Meditation on the Book of Genesis (Part 1) The Creation of the Heavens and the Earth (Genesis 1)
Introduction
The biblical book of Genesis contains an important existential message because it explains that God is the Creator of the universe and the earth, but also, that he is the source of life. Of course, among humans, there are those who believe in it and those who think that the narrative of Genesis is only a myth, they do not believe in it. These two aspects of the controversy over the origin of life will be dealt later (on the meditation on chapter 1 of Genesis). The existential dimension of the creation story will determine the whole way of life of the human being, depending on whether he sincerely believes in it or not. If God exists, we must obey Him (Micah 6:8). If God does not exist, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we are to die (1 Corinthians 15:32).
The apostle Paul, wrote under inspiration, that All Scripture (in the Bible) is inspired of God (2 Timothy 3:16,17). In that time, about two thousand years ago, the book of Genesis had been written by Moses, about 15 centuries before. However, if indeed the holy spirit of God guided Moses to write this book, it seems to be a compilation of historical narratives. It is possible that Moses did the work of a historian, under the power of the holy spirit, by compiling historical accounts, from an oral tradition, or better, from a written tradition. Certain details show that it is indeed a compilation of historical accounts. Here are the conclusions or introductions of the different parts of Genesis: “This is a history of the heavens and the earth in the time they were created, in the day that Jehovah God made earth and heaven” (Genesis 2:4). Moses seems to be both concluding as if he had finished the first part of his historical narrative and at the same time introducing the second part, which could be written, or the result of the memorization of an oral tradition of the story of the creation of the heavens and the earth, mentioned throughout chapter 1 and the very beginning of chapter 2, linking to the story of chapter 2 (“This is the book of Adam’s history” (Genesis 5:1); “This is the history of Noah” (Genesis 6:9)).
The meditation on the book of Genesis will not be exhaustive, but will highlight the most important historical and teaching points on existential questions. To have an excellent knowledge of this book, it is advisable to read the fifty chapters. Genesis is a book of biblical stories very easy to understand and whose narrative is captivating. By reading Genesis while memorizing the outline of the historical narrative, we will be able to better understand the historical allusions in the teaching of Christ, and the letters of his apostles and disciples, in the New Testament. In order to encourage readers who did not read Genesis, to read it, here are the different parts of this book:
- Genesis 1:1–2:3: the story of the development of the planet Earth to accommodate plant, animal and human life.
- Genesis 2:4–25: the more detailed story of the creation of animals and then of Adam and Eve.
- Genesis chapter 3: the entry of sin into the world and the judgment by God, of Satan, Adam and Eve, accompanied by a promise (verse 15).
- Genesis chapter 4: the birth of Adam and Eve’s first children, Cain’s jealousy which led him to murder his brother Abel.
- Genesis chapter 5: this part contains genealogical information with a list of names.
Genesis chapters 6 to 9: this is the story of Noah’s life (introduced in 5:32 and which truly begins in 6:9), which allows us to understand the reasons that led God to decree the coming of a flood on the earth. The construction of the ark, its dimensions, the story of the flood, and his post-flood life.
- Genesis chapter 10: this part contains genealogical information with a list of names, like chapter 5.
- Genesis 11:1–9: this is the story of Nimrod’s rebellion against God, the founding of the city of Babylon and the confusion of languages.
- Genesis 11:10–32: this is the story of Shem, which allows us to better understand the genealogical links between Shem and Abraham (it is quite possible that the Melchizedek met by Abraham, mentioned in Genesis 14:18, is Shem himself, his ancestor).
- Genesis chapters 12 to 25:11: the story of Abraham’s life.
- Genesis chapter 19: the story of Lot’s life, his wife and his two daughters, during the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
- Genesis 25:12–18: the life of Ishmael, Abraham’s first son with Hagar, his slave.
- Genesis 25:19–28:9: the story of Isaac’s life with the different stories between his two twin sons Jacob and Esau.
- Genesis 28:10 to chapter 37 (except chapter 36 which mentions the story of Esau, more by a genealogical list, as in chapters 5 and 10): the beginning of the story of Jacob’s life, when he fled, his work with his uncle Laban, his marriage with his two cousins, Leah and Rachel, the birth of his twelve children and many other exciting events.
- Genesis 38: the story of the life of Judah, son of Jacob, the special episode between him and Tamar his daughter-in-law, of his first two sons.
