Genesis

Genesis Chapter 1:

The earth, the universe, and life itself. How did it all begin? Why is there something; rather than nothing? Where did man come from? If God created everything, and God is good and all-powerful, why is the world in such a mess? Why are there natural disasters, horrible weather, diseases that cause suffering and death? If God created everything as it is, is this the best that he could do? How can we believe in God as creator when we watch the evening news and see what is going on? The Book of Genesis has some answers to these and many other questions.

Why do we call the first book “Genesis”? The word “genesis” comes from the same root word that we get “genealogy” and “genetics,” they all refer to beginnings. Genesis goes all the way back to the ultimate beginning; the beginning of the universe.

Read along in your study Bible and we will walk through Genesis together.

Gen 1:1, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” From the very start we have questions, don’t we? Now if the very first verse of the Bible was spoken to you by God Himself, you might raise your and ask The Almighty, “Say God, when did you create everything and how did you do it? While you are at it, would you explain the nebular hypothesis, supernovas and the quantum theory of gravity?” God might reply, “Hey, this isn’t a science class. I’m here to tell what you need to know about the world, how it got so messed up by you people and how I am going to fix things.” If you served in the military and had a security clearance you might recall that even with a clearance you didn’t have access to classified information. You had to have not only the proper clearance level, but you also had to have a “need to know.” I guess God suggests to us that we don’t “have a need to know.” That’s where faith comes in.

So, we have to look to science for answers about the details on when and how He created everything. Some experts think that 13.7 million years ago there was a Big Bang and what started out as a very small, dense mass expanded outward, creating the universe. But not all scientists are comfortable with this idea. It seems that every generation or so there are new theories. I saw a recent quote that said that the universe was created by “a “mysterious form of energy in the universe’s beginning that has long disappeared.” Translation, “I haven’t a clue.” Do quotes like these instill confidence in their ideas?

If you are a church goer, you may have noticed that the first eleven chapters of Genesis are oftentimes ignored from the pulpit. The same can be said about the Book of Revelation. Though many pastors will speak of the inspiration of the Scriptures and how they hold it in such high esteem, some apparently don’t hold it in high enough esteem to preach from all of it. Though some today may not hold these chapters in high regard, they were highly regarded by the writers of the New Testament. About 165 passages from Genesis are quoted or referred to in the New Testament and about 100 of them are from Genesis 1-11. What does this tell you about the value of these chapters? The early chapters of Genesis, which are an embarrassment for some, provide some answers to some of the big questions that we think about, but oftentimes don’t ask in church.

Besides teaching us something about origins, creation of the universe and man, we learn in these early chapters of Genesis about the beginning of man, sin, language development and the flood. These chapters help explain why there is so much suffering in the world. In chapter 12 we are introduced to Abram whose descendants become the twelve tribes of Israel which unite into a nation that ultimately produces the Messiah. There is a lot going on in this book that points directly to God’s plan of salvation and the coming of Jesus, twice.

Gen.1:1 says that God created everything out of nothing. Now I have to tell you about a theory, called the Gap Theory. Between verses 1 and 2 there may be a gap in time. This “Gap Theory” has found favor among some scholars; others say that the wording doesn’t allow for any type of time gap. What would make a gap in time appealing to some? Well, when scientists say that the world is billions of years old, this theory helps Genesis to fit in with the current thinking concerning the age of the earth. It might be during this "gap of time" that the angel Lucifer rebelled against God, along with a third of the angels. Lucifer then became known as Satan and the fallen angels, demons. After this rebellion God had to rehabilitate the earth to prepare it for man, which is described in the next verses.

God created everything in six days. Here we have another controversy. Are you kidding me? We’re only in the first few paragraphs and we already have questions and debates among scholars. Genesis says that creation took place in only six days. I believe it, don’t you? Are these literal 24-hour days or might the word day refer to a longer period of time? I used to believe that the days were literal 24-hour days; not longer periods of time. Some (young earth creationists) think that literal, 24-hour days are seen in the expression, “and there was evening and there was morning” after describing each day of creation (Gen. 1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31). Doesn’t this expression suggest 24-hour days? Also, the Hebrew word for day is "yom," which almost always means a 24-hour period of time. The only time it means something else is when it is used to refer to a time period, such as when your parents say, “Well in my day we had to walk twenty miles to school.” And did you notice the expression "evening and morning" with evening coming before morning? This is why the Jews begin observing the Sabbath at sunset; because the day does not begin at midnight as we view it, but at sunset. 

What changed my mind from being a young earth creationist to an old earth creationist? Here is why. If you read material from one source, you will get only one view. If you read from more sources, you get a better perspective. Though Answers in Genesis believe that the days were 24 hours, other respected scholars, such as Norman Geisler and Gleason Archer claim that the while the Hebrew word for day is yom, it does mean more than 24 hours in Hos. 6:2, “He will revive us after two days; He will raise us up on the third day.” See also Zech. 14:7 for another example.

