Genesis
1 is given in parallel symmetry with the first three days of creation serving
as a parallel to the latter three days.
In Genesis 2 we find a different sort of symmetrical arrangement. It is known as a chiasm and the various
points of the parallel often find their pivot at the center of the passage.
Notice what is at the center of this
chiasm. It is the prohibition against
eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. This prohibition is centrally placed because
of the key role it will play in the next chapter.
As
we approach Genesis 2, it seems at first as though we are dealing with a
totally separate account of creation. In
an initial reading of this chapter, we note that it contains several references
to God’s creation that are already described in chapter 1. Because of this, some have wondered whether
the two passages were not written by two different authors.
However
closer observation will show that these two chapters form a unit. Neither account is able to stand complete in itself.
The
relationship between Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 is easily understood when we
consider the literary structure of the entire book of Genesis.
First the less important things are dealt with in a
rapid survey.
Then the things that are deemed more important to the
theme of the book are studied and developed more fully.
For
example, in the account of Jacob and Esau, it is Esau’s story that comes first. But it is Jacob’s story that is more fully
developed and which holds the place of higher importance to the overall theme
of the book.
The
same is true of these first two chapters of Genesis. This will be seen as we take the two chapters
and contrast them.
|
Genesis 1 |
Genesis 2 |
|
Gives a brief outline of
God’s creation |
Tells us in detail of the
creation of man |
|
Sets out the order of
creation |
Sets out the purpose of
creation |
|
Shows man in his cosmic
setting |
Shows man as the central
theme of the book |
|
Gives us a panoramic view
of creation as a whole |
Gives us a detailed view of
one particular aspect of creation |
|
Centers on God creating the
heavens and the earth |
Centers on man, the
crowning of God’s creation |
From
this we can see that the two chapters are complimentary. Each contains unique material that is
necessary in understanding who God is and what He has done for us.
THE
INSTITUTION OF THE SABBATH
Thus
the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. 2 And by the seventh day God completed His work which
He had done; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had
done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it,
because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.
(Genesis 2:1-3).
This
is really a continuation of the message of the previous chapter. In that chapter, the word of creation was
seen to encompass six days. Now on the seventh day, that work is brought to a close.
1. A Completed Work: Thus
the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. 2 And by the seventh day God completed His work which
He had done (2:1-2).
Throughout the first chapter of Genesis, we see the
earth being formed and filled. The first
three days of creation involved forming the earth and preparing it for
life. The second three days of creation
involved filling the earth with that for which it had been formed.
2. A Divine Rest: He
rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done (2:2).
The reference to God resting does not imply that He
was somehow tired or overworked or in need of
rest. He rested because the work was
completed and nothing more of a creative nature remained to be done.
3. A Divine Blessing: God
blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His
work which God had created and made (2:3).
The seventh day was both blessed and sanctified. This was done long before the giving of the
Mosaic Law. Some have tried to make a
point that the Sabbath is not mentioned again until Exodus and this is a valid
observation, but it should also be pointed out that, when the Sabbath IS
mentioned again, it is in Exodus 16:23-29 at a time prior to the giving of the
Mosaic Law.
This tells us something foundational about the
Sabbath. It both precedes and it also
supersedes the Mosaic Law.
The
Sabbath was given as a memorial to the work of God in creation. This principle is set forth here in verse 3
and it is repeated again in Exodus 20:11.
The
Sabbath also served as a memorial of God’s redemption. This is mentioned in Deuteronomy 5:15 where
the Lord says, “You shall remember that you were a slave in the
Because the Sabbath was also a memorial of redemption,
the historic Christian church has understood that the observance of the Sabbath
under the New Covenant is such that it commemorates the new redemption brought
about by Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. It is for this reason that the Christian
Church has regularly worshiped on Sunday rather than on Saturday.
The
Sabbath was designed to be a shadow of things to come and not as an end unto
itself.
Therefore
let no one act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a
festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day-- 17 things which are a mere shadow of what is to
come; but the substance belongs to Christ. (Colossians 2:16-17).
Today we have a place of rest that is a permanent
rest. It is a Sabbath that involves
trusting and resting upon the finished work of Christ on the cross.
4. Summary.
·
Principle of
Completion.
God rested on the Sabbath because He had completed His
work. We have a place of rest today in
Christ that goes far beyond a mere once-a-week memorial. We rest upon the completed work of Christ on
the cross.
·
Principle of
Ceasing.
God stopped His work of creation, not because He was
tired, but because the work was completed and there was nothing left to do.
