Beginning with Genesis 2:4, the writer takes up the theme of the generations of the heavens and the earth. He returns the reader to day three of the six-day creation account. On that day, Yahweh Elohim made to appear (asah) earth (dry land) as distinct from heavens (atmosphere). At that time, Yahweh Elohim had not caused rain to fall upon the earth. Humidity ascending from the earth irrigated all the surface of the ground, thereby causing the dry land to produce herbage. On that day there was no man to serve the ground.
The writer then moves forward to day six and describes, specifically, Yahweh Elohim’s formation of man from the soil of the ground. The writer describes the formation of the biological body of the first created man. The man’s physical body is formed from the soil of the ground.
And forming is Yahweh Elohim the human of soil from the ground, and He is blowing [breathing] into his nostrils the breath of the living, and becoming is the human a living soul. (Genesis 2:7 CV)
Upon completion, the biological body of the first man is organically alive. When Yahweh Elohim breathes into the man’s nostrils the breath of life, this man becomes a living soul, a conscious human being.
Thus, the biological body energized by the spirit made man a living soul. Death was not operating within the biological body of this man. This organic body would not decay. Organically, this first man (before receiving the breath of life) could not experience physical (organic) death. Spirit was necessary to make this man consciously alive with a thinking organism (the brain) efficient enough to make him in the likeness of the Elohim.
This description of man allowed the Apostle Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians, to label the first man, Adam, a living soul and the Second Man, Jesus, a life-giving spirit (1 Cor. 15:45 CV, NEGINT). Adam, upon receiving the breath of life (spirit), became a living soul. Thus, he was soulish in essence. He was capable of experiencing death by means of an outside source. But death as a principle, a law, was not operating within him. If this spirit were to be withdrawn, he would not decay. He would simply become unconscious.
Jesus as the Second (deuteros) Man (1 Cor. 15:45 CV, NEGINT) is spiritual in essence. He is no longer capable of experiencing death by means of an outside source. Jesus as a generated human being had been a soulish being. He had been capable of being killed by an outside source. After His resurrection, He became a spiritual being possessing immortality. This immortality made Him a life-giving spirit, a vivifying spirit. As a spiritual being He could impart immortality to soulish beings. Paul’s further distinction between soilish man and soulish man and his distinction between the Last Man and the Second Man will be explained later.
This man formed from the soil of the ground and made consciously alive by the reception of spirit was placed by Yahweh Elohim in the garden of Eden which He had prepared for man’s habitation. In this garden Yahweh had planted every tree beautiful to the eye and good for food. He also planted the Tree of Life in the midst of the garden and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
The writer then describes the rivers irrigating the garden. His
purpose is to relate the location of this garden to
Having placed the man in this garden, Yahweh Elohim assigns him the task of serving and keeping it. He further instructs the man concerning the forbidden fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. He can eat of the fruit of every tree except this one. Adam is instructed,
you are not to be eating from it, for in the day you eat from it, to die shall you be dying. (Genesis 2:17b CV)
The consequence of Adam’s disobedience is not immediate death. It is the internal activation of the dormant principle of death which slowly operates in Adam’s biological body terminating in his return to the soil of the ground. This death is physical, biological. But it represents a process occurring over a period of time. This death was later understood to be the first death in contrast to the second death associated with the crucifixion death of Jesus. Israel, understood metaphorically as a national man, also activated a dormant covenantal principle of death which slowly operated through its national life, terminating in what the writer of the Book of Revelation calls “the second death” (Rev. 2:11 CV).
Yahweh Elohim then says,
Not good is it for the human for him to be alone. Make for him will I a helper as his complement. (Genesis 2:18b CV)
He then brings to Adam all living creatures in order to see
what Adam would name each. This naming process is a demonstration of Adam’s
being in the likeness of Elohim. In this task the text refers to Adam as “the human living soul” (Gen. 2:19 CV). Adam
became a living soul at the reception of spirit, making him consciously alive
with efficient intelligence enabling him to name, and thus rule over, all
living creatures. This is why Adam is called “[son] of God” in Luke’s genealogy of Jesus (Lk.
But, in the naming of all these creatures, there is found no creature fit to be named Adam’s complement. Yahweh Elohim Himself would provide a complement for Adam. The writer has already stated that Elohim created man male and female. Now the writer reveals how this is accomplished. Adam is created first. He represents humanity. He is created in the image and likeness of Elohim. As Yahweh Elohim is first in relation to the sons of El, so Adam would be first in relation to his complement, Eve. As the Supreme El had headship over the sons of El, so Adam would have headship over his complement.
Yahweh Elohim, therefore, anaesthetizes Adam, causing him to sleep. He then removes from Adam one of his angular organs, afterward closing the flesh of the resulting wound. From this angular organ, Yahweh Elohim builds a woman and brings her to Adam.
And falling is a stupor on the human, caused by Yahweh Elohim, and he is sleeping. And taking is He 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 bringing her is He to the human. (Genesis 2:21-22 CV)
The writer, in this passage, describes a surgical operation performed on Adam’s physical body, resulting in the removal of one of his organs which is then built genetically into a woman. Thus, Adam originally was male and female. His female organ was removed and genetically built into a fitting complement for him, a woman. This account is a description of the process used by Elohim to bring about the statement of fact recorded in Genesis 1:27b: “Male and female He created them” (CV).
This account of the relation of Adam to Eve becomes by analogy
a type of Moses’ relation to his people
In both cases (Adam and Moses), Paul alludes to the law lording it over the man for as long as the man is living (Rom. 7:1 CV). Paul uses the definite article “the” in relation to the man and the woman referred to in his analogy. The man he writes about alludes to both Adam and Moses. In Romans, chapter 5, he begins his contrast of Adam with Christ in relation to the entire race of men. In chapter 6, he continues this contrast, adding to it the theme concerning the elect as no longer being under law but under grace (Rom. 6:14-15).
This analogy of headship is applied to humanity as a whole in
relation to The Law of Sin and Death activated
by Adam’s sin and to
As long as Adam remained the head of the race, the death that his
sin introduced into the race would reign over all men. All men would return to
the soil from which Adam had been formed, and there they would remain. As long
as Moses remained the symbolic head of
Thus, in chapter 7 of Romans, Paul addresses the theme of
Christ’s deliverance of all humanity from the biological death that Adam
brought in and His deliverance of all
This is precisely what the death of Jesus the Christ achieved. His death terminated the headship of Adam and the grave as the last word regarding humans. Humanity had been delivered from the bondage of the grave, the soil to which all men must return.
The death of Jesus also terminated the Law of Moses, as the result of its being fulfilled. His resurrection offered to all the elect the life of the New Covenant which superseded the Mosaic Law. Thus, Paul could write,
For the woman in wedlock is bound to the living man by law. Yet if the man should be dying, she is exempt from the law of the man. (Romans 7:2 CV)
To continue to trust in the Mosaic Law (the Sinatic Covenant) for covenantal life was to be harmed by the Second Death.
All those in the Christ shared in His death and were sharing in His new covenantal life that came about as a result of the death of the old covenant. As long as they were covenantally identified with Him in His death (the death of the Old Sinatic Covenant), they would not be harmed of that Second Death. But if they returned to the old covenant as a covenant of life, and thus became antimessianic, not being found in the Christ, the Messiah (Phil. 3:8-9), they would suffer the harm of the Second Death.
Paul’s use of this analogy will affect the understanding of the resurrection spoken of by Jesus in John 5:19-29. These themes will be developed further when the Greek Scriptures are analyzed.
Yahweh Elohim, after atomically building the woman from an organ of Adam, presents her to Adam. Adam responds, “This was once bone of my bones and flesh from my flesh. This shall be called woman, for from her man is this taken” (Gen. 2:23 CV). The woman is taken out of the man; thus Adam calls her “woman.” Here is his fitting complement. She is biologically, soulishly, and intellectually his female clone. The two are actually one—male and female. Adam is formed from the soil of the ground; the woman is formed from an organ out of the body of Adam. Apart from the woman, Adam is incomplete. Adam is created first and then the woman. He thus has headship. Paul will later draw theological truth from the implication of this passage.
Upon the completion and presentation of the woman, Yahweh Elohim blesses them, saying, “Be fruitful and increase and fill the earth, and subdue it” (Gen. 1:28b CV). From this couple all other humans are to be generated. Humanity is to be responsible for all created life inhabiting the heavens and the earth of his God-authorized domain (Gen. 1:28).
The writer of Genesis (in my estimation, most likely Moses) then draws a conclusion from the foregoing account: “Therefore a man shall forsake his father and his mother and cling to his wife, and they two become one flesh” (Gen. 2:24 CV). This commentary establishes Yahweh’s original intention concerning marriage. A man is to forsake his father and mother and cling to his wife, the two becoming one flesh in the act of conjugal consummation with its potential for generating children (progeny). This is how Jesus expounded the meaning of this text (Matt. 19:4-6). Each couple in marriage is to reflect the relationship of the very first couple.
The Hebrew word for “cling”
used here is the same word used to denote
Yahweh’s clinging is to be seen in the intercession of Moses
and Yahweh’s acceptance of this intercession on behalf of
Unlike Adam who failed to righteously intercede on behalf of
Eve, Moses succeeds in faithfully interceding on behalf of
Moses trusted in Yahweh’s goodness and thus interceded on
From that point in time, the nation was doomed to die covenantally. As Adam would return to the soil from which he had been taken, so Jacob/Israel would return to the soil from which he had been taken. He would return to his place among the nations (as later experienced by the apostate nation in 70 a.d.).
The Mosaic Covenant would terminate in the Second Death. But Yahweh would deliver Israel-according-to-spirit from the death of the first covenant by providing a second, a new covenant built upon the Rock of the intercession, the mediation of Jesus the Christ, the Son of Abraham, the Son of David, the Son of Adam, the Son of Yahweh Elohim, Whose death was on behalf of the faithful covenanted nation and the race created in the Image and Likeness of Yahweh Elohim.
Jesus the Christ thus fulfilled the Law and the Prophets by terminating the Sinatic/Mosaic Covenant. His Death was the death of the ministry of death, the Mosaic Covenant. Upon His resurrection and ascension, the Mosaic Covenant could no longer provide a living covenantal relationship with Yahweh. Only the New Covenant could provide a living covenantal relationship with Yahweh. This will be developed further when John 5:24-29 is expounded.
Genesis, chapter 2, concludes with the Hebrew Scriptures’ first reference to the theme of nakedness.
And coming are they two, the human and his wife, to be naked, yet are not shaming themselves. (Genesis 2:25 CV)
This statement is the writer’s transition into the theme of
chapter 3: the failure of Eve and Adam. This failure would result in an
awareness of their nakedness that became associated with shame. The original nakedness
of the first couple had not been associated with shame. Shame is the product of
the act of sinning (missing the mark) in relation to the command of Yahweh
Elohim. The third and fourth chapters of Genesis develop the theme of sin in
relation to the first human family. This information would be vital to
Later, with the addition of the Greek Scriptures, these two chapters (Genesis 3 and 4) would provide much necessary knowledge vital to the growth and completion of the Ecclesia, the Bride and Body of The Christ. Without these two chapters, an understanding of the writings of Paul and John would be impossible. The secret revealed to Paul had been concealed in these two chapters.
Genesis, chapter 3, introduces the reader to the Serpent and its rationalization of the words of Yahweh concerning the prohibition of the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Again, the text has been understood by some to be mythic because of the role given to the Serpent. But the writer refers to the Serpent as being the craftiest of all the field life which Yahweh Elohim had created, thus connecting the Serpent with the creative work accomplished during day six of the six-day creation account of Genesis, chapter 1.
The Serpent is not presented as a mythical invention of the writer. This creature was created by Elohim and, according to Genesis 2:20a, Adam was responsible for naming this very field life creature:
And calling is the human the names for every beast and for every flyer of the heavens, and for all field life. (CV)
As incredible as it may seem, the writer presents the Serpent as capable of intelligent thought and speech.
It is the Serpent named by Adam who seduces or deceives the Woman, and it is this same Serpent who is cursed to crawl on its belly and eat soil all the days of its life. The Serpent literally eats soil because it crawls on its belly. However, the curse is symbolic and refers to the symbolic relation the Serpent will have with a specific human seed. To eat soil is to figuratively experience shame and ultimate defeat. For even the field life had been created out of the soil of the ground. Soil, from this point on in the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures, will signify the verdict of death which came upon the human race as a result of Adam’s sin. The curse on the Serpent is metaphorically a curse on the seed of this Serpent, which seed refers to a specific group of humans.
The Serpent thus becomes a symbol of an attitude about to become characteristic of a certain group of human beings. For the enmity set by Yahweh between the seed of the Serpent and the seed of the Woman is without doubt enmity between two groups of humans, as will be made clear in chapter 4 of Genesis and the writings of the Greek Scriptures.
Thus, Genesis 3:14 is a literal judgment (crawling on his belly and eating of the soil) of the Serpent as a creature of the field life. This literal judgment then becomes symbolic of the two seeds set at enmity in Genesis 3:15. The seed of the Serpent (Cain) is set against the seed of the Woman (Abel). Here the language must be understood metaphorically. The seed of the Serpent is a man and the seed of the Woman is a man.
The Woman is deceived into believing that the eating of the fruit of The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil will not result in her dying but in her becoming like Elohim, knowing good and evil. She is not contemplating rebellion against Yahweh Elohim and His command. She believes she will become like Elohim by acquiring intelligence.
And seeing is the woman that the tree is good for food, and that it brings a yearning to the eyes, and is to be coveted as the tree to make one intelligent. (Genesis 3:6a CV)
She is not seeking to depart from Yahweh Elohim. She is not seeking to challenge Yahweh Elohim’s authority. She is not seeking to become free. She is seeking to be like Elohim in intelligence. She believes this to be a beneficial goal. She is sincere, though sincerely wrong. But she is not in rebellion against Yahweh her Elohim.
She decides to take and eat the forbidden fruit:
And she began taking of its fruit and began eating, and she began giving, moreover, to her husband with her, and he began eating. (Genesis 3:6b my translation)
The Woman begins to take and eat the forbidden fruit. The imperfect tense is used. She eats first, and, then, finding her husband, he also eats. Adam is not with his woman when the Serpent deceives her. This is part of the problem. The Woman acts on her own. She does not seek the advice or counsel of her man. She closes her ears to the prohibition of Yahweh Elohim. This is made clear in the judgment against her:
in the sphere of the interest of your husband is your desire [restoration LXX], and he will begin ruling in the sphere of your interest. (Genesis 3:17b my translation)
The Serpent does not address the Woman and the
This is Paul’s understanding of the text in the argument of Romans 5:12-21 and in his direct statements in 2 Corinthians 11:1-3 and 1 Timothy 2:4-14:
Would that you had borne with any little imprudence of mine! Nay, and be bearing with me, for I am jealous over you with a jealousy of God. For I betroth you to one Man, to present a chaste virgin to the Christ. Yet I fear lest somehow, as the serpent deluded [seduced out, deceived] Eve by its craftiness, your apprehensions should be corrupted from the singleness and pureness which is in Christ. (2 Corinthians 11:1-3 CV)
Let a woman learn in silence with all submissiveness. I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over men; she is to keep silent. For Adam was formed first then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. (1 Timothy 2:11-14 RSV)
Adam was not deceived. He did not believe the words of the Serpent. He believed the words of Yahweh Elohim. The Woman would die as a result of her act of disobedience (hearing aside) resulting in her transgression (stepping aside).
