Creation

• Genesis 1:1-2:4a
• • Suggested background
  • • Those who embrace the Documentary Hypothesis assign this account to the Priestly (P) source
    • Speaks especially to the exiles in Babylon and afterwards who had come into contact with other creation stories, particularly the "Enuma Elish"
    • In addition, the exiles may have wondered about the "goodness" of God's creation and His ability to rule over it
  • Theological points
  • • Introductory verses (1:1-2)
    • • Differences
      • • 1:1 implies that God created out of nothing (creatio ex nihilo) - He existed and then brought the heavens and earth into existence
        • 1:2 implies that materials already exist (earth, darkness, spirit/wind, waters)
      • Explanations
      • • "Gap Theory" - the creation in 1:1 fell because of Satan and God then remade creation in 1:2 - the Hebrew Bible provides no support for this theory although it has been quite popular
        • 1:1-2 is a general introduction stating what the heavens and earth were like "when God began creating" - the account emphasizes God's ordering actions rather than creatio ex nihilo
        • 1:1 implies that given nothing, God can create something - 1:2 implies that given a chaotic mess, God can bring order to it and create something meaningful and useful - these are particularly valuable theological concepts
    • Day 1 (1:3-5)
    • • God creates light and introduces it into the dark, chaotic, watery expanse
      • Nature of the light
      • • Comes from a light-producing source that is not named
        • Emanates from God
    • Day 2 (1:6-8)
    • • God creates a dome called the firmament that allows us to speak of waters below and waters above the firmament
      • The dome was later conceived of as being hammered out of thin metal - it was quite fragile given the huge expanse it covered - God kept it from collapsing
    • Day 3 (1:9-13)
    • • Two creative acts
      • • Dry land
        • Vegetation
      • The waters recede below the firmament and the dry land "appears" as if it were there all along - perhaps the "formlessness and void" of 1:2 reflected the chaotic condition of earth covered with and diluted by water
    • Day 4 (1:14-19)
    • • Light-bearing objects are created
      • The sun and moon are referred to as the greater and lesser lights respectively so as to avoid any confusion that God had created a sun god and moon god who should be worshiped - the sun, moon, and stars are simply creations
      • The sun, moon, and stars provide a way to measure time but they provide no clue to the future
    • Day 5 (1:20-23)
    • • Animals that inhabit the sea and sky are created
      • Even the great sea creatures/monsters are God's creation - what may terrify humans is not a demonic being, but rather another one of God's many creations
    • Day 6 (1:24-30)
    • • Two creations
      • • Land animals
        • Humans
      • "Let us create" - to what does "us" refer?
      • • God and His heavenly host
        • God as a being who possesses perfection in all good characteristics and thus is spoken of in plural form
        • God uses the royal or papal "we"
        • Wisdom was present at creation (cf. Prov. 8:22-31)
        • Jesus Christ was present at creation (cf. John 1:1-5)
      • Made in God's image
      • • Possible meanings
        • • Physical? - doubtful
          • Ability to communicate? - so do animals
          • Ability to look at oneself objectively (at least somewhat)?
          • Ability to know and communicate with God?
        • God's image is in all humans - to properly see God one must look for Him in all human creation - no one sees the fullness of God in one human (Christians believe the fullness of God is revealed in Jesus Christ who is both human and divine)
      • Subduing the earth

• • • • • Help God care for creation rather than abuse it for our own purposes
        • Environmentalism begins early and has its genesis in humans seeing creation as God sees it
      • Male and female - sexuality is an integral part of God's plan and creation, yet God is neither male nor female if both male and female are in His image
      • Land animals and humans are vegetarians
      • Creation is "very good" - it is complete and exactly as God planned - all works in harmony
    • Day 7 (1:31-2:4a)
    • • No further creations are needed - God will sustain His creation or it would collapse
      • God rested - He was not tired but provided an example that while work and its fruits are fulfilling, rest is a valuable part of life - we need to refresh ourselves physically, mentally, and spiritually
    • Some general points
    • • God creates by word alone - He effortlessly speaks the world into existence
      • God has no competition or opposition
      • The form of the account is very poetic
      • There is a parallel to the first three and last three days of creation
      • God makes a world because He wants to - He wants to be related to His creation
• Genesis 2:4b-25
• • Suggested background
  • • Those who embrace the Documentary Hypothesis consider this account part of the Yahwist (J) source
    • May be an early account due to the anthropomorphic terms used to describe God
  • Some general points
  • • Watery chaos of Genesis 1 is replaced with a desert wasteland - no rain falls - the earth is watered by mist (2:5-6) and rivers (2:10-14)
    • God creates a man by molding clay and breathing life into him - God is intimately involved in creation (2:7)
    • Garden of Eden (2:8-14)
    • • Created especially for the man to live in and enjoy
      • The garden is primarily a grove of fruit-bearing trees whose fruit the man can use for sustenance
      • Two trees in the garden
      • • Tree of life
        • Tree of knowing good and evil
      • Location
      • • Four rivers are given to help locate the garden
        • Unfortunately not all of these rivers can be identified and thus the location cannot be known
        • The attempt to provide landmarks was probably intended to emphasize the reality of God's initial creation of humans and His provision for them
    • Man's role (2:15-17)
    • • Has work to do - must till the ground - work gives meaning to life although human meaning does not exclusively come from work - meaning comes from God and His gifts
      • A prohibition exists - there is one thing he cannot do; eat from the tree of knowing good and evil - "paradise" is not having total freedom to indulge but is living in God's world on His terms
    • Creation of woman (2:18-25)
    • • God notices that creation is incomplete - the man is alone which is not good, not right
      • The animals do not meet Adam's need for a helper, counterpart, someone like himself
      • God creates woman from man - they are inextricably related
      • No hint of any inequality between man and woman
      • • Man is "made" from dust, woman is "built" from man - she is more closely related to him than to the earth
        • The phrase "a helper fit for him" can also be translated as "a power equal to him" - her subordination is neither stated nor implied - while naming often indicates authority over the one named, God did not name man but had authority over him - God allows the man to name all elements of creation
        • Since woman is the last creation of God, some have argued she is the climactic creation
      • Upon awakening, the man's joy is barely contained - God has provided exactly what he needed - the woman is the perfect partner - she completes the man
      • God's gift of love and commitment bring a man and woman together even if they must be far away from their families - Israel was and we are constantly amazed at the power of love
      • Nakedness is not a cause of shame - obviously the man and woman are aware of their physical differences, but they are emphasizing their great similarities
• Understanding the Biblical Accounts
• • Don't take them as scientific in our modern sense
  • • Many scientific questions we would ask are left unanswered
    • • How long is a "day?"
      • Is there really a hard firmament with water above it?
      • Which sea animals did God make first? What birds did He make first? What land animals came first? Did all spring into existence at the same moment?
    • The account is not an in-depth scientific treatise on creation
  • Understand the accounts theologically
  • • Creation began with and was directed by God
    • God is related to the world - He was in the beginning and still is
    • God who creates from chaos can re-create us when our lives become chaotic
    • Creation and life are gifts from God - we are to treat God's creation (mineral, vegetable, water, animal, human, etc.) as gifts to appreciate and to nurture
    • We are to rest - life does not depend on our feverish activity - life is sustained ultimately by God
    • These accounts set the tone for reading and understanding the rest of the Hebrew Bible and our lives today

Artwork by Michelangelo from the Sistine Chapel