Jesus made the atoning payment for our sins once and
for all and then He sat down at the right hand of God because His saving work
was finished.
·
Principle of
Blessing and Sanctification.
God set apart the Sabbath as a memorial of His works
of creation and redemption. Today we
continue to observe the memorial to both His creation and His new creation.
THE
CREATION OF MAN
This
is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day
that the LORD God made earth and heaven.
Now
no shrub of the field was yet in the earth, and no plant of the field had yet
sprouted, for the LORD God had not sent rain upon the earth; and there was no
man to cultivate the ground. 6 But a mist used to rise from the earth and water the
whole surface of the ground.
Then
the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils
the breath of life; and man became a living being. (Genesis 2:4-7).
Verse
4 begins with the phrase, “This is the account of the heavens and the
earth.”
The
word account is a translation of the Hebrew word toledoth. This same word is used throughout Genesis as
something of a chapter heading.
|
“THESE ARE THE GENERATIONS OF...” |
||
|
Formula |
Contents |
Location |
|
In
the beginning God... |
Creation |
1:1 - 2:3 |
|
1. This is
the account of the heaven and the earth |
Creation |
2:4 - 4:26 |
|
2. This is
the written account of Adam's Line |
Genealogy: Seth to Noah |
5:1 - 6:8 |
|
3. This is
the account of Noah |
Flood & Covenant |
6:9 - 9:29 |
|
4. This is
the account of Shem, Ham & Japheth |
Table of Nations &
Babel |
10:1 - 11:9 |
|
5. This is
the account of Shem |
Genealogy: Shem to Abraham |
11:10-26 |
|
6. This is
the account of Terah |
Story of Abraham |
11:27 - 25:11 |
|
7. This is
the account of Abraham's son Ishmael |
Genealogy of Ishmael |
25:12-18 |
|
8. This is
the account of Abraham's son Isaac |
Transition of blessing from
Isaac to Jacob |
25:19 - 35:29 |
|
9. This is
the account of Esau |
Genealogy of Esau |
36:1-43 |
|
10. This is
the account of Jacob |
Joseph & Israel in |
37:1 - 50:26 |
In
each case, the phrase introduces a subsequent narrative that was derived from
that which is initially mentioned. Thus
the narrative that follows from this passage will tell us what took place as a
result of the creation of the heavens and the earth.
The
word toledoth is derived from the Hebrew root yalad, meaning “to bear.” In this form, it always appears in the plural
construct. We could translate this
phrase to say, “These are the things begotten of the heavens and the earth...”
1. The Name of God.
This is the first use of Yahweh Elohim in the Bible. Throughout Genesis 1, God is described
consistently simply as Elohim
- only now do we have the inclusion of the name Yahweh as a
reference to Yahweh.
Elohim is the title for God.
Yahweh is the personal name of God.
For example, Mr. President is a title while George Bush is a name. What we have here is a combination of God’s
title and His personal name (President Bush).
Elohim tends to focus upon God in relation to
His creation. Yahweh shows God in
relation to man.
2. The Absence of Rain.
Now
no shrub of the field was yet in the earth, and no plant of the field had yet
sprouted, for the LORD God had not sent rain upon the earth; and there was no
man to cultivate the ground. 6 But a mist used to rise from the earth and water the
whole surface of the ground. (Genesis 2:5-6).
We are now told that there were no shrubs or plants
and that there was a specific reason for this absence. Actually there were two reasons:
There
was no rain upon the earth
There
was no man to cultivate the ground.
The first of these situations is dealt with in verse 6
in that a mist was given to water the surface of the ground. The second of these situations is dealt with
in verse 7 when man is created from the dust of the ground.
|
The Hebrew actually speaks of God breathing into
his nostrils the “breath of lives.”
But we should not read too much into this plural usage. It is a Hebrew colloquialism to speak of
life in the plural. |
What are we to make of this absence of rain? Some have taken it to mean that climactic
conditions throughout all of the earth up until the flood were such that it did
not rain. According to this view, the
rain bringing the flood of Noah was the first rain to ever fall upon the earth
and the designation of the rainbow was the first time this phenomenon had been
manifested.
On the other hand, it is possible to understand the
description of verse 5 to be localized to the area in which the Garden of Eden
was located. It is noteworthy that the
3. Body and Soul: Then
the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils
the breath of life; and man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7).
