Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day..
Genesis 2:4 This is the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens,5 before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground; 6 but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground.
Let’s learn more about the meaning of the words “form, void, darkness, light and good”. Since the Old Testament was originally written in Hebrew, I find it very helpful to look up what a word is in Hebrew and what the Hebrew definitions are of the word. The information and definitions below are from the website: https://biblehub.com/lexicon.
“Form” Hebrew word “tohu” Strong's Concordance Definition: formlessness, confusion, unreality, emptiness
“Void” Hebrew word “bohu” Strong's Concordance Definition: emptiness
“Darkness” Hebrew word “choshek” Strong's Concordance Definition: darkness, obscurity / NAS exhaustive concordance: NASB Translation: chaos (1), confusion (1), desolation (1), emptiness (1), empty space (1), formless (2), futile (2), futile things (1), meaningless (2), meaningless arguments (1), nothing (2), waste (3), waste place (2).
“Deep” Hebrew word “tehom” Strong's Concordance deep, sea, abyss / Strong’s exhaustive concordance: confusion, empty place, without form, nothing, vain, vanity, waste,
Or thom {teh-home'}; (usually feminine) from huwm; an abyss (as a surging mass of water), especially the deep (the main sea or the subterranean water-supply) -- deep (place), depth.
“Light” Hebrew word “or” Strong’s exhaustive concordance: bright, clear, day, lightning, morning, sun
7 light of life חַיִּים ׳אJob 33:30; Psalm 56:14; compare אוֺר Job 3:16,20.
8 light of prosperity Job 22:28; Job 30:26; Psalm 97:11; Lamentations 3:2.
9 light of instruction נֵר מִצְוָה וְתוֺרָה אוֺרProverbs 6:23 the commandment is a lamp and instruction a light; so the Messian. servant is אוֺר גּוֺיִםIsaiah 42:6; Isaiah 49:6; compare עַמִּים ׳אIsaiah 51:4; the advent of Messiah is shining of great light Isaiah 9:1 (twice in verse).
10 light of face אוֺר מָּנִים= bright, cheerful face (of men) Job 29:24; betokening king's favour Proverbs 16:15 (compare עֵינַיִם ׳אPsalm 38:11); of God = his shining, enlightening, favouring face Psalm 4:7; Psalm 44:4; Psalm 89:16.
11 Yahweh is יִשְׂרָאֵל ׳אIsaiah 10:17, as source enlightenment & prosperity; light & salvation Psalm 27:1; light to guide Micah 7:8 compare Psalm 43:3; everlasting light of Zion, instead of sun & moon Isaiah 60:19,20; house of Jacob is to walk in his light Isaiah 2:5.
“Day” Hebrew word “yom” Strong’s exhaustive concordance: age, always, continually, daily, birth, each, today,
“Night“ Hebrew word “layil or lel or layelah” Strong’s exhaustive concordance: midnight season - Or (Isa. 21:11) leyl {lale}; also laylah {lah'- yel-aw}; from the same as luwl; properly, a twist (away of the light), i.e. Night; figuratively, adversity -- ((mid-))night (season).
Let’s read Genesis 1 to 5 again with the more spiritual Hebrew definition of the words in parenthesis:
Genesis 1:2 The earth was without form (formlessness, confusion, unreality, emptiness), and void (emptiness); and darkness (obscurity, confusion) was on the face (face, faces) of the deep (confusion, empty place, without form, nothing, vain, vanity, waste,). And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face (face, faces) of the waters (this my comment often times “waters” in the Bible spiritually means “multitudes” i.e. figurative use: Isaiah 17:12,13 of rushing nations}. 3 Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good (pleasant, agreeable, good); and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day (always, continually, birth), and the darkness He called Night (figuratively, adversity). So the evening and the morning were the first day.
Just like God begins to tell us about the creation of the world we are familiar which God also uses these same words to tell us a spiritual parable about creation. God conceived of having children made in his image and then set His plans in motion at the beginning of creation day 1. Spiritually the earth is the mind/substance of man. Man is without form (man was just conceived and the mind is empty, confused, foundationless), the darkness on the face of the deep was darkness in the mind of man, the darkness represents vanity, ignorance lack of knowledge and wisdom. As God hovered over the faces of mankind He called forth and introduced His light, life, truth and wisdom which is to serve as the foundation of the mind.
God saw the light and the light was good. God never says the darkness is good. God divides the light from the darkness because chaos and confusion does not mix with truth and wisdom. This is only the first day but from the beginning God’s plan is that the light He placed in man would overcome the darkness. And from the beginning God knew it would take time and most significantly that it would take a Savior:
The New Testament tells us that “the light” was personified as a man of flesh through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ:
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by 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 And the light shines in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
John 8:12 Then spoke Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
The Word of God confirms in many places that Jesus existed before the foundation of the world:
John 17:24 Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou loved me before the foundation of the world.
1 Peter 1:18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, [as] silver and gold, from your vain conversation [received] by tradition from your fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.
