Genesis 1:1-2:3; "God Made the World for You."

Let's start by reading Genesis 1:1-3. We need to hear all three verses together, for them to make sense: (1) In the beginning that1 God created the heavens and the earth, while the earth was a wasteland2 and empty/unproductive,3 (2) while darkness [was] over the surface of the deep, while the Spirit/wind of God [was] hovering over the surface of the waters,4 (3) God said, "Let there be light," and there was light, Most of your English Bibles read something like this: "In the beginning, comma, God created the heavens and the earth." Those same Bibles usually have a footnote saying, "Or: When God began creating the heavens and the earth, the earth was a wasteland and empty/unproductive." I'm not really sure how to try to explain this. Genesis 1:1 isn't describing the very first thing that God ever did. It's not talking about the first moment in eternity. It's not talking about what God did, before anything else existed. What Genesis 1:1-2 is describing, is what the heavens and earth looked like, when God began creating them. At the time he started creating them. We find the same phrase in Jeremiah 28:1: "And it happened in that year, at the beginning OF the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth year in the fifth month, Hanniah said to me... Hanniah isn't talking to Jeremiah "in the beginning." He's talking at the beginning OF Zedekiah's reign. [It's best described as either a construct relationship (Christo van der Merwe), or an unmarked relative clause (Robert Holmstedt). And this is controversial, but the very best Hebrew scholars don't think it's very hard.] It works the same way in Genesis 1. At the beginning OF God creating the heavens and the earth... The earth, at this moment, at Genesis 1:1, already existed. Every translation, if you look at verse 2 long enough, shows this. The earth was a wasteland. It was empty/unproductive. But it existed. The priemeval sea-- the deep--already existed. The Spirit of God was hovering over waters. We want to know what happened before this. We want to know what happened in "the" beginning. But in the Hebrew, there is no "the" here. Genesis 1 is describing what the world looked like, at the time He created it into being what it is today. The earth was a wasteland and unproductive, and waters were covered by darkness. It's a dark, chaotic, soupy mess. And if you want to know where that soupy mess came from, or when it happened... Genesis doesn't tell you. You have to turn to Proverbs 8 for that, or Hebrews 11:3. So, by the end of verse 2, we have our background. We know what the world looked like, at the time God began creating the heavens and the earth. And then, in verse 3, Genesis begins to tell us what God did. It's starting in verse 3 that we find a description of God's creative acts. As I read, try to focus on how God is creating an ordered world. The world goes from being a chaotic, unproductive wasteland, to being a world where everything has its time and place and function. And these times, and places, and functions, all have to do with us-- with humans. Verses 3-5, Day 1: (3) God said, "Let there be light," and there was light, (4) And God saw the light, that good [it was], and God separated between the light and the darkness, (5) and God called the light "day,"5 while the darkness6 he called "night," and it was evening, and it was morning, day one,7 What does God create on day 1? We are tempted to say, "light." And that's part of it. But what God is actually creating here, is time. From now on, there will be daytime, and nighttime. There will be a regular, ordered, flow of time. And this, is "good." What does this mean? The easiest way to explain what it means that things are "good" in Genesis 1, is to see what's not "good" (H/T John Walton). Let's turn to Genesis 2:18: (18) And Yahweh God said, "Not good for the human to be alone. I shall make a helper as his/its opposite/counterpart.8" There is nothing wrong with this human morally. He's not "bad," like he's evil. The idea here is functional. The human, by itself, doesn't "work." It's not functional. And what it needs, is a counterpart. Once God makes two humans, a male and a female, then they, together, are good. They "work." They are able to do, what God wants them to do, which is make babies, and fill the earth, and have dominion over it. So when we return back to Genesis 1, what does it mean when God says something is "good"? We should understand that that particular thing is functional. It works, as it was designed to work. From an engineering perspective, it can be considered a success. So functionally, it's a good thing that we have "daytime" and "nighttime." Verses 6-8, Day 2: (6) and God said, "Let there be an expanse9 in the midst of the waters," (7) and God made the expanse, and he separated between the waters that [were] from under the expanse and the waters from over the expanse, and it was so, (8) and God called the expanse "heaven," and it was evening, and it was morning, second day, What does God create on day 2? Something called an "expanse." If you go outside, and you look up, what color is the sky, usually? [Blue] And what does the sky look like, because it's blue? [Water] And when you go to the beach, what color is the water? On day 2, what God created was a gap between these waters. It's like He grabbed the waters, and pulled them away from each other, creating a gap between them. And this gap is what we live in. We live in the space between the waters above, and the waters below. Verse 9-11, day 3: (9) And God said, "Let the waters from under the heaven be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear,"10 and it was so, (10) and God called the dry ground "land," while the collection of the waters he called "seas," and God saw that