GENESIS 2:1-17
Summary of the chapter
Verses 1 to 3 of this chapter continue the account of the creation of the heaven and the earth begun in chapter 1. Verses 4 to 6 give a general survey of conditions prevailing at the end of the fifth day, before man was created. Verse 7 tells us how Adam was actually made by God. Verses 8-14 describe the conditions that awaited Adam when he first looked around him. Verses 15 to 17 explain the condition imposed on Adam with regard to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The remainder of the chapter, verses 18 to 25 gives us the account of the formation of the woman, and the institution of marriage.
Structure of the chapter
| (a) | Verses 1-3 | The seventh day: The rest of God |
| (b) | Verses 4-6 | The fifth day: The condition of the earth |
| (c) | Verse 7 | The sixth day: The creation of Adam |
| (d) | Verses 8-14 | The sixth day: The garden planted |
| (e) | Verses 15-17 | The sixth day: The command given |
| (f) | Verses 18-25 | The sixth day The woman formed |
(a) Verses 1-3
The seventh day: The rest of God
2:1
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished- so there was a beginning to God’s work, and there was an ending. The one idea refutes evolution, which says, in effect, that matter came from nowhere, and the other refutes theistic evolution, the notion that God began the process of evolution and then let it run its course without intervening. God said, ” I am He: I am the first, I also am the last. Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth, and My right hand hath spanned the heavens: when I call unto them, they stand up together”, Isaiah 48:12,13.
This is not to say that everything is exactly the same as when God created it, for living creatures adapt and change, but as to their creation, the work was finished, and no new animals or plants have been produced since. Of course, “new” plants are being bred all the time, but they are produced from that which was there before. Creationists fully accept that change takes place, (for instance, that the finches of the Galapagos Islands adapt to changing conditions), but they object to such change being called evolution, for it is definitely not. When an organism changes, it is simply utilising other genes from the pool that God gave it at the beginning. Nothing new is created, and no new information is produced.
Note that the word heaven can be rendered in the plural now, for whereas in 1:1 it was the raw materials of the heaven that was made, on the second day God had rearranged that heaven, and divided it up, so the heavens are now dual.
And all the host of them- this would include the teeming myriads of creatures upon earth, the billions of stars in the heavens, and the angel hosts in the presence of God. As the scribes of Nehemiah’s day said, “Thou, even thou, art Lord alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee”, Nehemiah 9:6.
2:2
And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made- there are seven indications in these verses that the work of God was finished in the beginning:
| (a) | Verse 1 | “were finished”. |
| (b) | Verse 1 | “all the host of them”. |
| (c) | Verse 2 | “God ended His work”. |
| (d) | Verse 2 | “which He had made”. |
| (e) | Verse 2 | “rested”. |
| (f) | Verse 2 | “all His work which He had made”. |
| (g) | Verse 3 | “rested from all His work which God created and made”. |
So it is emphatic that God finished everything as to creation at the beginning. It is also true, as the Lord Jesus said, “My Father worketh hitherto and I work”, so God’s work in other areas is ongoing, and the Lord Jesus, as His Son, was involved in that on an equal basis with His Father. This work does not cease on the sabbath day, (for the sun rises on Saturday, the sabbath day, and it is God who “maketh his sun to rise”, Matthew 5:45), so the Lord Jesus has full authority, as the Son of His Father, to work on the sabbath day, John 5:17-19.
Note that the work is ended on the seventh day, even though nothing is actually created. There was an important aspect of creation yet to be spoken of, and it involves God’s pleasure at what He had done. After all, Revelation 4:11 says of God, “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created”.
And he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made- we could reverently liken this to a master-craftsman, having finished all the work on his latest project, being so satisfied and pleased with the result of his efforts that he stands admiring it before laying his tools down for the last time. In this way, the laying down of the tools becomes the last act of creation, the signal that all is complete. So with God; His rest was not the rest of exhaustion, nor was He summoning up His reserves of energy, but it was the rest of infinite satisfaction. As Exodus 31:17 says, “in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed”.
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.
And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it- it is remarkable that God should accomplish His creation work over the span of seven days, and thus establish the seven-day cycle to regulate life upon the earth, but neither the days of the month or the year are divisible by seven without a remainder. There were attempts throughout history to adopt a “week” other than of seven days, but without success. In Babylon, there was a five-day week. At the time of the French Revolution, a ten-day week was adopted. And in the future the Antichrist will seek to “change times and laws”, Daniel 7:25. We could well imagine how this might include the eradication of the seven-day week, so that the godly remnant of Israel will be caused difficulty, especially as the previous phrase was “and shall wear out the saints of the Most High”. That they will seek to observe the sabbath in those times is seen from the Lord’s words to them in Matthew 24:20, “pray that your flight be not on the sabbath day”.
God has sanctified the seventh day; that is, attached special importance to it, setting it apart for a purpose. That purpose being to allow man a respite from his work, so that he may resume it refreshed. During the last war Sunday working was introduced in the United Kingdom to help the war effort. It defeated its object, for less work was done on Monday. We cannot improve on our Creator’s arrangements.
This seventh day rest is not placed upon the rest of creation, (even the angels, Revelation 4:8), however, so it must be something more than refreshment after work that is in view. And indeed it is, for the Epistle to the Hebrews links the rest that God enjoyed at the beginning with the rest He will enjoy at the end of this world’s history. During the millenial reign of Christ the goal God was working towards when He created all things will be realized. For the kingdom of Christ is the kingdom “prepared from the foundation of the world”, Matthew 25:34. Perhaps this is one reason why the formula “the evening and the morning were the seventh day” is not found, for the reign of Christ, although limited in its mediatorial form to one thousand years, is nevertheless an eternal kingdom, as the words of the angel to Mary make clear, for “of his kingdom there shall be no end”, Luke 1:33.
