Genesis 1 - An overview of the first 6 days of history

 

The picture above (by Answers in Genesis, a Christian ministry based in Australia) shows what was created on each day of Creation. Genesis 1:2 describes the world before God had done anything with it. It was completely void. Nothing but a formless ocean floating in complete darkness. Then God created light and separated it from darkness (Genesis 1:3).

 

Day 2 is described in Genesis 1:6-8. Here, God separated some of the water and created the sky. On day 3 (Genesis 1:9-13) God divided the water to create the ground. Because verse 9 says "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear", it is likely that there was originally only one big island. Then, without hesitation, God commanded the land to produce plants. This happened just as God said.

 

Genesis 1:14-19, describes the fourth day. Here, God creates the celestial bodies. He specifically refers to the sun and the moon, which he designed to "be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth". Verse 16 just says "and the stars", giving them almost no significance what so ever. Because many religions in the past have given high significance to the stars, some Christians believe God's cursory mentioning of the stars is his way of saying they are not worth worshipping. They are simply one more of God's creations, created entirely to glorify him. Psalm 19:1 supports this view.

 

In Genesis 1:20-23, God created creatures that live in water and the birds. In Leviticus 11:19, the bat is included in a list of birds the Israelites were not allowed to eat, which suggests they might also have been created on day 5 (see is the bat a bird?). Finally, on the sixth day, God created all the other land creatures (Genesis 1:24-25). However, once he has done that, he makes one more thing: us. In Genesis 1:26, God says "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." An interesting thing to note here is that with every other creation, God simply says "let there be", or "let it happen", but with man, God says "let us create". With God's other creations, it also says "and it was so" or "and it happened". With man, the Bible says "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them", and Genesis 2:7 adds the extra detail that "the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature." This is interesting, as it makes it appear that God made more effort with man than he did with everything else in the world. With everything else, even the animals, God simply speaks and his visions come true. But with man, God personally gets involved with the construction and breaths life into the first. Another thing I find interesting is that after every creative act, the Bible says God saw what he had made, and it was good. Once he had created man, however, it switches from "good" to "very good." It seems at this point that the human race is the finishing touch on God's creation. We are the star on his Christmas tree. We are the signature on his painting. Finally, God gives the command that everything that breaths may eat plants for food (Genesis 1:30). Because of this, Biblical Creationists hold that all animals were originally vegetarian, and that death did not exist for anything that breathes air through its nostrils. While this author personally does not hold this view, it would be improper to omit the fact that some Christians believe invertebrates and fish may have been able to die before the fall due to the fact they do not have nostrils.

 

Genesis 2 - A zoom in on the events of the sixth day, setting the foundations

 

The first three verses of Genesis 2 should probably be the end of Genesis 1, as they link better with that. These verses describe the 7th day of history, immediately after God's 6 day creation. On this day, God had finished creating and rested, setting the foundation for the 7 day week (Exodus 20:11). From Genesis 2:5 to Genesis 2:24, the Bible zooms in on the 6th day of Creation when God created the first man and woman, and focuses specifically on the location where it happens (the garden of Eden).

 

On the sixth day, just before God created man, God had not yet sent any rain, and so cultivated plants had not yet grown (Genesis 2:5). God created Adam, the first man, out of the dirt on the ground, and he personally breathed life into him (Genesis 2:7). God then created a garden for Adam to live in and placed him there. He also made fruit trees and other plants grow immediately, including two trees, the tree of knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life. (Genesis 2:8-9). God put Adam in the garden to work (Genesis 2:15).

 

In Genesis 2:16, God tells Adam he can eat from any tree in the garden except the tree of knowledge of good and evil, or he would die. God then revealed his plan to create Eve (Genesis 2:18). God brought one of every kind of animal to Adam to name them, but unsurprisingly Adam did not find any of them attractive (Genesis 2:19-20). God caused Adam to fall into a temporary coma during which he took a rib from his side. Using the rib, God made Eve, the first woman. (Genesis 2:21-23). The union of Adam and Eve in Genesis 2 is the reason for the tradition of marriage (Genesis 2:24 compare Matthew 19:4-5) Genesis 2 ends by noting that the pair were naked, yet they did not feel any shame. This is significant.

 

Genesis 3 - What went wrong?