- Genesis chapter 39 to 50: it is mainly the exciting story of the forced exile of Joseph (son of Jacob) in Egypt, his imprisonment and his elevation to the second place (after Pharaoh) in the governance of Egypt. It is a particularly moving story…
This synopsis allows us to see that Genesis is a true book of biblical history, and that in this circumstance, Moses did an excellent job as a historian. Concerning the inspired dimension of Genesis, here is what the apostle Paul wrote: “All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, so that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16,17). Thus, our reading of Genesis must be done in a spiritual way and not simply intellectual or playful way. For example, when Jesus Christ described the last days of the present system of things, he alluded to the faith of Noah (Matthew 24:36–42). Regarding his dissertation on the faith of the apostle Paul, in Hebrews chapter 11, he evokes historical figures from Genesis. This demonstrates that both Jesus Christ and his disciples knew how to learn from the historical accounts of Genesis. We must imitate them in reading Genesis, as in the other books of the Bible, striving to derive spiritual benefits.
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”
(Genesis 1:1)
This first verse of the Bible, in the first book of the Bible, Genesis, summarizes 13 billion years, the age assumed by science, of the universe. Genesis chapter 1 is the description of the arrangement of the planet earth, in order to accommodate life, as if an observer were there, describing it. In verses 3 and 14, it is written: “Let there be light. Then there was light. (…) Let there be luminaries in the expanse of the heavens”. These two events do not describe the creation of the heavenly luminaries at the time of this description, but rather, the fact that as an earthly observer, the light appears in a diffuse way, to later reveal the distinct features of the different heavenly luminaries, the sun, the moon and the stars. In fact, the creation of the celestial lights is part of the creation of the heavens and the earth, mentioned in verse 1:
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2 Now the earth was formless and desolate, and there was darkness upon the surface of the watery deep, and God’s active force was moving about over the surface of the waters.
3 And God said: “Let there be light.” Then there was light. 4 After that God saw that the light was good, and God began to divide the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, but the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, a first day.
6 Then God said: “Let there be an expanse between the waters, and let there be a division between the waters and the waters.” 7 Then God went on to make the expanse and divided the waters beneath the expanse from the waters above the expanse. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.
9 Then God said: “Let the waters under the heavens be collected together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, but the collecting of the waters, he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said: “Let the earth cause grass to sprout, seed-bearing plants and fruit trees according to their kinds, yielding fruit along with seed on the earth.” And it was so. 12 And the earth began to produce grass, seed-bearing plants and trees yielding fruit along with seed, according to their kinds. Then God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, a third day.
14 Then God said: “Let there be luminaries in the expanse of the heavens to make a division between the day and the night, and they will serve as signs for seasons and for days and years. 15 They will serve as luminaries in the expanse of the heavens to shine upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 And God went on to make the two great luminaries, the greater luminary for dominating the day and the lesser luminary for dominating the night, and also the stars. 17 Thus God put them in the expanse of the heavens to shine upon the earth 18 and to dominate by day and by night and to make a division between the light and the darkness. Then God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
20 Then God said: “Let the waters swarm with living creatures, and let flying creatures fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” 21 And God created the great sea creatures and all living creatures that move and swarm in the waters according to their kinds and every winged flying creature according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 With that God blessed them, saying: “Be fruitful and become many and fill the waters of the sea, and let the flying creatures become many in the earth.” 23 And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.
24 Then God said: “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds, domestic animals and creeping animals and wild animals of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25 And God went on to make the wild animals of the earth according to their kinds and the domestic animals according to their kinds and all the creeping animals of the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said: “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness, and let them have in subjection the fish of the sea and the flying creatures of the heavens and the domestic animals and all the earth and every creeping animal that is moving on the earth.” 27 And God went on to create the man in his image, in God’s image he created him; male and female he created them. 28 Further, God blessed them, and God said to them: “Be fruitful and become many, fill the earth and subdue it, and have in subjection the fish of the sea and the flying creatures of the heavens and every living creature that is moving on the earth.”
29 Then God said: “Here I have given to you every seed-bearing plant that is on the entire earth and every tree with seed-bearing fruit. Let them serve as food for you. 30 And to every wild animal of the earth and to every flying creature of the heavens and to everything moving on the earth in which there is life, I have given all green vegetation for food.” And it was so.