Here is the dilemma placed before Adam as a result of the
successful deception by the Serpent. There is nothing in the text to indicate
that Adam’s response at Yahweh’s presentation of the Woman to him has changed. She
is still “bone of my bones and flesh from
my flesh” (Gen. 2:23b CV). The two are one. How can he solve this present
enigmatic problem?! Surely, she will die. Already she was in the process of
dying. For had not Yahweh Elohim said, “for
in the day you eat from it, to die shall you be dying” (Gen. 2:17b CV)! The
answer to Adam’s dilemma is revealed in Moses’ intercession on behalf of
But Adam failed to perceive this possibility. He acted in haste. He would remain one with her by joining her in death. Adam loved the Woman as Jesus the Christ loved the Ecclesia.
However, Adam’s act of love did not and could not redeem his Woman. Not only did his love fail to deliver his Woman, his act of disobedience (hearing aside, Rom. 5:19), transgression (stepping aside, Rom. 5:14), and deviation (slipping aside, Rom. 5:18) caused him to sin (miss the mark, Rom. 5:16), thereby bringing death into the race he would generate (see Rom. 5:12-21).
Only Adam’s sin could bring death into the race. The Woman’s sin brought death only to herself. Adam was the head of the race, the head of the Woman, and his act would determine the destiny of the race. He should have interceded on her behalf.
Instead, he acted out of ignorance and in unbelief (1 Tim. 1:13). He believed Yahweh’s word concerning death. But he did not believe Yahweh Elohim could solve his enigmatic dilemma. He had failed to believe in Yahweh’s compassion and mercy. Thus, he obeyed (heard, listened to, hearkened to) the voice of the Woman.
The text does not accuse Adam of hearkening to the words of the Woman. Yahweh Elohim’s reproach is that Adam hearkened to the VOICE of his wife. Note, the accusation has to do with hearkening to the voice. And it is the voice, not of the Woman, but “your wife” (Gen. 3:17 CV). Adam was not deceived. The Woman’s words did not deceive him and thus cause him to eat. It was his wife’s VOICE, the sound of her voice, which aroused his love for her and induced him into eating the forbidden fruit.
This is certainly Paul’s understanding of Adam’s dilemma. By analogy he compares and contrasts Adam with Jesus the Christ. This is demonstrated in Romans 5:12-21 and Romans 7:1-4. It is also demonstrated in Ephesians 5:22-33. In his instruction to husbands and wives, he alludes to the relation of Adam and his wife. He declares that wives should be subject to their own husbands since the husband is head of the wife even as Christ is Head of the Ecclesia and Savior of the Body, that is, the Body of The Christ which is His Ecclesia. This alludes to Eve’s acting on her own in response to the words of the Serpent. She had ignored her subjection to her husband, Adam.
Paul then declares that husbands should be loving their wives as Christ loves the Ecclesia and as Christ gave Himself up to death for her sake. Thus, husbands also should be loving their own wives as their own bodies. Paul further declares,
He who is loving his own wife is loving himself. For no one at any time hates his own flesh, but is nurturing and cherishing it, according as Christ also the ecclesia, for we are members of His body. For this [reason] “a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall be one flesh.” (Ephesians 5:28b-31 CV)
Here he directly quotes from Genesis 2:24. Adam and Eve are a type of Jesus the Christ and His Ecclesia, His Complement, His Body.
Adam had failed to intercede on behalf of his Woman, his Complement, his Body. But his failure was not due to his lack of love for her or his desire to rebel against Yahweh Elohim. His failure was due to ignorance and unbelief. When he is asked by Yahweh Elohim, “from it did you eat?” (Gen 3:11b CV), he answers, “The woman whom Thou gavest, withal, she gave to me from the tree and I am eating” (Gen. 3:12b CV). He is not passing the blame onto the Woman. He is simply stating his enigmatic dilemma. What else could he do? The two are one flesh. She is under the verdict of death. He concludes that his love for her and their being one flesh demand his joining her in death.
He chooses to die with her in disobedience to the command of Yahweh Elohim, his Father and God. Jesus the Christ chooses to die for His Complement in obedience to the command of His Father and God. Adam’s choice and act result in Sin and Death. Jesus the Christ’s choice and act result in Righteousness and Life. That this is Paul’s understanding is further evidenced by his exposition of Genesis 2:24 in the very next verse of Ephesians, chapter 5.
Referring back to verse 31 where Paul had quoted Genesis 2:24, he exclaims, “This secret is great: yet I am saying this as to Christ and as to the ecclesia” (Eph. 5:32 CV). By analogy, Adam’s failure was due to ignorance and unbelief, not rebellion against Yahweh Elohim. As Christ loved the Ecclesia, so Adam had loved Eve.
This is why Adam and Eve are not cursed. The Serpent and his seed are cursed; the ground is cursed, but not the Man and the Woman. Adam is not a coward and Eve is not a seditionist. In the presence of Yahweh Elohim, they both humble themselves, submitting to His authority and righteous judgment.
In addition, after their removal from the garden in
Yahweh’s audible presence is implied in the text when the writer records Yahweh Elohim speaking to Cain. He does not speak to Cain through a mediator. Thus, Adam and Eve were not spiritually separated from Yahweh Elohim. They were removed from His visible presence, but were dynamically close to Him in His audible presence. Adam, Eve, Cain, and Abel had an access to Yahweh Elohim far superior to any individual today, and certainly far superior to most Israelites under the Sinatic/Mosaic Covenant. This needs to be kept in mind as the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures are read.
The primary consequences of the transgressions of Adam and Eve
are twofold: they begin to die biologically and are removed from the garden in
For
The Sinatic/Mosaic covenant had become a ministry of death and, thus, the nation was doomed to die covenantally. But until the time of that covenantal death, the covenant was a source of terrestrial life and blessing if obeyed. If disobeyed it would become a source of terrestrial death and cursing.
However, this death and cursing would not be the last word,
for Yahweh promised that though He would expel her from the land, He would
gather her from among the nations and bring her back into the land (see
Deuteronomy, chapters 28; 29; 30:1-3; 32). It was only in the land that the
ultimate covenantal death of the nation could occur. For only in the land could
also occur the resurrection and new life of the nation (the Born-From-Above Israel). This would be
the covenantal significance of Joseph’s command to take his bones out of the
As the Woman Eve is promised a conquering seed (Gen. 3:15), so
Israel is promised a conquering seed who would deliver her from the curse of
the law by redeeming her out of the Second Death (the death of the
Sinatic/Mosaic covenant) and giving her the new life of a New Covenant. As
Yahweh had known, understood, and planned for the enigmatic problem Adam would
encounter, so He had known, understood, and planned for the disobedience of
This is the meaning of the words of Yahweh to Moses recorded in Deuteronomy 31:21b (CV):
I know the bent of their heart which they are forming today ere I bring them to the land about which I had sworn.
This is the reason Yahweh composed the song given to Moses as
a testimony against the sons of
Again, this is the meaning of Moses’ words to
Yet until this day Yahweh has not given you a heart to realize and eyes to see and ears to hear. (Deuteronomy 29:4 CV)
The things being concealed are Yahweh our Elohim’s, yet the things being revealed are ours and our sons’ until the eon, so that we might keep all the words of this law. (Deuteronomy 29:29 CV)
The Mosaic Law was a revelation given to this nation by Yahweh Elohim for the duration of the Mosaic Eon. The faithful ones would keep all the words of this law in their hearts. The faithful ones would be listening for the words of Yahweh yet to be revealed. Those yet-to-be-revealed words had been concealed from Israel, but would be revealed through the promised prophets, such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, John the Baptist, Jesus the Messiah, the Twelve Apostles, and Paul.
Thus the revelatory meaning of the words of Jesus when He exclaimed,
Serpents! Progeny of vipers! How may you be fleeing from the judging of Gehenna? Therefore, lo! I am dispatching to you prophets and wise men and scribes. Of them, some of you will be killing and crucifying, and of them, some of you will be scourging in your synagogues and persecuting from city to city, so that on you should be coming all the just blood shed on the earth, from the blood of just Abel until the blood of Zechariah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Verily I am saying to you: all these things will be arriving on this generation. (Matthew 23:33-36 CV)
The shed blood of just Abel was to come upon the Cainite
nation of
for not all those out of
The children of the flesh are the children of Cain, who himself was out of the wicked one (1 Jn. 3:12 CV), the Serpent. These children are opposed to Yahweh and are in rebellion against Him. Though Yahweh Elohim loves them, they forfeit the promise because of their lawlessness and their evil hearts which refuse to love Yahweh’s law, Yahweh’s words, Yahweh’s voice.
The children of God, the children of the promise are those characterized by the faithfulness of Abel and the faithfulness of Abraham. These are the seed of the Woman. They may have been deceived for a period of time, but their hearts always belong to Yahweh, even as Eve’s heart always belonged to Yahweh Elohim.
Paul himself is an example of such a child deceived for a
period of time, but whose heart always belonged to Yahweh. When his eyes were
opened, he humbled himself before Yahweh and submitted to Yahweh’s anointed
King, Jesus the Messiah. When his eyes were opened on the road to
Although the motif of the seed of the Serpent and the seed
of the Woman was revealed to
In Genesis, chapter 3, the reader is informed concerning the seed of the Woman. Why did the writer refer to the seed of the Woman rather than the seed of the Man (Adam)? The answer to this question has to do with the distinction between the purpose of the seed of the Woman and the purpose of the Son of Adam. Jesus would be identified as the Seed of the Woman in relation to the elect seed of The Promise. This had been revealed (Gen. 3:15). But the significance of Jesus as the only-begotten Son of God and only legitimate Son of Adam had not been revealed.
Adam’s sin had brought sin and death into the race. The sin of Cain had brought murder into the race and hatred of one’s brother. Such sin was rebellion against Yahweh Elohim and came to represent the possible choice of each individual human being. Cain’s sin was not caused by ignorance and was not the result of deception. Yahweh Elohim interceded on Cain’s behalf when He warned and instructed Cain concerning his evil heart. Cain sinned with his eyes wide open. He defied Yahweh Elohim. Thus, he was held accountable for his own sin.
But the sin of Adam affected all humanity apart from the choice of any individual human being. The verdict of Yahweh Elohim in relation to Adam’s sin was death (death common to all men, Num. 16:29) for all individual human beings generated by Adam. Thus, to be born into the race is to be born to die, apart from any intention or act against Yahweh Elohim’s will by any generated child of Adam. Death passed into the race in spite of the fact that not a single individual child generated by Adam has had a choice as to the deadly effect of Adam’s sin.
This death (physical, biological) was passed into the race through Adam’s sperm. The Law of Death does not reside within the biological seed of the Woman Eve and her daughters. The male sperm contains the Law of Death. This is why Elohim created them male and female. This would allow death to enter the race while at the same time providing the means by which humanity could evolve from a lower state to a higher state.
As Adam was head of the lower or soulish state, so Jesus the Christ would become the head of the higher or spiritual state. As the lower state had become immersed in death, so the higher state would become immersed in life. Though the lower state had contained within itself the possibility (which became actualized) of mortality, the higher state would consist only of immortality.
As the seed of the Woman,
Jesus was born into the human race with the possibility of death. However,
since He was not generated by a sperm contaminated by death, His body was free
from The Law of Death. He was capable
of dying only from a source outside Himself. As long as He did not sin, The Law of Death would remain
inactivated within His body. He, thus, would not die the common death of human
beings contaminated by the sin of Adam (cf. Num.
Jesus would be the only legitimate son of Adam, because He would be the only son of Adam in the likeness of Adam prior to Adam’s sin. As such, He would also be the only-begotten Son of God. Adam was created, but all his sons, apart from Jesus, were generated by a contaminated sperm. Therefore, these sons are illegitimate.
Jesus was generated by the spirit of God, yet was Adam’s son, because the seed of the Woman Eve was originally incorporated in Adam before the Woman was created from one of Adam’s organs. As Elohim created Adam male and female, making Adam His created son, so Elohim generated Jesus by impregnating the seed of the Woman Eve/Mary, making Jesus the only-begotten (generated) Son of God. Thus, Jesus is both the Son of Adam and the only-begotten (only-generated) Son of God (see Lk. 3:38).
This secret of the Gospel became the foundation upon which the Gospel of Christ was firmly and justly set. Paul’s expounding of this secret is set forth in Romans, chapters 5-8; 1 Corinthians 15:20-57; and 2 Corinthians, chapter 5. Adam’s sinful act (hearing aside, stepping aside, and slipping aside) resulted in Yahweh Elohim’s verdict of death (mortality) upon all individual members of the race apart from each member’s personal choice or act. Christ’s righteous act (accurate hearing, accurate walking, and accurate consummation) resulted in Yahweh Elohim’s verdict of life (immortality) for all individual members of the race apart from each member’s personal choice or act.
Thus, the verdict of Yahweh Elohim in the case of the one man Jesus was a triumphant declaration of justification of life for each individual member of the Adamic race (Rom. 5:18). With this verdict, all humanity is to eventually transcend the first humanity (soulish), evolving metamorphously into the second humanity, the superior humanity (spiritual) headed up by Jesus the Christ and spiritually generated by Christ and His Body, Christ and His Ecclesia, both dwelling as spiritually One in the Celestial Realm, the Celestial Jerusalem.
From this foundational truth, Paul concluded that Yahweh Elohim’s justification of the elect, promised seed on the basis of faith was a just verdict. All humanity would be given immortal life, but only the faithful, elect seed of the Woman, elect seed of Abraham, would be promised a share in the allotment promised to Abraham’s seed, Jesus the Christ, the Firstborn.
Yahweh Elohim accounted faith as righteousness only to the faithful, elect seed whose faithfulness to the end gained them a share in the allotment of the Christ in the Celestial Realm. The salvation proclaimed in the Gospel of Christ was not for all humanity. It was offered only to the faithful, elect seed of the Woman, which seed, during the history recorded in the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures, continually narrowed down from Abel to Noah, to Shem, to Abraham, to Jacob, to David, to Jesus the Messiah.
By the year 70 a.d. (the end of the Mosaic Eon), the elect, faithful promised seed entered into the Celestial Allotment, thereby fulfilling the Law and the Prophets. The Gospel of Christ had been given to the Apostles, had been proclaimed by the Apostles, had been received by the elect, faithful seed living in that final generation of the Mosaic Eon; thereby concluding the proclamation of the Gospel of Christ, in accord with the testimony of Isaiah the prophet concerning Yahweh’s word:
For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and return not thither but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose and prosper in the thing for which I sent it. (Isaiah 55:10-11 RSV)
Yahweh had commissioned Jesus with the Gospel of the Kingdom. He fulfilled His commission by preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom, and that Gospel message accomplished Yahweh’s purpose. Jesus then commissioned His Apostles to preach the Gospel of Christ. He declared He would be with them to the end of the eon (Matt. 28:16-20); they would be afflicted, killed and hated (Matt. 24:9); they would be perceiving the abomination of desolation declared through Daniel (Matt. 24:15); they would proclaim this Gospel throughout the whole inhabited earth (the whole habitation of the household of Israel) and, having accomplished this, the consummation would arrive (Matt. 24:13-14).
