Introduction: The English title “Genesis” comes from the Greek Septuagint (LXX) translating
the word “toledhoth” found in Gen.2:4, “These are the generations.”i.e.
“Origins.” The Hebrew word “bereshith”
is derived from the first word of the book, which means, “In the beginning.”
Genesis is the introduction book of
the first five books of the Old Testament which are called The Pentateuch. The story line of salvation begins in chapter
3 and is not completed until
The
author does not identify himself, but both the O.T. and the N.T. writers
ascribe Genesis to Moses who is a
fitting choice in light of his Egyptian educational background. Too, his communion with God at Horeb and throughout his life would have given him inside
direction for this task. Both Jews,
Christians, later books of the Bible, and traditions accept the authorship of
Moses. If there is a tendency for a
person to have a “liberal” view of Scriptures, it usually happens here on the
authorship and date of Genesis, what with all the debate about the J,E,P,
theory of authors. It is fairly safe to
say that Genesis was written after the Exodus ( 1445
BC) but before Moses’s death ( 1405 BC).
A doctor Jean Astruc,
professor of medicine made a study of the Pentateuch and discovered that two
names were used for God, Elohim, and Yahweh
(Jehovah). He believed two authors had
written separate narratives of the same story which Moses had pieced together
to make the Pentateuch. Karl Ilgen (1798) also discovered material that was
characterized by emphasis on ceremony, ritual, and legalism, which was thought
to be the work of
Priestly writers. So Higher
Criticism of the Bible was born, and offered its famous “J E P” theory for the
Authorship of Genesis.
Genesis
does not present itself as a book of history or science. Its main concern is to present a very select
plan of God in bringing redemption to mankind.
No explanation or argument is given to prove the existence of God, or
His creative method. The word “creation”
(bara)
is always used in reference to God’s work.
It means “creatio ex nihilo.”
e.i., “creating something
from nothing.”
Dr. Henry M. Morris, President of
The Institute for Creation
1. Origin of the Universe
8. Origin of Evil
2. Origin of Order and
Complexity
9. Origin of Language
3. Origin of Solar System 10. Origin of Government
4. Origin of the Atmosphere and
Hydrosphere 11. Origin of Culture
5. Origin of Life 12. Origin of Nations
6. Origin of Mankind 13. Origin of
7. Origin of Marriage 14. Origin of the
Dr. Morris concludes that the book of Genesis is the foundation of all true history, as well as of true science and true philosophy. It is above all else the foundation of God’s revelation, as given in the Bible. No other book is quoted as copiously or referred to so frequently, in other books of the Bible, as is Genesis. There are over one hundred quotations or direct references to Genesis 1-11 in the New Testament. Jesus quoted from or referred to something or someone in one of these chapters, including specific references to each of the first seven chapters;. In not one of these instances where the Old or New Testament refers to Genesis is there the slightest evidence that the writers regarded the events or personages as mere myths or allegories. To the contrary, they regarded Genesis as absolutely historical, true, and authoritative.
Expositors of liberal and neo-orthodox persuasion do not accept Adam as a real person, but a symbolic representation of all men. Since Jesus and the Apostles accepted the Genesis record as literal history, it is arrogant and presumptuous for modern-day “scholars” to undertake to correct Christ and the apostles.
INTE
Probably every one who purchases a Bible reads this very first verse. Maybe the most read verse in the Bible.
Chapter 1: 1 “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” (Believe this verse and you can believe the rest of the Bible)
Most of our stories begin, “Once upon a time…”
However, this story started before there was a “once upon a time.”
In fact it started before there was anything, except God. God was in the beginning, but nothing else.
“In the beginnng,..” is the starting of time. We cannot comprehend “nothing” and “no time.”
The
name for God was Elohim. It has the plural ending “im.” This is the first of over two thousand times it is
used. It is clearly used here with a
singular meaning, as the mighty name of God the Creator. Thus Elohim is a
plural name with a singular meaning, a “uni-plural”
noun, thereby suggesting the uni-pluralty of the
God-head. God is one, yet more than one.