31 After that God saw everything he had made, and look! it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, a sixth day” (Genesis chapter 1).
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In Six Days
“After that God saw everything he had made, and look! it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, a sixth day”
(Genesis 1:31)
In chapter 1, it written about six “creative days.” Some people, such as creationists, think that it means six 24-hour days. According to the whole biblical context, this is not the case. In Genesis it is written: “And by the seventh day, God had completed the work that he had been doing, and he began to rest on the seventh day from all his work that he had been doing. And God went on to bless the seventh day and to declare it sacred, for on it God has been resting from all the work that he has created, all that he purposed to make” (Genesis 2:2,3). Now in the time of the apostle Paul, some 4,000 years after this event, he implied that this seventh day of rest was still in the process: “Therefore, since a promise of entering into his rest remains, let us be on guard for fear someone among you seems to fall short of it. For we have also had the good news declared to us, just as they had; but the word that they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. For we who have exercised faith do enter into the rest, just as he has said: “So I swore in my anger, ‘They will not enter into my rest,’” although his works were finished from the founding of the world. For in one place he has said of the seventh day as follows: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works,” and here again he says: “They will not enter into my rest.”” (Hebrews 4:1–5). Obviously, this seventh day will end at the end of the thousand-year reign of King Jesus Christ, mentioned in Revelation (20:1–10).
Which suggests that the seventh day will last 7000 years. Does this mean that the six previous periods were to have the same duration of 7000 years for each day, or a total of 42000 years? It is not possible to answer this question categorically. If God had divided these six periods in an event-based manner, that is, in a fulfilled event, to end the period, in this case, the length of the days did not have to be necessarily equal to each other. If God had divided these six periods in a determined space-time, then we could conclude that it could be a period of 42000 years. The only biblical indicator is that the seventh day should last 7000 years…
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The Ocean of Heaven
“Then God went on to make the expanse and divided the waters beneath the expanse from the waters above the expanse. And it was so”
(Genesis 1:7)
After Genesis 1:1, which mentions the creation of the universe (the heavens) with the earth, after there is the description of the arrangement of the earth in order to receive plant, animal and human life, all in six days, that is to say in six periods of several thousand years each.
In verse 2 it is written that the spirit of God, was moving over the surface of the earthly ocean: “Now the earth was formless and desolate, and there was darkness upon the surface of the watery deep, and God’s active force was moving about over the surface of the waters” (Genesis 1:2). The expression “watery deep” seems to indicate that this ocean completely covering the earth had an abysmal depth of several thousand meters above the surface of the earth’s crust.
The Spirit of God
God’s active force is the Spirit of God. It represents the holy spirit, not as a person, but as an impersonal creative active force. According to the Bible, the holy spirit, a part of the energy coming from God, can present itself in different ways. For example, at Pentecost in 33 C.E., it manifested itself as the sound of a great wind and then tongues of fire came upon the 120 disciples: “Now while the day of the Festival of Pentecost was in progress, they were all together at the same place. Suddenly there was a noise from heaven, just like that of a rushing, stiff breeze, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And tongues as if of fire became visible to them and were distributed, and one came to rest on each one of them, and they all became filled with holy spirit and started to speak in different languages, just as the spirit enabled them to speak” (Acts 2:1–4). The Holy Spirit, the energy coming from God, has multiple functions; in the Genesis account, it is creative.
The gradual appearance of light
The important point regarding to the whole understanding of the context of Genesis chapter 1, is that the description of the development of the planet Earth, with the different creative days, is as if an observer had been there, making the description. “And God said: “Let there be light.” Then there was light. After that God saw that the light was good, and God began to divide the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, but the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, a first day. (…) Then God said: “Let there be luminaries in the expanse of the heavens to make a division between the day and the night, and they will serve as signs for seasons and for days and years. They will serve as luminaries in the expanse of the heavens to shine upon the earth.” And it was so. And God went on to make the two great luminaries, the greater luminary for dominating the day and the lesser luminary for dominating the night, and also the stars. Thus God put them in the expanse of the heavens to shine upon the earth and to dominate by day and by night and to make a division between the light and the darkness. Then God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day” (Genesis 1:3–5,14–19).
