Genesis Lite

18 Sep

Genesis 1

Even heathens know that in the beginning, there is Genesis, which actually contains two creation stories, thanks to oral storytelling origins.

The Adam-and-Eve-less version contains God’s famous line, “Let there be light,” as well as the less catchy, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters” (KJV, Gen. 1:6), or “an expanse between the waters to separate water from water” (NIV, Gen. 1:6). Firmament or expanse, in the beginning it’s a bit like the cosmic quark-gluon soup of physicists. From this, God creates the following, in order: heavens, sky, land/sea, plants, sea creatures, birds, animals, whom he tells them to “be fruitful and multiply.” Included in these critters are livestock, who—I would argue are sorely in need of shepherds, vets, ranchers, trainers, and county fairs. Known for his master planning skills, God’s one step ahead of me and creates a bunch of humans to take care of this pastoral wilderness:

“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” (Gen. 1: 27)

All the while, God is explicitly in spirit form, so how we are in his likeness seems open to interpretation. It’s possible that spiritually we are like God—after all, he does make humans caretakers of his earthly creation:

“Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” (KJV, Gen. 1:28)

Seven simple days. No Adam, no Eve, no Garden of Eden. The end.

 

Up next: Genesis 2 (the other creation story)

3 Responses to “Genesis Lite”

  1. John A. David's avatar
    John A. David September 19, 2012 at 6:31 am #

    The story in the first chapter of genesis is considered a summary rather than a separate account or else the scribes would have tried to match the two.

    • Christina Verigan's avatar
      BibleHeathen September 19, 2012 at 10:30 am #

      I’m still sifting through who wrote what and when. The storytelling reason for both versions is compelling, especially given the way literature and news spread at the time. It’s quite possible that Genesis 1 and 2 were written in different contexts and both were included, because they were both popular or complemented one another. (I would think that they’d want a summary to match what it summarizes, so that seems unlikely to me.)

      • John A. David's avatar
        John A. David September 20, 2012 at 5:50 am #

        There is nothing to contradict if the first chapter is a summary, the second chapter explores the things said in a couple of lines in the first chapter.

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