This explains Deut. 6:4 and Jesus quoting of Deut. in Mark
The phrase, “created the heaven and the earth.” Is a prelude statement preceding the actual creating activity on the six days which follow. It needs to be noted that every verse in chapter one except two, begins with the word AND. This kind of structure clearly means that each statement is sequentially and chronologically connected to the verses before and after. Each action follows directly upon the action described in the verse preceding it. This pattern must apply to the first two verses of chapter one, and thus would eliminate the “Chronological Gap, and Geological Age” theories. . Even some Biblical Fundamentalists have adopted this theory to allow the evolutionists and geologists advocates to have all the aeons they want. Unfortunately this attitude has allowed the evolutionary establishment to take over the nation’s school systems, the news media, and many other important learning institutions of our society.
Date: Among the modern scholars it is fashionable to ridicule Archbishop James Ussher (1581 – 1656) for setting the date of creation at 4004 B.C. However he agrees closely with the (B.C.) dates of the Jewish Bible at 3760; and with Josephus at 5555; and Martin Luther at 3961; The history recorded in Genesis fixes the creation at several thousand years rather than several billion
“Bara” is the Hebrew word for create. As previously explained it means to bring
into existence that which has not been.
The word “Bara” is always
used in reference to God’s creative power. God called into existence that which
had no previous existence, as Paul writes in
“…Heavens and Earth.” “Shamayim,” Heb. word for heavens (Pl). It seems that the essential meaning of the word corresponds to our modern term “space.” The space where God placed the Universe, and we surmise that He placed the world or earth (erets, Heb. for ground or land) in this expanse of space. At this time there were no other planets, stars, or other material bodies.
Vs. 2 - “Without form and void.” Or, ”the earth was unformed and was empty.” The original stuff from which the earth was made, such minerials, rocks, water, dirt, etc., was not shaped into its present form, and nothing was growing, i.e. the earth was void (or empty) of living things. The “without form” description may also refer to the lack of shape, such as a sphere, a square or a cube. The material God caused to exist for earth development was not suitable yet for living things.
Some have said that God created a perfect heaven and earth and then satan destroyed His creation in an evil revolt causing the earth to be without form and was left empty of any living thing, and darkness settled over the deep (i.e. the uncontrolled waters above, below and everywhere) was invaded with darkness. However, there is no suggestion in scripture that satan destroyed or ruined anything God created prior to the Garden of Eden fall. Some have said that God’s continuing creations in the following six days were improvements of the original heavens and earth for an ideal living place for mankind. This interpretation is another attempt to provide some aeons for evolutionary improvements.
Vs. 2 - “Darkness was on the face of the deep.”
Darkness was not a problem for God. Isa. 45: 7, says “I form the light and create
darkness,..”
Since we cannot judge God by our limited senses we can be sure that
darkness was not a hinderance to His creative work.
He didn’t need light for what He was doing.
This is a statement indicating that the world had not yet been ENE
“..on the face,” means in the presence of..
“..of the deep,” refers to the waters on the earth and above the earth. .
“..Spirit of God (ruach) was hovering over the face (presence) of the waters.” A particular person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit, is seen in action. The Hebrew word (ruach) means God in this case, rather than wind since creation requires God rather than wind. If the universe is to be energized, there must be an Energizer. If it is to be set in motion, there must be a Prime Mover.
There are two fundamental types of forces that operate on matter—the gravitational forces and the forces of the electromagnetic spectrum. Both are associated with “fields” of activity and with transmission by wave motion. It is most appropriate that the first imparting of energy to the universe is described as the “hovering” movement of the Spirit of God Himself.
Vs. 3. - “…And God said, “Let there be light: and there was light…” So begins the first day of creation with the first words of God to be recorded in the Bible. The length of the creative day in scripture does not lend itself to the evolutionary and geological aeon age system. If a million or billion year age was intended, a much better choice of words could have been used to support that view. One man has said, “Therefore, the only proper way to interpret Genesis 1 is not to “interpret” it at all, but to accept what it said to be exactly how it was.”
God commanded light, and His command was obeyed.
Vs. 4 “…God said it was good.” From my 76 years experience of beholding the light of some 27,740 days, I would have to agree with God that His light is as good today as He said it was in the beginning. If Archbishop Ussher’s 4004 B.C. date is correct for creation, then add our 2001 years and that means the Sun has been shining for 2,191,825 days. And in all those days, there has never been a power outage.
“…and God divided the light from the darkness.” Darkness was not removed completely from the
earth, but it was separated from Light.