Man
was formed of dust from the ground. This
is a play on words. Ha-Adam was
formed of dust from Ha-Adamah. Man’s very name is taken from the source from
which his body is created. Yet the
creation of man’s physical frame was not the sum of his existence. He is more than a biological entity. The Lord then breathed into his nostrils
the breath of life; and man became a living being.
THE
TREES OF THE GARDEN
8 And the
LORD God planted a garden toward the east, in
9 And out
of the ground the LORD God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the
sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and
the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. (Genesis 2:8-9).
|
The
word edenu in Akkadian
means "garden" or "paradise." |
The
garden was planted toward the east.
The word east also carries the idea of “front.” When you were on the east side of the
tabernacle, you were at its front. The
natural question that we have to ask is this: From what location was the Garden
considered to the east? East of
where? Because the bulk of Genesis takes
place within the
Various
locations have been theorized as to the location of the Garden of Eden. It has been located alternately at...
•
• The
lower
• The
Man’s
original home is described as a garden.
When you think of a garden in the ancient world, you would think of an enclosed
area that was protected from the wild.
Kings would often have a garden where their royal forefathers would have
a place of burial. One of the wonders of
the ancient world would be the hanging gardens of
The
garden of Eden was characterized by the trees that
grew in its midst. They were trees that
were both pleasing to the eye as well as to the palate -- they were good to
look at and their fruit was good to eat.
Two trees in particular are named:
1. The Tree of Life: This tree represented the promise of
continuing life and fellowship that was to be had with God in the garden. The menorah that would later stand in the
Tabernacle and in the
2. The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil:
This tree called for a decision. The decision will be central to this
chapter. When we noted that this chapter
is given in the form of a chiasm, it was also noted that the stipulation
regarding this tree is at the very center and pivotal point of that chiasm.
We
normally think of the first promises of the land being given to Abraham. But the idea of a land that was given is
found first here in Genesis 2 where the first man was given the first land. It was a paradise.
This
means that the promise of a land that was given to Abraham is a promise of a
redeemed land. It is a promise of a
return to a new paradise.
THE
RIVERS OF THE GARDEN
10 Now a
river flowed out of
11 The
name of the first is Pishon; it flows around the
whole
13 And the
name of the second river is Gihon; it flows around
the whole
14 And the
name of the third river is Tigris; it flows east of
This
passage has been a source of great confusion because it seems to join
geographical areas which are far removed from one another.
Verse
10 says literally, "from there it divided and
became four heads."
1. Pishon - “Full flowing.”
2. Gihon - The root word means “to
bring forth, gush.” There is a stream
known as the Gihon on the east side of
3.
The Hebrew names seems to
have been taken from the Akkadian Idiklat. The Greek Septuagint renders this at TigriV, from which we get our English translation, “
4.
The
last two rivers are known to us. The
first two are not. However, they come
with geographical identifiers. This
perhaps indicates that they were not well known to the readers of this account.
The
Pishon "flows around the whole
The
Gihon is said to flow around the whole
This
seems to points a location for the Garden of Eden at the northwest end of the
The
real point of this description is not to give us a geographic location of the
Garden of Eden, but to present us with a symbol that depicts life-giving water
flowing out of the garden to divide into four rivers that subsequently go out
to water the whole earth. This is a
picture of God’s gracious provision for mankind. This image of a life-giving river flowing out
from the presence of God is a theme that is echoed in the Psalms.
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of
The holy dwelling places of the
Most High. (Psalm 46:4).
The
book of Revelation uses this same image to picture a river of the water of
life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb
(Revelation 22:1). Both the tree of life as well as the water of life find their origins
and their culminations in Genesis and Revelation.
Here
is the point. The purpose of the river
was to water the garden, but it accomplished much more than that. It went out of the garden and it divided into
four rivers and it watered all of the surrounding lands. In the same way, God would be a blessing to
the single family of Abraham, but those blessings would overflow to go out and
bless the whole world.
What
is true of the river is also true of the Lord’s salvation today. We have been sent out as rivers of living
water to bring the Spirit of God to all mankind. Our mission is to be a blessing to the world.
MAN’S
WORK IN THE GARDEN
Then
the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden
of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. (Genesis 2:15).
It
is noteworthy to consider that man’s perfect environment involved WORK. It was not a wearying or toilsome labor, but
man had a purpose and an assignment in the garden. He was directed to cultivate it and keep
it.
There
is a foundational truth to be found here.
It is that man was made to work.
It is a part of his makeup. It is
often in his work that he finds his significance. Ephesians 2:10 says that we are His
workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared
beforehand, that we should walk in them.