Either they had fulfilled this by the end of the Mosaic Eon or they had failed. If they have failed, Yahweh’s word has failed; Jesus’ word has failed; and the Greek Scriptures are false. Yahweh’s word was proclaimed. Yahweh’s word did not return to Him empty. Yahweh’s word accomplished His purpose and prospered in the thing for which He sent it: “Verily, I am saying to you that by no means may this generation be passing by till all these things should be occurring” (Matt. 24:34 CV). This must be the conclusion of faith.
After Yahweh Elohim declares enmity between the seed of the Serpent and the seed of the Woman, He turns to the Woman and declares,
I will begin greatly multiplying your grief and your pregnancy. In grief you will begin bearing sons. Yet, in the sphere of the interest of your husband is your desire, and he will begin ruling in the sphere of your interest. (Genesis 3:16 my translation)
The grief of the Woman would come about as a result of the two sons she would shortly begin bearing. In these sons, she would experience again the effect of The Knowledge of Good and Evil.
This judgment did not concern the general giving birth to children. It concerned this specific Woman and her beginning to bear sons in grief. What she was soon to experience in the bearing of Cain and Abel, all women in general giving birth to sons would continue to experience to some degree. Her grief would eventually be terminated by means of her seed, a son coming forth from her who would overcome and transcend the affect of The Knowledge of Good and Evil resulting from her eating of the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. This son would demonstrate the power derived from loving one’s brother, even one’s enemy.
At the beginning of chapter 4 of Genesis, the Woman, Eve, Adam’s Wife, gives birth to her first son and rejoices, declaring, “I have acquired a man from Yahweh” (Gen. 4:1 my translation). She had not yet experienced Yahweh’s judgment of grief. This first son is named Cain (acquired).
The text goes on to record that she bore another son. This second son is named Abel (vanity). With the slaying of Abel by Cain, the Woman experiences the grief pronounced by Yahweh. The acquired one turns out to be the seed of the Serpent, representing the evil acquired as a result of eating the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
Abel, the one experiencing and illustrating the vanity of The Knowledge of Good and Evil, is the first human murdered. He represents the seed of the Woman, representing the good received from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The acquired one brought forth in rejoicing is the one to bring forth the grief of the judgment pronounced in Genesis 3:16.
Cain is the acquired one. As such, he brings grief by his rebellion against Yahweh. In his heart is hatred against his brother. He is warned of this evil by Yahweh Elohim. He refuses to take heed. In slaying his brother he sheds innocent blood. By this act, he becomes identified as the seed of the Serpent. He openly and directly opposes Yahweh Elohim. The shed blood of his brother Abel cries out for vengeance. This same shed blood pollutes the ground. Yet, Yahweh Elohim does not exact from him the price of this crime, this sin. Evil is to have its place in this world outside the garden of Eden. Yahweh is to demonstrate His love for Cain. Cain is to be expelled from Yahweh’s presence, but not from Yahweh’s heart. Cain is to be allowed to set his face to the east in order to establish his contribution to the generation of the Heavens and the Earth (see Gen. 2:4) now under the influence of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, the Law of Sin and Death. For Yahweh’s hand is upon both the Good and the Evil, in accord with the wisdom of Koheleth who declared,
For everything there is a stated time,
and a season for every event under the heavens:
A season to give birth and a season to die; . . .
A season to kill and a season to heal; . . .
I see the experience that Elohim gives
To the sons of humanity to humble them by it.
He has made everything fitting in its season;
However, he has put obscurity in their heart
So that the man [Adam and his illegitimate, generated progeny] may not find out His [Yahwel Elohim’s] work,
That which the One, Elohim, does from the beginning to the terminus. (Ecclesiastes 3:1-3, 10-11 CV)
Yahweh Elohim would use both the Good and the Evil to establish His purpose, His goal. He would demonstrate His love, mercy, and compassion for both the seed of the Woman (living according to the Good) and the seed of the Serpent (living according to the Evil). He would demonstrate the meaning of love thy brother and I am my brother’s keeper. He would accomplish this through the Son of His Love, the Obedient Son Who would demonstrate His Father’s Love by becoming the Man from Whom Yahweh Elohim would exact the price of Cain’s crime, Cain’s sin. Only in this way could the cry of the shed blood of Abel be avenged apart from the total destruction of the seed of the Serpent. Only the shed blood of Jesus the Christ could speak better than the shed blood of Abel. Abel’s blood cried out for vengeance, death. Jesus’ shed blood cried out Reconciliation, Life:
But you have come . . . to Jesus, the Mediator of a fresh covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling which is speaking better than Abel. (Hebrews 12:22-24 CV)
The echo of the story of Cain and Abel reverberates throughout the writings of the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures. Jacob/Israel’s understanding of himself, his history, and his destiny cannot be completely grasped apart from a recognition of the significant shadow cast upon the holy writings by the influence of the metaphoric representation of Cain and Abel. From the beginning of Jacob/Israel’s national history, the nation as a corporate man is informed of his Cainish character:
Do not say in your heart when Yahweh your Elohim thrusts them [the nations] out from before you, saying: Because of my own righteousness Yahweh brings me in to tenant this land. . . . It is not because of your own righteousness or the uprightness of your own heart that you are entering to tenant their country, . . . for you are a stiff-necked people. (Deuteronomy 9:4-6 CV)
In the Song of Yahweh
given to Moses to speak in the hearing of the whole assembly of Jacob/Israel,
Moses describes
They have become corrupt before Him;
No longer are they His sons because of their blemish:
A generation perverse and twisted.
Is this what you requite to Yahweh,
You decadent and unwise people?
Is not He your Father Who ACQUIRED you? (Deuteronomy 32:5-6a CV emphasis mine)
As Eve declared concerning her firstborn, Cain, “I have acquired a man from Yahweh”
(Gen. 4:1 my translation) so Jacob/Israel is made to understand that Yahweh,
concerning His firstborn nation, ACQUIRED a man. Metaphorically, Jacob/Israel
is Cainish. Jacob/Israel was taken out of the midst of the nations, out of the
midst of
Jacob/Israel was no different than the nations, no different than the Egyptians. Jacob/Israel conceived his Elohim as capricious even as the nations conceived their elohim as capricious. When trapped against the shore of the sea by Pharaoh’s army, this nation cried out to Yahweh, represented by Moses,
Is it for lack of tombs in
Again, in the wilderness of Sin the nation cried out against Yahweh and Moses,
O that we had died by the hand of Yahweh in the land of Egypt when we sat over the flesh pots when we ate bread to satisfaction, for you have brought us forth to this wilderness to put this entire assembly to death with famine. (Exodus 16:3 CV)
When Moses ascended
The people saw that Moses was tardy to descend from the
mountain. So the people assembled themselves against Aaron and said to him:
Rise! Make for us elohim who shall go before us, for this Moses, the man who
brought us up from the land of
But though the nation as a whole was Cainish, a stiffed-necked and rebellious people, there was always a faithful remnant, the Abelites. At Kadesh-Barnea Moses sent 12 men to spy out the land. Only two remained faithful to Yahweh.
They went up the watercourse of Eschol and saw the
land, yet they discouraged the heart of the sons of
Caleb and Joshua were metaphorically Abelites. They
represented the faithful seed of the
Woman. The whole generation doing evil in the eyes of Yahweh represented
the rebellious seed of the Serpent, and
so, that evil generation was metaphorically Cainish. The entire history of
that the blood of all the prophets which is shed from the disruption of the world may be exacted from this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, . . . Yea, I am saying to you, It will be exacted from this generation! (Luke 11:50-51 CV)
As metaphors of The Knowledge of Good and Evil, Cain and Abel illustrate the two types of human beings existing from Adam to the end of the Mosaic Eon. Each represents a choice confronting each member of the Adamic race living from Adam to the end of the Mosaic Age. Every member of the race either chooses to serve the Good (I am my brother’s keeper) or chooses to serve the Evil (I am not my brother’s keeper). Those who choose to serve the Evil are children of the Serpent (representing during that age, the Adversary, Cain). Those who choose to serve the Good are children of the Woman (thus, during that age, children of Abel).
However, the children of the Woman (from Adam to the
termination of the Mosaic Eon) consisted of two distinct groups. As Eve was
deceived by the deceptive influence of the Serpent, many of her children also
are deceived by the deceptive influence of the seed of the Adversary, Cain,
into ignorantly serving the Evil. But a remnant of her seed remains faithful. As
Abel faithfully served Yahweh, avoiding the deception of the Adversary Cain (I am not my brother’s keeper), so also
there continued to exist a faithful remnant of the seed of the Woman.
These faithful ones serve Yahweh and the Good (I am my brother’s keeper). They represent a royal line beginning with Abel and proceeding through Noah, Shem, Terah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Jacob’s twelve sons. This royal line culminates in the arrival of Jesus the Christ (the superlative representative of I am my brother’s keeper).
However, the division represented by Cain and Abel continued
to exist within Jacob/Israel as an elect nation. The character of the nation
from its exodus out of
However, this seed continued to exist throughout the
generations of the covenantal history of
I have been zealous, yea zealous for Yahweh Elohim of
hosts; for the sons of
Yahweh, however, replied,
Yet I will let remain [protect] in
Thus the pattern (Cainites and Abelites) held true for all
humanity from Adam to the end of the Mosaic Eon, but was dramatically reflected
in the covenantal history of Jacob/Israel. The seed of the Woman (from Adam to the end of the Mosaic Eon) is
characterized by either the deceived Eve or the faithful Abel. The deceived
seed is blinded and led astray, thus becoming unfaithful in relation to the
Abrahamic Covenant of Circumcision. The faithful seed remains loyal to Yahweh
and His Word, the covenant established at Sinai, thus becoming the faithful
elect in relation to the hope of the Promise made to THE SEED of the Woman,
Jesus the Christ, the hope of
At the consummation of the Mosaic Eon, the history of the seed of the Woman and the seed of the Serpent had reached its telos, its end, and its purpose had reached its fulfillment. The seed of the Woman, Jesus the Christ, had come. He had conquered the Adversary and his seed, the seed of the Serpent represented by Cain. He had redeemed the faithful seed of the Woman, represented by Abel, and had granted them their celestial reward based upon their faithfulness to the end. He had also conquered Death on behalf of every member of Adamic humanity, apart from either their faith or their deeds.
As a result, the work and purpose (the administrative office) of The Adversary (Satan) has been concluded. The Adversary, from the beginning of the new age to the present, has no longer been operating in the world of humanity. Humanity is no longer characterized by the metaphors of Cain and Abel in the eyes of Yahweh the Elohim of the nations and the Elohim of the New Jesuic humanity under the kingship of the Second Man, the one out of heaven, the spiritual man, Jesus the Christ.
The seed of the Woman and the seed of the Serpent are no longer applicable as fitting characterizations of humanity in the eyes of Yahweh Elohim. Adam is no longer the head of the human race. Christ is the Head of the human race, together with His Ecclesia, His Faithful Ones, His Body, His Complement, His Eve.
Humanity now (since the end of the Mosaic Eon in 70 a.d.) has access to Yahweh’s revealed and exemplified knowledge of Good and Evil and has Yahweh’s guarantee of Justification of Life (immortality, see Rom. 5:18; 1 Tim. 6:16; 1 Cor. 15:53-54), secured for every member of Adamic humanity by the faithful obedience of Jesus the Christ. This immortality will result in the perfection of every member of the Adamic race to the ordained state and condition of being in the likeness and image of Yahweh Elohim Himself, exemplified in the state and condition of Jesus the Christ.
Thus,
The members of humanity (from Adam to the end of the Mosaic
Eon) characterized by Cain represent a small minority of the race in the
worldview of
The ultimate goal of the macroscopic history of humanity,
illustrated in the microscopic covenantal history of
I am Yahweh Elohim, and there is none else.
Former of light and Creator of darkness,
Maker [asah] of good [prosperity, health] and Creator of evil [misfortune]. (Isaiah 45:6b-7a CV)
He is also the Creator of The Adversary, Satan.
For
But when misused crafty becomes associated with guile (Job 5:2; 15:5). In the present context (Genesis 3) the Hebrew word for crafty is arum and directs the reader’s attention back to the word naked in Genesis 2:25, which in Hebrew is the word arom, thus, providing a play on words foreshadowing the outcome of the intervention of the Serpent.
The couple had been declared to be naked, yet without shame. The intervention of the Serpent will culminate in the couple coming to perceive, to know themselves as naked with the understanding that this nakedness is now associated with shame. The acquisition of the knowledge of good and evil brings with it shame.
The man and the woman, now conscious of personal shame, make coverings for themselves from the leaves of the fig tree. Locating themselves behind a tree in the garden, they hide from the presence of Yahweh Elohim. After Yahweh Elohim judges the three participants, He replaces the fig-leaf coverings with “tunics of skin” (Gen. 3:21), thus, clothing (covering the shame of) the couple Himself.
How was
Why a serpent? To impress the Egyptians who believe the
serpent to be sacred. When the Egyptian wise men turn their staffs (rods) into
serpents, the serpent of Moses devours the serpents of the Egyptians.
Therefore, the Serpent
in the garden would be associated with the false gods (elohim) of the nations. There was no need for Moses to refer to the
serpent as the Satan in Genesis, chapter 3. The record in Genesis 3 provides
the basis upon which the serpent becomes a symbol of wisdom and, thus, an
object of worship for mankind and the nations.
According to the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures, the Satan was not involved in the event described in Genesis, chapter 3. The text of Genesis, chapter 3, refers only to the serpent described as the craftiest of all the field life which Yahweh Elohim had made. The role of the Satan as an adversary was later to be connected with this literal serpent of Genesis, chapter 3, which serpent became the metaphoric representation of the role and work of one of the Sons of El referred to as the Satan in Job 1:6-12.
The role and work of the Satan begins only after the flood and the establishment of the nations. According to Deuteronomy 32:7-9, when the Supreme (Elyon, Most High God) gave the nations their allotments, dividing the sons of Adam (Shem, Japheth, and Ham), He stationed their boundaries according to the number of the Sons of El. That is, each nation was placed under the jurisdiction of one of the Sons of El. The Satan was apparently given jurisdiction over all the Sons of El who had been given jurisdiction over all the nations. This seems to be confirmed in the record of the temptation of Jesus. Satan offers Him all the kingdoms of the world (Matt. 4:8-10). Jesus does not refute his authority to make this offer.