And we, believers in Jesus Christ were chosen before the foundation of the world:
Ephesians 1:4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
Matthew 25:34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
Hebrews 4:3 For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.
Revelation 13:8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him (the beast), whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
I will need to do a separate study on what the meaning of "Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” means. Is this the foundation of the “new earth” we are told about or was the new earth created from the beginning and it is only “new“ to us? For now back to our study of Genesis 2 through 5.
When God said let there be light, the Sun, Moon and Stars had not been created yet (and they won’t be until creation day 4) – John Chapter 1 tells us this light “was God” so clearly “the light” in Genesis Chapter 1 is completely different and so much more than what we consider to be light. If spiritually “the light” is something completely different than “wordly light” it makes sense that “the darkness” is something different than “wordly darkness”. Scripture tells us that the “Word/light/life” is our Father God and when you consider the Hebrew definitions of the word Darkness, “the darkness” is the devil Satan the Father of lies/darkness/death. Satan is also referred to as the adversary or impious one and John tells us in John 1:5 And the light shines in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. Later John tells us more about “the darkness”:
John 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
The rest of this study is a work in progress...
Genesis 1:6 Then God said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters." 7 Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day.
THIS STUDY IS A WORK IN PROGRESS
April 9, 2020
Genesis 1:9 Then God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear"; and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth"; and it was so. 12 And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 So the evening and the morning were the third day.
Genesis 1:14 Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; 15 and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth"; and it was so. 16 Then God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also. 17 God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 So the evening and the morning were the fourth day.
Genesis 2:5 before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground; 6 but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground. 7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
Man was formed and given a living soul sometime before God called forth the plants and herbs because after man is formed we are told…
8 The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed. 9 And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
10 Now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads. 11 The name of the first is Pishon; it is the one which skirts the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 And the gold of that land is good. Bdellium and the onyx stone are there. 13 The name of the second river is Gihon; it is the one which goes around the whole land of Cush.
14 The name of the third river is Hiddekel; it is the one which goes toward the east of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates. 15 Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
Notice after God formed the man God’s word does not say “God saw that it was good”. God gave man the breath of life and man became a living soul - a soul that would be corrupt and that would need to be restored.
According to the NASB Lexicon on Bible Hub’s website the Hebrew word for “dust” also means dry earth. Because in Genesis 1:9 God says “let the dry land appear” I believe that a more accurate translation for Genesis 2:7 is “And the Lord God formed man from the dry earth of the ground."
Genesis Chapter 2 tells us that God formed man after the dry land appeared and sometime before the plants and herbs were called forth on creation day 3 – It seem very likely that Man was created as some point after the dry earth appeared and before the plants grew. From Genesis Chapter 2 it seems on the 6th day God decided to make man in his own image..
I believe from the moment God decided he wanted to create children in his own image that all of his good pleasure would come to pass.
I believe God “conceived” the way he would make that happen and it involved creating the heavens and the earth which would serve as a kind of womb for his children. (read 2 Esdras) Man was “conceived’ by God at the very beginning of day 1 and then God made the earth and then God formed man out of the dust of the earth after dry land appeared.
God plants the garden, places Man in it and the first commandment is given - Man was not yet good.
Genesis 1:20 Then God said, "Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the face of the firmament of the heavens." 21 So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth." 23 So the evening and the morning were the fifth day.
Genesis 1:24 Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind"; and it was so. 25 And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
Genesis 2:18 And the Lord God said, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him."
Genesis 2:19 Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field
(God commands the earth to bring these forth on the 6th day)
and every bird of the air,
(God commands the waters to bring these forth abundantly on the 5th day)
and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him.
God formed the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air and then brought them to Adam to name, there is no mention of bringing the fish or creeping things to Adam. Clearly God created the physical animals and creatures we see on this planet but spiritually the beasts of the field and fowls of the air have a parabolic meaning too. Could these represent characteristics within ourselves that we need identify/name then tame and rule over?
It seems very likely that this is the case and one of the reasons there a clean and unclean animals (we will explore this more when we study Genesis Chapter 7 - Noah and the ark, clean and unclean animals.) God formed man and did not see that he was good - he said it is not good for him to be alone and that He would create a helper. God wanted us to see aspects of ourselves in the animals but we weren't quite getting the connection so God creates something more comparable, someone we could relate to....
Genesis 1:26 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
Genesis 2:21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. 22 Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. 23 And Adam said: "This is now bone of my bones And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man." 24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. 25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
According to Dennis Prager’s Book Genesis, God, Creation, and Destruction, QUOTE “Most contemporary scholars agree that the Hebrew word tzela does not mean, as often translated, “rib”. Therefore this might be better translated “and God took from one of Adam’s sides and then he closed the skin over it”. END QUOTE
Notice how Adam immediately sees himself in the woman, God's Word states that like the animals and fowls were brought to Adam so was the woman and Adam immediately recognizes that the woman is a part o him.
We also see that the plans were set in motion that man would have children because for the first time we see the words Father and Mother. However the first Man and Woman did not have an earthly father or a mother, they were a part of one thing separated by God but to be “one flesh”.
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