This is the expression of the division of Time.
Vs. 5 - “And God called the Light Day, and the
darkness He called Night.” Therefore we have light time and night time.
“And the evening and the morning were the first day.” With God’s identification of day (Hebrew word yom) and night, we have two separate periods of time which we still experience today, therefore it would not seem appropriate to think of the first evening and morning as “a billion years.” God has clearly established a cyclical succession of days and nights—periods of night and periods of light, which He repeats five times (vss. 8, 13, 19, 23, and 31).
Such a cyclical light-dark arrangement clearly means that the earth was now rotating on its axis and that there was a source of light on one side of the earth corresponding to the sun, even though the sun was not yet made (Genesis 1:16).It is equally clear that the length of such days could only have been that of a normal solar day. Too, It should be noted that in the Hebrew Old Testament “yom” without exception never means “period or age.” It appears that the writer of Genesis was trying to guard against any suggestion of nonliteral days in the accounts of creation.
Vs. 6 - Then God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”
The Hebrew word for Firmament is “ragia” meaning expanse, or our word “space.” Simply stated, God is now preparing a place to put everything. The words “firmament” and “heavens” are considered synonymous terms. One would imagine that since the earth was without form and void (empty) and the mineral matter of the earth had no boundries, and no definite shape, that God was preparing a place, called firmament, space or universe where the earth could reside. It is difficult for our minds to concieve of space creation.
Vs. 7 - “And
God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament
from
the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.” It is only human conjecture to explain the dividing of waters which God used in the placement and form He gave to the world. We know that water is essential for life, and we know that the earth has more water surface than land. We can be sure that God divided the waters and made them available for sustaining life on the earth.
Vs. 8 - “And God called the firmament Heaven.” Since God has called the sky above us the firmament (or heavens) we have called the space immediately above us our atmosphere heaven, and next up would be the sidereal (celestial) heaven, and the Third Heaven, which Paul speaks of in 2 Cor. 12: 2, as the abode of God. We mortals have been discovering many of the secrets which God placed in the vast heavens above. We could not have ventured into outer space if we had not learned the perfect precision and accuracy which God built into the universe on the second day of creation.
Vs. 9 - “Then God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear; and it was so.” Once again, the energizing agent was the Word of God, forming the world as we know it today, i.e. if the flood didn’t change the shape of the waters and the continents. John Macarthur says, “This was caused by a tremendous upheaval of the earth’s surface and the rising and sinking of the land, which caused the waters to plung into the low places forming the seas, the continents, islands, the rivers and lakes. Three specific divisions have taken place in these first three creative days, division of Light and Darkness, division of upper waters from the lower waters, and the division of the water and the dry land.
Vs. 10 - And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called He Seas: and God saw that it was good.” Again, God calls His creative work “good.” And I believe that the earth is still a good place, even with all the drilling for oil, mining operations, insecticides, spilling oil in the off shore waters, exhausting gasoline fumes into the air, factory smog, forest fires, and pollution of creeks and rivers. God has given the earth great recuperative power, and in due time the earth revives, restores and repairs all human damages. It is still good, but prophecy does tell us that we will one day see a new Heaven and a new Earth.
Vs. 11 - “And God said, Let the earth
bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit
after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.”
Vs. 12 - “And the earth brought forth
grass and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose
seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.”
Vs. 13, - And the evening and the morning were the third day.” God made the soil for the vegetation, and then made the growing vegetation to produce after its own kind. It is significant that these plants were made, not as seeds, but as full-grown plants whose seed was included in them. Thus they had an appearance of age, as we will see in Adam and Eve.
The phrase “after his kind”. Is repeated ten
times in the first chapter of Genesis and refutes the evolutionary theory that
all living things are interrelated or evolved from a common source. The singular and separated creation of each
living thing is supported by Paul’s passage in I Corinthians 15:38,39. “But God giveth
it a body as it hath pleased Him, and to every seed his own body, All flesh is
not the same flesh: but there is one kind of
flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.”
The terms evening and morning are repeated one hundred times in the O.T. These words always have a literal meaning, i.e. the termination of the daily period of light and the termination of the daily period of darkness. Even though it may challenge our minds to visualize the lands and seas, and all plants, being created in one literal day, that is exactly what the Bible says. We are not justified at all to question God’s power to do this or to question His veracity in telling us what He did.