At the time of this new arrangement (Deut. 32:7-9), Yahweh had
apportioned for Himself jurisdiction over Jacob who became Yahweh’s allotment. However,
at that time, Jacob did not exist as an individual or as a nation. After Jacob/Israel
is established as Yahweh’s people, His nation, His allotment, the Satan seems
to have been given the task of opposing Israel by enticing the nation into the
worship and service of other gods (elohim) and prosecuting Israel (before the
throne of Yahweh and in the presence of the Sons of El over the nations) for
failure to keep her covenant obligations to Yahweh. His success can be seen in
the captivity of both the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of
By the time of John the Baptist and Jesus, Israel is under the shadow of darkness cast by the imposing image of the Satan (Lk. 1:79), The Adversary whom Israel is worshiping and serving. Jesus declares to the Jews,
Yet now you are seeking to kill Me, a Man Who has spoken to you the truth which I heard from God [Yahweh]. This Abraham did not do. Yet you are doing the works of your father. They said to Him, “We were not born of prostitution! One Father have we, God!” Jesus then said to them, “. . . You are of your father, the Adversary, and the desires of your father you are wanting to do. He was a man-killer from a beginning, and does not stand in the truth, for the truth is not in him. Whenever he may be speaking the lie, he is speaking of his own, for he is a liar, and the father of it.” (John 8:40-44 CV modified)
Jesus here declares the rule of The Adversary, Satan, over the
nation
He is claiming that those two acts, those two figures (the
Serpent and Cain) as metaphors characterize the function, the role, the work of
The Adversary from the time he was appointed by Yahweh Elohim as The Adversary,
the Satan. Thus, the Serpent as metaphor and Cain as metaphor symbolically
represent the function and work of The Adversary, the Satan, when he later
enters the drama of human history and
The Serpent craftily entices with relative truth designed to deceive. But the Serpent neither is the Satan nor is possessed by the Satan. The Satan, The Adversary, in accord with his role, characteristically engages in this technique of deception.
Cain rebels against the known will of Yahweh Elohim. He is not deceived. He directly and flagrantly opposes the revealed will of Yahweh fully understanding the essence of his decision and act. He becomes the first man-killer (murderer). Then he brazenly lies to Yahweh when he denies knowing the whereabouts of his brother Abel. He questions his responsibility for the welfare of his brother. But Cain is neither the Satan nor possessed by the Satan.
The Satan, The Adversary, characteristically engages in this kind of open rebellion. The only difference is that Satan has been appointed by Yahweh Elohim to operate in this fashion. Satan, the Accuser, the Deceiver, functions in this capacity under the authority, the commissioning of Yahweh Elohim Himself.
There is nothing in either the Hebrew or Greek Scriptures to support a celestial rebellion by Satan and a group of fallen angels. All references to Satan The Adversary present him as being under the authority of Yahweh Elohim and subjecting himself accordingly. A war in heaven between obedient angels and disobedient angels is a myth devised by human beings as a result of a distorted reading of the holy scriptures. This theme will be addressed again when Genesis 6:1 is interpreted in its textual context (see section titled “An Analysis of Genesis 5:1-6:8”).
Returning to Genesis, chapter 4, the problem of Cain must be addressed. From the fruit of the ground, Cain brings a present-offering to Yahweh. Abel also brings a present-offering to Yahweh, but from his flock. Yahweh accepts Abel’s offering but rejects Cain’s. The anger of Cain is aroused, and he becomes dejected. Yahweh responds,
Why do you continue glowing hot and why is your face completely fallen? Would you not lift it up if you should begin doing well? And if you continue doing not well, at the opening of a womb is sin, the thing which is crouching in preparation for attack. And toward you is its desire. But you must begin to rule it. (Genesis 4:6-7 my translation)
What is the problem between Cain and Yahweh? Why is Cain’s offering rejected? What is the meaning of Yahweh’s response to Cain’s anger and dejection? The answer lies not in the offering of Cain but in the heart of Cain. His heart is not right with Yahweh because it is not right with his brother Abel. Jealousy against his brother burns in his heart, and rebellion burns in his heart against Yahweh. Cain hates his brother, and, like an animal of prey, sin crouches at the opening of the womb of his heart in readiness to spring forth for the kill.
Murder is in Cain’s heart. Yahweh declares he can and should master this desire. He is not to allow this evil desire to come forth from the womb of his heart as an irreversible act of murder.
Cain’s problem is a rebellious heart. He desires to set his own standards and values. He desires to determine for himself what is good and what is evil. He loves the relative and the immanent over against the absolute and the transcendent. He seeks to become his own god in accord with the wisdom of the Serpent:
You will become as Elohim [gods], knowing good and evil. (Genesis 3:5 my translation)
That is, you will become as gods, determining for yourself what is good and what is evil.
Cain, opening the womb of his heart, releases his hatred. Murder enters the world. Cain slays his brother, feeling no remorse. He had determined as evil Abel and all Abel stood for. This was an act of Cain’s independently induced will to power. His self-authorized will to power became justified on the basis of his obligation, his duty to the conviction of his self-determined truth. His strength, his power gives him the right, the authority to eliminate the weak, the powerless, the innocent who become obstacles to his destiny, his potential, his determination of good and evil.
Cain would not master what Yahweh determined to be sin. He would master only that which he determined to be sin (missing the mark). He would do this in the name of a new, true, authentic, natural morality. He had concluded that he, as a free and responsible son of Yahweh, created in the Image and Likeness of Yahweh Elohim, had the right and the responsibility to determine for himself who or what is good or evil and who is or is not his brother.
When Cain is judged and found guilty by Yahweh, he does not cower before Yahweh. He is brazenly bold:
And Cain began saying to Yahweh, “Great is my depravity so as to be worthy of being lifted up magnificently.” (Genesis 4:13 my translation)
He boasts in his act. He ironically uses the word “depravity” in order to directly challenge Yahweh’s evaluation of his act. What Yahweh declares “depravity,” Cain vauntingly proclaims “magnificent” and worthy of the highest honor. He does not whimper before Yahweh.
He stands erect in all his strength and confidence, thereby declaring his own glory and honor as Yahweh’s creation. In essence, he is declaring himself to be Yahweh’s glory. He is presenting himself as the true, authentic son of Yahweh, the son who manifests the father’s strength, power, independence, creativity, and will to mastery.
He is saying to Yahweh that he, not Abel, represents the glorious intention of Yahweh for man. Man must be free, like Yahweh, in order to act creatively, powerfully, masterfully upon his world. He must be free to actively determine and use good and evil to create his world in his own image, thereby manifesting his own glory, and, thus, the glory of Yahweh.
Cain opposes Yahweh in the name of Yahweh. He believes himself to be the man, the son Yahweh intended for His own glory. Cain is passionately dedicated to prove his perception, his perspective in order to eventually gain the respect, approval, and love of Yahweh. Cain is the original prodigal son. Cain is the original Prometheus. Yahweh declares,
And now the cursed one you are away from the ground which has opened its mouth wide to take the blood of your brother from your hands. When you begin serving the ground again, it will not continue to give its vigor to you. The one fluttering and wandering you will begin being in the earth. (Genesis 4:11-12 my translation)
Cain is cursed in association with the ground. This alludes to Genesis 3:14 where the reader is informed that the Serpent is cursed in association with the soil of the ground. Cain is to be associated with the wisdom and perspective of the Serpent. The text thus associates the Serpent with Cain and, later, the Satan with the Serpent and with Cain. All three are associated metaphorically.
Cain as the cursed one away from the ground is to be related to the significance of his act against his brother. Cain had been the one serving the ground. The ground had been cursed due to Adam’s transgression. Cain, thus, is associated with the curse. Cain’s perspective interprets the curse as something positive. He perceives it as a challenge through which he can prove his worth to Yahweh. The curse becomes a means by which Cain can demonstrate his strength, his ingenuity, his creativity, and his honor as the firstborn son.
When his effort is rejected by Yahweh, Cain burns hot with anger. He perceives Yahweh as the one favoring weakness, imitativeness, and commonness. He concludes he must defy Yahweh; he must manifest his strength, his will, his righteousness in the cause of Yahweh’s glory. Again, he perceives the situation as a challenge, a trial to prove his worthiness as Yahweh’s image, Yahweh’s firstborn son.
Yahweh’s judgment against Cain’s slaying of his brother Abel removes Cain from manifesting his strength and honor through serving the ground as a tiller. Again, Cain perceives this judgment as a new challenge. Having boasted in the very act condemned by Yahweh, Cain proceeds to boast in the very conditions of this judgment. He perceives these conditions as the very means by which he will once again manifest his strength, honor, glory, and righteousness. He will once again demonstrate for Yahweh his superiority. Yahweh will yet come to glorify and honor him as His image and His firstborn.
He will be vindicated:
Behold, you have driven me out this day off from the surface of the ground, and from the expressions on your face I begin concealing myself, and I am and will always remain the one fluttering and wandering in the earth. And anyone who finds me will attempt to kill me! (Genesis 4:14 my translation)
Again, Cain continues to boast before Yahweh. The very judgment of Yahweh he will use to vindicate his righteousness. He will conceal himself from the revealed expressions of the judgmental face of Yahweh. Thus, Cain turns away from the judgment of Yahweh. He accepts the verdict only as another challenge to creatively manifest his strength ingeniously in the new circumstances dictated by the new conditions mandated by Yahweh.
Cain will establish his superiority as the one condemned to live in continued flux, change in the course of his wanderings, journeying throughout the earth. He will no longer till the ground. As will soon be seen in the continuing record of the text, Cain will exert mastery over the ground through the application of technique and the production of technology.
He boastingly proclaims the superiority of his strength and will to power in the fact that other men will fear him and thus attempt to kill him. In this fear and attempt of others to do as he did, Cain perceives his superiority and their inferiority. He is the creator, the determiner of good and evil, while they are merely the inferior ones, the weak ones attempting to be imitators of his genius and his strength. They represent the weak, inferior sons of Yahweh Elohim, those resenting the strength of the strong, those seeking to kill or enslave their superior brothers, those fearing to take on the responsibilities, the obligations of the creative sons of Yahweh Elohim who are destined to master the terrestrial world-order.
Yahweh responds, not by further condemnation of Cain, but by issuing an edict:
Not so! Anyone who kills Cain, sevenfold he will begin to be avenged. (Genesis 4:15a my translation)
Yahweh protects Cain’s life. Yahweh provides Cain space and time to generate his will to power. Yahweh clears the way for evil to work out its purpose in the generation of the heavens and the earth, the history of humanity. Yahweh then proceeds to secure Cain’s life by means of a sign:
And Yahweh began placing for Cain a sign, to secure him against anyone who finds him with the intent to smite him. (Genesis 4:15b my translation)
The edict and the sign are meant not only to secure Cain’s life, but also to secure the life of all humans against the evil of murder.
The sign itself is not stated to be placed upon Cain in any way. In order to understand the significance of the sign, the reader must refer back to Genesis 1:14 where the word “sign” is first used. The writer refers to the sun, the moon, and the stars as signs. The sign associated with Cain is not on Cain. It is a sign placed in the heavens, in the stars, in the constellations, the heavenly book of Yahweh Elohim given to mankind to read and understand His plan, His design, His purpose for ancient man.
The sign associated with Cain is the scorpion placed in the third constellation called Scorpio. Included in this constellation are the signs of the Serpent, Ophiuchus, and Hercules. The figure of the scorpion is that of a gigantic, noxious, and deadly insect, with its tail and sting uplifted in anger, as if striking. The serpent is depicted as wrestling with Ophiuchus (a mighty man, the serpent holder), whose one heel has been stung by the scorpion while the other is crushing the scorpion. This constellation with each of its signs alludes to Genesis 3:15:
And enmity I will begin setting between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will begin bruising your head and you will begin bruising his heel. (my translation)
As stated previously, Abel represents the seed of the Woman, and Cain represents the seed of the Serpent. The conflict is between Good and Evil. The dialectical goal is to transcend the knowledge of Good and Evil by means of a synthesis leading humanity beyond the knowledge of Good and Evil. Cain is associated with the Serpent and the curse placed upon the Serpent by Yahweh, as well as, in the present context of Genesis, chapter 4, the Scorpion (concerning the significance of the constellations, read The Witness of the Stars, 1967, by E. W. Bullinger and The Gospel of the Stars, 1975, by Joseph A. Seiss).
Having been given Yahweh’s security and stubbornly standing
firm in his own conviction of integrity, Cain removes himself from Yahweh’s
presence, dwelling in the land east of
Enoch fathers Irad, meaning the city suffices. The city is set forth as refuge, safety, power. Irad
fathers Mehajael, meaning wipe-out-El.
Cain and his line continue to exalt themselves as gods in their own right. Mehajael
fathers Methushael, meaning death is
questionable. The line of Cain questions the inevitability of death, again
taking up the wisdom of the Serpent, “Ye
shalt not surely die” (Gen. 3:4 KJV). Methusael fathers Lamech, meaning to reduce, to impoverish, incorporating
double meaning (double entendre), to be impoverished or to impoverish others,
to be powerful and to use power against others—thus, might makes right. From Yahweh’s point of view, Cain’s line is
impoverished. From Cain’s point of view, it inflicts impoverishment on others. Yahweh’s
definition of Good and Evil is reversed by the Cainites. Lamech takes two
wives, challenging Yahweh’s monogamous ideal: “Therefore a man shall forsake his father and his mother and cling to
his wife, and they two become one flesh” (Gen. 2:24-25a CV).
Lamech’s wives then begin bearing sons. Adah gives birth to Jabal, the father of the tent dwellers and the cattlemen. His brother Jubal becomes the father of those who develop musical instruments. Zillah, Lamech’s second wife, gives birth to Tubal-Cain, meaning to acquire by disintegrating the earth. He becomes the one forging every tool of copper and iron. The text then includes a reference to Tubal-Cain’s sister, Naamah, meaning pleasant. The line of Cain seeks to make life pleasant, comfortable, secure through culturization: city-building, civil government, philosophy, military power, ethics, mercantilism, cattle domestication, art, technique and technology. The final reference to the line of Cain records Lamech’s boast in the presence of his wives:
For a man I have killed for injuring me, and a young man for slapping me. As sevenfold is Cain being avenged, then Lamech seventy and seven. (Genesis 4:23-24 my translation)
If Yahweh avenges the slaying of Cain sevenfold (see Gen. 4:15), how much more shall be the price for the slaying of Lamech! This is a declaration of the power and prestige of Lamech and the accomplishments of the line of Cain in Cain’s quest for vindication. The text implies the vital contribution of the power of evil in the development of civilization, though not without warning of the negative price attached to such evil.
Having set forth the place and contribution of Cain and his genealogical line, the writer returns to take up the genealogical line of Adam which had been interrupted by the slaying of Abel. Cain, as firstborn, had been heir to the throne of Adam. But Cain forfeited this right with the slaying of Abel. Eve next bore Seth, meaning set, appointed. Concerning Seth she declares,
For Elohim has set for me another seed instead of Abel, for Cain has killed him. (Genesis 4:25 my translation)
Abel had been the seed of the Woman in contrast with Cain, the seed of the Serpent. Elohim then appoints Seth in the place of Abel as representative of the seed of the Woman and as firstborn in place of Cain the murderer. Seth, thus, becomes the rightful heir to the throne of Adam.
In contrast to Cain’s son Lamech, Seth’s firstborn son is named Enosh, which means mortal. The name Lamech means to impoverish. Lamech boasts in his strength and power to impoverish his enemy and, thus, stands for might makes right. He also, like Cain, slays those he designates as offenders against his honor, his glory, his righteousness. But Seth names his son Enosh, meaning mortal, thereby indicating his submission to the Word and Authority of Yahweh Elohim. For Seth believes Yahweh’s Word concerning the entrance of death, mortality, into the world of Adam. When Enosh’s honor, glory, and righteousness are wounded, or offended, he does not retaliate by killing. He invokes the name of Yahweh (see Gen. 4:26 CV). Vengeance belongs to Yahweh (see Deut. 32:35 KJV).
