Bible2 Outline

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CENTRAL THEMES IN THE BIBLE

Dr. George Cronk

Fall 2004 Central Themes in the Old Testament

Oct. 14 God's Creation of the World The Original Position Genesis 1-2

God and CreationGod and the Human Race

I. Introduction on Genesis 1-11.A. A story of the origins of the world, of mankind, and of the people of Israel.

1. The "Exodus experience" of ancient Israel and the origin of the book of Genesis.2. The present form of Genesis seems to be a compilation and edition of ancient

written documents and oral traditions made by Jewish religious authorities in the

fifth century B.C.

3. The Orthodox perspective: The entire process by which the book of Genesis (andthe other books of Holy Scripture) came into existence the writing, the editing,

and the compiling of the documents that make up the biblical text was guided

and inspired by God through the Holy Spirit.

B. A sacred history not a scientific or empirical history.a. The poetic, symbolic, legendary, and even mythological stories in Genesis 1-11

present, not a scientific account of the origins of the cosmos and of the human

race, but a theological interpretationof the human condition and of Israel's role

in God's providential plan for the world.

b. Factual claims in Genesis 1-11:1) Important claims to be taken seriously: that God created the universe,

that mankind was created in the image of God, that the human race has

alienated itself from God as a result of sin, that the sinful world is subject

to God's judgment, and that God mercifully acts to redeem his creation

from the powers of sin and death.

2) Less important claims that may be true: that Adam, Eve, Cain, Abel,Seth, Noah, and other persons named in Genesis 1-11 were indeed

historical figures whose names have been preserved in the folklore ofancient Israel; that the story of the great flood in Genesis 6-8 is based

upon the actual occurrence of a major deluge in the ancient Middle East

(c. 4000 BC).

3) Claims not to be taken literally: that the fall of the human race took placeexactly as described in Genesis 3; that the stories of Noah and the flood

(Gn 6-9) and of the Tower of Babel (Gn 11) are literally true in all of

their details; and so on.

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Consequences of a literal reading in these cases: Holding that that the

human race made its appearance on earth only about 120 hours after the

world was created; that daylight existed before the sun came into being

(Gn 1:3-5, 14-19); that the universe is surrounded by water (1:6-8); that

the universe is no more than six or seven thousand years old (a figure

arrived at by tracing the various genealogies found in the Old

Testament); and that the various languages of the human race originatedat the Tower of Babel, less than four thousand years ago (11:1-9).

Such ancient conceptions of the cosmos and of human history have been

rendered implausible by modern scientific and historical discoveries. For

example, it is virtually certain that the universe is millions or even

billions of years old and that it is not surrounded by water; that mankind

appeared on earth approximately two million years ago; and that therewas a multiplicity of human cultures and languages long before the time

of the Tower of Babel (c. 2000 BC.).

4) The primary purpose of Genesis 1-11: not to present any particularscientific description of the origins and development of the world, but toproclaim that God is the Creator of the world and of mankind, that the

human race has sinfully separated itself from the presence of God, and

that to be saved from the powers of sin and death man must return to

God in a spirit of love and obedience. The cosmological and historical

framework of the early chapters of Genesis is merely the vehicle by

which the Holy Spirit reveals and communicates certain spiritual truths

necessary to the salvation of mankind and the world.

C. The theological content of Genesis 1-11 two major themes:1. The original relationship between God, humanity, man and the universe, prior to

the intrusion of sin into the divinely created cosmic order (chapters 1-2).

2. The disruption of the divine order by sin, God's judgment and condemnation ofthat sin, and his merciful determination to redeem mankind and the world from

the bondage of evil (chapters 3-11).

Genesis 1-2 describes the relationship between God, humankind, and nature as it was

originally intended to be; while Genesis 3-11 presents that relationship as it is

corrupted and subverted by man's sinful rebellion against the love and will of God.