Because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made- so the day is special because of its significance to God. Note the two words, “created”, and “made”. One has to do with the act of creation whereby the raw materials, so to speak, of the heaven and the earth we brought into being, the other has to do with the formation of this material into the finished article. That this creating and making took place in six days is seen from the words of God Himself in Exodus 20:11.
(b) Verses 4-6
The fifth day: The condition of the earth
2:4
These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens,
These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created- the phrase, “these are the generations of”, or one similar to it, is found also in Genesis 5:1, (Adam); 6:9, (Noah); 10:1, (sons of Noah); 11:10, (Shem); 11:27, (Terah); 25:12, (Ishmael); 25:19, (Isaac); 36:1, (Esau); 37:2, (Jacob). In the case of all the other instances, the expression refers to that which follows it, not what goes before. There is a difference, however, in the first use of the phrase, because the word “these” is emphatic, so scholars tell us. This would indicate that the reference is to what goes before, as if to say, “What has been written about the populating of the heavens and the earth since the beginning of the book, these are their true origins, and not any fable of the heathen”. In any case, the book of the generations of Adam does not begin until 5:1, even though we have been told about Cain and Abel beforehand. With Abel dead, and Cain his murderer banished, the generation starts again with Seth.
In the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens- this confirms that the reference is to how things were in God’s “day” of creation. So the generations refer to things brought forth in the creation period, not subsequent events. The generations of Adam begin with the words, “This is the book of the generations of Adam”, Genesis 5;1, and this corresponds to the expression Matthew used as he began his account of the life of Christ, “the book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham”, Matthew 1:1. Note the singular, for after the genealogies of Christ have been given by Matthew and Luke, there are no more, for He brings in finality.
The word day is used in three distinct ways in the creation narrative. In 1:5 the day is the light part of the 24-hour rotation of the earth, (“He called the light day”); in verse 5, and subsequently, the word day means a day of 24 hours, (“the evening and the morning were the first day”); in this verse it refers to the time of God’s creative actions. When a numeral is fixed to a day, then a period of 24 hours is in view, but not otherwise.
Note the first occurrence of the title Lord God here. Up to this point the title has been God, the plural of Eloah, the One to be worshipped. As He created and made all things, God was doing so in order that there might be creatures to worship Him. He was also insisting that He was superior to all that He created, and man should not worship the creature rather than the Creator. Sadly this is what men did, as Romans 1:18-23 makes clear.
Having made those two points clearly, we now have God insisting that He not only created as God, but as Lord God too. The title Lord emphasises the timelessness of God, for it is said to be a combination of the verb “to be” in the future, the present and the past. Of course, these are expressions that we use because we are creatures of time, but God is not limited by time. Yet He graciously accommodates our limitations by declaring, by His name, that He is always there for His creatures. We can count on Him for the future and for the present. We can rely on Him for the past also, for everything done for His glory is remembered by Him. As the writer to the Hebrews puts it, “God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward His name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister”, Hebrews 6:10.
But there is another side to this name, and it is that He is not only always there to bless, He is also always there to assess. So it is that this name is used at the opening of the Book of Revelation, where God describes Himself as “Him which is, and which was, and which is to come”, Revelation 1:4.
2:5
And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.
And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew- this is a continuation of the sentence begun in verse 4. Having spoken of the large things, Moses now narrows the focus, and speaks of plants and herbs. Later he will confine his narrative to what happens in a garden. So two things are singled out, the plants, and man, for Adam is to till the ground and tend the plants. Alas, as the history of man unfolds these two things are central in the fall of man, for he took of the fruit of the forbidden tree in a garden.
Notice the new expression “of the field” which has not occurred before. Formerly, in the account of the making of the plants, it was “the earth”. Now it is “the field”. In verse 19 it will be “beast of the field”, meaning animals capable of being domesticated, and in chapter 4, Abel, a keeper of sheep, and Cain a tiller of the ground and a grower of crops, talk “when they were in the field”. All this suggests that “field” means a plot set aside for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals. The word “plant” indicates plants and bushes, the sort of thing Cain cultivated, and the word “herb”, indicates the tender shoots of the grass, the food for Abel’s flocks.
So first we are told in general terms of conditions “in the day the Lord God made the earth and the heavens”, then, more specifically, that He made every plant “before it was in the earth”, and every herb of the field “before it grew”. Does this imply that God made plants and herbs and then planted them? But we read that on the third day the earth brought forth these things at God’s command. So what does “before it was in the earth” and “before it grew” mean? Could it not be that this is an allusion to the fact that God planted a garden especially for Adam in Eden? And did He transplant into that garden plants and herbs that man would later cultivate? He thus gave Adam the first lesson in gardening.
So God made the plants on the third day, which was before they were in the earth or soil of the special garden he would make for Adam and his wife. Likewise He made the herbs on the third day, before He moved some of them to the garden on the sixth day, to grow there, ready for the immediate use of Adam and Eve.
This makes God the first Gardener. When Mary Magdalene saw a man in the garden where Christ’s sepulchre was, she thought He was the gardener, John 20:15. Remember that when we read of the Lord God creating and making, it is the Triune God that is in view, and the Son of God is one of the persons of that Godhead, for “all things were made by Him”, John 1:3. So when we say God is the first Gardener, we are also saying that the Son of God is the first Gardener. Hence when Mary Magdalene saw Him in the garden, and supposed Him to be the gardener, in one sense her supposition was correct, but not in the way she thought. He has begun, by His death and resurrection, a new creation, and He cultivates that too.