 

 

Genesis 3:1 begins by telling us about a "serpent" (i.e. a reptile) that lived in the garden. Further revelations, such as Ezekiel 28:13, Revelation 12:9 and Revelation 20:2 all reveal that this serpent was actually Satan, or at the very least was being controlled by Satan (which is a topic for another article). This serpent approached Eve and decieved her, telling her that the only reason God wanted her to avoid eating from the tree of knowledge is that she would become like him (Genesis 3:5). Still to this day, Satan repeats the same deception, convincing us that we have the authority of God, and even telling some that they can become gods one day. Believing Satan's lie, Eve ate, and then gave the fruit to Adam to eat too. He did. It is worth noting, at this point, Genesis 3:7, which says Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths. The couple heard God coming, and they ran and hid, much like naughty children do when they hear their parents. God, of course, knew where they were, and he called to them. (Genesis 3:9).

 

Rather than directly accuse them of their sins, God asks the couple leading questions, causing them to admit their guilt themselves. He starts with Adam. In Genesis 3:11, God asks Adam "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" As an interesting side note, some Christians hold the view that Adam only sinned because he did not want his wife to face God's wrath alone. Adam's response to God's question suggests otherwise. He responds by immediately blaming Eve (Genesis 3:12), who in turn blames the serpent (Genesis 3:13). God asks no questions to the serpent. Unlike with Adam and Eve, God immediately curses the serpent above all animals. He changes the biology of the serpent so that he must slither, and that he will eat dust. This punishment suggests the identity of the serpent was a snake controlled by Satan. The fact that the entire snake race is cursed this way suggests that it was a physical snake rather than the direct presence of Satan. Genesis 3:15 is generally understood to be the first messianic prophecy. Here, God promises that Eve's offspring and Satan's offspring will be enemies, and that the snake will strike Eve's offspring's heel, but Eve's offspring will crush the snake's head.

 

In Genesis 3:16, God describes Eve's punishment. First, he made it so that child bearing would be a painful process. Second, Eve would have to submit to Adam. Then, God turns to Adam. All throughout the Bible, Adam is universally blamed for the fall, and so God doesn't just curse Adam, he curses the whole creation (Romans 8:22). God brings forth weeds, specifically thorns and thistles, which will make Adam's work a lot harder. More importantly, the ultimate punishment for sin would be death. Not just death for Adam (Genesis 3:19), but also death for everything that ever lived, plant (which died before the fall anyway), animal and man (Romans 5:12; 17, 1 Corinthians 15:21). Finally, God evicts Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden so they may no longer eat from the tree of life (Genesis 3:24).

 

One final thing to note about Genesis 3 is verse 21. In this verse, God rejects the fig leaf clothes Adam and Eve made themselves and instead he makes them clothes from the skins of animals. This sets a foundation for the Gospel that would carry through from Eden right the way up to Jesus' crucifixion. The principle of the Gospel is substitution. Rather than the guilty recieving due punishment for their sins (i.e. death, Romans 6:23), an innocent (i.e. Jesus) takes our place so that we may be redeemed. In the Old Testament, God commanded the Jews to make sacrifices from their livestock to symbolise Jesus' ultimate sacrifice. In Genesis 3:21, God is making the first sacrifice, showing that it is not man's effort to get rid of sin, as Adam and Eve tried to do with the fig leaves, but entirely God's effort.

 

Genesis 6-9 - The Noahic flood and God's covenant with man

 

In Genesis 6, we read about a time, roughly 2000 years after the creation of the Earth, when mankind has gotten so sinful, there was only one man on all the Earth that sought God. This man was called Noah (Genesis 6:8). Because man was so evil, God decided to completely destroy the Earth with a global flood (Genesis 6:7; 2 Peter 3:6). However, because Noah sought God, God commanded him to build a boat that would protect him, two of every kind of animal that breathed air through its nostrils to keep alive, and an additional few clean animals1 to sacrifice once the flood had receeded (Genesis 7:2; Genesis 8:20).

 

A key thing to remember with Biblical Creation is the notion of kinds. The most common misconception about Biblical Creation is that we believe in the fixity of species. We do not. Biblical Creationists believe that God created different kinds of animals (Genesis 1:11-12; Genesis 1:21; 24-25; Genesis 6:20; Genesis 7:14). This means we believe God created a few original animals, and that they had a very large amount of adaptability. As an example, we do not believe Noah had to take 2 lions, 2 tigers, 2 leopards, 2 panthers etc. onto the ark, but rather we believe all animals of the panthera genus are likely descended from a single pair of big cats of the same kind. See the article "Two views" for more information. It is also worth noting that only animals that breathed air through their nostrils were necessary to take on the ark. It is debated whether or not Noah had to bring land-dwelling invertebrates such as insects.

