Genesis
in Symbol and Substance
By Ron Corson
Once my 7-year-old son came to me after watching a video about the Creation
and the Garden of Eden. He stood beside me wrapped in a blanket since he
as most of my children have determined clothing is not necessary at home. As I
was cleaning the table, he said, "if they had not
eaten the fruit of that tree then we would all live forever". I told him
that is right and asked him why did they eat the fruit
of that tree. He looked back at me blankly, so I said the real problem was that
they, Adam and Eve did not trust God. They thought they knew more than God did,
they rejected God by their actions, but it was their attitude that caused the
problem, not the tree or its fruit. As you can imagine the light did not go on
over his head, he has enough respect not to tell me I was crazy. Yet, the look
on his face told me that to him, it was the act of eating from the bad tree
that caused us all to have to die. However, as with most of the Bible,
understanding the substance behind the stories can lead to far greater
understanding the then literalism that a child sees.
In the last century there has been much written about the first chapters
of Genesis. Much has dealt with the literal or figurative nature of the seven
days of creation. Even with all that has been written there is a great divide
which remains between the different proponents of each idea. Whether a Genesis
day is 24 hours or 1000 years is not the focus of this article. Instead, the
focus is on the substance behind the things written in the first few chapters
of Genesis, that is, how to look for the meaning within the story. As with most
stories the goal may not be to present a precise time line and sequence of
action of our beginnings. But to express to the listener in general terms how
we are in the situation that we see around us now.
The first six days of creation are quite easily understood. In fact, it
is stated in the very first verse.
In the beginning God created the heavens and
the earth. Gen 1:1
The steps in the process are listed as on one day something was created
and it was good, and the next day something else was created. It is a simple
formula which reemphasizes the central thought of the chapter,
that God created everything we see. How it precisely was done is not
indicated energy changed to matter or creation from nothing to something simply
by the will of God. It is of little importance for even in a society as
technologically advanced as ours today is, it is a mind-boggling idea. Would it
be any more understandable to the hunter or the shepherd of ancient Israel?
Still the substance remains; God created the Heavens and the Earth.
The story continues that after all we see was created man was added to
the scene. The story does not concern itself with details, how did man learn to
talk, was he created with knowledge or did he have to learn the multitudes of
things which humans have to learn to live. Man is given dominion over all he
sees. This is demonstrated in the small but amazing detail which tells us that
man gave names to all the animals. No small task even if man only spent one
second on each animal. (Scientist speculate that only
10% of the species that have ever lived are currently alive.)
The story has told us so far that God created the Heavens and the Earth,
Sun and moon, plants and animals and mankind. That is the substance, the
how’s and why can still be debated as vigorously as anyone wants to
debate them. What it has done is to set the stage with everything that mankind
sees around them.
Now of course a problem occurs, the problem is clear to all people, we
are not living in a paradise where mankind rules all of nature. The story moves
to tell us how we arrived at the current situation. It has presented us with a
God created world which is good, however now the focus changes to man, God the
prime mover thus far steps back from the action.
Adam means, "man" in the symbol we see him as the
representation of all men. Eve means life-giver literally the first woman, the
representation of all women. Our focus is to look at the substance of the
story, what is the story trying to tell us as well as
those who first heard the story. The story is often viewed as historical, but
as we look at the story do not remove the possibility that there is symbolism
which can lead more to the expression of concepts rather then merely lessons
from their failures.
Before we continue with the story Gen. 2:10-14 diverges to give a
geography lesson. The topography mentioned might have had significance to the
ancient Israelites or it may have not. We are left with little explanation for
this aside in the story. Possibly it is to set Eden
in the geographic center, whatever the names indicate they are of far latter
origin then the Eden
story. We shall for this time ignore the two different accounts of the creation
often identified as the account of chapter 1 and the account of chapter 2, and
work as if it is one story.
Gen 2:9 And the LORD God made all kinds
of trees grow out of the ground--trees that were pleasing to the eye and good
for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil.
Gen 2:16 And the LORD God commanded the man,
"You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; Gen 2:17 but you must
not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it
you will surely die."