For the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth- this explains, (hence the “for”), why God waited until the sixth day to plant the garden for Adam. Plants and grass are under great strain when they are transplanted, and must not be allowed to dry out.
But God had not caused it to rain yet. This reminds us that rain is entirely a work of God, who normally uses the processes that He has put in place. It is very possible that it did not rain until the time of the Flood, a which point great changes took place to the weather systems of the earth. If this were not the case, surely the rainbow would not be a fit symbol of God’s pledge to not flood the earth with water ever again. If rainbows were common, they would have no special meaning. When God informed Noah that the rainbow was to be the sign of His covenant with the earth He said, “I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud…and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh”, Genesis 9:13,14,15. After the flood, men may have feared when they saw clouds forming, and the rain beginning to fall. Was there another flood coming? But God’s bow assured them that there was not. All this suggests that rain and rainbows were not known to Adam. Incidentally, this shows yet again that Noah’s flood was not restricted to a small area of the earth, for if it was, then this promise has been broken many times, for there have been many localised floods since the days of Noah. Since God does not break promises, the flood was not local.
So to return to Genesis 2:5; the reason why God did not plant the garden until the sixth day was because He knew that the mists would not be enough to enable the plants and herbs He had transplanted to survive. He saw to it that there was a river to water the garden, verse 10.
And there was not a man to till the ground- this is a further reason for the delay, for not only do transplanted crops need a good supply of water, they must be carefully tended, to nurture them while they are establishing themselves. On the third day there was no man to do this, but on the sixth day there was, and after he had waited for the seventh day to pass, Adam could begin his work of tilling the ground in the garden.
2:6
But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.
But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground- verses 6 and 7 tell us how God remedied the situation spoken of in the second half of verse 5, with no rain and no man. Conditions on the earth were clearly very different at this point. None of the violence associated with storms of rain were experienced, and all was calm and serene. Sin always brings disruption and violence. Great changes came about through the fall of man, and the subjection of creation to vanity and the bondage of corruption, Romans 8:20,21, and also at the flood, where other things happened which completely changed the earth. In fact, the apostle Peter says that the earth perished at that time, so far-reaching were the changes, 2 Peter 3:6.
It is a feature of a heavy mist that it is saturating, and covers all the foliage and the surface of the ground. It is not localised at all.
(c) Verse 7
The sixth day: The creation of Adam
2:7
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 soul.
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground- here is the second remedy for the state of things on the third day, when “there was not a man to till the ground”. The plants and herbs have been created, but not man.
We have already been told in Genesis 1:26 that God made man, for there the idea is that he was made from materials already existing, namely the dust of the ground. However, the word “create” is used in 1:27, which means that God was doing a new and original thing, for man is unique in that he is in the image of God.
In the more detailed account of how this was done in the verse we are considering, God formed man of the dust of the ground, and the word is “yatsar”, which means to mould into a form, especially as a potter would as he skilfully fashions a work of art from the clay. So we could say that God’s work was ornamental and outstanding.
The apostle Paul commented on these matters in 1 Corinthians 15, as follows:
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1 Corinthians 15:47 The first man is of the earth, earthy- a reference to the actual material of Adam’s body. He was made of the dust from beneath his feet, which is appropriate, since he would walk on the earth. It would remind him that despite being made in God’s image, and lord over God’s earth, he was still a creature of dust. Abraham recognised this when, outside of Sodom, he prayed to God as one who was “but dust and ashes”, Genesis 18:27. Was he saying that he was nothing, as having come from dust, but also that he deserved nothing but to be turned to ashes as the men of Sodom were about to be, unless the grace of God preserved him? The second man is the Lord from heaven- whilst it is true that when Christ came down from heaven at the incarnation He was the Lord from heaven, (for the angels called Him Christ the Lord when they announced His birth to the shepherds, Luke 2:11), nonetheless the apostle is referring to a risen and exalted Christ coming to effect resurrection for His people at the rapture of the saints. 1 Thessalonians 4:16 says “the Lord himself shall descend from heaven”. He is the Lord both of the dead and the living, Romans 14:9, and this in virtue of the fact that He has died, rose and revived. The things spoken of here with regard to believers receiving a spiritual body await His coming from heaven at the rapture. He did not step out of heaven as a man at His first coming, but came into manhood by the working of the Holy Spirit upon Mary. So Adam came from the dust beneath our feet, but Christ shall come from the sky above our head. The apostle makes no comment here about the Lord’s resurrection body, but emphasises that He is coming from heaven, with the implication that He is going to fit the bodies of His people for that place, ready to be introduced to the Father’s house. 1 Corinthians 15:48 As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy- in other words that the earthy, meaning Adam, and those that are earthy, meaning the rest of men, all share the same body. This is not a stigma, for Adam had an earthy body in innocence. It is true that he was earthly in character, but the point here is that his body was made from the earth. Man dwells in a house of clay, Job 4:19, for God at the beginning formed Adam as a potter forms a vessel, such is the word used in Genesis 2:7. There is no element in our bodies that is not found in the soil. And as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly- for they who are linked with the Lord who is coming from heaven are looked on here as if the resurrection has taken place, and they can be said to be heavenly, sharing the same resurrection body as the Lord when He comes from heaven to make it a reality. As He is, with a glorified body in resurrection, so are the heavenly, (as far as the purpose of God is concerned), those destined for heaven by God’s grace, Ephesians 2:6. Our resurrection body is a house from heaven, 2 Corinthians 5:1,2, meaning it is God’s heavenly purpose for His people that they should have a changed body. It is not one fashioned from the dust, but originates in God’s mind in heaven, just as all things originated in God’s mind at the beginning. 1 Corinthians 15:49 And as we have borne the image of the earthy- the “and” suggests a further thought; not only possessing a natural body like Adam, but representing and manifesting him through it. Adam begat Seth “in his own likeness, after his image”, Genesis 5:3. We shall also bear the image of the heavenly- believers shall have a body in resurrection which will enable them to truly and perfectly represent Christ, not only bodily but morally also, for we shall be like Him, 1 John 3:2. We all represent Adam now, (that is, as far as having a body is concerned), but we are all different in looks, and have our own personality; so also when we represent and manifest Christ fully in resurrection conditions. We should always remember, however, that we should be growing daily in likeness to Christ. Paul’s desire for the Galatians was that Christ might be formed in them, Galatians 4:19, and Christ as the ascended Head of the church has given us gifted men, so that we might “grow up into him in all things”, Ephesians 4:15. |
We return now to Genesis 2:7, with its record of the formation of man:
And breathed into his nostrils the breath of life- to further mark man out as being different to the animals, God personally breathd life into Adam. It is true that the animals as living creatures are living souls, conscious of their environment and capable of reacting to it. Man is different, however, for he has life from God by God’s direct in-breathing. The life Adam had at the beginning was the very life of God. The word breath is the same as for spirit, and God is a Spirit, John 4:24, so God is imparting to Adam that which will make him a being with spirit. We are being told that the spirit of man is from God, and can respond to God. God is preparing Adam for worship, which must be in spirit if it is to be meaningful, John 4:23.