Gen. 1: 14-19 - “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years.” On the first day, God said, “Let there be light!” (Hebrew word for light “or”). Then on the fourth day, He said, “Let there be lights”(Hebrew word for lights is ma-or ) which means “light givers.” So we conclude that God made light at first without a source, now He makes the source of light which He places in the heavens. This light source was so positioned to divide the light and darkness into equal durations of time.
The phrase in Vs. 14 which says,
“Let them be for signs…” is of
uncertain meaning. We know the stars are
in different location at different seasons of the year. They are also used as navigational aids. And on one very special occasion God prepared
a supernatural star to guide wise men to
The following verses, 15 through 19 explains how the greater light will rule the day (the sun), and the lesser light, (the moon) will rule the night. And verse 16 concludes with, “He made the stars also.” It is interesting that the stars are mentioned as of minor importance in relation to the sun and moon. Even though stars are larger than the earth and some are even larger than the sun, they are of much simpler structure than the earth. The earth is of great complexity, perfectly and uniquely designed for living creatures. So complexity and organization are much more important and meaningful than size.
Vs. 20 – 23 “And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creatures that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. (23) And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. (22) And God blessed them, saying,, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. (23) And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.”
The first living things on the earth were not one cell amoeba or protozoa. The word “life” (Heb. nephesh) occurs for the first time in this verse. The types of animals mentioned in this passage are apparently intended to include every inhabitant of the waters and atmosphere. And each was commanded to reproduce after its own kind. On these creatures, God pronounced a blessing. Evolution starts out with the very small and gradually increases in size. But God begins by creating some of the largest of all sea creatures.
Gen. 1: 24 – 25 – “And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. (25) And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.” There was no evolutionary struggle for existence among these animals, for “God saw that it was good.” Neither could one kind evolve into a different kind, because God made each category “after his kind.” Also, all these land animals were said to have been “brought forth” from the earth, or ground. That is, their bodies were composed of the same elements as the earth; and when they die, they would go back to the earth.
Now since God has made the world habitable, providing water, air, and food, He is ready to put people into life and to have dominion over all other created things. The stage has been set, as Shakespeare said, now we are ready for the actors.
Genesis 1: 26-27 “Vs. “And God said, Let us make man in our image, and after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. (27) So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.” In previous acts God said, “let there be…” but in this verse God speaks as if talking to Himself, and said, “Let us make man in our image and after our likeness.” God was not addressing the angels, for He was not making man in the likeness of angels, but in likeness to Himself. This exchange of speaking within the Godhead is found in other places in scripture (e.g. Psa. 2:7; Isa. 48:16; Psa. 45:7; Psa. 110:1; Matt. 11:27; John 8:42; and John 17:24). This gives further evidence of the uni-plural Godhead
In God’s image and in His likeness are descriptions of man’s creation and origin that mystifies interpreters of the Bible. Man’s creation status was more than that of animals. As the stars were simple in structure compared to the earth, just so the animals were of simple structure compared to man. The spirit placed in man was kin to the spirit in God, e.i. eternal and non-destructible, possessed of esthetic, moral and spiritual attributes.. Therefore, it (the spirit of man) is man’s eternal likeness to God. When the body dies, the spirit continues on, and will ultimately be clothed with a body like Jesus had after the resurrection. When an animal dies his spirit ceases to exist.
While it
is true that God does not have a body, He did design our bodies to function in
ways in which He is able to function. For example: God can see, (Gen 16:3), hear (Psa. 94:9), smell (Gen.
8:21), touch (Gen. 32:32), and speak (II Peter
Vs. 28 –30 - And
God blessed them, and God said unto them, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and
replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea,
and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth” (29) And God said, “Behold, I have
given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and
every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall
be for meat. (30) And to every beast of
the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have
given every green herb for meat:” and it was so.
Only one man and one woman were made, a fact made clear in Genesis 2, when the details of the creation of Adam and Eve is given. Whether He created more than one pair of each animal kind, it is not given, although the inference from such terms as “swarms” and “abundantly” would indicate He made many pairs.
