Introduction
As its name implies, Genesis is
about beginnings. Genesis tells us that God created everything that exists. It
shows that God is both the Creator and the Ruler of all creation. But it also
tells of humanity’s tragic fall into sin and death, and of God’s unfolding plan
of redemption through his covenant with Abraham and his descendants. Genesis
includes some of the most memorable stories in the Bible, beginning with Adam
and Eve (chs. 1-4), continuing through Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and
ending with the life of Joseph (chs. 37-50), who died before 1600 b.c. Traditionally, Jews and Christians
have recognized Moses as the author, writing after the Exodus from Egypt,
commonly dated around 1440 b.c.
though some prefer a date around 1260 b.c.
(The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2001).
(Gen). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.)
Overview
Gen 1.1 Story; God creates the heavens and the
earth.
Gen 1.2 Story; The earth was without form and void,
darkness over the deep, God hovered over waters
Gen 1.3-2.3 Story; The seven days of God speaking,
naming and allocating tasks
Gen 2.4 Story; The generations of the heavens and
the earth
Gen 2.5-20 Story; Creation story repeated, the LORD
created Adam
Gen 2.21-25 Story; The LORD gives Adam a woman as a
helper
Gen 3.1-7 Sin-Story; Adam and Eve are tempted by
the serpent and disobey God
Gen 3.8-13 Story; The LORD God questions Adam and
Eve on their actions
Gen 3.14-15 Story; The LORD curses the Serpent
Gen 3.16 Story; The LORD curses the Woman
Gen 3.17-19 Story; The LORD curses the Man
Gen 3.20-24 Story; The LORD makes garments for Adam
and Eve and exiles them from the garden
Passage and comments
It seems appropriate to start the blog focusing on
God’s first act - Creation. The Old Testament starts with;
1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the
earth. (Gen 1.1)
In the beginning there was God. He existed in the
beginning. We know from other scriptures that God is eternal. What I mean by
that is He has no beginning and no end. The alpha and omega.
God created the heavens and the earth. I realise
creation is a sensitive subject for some, so I might recommend a book I read
that tries to explain a common meaning of ‘created’ in the Old Testament. The Lost World of
Genesis One: Ancient Cosmology and the Origins Debate, by John H. Walton.
His idea is that ‘create’ can be used in the sense of ordering existing
elements. A bit like forming a new company out of things like people, buildings
and items.
The text continues stating the existence of the
earth before it has been made into anything.
2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness
was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face
of the waters. (Gen 1.2)
So what is clear from this text is that the earth
already existed, it was ‘without form and void’. The ‘deep’ already existed and
the ‘waters’ already existed. This imagery is common to ancient near eastern
creation accounts. Not to say Moses cut and pasted these accounts, rather he
used their language and concepts to communicate his worldview. What is his
worldview?
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was
light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God 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. (Gen 1.3-5)
The Hebrew God is the one who created. God
continues bringing order out of chaos forming the world in which he will
inhabit. Like a temple.
Story of Israel
Within the history of Israel, the temple
represented the place where God dwelt amongst his people. The sad story of
Genesis 1-3 and Israel is that in both cases the people God brought to himself
were kicked out. Adam and Eve were kicked out of the garden, Israel was kicked
out of the promised land. Throughout the Old Testament we will see sin,
judgment and exile. But that is not all. God promises to restore. It takes a
long time for these promises to manifest themselves. But the start of the
Gospel of John creates a link between creation and the restoration promised
throughout the scriptures.
Story of Jesus
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All
things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was
made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines
in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
...
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,
and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of
grace and truth. (Jn 1.1-5,14)
The word became flesh. His name is Jesus.