Because the word for life here is in the plural, we learn that Adam was given the ability to live in every sense of the word, whether physically, sensually, morally, intellectually or spiritually.
And man became a living soul- so man is a living soul, as well as having a soul. The soul is what marks him out, and is his dominant part, his self, or ego. His body senses and responds to material things, it is earth-conscious. His soul responds to non-material things, and has more to do with his emotions, and shows him to be self-conscious. But man also possesses a spirit, which enables him to be God-conscious. The spirit enables the believer to worship, and to respond to the words God speaks, the warnings He gives, and the promises He makes. In the unbeliever the activity of the spirit not only takes the form of a dread of God, (as distinct from the godly, reverential fear of the believer), but also enables him to respond to the Devil, who is “the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience”, Ephesians 2:2.
Again, the apostle Paul uses this phrase in 1 Corinthians 15 as he makes known what will happen at the resurrection of the saints:
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1 Corinthians 15:44 There is a natural body- the one possessed by Adam and all in his image. The word natural means soulish, dominated by soul-considerations, appreciating things through the senses. Hence for instance the garden in Eden was full of trees pleasant to the sight, and good for food, and Adam with his soulish body was able to appreciate them. The apostle repeats the fact that there is both a natural body and a spiritual one, for the latter truth was being denied. It is also the truth he is about to develop. He repeats things in this way in verses 46 and 54 also. And there is a spiritual body- only possessed by one man as yet, Jesus Christ. Note that just as Adam had a soulish body, but this did not mean he was immaterial soul only, so Christ has a spiritual body, but this does not mean He is immaterial spirit only. 1 Corinthians 15:45 And so it is written, the first man Adam was made a living soul- note the order in Genesis 2:5,7, where first it is said there was not a man to till the ground, then 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 soul”. So the man described here is the first man, for before him there was no-one to till the ground. The notion that there were men who lived and died before Adam, existing in a supposed era between the first two verses of Genesis 1, has no support in Scripture. Death came in through Adam, Romans 5:12, so there was no death before his sin. The fossil record is perfectly well explained by the events at the Flood. In fact, only an event like the Flood could have formed them. There are no fossils being formed today. The man is specifically and personally named, so that we may be in no doubt that it is of Adam that the apostle is speaking. The Hebrew word “adamah”, from which Adam derives his name, is the word for red earth, for God formed man as a potter forms a clay vessel. So man has a soul, but is also said to be a living soul, that is, a living person, not an inanimate body. The scripture Paul quotes relates to man in innocence, so having a natural body does not imply being a sinner. Note that the name Adam is also used to describe the whole of the human race. See for instance the use of word man (adamah) in each of the first seven verses of Genesis 6. So by bearing the race-name as his personal name, Adam was marked out as the head of the race of men. It is worth remembering that there is only one race; there is not a variety, such as the yellow race, the brown race, the black race, the white race. God has “made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth”, Acts 17:26. So wherever we go on the earth, the people there are of the same blood as ourselves, even though not of the same nation or skin-colour. The last Adam was made a quickening spirit- Christ is not called “the last man Adam”, for that would make Adam His personal name rather than His headship-name. He is the last one who will be head of a race of men. The rabbis spoke of the former Adam and the latter Adam, the Messiah. Christ has become, in resurrection, a quickening spirit. Adam lay on the ground lifeless, and then by the in-breathing of God received life and stood upon his feet. Christ lay lifeless in the tomb, and then took His life again at the commandment of His Father, and stood in resurrection. The fact that He is a quickening spirit does not mean that He is only spirit, any more than Adam being a living soul meant he was only soul. What it does mean is that His resurrection body, the pattern of the saints’ resurrection body, is governed by the highest part of man, the spirit. But whereas Adam was simply the receiver of life, for he became a living soul at his formation, Christ is become, by virtue of His resurrection, the giver of spiritual life even as to the body. This means that He will give His people bodies that fit them to dwell in the realm of spirits, heaven itself. This ability to quicken implies His Deity, for only God can quicken with resurrection life. See John 5:17-25. He also gives this life as one who is “spirit”, that is, has Himself the sort of body that is dominated by the spirit, and can be suitably described by that part of Him. His people shall be like Him, even as to the body, for the apostle writes to the believers at Philippi, “For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself, Philippians 3:20,21. There is another reason why He is called a spirit, and that is because the resurrection of believers is guaranteed because they have the Spirit of the God of resurrection indwelling them. Paul writes, “But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwelleth in you”, Romans 8:11. So there is the united action of the Persons of the Godhead in the raising of the saints, with the God who raised Jesus, the Spirit of God, and Christ Himself, all acting together. We may tabulate the contrasts between Adam and Christ as follows:
1 Corinthians 15:46 Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual- the word “howbeit” introduces further thoughts on this matter, as the apostle now tells us three more features of the resurrection body. The idea of the second being better is a principle which runs throughout scripture. So it is Cain who is the first, Abel the second; Ishmael the first, Isaac the second; Esau the first, Jacob the second; Reuben the first, Judah and Joseph combined, the second. Saul the first, David the second. The law-sacrifices the first, the sacrifice of Christ the second. The first must show itself to be a failure, and be set aside, so that the way is clear for the introduction of the second. When God introduces a second thing, it implies the failure of the first. It is not that He needs to experiment until He reaches perfection. But He does need to allow the first to show us that it is a failure. |
We resume in Genesis 2, where we read of what God did on the sixth day for the good of man:
(d) Verses 8-14
The sixth day: The garden planted
2:8
And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.