As we move to the man portion of the story God has set two trees in the
Garden, one of life and the other of the knowledge of good and evil. No
directions are given for the tree of life, only a restriction for the tree of
knowledge of good and evil. There are certain religions which from this tiny
amount of information given so far have determined that if the first man and
woman had not eaten of this tree mankind would not know good as well as knowing
evil. To them, it was necessary for mankind to fail the test. This is here
pointed out not to make fun of their teachings but rather as a warning not to
jump on something and makes claims that are ill supported. It is a call to look
to the substance.
When most Christians read this story they often interpret the events in
the light of scripture written latter. This is normal and appropriate for us,
but it may also be useful to look at the story the way one hearing it for the
first time would think about it. As the story was most likely heard in the
format we see now sometime after the exodus from bondage of the children of Israel.
To them it would not be a dramatically different story from the ones that the
religions around them taught. Order from chaos is a main feature of many
ancient myths. Even what we may think is the most unusual aspect of the story,
the talking serpent, is not unusual. Talking animals are also common in many
ancient myths. We cannot say where the stories began if the myths are
distortions of the actual history, or if the myths influenced the Hebrew
creation story. We could hide behind a claim that God would never condone the
use of myths but that is merely a prejudice we have placed on God. God has
always had a tendency to reach people where they were, in the effort of
bringing them to where He wants them to be. No one can read the Old Testament
from beginning to end without noting how people’s views of God grew and
changed. From a God appeased by sacrifices to a God who loved
and redeemed. From Warrior God to Redeemer God, God was not changing but
people were changing. They moved from the angry God to a God of love.
In the story, God has set before mankind the choice between life and
death. Life is shown in the Tree of Life, Death is revealed in the Tree of the
knowledge of good and evil. For the latter tree brings death. If the tree of
Life defines itself as Life, then the other tree defines itself likewise. It
was against God's will for man to experience the Tree of knowledge of good and
evil, this tree represents rebellion against God. The distrust, which says that
what God has told us, is not for our good, we know more than God. A God who
withholds from us good is selfish at the least and evil at worst. These words
are the words the serpent used to tear apart the relationship between God and
man. Now out of this chaos God created life so in substance the Tree of Life
represents God. The Tree of knowledge of good and evil in substance represents
the rebellion against God. What we today like to call sin.
In the story there is a talking serpent; the substance of the serpent is
that of an adversary, someone opposed to God, planting thoughts of distrust about
God. In the story the serpent gives rise to the questions about God's goodness.
It is the voice of doubt, the voice of self-exaltation, the voice of human
sinfulness and rebellion.
After Adam and Eve eat the fruit of the forbidden tree, they realize that
they have done something wrong. The symbol is that they notice they are naked, they would have no reason to feel ashamed at the way
they were created except for now they know they are no longer good as they were
declared when created. The nakedness symbolizes their inability to hide from
God the wrong they have committed. Even after their actions are discovered the
first man and woman pass the blame to others. Adam blames both God and the
woman ("the woman you put here with me"), Eve blames the serpent. It
is here that we see the consequences given for the actions. The consequences
like the other elements in creation are things which we see around us everyday.
The serpent is cursed above all creatures and doomed to crawl on its
belly. By using it as the symbol of temptation and rebellion every time a
person who has heard the story of the creation and sees a snake the story is
remembered. The natural fear which people have of snakes because of their
silent stealth and poisonous danger is described as enmity between both the
serpent and the woman's offspring. Man will crush the serpent’s head and
the serpent with strike man's heel. After the incarnation of Christ, people
have looked back at this verse as Christ crushing the head of Satan. Christ as the
offspring, and Satan as the ultimate adversary.
For the woman increase of pain in childbirth is instituted, again
explaining something that is readily seen around us. The male will rule over
you is the next curse placed upon the woman, again explaining the patriarchal
society found throughout the world. To Adam the ground is cursed and will
require painful toil, producing thorns and thistles. As before the curses
declare to the listener things that are ever present on the earth.
The Lord makes for the couple garments of skin, a covering for their
nakedness. Many people wrongly assume a sacrificial system inaugurated at this
point. Assuming that God killed one or more animals to cover
the people with an animal skin. But that is not really indicated it is
developed by people inserting events into the story which were not there. The
verse never even says animal skins and it is no simple or quick matter to make
garments out of a skinned animal without proper preparation. If we are not
sidetracked by inserting extra details into the story we can see what the
substance of the garments is. The substance is that after the rebellion, and
the finger pointing and the curses of mankind and the environment, God shows
concern for the people. He covers their nakedness. Later in both the remainder
of the Old Testament and again in the New Testament we will see that the
covering is symbolic of forgiveness.