There is something imminently fulfilling in learning for what purpose
you were made and then fulfilling it.
THE
PROHIBITION
And
the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may
eat freely; 17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil
you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die.”
(Genesis 2:16-17).
We
noted at the outset of this chapter that it is arranged in a chiastic order
with the prohibition of verses 16-17 placed at the center. This is one of the central ideas of this
chapter.
1. The Grace of the Garden:
“From any tree of the garden you may eat freely (2:16).
Man was placed in a garden paradise and provided with
food and water and companionship. He
could eat from any of the trees of the garden and he could eat freely from all
of them. This is the language of grace.
2. The Nature of the Prohibition: From the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat (2:17).
There was one tree whose fruit was forbidden to
man. It was called the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil. We are not
told that there was something inherently harmful or dangerous about the nature
of the fruit of this tree. It was not a
poisonous tree. It was merely
forbidden. Why? Because this prohibition was designed to give
man a choice. He could choose to obey or
disobey this command. This tree gave man
the possibility of choosing good or evil.
3. The Consequences of Transgression: In
the day that you eat from it you shall surely die (2:17).
Some Bible students have found this verse to be
troublesome. They look ahead to chapter
3 and they realize that Adam ate of the forbidden fruit and they did not die on
that same day. To the contrary, they
lived for many years that followed. How
then could this passage tell us that they would die in the day they ate from
it?
One suggested resolution to this problem has been to
say that Adam and the woman died spiritually on the same day they ate from this
tree. While I agree to the reality of
such a spiritual death caused by the eating of this fruit, I am not so sure
that is what this passage describes.
There is no mention in the context of Genesis of a spiritual death
taking place.
Instead, I want to suggest that this is a Hebrew idiom
guaranteeing, not the immediacy of death, but rather the CERTAINTY of
death. This same sort of language is
used in 1 Kings 2:37 when Solomon says to Shimei, “On
the day you go out and cross over the brook Kidron,
you will know for certain that you shall surely die; your blood shall be on
your own head.” When Shimei is put to death, it is not on the day he crossed the
Kidron, for it would have taken longer than a single
day for him to make the trip to
While it might be argued that Solomon’s promise was
only that Shimei would KNOW of his death on the day
of his disobedience, when we come to 1 Kings 2:42 where Solomon recounts the
original prohibition, he makes no mention of this knowledge being the
significant factor and merely echos, "Did I
not make you swear by the LORD and solemnly warn you, saying, 'You will know
for certain that on the day you depart and go anywhere, you shall surely die '?
And you said to me, 'The word which I have heard is good.'”
What we see in these words is the inevitability of
this promise. Solomon makes the point to
Shimei and the Lord makes the point to Adam that
death will be the inevitable result of disobedience.
THE
CREATION OF THE WOMAN
Genesis
1:26-27 pictures the creation of both man and woman in the image of God. It is when we come here to the second chapter
of Genesis that we see a more specific description of the creation of the
woman.
1. The Need for a Woman:
Then the LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I
will make him a helper suitable for him.” (Genesis 2:18).
Throughout the first chapter of Genesis, we see the
continuing refrain that each aspect of creation was good. The Lord would make something and then we
would read, “And God saw that it was good.”
Now for the first time we see that there is something that was not
good. It is not that God had created
something that was evil, but rather that this portion of creation was thus far
incomplete. Man was alone and he would
not be completed until he had a helper suitable for him.
The woman is designed to be a “helper suitable” ('Izer KeNegdu). Of special interest to us is this term
“helper.” 'Izer
is the noun form of the Hebrew verb 'Azar,
"to help." The noun is used
most often in the Old Testament, not to describe the role of the woman, but
rather to describe God Himself in His helping us. Consider some of the following:
"...the
God of my father was my help..." (Exodus 18:4).
"...Hear, O Lord, the voice of
"There is none like the God of Jeshurun [
"Blessed are you, O
'Izer is used a number of times in the Psalms as well as 4
times in the prophets, usually referring as these verses have done to God being
the helper for His people.
Does this help us understand our passage in Genesis
2? I think that it does. It helps us to understand that woman was not
created to be a mere underling (we would never think of defining God that way),
but rather as one who standing beside and works together with him. It was not until later, as a result of the fall, that sin brought about a change which has been
reflected all throughout history.
The
second word, KeNegdu, is made up of the
preposition plus Negedh and carries the idea
of something that is set over against something else. It usually describes either an adversarial
role (as in Genesis 31:32) or a location of being in front of an object
(Numbers 25:4, I Kings 8:22, I Chronicles 8:32, Nehemiah 13:21). The context seems to indicate that it is the
latter role which is used here.