Life is to be considered holy. The shedding of human blood is to be considered evil in the eyes of Yahweh. Man is to seek Yahweh’s judgment. Adam rules under and with the authority of Yahweh. He is accountable to Yahweh. He rules not in his own name, but in the name of Yahweh. This is the significance of Seth and his firstborn son, Enosh.
Two lines have been established: the line of Cain representing the knowledge of Good and Evil as determined by man and the line of Adam representing the knowledge of Good and Evil as determined by recourse to Yahweh. Cain’s line secures pleasure, comfort, and safety, but at the ultimate cost of spiritual impoverishment. Adam’s line, through the seed of the Woman, secures peace and righteousness with Yahweh and among men with the ultimate promise of redemption (see Gen. 3:15).
Before proceeding to Genesis, chapter 5, it will prove beneficial to go back and take a look at the literary structure of the book as a whole (see Structure 2).
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A1
1:1 Introductory
Statement of The Fact of The Creation of The Heavens And The Earth |
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B1 1:2-31 The Process of This Creation
[Six Days Work] |
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A2 2:1-3 Concluding Statement of The Fact of The Creation of The
Heavens And The Earth |
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B2
2:4-50:26 The Progress of
The Generations [Seventh Day, Cease From Work] |
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(Return to List of Structures)
The literary structure is a simple alternation: theme one (A1) followed by theme two (B1), theme three (A2) corresponding to theme one (A1), and theme four (B2) corresponding to theme two (B1). The A1 member is an introductory statement of the fact of the creation (bara) of the heavens and the earth. The B1 member provides the process by which the heavens and the earth of the A1 member were created. The A2 member is a concluding statement of the fact of the creation of the heavens and the earth, ending the description of the actual work that went into this creation.
The A2 member also serves as a transition into the final B2 member of the literary structure. The B2 member begins to record the generation of living historical events produced by this completed creation. Thus, the bulk of the book takes up the theme of generation. It is interested in the actual development of the historical events resulting from the thoughts and actions of the living creatures in relation to one another, their environment, and their Creator.
In order to better understand the literary purpose of the B2 member, it needs to be seen in relation to the literary structure of the B1 member of Structure 2: Book of Genesis (Gen. 1:1-50:26). See Structure 3 for the expansion:
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(Return to List of Structures)
The B1 member consists of two members, C1 and D1, which are perfectly in balance with the two parallel members of the B2 member, C2 and D2. The C1 member records the actual work producing the creation of the heavens and the earth with its emphasis on the provision of a habitation for all living creatures. The D1 member emphasizes the provision of the actual inhabitants. This work, this creation was completed in six days.
The C2 member records the generations, the actual working out of the life given this creation of the heavens and the earth. It focuses on the generation of the heavens and the earth in relation to the first human family. Thus, the human drama is initiated with the recording of the interaction between the Man, the Woman, the Serpent, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, Cain, Abel, and the two seeds. The D2 member extends the human drama by beginning to record the history of the generations of Adam by focusing on ten specific generations: the generations of Adam, Noah, the Sons of Noah, Shem, Terah, Ishmael, Isaac, Esau, the Sons of Esau, and Jacob, the father of the nation Israel, which holy nation is the original recipient of this Book of Genesis.
The literary structure of the generations of Adam through Jacob and his sons (Gen. 5:1-50:26) are outlined in Structure 4 (see next page), which is an introversion. Structure 4 moves from the E1 member through the F1 and G1 members to the two central members, H1 and H2, and then proceeds inversely through the G2 and F2 members to the concluding E2 member. The two central members play a most significant role in Jacob/Israel’s understanding of his role in this history of the generations of Adam.
The H1 member of Structure 4 (see next page) deals with the generations of Terah, Abraham’s father in the flesh. Terah represents a non-elect group, having no part in the promises made to Abraham. Nevertheless, the elect nation Jacob/Israel is to understand that his election, his favor ultimately is given him on behalf of the non-elect peoples. Jacob/Israel is not to exalt himself as superior to the non-elect peoples, since he is not chosen because he is better than all other peoples. Terah is a descendent of the Royal Line of Adam, but is neither called by Yahweh nor given any promises. His son Abram is called and is given promises. This is meant to humble Jacob/Israel and contribute to a proper self-understanding of his role in this elective history.
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D2 5:1-50:26
The Book of The Generations of Adam [The Ten Generations] (Genesis 5:1-50:26) |
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E1 5:1-6:8 ADAM—Progenitor of The Human Race:
Elect Ruler over Elohim’s Kingdom |
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F1
a 6:9-9:29 NOAH—Drunkenness:
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b 10:1-11:9 SONS OF NOAH |
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G1 11:10-26
SHEM—Chosen seed |
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H1
11:27-25:11 TERAH—Abraham’s Father In The Flesh (Non-Elect) |
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H2 25:12-18 ISHMAEL—Abraham’s Son In The Flesh
(Non-Elect) |
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G2 25:19-35:29
ISAAC—Chosen seed |
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F2
a 36:1-8 ESAU—Birthright: Daughters of |
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b 36:9-43 SONS OF ESAU |
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E2 37:1-50:26 JACOB—Progenitor of The Nation Elohim’s
Nations |
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(Return to List of Structures)
The H2 member of Structure 4 deals with the generations of Ishmael, Abraham’s son in the flesh. Again, Ishmael represents a non-elect people, having no part in the promises made to Abraham. Yet, Ishmael also would eventually be blessed by the favor shown to the elect seed of Abraham. By including these two names in the two central positions of this literary structure, and by excluding Abraham from any position in the literary structure of the generations of Adam, Jacob/Israel the nation which is the original recipient of this document, is clearly being informed that his calling, his favor, his promises, his destiny had as their goal the blessing of the nations and the blessing of humanity. As shall be seen, the history of the seed of the Woman and the seed of the Serpent would culminate, reach its telos, within the covenantal history of Jacob/Israel.
The E1 member of Structure 4 begins the literary
structure by listing the genealogical lineage of Adam, progenitor of the human
race, emphasizing his role as the elect ruler over Yahweh’s created Kingdom. The
E2 member concludes the literary structure by recording the
covenantal history of the progenitor (Jacob) of the nation Jacob/Israel,
emphasizing his role as the father of
The importance of Jacob in this divine, covenantal history is equal to the importance of Adam. Both men are flawed, but both men are appointed vital roles in Yahweh’s purpose. Through Jacob’s nation (Jacob/Israel), Adam’s race will be redeemed and transformed.
The E1 member (Gen. 5:1-6:8) of Structure 4 also
provides the transition to and title of (5:1) the theme of the remainder of the
Book of Genesis (and the entire corpus of the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures), The Book of The Generations of Adam, as
reflected within the covenantal lifetime of Jacob/Israel. Jacob/Israel needed
an accurate and authentic understanding of the historic drama of humanity up to
the time of his delivery from
This history would provide Jacob/Israel with the holy insight necessary for completing his national elective role in the midst of the present reality of this human drama. What Jacob/Israel is given is an accurate account of the past and present, a past and present which had been distorted and thus lost by the nations generated naturally through the sons of Noah. Jacob/Israel, though appearing to be a national orphan and a slave among the nations, is made aware of his royal lineage through Jacob back through Seth to Adam. By this knowledge, Jacob/Israel is to grasp the significance of the great responsibility placed upon his shoulders by Yahweh Elohim.
The F1 member (Gen. 6:9-11:9) of Structure 4 takes
up the theme of Noah as the one finding favor with Yahweh and the divine
judgment of the flood. After the flood, Noah’s drunkenness is associated with
the curse on
The F2 member (Gen. 36:1-43) of Structure 4 takes
up the theme of Esau and his previously lost birthright as associated with the
taking of his wives from the daughters of Canaan (36:2-8). In both these
members (F1 and F2),
The F2 member of Structure 4 then proceeds to
provide a lineage list of the sons of Esau (Gen. 36:9-43), emphasizing Esau as
the father of
The G1 member (Gen. 11:10-26) of Structure 4 provides
the genealogical lineage of Shem, meaning in Hebrew the one with the name. Shem bears the name of the Royal Line
proceeding from Adam through Seth to Noah. His genealogical lineage is listed
as proceeding from Arphaxad to Terah, who is the father of Abram, Nahor, and
The G2 member (Gen. 25:19-35:29) of Structure 4 takes up the story of Isaac who is the son of Abraham’s old age, the son of promise, the chosen heir of Abraham in contrast with Ishmael who is sent away. Yahweh grants Abraham a son through the aged and barren Sarah. This son is chosen to be the seed through whom the promises made to Abraham would be fulfilled.
In
Terah (H1 member, Gen. 11:27-25:11) of Structure 4 is shown to be in the Royal Line, but Yahweh calls Abram. Ishmael (H2 member, Gen. 25:12-18) is shown to be in the Royal Line, but is rejected as a firstborn son. The accepted firstborn son is the son of Yahweh’s promise to Abram, Isaac, the son coming forth from the long barren womb of the aged Sarah, the son covenantally generated in contrast to the son generated naturally, non-covenantally; the son of the spirit in contrast to the son of the flesh; the son of faith in contrast to the son of doubt; the son of revealed knowledge in contrast to the son of concealed knowledge.
Genesis, chapter 5, begins The Book of The Generations of Adam, which consists of the remainder of the Book of Genesis and, by literary design, the remainder of the entire corpus of the Hebrew Scriptures and the Greek Scriptures. This design is corroborated by the opening words of the Greek Scriptures:
The scroll [book] of the lineage [generations] of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham. (Matthew 1:1 CV)
The Greek Scriptures present themselves as the final chapter
in The Book of The Generations of Adam.
Jesus is presented by Matthew as the Son of David, the Son of Abraham. In the
Gospel of Luke, Jesus is also presented as the son of Adam, the son of God (Lk.
Genesis 5:1-6:8 now needs to be analyzed. Here is presented the Royal Line of Adam, the appointed ruler over Yahweh’s Kingdom of the Heavens and the Earth. Adam again is referred to as the one in the “likeness” of Elohim (Gen. 5:1). This “likeness” has to do with function, rule, authority. The title Elohim in Hebrew means subjector, one who rules, judges, has authority over others. It is a title used to designate Yahweh as Creator and Ruler over His creation (Gen. 1:1 CV). It is also a title used in reference to men given authority to rule or judge other men. Jesus uses it as such in John 10:34-35 CV:
Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, that ‘I say you are gods’? If He said those were gods, to whom the word of God came . . . are you saying to Him Whom the Father hallows and dispatches into the world that ‘You are blaspheming,’ seeing that I said, ‘Son of God am I’? . . .”
Here Jesus is quoting Psalms 82:6:
I Myself have said: you are elohim,
And sons of the Supreme are all of you. (CV)
The title elohim is
used in this text of men in authority, men who are judges over
Yet if the servant should say, yea say, I love my lord, my wife and my sons; I shall not go forth free, then his lord will bring him close to the elohim, . . . and he will serve him for the eon. (Exodus 21:5-6 CV)
Again, the elohim referred to in this passage are human
judges, members of the nation
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E1 5:1-6:8 ADAM—PROGENITOR OF THE HUMAN RACE: ELECT RULER OVER ELOHIM’S
KINGDOM |
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A1
5:1-2 ADAM—THE
LIKENESS OF ELOHIM (KINGSHIP): MALE AND FEMALE HE
CREATED THEM (see Gen. 1:26-27) |
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B1
5:3-32 ADAM—THE ROYAL LINE
AND THE OTHER SONS AND DAUGHTERS |
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c1 5:3-27 The
Royal Line And the Multiplication of Evil—ENOCH (Dedicated):
Began WALKING WITH ELOHIM |
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d1 5:28-32 The
Royal Line And The Consolation of YAHWEH –NOAH
(Stop): This One Will Begin CONSOLING
US Because of Our Doings |
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A2
6:1 THE
MAN—MULTITUDINOUS ON THE GROUND (KINGSHIP): DAUGHTERS
BORN TO THEM (see Gen. 1:28) |
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B2
6:2-8 THE MAN—THE ROYAL
LINE AND THE OTHER SONS OF THE ELOHIM
AND DAUGHTERS OF THE MAN |
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c2
6:2-7 The Royal Line And
the Multitudinous of Evil— DISTINGUISHED
ENOSHES (Mortals with the NAME): Devices
of THE HEART EVIL All the Day |
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d2 6:8 The Royal Line And The Consolation of
Yahweh—Noah (Stop): Found GRACE IN THE
EYES OF YAHWEH |
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(Return to List of Structures)
The literary pattern of Structure 5 is a simple alternation. Theme A1 (5:1-2) is followed by theme B1 (5:3‑32) at which point the author returns to the corresponding theme of A2 (6:1) followed by the corresponding theme of B2 (6:2-8). Each of the B themes has a similar internal literary arrangement: c1 (5:3-27) followed by d1 (5:28-32), a return to c2 (6:2-7) followed by a return to d2 (6:8). A1 (5:1-2) begins by referring to Adam as being in the likeness of Elohim, thereby presenting him as the only created son of Elohim, making him an elohim having jurisdiction over Elohim’s creation. Adam is Yahweh Elohim’s appointed king ruling over the Kingdom of the Heavens and the Earth.
This section (A1 5:1-2) then reiterates the fact that Elohim created Eve out of Adam, making humanity a complementation of male and female. Thus, Adam had consisted of both male and female elements. But the female element was taken from him and created into the woman Eve, now his complement. Elohim thus created them male and female and began calling their name (singular) Adam. This becomes significant when interpreting the A2 section (Gen. 6:1) which refers to Adam as “the man” consisting of the complementariness of the male and the female roles in generating sons and daughters.
The A2 member begins by referring to Adam as the man who was in the process of continuing what he had started, that is, “to be multitudinous on the surface of the ground” (Gen. 6:1a CV). But the author continues by noting that “daughters had been born to them” (Gen. 6:1b CV). Thus, the author is referring to Adam and Eve, not to humanity in general. The daughters referred to are the specific daughters generated by the coming together of Adam and Eve, not the daughters generated by other sons and daughters of Adam and Eve. The daughters referred to in this text are first generation daughters of Adam and Eve.
The literary relationship between the A1 (5:1-2) and A2 (6:1) members can be set forth in more detail as follows (see Structure 6):
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A 5:1 RULE This is the Book of the
generations of Adam: In the Day Elohim created Adam. In The Likeness of Elohim He
had made to appear [asah] him. |
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B
5:2 PROCREATION Male and female He created them. And He began
blessing them and began calling their name Adam in the Day they were created. |
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B
6:1 PROCREATION And continuing was that
which the Man [Adam] had started – To be multitudinous on the surface of the
ground. And Daughters had been born to them [Adam and Eve]. |
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A 6:2 RULE And
Sons of the elohim [Adam] began seeing [observing] Daughters of the Man
[Adam], that
they were good. And they began taking for themselves wives, such as them as
they had chosen. |
(Return to List of Structures)
As can now be seen, the theme of 5:1 is Rule; the theme of 5:2 is Procreation; the theme of 6:1, corresponding to 5:2, is Procreation; the theme of 6:2, corresponding to 5:1, is Rule. The Rule and Procreation has to do with the Royal Line of Adam. The issue has to do with establishing a clear-cut, well-defined legitimation of the authentic line of authoritative rule. The royal descendancy (descent, lineage) must be distinguished and made perfectly apparent to all humanity, all society.