Man now experiences the results of evil and is no longer entitled to live
in the presence of life. This is symbolized by the Tree of Life which is within
the Garden of Eden. Therefore, mankind is banished from the Garden
of God. Placing cherubim with a flaming sword flashing back and forth to
guard the way to the Tree of Life. The substance here is that mankind
will not find his way back to the Life unless God once again opens the road.
Man now lives separated from God. The creation story does not introduce people
to the plan of salvation, redemption and reconciliation, they will be revealed
later through the prophets and apostles and ultimately through Jesus Christ.
Whether we look at the story as a literal or a metaphorical story the
substance remains generally the same. While those who prefer to look at the
story as a literal historical occurrence in practice look to the substance of
the meaning behind the events. Take for instance the Tree of the knowledge of
good and evil. Even those viewing the story as historical,
note that it was the act of disobedience which was the first sin. It was
not the fruit of the tree which somehow revealed to mankind what evil was. This
is an entirely proper analysis; it goes to the substance of the story. However,
if you talk to the same people about the Tree of Life it is the actual fruit
that is eaten which provides eternal life. They have left the substance that is
that God is the creator and source of life, to a very literal view that the
fruit of the Tree of Life provides eternal life. When moving
to that literalistic view many unanswerable questions will arise. For
instance, did God create mankind with a self-restricting mechanism to die
unless they ate from the Tree of Life? Does the devil
and his demons eat of the Tree of Life since they do not seem to die?
To this point, we have predominately looked at the first three chapters
of Genesis in a very restricted view. Looking at the story more in the light of
a thoughtful person, who knew little about the Hebrew God, yet was familiar
with other religious myths, much like the Israelites. Now we shall begin an
analysis using the rest of the Bible to help us understand more of what God has
intended for us.
Since we have just looked at the Tree of Life let us begin there again.
It has been said by some that a tree is a tree. That usually would be true only
if we knew for certain what the writer meant when making his/her statement.
Consider the following:
She is a tree of life to those who embrace
her; those who lay hold of her will be blessed (Prov 3:18)
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,
and he who wins souls is wise. (Prov 11:30)
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a
longing fulfilled is a tree of life. (Prov 13:12)
The tongue that brings healing is a tree of
life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit. (Prov
15:4) (NIV)
Simple metaphors are represented here in Proverbs, which should confuse
few people with their intent. Aside from the verses in Genesis to which we have
already alluded and those found in Proverbs, the book of Revelation is the only
other place where the phrase Tree of Life occurs.
He who
has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who
overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the
paradise of God (Rev 2:7)
On each side of the river stood the tree of
life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the
leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations (Rev 22:2)
"Blessed are those who wash their robes,
that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates
into the city. (Rev 22:14)
And if anyone takes words away from this book
of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in
the holy city, which are described in this book. (Rev 22:19) (NIV)
As we look at these verses though they are not the simple metaphors of
Proverbs they are however much more metaphor then literal when the thoughts
around them are observed. Such as phrases like: leaves of the tree are for
the healing of the nations, and Blessed
are those who wash their robes. While overall most Christians do not take
Revelation too literally, it is especially noticeable when certain words or
phrases are removed for the symbolic or metaphorical context and taken to be
literal. This is sometimes the case when certain Christians read books like
Isaiah and Ezekiel with the same results. Most often this is seen in those who
hold that Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 are references to Satan. (See Lucifer Misidentified)
Ezekiel gives us another excellent example of an instance where a tree is not a
tree. Speaking of Egypt
the verse says:
"Son of man, say
to Pharaoh king of Egypt
and to his hordes: "`Who can be compared with you in majesty? (Ezek 31:2)
The cedars in the garden
of God
could not rival it, nor could the pine trees equal its boughs, nor could the
plane trees compare with its branches-- no tree in the garden
of God
could match its beauty. I made it beautiful with abundant branches, the envy of
all the trees of Eden
in the garden
of God.
(Ezek 31:8-9) (NIV)
The metaphor not only provides poetic beauty but it moves the listener
past the world of concrete reality to the place where the meaning or the
message can be seen. However it requires the listener to look past the concrete
language and analyze the words in the full context of the statement.