Filling the earth with people was a priority assignment. God was intent that this command be obeyed, for He repeats it in Genesis 9:1. Man was to use his superior knowledge and ability to subdue the world, i.e. bring it under human control. Also, to have dominion over everything living on the earth and the earth itself suggests preserving and taking care of God’s creation.
Having made Adam and Eve, God, now explains how they will be fed. Their “meat” or food would be growing plants from the earth. This supply of vegetation would also feed the animals and creeping things. It is clear from this passage that, in the original creation, it was not intended that either man or animals should eat animal food. As far as carnivorous animals are concerned, their desire for meat must have been a later development, either at the time of the Curse, or after the Flood. The scriptures do predict that, in the world of the future, after Christ has returned and restored the earth to its primeval perfection, there will be once again no predators and no prey (Isa. 11: 6-9).
Vs. 31 – “And God saw every thing that He had made, and behold it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.” Creation was complete and God said it was very good. There was no death on the earth. There were no fossils in the rocks and boulders. Every thing remained perfect as God had made them. Thus God said, “It was very good.” There’s no space for the evolutionary gap theory here.
Genesis 2: 1-4 -
“Thus the heavens and the earth
were finished, and all the host of them.
(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. (3) And God
blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: that in it He had rested from all
His work which God created and made. (4)
These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created.”These
verses form a subscript or a postscript of what has taken place in the first
six days of Earth and Universe creation.
Creation was accomplished, and the author is declaring again exactly
what happened. Hebrews 4:3,4,10; 11: 3; and Eph. 3:9 from the New Testament also
confirm the rest God entered at the close of His creative work. Exodus 31: 17
says, “It is a sign between Me and the children of
Genesis 2: 5-6 - God waters the gardens, not the regular thunderstorm with wind driven rain, “But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.” Before the earth was cursed by the sin of Adam, the ground was watered from beneath the rather than from above.
Vs. 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.”
The creation of human beings is given a second discussion. Could this be the way God shows special interest in us? In a little while His interest will turn from creation to redemption.
The story does not go all the way back to the first days of creation but proceeds from the creation of man. God used the dust of the ground as raw materials. Man was made of chemical elements gathered from the earth’s surface. In earlier days I learned that the value of the chemicals in our earthly bodies was approximately $1.95. Inflation has driven the cost up to $3.50.
Adam’s body was perfect in all respects. No scars and without a navel. He had blood in his veins, perfect organs for perfect body functions, and he was full grown, and was probably about 22 years old. He was not born. He didn’t have a mother or father. But he was a body without life. The miracle of life is only available from God. So He started (or energized) the life of all people when he breathed into Adam the breath of life. This energized life was more than air for his lungs, because Adam became a living soul, a spiritual being capable of conversation and fellowship with God. .
Vss. 8 – 9 A special garden is provided. Special attention is given to the “Tree of Life,” and the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” You will note the scripture says, “The Lord God planted a garden…” All gardens after this have been prepared and planted by people. The trees produced fruit pleasant to look at and good for food. No mention of animal or meat food at this time.
Genesis
Genesis 2:15-17 Adam is placed in the garden to dress
and keep it. WA
Genesis
After God announces the “not good” situation of Adam, there is an interval in verses 19-20 where God directs certain animals to parade before Adam, “to see what he would call them.’ One interpeter said God gave Adam this review of creatures to see if he could find in any of them a compatible help mate. Such an interpretation is a bit ridiculous since verse 18 has already stated God’s intention of making Adam a proper and fitting “help mate.” However, it is reasonable and logical to assume that in reviewing all the animals with their mates, Adam did not find one pair of them created in the image of God. It is abundantly clear and certain that he had not recently evolved from them.
Genesis
The account of the creation and formation of Eve is the despair of theistic evolutionists. Even if one can bring himself to believe that man evolved from an apelike ancestor and that this is what scripture means, when it says “Adam was formed from the dust of the ground,” there seems to be no way at all in which the account of Eve’s unique mode of origin can be interpreted in an evolutionary context.
The New Testament confirms this
Genesis record of Adam and Eve’s creation.
I Timothy
Genesis 2: 23-24 “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. (24) Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh.”
Dr. Clyde T. Francisco, former professor of Old Testament interpretation in Southern Baptist Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky says of this verse, “Upon the sight of Eve, Adam appropriately breaks into poetry:
“THIS
IS IT !