Thus, the sons of the elohim (the king, Adam) are first generation sons of Adam and Eve. The heir to Adam’s throne would then be Seth, Adam’s firstborn son (in the place of Cain). All other first generation sons would be in the first (royal) ranks of societal leadership.
To secure and strengthen this Royal Line, and thus its power, authority, and prestige, these sons of the elohim (Adam) perceived the daughters of the man, that is, the first generation daughters of Adam and Eve, as good. The text does not use the word beautiful. It uses the same Hebrew word as first recorded in Genesis 1:4, “And seeing is Elohim the light, that it is good” (CV). Here the word “good” refers to the purpose of the appearing of light. The light was “good” in terms of its role, its purpose, in the created system. The sons of the elohim (the king, Adam), in like manner, seeing (same word as used in Genesis 1:4) the daughters of the man (Adam and Eve, “He . . . began calling their name Adam” [Gen. 5:2 my translation]) concluded these women to be good in terms of their contribution to the prestige, power, and authority of the Royal Line of rule. Thus, they began choosing wives from among these royal daughters.
Genesis 5:3-32 (see the B1 member of Structure 5: Adam as Yahweh
Elohim’s Appointed King [Genesis 5:1-6:8]) then proceeds to take
up the theme of Adam, the Royal line, the other sons and daughters of Adam, and
the line of the firstborn sons. The emphasis of this passage is on the Royal
Line of heirship to the throne occupied by Adam, the elohim, the one having
divine jurisdiction over this
The Royal Line begins with Adam who fathers Seth, meaning appointed instead. Cain had forfeited his position as firstborn by slaying Abel. Seth was appointed in place of Abel, being appointed firstborn instead of Cain. Seth represents the restoration of subjection to Yahweh Elohim.
Adam was 130 years old when Seth was born. Seth would not reign until the year 930, which marked the year of Adam’s death. This means that all the heirs to the throne except Noah were contemporaries of Adam. They all knew him personally and had access to his knowledge, wisdom, and experience. Noah, last in the line, was born after the death of Adam.
Genesis 6:2-8 (see B2 member of Structure 5: Adam as Yahweh Elohim’s Appointed King [Genesis 5:1-6:8]) takes up the theme of the man in relation to the Royal Line and the other sons of the elohim, Adam, as well as the daughters of Adam. This passage emphasizes the multiplication of Evil on the earth. As Genesis 5:3-32 (B1 member of Structure 5) consists of two themes (c1 5:3-27 and d1 5:28-32), so Genesis 6:2-8 (B2 member of Structure 5) correspondingly consists of two themes (c2 6:2-7 and d2 6:8). The c1 member deals with the Royal Line and the multiplication of Evil, highlighting the significance of Enoch, meaning dedicated. Enoch dedicated himself to walking with Elohim (Gen. 5:21-22 CV). This literary member (c1 5:3-27) corresponds by way of contrast with the c2 member (6:2-7) which deals with the Royal Line and the multitudinous of Evil, highlighting the significance of the Distinguished Enoshes, meaning mortals with the name. These Distinguished Enoshes dedicated themselves to the evil devices of the distorted heart.
Genesis 5:28-32 (see d1 member of Structure 5) has as its theme the Royal Line and the consolation of Yahweh, focusing on the birth and naming of Noah, meaning Stop. Noah would be the one chosen of Yahweh as the instrument through whom the multiplication of evil would be brought to a sudden catastrophic end (stop). As such, Noah is to be the one consoling humanity, in that with him there would be a new beginning.
By way of comparison, the corresponding d2 member of Structure 5 has the same theme as d1 (5:28-32), again focusing on Noah, but this time pointing to the fact that Noah finds grace in the eyes of Yahweh. In bestowing favor on Noah, Yahweh demonstrates His mercy and compassion toward humanity, delivering the race from total destruction and remaining faithful to His promise concerning the seed of the Woman associated with the Royal Line preserved with the survival of Noah and his family.
Structure 7 reveals the literary relationship of the Royal Line as recorded in Genesis 5:3-32.
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A ADAM—Dominion Begun: Royal Elohim [Judge] |
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B SETH—Appointed
Instead: Subordination |
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C ENOSH—Mortal: Promise |
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D CAINAN—Acquisition: Invocation
[Deliverance] |
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E MAHALALEL—Praiser of El: Humility |
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E JARED—It Is Descending: Pride |
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D ENOCH—Dedicated: Repudiation [Taken] |
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C METHUSELAH—Dying He Sends: Prophecy |
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B LAMECH—To
Reduce: Insubordination |
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A NOAH—Stop: Royal Consolation [Judgment] |
(Return to List of Structures)
The line begins with Adam, the Royal Elohim, judge, ruler, king appointed by Yahweh Elohim. It continues with Seth, Adam’s appointed firstborn instead of Cain who forfeited this honor and Abel who was slain by Cain. Seth signifies the restoration of subordination to Yahweh’s authority. Enosh is Seth’s firstborn son. His name means mortal. He (Enosh) signifies belief in Yahweh’s judgment concerning sin and death in relation to Adam and the race. In Genesis 4:26 (CV), Enosh is presented as becoming wounded and yet invoking the name of Yahweh. He thus reveals his confidence in Yahweh’s promise concerning the seed of the Woman. Enosh’s firstborn is Cainan, meaning acquisition. Cainan represents the faithfulness of Yahweh in response to Enosh’s invocation, thus indicating Enosh’s deliverance from his enemy and Yahweh’s blessing in His provision (Enosh’s acquisition) of a son. Mahalalel is Cainan’s firstborn son. His name means Praiser of El, signifying his humility in the presence of Yahweh, while at the same time signifying a humility brought about by a reversal in trend among men. The way of Yahweh begins to be questioned.
This is further developed by Mahalalel’s firstborn son, Jared, meaning It is descending. The trend begun in his father’s time continues the descent, the deterioration of humanity away from Yahweh Elohim. Jared takes pride in serving Yahweh, but society is ascending the ladder of its pride in men, encouraged by the philosophy and religion of the Cainites. The son of Jared, Enoch, meaning dedicated, initiates the repudiation of the descent of society caused by the evil devices of the heart of the Distinguished Enoshes (mortals with the name), as humanity continues to increase its repudiation of Yahweh Elohim, following the example of Cain. Society deteriorates as a result of its increasing tendency to determine good and evil according to the apple of its own eyes while decreasing its recourse to what is Good and Evil in the eyes of Yahweh Elohim.
Enoch fathers Methuselah, which means dying He sends. This signifies a prophetic warning. When Methuselah dies, Yahweh will initiate the judgment upon a deviant and corrupt humanity. This warning is then carried out by the proclamation of Enoch who begins walking with the Elohim after the birth of Methuselah (Gen. 5:22). To walk with Elohim means a special calling, a special task, a special service. Enoch is called to proclaim the coming judgment. He warns humanity of the present self-inflicted consequences of its evil ways. He calls individuals to repent of their abandonment of that which is Good and Evil in the eyes of Yahweh Elohim. Genesis 5:24 records that
Enoch continued walking with the Elohim. And he was not found for Elohim had taken him. (my translation)
According to the text, Enoch began walking with the Elohim at the age of 65, when Methuselah was born. His service to Yahweh continued for 300 years (v. 22), which means he was not found, due to his having been taken by Elohim, in the year 987 (counting from the creation of Adam). This would be 57 years after the death of Adam, 669 years before the death of Methuselah, and before the birth of Noah. This means his 300-year proclamation of warning went unheeded by the vast majority of humans.
At the death of Adam, Seth would then occupy the throne. It is
during the transition from one king to another that rebellion is most likely to
occur or increase. The transition from Adam to Seth had to be tremendous, since
Adam was the only human, other than Eve, to have lived in the garden in
That Enoch’s warning was heeded by very few is confirmed by the birth of Lamech, the firstborn of Methuselah. When Lamech was born in 874, Enoch had only 48 years left before he would be taken. The name Lamech means to reduce or impoverish. As humanity continued to reduce or impoverish its relation to Yahweh Elohim, Yahweh was making preparation for the reduction of this impoverished humanity to one human family, eight individual people. Insubordination would lead to catastrophic destruction.
In 1042 Seth dies, once again transferring the throne, this time to Enosh. In 1140 Enosh dies and Cainan takes the seat of authority. In 1056 Noah is born, the firstborn son of Lamech who will not live to sit on the throne of Adam. Noah means Stop. He will be the last of the Royal Line to occupy the throne of Adam. With Noah the antediluvian civilization ends. The throne of Adam is vacated with the death of Noah in 2006.
Noah would come to signify the royal consolation, confirming the hope of the faithful members of the seed of the Woman. The Adamic race would be spared. Noah’s family of eight would be delivered through the coming judgment. Thus, the literary structure of the Royal Line comes full circle. It begins with the appointment of Adam as Royal Elohim, judge and concludes with Noah and the appointed judgment.
After Cainan dies, Mahalalel ascends the throne. At his death
in 1290, Jared ascends the throne. With the death of Jared in 1422, Methuselah
begins to reign on the throne of Adam. Enoch is passed over since he had been
taken by Yahweh Elohim. Sometime during the year of Methuselah’s death, 1656,
the judgment of the flood takes place. Lamech had died five years earlier. The
Royal Line was now represented by only one last living, elect (appointed by
Yahweh) firstborn son. Thus, Noah is the last of the elect sons of Adam as
elohim, until the arrival of Jesus the son of David, the son of Abraham, the
son of Noah, the son of Adam, the Son of Yahweh Elohim. And what does Jesus
proclaim?—the
This Jesus is designated the Son of The Man (Adam), The Son of The God (Elohim). He is the final heir to Adam’s throne, the throne of the first soulish humanity which He fulfills by bringing it to its telos (end). Jesus is the first and only heir to the newly established throne of Yahweh Elohim, which throne had been prepared for Yahweh’s only generated Son, the Second Man, the Spiritual Man, the Man Who alone is the visible Image of the God Who still chooses to remain invisible to the sight of present humanity.
Having concluded the significance of the Royal Line as condensed or as cryptic antediluvian history, Genesis 6:1-8 needs to be examined in more detail. In this section the author provides a more specific account of the deterioration of humanity. The account opens with the following statement:
And continuing was that which The Man had started—to be multitudinous on the surface of the ground. And daughters had been born to them [Adam & Eve]. (Genesis 6:1 my translation)
The Man refers to Adam as reflecting the fact of Genesis 5:2, “Male and female He had created them” (CV). This is necessary because of the present subject: Procreation (see Structure 6, Structural Relationship Between Genesis 5:1-2 and Genesis 6:1-2 my translation). Adam procreates only after Eve is created out of him. Thus, the daughters mentioned here clearly refer to the first generation daughters of Adam and Eve. These are royal daughters.
In Genesis 6:2, the sons of the elohim refer to the first generation royal sons of Adam and Eve. Adam is understood to be the elohim, the judge, the ruler appointed by Yahweh Elohim to reign over His creation, the Kingdom of the Heavens and the Earth. As indicated above, these sons see the daughters of The Man, the royal daughters, as “good” in relation to the purpose of establishing a clearly apparent legitimation of the authentic line of rule and authority. Marriage to such royal daughters would accomplish this goal. The account continues,
And Yahweh began saying, “My spirit shall not continue abiding in The Man for the eon [age], in that moreover, he is flesh. And his days shall be concluded in a hundred and twenty years. (Genesis 6:3 my translation)
Yahweh’s spirit would not continue abiding in The Man Adam
during that present age because he is flesh, that is, death is operating in him
as a result of the verdict declared in
This revelation was Yahweh’s warning to humanity concerning
its evil ways. It was not a judgment against Adam’s faithfulness or behavior. Adam
had known since the verdict in
The account now begins to describe the situation that gave Yahweh cause to be concerned over the course humanity was taking.
Now these Distinguished Ones had been in the earth in those days [0-930], and, moreover, afterward [930-1656], when continued coming sons of the elohim into daughters of The Man. And they had borne them [masculine gender] sons. These sons were the Mighty Chiefs [having power and authority] who were from that eon [age], Mortals [enoshes] with [identified by] THE NAME [Heb. = shem, the one with the name, thus: place of honor, place of renown identified with a name]. (Genesis 6:4 my translation)
These “Distinguished Ones” are the sons of the elohim Adam. They had married first generation daughters of Adam and Eve. The phrase “in those days” refers to the time before Adam’s death. Those “Distinguished Ones” became even more powerful after the death of Adam, for they continued to secure the legitimation of their authority by continuing to marry the daughters of Adam and Eve. Thus, the Royal Line nobility was made apparent to all members of society.
This class distinction resulted in the social and legal
recognition of “the Mighty Chiefs” having power and authority. The
writer of the text, Moses, inserts at this point an editorial statement meant
for
During that age, humanity had consisted of one society. Nations had not yet developed. The society had two branches, the Sethites and the Cainites. These branches brought forth numerous tribes, and thus, tribal chiefs. Cain was still recognized as a first generation son of Adam and Eve. He most likely married a first generation daughter of Adam and Eve. Therefore, both he and his firstborn son Enoch must have been included among the royal nobility. The influence of the line of Cain must not be underestimated.
These “Distinguished Ones” are also called “Mortals [enoshes] with [identified by] THE NAME.” The word enosh means mortal, and is first associated with Seth’s firstborn son, Enosh. Its significance had to do with subordination to the judgment of Yahweh Elohim concerning His verdict of death over the race. Death, from the time of this verdict, began operating in all human beings sired by Adam and his descendants. Man’s dormant mortality had been activated. The race had become mortal. Death began to reign over the humanity fathered by Adam.
Thus, the designation mortals refers to the condition of each human being, and identification with “THE NAME” refers to Adam, The Man, and his title of honor and authority, The Elohim. Therefore, the Distinguished Ones consisted of the royal nobility who were Mighty Chiefs (men of renown) having power and authority due to their place of honor, place of renown as those identified with the royal name Adam and his divine title of authority, The Elohim. This name and title had been associated first with Seth (appointed instead of Cain) and then with his firstborn son, Enosh (mortal), in relation to his (Enosh’s) subordination to the judgment of Yahweh concerning mortality.
The writer continues his account of the history of antediluvian man by recording the failure of humanity to heed the warnings of Yahweh Elohim associated first with Enoch and Methuselah and then with Adam. Yahweh’s response to this failure is stated by means of anthropomorphical analogy.
