Genesis 1:1–2:3
Yesterday I watched a program on “Discovery” (a popular-science channel) that discussed the greatest discoveries of the twentieth century. I did not catch it from the beginning, but from the point where I started watching I gathered that the greatest discovery of the 1960s was the laser. Its application is remarkably wide in the computer industry and in medicine, especially in eye surgery. The discovery of the 1970s was the personal computer. It changed the way we live and communicate. The discovery of the 1980s was the artificial heart, which makes it possible to prolong human life. The discovery of the 1990s was cloning — copying the genetic information of a given animal. When this happened, Dolly the sheep became known around the whole world. The astonishing fact is that such cloning can be carried out even from the cell of an animal that is already dead. It is not yet known whether a human being has been cloned, but even that is not out of the question. On this note I would like to tell you the following:
The Good Old Dust
One day a group of eminent scientists gathered together and decided that humanity had now set out confidently on its own path and no longer had any need of God. So they chose one of their number to go and tell him that they were finished with him.
The scientist climbed up to God and said: “God, we have decided that we no longer need you. We have reached the point where we can even clone human beings and perform many scientific and technical wonders. So why don’t you just go away and disappear from our lives?”
God listened very patiently and kindly. After the scientist had finished his speech, God said: “Very well, what do you say to this? Let us hold a contest in making human beings.” To which the scientist replied: “All right! Wonderful!”
But God added: “The condition will be that we make people the same way I created Adam in the good old days.” The scientist said: “Fine, no problem!” and he bent down and grabbed a handful of dust. God looked at him and said: “Ah, no, no! Don’t take from my dust — get your own!”
For all his enormous progress, man still works with what God has created. He cannot make even a single handful of dust.
God is eternal, almighty and wise. The world that he created for us is a world of variety, beauty and abundance — an earthly paradise.
How did God create the world? Why did he create man? We find the answers to these questions in the first two chapters of Genesis.
The Book of Genesis
The original of the book of Genesis was written in ancient Hebrew. In that language the title of the book is “Bereshit,” which means “In the beginning.” This title follows the Jewish custom of naming books by their opening words. When, in the third century, the Pentateuch (in Hebrew, “Torah”) was translated from ancient Hebrew into ancient Greek, the title of Genesis was rendered as “genesis.” This word means “origin, source or generation.” The title is a good one, because Genesis is a book about the beginning of many things — nature, humanity, sin, the people of God, and so on. For this reason Genesis is very important for understanding the state of things in today’s world.
How does Genesis fit into the whole picture of the Bible and into the unfolding of God’s revelation? As the first book, Genesis lays the foundation for everything that follows. Although Genesis is narrative in character, it is an inseparable part of the Law of Moses. It serves as an introduction to the moral code we find in the remaining four books of the Pentateuch, and also to the history and doctrines that follow throughout the whole Bible. Some of the first images in this book reappear in the last book of the Bible — Revelation. There we again read of Babylon, “that ancient serpent,” the tree of life — all things that remind us of the garden of Eden and of human history before the flood.
The book of Genesis divides into two parts — chapters 1–11 deal with the world as a whole, while chapters 12–50 deal with the patriarchs, the forefathers of God’s chosen people. From the first two chapters of Genesis we learn about God’s good and perfect creation, and in chapters 3–11 how it is spoiled by the swift and deepening fall of man. Sin escalates (grows more and more), reaching its peak in the story of the tower of Babel. But in chapter 12 things change. God calls one faithful man. In Abraham and his family we begin to see the resolution of the problem of sin for the whole world. Genesis 1–11 is like a prologue to the whole book, an introduction that prepares us to understand why God chooses one man and his descendants to accomplish his purpose.
Who was the audience for whom the book of Genesis was originally written? Israel, on the way to the promised land. What is the purpose of the book? To prepare the Israelites to live according to God’s will in Canaan. What is the spiritual danger that threatens them in Canaan? To mingle with the peoples there and to adopt their religions and practices.
All the other nations are polytheistic, that is, they believe in the existence of many gods. In contrast to them, God’s people were to be monotheistic — to believe in only one God, the Creator of heaven, earth and everything in them. The book of Genesis is written to people who were about to encounter the false beliefs of the Canaanites and to be tempted to put them into practice in their lives.
Unlike the Israelites, we today wrestle with different questions: Is there a God? Does any God exist at all, or is everything the product of chance? Is the theory of evolution true? Did man really descend from the ape? But these were not the questions the Israelites faced after the exodus from Egypt. That is why we must be very careful not to read Genesis as though Moses sat down to write a refutation of Darwin’s theory of evolution. Before we apply any part of God’s Word to our lives, we must understand it in its cultural, historical and literary context.
The First Act of Creation
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)
In a world of polytheism, Genesis lifts up the idea of monotheism. In the pagan myths of creation we have a multitude of gods who are at war with one another. Among them there is no ultimate morality. On the contrary, often they themselves are sexually immoral. In Genesis 1 we do not read of any God but one. This is very different from the accounts of creation held by the other nations.
According to the pagan nations the sun, the moon, the stars and the sea monsters are mighty gods. In Genesis 1 they are simply creatures. In the biblical account the words “sun” and “moon” are not even mentioned. They are avoided, because to the ancient pagan reader they might have suggested that Elohim had created the sun-god and the moon-god. Instead, the sun and the moon are called “the greater light” and “the lesser light.” They are not deities, but merely signs for marking the seasons. As for the stars, it is not even said when they were created. Yet in the ancient world they were gods and goddesses. It was believed that the constellations controlled human destiny. From this comes the practice of astrology. But in Genesis 1 we see that they are simply God’s creatures, and nothing suggests that they have any power over human life.