 

When Noah and his family (8 total people) and all the necessary animals and food were on board the ark, God sent the flood and it killed everything on the Earth than breathed through its nostrils (Genesis 7:22). Once the flood had done its job, the water receeded, and Noah and his family, and all the animals, left the ark (Genesis 8:18-19). Noah built an alter to God on which he sacrificed the extra animals which God sent on the ark with him (Genesis 8:20). Then God promised never again to send a global flood (Genesis 9:11), and he promised that as long as the Earth endures, the times and the seasons would be constant (Genesis 8:21-22).

 

Genesis 9 continues God's promises to man. First, he commands them to fill the Earth (Genesis 9:1) which, as you will see in a moment, they failed at first, and needed a little "persuasion". Then, he gives over every animal into their hands. He says that they will fear us (Genesis 9:2). Genesis 9:3 contrasts the original command given in Genesis 1:30. Along with the plants, man was now allowed to eat meat aswell, as long as there was no blood in it. It is debated whether or not this same command also covered some animals. Some Christians contend that this is the point where carnivory entered the world. Others, such as myself, believe carnivory came a little earlier, and maybe even immediately after the fall. This is an issue which the scriptures are silent on, so we cannot be dogmatic on the origins of carnivory. The only thing we can be sure of is that there were no carnivores before the fall (Genesis 1:30).

 

In Genesis 9:5-6, God reiterates that fact that humans were made in his image, and he declares that this is why it is wrong for man or animal to kill one, and so he will demand an account for anything or anyone that kills a human being. Finally, God sends a rainbow across the sky to mark the covenant between God and man. It is debatable as to whether or not this is the first rainbow ever to occur. I, personally, hold the position that it wasn't.

 

Genesis 11 - The origin of races

 

The final step in the Biblical Creationist position is the Tower of Babel. This is a small, but significant event, as it explains the origin of different "races". First and foremost, it should be noted that Biblical Creationists contend that "race" does not technically exist at all. We believe in one human kind. We believe that all human beings on the planet are descendants of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:20; Acts 17:26). A better word to describe different people groups would be the word "nation", which is what the Bible uses.

 

The tower of Babel is an event described in just 9 verses. In a time, not too long after the flood, there was a universal language (Genesis 11:1). They all settled in one place and decided to build a giant city, which would include a giant tower that reached into the heavens (Genesis 11:2; 4). God was concerned that man was becoming too powerful (Genesis 11:6), and so he decided to confuse their languages so that they would not understand each other and disperse across the Earth (Genesis 11:7-9). It is the belief of Biblical Creationists, therefore, that each nation is descended from a group of people that dispersed from Babel.

 

A brief summary of Biblical Creation

 

Biblical Creation can be summarised as follows:

 

• The Bible is true and accurate in every area it covers, from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21.

• God is eternal, and therefore had no beginning.

• The creation period lasted 6 literal days, just as the Bible says.

• The heavens, the Earth and everything within them were created spontaneously, by the word of God.

• Living things reproduce according to their kinds. Biblical Creationists do not believe in the fixity of species, and accept Natural Selection and speciation.

• Dinosaurs and man existed at the same time. They are not special animals that magically make alternatives to the Bible seem more plausible.

• Genesis is the foundation for several scriptural principles, such as marriage, and even the Gospel itself.

• All animals originally ate plants.

• Death of living creatures (including man) did not exist until the first sin.

• Adam and Eve were created, not born from a sub-human creature.

• Noah's flood was global, not local.

• All human beings on the planet today are descended from Adam and Eve, and therefore the concept of "race", as it is commonly understood, is false.

• Death, disease and suffering are the results of sin.

• Thorns and thistles are specifically mentioned as the result of sin.

• God already knew about the fall before it happened, and planned the gospel before he even began creating the world.

• Man has been given dominion over plants and animals, and since the flood has also been given permission to eat animals.

• No specific date has been given for the origin of carnivory among animals.

• There are small debates occurring within Biblical Creation regarding trivial issues, but none so large as to be significant to the position itself.

 

1. It is debated as to whether or not the correct translation is 7 clean animals, or 7 pairs of clean animals. (Back to text)