These two biblical quotes were put together because they complement each other. The first passage explains that at the beginning of the process of development of the earth, there was complete darkness. Gradually, over hundreds, even thousands of years, a diffuse light began to appear. This light could be compared to that behind a completely cloudy sky, it illuminates the landscape, without allowing the sun to be seen. The second passage shows that, after the end of the third period, there was a process of lightening of the earth’s atmosphere, gradually allowing the sun, moon and stars to be seen more and more clearly during the fourth period.
The Creation of an Earthly Ocean and an Ocean of Heaven
The existence of an ocean on earth is no surprise, but to mention that Genesis describes the creation of a heavenly ocean may puzzle any Bible reader: “Then God said: “Let there be an expanse between the waters, and let there be a division between the waters and the waters.” Then God went on to make the expanse and divided the waters beneath the expanse from the waters above the expanse. And it was so. God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day” (Genesis 1:6–8).
“The waters above the expanse” represent this famous heavenly ocean. This heavenly ocean has been called heaven. Is this a metaphorical description of the atmosphere in the sky having the same blue color as the ocean? From the immediate context of the book of Genesis, this is indeed the real and literal existence of a heavenly ocean. This heavenly ocean is mentioned in chapters 6 and 7 of Genesis.
This ocean of heaven is designated by the expressions, flood, floodgates of the heavens (Genesis 6:17; 7:6–10,17 “flood”; 7:11 “floodgates of the heavens “): “As for me, I am going to bring floodwaters upon the earth to destroy from under the heavens all flesh that has the breath of life” (Genesis 6:17). This text shows that God announces that he will literally make this heavenly ocean fall upon the earth. “In the 600th year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the 17th day of the month, on that day all the springs of the vast watery deep burst open and the floodgates of the heavens were opened” (Genesis 7:11). This text shows the gradual fall of this heavenly ocean, upon the earth, during forty days and nights of rain, over the whole surface of the earth. The Hebrew word translated by flood is “Mabûl” (Strong’s Concordance (H03999)), which appears in the book of Genesis, is translated by “Ocean of Heaven” in the King James Version, in Psalms 29:10.
The logical question is to ask how such a quantity of water could have been suspended in the upper atmosphere, while letting sunlight pass through, while at the same time allowing its contours to be perceived (the sun, the moon and the stars)? By studying the different layers of the atmosphere and the upper atmosphere we realize that this can be quite possible. We live in the lower layer of the atmosphere which is called the troposphere. It is about fifteen kilometers in altitude. Above, there is successively the stratosphere which top of the layer is located at fifty kilometers in altitude and then the mesosphere, located at about eighty kilometers in altitude. In these three layers of the atmosphere, the temperatures are very low (in the high altitude), and consequently they do not allow to maintain a very large quantity of water, comparable to that of the oceans, in suspension. On the other hand, the space and the temperature of the thermosphere, can allow it.
Indeed, the thermosphere above the mesosphere is 500 to 1000 km thick at altitude, with a temperature of up to 2000 degrees Celsius (speed of molecules). The space and temperature in the thermosphere can keep a very large quantity of water in very fine particles in suspension, allowing us to clearly see the celestial bodies (the sun, the moon and the stars). As an indication, the orbital satellites are located above the thermosphere, in the exosphere, between 500 and 2000 km of altitude (while geostationary satellites are 36,000 km from the earth).
After the second day, or second period of creation, the land surface appeared and then vegetation: “Then God said: “Let the waters under the heavens be collected together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, but the collecting of the waters, he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. Then God said: “Let the earth cause grass to sprout, seed-bearing plants and fruit trees according to their kinds, yielding fruit along with seed on the earth.” And it was so. And the earth began to produce grass, seed-bearing plants and trees yielding fruit along with seed, according to their kinds. Then God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a third day” (Genesis 1:9–13).
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According to their kinds
(Genesis 1:9–13)
“Then God said: “Let the waters under the heavens be collected together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, but the collecting of the waters, he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. Then God said: “Let the earth cause grass to sprout, seed-bearing plants and fruit trees according to their kinds, yielding fruit along with seed on the earth.” And it was so. And the earth began to produce grass, seed-bearing plants and trees yielding fruit along with seed, according to their kinds. Then God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a third day” (Genesis 1:9–13).