good [it was], (11) and God said, "Let the earth produce new green growth, 11 vegetation, seed bearing, seed, trees of fruit making fruit according to its kind which its seed is in it on the earth," and it was so, (12) and the earth brought forth12 new green growth, vegetation giving seed according to its kind, and trees making fruit which is in its seed according to its kind, and God saw that good [it was], (13) and it was evening, and it was morning, third day, What did God create this day? We are tempted to say, "land." And that's part of it. But what God really created on this day, is farming. Agriculture. Land "emerges," and it bears fruit. And vegetables. So at this point, at the end of day 3, what do we have? God has created time, and a living space, and food. The world has become a place that's good (functionally)-- that works. It's become a place we can call home (H/T John H. Walton). And all of this is "good." Verses 14-19, day 4: (14) and God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heaven to separate between day and night, and let them be as signs and as appointed times and as days and years, (15) and let them be as lights in the expanse of the heaven to give light on the earth," and it was so, (16) and God made two great lights--the great light to rule over the day, and the small light to rule over the night, and the stars, (17) and God placed them in the expanse of heaven to give light on the earth (18) and to rule over the day and over the night and to separate between the light and the darkness, and God saw that good [it was], (19) and it was evening, and it was morning, fourth day, What does God create on day 4? We want to say, the sun, moon, and stars. And that's part of it. But what God really creates on day 4, is seasons. The calendar year. For thousands of years, people have tracked what part of the year they are in through observation of the sun and/or the moon. And being able to track that, helps you know when it's time to plant, and harvest. Later on in the Bible, it helps you know which days are dedicated to God-- the Sabbath, and festivals, and so on. One day, is not like every other. They don't just seamlessly move, one into the next. God has created a rhythm and a flow to life. And this is good. [And when this was lost in the flood, this is specifically mentioned as being restored afterward (Genesis 8:22; H/T John Walton). Day 5: (20) and God said, "Let the water swarm with swarms of living creatures, while flying things, let them fly above the earth across the face of the expanse of the heaven," (21) and God created the great sea monsters/dragons and every living moving creature that swarmed with the waters according to their kind, and every flying thing13 with wings according to its kind, and God saw that good [it was], (22) and God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, while the flying things, let them multiply on the earth," (23) and it was evening, and it was morning, fifth day, The skies and seas, were designed to be filled with living things. And when they multiply, they are doing what God commanded them to do. All of this is "good." Day 6: (24) and God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures14 according to its kind, domestic animals and moving animals and the wild animals of the earth according to its kind," and it was so, (25) and God made the wild animals of the earth according to its kind, and the domestic animals according to its kind and the moving things of the ground according to its kind, and God saw that good it was, What was true for the creatures that fly and swim, is also true for the land animals. And here, they are divided according to their usefulness for people. There are wild animals, that people don't raise for their own purposes-- animals like beavers, skunks, and gophers. And there are domesticated animals, useful for their strength (ox, donkeys), for clothing (sheep), and for food (chickens, cows). Notice here, that animals are described according to their function for humans. The world is made up of animals that you either find on a farm, or you don't. And what God has really made, at this point on day six, is two ways of making a living. You can farm, and you can hunt. [Here siding with Gordon Wenham: "V 29 permits man to eat plants and fruit, but the animals may only eat plants (30). 9:3 explicitly gives man the right to eat meat. 'Every moving thing that is alive shall be yours to eat; like the green vegetation I gave you, I have given you everything.' Genesis 1, however, does not forbid the consumption of meat, and it may be that meat eating is envisaged from the time of the fall. Man is expected to rule over the animals..." (Wenham, Gen. 1-15, 34). All of this is "good." Verse 26, still day 6: (26) and God/Elohim said (singular), "Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness, and they shall rule/have dominion15 over the fishes of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the domesticated animals and over all the earth and over all the moving things moving upon the earth," (27) and God created (singular) the human in his image. In the image of Elohim He created it. Male and female He created them, (28) and God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue16 it, and rule over the fishes of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over all the living things moving on the earth," In order to understand Genesis 1:26-28, we have to turn first to Job 38 (ESV, which correctly translates the key verse). Yahweh here challenges Job by throwing question after question at him, regarding where Job was at the creation of the world: 38 Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: 2 "Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? 