The Ke preposition carries the idea of "with" or
"according to" or even "like." Thus, we have in the Divine plan for woman
that she is to be a helper who is standing with the man. Where there was one, now there shall be two.
It should be remembered that there was not a separate
word in the Hebrew (or in the Koine Greek) for husband and wife. Normally when you see the word
"husband" in the Hebrew, it is either ISH ("man") or BA'AL
("lord" is the same term used of the false god of the
Canaanites). By the same token, when you
see the word "wife" in the Old Testament, it is nearly always the
Hebrew word ISHA (female of ISH) and can be translated simply as
"woman." The context makes it
clear that ALL women are not designed to be helpers standing
with ALL men, but rather that this is descriptive of a special husband
and wife relationship.
2. The Need Made Known to the Man: And out of the ground the LORD God formed
every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man
to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature,
that was its name. 20 And the man gave names to all the cattle, and to the
birds of the sky, and to every beast of the field, but for Adam there was not
found a helper suitable for him. (Genesis 2:19-20).
Verses 19-20 seem at first to be unrelated to what we
read in the verses immediately prior and those which immediately follow. Verse 18 speaks of the need of a companion
for the man while verses 21-22 proceed to the creation of the woman.
|
Verse 18 |
Verses 19-20 |
Verses 21-22 |
|
It is not good
that man should be alone |
Creation and
naming of the animals |
Creation of the
woman |
|
The need for a
companion for the man |
The inadequacy
of the animals for this companionship |
The providing
of the woman as a companion for the man |
It will be noticed that the creation of the birds and
land animals is mentioned here out of the chronological sequence that is found
in the previous chapter. Genesis 1
points out that the birds were created on the fifth day. But when we come to Genesis 2, the birds are
mentioned along with the land animals.
|
Genesis 1 |
Genesis 2 |
|
Order of events • Creation of birds on day five • Creation of land animals on day six • Creation of man and woman on day six |
Order of events • Creation of man • Creation of birds and land animals • Creation of woman from the rib of man |
This is not a contradiction. It merely underscores the point that Genesis
2 provides events in a topical order rather than in a strict chronological
order. We can easily understand the
reference to the creation of the birds and the land animals as a summary of
what God had previously done.
3. The Fashioning of the Woman:
So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he
slept; then He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh at that place. 22 And the
LORD God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and
brought her to the man. (Genesis 2:21-22).
Is there a significance in
the woman being fashioned from the rib of man?
It has been pointed out that this indicates a portion of his body that
would be close to his heart.
4. The Naming of the Woman:
And the man said, "This is now bone of my bones, And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because
she was taken out of
The Hebrew word for “woman” is ishai and corresponds
to the term for ishi,
the term for “man.” The means we could
better capture the essence of this passage by reading it to say, She shall
be called FEMALE, Because she was taken out of MALE. It can be pointed out that neither of these
two terms is used earlier in the Genesis account. Throughout the first chapter, the focus was
upon mankind, though that included both male and female (1:27).
5. The Ordinance of Marriage:
For this cause a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall
cleave to his wife; and they shall become one flesh (Genesis 2:24).
This is added by way of an editorial explanation. The author takes the fact of the woman’s
creation from the rib of man and concludes that it points to a one-flesh
relationship. Because the woman was
taken from the rib of the man, this pictures the sort of relationship into
which a husband and wife are to enter.
The husband leaves his father and mother and connects himself to his
wife and they become a new family.
This contradicted the culture of the ancient
world. The ancient world was patriarchal
in nature. The culture of the day called
for a WOMAN to leave her father and her mother and to cleave to her
husband. But this passage says something
different. It is the MAN who is to leave
father and mother to cleave to his wife.
This is mirrored in what Christ did for us. He is the husband who left His rightful place
in heaven to come to the earth and to be identified with His people. He cleaved to His bride in the ultimate sense
when He gave Himself up on the cross for her.
6. The Condition of the Man and his Wife: And the man and his wife were both naked
and were not ashamed (Genesis 2:25).
This account closes with a picture of innocence and unashamedness. There
was no shame because there was no sin.
This condition suggests to us what we could call “a
theology of clothes.” The very fact that
mankind seeks to clothe himself apart from the need of natural protection
suggests that his relationship with his fellow man has undergone a change from
the original creation. The fall affected, not only our relationship with God, but also our
relationship with one another.
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