According to pagan beliefs, matter is eternal and pre-existent. In Genesis 1 we see that it was created by God.
According to pagan beliefs, “the deep” is a mighty god, but here it is simply an inanimate part of creation. It is covered with darkness, and the Spirit of God moves over the water.
2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. (Genesis 1:2)
The Canaanite gods did not care about man at all. On the contrary, they opposed him. These gods and their character became the ground for justifying violence and for building a society in which “the strong survive.” According to Oriental mythology, man was created in order to supply the gods with food. In Genesis 1 it is God who provides food for man, who is the crown of creation.
The Enuma Elish (a title that in the language of the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians means “when on high”) is the fullest Mesopotamian record of creation. It describes a cosmic conflict among the leading gods. The young and daring Marduk kills the monster Tiamat, the mother goddess who personifies the primeval ocean. She is a serpent-like creature. Cutting her corpse in two, Marduk creates the heavens and the earth: her skin becomes the firmament (the vault that separates the water in the seas from the rain water), and from the blood of her helper, he and his father create man to do the hard work of the world so that the gods can live in freedom. In gratitude to Marduk for freeing them from Tiamat, the gods build for Marduk the great capital, Babylon. Here is what the Enuma Elish says (Enuma Elish VI, 1–8, ANET, 68):
“When Marduk heard the words of the gods,
His heart prompted him to fashion skillful works.
Opening his mouth, he addressed Ea
To impart the plan he had conceived in his heart:
‘Blood I will gather and cause bones to be.
I will raise up a savage, ‘man’ shall be his name.
Truly, a savage-man I will create.
He shall be charged with the service of the gods
That they might be at ease.’”
In Genesis we see that God creates man not from the blood of another being, but from the dust of the earth. Moreover, he creates him not to do his dirty work, but to have fellowship with him. It is not man who supplies food for God, but God who supplies food for man. The firmament is not the skin of a slaughtered goddess Tiamat, but simply the atmosphere of air around the earth.
What Is the Greatest Revelation We Receive from Genesis 1?
It is not the details of creation, however interesting they may be. The most important thing is that there is a God and that he created everything.
To the atheist, who denies the existence of any gods at all, Genesis 1 says: You are wrong; it is not true that there is no God and that everything came to be by chance. It is not true that everything is only matter (Psalm 14:1).
To the dualist, who believes in two principles — good and evil — Genesis 1 says: You are not right. There are not two principles. There is one who sets the beginning of everything. He is wise, almighty and sovereign.
To the pantheist, who worships the creatures — the sun and the stars, the mountains and the rivers — Genesis 1 says: You are not right. God is not in the creatures; he exists apart from them and before them.
The Forming and Filling of the Earth
The name for God that the author of Genesis uses in chapter 1 is “Elohim” — a name that emphasizes the majesty of the Creator. In the structure of Genesis 1:1–2:3 we see that God does everything in a very consistent and orderly way.
The account of creation presents to us a detailed portrait of God.
God possesses a creative word. What he commands comes to pass, simply because God has willed it.
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. (Genesis 1:3)
God is a God of plan, order and progression. Step by step, in an orderly and developing way, God completes his work. Each successive step is reasonable and prepares things for what follows. First God creates the universe in its unfinished state. Then the Spirit of God moves over the primitive chaos, giving it form and content.
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. (Genesis 1:1-2)
“Formless and empty,” in Hebrew “tohu wa-bohu,” is the first play on words in the biblical text. Perhaps this phrase can best be rendered as “unformed and unfilled.” It gives the structure to the rest of the process of creation. In the first three days God forms the earth, and in the second three days he fills it. The day is created before the sun, the firmament before the birds, the water before the fish, the land before the animals and man.
Forming the Earth — Days 1, 2, 3
Filling the Earth — Days 4, 5, 6
Day one — the forming of day and night:
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day. (Genesis 1:3-5)
Day four — lights for the day and the night:
14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. 17 God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, 18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day. (Genesis 1:14-19)
Day two — the forming of the firmament and the water:
6 And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” 7 So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. 8 God called the vault “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day. (Genesis 1:6-8)
Day five — creatures that live in the air and the water:
20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” 23 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day. (Genesis 1:20-23)
Day three — the forming of the fruitful earth:
9 And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day. (Genesis 1:9-13)
Day six — creatures that live on the land:
24 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:24-25)
God is a God of wisdom, providence, provision and perfection. He creates everything in such a way that the needs of all his creatures are met. He creates a life-sustaining environment for each one of them. He creates the atmosphere, the water, and balances everything in such a way that a favorable climate is produced over the surface of the earth.
God’s work is truly perfect. After each step of creation God steps back, looks, and sees that it is “good,” perfect for that given stage of development. When he completes everything, God evaluates it and finds it “very good” — perfect in every single detail. This is an encouragement to us, because we too believe that the one “who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).
6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6)
God is a person and he can love. The one who creates everything is a personal God, not merely some great force that produces matter and sets the laws of nature in motion. God speaks, evaluates and rejoices in the world he has created. He plans and creates with special care, and in his own image, the human being — one who can share his interests, who can have fellowship with him and respond to his love.
26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” 27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” 29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day. 1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. 2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. (Genesis 1:26-2:3)