Genesis 2:1

The Bible says in Genesis 2:1, “Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.” This Bible verse makes it very clear that God created everything including all life. He did not just start things off, and then evolution took over. God created “all the host” of the heavens and the earth.

The Bible says in Genesis 2:2-3, “And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.” Eventually the Pharisees corrupted the idea of the Sabbath. The Pharisees tried to use the Sabbath to control and condemn people. The Pharisees condemned Jesus because Jesus did not follow their strict rules. Concerning an event that took place on the Sabbath day, the Bible says in Luke 13:12-16, “And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day. The Lord then answered him and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering? And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?” Jesus also said in Mark 2:27, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.”

There is something very important to remember about the Sabbath day. God created it, and just as many of the things that He created, there is a symbolic meaning that is much more important than the day itself. It says in Genesis 2:2 that God “rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.” Man also needs a rest. Man needs a rest in a spiritual sense. This very verse is quoted in Hebrews 4:4, and then explained. It says in Hebrews 4:4-11, “For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works. And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest. Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, Today after so long a time; as it is said, Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. For if Jesus had given them rest, then he would not afterward have spoken of another day. There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us therefore labor to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.” The way to enter into God’s spiritual rest is to cease from your own works, and rely upon Christ by faith. Ephesians 2:8-9,“For by grace are we saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

The Bible says in Genesis 2:4-6, “These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.” A very important point is being made in these verses: initially there was no rain. Plants received water from a mist instead of from rain. The first time that it rains is found later in the book of Genesis during the life of Noah. It rains when and where God chooses for it to rain. The weather obeys His bidding. When Jesus walked the earth in the form of a man, even the wind and the waves obeyed Him. Sometimes the rain is a blessing, and sometimes it is a judgment as it was in the days of Noah. All things are used of God to fulfill His purpose for the world.

The Bible says in Genesis 2:7, “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” It is interesting that the Hebrew word for “man” comes from the same word as the word for “ground.” God made man from the ground. And in a certain sense man is tied to the ground. Man is tied to the earth: of the earth. That eventually becomes a problem for man, because man needs to leave the earth and find the way to heaven. In addition to body and soul, man also needs to be given a spirit. Jesus spoke of a spiritual birth. He said in John 3:3, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Jesus also said in John 3:5-6, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

Concerning the situation in which Adam originally lived, we are told in Genesis 2:8-9, “And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; and the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” When man was first created, the world that he lived in was much different than it now is. Adam lived in the Garden of Eden. This Garden of Eden was a wonderful place to live. For one thing the Lord God made “to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food.” It was beautiful and it was abundant. Also, man did not work by the sweat of his brow in the way that he now must do. Instead of working with such difficulty, man enjoyed the presence of God and the beauty of the Garden. The hardships and difficulties that human beings currently endure to survive in a sinful and decaying world did not exist at that time. Through faith in Jesus human beings can be restored to the original state: fellowship with God and an eternal home in the beauty and abundance of heaven.

There is one way in which life in the Garden of Eden was the same as ours: the possibility of failure. God placed in the Garden “the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” Adam was told to never eat of this tree. In other words God gave man a choice in the Garden of Eden, just as He gives us choices today. Be careful about the choices that you make. Make the wrong choice, and the consequences can be terrible, and the consequences can last for years and years. The goal is to be innocent and pure, but if one comes to know “good and evil” in the wrong way, that innocence will be lost. The purifying power of the blood of Christ can restore that innocence to your soul.

