|
Genesis An Interlude (Chapters 11 & 12)
Preface
The book of Genesis as the first book of the Bible introduces a number of issues and doctrines, all critical to a correct understanding of Christianity. Yet it is not uncommon for the reader to entertain doubts regarding some of its material. Many questions stem from assumptions instilled from early on by secular institutions regarding the origin of matter. Many are posed from a parochial viewpoint centered on present surroundings and apparent realities. Within these frames of references the reader may become confused by some supposed errors in Scriptures.
There is the argument that any contradiction found in the Bible automatically disqualifies all of it. Although there are extremely very few seeming conflicts and/or inconsistencies in some English translations, most are clarified by reference to the original autographs and/or a thorough study of the context within which they are found. This includes the exercise of Isagogics, which is the interpretation of Scripture within the framework of its historical setting or prophetical environment; and Exegesis, which is the word-by-word, verse-by-verse, grammatical, syntactical, etymological, and contextual analysis of Scripture from the original languages of the Bible—Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.
It is quite amazing that of all works of antiquity, the Bible is the only one that is supported by literally thousands of manuscripts, which are derived from vastly different periods of history—from the very early to recent—and which makes the Bible stand alone among all other books in its uniqueness, its character and its message. It is the only book of this world that is miraculously error-free, yet in the face of such amazing odds such as the following:
In contrast to the Bible and its literally thousands of copied manuscripts is the compilation of Western classics called the Great Books of the Western World, which contain selections from more than 450 works by close to 100 authors spanning a period of about 25 centuries. These authors include Homer, Plato, Aristotle, Plotinus, Augustine, Aquinas, Dante, Hobbes, Spinoza, Calvin, Rousseau, Shakespeare, Hume, Kant, Darwin, Tolstoy, Whitehead, Joyce and others. Even though they are part of the Western tradition of ideas, they display an enormous diversity of views on just about every subject—many of which are in stark contrast and conflict with one another. Many of them, in fact, critique and refute key ideas proposed by their predecessors.
It is quite an achievement to have two persons in the same location and at the same time agree on ten topics, which is why it is absolutely miraculous that over 40 authors writing during vastly different periods of times in myriad places and circumstances and about hundreds of issues all are in agreement. But such is the case with the Bible.
Whereas some of the works by some authors in history have sold more than a million copies, the Bible throughout history has sold in the billions. While most books in history are never translated into another language, the Bible has been translated into more than 2,200 languages of the worlds 6,500 languages, representing the primary vehicle of communication for well over 90 percent of the world’s population.
Worldwide, no other book in history has been translated, retranslated, and paraphrased more than the Bible. Throughout history there has been a concerted effort by the evil forces of this world to eliminate the Bible. From the very beginning Satan has used every means to destroy it and its influence upon society—all efforts were to no avail. In spite of everything the god of the underworld could throw at it, the Bible has survived; and, in fact, only proliferated while its influence mushroomed.
It is incredible then over these thousands of years and in face of sustained opposition against the literally thousands of manuscripts copied from one to the other (approximately 25,000 for the New Testament alone), that there are but an infinitesimal number of “apparent” errors that the skeptic may point to in an attempt to discredit the Bible.
Many are only copying errors, including haplography (writing once a letter or word that should have been written twice), dittography (writing twice a letter or word that should have been written once), metathesis (transposing the proper order of words or letters), fusion (combining the last letter of a word with the word that follows it), fission (the improper separation of one word into two), and homophony (confusing words that sound alike).
This “interlude” will concern itself with a few of these difficult passages from the first eleven chapters of Genesis that skeptics point to in their efforts to bring into disrepute the Bible. The passages considered will not be all inclusive, nor will the solutions presented for them be comprehensive in nature; but an explanation will be provided from this commentator’s viewpoint, which may assist the sincere reader of God’s Word in understanding the meaning of these passages.
Genesis 1
How long were the creation days?
Although this has already been covered somewhat in the commentary on this chapter, the following positions regarding this issue are listed for the reader to contemplate.
· Day-age
24 hour periods, but then God permitted a geologic age to pass during which all creative things were allowed to develop gradually.
· Gap
There is a gap of unknown length between the first two verses of the Bible in which God’s original creation was ruined by Satan’s fall (Isaiah 14:13-15). The seven days of Genesis describe the repair of that catastrophe and dinosaurs belonged to the original creation.
· Indefinite-age
Each day represents an indefinite geological age, thus there is no conflict between the Bible and evolutionistic theory, as evolution was the process God used in creating.
· Seven-day
God created in six consecutive 24-hour days, an unknowable period of time ago.
· Revelatory-day
The days in Genesis are not days during which creation took place but days during which God showed Moses what He had done.