This information that God created vegetation and later animals, according to their kinds contradicts the theory of evolution which consists in saying that the diversity of species is the result of an evolution. The scientific facts speak for themselves, a kind cannot evolve into another kind. Obviously, there can be diversity within the same species or group of species. This diversity does not constitute an evolution from one kind to another. For example, the Canidae species group has dogs, wolves, foxes… Within a dog species, there are different breeds. Nevertheless, the Canidae species remains permanently, according to its Canidae kind. Concerning the types of Felidae group, there are lions, tigers, pumas, cats… Similarly, within the cat species, there are different breeds. Last example, from the types of Equidae group, there are zebras, donkeys, mules, horses. Similarly, within the horse species, there are different breeds. And we could continue with other examples such as the group of Bovinae and others…
When God created vegetation and later animals according to their kinds, this does not mean that he created each of them in the current diversity. For example, creating male and female animals, in the group of Felidae, it is with time that diversity was created within the kind or groups of species, giving the diversity that we can currently observe, several thousand years after their creation. Which means, whether for vegetation, animals and humans, diversity within a group of species is not to be confused with a so-called evolution from one species to another. For example, the Canidae kind evolving into a Felidae kind.
The one who founded the theory of evolution is Charles Darwin (1809–1882). The theory of evolution suggests that all living species are in perpetual transformation and undergo morphological and genetic modifications over time and generations. This concept was presented by Charles Darwin in his work The Origin of Species published on November 24, 1859.
Hugo De Vries (1848–1935), worked on mutationism theory, which would have been, according to him, the mechanism of evolution. Mutationism is an evolutionary theory, according to which species suddenly appear next to the main strain thanks to hereditary mutations of germ cells.
Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1744–1829), according to him, animal evolution was based on the environment in which it evolved. For Lamarck, the change of environment causes that of needs, then habits, finally organs and bodily forms, because every organ develops when it functions, atrophies if it remains useless. Which would explain the long neck of the giraffe, the webbed feet of aquatic birds.
Without questioning the sincerity and competence of these scientists, the times when they developed the different aspects of the theory of evolution, there was no current knowledge about genetics and the study of genomes, chromosomes (DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), RNA (ribonucleic acid)). DNA is the basic unit of heredity, which among other things makes a species reproduce according to its kind. While RNA is the messenger of DNA that transmits the information coded in our precious genome, to allow the synthesis of proteins necessary for the functioning of our cells. Scientific progress has only reinforced the scientific accuracy of Genesis, which is found in the simple expression “according to their kinds” (Genesis 1:9–13).
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The Great Sea Creatures
(Genesis 1:20–23)
“Then God said: “Let the waters swarm with living creatures, and let flying creatures fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” And God created the great sea creatures and all living creatures that move and swarm in the waters according to their kinds and every winged flying creature according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. With that God blessed them, saying: “Be fruitful and become many and fill the waters of the sea, and let the flying creatures become many in the earth.” And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day” (Genesis 1:20–23).
The question is could this be the description of the creation of dinosaurs? Most scientists describe dinosaurs as reptiles that lived on land. Some of them were herbivores while others were carnivores. Based on the very brief account of the creation of aquatic monsters, without any reference to the creation of land animals, except for flying creatures, one could wonder if a large part of the dinosaurs would have been amphibian reptiles. There are many amphibian reptiles that live both on land and in water. The best known are crocodiles, alligators, turtles, small and large snakes, frogs, toads, giant lizards such as the monitor lizard (Pacific monitor lizard that lives in swampy areas).
So this part of Genesis could be the narrative of the creation of dinosaurs, describing them as being mainly amphibians, having the ability to live both on land and at sea, or in huge bodies of water, large inland lakes. Among the aquatic dinosaurs, there are the pliosaurs. Their remains having been discovered in Norway in the middle of the 19th century. They weighed more than 30 tons and measured 12 meters long. The kronosaurus, from the same family of the pliosaurs, was a predator. Their fossils have been discovered in Australia and Colombia. It measured 10 meters long and weighed 12 tons. The Nothosaurus was also from the same family as the pliosaurs, about 4.5 meters long, it was also an amphibian predator. The styxosaurus, from the family of the plisosaurs, measured more than 10 meters long with a long neck of more than 5 meters, weighing about 4 tons. It was also a predator. The Albertonectes, from the pliosaur family. Their fossils have been discovered in the seas of North America, both east and west. They measured more than 11 meters with a neck of 7 meters. It was a predator. The Thalassomedon (lord of the sea (in ancient Greek)), 12 meters long, with a neck 6 meters long, was from the plisosaur family. It was also a predator. The Tylosaurus, from the mosasurus family, their fossils have been discovered in North America. It was a huge predator of 13 meters long. It was an amphibian. The shonisaurus, their remains were discovered in Nevada, measured 15 meters and weighed about thirty tons. The mosasaurus, were large predators, measuring 15 meters long, Its head was shaped like a crocodile. The Shastasaurus was a predator, reaching up to 21 meters in length and weighing over 75 tons.
