The first chapter of Genesis is one of the most God centered chapters in the Bible. God is mentioned 32 times in 31 verses. Add to that the use of personal pronouns, and He is mentioned no less than 43 times. Genesis 1 is similar to the Babylonian creation epic, however is told with a very different purpose and results in a much more dynamic and interesting way, leading to the study and debate that has resulted in many theories of creation. You don't have to tell me that the Bible depicts the Earth as being very old, however the Bible gives God's account of creation in 10 words. "In the beginning God creates the heaven and the earth" (Gen 1:1); which can be more accurately translated "When God created the heaven and earth" (Gen 1:1 retranslated). The Hebrew God transcends nature and is known through history and events. Attempts have been made to explain the first creation story in the Bible with three distinct theories.
1. Day age theory - The "days" of Genesis 1 are viewed not as a literal 24 hour period, but as epochs, or ages, and can even be translated as a vast period of time.
2. Gap theory - (Gen 1:1) records the account of the original creation - between the first and second verses of Genesis, theorists postulate a gap of countless ages. In that gap they insert all the ages demanded by geologists, ending with the glacial age said to be described in (Gen 1:2) The remainder of the chapter is not an account of the original creation, but of the rehabilitation of the earth as an abode fit for man.
3. The revelation theory - The days of Genesis 1 are literally 24 hours but they are days in the life of Moses. In six days God revealed to Moses the truths concerning creation, and on each of those days Moses recorded the revelation that was given to him.
Scholars suggest Moses might not have been the only writer of the Torah and his is true because there were many scribes who have edited and re wrote the Torah many times before it became the translated text we all know and love. (for those who love the Torah or Bible)
Peter Stoner, a mathematician, lists 13 steps of Creation in Genesis 1
1. Creation of the Universe
2. Light
3. Darkness Dispelled from the earth
4. The atmosphere established
5. the seas appointed their boundaries
6. The continents raises (Pangaea)
7. Plant life formed
8. Sun, moon, and stars appointed to function
9. Marine life created
10. fowls created
11.The age of monsters decreed
12. The creation of land vertebrae's
13. Man was created
The chances of writing Genesis 1 in that order by accident would result in 1 chance in 31 sextillion or 31,000,000,000,000,000,000,000
Peter Stoner, Science Speaks (Chicago: Moody 1958)
Three Hebrew words are used in Genesis 1 to describe the process of creation
1. Bara - occurs 55 times in the Old Testament and carries the idea of instantaneous , miraculous creation.
2. Asah - "Make" things
3. Yatsa - "Form" things
Our knowledge of the Universe is in such a state of flux, we should challenge anyone who claim (Gen 1:1) is "unscientific" remember that the science of Darwin, Keplar, Copernicus, and Sir Isaac Newton are now obsolete and that the theories of today will be just as archaic in 10 to 20 years. Scientists have what they call " a five year half-life." That is, in five years half of what is now "known" to be fact will be proved false and be replaced by a new theory.
Genesis 1 divided into 2 major sections
1. The establishment of life on earth (Gen 1:2-13)
2. The establishment of law on the earth (Gen 1: 14-31)
The 2 sections are clearly defined
There are also 2 theories of (Gen 1:2)
1. describes the primitive state of matter when it was first created
2. describes a later catastrophe that overlook the original creation
The second theory was developed due to translation of the word 'was' can also be translated as 'become'
"And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep." (Gen 1:2)
"And the earth became without form, and void; and darkness became upon the face of the deep. (Gen 1:2 retranslated)
Support for the second translation can be found in (Isaiah 45:18) where it is stated that God did not make the earth waste and void; some postulate the chaos of the earth was possibly on of the results of Lucifer's fall (Isaiah 14:12-17) (Ezekiel 28:11-19), which would also support Satan being on earth when Adam and Eve ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge, even though the name Satan is never written in the Old Testament.
In the story of Job "the satan" (notice lowercase s)is simply a member of the divine council - one of Gods minions who's functions are to investigate affairs on earth and act as a prosecuting attorney, his job is to bring evildoers to justice. It's only later thought that the term loses it's definitive article - from "the satan" which means "the prosecutor" becomes a proper name Satan (notice capital S), for the enemy or opponent of God or "The Adversary" as seen in (Matt 4:10)
"Then saith Jesus unto him, get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only thou shalt serve." (Matt 4:10)
Paul seems to make an interesting use of the creation story in (2 Corinthians 4:6)
"For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6)
Unquestionably many passages of scripture have depths of meaning that can only faintly be seen on the surface.