II. Genesis 1-2: God, Humanity, and the Universe.A. Introduction.

1. The central theme of Genesis 1-2: God's creation of the world and of mankind.a. Genesis 1: the six-day creation story, following God's initial creation of

"the heavens and the earth" (1:1).

1- The light of day (1:3-5).

2- The earth's atmosphere (1:6-8).

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3- The major land masses and vegetation (1:9-13).

4- The sun, moon and stars (1:14-19).

5- The sea creatures and the birds (1:20-23).

6- The land animals and mankind (1:24-30).

b. Genesis 2: the great Sabbath rest of God following the "six days"ofcreation (2:1-3) and God's preparation of "the garden of Eden" as adwelling place for humankind (2:4-25).

2. The sources of the biblical creation story: the Documentary Hypothesis.a. Two different creation stories, derived from two different traditions in

ancient Israel?

1) Genesis 1:1-2:3: the "six day" creation story of Genesis 1, whichconcludes with God's "seventh day" rest in Genesis 2:1-3.

2) Genesis 2:4-25: a second account focusing upon God's creationof the human race and the garden of Eden.

b. The Documentary Hypothesis:1) The Pentateuch (that is, the first five books of the Bible) is a

compilation of four major "documents" put together in their

present form by Jewish priests and scribes during the fifth

century BC.

These written documents, which include material composed at

various times between the 10th and 5th centuries BC, represent

ancient Israelite oral tradition dating back to the days of Moses

(c. 1300 BC) and Abraham (c. 2000 BC).

2) The four basic sources: J, E, D, and P.The J source composed during the 10th century BC in Judah

(or southern Israel); uses Jahveh ("Yahweh") as the name of God

the earliest known written form of the religious traditions of

ancient Israel.

The E source written in Ephraim (or northern Israel); uses

Elohim as the name of God was produced some time between

900 and 750 BC.

The D source the basis of the book of Deuteronomy ("D")

put into written form in the seventh century BC.

The P source composed during the 6th and 5th centuries BC; a

written expression of ancient traditions preserved by the

priesthood ("P") in Jerusalem.

3) These sources "were woven together in various stages atdifferent times," and the Pentateuch as we know it "represents a

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composite of these sources, completed about 400 BC" (Miller).

Since much of the oral tradition represented in these written

documents can be traced back to the time of Moses and the

Exodus, the ancient Jews and Christians referred to the

Pentateuch as "the books of Moses."

4) Genesis contains materials from J, E and P. Genesis 1:1-2:3 ispart of P; and Genesis 2:4-25 is taken from J. On this basis, it

may be said that there are two different but complementary accounts of creation in the first two chapters of Genesis. The first

account (in Genesis 1) is concerned not only with the place of

mankind in God's providential plan, but with the divine creation

of the entire cosmos; whereas the second account (in Genesis 2 )

concentrates exclusively upon God's creation of, and originalpurpose for, the human race.

B. God and Creation in Genesis 1-2.1. The theology of Genesis 1-2:

a. God is a single, omnipresent (transcendent as well as immanent), andsupremely good being who created the world out of nothing (creatio ex

nihilo) and who is the universal Lord of all creation.

b. The theology of Genesis 1-2 vs. ancient pagan theologies (e.g., of theancient Egyptians, Babylonians, Persians, Indians, Greeks, and Romans).

Ancient Paganism Genesis 1-2

Polytheism Monotheism

Pantheism (the gods part of or identical with the

cosmic process)

God's omnipresence (transcendence as well as

immanence) God is in but also above and beyondthe world ("panentheism").

Henotheism (worshiping one god of the tribe or

nation above others)

The God of Israel is the Lord of universe (of all)

The gods are very powerful but not necessarily

very good (amoralism, immoralism)

God is omnibenevolent absolutely good,

righteous, and just

The basic "stuff" (matter, etc.) of the cosmos is

eternal; the gods, like artists, merely shape the

world out of pre-existent materials (earth, air, fire,

water, etc.). Not "out of nothing" but "out of

something."

