The Birth of Humanity

A look at Genesis 2

By Gerry Watts

 

These are the genealogical annals of the heavens and the earth, when they were created. (Genesis 2:4)

   What follows in Genesis Chapter 2 are the fundamental details concerning the birth of humanity in the creation of the first human pair, and their subsequent place of blessing on the earth. All of this is viewed as being a part of the creation and formation of the heavens and the earth, of which humanity is to be the central character in the epic drama of the ages.[1]

In the day Yahweh Elohim made the earth and the heavens, and every shrub of the field before it is coming to be in the earth, and all herbage of the field before it is sprouting, at that time Yahweh Elohim does not bring rain on the earth, and there was no human to serve the ground. Yet humidity is ascending from the earth and irrigates all the surface of the ground. (Genesis 2:5-6)

   In the beginning, there was no human to serve the ground and all the vegetation had not yet sprung up due to lack of water. God had a specific purpose for humanity in the earth in relation to the growth of all vegetation - to cultivate it to provide food and pleasure. So before He creates His masterpiece in His own Image, God begins to breath life into the vegetation. At this point in time, in the early days after the fashioning of the earth, it appears that God had not set up the weather cycle that we know today in which rain clouds are continuously forming. It was much later, after the Flood, that He formed the rainbow via rain clouds (Genesis 9:12-17). In the beginning, the fertile soil on the surface of the ground was watered by humidity or mists from the subterranean waters deep in the earth. This indicates a very tropical kind of atmosphere. This caused all of the shrubs and herbage on the ground to flourish in preparation for the human.[2]

And Yahweh Elohim is forming the human of soil from the ground, and He is blowing into his nostrils the breath of the living, and the human is becoming a living soul. (Genesis 2:7)

   Here we have the simple yet profound description of the creation of Adam, the first human. God, through the Channel of His Son (the word Elohim is plural), forms Adam's body of flesh from the elements of the soil of the ground.[3] Then God, who is Spirit, breathes into Adam the breath of the living; that is, the Spirit of God creates the spirit of Adam, which causes Adam to become a living soul; that is, he becomes consciously alive with sensations via the blood; a living, functioning soul. (For a more detailed study of body, soul and spirit, see the article entitled Is There Really a Hell?).

   In Genesis 7:22 we have the phrase ‘the breath of the spirit of the living’ which links breath and spirit together. The Hebrew ‘ruach’ and the Greek ‘pneuma,’ used for the word spirit, literally mean ‘wind’ or ‘a blast of air.’ In humanity and other soulish creatures the spirit is intimately linked to breathing, without which there is no life. Not only did God’s Spirit give life to the first human but through his unique human spirit, Adam could now understand and communicate with God, who is Spirit. Adam was able to communicate physically with Yahweh (the Son of God) in the garden, but his spiritual perception came from within his spirit, given by God. (John 4:24 literally reads ‘God-spirit’ which in Greek is not a figure like ‘God is light’ but an actual fact - God is spirit, not a spirit). 

   God is the absolute source of all spirit, which is life (John 5:26; 6:63 ‘The spirit is that which is vivifying’). He gives to all life and breath and everything. In Him we live and move and are (Acts 17:25-28). Hence anything that is alive has spirit, like, for instance, plants or even bacteria; or a spirit, like living souls.

And Yahweh Elohim is planting a garden in Eden, in the east, and He is placing there the human whom He forms. (Genesis 2:8)

   Yahweh then proceeds to plant a beautiful, luxurious paradise or garden, into which Adam is placed. This implies an area (more likely a vast area, possibly a valley) surrounded by a natural wall of some kind or another, hence an enclosed place; a garden or park. This garden is said to be located in the area of Eden, situated in the east. There is no way of knowing exactly where Eden was located. This area and its ancient garden were destroyed in the Great Flood. This would have altered the topography of the whole earth, but especially in the area of the Middle East.