If Genesis mentions the existence of dinosaurs on the fifth day, as being mainly sea monsters, it means that their main characteristic was that they were amphibians that also had the ability to live or hunt on land. The fact that Genesis mentions them mainly as sea monsters, could mean that their main habitat was the marine and aquatic environment. Even if there were land dinosaurs, Genesis does not mention them, which could mean that they were also amphibians, like crocodiles, being considered sea (or aquatic) monsters.
It is most likely that the dinosaurs disappeared at the end of the fifth day (and not during the flood of Noah’s days). There are several theories regarding the sudden disappearance of the dinosaurs. Paleontologists are actively studying the causes of the disappearance of all non-avian dinosaurs. Most agree that the impact of a large asteroid or comet played a major role, while scientists continue to debate the contribution of volcanic activity or climate change caused by the decline in sea levels. Some say it was intense volcanic activity: acid rain, dust. Plants would have almost disappeared, leading to the death of many species, including dinosaurs. Another theory is based on climate change: there would have been an ice age and the dinosaurs would not have survived.
The question is why would God have caused their destruction? The explanation could be that on the third day, God created vegetation and the herbivorous (and at the same time amphibian) dinosaurs would have done a clearing job, while other groups of predatory dinosaurs would have maintained the balance of their population by predation (in order to avoid their proliferation). It is obvious that at the dawn of the sixth day, their presence would have been very dangerous for the life of smaller animals, and especially for future human beings. Incidentally, the book of Revelation, particularly chapters 13 and 17, describes wild beasts with several heads and several horns. Satan is described as a dragon, in chapter 12. What could be a simple message concerning him, namely that he will disappear, as the wild beasts and the civilization that accompanies them, like the dinosaurs.
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Let us make man in our image
(Genesis 1:26–31)
“Then God said: “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness, and let them have in subjection the fish of the sea and the flying creatures of the heavens and the domestic animals and all the earth and every creeping animal that is moving on the earth.” And God went on to create the man in his image, in God’s image he created him; male and female he created them. Further, God blessed them, and God said to them: “Be fruitful and become many, fill the earth and subdue it, and have in subjection the fish of the sea and the flying creatures of the heavens and every living creature that is moving on the earth.” Then God said: “Here I have given to you every seed-bearing plant that is on the entire earth and every tree with seed-bearing fruit. Let them serve as food for you. And to every wild animal of the earth and to every flying creature of the heavens and to everything moving on the earth in which there is life, I have given all green vegetation for food.” And it was so. After that God saw everything he had made, and look! it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, a sixth day” (Genesis 1:26–31).
It was to the spiritual image of God that they were created, that is, to say, with the divine ability to “create” life (in their case procreation), by having children, but also to administer the earth, the plant life, animal and human lives, all with the help of God. The action of man and woman would be in the spiritual image of God, imbued with love and wisdom (1 Corinthians 13:1).
How to understand that the man and the woman (the spiritual Man) would be the image of God on the planet Earth? The spiritual Man would have the role of “god”, as if Jehovah had been directly on earth to carry out his will. Taking up the main orientations of God for the administration of the Earth by Man, there are two major ones:
- The creation of new human beings by procreation between a man and his wife, united in the sacred bonds of divine marriage and as well as the education of their descent: “Be fruitful and become many, fill the earth”.
- The second great divine orientation, for the mission of humans, regarding the Earth, would be to “subdue it”: “Have in subjection the fish of the sea and the flying creatures of the heavens and every living creature that is moving on the earth”. It is the administration of the wild and domestic animal kingdom with all that this includes, namely the administration of territories and their resources, for humans and wild and domestic animals.
These two great administrative orientations of the Earth could have been directly carried out by God. However, God wanted and wants the Spiritual Man to be the representative of God or the image of God’s loving sovereignty over the planet Earth. Consequently, the man and the woman would have the role of the image of God on earth for the children who should honor their father and their mother who will have given them life and administer the animal kingdom which would be subject to them, as the ‘one naturally submits to God.