The tradition within the Christian church has been to see the serpent as
the devil, Satan. (It is not until the book of Revelation that the connection
is made between the serpent in Eden
and Satan, Rev 20:2) This may not have been the typical Jewish understanding
since the connection with Satan is not drawn anywhere in the Old Testament.
Yet, when the substance of the story is examined it matters very little if Adam
and Eve were deceived by an outside being or if the thoughts of rebellion against
God came from inside their own minds. The point is that trust in God had been
abandoned.
Now think of the serpent used by Moses in the desert to find protection:
The people came to Moses and said, "We
sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will
take the snakes away from us." So Moses prayed for the people. The LORD
said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten
can look at it and live." So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a
pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he
lived. Num 21:7-9
It is doubtful that people looked at the snake as a symbol of Satan, as
it was lifted up. The snake was, as used in Genesis the symbol of the curse of
rebellion, and how nature itself in some ways had become man’s enemy.
Their rebellion here in the wilderness and the way out of their destruction lay
in the hands of God. The typology of the snake lifted up by Moses is often
correspondent with Christ being lifted up on the Cross.
But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to
myself." John 12:32
(NIV)
The correspondence is that looking to Christ provides the sinner with
salvation just as looking to the snake lifted up in the wilderness provided
healing from the venomous snakebites. But as we look more at the substance we
can see also that as the snake was the symbol for rebellion and the curse of
sin, Christ is also the symbol for rebellion and sin. As the children of Israel
rebelled against Moses about being led into the wilderness and even complained
about the Manna which God provided, Christ stands as the ultimate result of
mankind’s rebellion. Christ was lifted up, crucified by the cruel hatred
so often demonstrated by humanity. In Christ, we see the ultimate result of
sin; that rebellious man would go so far as to kill his or her own creator.
The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God
of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be
killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him
go. You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be
released to you. You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the
dead. We are witnesses of this. Acts 3:13-15 (NIV)
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us,
so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Cor
5:21
(NIV)
Christ brings to light the true nature of the rebellion against God. A
dramatic representation of just where our rebellion takes us. Man has killed
his fellow man since the very beginning of time, but Christ death shows us that
we can indeed commit acts that are more horrible. But we need not be left in
our own disgusting circumstances. We can repent and accept again the God who
offers us life.
Then Jesus cried out, "When a man
believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me.
When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me. I have come into the world as
a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness. John 12:44-46
(NIV)
Jesus said to her, "I am the
resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he
dies; John 11:25 (NIV)
From the Curse upon the snake in Eden...
to the curse of snakes upon the children of Israel
in the wilderness... to the curse of a Christ hung on a tree, all point out the
rebellion of man. All should lead us to the answer to the problem, to put to
death our hostility against God and accept His gift of life. We should not
point fingers as did Adam and Eve in the Garden we must learn to accept our own
responsibilities for our rebellion. The devil did not cause
man’s fall, man did. It may well be that we do not understand the role of
the adversary, but it is clear that we can not battle the adversary ourselves.
As with all things concerning salvation it is through the power of God working
in us that we press toward the mark, the total reconciliation with God.
Christ redeemed us from the curse of
the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone
who is hung on a tree." Gal 3:13
(NIV)
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far
away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. For he himself is our
peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing
wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and
regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two,
thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God
through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. He came and
preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For
through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. Consequently, you
are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and
members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and
prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole
building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And
in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives
by his Spirit. Eph 2:13-22 (NIV)
When time is spent looking at the substance of the first chapters of
Genesis it is possible to see far more then the supposed historicity they are
said to contain. The story tells us far more when we do not have to worry about
how creation occurred or what time frame may be involved. Problems such as who
did Cain marry or just what inspired the people to present animal sacrifices no
longer become problems. Our understanding of the ancient world does not have to
be based on sparse information. We become free to say that we do not know all
we may want to know, and yet what has been provided gives us enough information
to recognize our situation. The story of the first chapters of Genesis may
indeed be historic; but then again, they do not have to be. The substance
behind the story is the key, what does God want us to learn from the stories is
the important point.
So it is written: "The first man Adam became
a living being"; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The spiritual did
not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. The first man
was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. As was the earthly
man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also
are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the likeness of the
earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven. 1 Cor 15:45-49
(NIV)