Creatio ex nihilo(creation out of nothing) God

"exnihilates" the cosmos by an act of his will. The

cosmos is not eternal.

Acceptance of nature worship. Natural objects

and forces sun, moon, stars, planets) commonlyworshiped as divine powers.

Rejection of all forms of nature worship. (See

comment below)

c. The biblical rejection of nature religion.Nature divinely created, not divine: In the Genesis account of God's

creation, the "celestial lights" (sun, moon, stars) are simply natural

objects placed in the heavens for the purpose of illuminating the earth

(Gn 1:14-19). Also, the various species of animals, which were also

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sometimes divinized and worshiped in ancient pagan cults, are presented

in Genesis 1 as God's creatures subordinate not only to God but to man

as well (1:20-26).

Nature is not divine but divinely created; not God but the creature of

God. Genesis 1 contains an implicit condemnation of nature religion, a

condemnation that is made explicit in later portions of Holy Scripture(see, for example, Dt 4:19). To worship nature rather than God the

creation rather than the Creator is to worship "false gods." Naturereligion, from a biblical standpoint, is a form of idolatry. It is on this

basis that some of the fathers of the Church (e.g., St. Augustine of

Hippo) condemned the pseudo-science of astrology: they considered it a

kind of nature worship, looking to the forces of nature for "signs" of

one's destiny rather than trusting in God for all things.

The importance and goodness of nature: It is important to recognize,

however, that while the world of nature is not God, it would be contrary

to Holy Scripture to conclude that nature is not good. The six-day

creation story in Genesis 1 makes it quite clear that God's creation thenatural order as well as mankind is fundamentally good. "And God saw

every-thing that he had made, and behold, it was very good" (1:31).

From an Orthodox Christian standpoint, therefore, it is a heresy to claim

that the material world and human nature are inherently evil, for both

man and nature are creatures of God, and God has judged them to be

good. As we shall see, the Bible teaches that man and nature now exist in

a fallen state, as a result of man's rebellion against God. Yet even when

man acts in an evil manner, and when nature fails to display her original

and divinely ordained benign order, the basic natures of man and the

cosmos, because they are creations of God, remain essentially good.

d. The personhood of God in Genesis 1-2 and its implications.1) God is a person, not an impersonal cosmic force or world

essence. He is a personal being who wills the world and

humankind to be, who structures the world according to his own

design, who cares for the welfare of man. A person is a self-

conscious, intelligent, free, and creative being; and the God of

Genesis is depicted in these terms. He is intimately and

personally related to his creation; he is involved in it; he is

concerned about it.

2) In Orthodox theology, the personhood of God is defined in termsof the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. God is a triune being inwhom we must distinguish three persons God the Father, God

the Son, and God the Holy Spirit who are neither three gods

(tritheism) nor three parts or modes of God (modalism), but

coequally and coeternally God. God is one essence (ousia) in

three persons (hypostases).

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3) The Holy Trinity in the process of creation:"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth...and the

Spirit of God was moving [or soaring, or brooding] over the

face of the waters. And God said, 'Let there be light....' " (Gn

1:1-3).

The expression "and God said" is repeated nine more times in

Genesis 1. God creates the world by his Word."By the word ofthe Lord the heavens were made, and all their host by the breath

of his mouth. For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded,

and it stood forth" (Ps 33:6, 9 ) .

In the Gospel of John, the creative Word of God is identified asGod the Son, the second person of the Holy Trinity, who

"became man" in Jesus Christ:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,

and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; allthings were made through him, and without him was not

anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was

the light of men.... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among

us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of

the only Son from the Father...." (Jn 1:1-4, 14)

God the Father, brooding or moving in the Holy Spirit, creates

the universe through his Son, the divine Word.