· Revelatory-device
The author of Genesis simply uses days to organize his material.
This author believes that the creation days are literal 24-hour days, primarily because Exodus 20:8-11 confirms them as such. The factors of actual and apparent age of this world can be understood in light of the Flood, as well as the fact of dinosaurs. Nevertheless, the issue is not how God created but that God did create.
What is the meaning of “according to their kinds?”
The Hebrew word for “kind” is min. It occurs 31 times in the Old Testament. It is used to identify a “basic form” of life that reproduces after its “basic form,” sometimes referred to in the English as “species.”
Within the genotype of each min (basic form) is great flexibility, so that microevolution (small hereditary changes through the reproductive process) is provided for by the original creative act. This is clearly seen in both humans and animals in the examination of their offspring; yet, not one “kind” has ever evolved into another.
What is the meaning of the “image and likeness of God?”
Man was made in God’s image (Hebrew: tselem) and likeness (Hebrew: dmuwth), both terms with similar meanings and thereby reinforcing the sanctity of man in the creation process. An image/likeness may be similar but not necessarily identical to its original. Man was created as a triune-being: physical (body), psychological (soul) and spiritual (spirit)—1 Thessalonians 5:23. Man shares with God as a minimum the following attributes: will, emotions, intellect, imagination and moral sensitivity. This sets man apart from the animal, which has only a body and a soul (emotions and limited intelligence). The spirit of man is what connects him to God, which part died during his “fall” in the garden and which may be revived by the “new birth.”
Does the command to “fill and subdue” the earth authorize the depletion of earth’s limited resources?
No. This command of God (vs. 26) carries with it an obligation to guard and care for nature. While the word subdue indicates natural resistance in nature, it does not convey a license to exploit nature.
Genesis 1, 2
Do these two chapters provide contradictory pictures of creation?
No. Genesis 1:1—2:3 is an overview, while Genesis 2:4-15 is a close-up. The first chapter is the creation in broad terms, while the second chapter conveys more detail about the most significant creation of all—man.
Do the two different names for God (Elohim and Yahweh) in the two accounts of creation prove that the two accounts were derived from different sources?
No. Biblical names have theological significance. Elohim (Genesis 1)was the culture’s general name for God, used in the record of God’s work as the creator of the material universe; whereas Yahweh (Genesis 2) is God’s personal name and is associated with His redemptive and loving involvement with mankind—used in the uniquely intimate (hands-on) account of His creation of and His personal involvement with man.
Genesis 2:16
Was God fair in providing a means for Adam to fall, knowing that he would?
Yes. Man was made in the image and likeness of God. To be truly like God, a moral Being, Adam had to have the opportunity to exercise moral choice. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil was not a “trap” for Adam. It was a “gift,” a way to enable Adam to exercise his moral capacity in order to enhance his fellowship with his Creator.
Without this tree, Adam could never have known that he truly possessed the ability to exercise moral responsibility, making him a mere puppet before God. Spiritual tests and temptations should never be viewed in the “negative.” They are not “traps” intended to cause sin. They are opportunities to demonstrate one’s commitment to God, which when successfully met, only strengthen one’s character and reveal the redemptive work of God.
Genesis 2:20, 21
Why did God create Eve differently from the way He created Adam?
It is believed that God opted to create Eve out of a component of man to confirm woman’s identity and equality with man, rather than to bring her forth by a second edition/addition from the dust of the ground. Eve was thus a full partner with (made of exactly the same “stuff” of) Adam. When Adam declared, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh (vs. 23), he was in effect stating that the male and female were equal participants in God’s image and likeness.
This meaning is also found in the Hebrew words, neged and ezer, which are translated help meet (vs. 20) and refer to Eve. A more accurate translation would be “helper comparable or equal to him.” God did not make Eve (woman) to be inferior to Adam (man) or to be his “chattel” (property). He made her to be an equivalent power and extension of God’s image and likeness. But sadly, due to woman’s participation in the fall of man, this status was altered (vs. 3:16).
Genesis 2:17
God said that man would “surely die” upon eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Why didn’t he die?
He did indeed die. The words “death” and “die” in the Bible convey several meanings. They mean (1) the end of biological life, as in Hebrews 2:14, 15; (2) sin’s active corruption of man’s nature, as in Ephesians 2:1-6 and Romans 8:5-8; (3) the state of alienation from and antagonism to God that sin causes, as in Ephesians 2:1-6; and (4) that final, eternal separation from God in the lake of fire that Revelation 20:13 identifies as the second death.