The Prevailing Chaos found in Genesis is dispelled in 3 stages
1. God dealt with the darkness (Gen 1:3)
2. God dealt with the disorder (Gen 1:6-8), (Gen 1:9-10)
3. God dealt with the deadness of the planet (Gen 1:11-13)
God created Adam and gave him duties or "crowned" Adam (Gen :28-31) with three things
1.Posterity - "be fruitful and multiply" (Gen 1:28)
2.Position - (Gen 1:28)
3.Possession - (Gen :29-31)
The conclusion of chapter 1 goes on to describe the creation of Eve as the final act of creation.
Genesis 2
God Rests, and symbolizes the end of creation and then God "blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it" (Gen 2:2-3)
Instead of being a day of rest, the Jews, with their minutia, encrusted the day with such enormous coverings of tradition that the day became an intolerable burden.
By the time the Lord Jesus trod the earth, the Jews had decided that if you carry a loaf of bread from one house to another broke the Sabbath; that to extinguish a lamp was work; that it was permissible to lift a child, but if the child had a stone in his or her hand the mother had broken the Sabbath by doing work; that it was permissible to look in the mirror, but to see a white hair and pull it out was work; that to scatter two seeds was sowing and therefore work; that to pluck a blade of grass was work; that to lift a burden and therefore was work and the desecration of the Sabbath. Gods Sabbath was soon broken by sin when the Jews accused Christ of breaking the Sabbath, He replied "My Father worketh hitherto, and I work" (John 5:17)
The phrase "These are the generations" occur 14 times in Genesis.
It underlines one of the basic movements of the Bible - generation, degeneration, and regeneration. The word "generation" means "family history". In Genesis we have the generations of Noah, Terah, Ishmael, Isaac, Esau, the sons of Esau, and Jacob. But first, we have the family history of the old creation which ran until everything was ruined by the fall of Adam and Eve. Adam is the liaison between the first family and the second because he was the ruler of all of which was the first creation given to him by God. There are three closing statements, the first, which are the generations of the heaven and earth. In Genesis 1 it is noted that Elohim acted as the creator and symbolizes God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Ghost as being there at the time of creation. Elohim is a plural name in Hebrew which symbolizes the Godhead and is referenced 2,700 time in the Bible. There is a great debate about the Trinity and Elohim is one of the many ways to constitute that the Trinity is real however the Trinity was first introduced in AD 325 at the first council of Nicaea when Christian Bishops convened in Bithynia by Roman Emperor Constantine about the consensus that God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost were the same or that they were three distinct separate beings. The argument was really about why they were worshiping God and the Holy Ghost as divine and whether Jesus was considered divine and to be worshiped as God or as a God. Unfortunately, there is no clear answer to these questions and therefore can be, and will be debated for centuries; however, the Trinity is never actually mentioned in the Bible and thus does not exist. Although Elohim mean's "Gods" and is usually always plural, when it is used to refer to the God of Israel it is clearly singular. There is one other translation to Elohim and can mean "God's Justice" which is argued to be why it is usually in plural form.
There are are a total of 8 names used in the Old Testament to name or describe God.
1.Adonia (ah-doe-noy) "My Lord" in plural form
2.Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh (eh-yeh-ah-share eh-yeh) "I will be who I will be"
3.Elohim (el-oh-heem) "God's Justice" or "Gods" usually always plural
4.HaMakom (Hah-mah-comb) "The Place"
5.HaShem (Hah-Shem) "The Name"
6.Shaddai (Shah-die) "The Almighty"
7.Yah (Yah) "original point which all things come"
8.YHVH (Yah-whey) 162 times in Genesis and 34 times on the lips of speakers within Genesis and 6807 times in the Old Testament " Y or Yud means the original point which all things come and the H complements Y just as the human intellect takes ideas and expands them. V or vov stands for the 6 central attributes of God and (man) and the fourth letter H stands for hey and means the vastness of everything."
In the Old Testament knowing someone's name meant to have power over that person, or to be powerful and thus knowing a name in a biblical story had significant importance.
In some Christian religions YHVH is the name of God (actual name) and in other Christian religions YHVH is Jesus Christ before He was sent to earth in Flesh and Bone. Theories of Jesus being apart of the creation process and was there before, during, and after the creation of man and will continue to be there for all of time.
(Genesis 2:5-6) was the time of Pangaea and the verse has given rise to much speculation. What was the planet like in the distant dawn of time? Why did people live to such great ages as did the antediluvian patriarchs? Those questions are theorized to be at a time when the earth was completely covered in an ice canopy. Thus, it enjoyed a uniform greenhouse temperature, light was diffused, the harmful rays of the sun were screened out, energy consumption was less, and the earth was watered with a dew like mist. According to that theory, the flood was caused by the collapse of the canopy, and the separation of the continents were also attributed to the great flood. (Genesis 10:25) shows the earth was divided. The theory of the ice canopy was espoused by Theodore Schwarz, a renowned scientist and fellow of the prestigious American Association for the Advancement of Science. See Theodore Schwarz, the marvel of earth's canopies (westchester, Ill,: Good News, 1957)