And Yahweh began seeing that much [multitudinous, cf. 6:1] was evil of The Man in the earth, and that every form of the devices of his heart was only evil all the day. (6) And Yahweh began regretting that He had made to appear [asah] The Man in the earth. And He began grieving to His heart. (7) And began saying Yahweh, “I will begin wiping off from the surface of the ground The Man whom I have created, from man to quadruped, to reptile, to flyer of the heavens. For I regret that I have made them appear. (8) But Noah had found GRACE [favor] In The Eyes of Yahweh. (Genesis 6:5-8 my translation)
As Yahweh sees His creation is “good” in Genesis, chapter 1, so now He sees how much evil is operating in the earth as a result of the evil devices of the heart of the royal nobility (influenced by the Cainites) which had filtered down through the rest of society.
Humanity is here designated by the phrase “of The
Thus, upon “seeing”
that every form of the devices of humanity’s heart is evil, and “only” evil, all the day, that is,
continually, habitually, Yahweh determines to wipe humanity off the earth by
bringing a most uncommon, extraordinary death upon the race through a
catastrophic upheaval of the waters below and above the surface of the earth. Society
had deteriorated, had become impoverished due to its doing that which had been
determined right or good in its own eyes. In producing that which was good in
its own eyes, it had departed from that which is good in the eyes of Yahweh
Elohim. Thus, every evil form of every evil device of humanity’s heart produced
both societal and environmental impoverishment. Both man and animal had been
contaminated, thereby becoming evil in the eyes of Yahweh. But, “Noah had found GRACE In The Eyes of
Yahweh.”
However, what about Yahweh’s grief and regret? Because
of the multiplication of evil upon the surface of the ground, the text
describes Yahweh Elohim as grieving and regretting that He made humanity to
appear in the earth. Yahweh’s grieving and regretting is an anthropomorphic
analogy. Such grief/regret does not necessitate Yahweh’s surprise at humanity’s
behavior. Yahweh foresaw this situation. But, by analogy,
Mankind is not a stringed puppet. Choices can and will be made. Options allowing, even demanding, authentic decisions have been designed within the creation, options necessitating creative generation. Man, like Yahweh Elohim, must work at developing, shaping, molding, actualizing the various potentials of the habitation created for him by Yahweh Elohim. In the process, he must learn to actualize his own potential discriminately, discerning the proper application of The Law of Good and Evil.
This freedom and responsibility, within the boundaries, limitations set by The Creator, initiates an existential relationship between mankind and Yahweh Elohim. Within this relationship, Yahweh shares in the emotions and thought processes of humanity. He applauds and praises man’s triumphs. He rejoices over man’s wisely accurate application of and conformity to the laws of his habitation and to the laws of his own nature. He regrets man’s defeats, grieving over the resulting injustice and suffering, sometimes necessitating His merciful and compassionate intervention. He continues to work together with mankind toward the actualization of His intended goal for this beloved creation. Yahweh Elohim is an immanent, as well as a transcendent, Creator-God.
The Genesis account next focuses on the generations of Noah (6:9-9:29). He is declared a “just” man (Gen. 6:9a CV). He is right with Yahweh Elohim. He is characterized as “flawless became he in his generations” (Gen. 6:9b CV). In the Hebrew language, the word translated flawless means complete, perfect, entire, integral. Its usage in Genesis is never in relation to moral perfection. Noah is flawless in his faithful relationship to Yahweh. His commitment to Yahweh is complete. His integrity of faith is demonstrated by his faithful behavior throughout his life. His faith in Yahweh is flawless. It never wavers. He remains faithful to Yahweh’s covenant to the end. Thus, in relation to his faith commitment to Yahweh, he becomes flawless in his generations. This same word (flawless) is also used in relation to Abraham (Gen. 17:1) and Jacob (Gen. 25:27).
Noah, like Enoch, walked with Elohim, indicating he had a calling and service to Yahweh Elohim both before and after the catastrophic deluge. He is the legitimate heir to Adam’s throne, thus possessing legal and social authority. He is also the called servant of Yahweh, thus possessing spiritual authority to speak in Yahweh’s name. Noah, however, would not long rule over humanity as a unified race. Such a unity characterized the antediluvian age. It would not characterize the Noahic Age, the post-diluvian age.
Noah faithfully builds an ark according to Yahweh’s instruction and, at a revealed time, enters the ark with his wife, his three sons (Shem, Ham, and Japheth), and their wives. Entering also were seven pairs (male and female) of all clean animals (acceptable for sacrifice) and one pair (male and female) of all unclean animals (unacceptable for sacrifice).
After the waters of the deluge abate, Noah and those with him exit the ark. Yahweh again instructs man and animals to be fruitful, increase on the earth, and roam in the earth. Noah and his three sons are blessed. Not only are they told to be fruitful, they are also told to subdue the earth (Gen. 9:1) and sway, rule in it (9:7). But this rule does not manifest itself in a king. It manifests itself in a covenant made with Noah as representative of humanity and all animal life. Soon, the reader will be informed of the primary focus of this new world-order: the nations. The race is to be divided into nations, each nation given its own territory.
Yahweh then informs Noah and his sons that all animal life will now fear mankind and will become acceptable for food. But the blood of any animal killed for food will not be eaten. Yahweh also institutes capital punishment. The penalty for shedding innocent blood will now be the death of the murderer, in contrast to the mercy shown Cain after he shed the innocent blood of his brother Abel.
The shedder of the blood of a human, by a human his blood shall be shed, for in the image of Elohim has He made humanity. (Genesis 9:6 CV)
This was not the rule during the antediluvian age.
Noah then builds an altar to Yahweh Elohim, upon which, from
every clean animal, he offers up ascent offerings. These offerings are not in
relation to sin. They are not sin offerings. They are the means required by
Yahweh Elohim to obtain access into His presence for proper, acceptable
worship. The ascent offering is necessary due to the contamination of the death
brought to the race by Adam, not to individual sin. Yahweh is not yet counting
up sin. This He will do only in relation to
for until law sin was in the world, yet sin is not being taken into account when there is no law; nevertheless death reigns from Adam unto Moses, . . . (Romans 5:13-14b CV)
The judgment of the flood is not associated with the eternal destiny of those who were destroyed. The salvation from the deluge is associated with a faithful elect. This elect group gains access to life in the new world-order under the covenant made with Noah. Those who died were not eternally doomed. They simply had their natural lives cut short. They forfeited the death common to all men. This common death had entered the world through Adam’s sin (see Num. 16:29 CV; Rom. 5:12 CV).
Yahweh responds to these offerings by rescinding the curse upon the ground and promising never to destroy the earth and all living creatures again:
And smelling is Yahweh Elohim a restful smell. And saying is Yahweh Elohim to His heart, “Not any more will I slight further the ground for the sake of humanity [lit. The Man], for the form of the human heart is evil from its youth. Neither again will I smite further all living flesh, as I have done. In the future, all the days of the earth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and warmth, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. (Genesis 8:21-22 CV)
The human heart is declared to be evil from its youth. The
Hebrew word good implies building up; the Hebrew word evil implies tearing down. Neither the good
nor the evil is necessarily
associated with morality, that is, moral good
or moral evil. Thus, evil does not necessarily include moral
evil. The evil spoken of here refers to The Man’s (Adam’s) propensity to make
foolish, ignorant, arrogant decisions which culminate in destruction,
impoverishment. This is exemplified by the decisions of Eve and Adam in
Moral evil is exemplified by Cain in his slaying of his
brother Abel. Cain is not ignorant of the significance of his decision and
deed. Cain does not act out of ignorant unbelief. He acts out of brash
rebellion. He understands Yahweh’s words. He opposes Yahweh Elohim in the name
of Yahweh Elohim. Cain believes Yahweh Elohim to be in error regarding His
judgment concerning the essence and nature of what it means to be man. Cain
rejects Abel as the
Thus, the evil heart of a man from his youth is not describing
the evil rebellion of Cain, though such rebellion continued to exist after the
flood. The evil described here by Yahweh is that of Eve and Adam. Its extreme
form is seen in Cain and his seed,
It is also important to note that Yahweh, according to Genesis 8:21-22 (CV), promises never to destroy the earth and all living flesh. Some interpret this passage to mean Yahweh will not destroy the earth again by water, but will destroy it by fire. But this interpretation contradicts what Yahweh specifically declares will not cease: seedtime and harvest, cold and warmth, summer and winter, day and night. The natural cycles of the planet will not cease. There will never be another catastrophic destruction of the earth according to this declaration of Yahweh Elohim. Any interpretation of prophetic literature which concludes a further destruction of the earth needs to be examined under the light of this lucid passage.
In Genesis, chapter 6, verse 18, the word “covenant” is used for the first time. Yahweh makes a covenant with Noah before the great deluge arrives. This covenant is associated with judgment and salvation: Judgment upon all flesh, with the exception of those entering the ark for Salvation. In chapter 9, after the conclusion of the great deluge, Yahweh speaks again of this covenant. He refers to it as “My Covenant,” and it is between Yahweh Elohim and all flesh, that is, all humans and all animal life (Gen. 9:8‑10). It is also described as being between Yahweh Elohim and the earth (Gen. 9:13). Its duration is said to be “for generations eonian” (Gen. 9:12 CV) and is called a “covenant eonian” (Gen. 9:16 CV). Thus, it is a covenant made with Adamic humanity as represented by Noah; its duration extends through all the generations making up the Adamic age, and as such, it is labeled an eonian covenant, a covenant of the age or eon of Adam.
This covenant would no longer be necessary or relevant to the Jesuic humanity when this humanity became perfected under Christ’s Headship as the Second Adam. At the conclusion of the Jesuic Eon, the Noahic Covenant would reach its termination. With the problem of Sin and Death solved and the problem of the knowledge of Good and Evil transcended, catastrophic judgment becomes impossible. Humanity will have reached its intended goal. Under the Headship of Christ, humanity is in the process of progressing toward the transcendence of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. When the Knowledge of Good and Evil is transcended, mankind will have learned the skillful application of both the Good and the Evil appropriate in each decisional context. Good and Evil will then be perceived no longer dichotomously, but homogeneously, each complementing the other dialectically.
Having established the provision of the covenant, the text
names Noah’s three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, emphasizing Ham as the father
of Canaan and declaring “from these the
entire earth is scattered over” (Gen. 9:19 CV). The reference to Ham as
Canaan’s father is a signal demanding
The naming of Ham as the father of Canaan is also to alert
The episode of Noah’s drunkenness follows on the heel of the
naming of Ham as
But what is dangerous about Ham? Noah plants a vineyard. Since the ground is no longer cursed, Noah becomes a man who serves the ground. His effort is not wasted. The ground brings forth abundantly and Noah partakes of its produce. Not knowing experientially the power of these new grapes coming forth from the uncursed ground, Noah drinks too much and becomes drunk. The text does not accuse or judge Noah. He is not to be considered morally evil. He sins (misses the mark of soberness) but is not to be judged as unrighteous. The reader has already been told that Noah is just and had become flawless in his generations. His drunkenness is not intentional disregard of Yahweh’s authority and rule. It is unintentional and, thus, a consequence of his ignorance.
In his drunkenness, his nakedness is exposed. Ham, again
referred to as the father of
Such shame needed to be covered, not gazed upon, examined, studied. Adam and Eve understood this immediately, covering themselves with fig leaves. Yahweh also acknowledges the necessity of covering this nakedness, providing His own covering for their nakedness. Nakedness is equated with shame, and shame is equated with the condition of sin and death associated with the disobedience of Adam and Eve. Thus, mankind’s disregard of the significance of nakedness is disrespect of Yahweh’s judgment, and, in Ham’s case, a rebellion against Yahweh. Ham, like Cain, opposes Yahweh’s judgment. Ham opposes in the name of truth, freedom, knowledge, science, and ultimately, in the name of Yahweh, declaring himself to be Yahweh’s glory, the superior man acting as creative investigator in order to more perfectly develop his potentiality as Yahweh’s glory, as one in the likeness of Yahweh Elohim.
Shem and Japheth demonstrate a proper respect for the significance of nakedness. They enter their father’s tent backwards in order to cover his nakedness without seeing it, observing it, contemplating it, examining it, studying it. Thus, they honor both Noah and Yahweh. Their behavior demonstrates faithful subjection to Yahweh’s judgments.
When Noah becomes aware of the previous events, he curses
The Genesis account now begins to focus on the development of the nations in this new world-order, this postdiluvian order of humanity. The text is interested in the spreading out of the nations over the earth. Noah was told by Yahweh, “be fruitful and increase, and roam in the earth. . . .” (Gen. 9:7 CV). Would humanity obey Yahweh? If not, then what? After all, the reader has been told about the character of man’s evil heart. Whether it be on account of humanity’s ignorance or overt rebellion, the tendency has been failure to obey Yahweh. The initial failure had brought catastrophic judgment. But Yahweh has sworn He will not repeat such a judgment. Thus, the writer takes up the account of the generations of the sons of Noah (Shem, Ham, and Japheth) after the flood.
Japheth is the first to be considered (Gen. 10:2-5). His generations are listed together with a note to the reader:
From these are parted the coastlanders of the nations among their lands, each man to his tongue, to their families, in their nations. (Genesis 10:5 CV)
These nations, from the point of view of
Ham is considered next (Gen. 10:6-20). The reader is informed
of Ham’s four sons:
The word “master” is the same word used in Genesis 6:4 to refer to the Distinguished Ones, mortals with the name, which I translated as “the Mighty Chiefs having power and authority.” Nimrod, like Cain and Ham, perceives himself as a superior man having tremendous physical strength and strength of character (Gen. 10:8-12). He, also, judges Yahweh Elohim to be in error concerning the nature and essence of a great man. He, also, in Yahweh’s presence, boldly attempts to convince Yahweh of his superiority, the superiority of the man of action and intelligence over the man of submission and faith. He is thus a Mighty Chief, a mighty warrior standing defiantly before Yahweh.
Nimrod begins (Gen.
10:10) to establish a kingdom with the building of the city of
Nimrod, however, like Cain, Lamech, Ham,
It is also true that the seed of the Woman, the seed of Abel (here represented by Shem and Abram) in its contemporary historical situation has contributed much evil to society as a whole. Neither seed in its contemporary historical situation is absolutely good or absolutely evil. Both seeds produce good and evil within society.
Nimrod is not to be viewed as solely an evil tyrant. He is a
man of great character, strength, genius, and ability. His decisions and
actions are his attempt at determining the proper use or application of good
and evil for the benefit of himself and his people. He does this in defiance of
Yahweh’s judgments in order to gain the admiration and acceptance of Yahweh on
his own terms. He is a worshiper of Yahweh Elohim, even as Cain was such a
worshiper. This will become significant when the present writer examines
Nimrod’s kingdom is located “in the
The text then continues the generations of Ham through Mizraim
and
Finally, Shem is considered. He is placed last because he is the most significant in relation to the seed of the Woman. Unlike the previous listings, Shem is given an additional introduction.