C. God and Humanity in Genesis 1-2.1. Key texts:

"Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them

have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the

cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the

earth.' So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created

him; male and female he created them." (1:26-7)

"[T]he Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his

nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being [or soul]. And the Lord

God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had

formed; and out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is

pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of thegarden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." (2:7-9)

"And the Lord took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep

it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, 'You may freely eat of every

tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not

eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.'" (2:15-17)

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2. The theological meaning of these key texts.a. Humanity as the image and likeness of God.

1) The basic meaning: A human being is a person endowed with aspiritual life, intelligence, moral sensibility, a social nature (as anicon of the trinitarian life of God), freedom, and creativity. Each

human being is a unique and unrepeatable spiritual subject, wholives in relation to other (divine, angelic, and human) persons

and who is capable of conscious, purposive, and creative

activity. God's decree that man is to "have dominion" over all

other life forms on earth (Gn 1 : 2 6 , 2 8 ) is the biblical sign of

man's "God-like" nature.

2) The distinction between image and likeness in Orthodoxtheology (St. Irenaeus of Lyons [c. 130-200 AD]) .

a) Potentiality (Image) and actualization (Likeness).Man was not created as a spiritually perfect and

immortal being. Originally innocent and good, he was

called to become morally and spirituallyperfect, to

become like God. The biblical symbol of this moral and

spiritual perfection is "the tree of life," that is, the source

of immortality. Created as mortal beings like other

natural creatures but, unlike other creatures, endowed

with the image of God, Adam and Eve were intended to

grow into the moral and spiritual likeness of God and

thus share in the goodness, wisdom, and life of God

himself. Through freely loving and obeying God,humankind was to enter into an eternal and ever-

deepening communion with the triune God; they were to

be united with God by sharing in the eternal life and

goodness of the untreated Trinity.

b) Theosis (deification).The basic human need and ultimate human purpose,

then, is to become like God, to become one with God.

Humanity was created for communion with God, and

thus the final goal of human existence is participation "in

the fullness of the divine life." Orthodox theologiansemploy the term "deification" (theosis) when speaking

of the process of moral and spiritual growth through

which man may achieve union with God.

c) The Incarnation and theosis.The key to humanity's participation in the divine nature

is the incarnation of God the Son in Jesus Christ the

man. According to the Orthodox tradition, it was "God's

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eternal decision to associate man to his own blessedness"

(Lossky). But human beings, as we have seen, although

created good, were finite, incomplete, and therefore

imperfect beings, even in the garden of Eden. For this

reason, many Orthodox thinkers have argued that

humanity's movement toward union with God would

have required God's movement toward union withhumanity, even if the human race had remained faithful

to the Creator and therefore free from sin. Only if Godcondescended to become one with humanity could

humanity realistically hope to become one with God.

Thus, the incarnation of the divine Word the union of

God and humanity in the person of Jesus Christ is anessential feature of God's eternal plan for the world. The

incarnation would have taken place even if humanity had

not fallen under the bondage of sin and death (as

described symbolically in Genesis 3). What humanity's

rebellion against God's divine order did was to separatethe human race from "the tree of life," thereby making

the death of Christ necessary. In the incarnation, God

identifies himself with the human race. To identify

himself fully with a fallen and sinful humanity, God had

to identify himself with human mortality; he had to enter

into our death in order to raise us to eternal life.

Had he not sinned against God, man would have

remained free to partake of "the tree of life," and God's

union with humanity in the incarnation would not have

required the death of Christ. But the incarnation would

have taken place nonetheless.

In Christ, then, God and man become one. Insofar as a

human being is "in Christ" through faith and through

full participation in the life of the Church he is one

with God, because Christ's humanity is one with God. It

is through the gracious work of the Holy Spirit that the

Christian believer is brought into an ever-developing and

ever-deepening communion with God. The deification of

man, therefore, is a process of moral and spiritual

growth toward God the Father, through God the Son and

in God the Holy Spirit. In this way, man may become a

"partaker of the divine nature" (2 Pt 1:4), a participant inthe energies and eternal life of the triune God.

d) Image, likeness, and creaturehood.While the Bible presents quite an exalted view of human

nature, humanity is, after all, also a creature that exists

and thrives only by the mercy and grace of God.