And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden- this took place on the sixth day, in preparation for the formation of Adam. Whilst Adam was put over the works of God’s hands, he was not, at first anyway, going to roam the earth. He will have a special place planted for him, where he may enjoy communion with God. The word Eden describes a whole region. The garden is in this region, and hence is known as the garden of Eden, verse 15. The name “Eden” means pleasure, or delight, and is the equivalent to the Greek word paradise. So the whole of the district was a paradise, not just the garden. The reason why the garden was on the eastern side of this region becomes clearer when we come to consider the river.
And there he put the man whom he had formed- even though he was lord of the earth, he was still subject to God, and this is indicated here by the fact that God determined where he should live. Adam had nothing to do with the planting of this garden, so it was completely in line with God’s design. Afterwards he is given the great privilege of tending God’s garden, just as believers have the greater privilege of tending God’s cultivated field, the local church, 1 Corinthians 3:8,9.
2:9
And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight- everything for man’s delight was provided by God when He made the plants on the third day, so He had Adam in mind all along. All the earth was pleasant, the district of Eden was pleasanter still, but the garden of Eden was the most pleasant of them all. Adam will lack nothing, and he may enjoy the works of God’s hands. This sanctions the enjoyment of God’s creation by believers, even though at the moment it is in the bondage of corruption. But we should always remember that spiritual things bring the most delight and the most profit. If the choice is between a day in the country or the opportunity to hear the word of God, the spiritually adjusted believer will always choose the latter.
And good for food- not only is his soul satisfied, but his body is provided for also. He had no reason to doubt God’s goodness, which makes his fall all the more sad.
The tree of life also in the midst of the garden- this too was made to grow out of the earth, (hence the “also”), so it was a real tree, not a fantasy tree. God determined that the desire of Adam to keep in communion with Himself would be by him taking of the tree on a regular basis. No doubt it was an ordinary tree, but the very act of taking its fruit showed God that Adam desired to be in touch with Him. The tree was central, and therefore unmistakable; there was no reason why Adam should forget where it was, for it was not hidden in some obscure spot. It served as a reference point for all Adam’s movements. Sadly, Eve said that it was the tree of knowledge that was in the midst of the garden, 3:3, showing she had lost the centrality of life from God which He constantly held out to her, and had begun to desire what she began to think He had withheld from her.
And the tree of knowledge of good and evil- again this was a real growing tree, but because it was about to have certain prohibitions imposed upon it, it had this character. Once this forbidden tree had been eaten, the one eating would have sinned, and with that would come the realisation of the difference between good, (obeying God), and evil, (disobeying God).
So the first part of the verse tells us of God’s gracious and loving provision for man, but the second half tells us that man has a duty to act responsibly towards God in obedience and subjection. Adam and his wife are being taught that privileges always bring responsibilities, and it is the same today. Men have the opportunity to come to Christ for life, but sadly, the majority prefer to disobey God.
2:10
And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.
And a river went out of Eden to water the garden- the garden was not just watered by the mist that went up from the earth, but had the additional provision of a river. This would serve to raise the water table of the soil of the garden so the water was available in the best possible way, through the roots.
And from thence it was parted, and became into four heads- this shows that the pre-flood earth was governed by different principles than pertain now. At present, smaller rivers combine to form a large river. It may divide into separate channels when it reaches the sea, as the Nile does, and forms the Nile Delta, but that division does not produce a river. This river is clearly powered by water from its source, and does not need to be supplemented by tributaries. Very possibly it was fed by an artesian well, where water is forced up from beneath because of water pressure below the surface.
2:11
The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold;
The name of the first is Pison- we should remember that these rivers are before the flood, and do not exist today, so we should not be surprised if we do not find them. We might ask what purpose is served by telling us these details. They are important, because they show that the Bible is real history, and not fiction. Moreover it tells us things that we need to know, but which we could not find out ourselves. We might compare the writings of Luke which abound in historical detail, (many of which have been criticised as being incorrect, until they were found to be right), and which show him to be a careful historian. The same is true for the writer here.
That is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold- it is interesting that the present tense should be used here, “compasseth”, telling us that either the writer was present at the time, and was describing things as they were currently, (which suggests that Adam was the original writer), or else Moses is writing as if he had been there at the time. We should remember that Adam lived for nine hundred and thirty years, enough time for the rivers and the countries they flowed through to be named, and the minerals and gems found there to be discovered.