The phrase “evening and morning” does not mean a 24-hour day. Since when is a 24-hour day without light? It can very easily refer to a definite beginning and ending; the beginning and end of each act of creation, regardless of how long a period is being described. And on the seventh day, where it says that God rested, this Sabbath rest can mean more than a 24-hour period of rest. In Heb. 4:1-11 refers to a period of time longer than 24 hours. So, the language of Genesis does not dictate 24-hour days.

Young earth creationists believe that the earth is about 6,000 years old. Old earth creationists believe that sound science supports an older earth. Old earth creationists and scientists claim that there are over forty different methods of radiometric dating that confirm an ancient earth. Ice core samples provide an unbroken record of annual ice layers spanning the past 800,000 years. Coral reefs record long ages of growth.

Some young earth creationists argue that God created the earth with the appearance of age. Doesn’t this sound as if God is lying to us? Doesn’t this idea conflict with Rom. 1:19-20 where Paul wrote that what can be known about God is plain . . . perceived ever since the creation of the world?

Not only have I abandoned the idea that God created the earth in six days of 24- hour days, I don’t think that He created everything fully formed. In Gen.1:11 it  says that God commanded the earth to sprout vegetation and trees; not that they sprouted and grew fully in 24 hours.

My current understanding it that God created life over long periods of time. Notice I said, “My current understanding”. I don’t have an ax to grind. I have changed my views on many subjects over the years. I have never claimed to be a spokesperson for God who has given me some unique communication to bring illumination to difficult passages in the Bible.

One more point made by young earth creationists is the idea that there was no death before sin entered the world. I agree, but that there was not death before sin, but the passage in Romans speaks not of the death of animals but of man. If you read Rom 5:12 it says that sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin. It says that death came to all men, because of sin. Do animals and plants sin? Only man can sin, not animals. There may have been a lot of animals dying before the sin of man. 

We know that there is a lot of junk science out in the marketplace. Flawed research that makes claims such as “power lines cause leukemia in children” and “vaccines cause autism”. But isn’t there junk theology out there also? The main promoters of junk theology are cults. There are also cultic beliefs within mainstream churches. There are those who don’t believe that Jesus is God in the flesh, that the Bible is not divinely inspired, and that Jesus did not rise from the dead. I do agree with the folks at Answers in Genesis, in that we have to start with the Bible as we look at the world. But we have to properly interpret the Bible; otherwise, we are propagating junk theology.

So here is the order of creation:

Day 1: light (we assume that this means the sun, but there are other sources of light, also)

Day 2: the sky (some claim ministering angels were created here, thus the “let us make man . . .” other say the “us” refers to the Trinity)

Day 3: the earth, oceans, and vegetation

Day 4: the sun, moon, and stars

Day 5: fish, insects, and birds

Day 6: animals and man

Now, the critics of the Bible will ask, "How can there be light on day one, but the sun was not created until day four?"

Well, who says that the light from day one was from the sun? Could the light on Day one be from some other source? Perhaps it is the Shechinah Glory. Is this a new term for you? If you recall, when Moses led the Israelites across the Red Sea and off to the Promised Land, he didn’t have a GPS system to guide him. In Ex 13:21 it says, “By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night.” This light was a manifestation of God; the glory of God. Not only did it guide Moses, but it also filled the Temple in Jerusalem. In Ezek. 10:4, one of the saddest passages in Scripture, we see the Shechinah glory leaving the Temple prior to the invasion by the Babylonians who destroyed the temple and the city. The Shechinah Glory may also have been the light that guided the Magi to Jesus (Matt. 2:2). You will see this light again in the new creation in Rev 21:22; 22:5. Perhaps God needed a work light before he created the sun. He may not have had night vision goggles to help Him see what He was doing.

Now at the end of each day, God stood back at what He had accomplished and said that it was all “good.” This is like the feeling we get in the Springtime when we clean out the garage, basement or do yard work after a long winter. We look at what we have accomplished and feel good about it. But when he created man, he was even more satisfied, he said, that his handiwork wasn’t just good, but “very good” (Gen.1:31).

Adam was given dominion over the earth, replacing Lucifer who rebelled and became known as Satan. He also put Adam and Eve on a vegetarian diet (Gen.1:26-29). That’s right, no barbeque or bacon in the Garden of Eden. Later on, after the flood, man was able to eat all kinds of meat.

  Genesis Chapter 2: Adam gets a roommate

After a busy work of creation, God “rested from all his work,” (Gen. 2:2). What’s going on here? Was God exhausted? Well, not quite. God didn’t even work up a sweat in those six days of creation. In Gen. 2:2 it says, “And rested from all his work.” The Hebrew word used here is “Shabbat”, which means “to complete”, not “to rest”. It is not a proper name for the seventh day; rather it is a verb, meaning “to stop” or “to complete.” In other words, He said, “I’m done.” Only later, in the Book of Exodus, is it used as a noun meaning a day of rest for the Israelites (not everyone else). This disproves the idea that the commandment to rest on the seventh day goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden.

Gen. 2:15 says that God “took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and keep it.” “Come here, Adam. I’d like to show you your new home.” Did you notice that it says that he “put him in the Garden?” Does this mean he created him somewhere else? Hmm.