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Human "creatureliness" is expressed in several ways in

Genesis 1-3.

(1) The human race is dependent for its very existence

upon the creative will and activity of God (1:26-27 and

2:7).

(2) Human harmony with God and the world requires

humanity's recognition of its subordination to anddependence upon God. While the human race is to "have

dominion" over the earth, it is to exercise this dominion

in the name of God. In Genesis 2 : 1 5 , God places

Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden and commands

them "to till it and keep it." Human dominion, in otherwords, is the dominion of stewardship a dominion

exercised by a steward under the authority of his Lord.

The garden of Eden is symbolic of humanity's original

harmonious relationship with God and nature, prior to

the disruption of the cosmic order wrought by humansin.

(3) Human creatureliness is revealed in the fact that, in

God's original dispensation, both humans and animals

are prohibited from killing one another. Both were to be

vegetarians (see 1:29-30), living together under the

divine rule of their Creator. Once again, humanity's

earthly dominion is shown to be limited, rather than

absolute.

(4) Humanity's physical and spiritual well-being is

contingent upon its faithful and loving obedience ofGod. This aspect of human creatureliness is given its

most striking expression in the story of the two trees in

Genesis 2. To disobey God in pursuit of the worldly

wisdom derived from "the tree of the knowledge of good

and evil" is to depart from "the tree of life," to lose the

source of eternal life.

Explanation: Why the divine prohibition against Adam

and Eve's eating the forbidden fruit (see Gn 2:17)? Why

should the acquisition of the knowledge of good and evil

separate humanity from the life of God? In biblical

thought, to know is to experience, to be involved orimmersed in, to partake of the object of one's

knowledge. Knowledge, for the human authors of the

Bible, is not the abstract comprehension of concepts and

theories, but the active and "existential" interpenetration

of the knower and the known. Thus, when the Bible

speaks of a man "knowing" a woman (for example, in

Gn 4:1), it is referring to the act of sexual intercourse.

To "know" good and evil, then, is to be personally

engaged in the performance of both good and evil acts.

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This immersion of oneself in the ways of the world

where good and evil are mixed together is symbolized

in the Bible by "the tree of the knowledge of good and

evil" and is, even now, forbidden by God."

3) Summary: The Bible presents man both as the image andlikeness of God and as one of God's creatures. The task ofhuman life is to grow toward communion with God on the basis

of faith, love and obedience always keeping in mind thefundamental creatureliness of human nature.

b. Man and woman in Genesis 1-2.1) The original (prelapsarian) relationship between man and

woman.

a) Genesis 1:27-28: Both men and women are created inthe image of God, and both are to exercise dominion

over the earth. This text also stresses God'scommandment that the human race is to "be fruitful" in

multiplying itself that is, in the procreation of

children. Bearing children is a great blessing from the

biblical point of view.

b) Genesis 2:18-25: the social nature of humanity:"It is not good that the man should be alone" (2:18).

Humanity's social nature the need for companionship

cannot be fulfilled in relationships with the animal world

(2:19-20). While humanity is less than God, it is more

than an animal. A human being needs the presence ofmembers of her/his own species "bone of my bones

and flesh of my flesh" to satisfy her/his longing for

fellowship.

c) Man needs woman (and vice-versa) in order to be acomplete human being: in the institution of marriage,

man and woman "become one flesh" one person, a

completed image of God. In referring to the unashamed

nakedness of the first man and woman (2:25), the Bible

speaks symbolically "of their guiltless relation to God

and to one another" (Oxford).

2) Summary: Before the fall, then, the relationship between manand woman was one of equality, mutuality, and harmony under

the divine order of God. One of the original tasks of man and

woman was to preserve, strengthen, and deepen this divinely

ordained relationship. But because of sin, as we shall see, the

primal communion between man and woman and between the

human race and God was subverted and destroyed.

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