God does not tell men where gold is today, lest they should lust after material things, but now that the land of Havilah is unknown, the information can be divulged.
There were two men named Havilah after the flood, one a grandson of Ham, Genesis 10:7, and another who was a descendant of Shem, 10:29. The name means “bringing forth” so may only have reference to their birth. Pison means “dispersive”, from a word meaning to spread, so seems to have been a broader stream.
2:12
And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
And the gold of that land is good- it is God who put the gold there, and God who pronounces it good. There is nothing wrong with gold in itself, it is the use to which men put it that is evil. Paul could honestly say, “I have coveted no man’s silver, or gold, or apparel”, Acts 20:33. He also said that “they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition”, 1 Timothy 5:9. It is also worth remembering that if God should allow a believer to gain riches, he should heed the exhortation to “do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate”, 1 Timothy 5:18.
There is bdellium and the onyx stone- again, these are details that are of no monetary value to us today, but which remind us of the historical nature of the account here.
2:13
And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia.
And the name of the second river is Gihon- the name of this river is not recognisable today, but the word comes from the verb “to gush forth”, telling us of the force of the waters as they issued forth from underground, much as artesian wells do today. Here the waters gush forth from the earth in blessing, whereas at the flood they gushed forth in judgement.
The same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia- we are being told of pre-flood conditions here, so we do not know if this Ethiopia is in the same place as the current one, or whether the present one is named after it or after Cush the grandson of Noah. He was not born until after the flood, so the first Ethiopia was not named after him. A people known as the Kassites came from an area east of Mesopotamia, and their name might come from the word Cush. The river seemed to mark the boundary of the country by circling it.
2:14
And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates.
And the name of the third river is Hiddekel- the word means “an arrow”, or “lively”, and suggests that it flowed in a straight course, and swiftly. Others derive the name from a Sumerian word meaning “ever-flowing”. After the flood there was a river of this name which in Daniel’s day was called Hiddekel, Daniel 10:4, and today is called the Tigris.
That is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria- again, we have to remember these are pre-flood locations, and unless the Assyria of a later century was named after this one, (which could well be, since those who came out of the ark would have known the name of the country that was there before the flood), we cannot tell its exact location now, but the writer of these words knew.
And the fourth river is Euphrates- this seems a very terse statement, almost as if there was something sinister about the river. As indeed there is, for Babylon was built on its banks, and the river features in the judgements of the Great Tribulation period, Revelation 16:12-16. When the latter-day Euphrates is dried up, the way is clear for the kings of the east to invade the land of Israel.
(e) Verses 15-17
The sixth day: The command given
2:15
And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
And the Lord God took the man- we have already been told in verse 8 that the man has been put into the garden of Eden. There it was in connection with the pleasant trees, including the two trees in the midst of the garden. Now we are told again, in connection with those two trees, and also Adam’s task to care for the garden. The privileges of verse 8 now have their responsibilities, both physically and morally. Privileges always bring responsibilities.
And put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it- Adam is learning that despite having dominion over creation, he is subject to God, who determines where he shall live, and what he shall do and, (in the next verse), not do.
The word dress simply indicates work. Adam is to work hard in the garden. God thereby sanctifies hard work. The apostle Paul wrote, “For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat”, 2 Thessalonians 3:10. Of course there are those who are physically or mentally incapable of working, and believers are to labour so as to be able to support the weak, Acts 20:35. But all others should be busily occupied. The apostle Paul was able to say, “These hands have ministered to my necessities, and to them that were with me”, Acts 20:34. He said this as one who had authority to not work if the occasion and circumstances demanded it. His words were, “Or I only and Barnabas, have we not power to forbear working?” 1 Corinthians 9:6. But he did not use this power, and laboured at his tent-making and still had time to spread the gospel. One of the sins of Sodom was that they had “an abundance of idleness”, and this clearly led to other sins.
The idea behind the command to keep the garden is that of attending to the garden with persistence. So we learn that God expects man to work with perseverance, and not half-heartedly. As the wise man said, “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might”, Ecclesiastes 9:10.
Of course the word for keep does have the idea of guarding within it, but before sin entered there were no dangers to ward off. After Lucifer had fallen, (somewhere between the seventh day and the day of the fall of man), he represented a danger to Adam. Perhaps God warned him to be on his guard, and defend the garden from his entry. Perhaps this is why Satan used the serpent to deceive Eve, for she would be used to that creature, and not think it to be a threat.
2:16
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying- this is the first time we have God speaking to man, and His speech takes the form of a command. He had commanded to produce creation, for the psalmist said, “For He spake, and it was done; He commanded and it stood fast”, Psalm 33:9, but now He is addressing man. Again the subjection of man to God is emphasised. Adam must own Him as Lord as well as God. Note the singular pronoun “thou” throughout this section, for Adam is being held responsible personally for what he is being told.
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat- the goodness of God is emphasised here, for not only may they eat of the variety of trees of the garden, (for God had planted “every tree that…is good for food”, verse 9), but they could eat freely; there was no prohibition at all.
To not eat of one tree will involve no hardship for Adam, for there are plenty of others, showing that God’s demands are perfectly reasonable. As the apostle John wrote, “His commandments are not grievous”, 1 John 5:3. The Lord Jesus was tempted in a wilderness, but triumphed. Adam was tempted in a paradise, and fell. The difference lay in the attitude of will displayed by both.
2:17
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it- Adam is being set a simple and straightforward test. By obeying he will show his obedience, and also show he is a moral being, unlike the animals. He is not even being commanded to do something, but simply to refrain out of respect for God’s authority. He is the only one who has the right to prohibit eating from this tree, and He exercises that right.