To clearly show that the fact that God delegates some missions to his intelligent creatures, assigning them the function of “god”, as a representative in his image, let us take the example of Moses and Aaron who had to appear before the Pharaoh of Egypt. Here is what it is written: “Jehovah then said to Moses: “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and Aaron your own brother will become your prophet You are to repeat everything that I will command you, and Aaron your brother will speak to Pharaoh, and he will send the Israelites away from his land” (Exodus 7:1,2). We see from this text that Jehovah commissioned Moses to have the function of “God”, connected with his mission.
Still regarding humans exercising the function that normally belongs to God, that of judge, here is what is written in Psalms 82:6: “I have said, ‘You are gods, All of you are sons of the Most High’”. Moreover, Jesus Christ takes up this text in John 10:34, to show that if it is written in the Bible (the Law), the very fact that Jesus designates himself as the Son of God, was in no way blasphemous (John 10:34–36).
Likewise, the spiritual Man who will administer the Earth, in the future earthly paradise, will have the function of “God”, reflecting the loving image of his sovereignty over humans, and over the animal kingdom and as well as for the reasonable administration of the earth’s natural resources. Thus the fact that Man is in the image of God means that in certain aspects of his missions entrusted by God, Man will have the role of “god”, without usurping, of course, the place of God: “Keep this mental attitude in you that was also in Christ Jesus, who, although he was existing in God’s form, did not even consider the idea of trying to be equal to God” (Philippians 2:5,6).
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The Rest of God
(Genesis 2:1–3)
“Thus the heavens and the earth and everything in them were completed. And by the seventh day, God had completed the work that he had been doing, and he began to rest on the seventh day from all his work that he had been doing. And God went on to bless the seventh day and to declare it sacred, for on it God has been resting from all the work that he has created, all that he purposed to make” (Genesis 2:1–3).
This is obviously a spiritual rest because God does not get tired and has no need to rest. During this period of several thousand years, God ceases to create as described in chapters 1 and 2 of Genesis. For this seventh period, it seems logical to think that it should last 7000 years. In the time of the apostle Paul, some 4,000 years after this event, he implied that this seventh day of rest was still in the process: “Therefore, since a promise of entering into his rest remains, let us be on guard for fear someone among you seems to fall short of it. For we have also had the good news declared to us, just as they had; but the word that they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. For we who have exercised faith do enter into the rest, just as he has said: “So I swore in my anger, ‘They will not enter into my rest,’” although his works were finished from the founding of the world. For in one place he has said of the seventh day as follows: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works,” and here again he says: “They will not enter into my rest.”” (Hebrews 4:1–5). Obviously, this seventh day will end at the end of the thousand-year reign of King Jesus Christ, mentioned in Revelation (20:1–10).
In Hebrews chapter 4, the apostle Paul explains the spiritual meaning of the Rest of God. As we can read above, in the first five verses of this chapter, not to enter into God’s rest is to incur his disapproval, and therefore, not to see the happy ending of this day mentioned in Apocalypse chapters 20 to 22. As we can read in the continuation of the apostle Paul’s dissertation, on the spiritual meaning of God’s rest, it means, God’s approval and the obtaining of everlasting life:
“Therefore, since it remains for some to enter into it, and those to whom the good news was first declared did not enter in because of disobedience, he again marks off a certain day by saying long afterward in David’s psalm, “Today”; just as it has been said above, “Today if you listen to his voice, do not harden your hearts.” For if Joshua had led them into a place of rest, God would not afterward have spoken of another day. So there remains a sabbath-rest for the people of God. For the man who has entered into God’s rest has also rested from his own works, just as God did from his own. Let us therefore do our utmost to enter into that rest, so that no one may fall into the same pattern of disobedience. For the word of God is alive and exerts power and is sharper than any two-edged sword and pierces even to the dividing of soul and spirit, and of joints from the marrow, and is able to discern thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is not a creation that is hidden from his sight, but all things are naked and openly exposed to the eyes of the one to whom we must give an account. Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold on to our public declaration of him. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tested in all respects as we have, but without sin. Let us, then, approach the throne of undeserved kindness with freeness of speech, so that we may receive mercy and find undeserved kindness to help us at the right time” (Hebrews 4:6–16).
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