For me, this is one of the most exciting parts of the Bible. But the life and meaning of this passage emerges when it is allowed to speak as sacred story. It is written in a time when history was more his (they were male writers) story (events told from a particular perspective). For this reason, scholars often call this "pre-history." It begins with two creation stories. The first one is sacred story in the form of a poem. Notice the repeated phrases "and God said," "and it was so," and "and it was good." To ask whether God could create the world in seven "days" or whether God created with age already on it is to ask modern scientific-historical questions of something that is neither science nor history. Notice also the progression from it was good to the sixth day when after the creation of humans beings God says, "and it was very good." I call this creation story God's New World Symphony in seven movements. It is communicating God's initiative, the greatness of God's creation, and the responsibility of the pinnacle of his creation as caretakers of his creation. Why do you think the Bible begins this way? Why might this passage speak more powerfully as art rather than science?
The second creation story takes place in a garden. It is sacred story in narrative. Notice the playfulness of this passage: God fashioning a creature out of dust and breathing life into it, the parade of animals in search of a proper helpmate for Adam, and then the taking of a rib from the man to fashion one like him ("bone of my bone and "flesh of my flesh") only wonderfully different. It finishes with an erotic love passage. You can picture them walking off into the garden together, ready to live happily ever after.
But there is more to the story, often called "the Fall." Later on in the New Testament, Satan is connected to the snake, but that is an interpretation. The snake is subtle, "tricky." Notice the language used in the temptation story and the arguments made. Are these the temptations of the devil or are they the temptations from within ourselves? I'm tempted to link Genesis 3 to James 1 from last week's study. How might they be describing something similar? What do you do with the punishments given the man and the woman: farm land that produces weeds and thorns, women having pain in childbirth and the experience of death? We are tempted to ask questions of meteorology, agriculture, and biology. But this is sacred story. What is the writer of Genesis trying to communicate?
The second part of the Fall story is the first murder. Cain and Abel represent more than a sibling rivalry (repeated throughout Genesis), but also a social rivalry between farmers and ranchers. Why does God prefer Abel's offering? Is it the attitude of the one who sacrifices or is it possible that the preference for blood sacrifice that is part of the Hebrew sacrificial system is showing itself? What do you make of no mention of Cain's wife nor is there any explanation for the people who are already there in the land of Nod? How do you understand "the mark of Cain?"
The flood story has parallels in other cultures. For example the Babylonian Noah is named Utnapishtim. The sons of Anak (the product of angels and humans) end up being connected to "the giants in the land" and Goliath later. The boat is scientifically not floatable as described, but sacred story could care less. What about the rainbow and the role of the covenant making God? Notice the curse of Ham. This was used during slavery days to justify the belittling of African Americans. Does the Bible support that? Some scholars believe that there are boat remains on Mt. Ararat in Turkey. Why does "the Flood" speak so powerfully from that day and time to several religions? By the way, here is a question I was asked in a Bible Study course in college. Can you answer it correctly? What bird did Moses send out from the ark? A raven, a dove, a pterodactyl or none of the above? Bring you answer to class.
The final story of the pre-history is the Tower of Babel. The design is the typical ziggarut (think pyramid building at loop 289 and Indiana in Lubbock). At the top of a ziggarut was a worship center called "the gate of heaven." Notice the "let us go down" and the plural understanding of God. Some will explain this as an early representation of the Trinity, but it is more likely as in Genesis 1 ("let us make man...") a picture of God as an oligarchy of gods. The other creation stories in that part of the world also describe God as plural (Hebrew word is elohim). In the Bible there is a gradual development in language about God from God as plural (polytheism) to God as superior to other gods (henotheism) to only one God (monotheism). Notice the building materials (tar and pitch). It's set up for failure long before the scattered languages. The Tower of Babel story tends to follow the stories of the gods in that day that never want the humans to get ahead.
What are some of the ways these speak to our own day and time? The first sermon series I did on these stories was called "The Story of Us." How might that be true?
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