As already noted, this tree is of a normal sort. It is not a mystical tree, but one that is called the tree of the knowledge of good and evil not because its fruit gives that knowledge when eaten, but that to reach up and take, and then eat the fruit, is to disobey. Nor is it a poisonous tree, which causes physical death the same day as it is eaten. Adam lived nine hundred and thirty years after eating this tree.
For in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die- the reason for this is that once they have eaten of this tree, they will forfeit their right to live in the garden, and will not have access to the tree of life any longer. So God drove them out from the garden the day they sinned, and they therefore died the day they sinned. Instead of being maintained in eternal life as they took of the tree of life and thereby showed their allegiance and obedience to God, they were cut off from the life of God.
These words were spoken to Adam before the woman was made, and establishes his authority over her, and also gives him the responsibility of passing on this command of God. This is why Paul writes, “For Adam was first formed, then Eve”, 1 Timothy 2:13. It is also why Paul describes Eve’s action as transgression, for she went against a known command. The apostle had introduced the twin ideas of praying and preaching in verses 1-7. Having dealt with the praying in verses 1-10, he then turned to the matter of preaching and teaching, as follows:
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1 Timothy 2:11 Let the woman learn in silence- in verses 8-10 it was men and women, plural, for it is a collective act of praying that is in view. Here, the idea is of one man preaching or teaching, and the attitude to be adopted by any one woman as he does so. Incidentally, the apostle envisages that preaching as well as teaching is to be done in the assembly gatherings. There is nothing wrong, therefore, in having meetings of the assembly for the preaching of the gospel. We see from the examples in the Book of Acts, that the gospel was preached in the environment that was conducive to serious thought. So the apostles invariably went first into the synagogues, for that was the place where those who were seeking God could be found. On occasions, the apostle was rejected by the synagogue, so what did he do? He is forbidden to cast his pearls before swine or give that which is holy to dogs, Matthew 7:6. In other words, it is to interested persons that the gospel is to be made known. Having preached in the synagogue in Ephesus for three months, he found that many were rejecting his word, so he went and preached in the school of Tyrannus, and as a result, during the next two years, “all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus”, Acts 19:8-10. Clearly, those who came to hear Paul had an interest in seeking God, and he was therefore free to preach to them. The same thing happened at Corinth, for when the Jews in the synagogue opposed Paul’s preaching, he departed, and entered into the house of Justus, which adjoined the synagogue. As a result, the chief ruler of the synagogue was converted, Acts 18:6-8. And even Paul’s practice at Athens will not be seen as an exception to this. He went to the synagogue, but also to the market-place, for in those times that was where ideas were exchanged. There were those who met with him, interested in the ideas he promoted, and then the philosophers “encountered him”, a translation of the same word as is found in Acts 4:15, rendered there “conferred”. Then he was invited to speak on Mars’ Hill, for the philosophers expressed some sort of interest, Acts 17:16-19. To return to our verses. Any and every believing woman, then, as preaching or teaching is going on in the assembly, is to learn in silence. This is not to say, of course, that the men are not to learn. Rather, the idea is that she learns, and does not teach. It is not a contrast between learning or not learning, but between teaching and learning. And this is to be done in silence. But it is the silence of one who is intelligent as to why it is to be so, and without any fretting because it is so. Hence the word for silence has the idea of quietness of spirit, the opposite of smouldering anger and resentment. Such a spirit is out of place in any assembly gathering, prayer meeting included. Those who harbour such an attitude will grieve the Spirit and hinder the prayers. With all subjection- there is not to be a constant attempt to avoid the injunction, (by the introduction of women’s prayer meetings, for instance), but a willing and wholehearted bowing to the will of God. The word subjection reminds us that God has put in place a certain order with regard to believers. “The head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God”, 1 Corinthians 11:3. The last phrase removes any idea from our minds that being in subjection is a morally or intellectually inferior position, for Christ is not morally or intellectually inferior to God. What He is, though, is one who as a man has willingly subjected Himself to His Father. It is therefore a spiritual attitude to adopt. So Christ is subject, to God. The man is subject, to Christ. The woman is subject, to the man. This is God’s order in God’s house, whatever the order in the houses of men may be. 1 Timothy 2:12 But I suffer not a woman to teach- we have noticed that the directions here relate to the house of God, the assembly, when it is gathered together. In that setting, it is the man who is given the task of teaching, and the woman is not to teach, but learn from the teaching. Of course the male believers who are not teaching are learning also, but they may teach on other occasions, if gifted to do so, but the women are not to do so. Nor to usurp authority over the man- this is the second thing the woman must not do. There is no ground for saying that the woman may teach as long as she does not usurp the authority of the man as she does so, for teaching is an exercise of authority, under God, for it is the setting forth of Divine commands. It is said of the Lord Jesus that “He taught them as one having authority”, Matthew 7:29. When two statements are separated by “nor”, as here, it means that they are distinct, and the second is not an explanation or expansion of the first, but has its own relevance. The apostle is very decisive in 1 Corinthians 14:34 when he writes, “Let your women keep silence in the churches, for it is not permitted unto them to speak”. It is impossible to teach without speaking, so the two Scriptures complement one another. But to be in silence- here is a repeat of the word used in the previous verse, emphasising again that there should be quietness of spirit on the part of the sisters. They may have misgivings about what a brother is teaching, and they may raise this privately with one of the elders, but they must not interrupt or in any other way assert themselves. If they do not remain silent, then they must either be teaching, or in other ways usurping the authority of the man. The fact that the word silence means quietness also has a lesson for the men, for they should not act or speak in any way that causes the sisters disquiet. So the injunction is a positive one for both males and females. For the sisters, there is the opportunity of responding to God’s will with a happy spirit, not fretting because of God’s requirement, but seeing it as a command to be cheerfully obeyed, to His glory. It is a positive one for the brothers, too, not to give them licence to be overbearing, but to administer for God in a spiritual way. God very graciously gives us the reason for the foregoing injunctions, for He expects us to have enquiring minds. There were two things the woman must not do, in verse 12. Now the apostle explains the reasoning behind the prohibitions, and he does so, as often, in the reverse order to which they were mentioned. So he deals with the question of the woman usurping authority, and then the question of the woman teaching. 