BONE OF MY BONES,
FLESH OF MY FLESH,
WOMAN SHE SHALL BE CALLED
BECAUSE F
Two prepositions identify
woman. She came F
Vs. 25 - “And they were both naked, and the man and his wife, were not ashamed.” As babies are born in the state of innocence, so Adam and Eve, though full grown, their nakedness was not embarrassing or shameful. They had no consciousness of sin or moral guilt.
Gennesis 3: 1 -
“Now the serpent was more subtile than any beast of the field which the Lord God had
made. And he said unto the woman, Yea,
hath God said, Ye
shall not eat of every tree of the garden?”
We will notice right off that God does not
instruct Moses and those who contributed to the Genesis story to give a
biographical sketch on the orgin of satan. Without
discussing them, there are several scriptures describing the person and
attributes of Lucifer ( “day-star”). Isaiah 14:12-15; Ezekiel 28:11-19;
In this verse satan enters the body of a beautiful serpent (snake). More beautiful than the snakes we have seen. His purpose being to strike God at His hightest creation, i.e. those created in His image.
If we study closely temptations to sin, we will usually find that sin begins by questioning either the Word of God or the goodness of God. Satan deceives us by putting negative thoughts in our minds.
Vs. 2-3 –“And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; (3) But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, “Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” Eve repeated God’s command fairly accurate. God had said they could “freely eat…” Eve did not say that. And God did not say anything about not “touching” the forbidden tree. Its dangerous when we set about to change what God has said (ck. Deut. 4:2) Modern cults have a tendency to add to scripture, while modern liberals want to delete.
Vs. 4,5 - “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: (5) for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”
Having questioned God authority for not permitting all the trees to be eaten he now calls God’s penalty a lie. “Ye shall not surely die.” It was true, they would know good and evil, but they would not become gods. He tries to deceive Eve in making the same mistake he made. Too, he probably knew the kind of death they would die. Not a physical death, but a spiritual death. The New Testament affirms the truth of this temptation, e.g. II Cor. 11:3; I Tim. 2:14; and John 8:44.
Genesis 3: 6 - “And when the woman saw that the tree was
good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be
desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her
husband with her; and he did eat.”
As a prototype of all sinners Eve
felt impelled to lead Adam to participate in the same sin. She therefore brought some to him and urged
him to eat. No doubt she used the same
arguments the serpent had used on her, maybe adding a personal word, “I
have eaten this delicious fruit without any harmful effect.” Paul says in I Tim. 2:14 that “Adam was not
deceived.” Which some feel means, he wasn’t deceived by satan. Whether
deceived or not, his sin was deliberate, and he bears full responsibility for
the fall of mankind. As Paul records in
I Cor. 15: “For
since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as
in Adam all die, even
so in Christ shall all be made alive.”
Mark it down, Genesis 3: 6 is what put Jesus on the cross.
Genesis 3:7 - “And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.” From innocence to guilt in a flash. The countenance falls and the desire to hide comes all at once. And human coverings are inadequate. We can never escape God’s eye of judgment by anything that we ourselves can fashion or accomplish.
Genesis 3:8-10 “And they heard the voice of the Lord God
walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid
themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the
garden. (9) And the Lord God called unto
Adam and said unto him, “Where art thou?”
(10) And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid,
because I was naked; and I hid myself.” (11) And He said, Who
told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I
commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? (12) And the man said, The
woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of
the tree, and I did eat. (13) And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The
serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.”
This simple and momentary violation of God’s one and only restrictive law, changes two innocent minds into guilty minds, so much so that nakedness is now a shame, and they are fearful God will discover the same shame they have found in one another.
Both Adam and Eve confessed to eating of the forbidden fruit. But Adam blamed his wife Eve, and Eve blamed the serpent, neither being willing to acknowledge personal and individual guilt. In fact, Adam by implication, blamed God, emphasizing that it was all because of the woman God gave him. In this encounter there is no indication of true repentance, but rather an attempt to justify themselves. Their disobedience brought out their sinful humanity, which has effected every person who has ever been born.
Genesis 3: 14-19 - “And the Lord God said unto serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou are cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life; (15) And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruse thy head, and thou shalt bruise His heel. (16) Unto the woman He said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. (17) 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; (18) Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; (19) 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.”