When Adam sinned (1) the process of biological death began within every organ of his body; (2) the image of God within him was distorted, i.e., his nature became corrupted; (3) he became alienated from God; and (4) he passed from spiritual life to spiritual death—a condition that can only be rectified by faith alone in Christ alone.
Genesis 3:21
Why did God clothe Adam and Eve in animal skins following their sin?
This was done to introduce to man the unalterable principle that sin merits death and to teach man that God’s grace would allow the death of a substitute in place of man’s death as the payment for sin. These lessons, through the typology of Old Testament sacrifices, were reinforced down through the centuries until the one true sacrifice of God’s Son, Jesus Christ, to which they pointed, occurred on the Cross of Calvary by which makes the redemption of all mankind possible.
Genesis 4:3, 5
Why was Cain’s offering of the “fruit of the ground” not acceptable to God?
It was not acceptable because it was not an offering that God had required. This is seen by the question (vs. 7) by God to Cain, “If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?” The question implies that Cain knew beforehand “what was right.” He knew God would only accept one type of offering, that which required the shedding of blood, a typology of the event to come—the sacrifice of His Son on Calvary. This verse also shows God’s grace, for Cain was still invited to bring the correct offering.
The blood offering was initially taught to Adam and Eve. It was passed on to their children, so that Cain was without excuse. But Cain refused to follow God’s instruction, choosing rather to approach God with an offering of his own concoction—“works of his own hands.” This was a reflection back to Adam and Eve when they chose to clothe their nakedness by their own means, which was immediately corrected by God within the garden.
Cain knew better. This has always been the “way of man,” which is evidenced in the religions of the world, whereby man attempts to achieve the approbation of God through “works by his own hand.” It is well for all to understand the meaning of the apostle Paul when in Titus 3:5 he states, “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us . . . .”
Genesis 4:17
Where did Cain and the other son’s of Adam find wives?
Adam lived 930 years wherein he had many sons and daughters. Marriage between brothers and sisters were allowed early in the history of man. But due to time the gene pool (DNA production) became increasing more corrupted through multiple births, and eventually through law and custom this practice of inter-marriage became taboo (Leviticus 20:17).
Genesis 5
How could people live such long lives before the Flood?
At the early stages of man’s history upon earth the human genetic code (DNA) was far less corrupted than it is today. Furthermore, prior to the flood, man’s diet was strictly vegetation. These factors combined to support a very long life-span. But since the flood, not only have malfunctions occurred in the duplication of the human genetic code, but man could then eat animal flesh; the collective result being the shortening of man’s life span. The real wonder of today is that man can live as long as he does; given the multiple errors in duplication of the genetic code that has weakened the race and the general health habits of today. Truly man is “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14).
Do the genealogies in chapter 5 prove that the Bible is only a few thousand years ago?
Although this may indeed be the case, depending on one’s interpretation of Scripture, it is not necessarily so. Hebrew genealogies were used to trace roots and lineage and typically included only key persons, not everyone in the family line.
Genesis 6-8
Who were the “sons of God?” Was the flood universal or local? How long did the flood last?
These three questions have been addressed in sufficient detail in the commentary on these chapters.
Genesis 7:2
Isn’t there a discrepancy between 6:19 and 7:2 regarding the number of animals God instructed Noah to take into the ark?
The first reference is to a pair of every kind of animal; the second is a special instruction to take extra pairs of ritually clean animals (see Leviticus 11). More of the clean animals were taken for sacrifice and possibly to provide food for the predatory animals after the flood dried.
Genesis 9:6
Is there a conflict between the instruction to kill someone who has killed and the commandment, “Thou shalt not kill,” in Exodus 20:13?
Without going into too much exegetical linguistic terminology, suffice it to say that in Exodus 20:13 the Hebrew word (ratsach) literally mean “murder.” The Hebrew word (shaphak) used in Genesis 9:6 corresponds to the same concept. This is particularly true when both applications of these words are studied within the context of not only the immediate passages, but throughout the entire Old Testament. The use of these words makes it clear that the Bible does not support a blanket condemnation of all killing. It does require the death penalty for those who commit murder (vs. 9:6; Numbers 35), whereas, it makes provision of escape for those who commit accidental homicide (Numbers 35). Additionally, killing performed against animals or as a part of warfare or in self-defense is not considered “murder.”
The germane question is, “Why does God call for such a severe penalty as the death sentence for a person who commits murder?” It is not only to enforce the prevention of such an act, but it is also and more importantly to express the fact of the sanctity of human life—that man is made in the image and likeness of God, whose image is never to be violated by act of premeditation and malice.
Henceforth in the commentary on the remaining chapters in Genesis, this author will attempt to include suitable explanation to difficult passages as they arise; therefore, any further interludes or addendums should not be necessary—but then, one never knows. |