1 Timothy 2:13 For Adam was first formed, then Eve- in Genesis 1:26-28 we read of God’s determination to make man. That is, man in the sense of “man-kind”, in contrast to the “kinds” of animals created previously. Mankind is going to consist of male and female, and so the first male and female are made by God on the sixth day. In chapter 2 we are given more details about the way each was made, for God, by the way and the order in which He made the man and the woman, sets forth basic principles that would pertain to life on earth from then on. We need to be clear that both the man and the woman are made in the image of God, and so are equal before Him. But when it comes to the administration of the earth, then the man is given the dominant position. He is to be dominant, but not domineering. This makes the situation clear from the beginning, and God’s mind is thereby known from the outset. So it is that in Genesis 1:7 the man is made from the dust of the ground, and God breathes into his nostrils the breath of life and he becomes a living soul. In verses 18-23 we learn about the formation of the woman from one of Adam’s ribs. So, as the apostle says in the verse we are considering, Adam was formed first, before Eve. Clearly, they could have both been made of the dust of the ground at the same time, but God was indicating certain principles by the order in which they were made. The fact that the apostle appeals to the Book of Genesis shows that he was not speaking of a matter that was particular to Ephesus. By going back to the very beginning of life upon earth, Paul is setting out truth of universal application. The apostle calls the woman Eve, even though she was not called that until God had indicated, in Genesis 3:16, that she would bear children. Adam called her “Eve”, a name which means “living”, because “she was the mother of all living”. (It is interesting to note that scientists are coming round to the idea that the human race descends from one woman, and they have labelled her “Mitochrondial Eve”). By using this name for the woman Paul is moving us on from Genesis 2 to Genesis 3, where the naming took place, and also where the transgression took place, and the prophecies about childbearing also. Because she was formed after Adam, the woman came on the scene after God had given Adam commandments about the trees of the garden, Genesis 2:16,17. So it was that he was established as the custodian of God’s commands, with responsibility for passing them on, not only to the woman, but also to all who should be born afterwards. For this reason, the woman is not to usurp the authority of the man, for he is charged with administering for God. This is rejected in the world, but if there is one place where it should be accepted it is in God’s house, the local assembly. All in the assembly have the duty of upholding this principle; the sisters by not usurping authority, the brothers by rising to their responsibilities. Details as to how they may do this are given in 1 Timothy chapter 4, and elsewhere in the New Testament epistles. |
We return now to Genesis 2:17, where God warns Adam that to eat of the tree is to die. Death is spoken of in four different ways in scripture:
1. Death in trespasses and sins. This is what Adam and his wife experienced when they were barred from the Tree of Life on the day they sinned. They were cut off from the life of God because they had disobeyed Him and become sinners and transgressors. As a result, all who have come from Adam, (Christ excepted, for He was born of a virgin, and therefore did not have the sin-nature that is passed on by the father), are born in a state of separation from God. There is a remedy for this, for the Lord Jesus said, “He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life”, John 5:24.
2. Physical death. James tells us that “the body without the spirit is dead”, James 2:26. So physical death is the separation of the spirit of man from his body. This happens because he has a sin-principle within, and because of this has forfeited his right to continue on the earth. God in His mercy allows him space to repent. The remedy for physical death is resurrection. As the Lord Jesus said, “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die”, John 11:25,26.
3. Moral death. This relates to the believer. The apostle Paul wrote, “Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live”, Romans 8:12,13. He went on to speak of the believer as one who is indwelt by the Spirit of God. The believer has no obligation to give way to the dictates of the sinful self he possesses because he has the same body as he had before conversion. If he should give way to it, however, and live after the flesh, then for however long that lasts, he is not living after the Spirit, and is in a state of moral death. This does not affect his status as a believer, but it does mean his time is being wasted. This was the case with the prodigal son, of whom his father said, “This my son was dead, and is alive again”. He was dead as far as fellowship with the father was concerned. This lasted as long as he was in the far country. No sooner had he returned, that he began to live as his father’s son again. It is possible for believers to be in “the far country”, for they have distanced themselves from the enjoyment of heavenly things. They cannot lose their salvation, any more than the prodigal lost his sonship, but they can, like the prodigal, lose the enjoyment of it, and more importantly, deprive their Father of their fellowship.
The second death. This is defined twice over for us in the Book of Revelation. After a description of the Great White Throne judgement at the end of time as we know it, we read, “And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire”, Revelation 20:14,15. And again, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death”, Revelation 21:8. Sinners shall be raised with a body which is “salted with fire”, Mark 9:49, so that just as salt preserves the body now, the fire will preserve the body then, so that the fire will preserve for more fire, and so it will be for eternity.
After the great white throne judgement has taken place, both death and hell shall be cast into the lake of fire to signify that they will never be used again. But those who once were in death and hell shall have only one place to go. Whereas the first death is separation of spirit and body because the soul was cut off from the life of God, the second death is the separation of the whole person from God in the place of torment for all eternity. Whereas there is a remedy for the first three sorts of death, there will be no remedy for the second death once it is experienced. The remedy is available now, even the gospel of the grace of God.