This passage, Gen. 3:14-19
contains what has commonly been called THE
CU
Genesis
One Commentary said that from Gen 3: 8 and following that the name used for God was Lord God (Jehovah Elohim). It is assumed by some that Adam himself is the one who used this title for God and wrote these detailed accounts of his and Eve’s sin in the garden. If this is true, and it is very possible because Adam was more than an eye witness. This would constitute the most widespread and most long lasting confession of sin in the annals of Christian faith.
Genesis 4: 1 – 2 - “And
Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have
gotten a man from the Lord. (2) And she
again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was
a tiller of the ground.” We have here the
first use of the familiar Biblical euphemism for martial intercourse; “Adam
knew his wife.” A mild statement for one
considered to be too intimate and personal.
The name “Cain” means
“gotten.” Eve is not only thankful for a child, but also that the
Lord had enabled her to begat (give birth) to a man. Cain became the first in a long line of
fallen people, or as I John
Abel was Eve’s second son, born after Cain. The name Abel means “vapor” or “vanity.” Cain was a farmer and Abel was a shepherd. Both honorable occupations. Cain grew what God provided for food, and Abel grew what God had provided for clothing. Not until Gen. 9:3, (after the flood) do we have a directive from God about eating animal meat.
Gen. 4: 3 – 5 “And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. (3) And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: (5) But unto Cain and to his offering He had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.” The Bible does not actually say specifically whether God commanded such sacrifices. Some say the practice arose merely as a spontaneous expression of thanksgiving and worship. Why God favored Abel’s offering over Cain’s is not known. The best idea probably has to do with the spirit and attitude of the heart of the two, and not the kind of sacrifice. The anger of Cain was directed to both God and Abel. Abel became a walking and living symbol of God’s approval, and Cain was the opposite. The power of family love often times is not strong enough to overcome one’s pride.
Genesis 4: 6-8 “And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? And why is thy countenance fallen? (7) If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? And if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door; and unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. (8) And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when there were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.”
In the life of every person there is that spirit which wants to obey God, and there is that spirit which does not want to please God. To what ever spirit one obeys, he is either accepted or rejected of God. To be rejected means that sin is crouching at the door. The desire of sin to to capture, rule and destroy.
The New King James version translates the last phrase of verse seven, “..but you should rule over it.” i.e. you should not let sin rule you, but you should rule over it. Before the murder in the field, God spoke with Cain, warning him of the destructive nature of sin. But Cain let sinful pride rule him, and he killed his brother. The Apostle John comments on Genesis 4:8 in these words,
I John 3:11-12 “For this is the message that you heard from
the
beginning, that we should love one another, (12) not as Cain
who was of
the wicked one and murdered his brother.
And why
did he
murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother’s
righteous.”
The seed of the serpent was quickly striking at the seed of the woman, corrupting her first son and slaying her second, thus trying to prevent the fulfillment of the prophecy in Genesis 3:15.
Genesis 4: 9 – 12 “And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel
thy brother? And he said I know not: Am
I my brother’s keeper? (10) And He said, what hast
thou done? The voice of thy
brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground. (11) And now art thou cursed from the earth,
which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand. (12) When thou tillest
the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive
and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.”
God gave Cain an opportunity to confess his sin, but he lied, and he evidenced no repentance by asking, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” In other words, I don’t care where he is. So God extends no more mercy, and goes straight to
judgment. Cain will live under a curse, and the ground will be stubborn to produce his food, and God will not have any more presence with him. He will have no certain living place. Like Osama bin Laden, Cain will be running and hiding the rest of his life. .
Genesis 4: 13-15
“And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear,
(14) Behold,
thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face
shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it
shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me
shall slay me. (15) And the Lord said
unto him, Therefore
whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him
sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon
Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.”.
God does not pronounce the death penalty on Cain which is given in Genesis 9:6. Cain complained that everyone would want to kill him , so God gave him a mark or a sign showing that he was under Divine protection. While the sign protected him from murder, it also reminded him every day of his crime.
Genesis
Since the Hebrew word for “Nod” means “wandering,” it is possible that this was not an actual geographical region, but merely a figure of speech for Cain’s perpetual manner of life from that time on.
