FRAMEWORKS:
Genesis: Chapter 1
(The
objective of these ‘Frameworks' is to provide an easy-to-read
layout of the text in order then to use these individual verses
for verse-by-verse study or meditation.
To
focus each verse we usually add in italic a description of what
is happening in each verse. Because Genesis has little direct
teaching and is mostly narrative, we have provided a structure
of subheadings together with explanatory notes as and when it
seems they would be helpful in bringing overall clarification
or answer questions that might arise)
Note:
Chronological Flow
There
is a steady chronological flow in the chapters
of Genesis although the wise reader would be careful not to try
to add specific time periods or time scales until the book moves
further on. So, for example,
Gen
1 –
provides the ‘big picture' of Creation with the main emphasis
being that it is God directed and thus no accident.
Gen
2 –
reiterates creation with a quick overview which quickly moves
on to focus on the location in Mesopotamia where God interacts
with Adam and Eve, laying down the ground rules for its use.
Gen
3 –
shows how the couple are led to disobey God and their relationship
with Him is fractured (usually referred to as ‘the Fall') and
they are banished from His presence. (Nevertheless, the ongoing
text indicates God is still there in the background interacting
with whoever is open to Him.
Gen
4 –
shows Adam & Eve's two sons interacting with Cain killing
Abel. God's interaction with Cain, seeking to help him not sin
and then protecting him in banishment after he does sin.
Gen
5 –
adds context by showing the family tree from Adam to Noah.
Gen
6-9
– shows the decline in the state of mankind and God's decision
to intervene with a flood where Noah and his family are saved.
Gen
10
– tables the nations that are formed after the Flood
Gen
11
– shows godless, self-glorifying mankind building a tower at Babel,
and then the family tree of Shem, on of Noah's surviving sons
Gen
11 & 12
– we are introduced to Abram
Gen
12-25
– Abram's (later renamed Abraham) interactions with God and eventually
a son being miraculously born to him, named Isaac
Gen
25-28
– covers Isaac's life
Gen
25,28-36
– covers Isaac's younger son Jacob, later renamed Israel
Gen
37-50
– follows Joseph, one of Israel's younger sons, who is sold into
slavery in Egypt but ends up as second to the Pharaoh of Egypt
and saves the whole area
from
famine by God's revelation and wisdom. At the end of the book,
the large family of Israel are living in Egypt as previously prophesied
by God.
Dates:
The New Bible Dictionary suggests rough BC dates
as follows:
•
Abraham: 2000 -1850
•
Isaac: 1900 – 1750
•
Jacob: 1800 – 1700
•
Joseph: 1750 – 1650
PART
ONE: Creation, Fall & ongoing Consequences: Gen 1-11
Ch.1
–The ‘big picture' of Creation
Ch.2
– Focused creation, God lays down the ground rules for the use
of Eden.
Ch.3
– The Fall
Ch.4
– Cain killing Abel
Ch.5
– The family tree from Adam to Noah.
Ch.6-9
– Decline of mankind and the Flood
Ch.10
– The nations that are formed after the Flood
Ch.11
– Building the tower of Babel; the family tree of Shem
FRAMEWORKS:
Genesis 1: Creation – big picture
v.1,2
The Beginning
v.1
In
the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
v.2
Now
the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface
of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
v.3-5
Day 1: Light & Darkness, Night & Day
v.3
And
God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
v.4
God
saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the
darkness.
v.5
God
called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And
there was evening, and there was morning— the first day.
v.6-8
Day 2: Water in Clouds & on Earth
v.6
And
God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate
water from water.”
v.7
So
God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from
the water above it. And it was so.
v.8
God
called the vault “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning—
the second day.
v.9-13
Day 3: Sea, Land, Vegetation, trees etc.
v.9
And
God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place,
and let dry ground appear.” And it was so.
v.10
God
called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called
“seas.” And God saw that it was good.
v.11
Then
God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants
and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according
to their various kinds.” And it was so.
v.12
The
land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their
kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their
kinds. And God saw that it was good.
v.13
And
there was evening, and there was morning— the third day.
v.14-19
Day 4: Sun, Moon & Stars
v.14,15
And
God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate
the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred
times, and days and years, and let them be lights in the vault
of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so.
v.16
God
made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and
the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars.
v.17,18
God
set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, to
govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness.
And God saw that it was good.
v.19
And
there was evening, and there was morning— the fourth day.
v.20-23
Day 5: Water creatures & birds
v.20
And
God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds
fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.”
v.21
So
God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing
with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according
to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And
God saw that it was good.
v.22
God
blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and
fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the
earth.”
v.23
And
there was evening, and there was morning— the fifth day.
v.24,25
Land Animals
v.24
And
God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to
their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the
ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And
it was so.
v.25
God
made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock
according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along
the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
v.26,27
Man in the image of God
v.26
Then
God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness,
so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in
the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over
all the creatures that move along the ground.”
v.27
So
God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God
he created them; male and female he created them.
v.28-31
Day 6: The Creation Mandate
v.28
God
blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number;
fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and
the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves
on the ground.”
v.29
Then
God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of
the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it.
They will be yours for food.
v.30
And
to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and
all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has
the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And
it was so.
v.31
God
saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was
evening, and there was morning— the sixth day.
Notes
1: ‘Days': A
variety of views have been suggested for the meaning of the six
‘days':
1.
Six literal periods of twenty four hours corresponding to the
movement of the earth.
2.
Six ‘eras' of guided (by God) evolutionary development
3.
Six days in which God shared with Moses (the compiler) the various
developments
Notes
2: Light: In
respect of the apparent discrepancy in order of light – Day 1
distinguishing light from darkness and Day 4, sun moon and stars,
it is suggested that the initial development of the earth started
with the earth of v.2 being surrounded by water vapour (producing
a steady stable temperature in which large mass bodies such of
dinosaurs could exist without overheating) thus being shut off
from the rest of the universe with its stars and planets and it
was only when this vapour mass was broken up that sun and moon
had effect on the planet becoming visible.
Notes
3: Man in Image of God:
How does man differ from God, what similarities are there between
God and man as revealed in the Bible? How does man differ from
the animals? From a compilation of these questions, it is suggested
that there are various abilities that man has (that animals don't
have) that reflect in small measure God's unlimited abilities.
The ones we observe in ‘man' include abilities
to communicate, think, plan, reason, invent, create, write, compose,
design, control, work, order, purpose, all with self-consciousness,
imagination, conscience, and ability to grow and develop.
Lessons
or Challenges to Ponder from Genesis Chapter 1
1.
If God is, as the Bible asserts in many places, the Creator of
all things, He is so much greater than anyone or anything we can
comprehend, our natural response must be to worship Him for the
wonder of His power and His creation.
2.
Whether He made this world in spoken blocks or by long-term evolution,
there is no room to think this world is an accident and purposeless.
It was created with order, meaning and purpose and that should
add stability and security to the way we view life.
3.
The beginning of Genesis 1 speaks of an already existing world.
Genesis 1 simply shows order coming out of chaos, purpose coming
into a void, a purpose that came to its climax in humanity. Amazing!
4.
Humanity being described as being made in the ‘image' or likeness
of God, (v.26,27) lifts us up above the rest of life on the planet,
gives reason for a possible relationship with God, and a dignity
or potential nobility of our standing on the planet. It also explains
why are a creators, designers, architects, authors, poets, composers,
artists, sculptors, scientists, researchers and so much more,
all of which challenge me to be thankful.
Continue to Chapter 2