love requires a choice to love in return or to reject the love being offered to you.

The best explanation I have read of why there is evil in the world is in Dr. A.E. Wilder-Smith's book: "Is This a God of Love?" (TWFT Publishers 1991) and also "Why Does God Allow It?" by Dr. A.E. Wilder-Smith

Verses like this also emphasis that Adam was the only human. Note the use of the term "the man" instead of "men".

Thou shall die

17 "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die."

In the next chapter (Genesis 3:6) we see that Adam and Eve eat of the forbidden fruit. Many people wonder why Adam didn’t die immediately. Was God lying when he said that they would die? No.

The verse is more correctly translated "Dying you will die…" (read "The first 100 words" by Charles Taylor). This means that Adam's sin would start the death and decaying process in humans. This death also extended to the animals and the earth that God had given him.

See also notes on Genesis 3:19

Adam needs a helper

18 And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.

Adam needed fellowship, not just with God, but with other humans. Unlike the animals, who were created in pairs, Adam was created alone. There were no other humans on the earth at this time. Adam was the first and only man (1 Corinthians 15).

The words "help meet" literally mean "a helper like man" ("The Genesis record" Henry Morris, pg 95).

Apes were not close enough for fellowship

At this point in time, there was still no death on the earth. From this alone we know that all so called hominids (ape-men) were actually just apes that lived with Adam (they could not have gone extinct prior to Adam being created because death had not yet entered the world).

These apes, like all animals were more complex in the beginning than they are today. They may have had more abilities (tool use etc) than they do today. Things changed when the earth was cursed (see Genesis 3:19)

Whether some or all of the animals God created could originally converse with man is still a mystery. See my notes on Genesis 3:1. If some of these apes could speak, they were still unable to fellowship with Adam the way only another human can.

Some apes like Homo erectus could use tools and would have been a great help to Adam, but there was still (and will always be) a huge gulf separating apes and humans.

Apes and men were created separately on Day 6 as genetically unrelated kinds (Gen. 1:25)("Buried Alive - The Startling Truth about Neanderthal man" Dr. Jack Cuozzo pg 101). These creatures were not in anyway related to man (Only Adam was created in the Image of God) but apes were likely created to compliment Adam more closely than the other animals.

Though these, and other animals were companions to Adam, they were not suitable "helpers" for him. It was at this time that God made Eve, the first women. (more on this below in verse 21)

God creates the complex apes

Question:
"Fossils that are of hominid structure have been found, this is evidence of some kind of animal that existed once (why doesn't the Bible mention these creatures?) when they obviously existed? What were these creatures?"
from Clyde, New Zealand, 9/27/01

Answer:
As far as the apes *(Australopithecus, Homo habilis etc) they are in fact animals that lived at one time. If the Bible listed by name every animal that God made, it would be much longer than it is now. Lots of animals are not mentioned specifically by name, like giraffes but for some reason we never think twice about this! Australopithecus, like all other animals were created on Day 6 to live with Adam in the Garden of Eden. Some apes like the Australopithecines were created to be more like man than their present condition (as chimps) now show. Others are now extinct or exist only in a degenerated form.

The apes we have today show signs of degeneration from their original complexity (as seen in the fossil record). The same is true of all animals.

They were not created in Gods image. They were created to live with man (Adam and Eve). The entire world started to degenerate after sin came into the world (when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit). Some of these apes went extinct, others are alive today in a less complex form (chimps are less complex versions of Australopithecus afarensis for example).

The changes in the anatomy of these apes will be discussed in great detail in the chapters that follow.

Some apes (now extinct or degenerated) may have once had more in common with man than they are now. For example both had small canine teeth and some could walk more upright than they are able today.

Creation of birds

19 And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.

This verse says that the birds were created from the ground. (See notes on Genesis 1:20).

Does Genesis 1 contradict Genesis 2?

QUESTION: "Why are there two accounts of creation.... (i.e. Genesis 1:24-29 states that man was created AFTER the rest of the beasts yet Genesis 2:15-21 implies that man was created BEFORE the animals were formed. This is the one discrepancy that I can't make sense off.... Any Ideas??? Thank you very much, and again, your web site is truly a blessing.
Rachael 4/12/01

ANSWER: There was only one Creation. The differences in chapter 1 and 2 are explained below.

God creates man (male and female) on the sixth day, sees that all he has made is good, and then rests on the seventh.

Don Batton explains: "
Between the creation of Adam and the creation of Eve, the KJV/AV Bible says (Genesis 2:19) "out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air". On the surface, this seems to say that the land beasts and birds were created between Adam and Eve. However, Jewish scholars apparently did not recognize any such conflict with the account in chapter 1, where Adam and Eve were both created after the beasts and birds (Genesis 1:23–25). Why is this? Because in Hebrew the precise tense of a verb is determined by the context. It is clear from chapter 1 that the beasts and birds were created before Adam, so Jewish scholars would have understood the verb "formed" in Genesis 2:19 to mean "had formed" or "having formed". If we translate verse 19 as follows (as one widely used translation* does), "Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field …", the apparent disagreement with Genesis 1 disappears completely.

