Creation
Class Notes
The Creation Story
Intro
Intro
- First Book of the Bible is called Genesis = origin, birth (from Greek).
- The first chapter in Genesis describes how God created our world in six days and rested on the seventh day.
Did you Know?
Bible Book Titles come from its 3rd century Greek translation called Septuagint. English translations use the same title names to this day. The Book of Genesis was called Bereshit in the original Hebrew Bible, taken from the first words of the Book: “In the beginning.”
The Chaos Before Creation
“In the beginning God made heaven and earth. The earth was invisible and unfinished; and darkness was over the deep.” (Gen. 1:1-2)
- The earth was uninhabited, chaotic, and dark.
- There was no order in the cosmic matter.
- This period could be reconciled with modern science stating that our cosmos is much older than the biblical timeline.
God brings Order
- God was present in this “darkness.”
- He brings order by creating life over a 6-day period.
- Each day begins with the phrase, “Then God said,” and then ends with the phrase, “and there was evening and morning.”
The days of creation
The 6 days are organized as two sets of 3 that each address the “problems” with the cosmic disorder presented in Genesis 1:2.
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Day 1: Light
Day 2: Skies/Seas Day 3: Land/Plants |
Day 4: Time
Day 5: Birds/Fish Day 6: Animals/Man |
Number 7 Pattern
- After creating the world, God rested on the 7th day:
- The 7th day has no mention of “evening or morning” but it is simply declared a holy day.
- This points to the unique character of the 7th day as the day of eternity, or perfect completion when God comes in communion with man.
- The 7th day is the goal of all creation.
Remember
About the Creation Story...
- God is the Creator of our world.
- God brings order in the universe.
- Communion with God is the goal of all creation.