3 Dress for action[a] like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me. 4 "Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. 5 Who determined its measurements-surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? 6 On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, 7 when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? 8 "Or who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb, 9 when I made clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling band, 10 and prescribed limits for it and set bars and doors, 11 and said, 'Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stayed'? When God is creating the earth here, in Genesis 1, He is not alone. He is creating the world, surrounded by his heavenly family-- the "sons of God." And these sons, viewing God's creative acts, sing. They shout for joy, at what God is doing. And God, and the sons of God, together make up something called the "divine council." God doesn't make decisions alone. He invites the sons of God into the decision-making process (1 Kings 22:19-23). Now let's turn to Psalm 82. What we need to see here, is that the "sons of God" are themselves called "gods," or "elohim": God (elohim) has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods (elohim) he holds judgment: 2 "How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah 3 Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. 4 Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked." 5 They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken. 6 I said, "You are gods (elohim), sons of the Most High, all of you; 7 nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince."[a] 8 Arise, O God, judge the earth; for you shall inherit all the nations! The sons of Elohim are elohim. They are made in God's image. They are divine beings, as God is a divine being. Now let's reread Genesis 1:26-27: (26) and God/Elohim said (singular), "Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness, and they shall rule/have dominion17 over the fishes of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the domesticated animals and over all the earth and over all the moving things moving upon the earth," (27) and God created (singular) the human in his image. In the image of elohim He created it. Male and female He created them, What God is doing here in verse 26-- and this is not controversial in OT studies-- is inviting the sons of God into the decision-making and creative process. God, singular, says, "Let us make humankind in our-- plural-- image. [So what I'm not saying, but saying, is that we should read the divine council into Genesis 1, and not Trinitarian thought. "He" creates; "they" don't create]. And then in verse 27, God, singular, makes the human in his, singular, image. The sons of God don't actually do the creative act. They apparently agree with God that this is a good idea. I'm guessing they rejoice, and sing for joy, at the idea (Job 38). But they don't create. The verb is singular. God makes humankind. But humans are made in the image of "elohim." What, then, is an "image?"18 An image, essentially, is an idol. It's a visual representation of a "god." Let's read from Numbers 33:51-52: 51 "Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 52 then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you and destroy all their figured stones and destroy all their metal images and demolish all their high places. So we are like idols of God. And we are like idols of the sons of God. That still doesn't really answer the question. What does it mean, that we are idols of God? But it brings us closer. The idea with idols, in OT times, or non-Western parts of the world, is that you set them up in your living room, or at temples, or anywhere. And you do that, so that God is present in that place, in a way He otherwise isn't. That idol is like a stand-in for a god, or an extension of that god. How does this apply to us? I think the idea is that we serve as an extension of God on earth. We represent him. And specifically, what this means, is that we function as "gods" on earth. We rule over creation. This is called the "functional view" of the image of God. And the best defense of it, is the context. Verse 29: (29) and God said, "LOOK! I hereby give19 to you all the vegetation-- the plants bearing seed-- that [are] upon the face of all the earth, and every tree that is in it-- the fruit of the tree bearing seed. (30) For you it shall be as food, while to every kind of living thing of the earth and to every flying thing of the heavens and to every moving thing upon the earth that has the breath of life in it-- vegetation as food," and it was so. We are made in God's image, and then we are given authority over everything on earth. We rule over creation. We have dominion over it. Who do we think has this authority? [God]. But God gives us this authority. Psalm 115:16: The heavens are the LORD's heavens, but the earth he has given to the children of man. Now, at some point in your life, you've maybe been taught that the image of God was "lost" at the fall, or "tarnished." But that would be news to Genesis. Genesis 5:3: 3 When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. Genesis 9:6: "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image. On this side of the fall, we don't necessarily do a good job of ruling over creation. We have a tendency to make a mess of things. But we still image God. We are still his idols. And the reason it's so terrible that we kill each other, is that we are killing people who still "image" God. So why does it matter that we are made in the image of God? Knowing this, tells us what God expects from us. The earth still belongs to us. To humans. And we are supposed to rule over the world. And, I assume, we are supposed to do so responsibly. We can cut down trees to make houses, or