   There are two major theories concerning the location of Eden and its garden. The one that appears to be the nearest to the facts of the biblical account places it around the area of north-eastern Iran/northern Iraq/Kurdistan, from where the migration of early civilisation began. It was to the west of this area that the Ark came to rest after the Flood, on the mountains of Ararat in eastern Turkey/Armenia. The mass of humanity then migrated south to settle in ancient Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) forming the early Sumerian/Chaldean civilisation. The primary key that is used to arrive at this conclusion is the description in verses 10-14 of the four head streams that had their source in Eden.

And furthermore Yahweh Elohim is sprouting from the ground every tree coveted by the sight and good for food, and the tree of the living in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. (Genesis 2:9)

   God had caused all kinds of trees to grow in this wonderful paradise, trees that were colourful and beautiful to look at, as well as all kinds of trees bearing luscious fruit that were good to eat. There was nothing lacking in this primeval paradise. Yet there is also the mention of two unique fruit trees that were placed in the middle of the garden - the Tree of the Living (or Tree of Life) and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The Tree of the Living provided food that would give continuous health and vitality to humanity indefinitely (that is, for the eon, cf. Gen.3:22-24), and Adam was free to eat from it whenever he wished. It also symbolically represents that which is truly spiritual as the direct source of the Creator who is Spirit. Christ is The Life, the Living One.[4]

   The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was intentionally placed there by God as a test for the first human pair. In this blissful paradise, in their perfect innocence, Adam and his wife were to be given a simple command so as to test their trust in their Creator - 'Don't eat from this tree.' But due to an inherent weakness within them and the deceptive power of the Serpent, they inevitably failed by transgressing the command of God and they also offended Him by wounding His heart. But the paradox is this: In their innocence they could know nothing of the blessings that they had because they had no experience of evil. For humanity to truly appreciate the goodness of God we need to experience or have a working knowledge of evil. This tree, then, symbolically represents the sinful flesh of humanity, which, through experience, inevitably leads to a knowledge of good and evil.[5]

And a stream is faring forth from Eden to irrigate the garden, and thence it is being parted and comes to four heads. The name of the one is Pison. It is that surrounding the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold, and the gold of that land is exceedingly good. There is the pearl and the onyx stone. And the name of the second stream is Gihon. It is that surrounding the entire land of Kush. And the name of the third stream is Hiddekel. It is that going east of Ashur. And the fourth stream, it is the Euphrates. (Genesis 2:10-14)

   Here we have the description of the four rivers coming out of Eden. There was a source river coming from Eden and travelling through the garden to water it. From there it split into four head streams - the Pishon, the Gihon, the Tigris (Heb. 'Hiddekel') and the Euphrates. Due to the disruption brought about by the Flood, it is very difficult to know the exact identity of these rivers and their surrounding areas today. But the modern Tigris and Euphrates rivers most probably take roughly the same course as the primeval ones did. Some identify the Pishon as the River Uizhun, and the Gihon as the River Gaihun-Aras (David Rohl Legend: The Genesis of Civilisation). But what is evident is that Eden was located somewhere in the Middle East.

And Yahweh Elohim is taking the human He had formed and is leaving him in the garden of Eden to serve it and to keep it. And Yahweh Elohim is instructing the human, saying, "From every tree of the garden, you are to eat, yea, eat. Yet from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you are not to be eating from it, for in the day you eat from it, to die shall you be dying." (Genesis 2:15-17)

   Adam is then left alone in the garden with the job of looking after it and to enjoy his rule over all of the other creatures around him. His Creator would also visit him every day (Genesis 3:8). He was told that he could eat from every tree in the garden except from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. He is expressly told that if he does eat from this tree, then in that day he shall begin the process of dying (or mortality) which shall end in death itself; that is, the cessation of all life and experience. So Adam is warned that if he disobeys this command, a fundamental change shall occur within himself, resulting in ageing and eventual death.

