> In the Beginning <
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” – Genesis 1:1
From out of nothing (the world was without form and void), God created the Heavens and the Earth! The creation all took place in 6 days, and God then rested on the 7th day (also known as the Sabbath). The Hebrew word for ‘day’ here is ‘Yom’ (pronounced ‘yome’), and when ‘evening’ and ‘morning’ are used in the same context, it means literal 24-hour day.
Day 1: Light (Day) and darkness (Night)
God spoke the world into existence, as He did day and night. The first words recorded in the Bible by God are “Let there be light.”
Psalm 33:6-9:
“6 By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.
9 For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.”
Isaiah 45:12 – “I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded.”
Day 2: The separation of waters – water on earth from atmosphere
At the creation of the earth, it seemed that the water was in vapor form, all together. The second day was a day that the Lord separated the waters. Water went into the atmosphere as well as on the surface of the earth.
Day 3: Made dry land (Earth) and separated land from ocean (Seas), and Vegetation (herbs and fruit trees)
Continents and plants were formed and created on the third day.
Day 4: Lights to rule the day and night (Sun & Moon), and the stars – the moon was the ‘lesser light’ and the sun was the ‘greater light’.
Genesis 1:14 – “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:”
One thing I found interesting is that the sun, from sunset to sunset, is a marker of one day. The moon cycles about once every month. The constellations (groups of stars) tell different times of the year. As the earth rotates around the sun, different star constellations can be viewed. As an example, Orion is a constellation that can be seen in winter in the Northern Hemisphere (summer in the Southern Hemisphere).
Psalm 19:1 – “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.”
Day 5: Ocean life (including whales) and birds in the air
These animals were living creatures meant to fill up their territories. God even told them to be fruitful and multiply (1:22).
Day 6: Basically, land creatures (cattle, creeping animals, and beasts of the earth), and humans (man & woman).
The word for man in Hebrew is adam, pronounced aw-dawm. This word is related to adamah, pronounced aw-dawm-ah. Adamah in Hebrew relates to ‘red earth’, or red clay. We find out from Genesis 2:7 that “the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground…”
Chapter 2 of Genesis is a more detailed chapter, describing deeper and different elements of Creation. We find…
- Man was created from dust and God breathed the Breath of Life into his nostrils (2:7)
- God put man in charge of the Garden of Eden and put him to work pretty much immediately, to dress and keep the garden (2:15) and to name the animals (2:19-20) {man was not meant to be lazy, ahem!}
- Woman (wo-man – {‘out of man’ or ‘from man’}) was created when the Lord put Adam under a deep sleep and took a rib from Adam and made a woman from it. She was to be his helpmate and companion (2:18). This woman was ‘bone of his bones and flesh of his flesh.’ The wife was later named ‘Eve’ (means ‘life’) by Adam since she was the mother of all living (3:20).
Man was given dominion over the animals (1:28), and for food, God gave man a bunch of trees to eat from (1:29). The animals were given the green herbs for food (1:30). Everything then was peaceful and non-destructive. When sin entered the world, things started going chaotic!
Day 7: God rested – known as the Sabbath (rest).
The weeks of the calendar are derived from the seven-day ‘Creation Week.’
Genesis 2:3 - “And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.”
Evidence of the Trinity?
In verse 26, God says ‘Let us make man in OUR image, after OUR likeness.” Another evidence of the Trinity, this one found in the New Testament, is in 1 John 5:7 – “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three agree in one.” Jesus was the Word (John 1:14a – “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us…”).
Since we are created in God’s Image, and He is a three-part Being, we are also three-part beings. We have a spirit, a soul, and a body. May we glorify God with all three of our essential components!
Adam was commanded to not eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil (1:9), but he could eat from ANY other tree he wanted. Would he be coaxed wrongly?
The obvious answer here is ‘yes.’ Eve was tempted by the serpent. She proved that she knew the command that God made to Adam – that they could eat from any tree except for the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil – when she talked with the serpent (3:2-3). The serpent (the devil used the form of a snake) and said to Eve basically, ‘What?! You can’t eat from EVERY tree?!’ The serpent was very deceitful! The serpent finally convinced Eve that she would know good and evil and would not die even if she ate from that tree.
Genesis 3:6 – “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”
Lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, and the pride of life were involved in this situation.
I John 2:16 – “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
Lust of the eyes – Tree was pleasant to the eyes
Lust of the flesh – Tree was good for food
Pride of Life – Eating from the tree would make her wise.
Eve messed up, and so did Adam right after Eve. Both of them then were embarrassed at their nakedness. They then put together some fig leaves to cover their nakedness. Penalties of their sin?
- Women will have pain in childbearing and will be completely subject
to her husband (3:16).
- Man will have to work for his food and will sweat for everything (3:17-19). Man and woman will both return to dust (they will die).
Romans 6:23 – “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
God made them coats of animal skins – of innocent animals – and fellowship was restored – He forgave them, but He cast them out of the Garden of Eden due to their sins and put Cherubims (angels) to guard the Garden of Eden. God showed His Mercy here, however. He could have just destroyed man and woman right there, but He let them live longer. Thank the Lord for His Mercy on us! It’s because of His Awesome Mercy that we are alive even today!
Do you know this Excellent Creator? He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die for the payment of our sins, and Jesus rose again. Jesus is the Son of God, and we will study a lot about Him in this entire Bible Study. If you haven’t accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior yet and would like to, He offers you a life full of joy, peace, and purpose. Pray this prayer with me if you wish:
“Father, thank You for sending Jesus and creating these wonderful things around me. I am wonderfully made and believe in You. Thank You for sending Jesus to die on the cross for the payment of my sins, and thank You Jesus for that. I believe that You are the Son of God and want You to be my Lord and Savior. Come into my life and change me and give me purpose in this life. Thank You for Rising again, conquering the power of death and hell and proving that You are the Son of God. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”
If you prayed that prayer with your heart’s desire backing your words up, congratulations! Jesus Loves you infinitely! We love because He first loved us. May the Lord bless you richly!
Keep reading His Word! God is Good! Psalm 99:9 – “Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy.”
Website: http://welcome.to/GlorytoGod