paper, or furniture. But a wise ruler, will plant a tree for every tree he cuts down. Or he will make sure that enough trees are left, that they can bear fruit, and multiply. We can catch lobsters at the very edge of where the ocean water turns to ice. But we should only catch enough, that lets the lobsters fulfill their command to be fruitful and multiply. Environmentalism, to a point, is biblical. But God leaves it to us, to figure out how to rule the world responsibly. To make the hard choices about things like strip mining, and what to do with places like Yellowstone National Park. To choose between owls, and loggers. Verse 31-2:3: (31) And God saw everything that he had made, and LOOK! Very good, and it was evening, and it was morning, day 6, (2:1) and the heavens and earth were finished, with all their host, (2) and God finished on the seventh day from his work that He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done, (3) and God blessed the seventh day, and he consecrated it, because on it He rested from his work that God created to do. When God looks at the created world, what does He see? He sees something very good. Everything, together, functions perfectly. It's a masterpiece. It's not an accident, or random chance, that the world "works." Then, God, having finished his work, rests. And when He does, this, He rests in a way that sets an example for us. We are supposed his example, and have a day of rest. Now, without trying to get into all the debates about the Sabbath here, let me say just this: When God tells people to rest one day out of seven, that is a kindness on his part. God knows you need a break. And God knows that you need time to think about who it is that created the world, and to praise your Creator. The Sabbath is "holy" to God-- it is his day, that He claims for himself. So when we step back, and look at Genesis 1 as a whole, what should we see? God has made the world, for us. He designed it for us, as a home. And our job is to serve as his representatives on earth. We image him, as we are fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it. The world is ours. It is God's gracious gift to us. How, then, should we respond to this? I think two main ways: (1) Praise Throughout the psalms, people are constantly praising God for creating the world. When we look at the heavens and the earth, we find ourselves giving glory to God. And this is the good, natural, response to God's creative act. The world reveals God's love, and his power. (2) Obedience The world was not created as a finished product. There was lots of work to be done. And anytime you drive through rural ND, and look at land dedicated to cattle, you can see how far we've come. Pastureland is rough. It's filled with rocks. You couldn't possibly drive a tractor through it. But through 5 generations of farming, and lots of hard work, we North Dakotans have transformed most of our state into great land for raising soybeans, and wheat, and corn. In doing this, we are fulfilling the Great Commission of Genesis 1. We are bearing fruit, and multiplying, and filling ND, and subduing it. So understand, that most of what you do in life, is done in obedience to God. Every time you go to work, and do something productive... every time you hunt or fish or trap... every time you make babies with your spouse... you are obeying God. You are doing what God created you to do, in a world that God created for you. And on the one day out of seven that you rest, and you worship God, and praise him, you are also obeying God. Praise and obey the God who has blessed us, and given us everything. 1 This is an unmarked relative clause: http://individual.utoronto.ca/holmstedt/Holmstedt_GenesisRelative_VT2008.pdf 2 the opposite of a "wasteland" is developed farmland. 3 "Unproductive" is John Walton's gloss, but not going to develop this. 4 Two verbless clauses which serve as background/offline information. 5 Walton: "Why didn't God call "light" "light"? 6 x-qatal adding "darkness" to the description. We are supposed to read these together, "while." 7 The creation of day and night. The creation of time (H/T John Walton). Ordering of the world by periods of time. 8 נֶגֶד DBL #2: 2. LN 83.42-83.45 opposite, beyond, i.e., a spatial position in front of another object, but with a space between (Jos 3:16); 8 9 solid sky? or the gap between waters outside of the heavens, and under? living space and weather. 10 the dry land emerges. Not a creation of it; the emergence. like a pot coming out of a clay 11 DBL: 2013 דֶּשֶׁא (dě·šě(ʾ)): n.masc.; ≡ Str 1877; TWOT 456a-LN 3.13-3.32 green growth, new verdant vegetation, i.e., new tender green grass and vegetation (Ge 1:11, 12; Dt 32:2; 2Sa 23:4; 2Ki 19:26; Job 6:5; 38:27; Ps 23:2; 37:2; Pr 27:25; Isa 15:6; 37:27; 66:14; Jer 14:5+)11 12 The earth/land here contributes to the creative process. 13 birds and winged insects (Lev. 11:20, 21, 23; Deut. 14:19, 20; see DBL). 14 the word here for "creature" is usually translated "souls." Having a nephesh is not what separates people from animals. 15 weyiqtol. 16כָּבַשׁ DBL: 1. LN 39.52-39.61 (qal) subdue, overcome, enslave, i.e., conquer and control an environment or people (Ge 1:28; 2Ch 28:10; Ne 5:5a; Jer 34:11 Q,16; Zec 9:15+); 16 17 weyiqtol. 18 DBL: צֶלֶם (ṣě·lěm): n.masc.; ≡ Str 6754; TWOT 1923a-1. LN 6.96-6.101 image, idol, i.e., a created and formed artifact that is worshiped as or as representing a pagan deity (Nu 33:52; 2Ki 11:18; 2Ch 23:17; Eze 7:20; 16:17; 23:14; Am 5:26+), note: for another interp in Ps 39:7[EB 6]; 73:20, see 7513; 2. LN 58.58-58.62 image, likeness, i.e., that which is a pattern, model, or example of something (Ge 1:26, 27; 5:3; 9:6+),18 19 qatal here is a performative speech act. "I hereby give." --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ 14