And Yahweh Elohim is saying, "It is not good for the human for him to be alone. I will make for him a helper as his complement." And furthermore Yahweh Elohim, having formed from the ground all field life and every flyer of the heavens, He is also bringing it to the human to see what he will call it. And whatever the human living soul is calling it, that is its name. And calling is the human the names for every beast and for every flyer of the heavens, and for all field life. Yet for the human He does not find a helper as his complement. (Genesis 2:18-20)

   God already realises that Adam needs a suitable companion, a helper that will be his complement. This, of course, was God's plan from the start! A complement is that which fills up a lack in something or someone, hence that which completes the whole - and Adam needed a complement. Meanwhile, God brings to Adam all of the land creatures that He had formed, including the birds, and Adam is given the privilege of naming all of them. But although these creatures could be a wonderful blessing and comfort to Adam, none of them was found to be a suitable helper to be Adam's complement. And down through history, men have forged great friendships with various animals, but none have compared to the love and companionship of a woman. And without a woman, there can be no other men to form brothers either!

And a stupor is falling on the human, caused by Yahweh Elohim, and he is sleeping. And He is taking one of his angular organs and is closing the flesh under it. And Yahweh Elohim is building the angular organ, which He takes from the human, into a woman, and He is bringing her to the human. "This was once bone of my bones and flesh from my flesh. This shall be called woman, for from her man is this taken." Therefore a man shall forsake his father and his mother and cling to his wife, and they two become one flesh. And coming are they two, the human and his wife, to be naked, yet are not shaming themselves. (Genesis 2:21-25)

   So God causes Adam to fall into a deep sleep, during which time He then performs a 'surgical procedure' by removing one of Adam's internal angular organs and then healing the flesh. He then uses this organ to begin the process of building a woman. In the same way as a computer programmer can build up an image from code, the Creator 'programmed' the building blocks of all life, DNA, to form a female as Adam's complement, and through the Spirit of life, caused her to become a living soul like Adam. The Hebrew word 'tsela' in this passage is often translated as 'rib' in many versions, and also 'side.' But a close study of this word in all of its occurrences shows that the fundamental meaning of the word 'tsela' is that which is angular, that which forms angles, such as an angular wall or side angles of a box (Exodus 25:12-14; 26:20, 26); an angular cell or room (Ezekiel 41:5-6); the 'angle' of a hill (2 Samuel 16:13), etc. 

   In the above instance, it is describing a hollow organ that has angles. We are not specifically told what this organ actually was, though some believe that Adam had the female reproductive organs as well as the male, and it was this as a whole that God removed to build the female. But whatever it was, Adam could do without this organ, and it was used to build a woman.[6]

   God then presents Eve to Adam in all her beauty and glory. What a sight that would've been! This woman is Adam's complement, bone of his bones and flesh from his flesh. Due to this wonderful truth that woman was essentially taken from man in the beginning, for this reason, the true marriage bond between a husband and wife is established whereby the two become a distinct family unit and become one flesh again in the sharing of their bodies in sexual union.

   And both of them were naked, with no need of clothing, and we are specifically told that they were not shaming themselves. Although the human body is an amazing creation, and nakedness, in certain situations, is not shameful, nevertheless now, things are not the same as they were back then in the beginning. So nudist and 'nature' enthusiasts take note! Adam at his creation (along with his wife also) was filled with the Spirit of God, which would have emanated from his body as a glorious covering of light (Exodus 34:34-35; Psalm 104:1-2; Matthew 17:2). That is why the nakedness of this original pair was not shameful, it was glorious! But sin and death has brought a major change to our bodies, so that we only faintly reflect something of that glorious beginning in paradise. We are not to be ashamed of our bodies as they are a wonderful creation of God, but as is the case with sex also, boundaries and guidelines are there for us all to follow for our own good. We must also remember that the first couple were alone in their nakedness - and living in a perfect climate in all innocence! But the world, and humanity, has changed since then; and even in the ages to come and beyond, our nakedness will be covered.

The above quotations from Genesis are taken from the Concordant Version of Genesis (revised). The light-face type corresponds to those words which are not in the original Hebrew, but are added for English idiom.