The infancy and purity of the human race, and the many years people lived, would lead us to believe that all marriages in this first generation of people were brother- sister marriages (ck. Gen. 5:: 4) . This is the only explanation of Cain’s wife. In that early time, there were no mutant genes in the genitic systems of any of these children, so that no genetic harm could have resulted from near kin marriages. Many generations later, (Lev. 18: 7-17) during the time of Moses, such mutations had accumulated to the point where such unions were genetically dangerous, so that incest was thenceforth prohibited in the Mosiac Laws.
Genesis
Here we have the descendants of Cain. Lamech was the fifth generation after Cain, and seems to be the most noted. He was the first to break the monogamous directive of Gen. 2:24, just seven generations from Adam. Two wives would mean more children, and large families would be more prosperous, and capable of protection from other clans. Lamech’s wife Adah gave birth to Jabal, a cattleman and the inventor of tents, and to Jubal the first musician. The other wife of Lamech, Zillah, gave birth to Tubalcain who was a teacher and instructor in shaping and forming brass and iron for implements (tools) and ornaments. (In Gen. 4:22 we have the name of the first daughter mentioned in the Bible, her name, Naamah meaning “pleasant”) Lamech was also the second recorded murderer. In fact he killed two men, The words “to my wounding, and to my hurt,” suggests he is claiming self defence.
Lamech represents the seventh generation of mankind from Adam. His life indicates the decline in the proper spirit and conduct for having fellowship with God. He does not stick to the one man for one woman marriage arrangement, and he follows in the steps of Cain in murder. Since there was no central government, and no one making or enforcing laws of conduct, each family unit was a law unto itself. This demonstrates that at the very beginning man could not be left to his own devices. Laws and governments are necessary.
Genesis
What a change we have from Cain’s
descendants. It appears that Eve named
Seth. And in verse 26, Seth names his
son Enos. Seth
means “appointed” or “substituted.” Enos means “mortal frailty.” Seth and Enos usher
in the time when men begin to call upon the name of the Lord, thus
public worship may have started here. We
can see in Luke 3:38
that the genealogy of Jesus goes back to Adam through Enos and Seth. A marked difference
from the descendants of Cain. The
invisible war between God and Satan has been going on since the very
beginning. This is not to say that all
those born in the lineage of Seth were saved, no not at all, for “all
have sinned,” (
Genesis 5: 1,2 – “This is the book of the generations of Adam (Man). In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made He him; (2) Male and female, created He them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam (Man), in the day when they were created.”
It is significant that this first
verse says, “This is the BOOK…” So we conclude,
someone was writing, not just transmitting stories orally. Adam, a participant, still living (930 years)
could have been the author. It is interesting to note that Matthew 1:1 says, “The BOOK of the generation of Jesus
Christ,..” Thus the first book tells of the origins of the
first Adam; and the second book
speaks of the origins of the last Adam. It would be fitting to mention here
that the Hebrew word for Adam is the same as that for
Genesis 5: 3-5 - “And Adam lived a hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth: (4) And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters: (3) And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.”
Seth was born when Adam was 130 years old. Many sons and daughters came after Seth.
Genesis 5:6 – 20 – “And Seth lived a hundred and five years,
and begat Enos:
(7) And Seth lived after he begat Enos eight
hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters: (8) And
all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died. (9) And Enos lived
ninety years, and begat Cainan: (10) And Enos lived after he begat Cainan
eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters: (11) And all the days of Enos were nine
hundred and five years: and he died.
(12) And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat
Mahalaleel:
(13) And Cainan lived after he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons
and daughters: (14) And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died. (15)
And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat
Jared: (16) And Mahalaleel lived after he begat Jared
eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters: (17) And all the days
of Mahalaeel
were eight hundred ninety and five years: and he died. (18) And Jared lived a hundred sixty and two
years, and he begat Enoch: (19) And Jared lived
after he begat Enoch eight hundred
years, and begat sons and daughters:
(20) And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years:
and he died.”
Here we begin the roll call of the antediluvian patriarchs. The 12 verses above plus the 12 next verses include all those in the line of promise with their names, year of birth, their age when the next patriarch was born, and their death. In all, there were ten of these early fathers from Adam to Noah. They are summerized in the following table
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PAT AGE AT DEATH |