The question also stems from the wrong assumption that the second chapter of Genesis is just a different account of creation to that in chapter 1. It should be evident that chapter 2 is not just "another" account of creation because chapter 2 says nothing about the creation of the heavens and the earth, the atmosphere, the seas, the land, the sun, the stars, the moon, the sea creatures, etc. Chapter 2 mentions only things directly relevant to the creation of Adam and Eve and their life in the garden God prepared specially for them. Chapter 1 may be understood as creation from God’s perspective; it is "the big picture", an overview of the whole. Chapter 2 views the more important aspects from man’s perspective" (source = AIG website)

Adam names the animals

20 And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.

How could Adam name all those animals?

We don’t know how many animals (created "kinds") there were. Many of the animals we have today are varieties of the original animals created by God. Adam would not have had to name 200 breeds of dogs. He could have just given a family or genus name.

As animals reproduce new species may arise, but this is simply a variation of a created "kind" it is not evolution. There are limits to speciation that makes evolution impossible. Dogs may produce big dogs, small dogs, dogs with brown hair, or white (etc) small snouts and big snouts but they always have been and always will be dogs. They will never become fish or birds or humans.

God makes Eve from Adams rib

21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;

Those who try to add evolution to the bible, by saying that man (Adam) was the evolutionary ancestor of non-human primates will have trouble with this one. Perhaps that is why God did it. Woman is clearly a part of the man.

Nowhere in evolutionary history can a female come from a male body. If we evolved from fish, fish were male and female from the beginning. If we evolved from apes, apes were male and female. The Bible is unique in stating that the first woman came from the body of a man.

22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.

God made man from the dust of the earth, but made the first woman from part of the mans body.

Joke: There is an old joke that God told Adam that he would give him a mate that would be perfect for him in everyway. She would think he was handsome, and laugh at all of his jokes. But the cost of such a perfect mate was high. God told Adam it would cost him an arm and a leg. Adam thought about it for a moment and asked God: "What can I get for a rib?" :)

Do men have less ribs than women?

Question: "Do man really have 1 less rib than women?"
Tan K. 5/27/02

Answer:
I have heard many well meaning Christians error in their arguments regarding this. The truth is, men and women both have the same number of ribs.

If God used one of Adam's ribs to form Eve's body then this would be a physical trait unique to Adam alone.

On pg 101 of "Buried Alive" Dr. Cuozzo adds this info:

"This would have resulted in a missing rib for Adam. This would have been an acquired characteristic in Adam which could not have been inherited by succeeding generations. His succeeding generations had the original number of ribs: normally 12 pairs. The one missing piece of side or rib was not passed on any more than teeth straightened by orthodontists are passed on from parents to children."

Verse 21 says that God "closed up" (Hebrew cagar) the flesh. The meaning of cagar is "to close up" and also "repair". So it may be that even if it was a rib taken from Adam, God restored Adam without a single scar.

After Christ was crucified a soldier "pierced" his side, symbolic of the first man, Adam. That the savior's side would be pierced was prophesized in Zech. 12:10 and fulfilled in John 19:34. Christ’s side did not heal however, (still seen on his resurrected body in John 20:27) and a scar will still appear on his hands and side when he returns (Rev. 1:7).

Rib or side?

Though the English translation is often rendered "rib" the Hebrew word (tsal'ah) does not mean rib specifically, but is literally "the side of a person" (Strong's Hebrew Dictionary).

Were Adam and Eve real people?

"Were Adam and Eve real people?"
Kitty (age 16) (08/04/2001):

Answer:

The Bible state matter of factly that Adam was a real man, and Eve was a real women. They were not symbolic of mankind or fictitious people used by God in a parable. Moses, Christ, and other important people of the bible all believed and taught that Adam and Eve were real people.

Lillith who?

Question:
Someone told me that a woman named Lillith was the first woman God made and that Eve was the 2nd or possibly third"
Jen 1/02

Answer:
No where in the Bible is someone named Lillith mentioned as having been the 2nd person created (the first woman). The story of Lillith is simply a story that someone made up and unfortunately been passed on.

1 Timothy 2 says that Eve was created directly after Adam. "For Adam was formed first, then Eve."

Did Adam have a belly button?

When a baby develops inside of its mother, it receives nutrients through the umbilical cord (it connects the abdomen of a fetus to the mother’s placenta in the womb) When the baby is born this cord is cut, and the tissue that is left forms the belly button.

Adam and Eve were not "born" of a woman they were created so they would be the only two people on earth without a belly button. They could show their children their buttonless stomachs, and tell them of the wonderful God who created them.

The first Man could speak

23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.

Those who believe in evolution argue amongst themselves as to how and when language and the ability to speak evolved. They still do not have the answer. God gives us the true origin of speech in the book of Genesis. Adam was able to speak from the very beginning. He did not speak in grunts and groans, he could convey his thoughts and emotions just as well (if not better) than you or I can.

Note: My use of the word "man" is following the bibles example and refers to mankind, or all humans.

Neanderthals were fully capable of speech. See chapter (__).

24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

God made the human body beautiful. Before there was sin in the world, nakedness was not a shameful thing. Had life gone on as it did in Eden, lust would not have been a problem.

Click HERE to read Genesis chapter 3

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