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Footnotes:

[1] It is evident that Genesis 2 is a narrative concerning the events that transpired on Day Six of the Creation Week. It is not supposed to be another version of events that contradicts the details in Genesis 1. Genesis 1:27-28 clearly states that both male and female (Adam and his wife) were created on Day Six. This is confirmed in Genesis 2.

[2] These verses are essentially describing the condition of things on the earth before Day Six (i.e. setting the scene). The shrubs and herbage of the field (that is, plants and vegetation that needs cultivating) had not yet grown up, and there was no human to cultivate it. This is intimating that the vegetation was there primarily for the purpose of fulfilling humanity's needs and enjoyment. The weather cycle that we know today was not yet operating to bring rain on the earth, nevertheless, the soil was watered via humidity ground mists. My original comment above of "lack of water" was a little misleading, but I was referring to a lack of rain water, not water in general. In reference to the formation of the rainbow, it is possible, and highly probable, that the weather cycle began to operate soon after the creation of man allowing for the right conditions for the formation of the rainbow, therefore the rainbow would've appeared long before the Flood. Nevertheless, after the Flood, God used the rainbow as a sign of His covenant with humanity that He would never flood the whole earth again.

[3] Many evolutionists mock at the notion that animals and man were created from dirt or dust, even though the majority of them believe that 'nature' created itself and that we all magically came from single-celled amebas! Nevertheless, it is a biological fact that, at death, all creatures decay and return to the elements of the soil - from whence we came (cp. Genesis 3:19). Hence all living souls were miraculously created from the elements of the soil.

[4] It is my belief that the original Tree of Life was an almond tree, or at least, it is represented in Scripture by an almond tree. The key examples are: the budding of Aaron's staff overnight, which became an almond branch producing almonds (Numbers 17); and the exterior appearance of the seven-branched golden candlestick (Menorah) resembled an almond tree (Exodus 25:31-40; 37:17-22). Both of these are types and symbols of the Messiah Himself. Be that as it may, in the vision of Revelation, the Tree of Life is described as being on both sides of the river and bearing twelve crops of fruit, one for each month (Revelation 22:2). Whether this is indicating that the crops are the same 'fruit-kind' or different 'fruit-kinds' is unclear, nevertheless, the tree is literally called the 'wood' or 'log of life' implying that this 'tree' was once dead, but now it is living! This, of course, symbolises Christ Jesus Himself. And to eat from this Tree is to have age-abiding Life in the Kingdom of God.

[5] It is my belief that the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was a fig tree. This is clearly implied in Genesis 3:7 where we are told that Adam and Eve sewed fig leaves together to make coverings for themselves immediately after they had both eaten from this tree. A thoughtful study of figs and fig trees throughout Scripture will show this to be so. There was nothing mystical about this tree. It is the original command of God, which was broken, that is the real issue - and what the tree symbolises.

[6] Upon reflection, the Concordant rendering 'angular organ' may be a little ambitious. The Hebrew tsela does not literally mean rib, but should probably be rendered side. Nevertheless, bone and flesh is included in whatever God took from Adam because he later says that Eve "...was once bone of my bones and flesh from my flesh." I certainly do not believe that Adam was an hermaphrodite. It would appear from the text that God took a large piece of bone and flesh from Adam's side, which may have included a rib, and then He made woman. Of course, the rib cage could be described as 'angular' or 'hollow' so a rib could be described as 'one of his angular parts.' Anyhow, what is extremely interesting is that woman originally came out of man, then through the sexual union man goes into woman and becomes one flesh, and then man (or woman) comes out of woman as offspring. Even this has its figurative, spiritual counterpart in Christ and His Body/Bride, and the 'born again' children of God.

Here are two good articles that look at the subject of 'Adam's rib' in more detail - Adam's Rib by Wayne Simpson and The Creation of Woman by Richard Condon

 

Copyright © G Watts 2003, 2006

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