And to Shem sons are born. Moreover he is the forefather of all the sons of Eber. He is a brother of Japhet; [he is] the eldest [of Noah’s three sons]. (Genesis 10:21 CV modified)
This addition exalts the importance of Shem’s descendants over
the descendants of Japheth and Ham. It also draws attention to the fact that
Shem is the forefather of all the sons of Eber, who is to be the forefather of
the Hebrew branch of Shem’s family. It is this branch which maintains,
continues the original sole language of the race, Hebrew. In the following list
(Gen. 10:25-30), Eber is shown to have two sons. This genealogical table
follows only Joktan, leaving the generations of Peleg the firstborn to the
genealogical table of Shem listed in chapter 11, which genealogy is placed
after the narration of the events at
Finally, Shem is noted as the eldest son of Noah, and thus heir to the throne occupied by Noah. This is important since it alludes to Seth’s son Enosh who began invoking the name of Yahweh. Thus, it establishes the line held responsible for the faithful worship of Yahweh Elohim. Shem bears the burden of faithful, accurate worship among the nations of the new world-order. It is through Shem that the lineage of the Royal Seed of the Woman will continue. Thus, in Shem will reside the hope of all humanity. For in Shem will come the only legitimate son qualified to ascend the uncontaminated throne of Adam.
The account of the generations of the sons of Noah (Gen. 10:1) is closed as follows:
These are the families of the sons of Noah by their genealogical annals in their nations. And from these the coastland nations are parted in the earth after the deluge. (Genesis 10:32 CV)
Before the deluge, humanity functioned as one race, one society, one civilization, having one king and one language. After the deluge, humanity is divided into nations apportioned specified territories. These nations would produce separate societies, civilizations, each having its own king and its own language. The cause of this new arrangement is about to be related in chapter 11 of Genesis.
After the deluge, humanity continues to speak one language,
that is, humanity is of one lip, having one stock of words. In their journey
east, the people come to a valley in the
In Genesis 10:8-10 Nimrod “began
to become a master in the earth. . . . And coming is the beginning of his
kingdom to be
The worship of Yahweh continues. However, this worship is being defined by Nimrod’s innovative plan. By demonstrating their strength and ingenuity, Nimrod advises that they shall make a name for themselves to the glory of Yahweh. Such an accomplishment can only result in Yahweh’s approval and praise. This reflects the attitude and accomplishment of Cain, the first city builder.
The tower in the midst of the city would have a dome, or head, in the sphere of the interest of the heavens. This is not to be understood as an attempt to spatially reach the location of Yahweh Elohim. The tower in the midst of the city is to be a temple for the worship of Yahweh. Its roof, its dome-shaped head, would consist of a heavenly map depicting the twelve constellations and their related stars. Yahweh had established these constellations and the pictures associated with the revealed, imaginary connection of the stars. As already pointed out, the origination of the constellation Scorpio and the scorpion as the sign of Cain were given by Yahweh Elohim.
Job, speaking about El, declares “who made the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the chambers of the south. . . .” (Job 9:9 RSV). The Psalmist declares of Yahweh, “He determines the number of the stars, he gives to all of them their names. Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure” (Ps. 147:4 RSV). Isaiah, speaking for Yahweh Elohim, says, “To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name; by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power not one is missing” (Isa. 40:25-26 RSV). David exclaims,
The heavens are recounting the glory of El,
And the atmosphere is telling the work of His hands.
Day after day is uttering a saying,
And night after night in disclosing knowledge.
There is no audible saying, and there are no words;
Their voice is unheard.
Yet into the entire earth their voice goes forth,
And into the ends of the habitance their declarations. (Psalms 19:1-4a CV)
Thus, this tower is an attempt to preserve and hand down the antediluvian traditions which had been revealed to the Man Adam by Yahweh Elohim. In this revelation, humanity had access to the testimony of Yahweh Elohim. The evil in the eyes of Yahweh is not the city or the tower in themselves. The evil is the attitude of the heart of men in attempting to gain the approval and praise of Yahweh Elohim on their own grounds. Such approval would be founded upon their own decision regarding what is to be pleasing or good in the eyes of Yahweh. What they had determined to be good in their eyes, they concluded would have to be good in the eyes of Yahweh. Here again is a demonstration of defiant, proud, arrogant worship of Yahweh Elohim. Here is the deception of the seed of the Serpent, the seed of Cain. And it is offered as worship of Yahweh in accordance with the Name as defined by Nimrod.
The evil that necessitated Yahweh’s intervention is the
determination of men not to be scattered over the surface of the earth. This
plan of Nimrod would impoverish humanity. It would initiate another process of
deterioration similar to that which necessitated the deluge, the catastrophic
judgment against man and animal. But Yahweh swore He would not again bring about
a catastrophic judgment. Therefore, He confuses their tongues, thereby
eliminating the universal communication which would have resulted in an
absolute deterioration necessitating catastrophic judgment. The confusion of
tongues separates the people into nations, necessitating the scattering of each
nation into its apportioned territory. Universal and catastrophic judgment is
thereby avoided. Nimrod’s kingdom and renown would continue, but only in
relation to his nation associated with
Eventually, however, the distortion of Yahweh’s astrological
testimony would lead to astrological worship in connection with the worship and
service of other gods. Yahweh Elohim would finally give up the nations to the
evil desires of their hearts. This is evidenced in His warning to
Guard yourselves lest you should lift up your eyes toward the heavens, and you see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of the heavens, and be induced to bow yourself down to them and serve them, which Yahweh your Elohim has apportioned to all other peoples beneath the entire heavens. (Deuteronomy 4:19 CV)
Paul also alludes to this:
For presently being revealed is God’s indignation from heaven upon every ungodliness and injustice of men, the men actively retaining the truth in the sphere of the interest of injustice. Because that which is known of the God is manifested among them. For the God to their interest manifested it upon them. For His objectives hidden from sight, coming from an artistic creation and being understood according to the purpose of His artistic portraits making up this artistic creation, are being fully seen, both His imperceptible power and godship, making them undefendable. Because being men who knew the God, not as God did they worshipfully-glorify or gratefully-thank Him. But vain were they made in the sphere of the interest of their rationalizations, and overwhelmingly-darkened became the uncomprehending heart of these men. . . . And according as they did not prove-by-testing to retain the God in their acknowledgment, the God gave them aside into a disapproved mind to be producing the things not precisely fitting, . . . (Romans 1:18-21, 28 my translation)
God (Yahweh Elohim), thus, eventually apportioned such
astrological worship to all other peoples. But He avoids catastrophic judgment
upon the nations by creating for Himself a special nation,
He is telling His words to Jacob,
His statutes and ordinances
to
He has not done so for any other nation,
And His ordinances, they [the nations] do not know them at all. (Psalms 147:19-20 CV)
Jacob/Israel, upon reading this account of
From the account in Genesis 11:1-9, the reader and Israel learn the circumstances and the time necessitating the Supreme’s giving each nation its allotment, assigning each a Son of El, and setting aside Jacob for His allotment (cf. Deut. 32:8-9 CV). From the text in Deuteronomy, chapter 32, the reader learns that this scattering of the nations occurred when the Supreme parted the sons of Adam. From Genesis 10:25 the reader learns that the parting of the sons of Adam occurred in the days of Peleg, the firstborn son of Eber, the father of the Hebrew branch of Shem’s line.
Genesis 11:1-9 informs the reader of the actual historical events out of which came the parting of the sons of Adam into separate nations, having separate territories, having different languages. It is also noteworthy to point out that this division of the sons of Adam occurred after the deaths of Noah and Shem, the two most influential, powerful men (mortals, Distinguished Ones, Men of Renown) of their time. The author’s account foreshadows, among the nations, the beginning of another regression toward a deterioration and impoverishment of humanity.
Before concluding the final genealogies of Genesis, chapter 11, a brief comment about 2 Peter’s reference to this deluge under discussion proves enlightening. Writing of scoffers in the last days, Peter declares,
For they want to be oblivious of this, that there were heavens of old, and an earth cohering out of water and through water, by the word of God; through which the then world, being deluged by water perished. Yet the heavens now, and the earth, by the same word, are stored with fire, being kept for the day of the judging and destruction of irreverent men. (2 Peter 3:5-7 CV)
Peter refers back to the Noahic deluge to answer the scoffers
who ask, “Where is the promise of His
presence [Parousia]?” (2 Peter
3:4 CV). These scoffers imply the Parousia of Jesus the Christ and the judgment of
The heavens of old and the earth described in Genesis, chapter 1, were created out of water and through water by the word of God. The world-order (the society of men) of humanity inhabiting that creation was destroyed by the same waters and the same word that made that creation a habitation fit for man and animal.
Peter then proceeds to apply the lesson to the then present
heavens and earth which had been created for
For ask now about the former days which came before you, from the day that Elohim created humanity on the earth, . . . Has there occurred anything like this great thing, or has anything been heard like it? Has a people ever heard the voice of the living Elohim speaking from the midst of the fire just as you heard it, and lived? . . . From the heavens He let you hear His voice, to discipline you, and on the earth He showed you His great fire, and you heard His words from the midst of the fire. . . . so you know today, and recall it to your heart that Yahweh, He is the only Elohim in the heavens above and on the earth beneath; there is no one else. (Deuteronomy 4:32-39 CV)
Thus, for Peter, the present heavens and earth had to do with
the world-order created at Sinai in which
Peter, however, was aware of the word of God spoken through His only-begotten Son:
Verily, I am saying to you, Under no circumstances may a stone here be left on a stone, which shall not be demolished. (Matthew 24:2 CV)
Jesus is here referring to the destruction of the
Peter also remembered Jesus declaring,
Now immediately after the affliction of those days the sun shall be darkened and the moon shall not be giving her beams, and the stars shall be falling from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of Mankind in heaven, and then all the tribes of the land shall grieve, and they shall see the Son of Mankind coming on the clouds of heaven with power and much glory. . . . Verily, I am saying to you that by no means may this generation be passing by till all these things should be occurring. . . . For even as the days of Noah, thus shall be the presence [parousia] of the Son of Mankind. (Matthew 24:29-37 CV)
As antediluvian mankind and its system of worship had been destroyed by the word of Yahweh Elohim, so also, the ungodly men under the Mosaic Covenant, along with their system of worship, would soon be destroyed by the word of Yahweh Elohim spoken by the prophets and finally by Jesus the Son of the Man and the Son of God. This is the argument of Peter in his second epistle. The presence [parousia] of Jesus the Christ was imminent. It would occur in that very generation which was contemporary with Jesus and His Apostles.
Chapter 11 of Genesis concludes with a second genealogical
list for Shem, this time going through Eber’s firstborn son, Peleg. The royal
and elect line of the seed of the Woman
continues through Peleg’s descendants. Peleg and Joktan together represent the
people designated “Hebrews” (see Gen.
14:13). From this people the Hebrew language (the original language of mankind)
is preserved. However, this second lineage of Shem placed after the events at
Babel is important because it focuses on the line descending from Peleg through
which Yahweh would provide an escape from another universal judgment, this time
against the nations. This second lineage of Shem concludes with Terah, “And living is Terah seventy years, and
begetting is he Abram, Nahor, and
The author concludes the history of the ancient world by
providing a transition into the history of the patriarchs of the nation
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H1 11:27-
25:11 TERAH—Abraham’s Father In The Flesh |
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A1
11:27-22:19 Abram: The
Promise of A Son—Isaac |
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B1
22:20-24 Nahor’s Sons by
Milcah and Concubine |
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C1
23:1-20 Sarah’s Death:
Purchase of Burial Ground |
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C2
24:1-67 Isaac’s Marriage |
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B2
25:1-4 Abraham’s Sons by
Keturah |
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A2
25:5-11 Abraham: The
Inheritance of The Son—Isaac |
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(Return to List of Structures)
The A1 member introduces Abram who is called by
Yahweh and promised a son. The B1 member concerns Abram’s brother
Nahor who is blessed with sons by Milcah his wife and Reumah his concubine. These
sons are also Hebrews of the line of Shem, but they are not elect sons in
relation to Yahweh’s purpose concerning the seed
of the Woman. In this section, the author also mentions Bethuel as the
father of Rebecca, foreshadowing the quest for a bride for Isaac. The first
central member, C1, of Structure 8 tells of Sarah’s death and
Abraham’s purchase of a burial ground in
The B2 member of Structure 8 corresponds to the B1 member. As Nahor fathered non-elect sons of the line of Shem, so Abraham through Keturah continues to be blessed with sons, though those sons, like Nahor’s, are non-elect sons of the line of Shem, even though considered Hebrews. The author, by means of these two accounts, makes clear that just because these sons are non-elect, does not mean their eternal destiny is one of doom. Election and salvation by faith have to do with a special calling and purpose of Yahweh requiring a special responsibility and service in relation to the Promised Land and the eonian glory associated with the hope of Abraham.
Remember, Abraham and Sarah were buried in the
The final A2 member of Structure 8 draws this section to a close and corresponds perfectly with the opening A1 member. In the A1 member, Abraham is promised a son. That son is revealed to be Isaac. The birth of Isaac is the central member of Structure 9: Abraham and the Birth of Isaac (Gen. 11:27‑22:19), which is an expansion of the A1 substructure of Structure 8: Generations of Terah (Genesis 11:27‑25:11).
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A1 11:27-22:19 ABRAM: THE PROMISE OF A SON – ISAAC |
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D1
11:27-12:9 The Call
of Abram |
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E1 12:10-20:18 The Sojourn Of Abraham: Covenants with
Yahweh |
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a1 12:10-20
The Sojourn In Egypt: Pharaoh |
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b1 13:1-14:24 The
Separation From and Rescue of Lot By Abram |
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c1 15:1-21 Yahweh’s
Covenant With Abram Regarding
The Land |
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d 16:1-16 The
Birth of Ishmael |
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c2 17:1-27 Yahweh’s
Covenant of Circumcision [ABRAHAM]) |
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b2 18:1-19:38 The
intercession On Behalf of Lot and by
Abraham |
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a2 20:1-18 The Sojourn In Gerar: Abimelech |
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F 21:1-21 The Birth of Isaac |
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E2
21:22-34 The Sojourn of Abraham: Covenant with Abimelech |
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D2 22:1-19
The Testing of Abraham |
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(Return to List of Structures)
The A2 member (Gen. 25:5-11) of Structure 8: Generations of Terah (Gen. 11:27-25:11) records that Abraham gives all that he has to Isaac. No other son of Abraham shares in the inheritance and the promise given to Abraham. Isaac is the sole heir of Abraham’s terrestrial possessions and the sole heir through whom both the terrestrial and celestial promises are to come. The land is a terrestrial promise; the city is a celestial promise. Abraham never experienced the terrestrial promise of the land. He, later, did experience the celestial promise of the city.
It is also interesting that the author adds, “And to the sons of the concubines which are
Abraham’s, Abraham gives gifts. And sending them is he away from Isaac, his
son, while he [Abraham] is still
living, eastward to the land of the East” (Gen. 25:6 CV). This foreshadows
the period of the fulfillment of the promise made to Abraham concerning the
In his letter to the Colossians, Paul testifies that the truth of the Gospel had been heard “in the entire world. . . . bearing fruit and growing” (Col. 1:6 CV). The proclamation of the Gospel of Christ had been completed during the very lifetime of the generation contemporary with Jesus. This is in complete agreement with the promise made by Jesus to His disciples, “And lo! I am with you all the days till the conclusion of the eon! Amen!” (Matt. 28:20b CV). Jesus was referring to the Mosaic Eon, which the writer of the Book of Hebrews, referring to the Mosaic Covenant as “old,” declared to be “growing old and decrepit” being “near its disappearance” (Heb. 8:13 CV). Such testimony needs to be given careful consideration.