The Theological-Historical Motif of the Bible The God of the Bible is a God who is intimately connected with what He has made. This world is personal in a very genuine way. This personal dimension to reality is what makes the cross of Christ comprehensible. This is because the “Sin Problem” – what is wrong with this world – must be resolved by a personal God from above, on behalf of sinful persons. The cross is also interpretative of history, …
Category: Creation
This is something I wrote for Dispensational Publishing House God and the Waters of Creation In the very first chapter of the Bible there is an awful lot of water. It does not come from the sky, nor does it run off the mountainous slopes of Hermon. The waters (mayim) which are mentioned first in Genesis 1:2 are just “there” after the initial act of creation. These waters are there even before any land is present. In fact, water is …
Adam is Tested In the next section (2:15-17) we read of God giving the man a straightforward command: Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you may not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil was an actual tree. It is not called a symbol and need not be seen …
Part Eight Adam, Guard or Keeper? Genesis 2:15 has recently stirred the imaginations of a whole group of OT scholars. The reason for this is that they think they observe intimations that all was not well with the good world which Yahweh Elohim had made. For one thing, as we have already said, the garden of Eden was an enclosed garden (gan). Why was it enclosed? Well, maybe because it was the initial safe point of departure for the man …
Part Seven A Thematic Account The second chapter of Genesis is clearly somewhat different than the first. But it was not intended to be another variant account of it. It follows up on the second half of Day Six and the creation of humanity, and throws theological light on it. It is not as concerned with chronology as the previous chapter. So Genesis 2 is not, as the more liberal scholars think, another creation story. It is a thematic zeroing …
Part Six God’s Transcendence versus Continuity It is very important to notice the links between the creation accounts and ethical accounts. In one way or another all non-biblical systems of belief paint a metaphysical picture of reality that is at once unified and diverse. The unity is found in the indissoluble connection between heaven and earth, between man and the “higher powers”, or between the human animal and the Cosmos. The diversity is seen in the various ways this connection …
Part Five Image and Function in Genesis 1:26-28 Another significant fact related by these verses is our creation in the image and likeness of God. We cannot here enter into all the debates about the imago Dei, but some few things should be said. Firstly, God does not say ‘according to My likeness.’ He says ‘Our likeness’. The “Let us” statement is no plural of majesty, since it appears to be ideational, and is to be understood (I believe) as …