It is interesting that the geographical location of the Garden of Eden is discussed in Genesis 2:10-14. It says, “And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; And the gold of that land is good; there is bdellium and the onyx stone. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it which compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates.” One thing that we can say assuredly about the Garden of Eden is that it no longer exists. Four rivers with the description given here do not exist either, except maybe the Euphrates. The geography of the region described above must have changed dramatically with the arrival of the great flood of Noah. It is possible that the word “Havilah” stands for part of the Arabian Peninsula. The word that is translated “Ethiopia,” the word “Cush”, is normally used in the Bible to describe part of Northern Africa. Of course, the Euphrates River is located in modern day Iraq. If we take Genesis 2:10-14 at face value, and there is every reason that we should, the Garden of Eden stretched from Iraq, across Arabia, and into Northeast Africa. Of course, that region just like the rest of the world was greatly changed by the devastation of the Great Flood. At least two of the rivers no longer even exist. The luscious vegetation is gone. Where did all of that vegetation go? One of the proofs of the Great Flood is the existence of oil and coal, buried under great quantities of earth. How did all of that vegetation get covered? It all got covered by the upheaval of the flood waters. Here is an interesting thought: all of that oil in Saudi Arabia and Iraq might be the result of the vegetation of the Garden of Eden having been buried beneath the earth.

Concerning Adam’s existence in the Garden of Eden, the Bible says in Genesis 2:15-17, “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Man was given responsibility. Concerning the Garden of Eden, man was told “to dress it and to keep it.” It works that way today also. Each person is given something to do and a place to do it. One day we will give an account to the Judge for how we fulfilled the responsibilities that He gave to us. Man was given a choice, and he was clearly warned what would happen if he partook of that which was forbidden. Man was told, “for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Of course, we know that the Lord was talking about spiritual death as well as physical death. If only man made the right choices, how wonderful life would be. But each time that someone chooses the forbidden thing, there is a price to pay. Death still reigns in this world because Adam disobeyed God and made the wrong choice. How much we are dependent upon the mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ. Look at the terrible consequences all over the world because of just one failure and sin by Adam. Adam failed once, but we have failed and sinned many times.

The Bible says in Genesis 2:18, “And the Lord God said, It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.” This Bible verse tells us where marriage came from: God created marriage. Marriage between a man and a woman is God’s idea for the human race. There are two reasons given in this verse for marriage. One reason for marriage is so that man would not be alone. In other words companionship is a reason for marriage. Loneliness can be a terrible thing, and companionship will solve that issue. The second reason for marriage is productivity. God gave man something to accomplish when God put man into the Garden of Eden: to take care of the earth. Obviously God’s will for man is that man be a creator: a builder and a producer. Two working as a team can accomplish more than one working alone. This Bible verse emphasizes the equality of men and women. The woman was created to be involved in the same things that the man was involved with. God said, “I will make an help meet for him.” This means that God’s will is for the woman to do the same things that the man will do. Whatever tasks a man can do, a woman can do; and God wants a husband and wife to help each other do those things together.

Concerning some of the duties that Adam had while he was in the Garden of Eden, the Bible says in Genesis 2:19-20, “And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every foul of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all the cattle, and to the foul of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.” We see that once God had created the world and all that is in it that Adam participated in the work that followed to take care of the world. God brought the animals to Adam and Adam gave them names. We already know that Adam took care of the Garden of Eden. Anyone who is a gardener or a farmer or a forest ranger or who is involved in landscaping is doing the type of work that Adam originally performed. Adam was a gardener, and he was also a biologist. The process of identifying and naming all of the life forms that are on the earth is God’s work that He has given to man. God loves the creatures that He has made, and God wants man to know all about these creatures. “And whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.”

Adam was given work to do, and Adam needed someone to help him with his work. Notice that it says at the end of Genesis 2:20, “But for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.” God knew what man needed and God was going to supply the need. Most men need a wife, and most women need a husband. There are a few exceptions like the Apostle Paul, who have a special calling to be celibate. However, the majority of the human race are called to be like Adam and Eve: to find their life’s helper and to be united with their spouse to face the responsibilities of life together. Marriage is a blessing for those who find God’s choice, and marriage is a blessing for those who grow in their marriage as they grow in their relationship with Christ. Marriage between a man and a woman is God’s will for most people.

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