God created the world and said that it was “good” and then he created man and said that it was “very good.” He may have thought to himself, “Hey, I’m pretty good at this.” In Gen. 2:18, He is gazing at all that he has done and finds something that is “not good”. “Oh, oh, there is something missing here. Let’s see. Oh, I’ve got it,” He said, “‘It is not good that man should be alone.’” What did he make for man so that he would not be alone? No, not a motorcycle; nor a new pick-up truck; but a woman. Now some of you guys might be thinking, “I wish he had made a motorcycle,” but we won’t go there. God says in Gen. 2:24 “And it is for this woman that man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife.” Have you noticed how in some marriages either the wife or husband remains under the tight control of their parents? Sometimes the husband or wife will keep putting the desires of the parents before their spouse desires and can’t cut the apron strings. And parents sometimes manipulate the young couple with money and jobs to maintain their control. God says that in marriage you leave the control (and dependency upon) of the parents and focus on meeting each other’s needs and desires. My advice for some couples is to get married and then move away, sometimes far away, from both sets of in-laws. Then, when you have kids, move away from them too. Just kidding.

“Oh, by the way,” God tells Adam, “Don’t eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, if you eat of it, you will die” (Gen 2:17). “What’s that all about?” Adam may have asked. “Eat it and you die, understand?” Oh, there is another special tree in the Garden; it’s called the Tree of Life. If you eat from the first tree; I will be forced to keep you from eating from the second. “But I don’t understand!” “Just do it! Do I have to explain everything to you?”

After they ate the fruit from the forbidden tree however, God had to prevent them from eating from the tree of Life which would cause man to live in a sinful state forever.

Today we live with the consequences of the choice that Adam and Eve made. Do you think you would have made better choices than Adam?

Adam wanted to decide for himself what was in his best interest, to be like God in one sense. God told him not to eat, but like a rebellious child, he thought he knew better and could decide for himself. Just because man was given dominion over the earth, being a caretaker of it, doesn’t mean that he can make the rules and live independent of God. You know that this is not going to end well for Adam and Eve.

Genesis Chapter 3: The “Plunge” of Man

In Genesis chapter 3 we see what has been called the “fall of man”. I think there is a better word than fall. It wasn't really a fall. A fall is an accident. It was more like a deliberate jump. It was a deliberate act of disobedience. Satan, in the form of a serpent, deceived Eve by placing doubt in her mind as to what God told Adam and Eve. Satan asked, “Did God really say that you can’t eat of any tree?” Did you notice the lie Satan just told? God didn’t prohibit them from eating from any tree, only one specific tree. Satan also told them that they would be “like God” if they ate of the forbidden fruit. By the way, can you think of another talking animal in the Bible? Do you remember Balaam’s donkey? We’ll meet the talking donkey in Numbers.

When they disobeyed God, they came to know evil experientially. They became “like God” in that they now realized what evil was truly like. Of course, in twisting the truth Satan didn’t tell them all the truth. Satan did not say that by knowing evil it would damage their relationship with God.

Now, Satan tells outright lies and half-truths. This shouldn’t surprise us, since Jesus called Satan the “Father of lies” (John 8:44). Satan placed doubt in Eve’s mind and then twisted what God said. Is Satan the only person to twist what God has said? There are many false teachers and cults that twist the Word of God to make it say something that it doesn’t. If Satan is the “father of lies” then what would we call cults, who also distort and truth of God? Perhaps we can call them the children of lies. Like father like son. And don’t think because you are in a mainstream church that everything that you hear from the pulpit is the truth. As I have said many times, not all the kooks are in the cults. There are some preachers in mainstream, orthodox churches who deny the Word of God and twist the Scriptures. I’ve heard preachers claim that the Bible is not inspired by God; deny the virgin birth and the resurrection of Jesus, among other basic teachings of Christianity. In fact, I read of a pastor in a Church in Europe who declared himself to be an atheist, and yet his denomination allowed him to remain in his position. These false teachers place doubts in our minds as to what the Bible says. Some may say, “Oh yes, I believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God. But some of it is more inspired than others and some of it is just myth.”

The church has had to deal with false teachers from the very beginning of its existence. We were warned in Acts 20:28. The Apostle Paul had to contend with them. The church was told to teach sound doctrine and to refute false doctrines (Titus 1:9). Paul even named the names of some of these false teachers (II Tim 4:14). Ah, but I digress. If you are interested in studying cults a classic book on the subject is by Walter Martin entitled, Kingdom of the Cults.

What were the results of this act of deliberate disobedience? Just watch the world news and you can see evidence of the so-called "fall". Why are there diseases, death, and horrible weather? Is this the way God created everything? Is this the best that He could do? Adam and Eve didn’t have to deal with harsh weather and disease. Did God create the evil in this world? God did not create evil. He made evil possible by giving man free will, but man made evil actual. Now the Apostle Paul tells us in Rom. 5 that by one man sin came into the world and through another man, Jesus’ grace came. So why does God blame Adam for the fall then in Gen. 3:6 it was Eve who first ate of the forbidden fruit? Perhaps it was because Eve was deceived, while Adam was not. Adam’s act was one of rebellion, not ignorance.

Well, when God shows up, just like guilty children when the parents come home, the finger pointing begins. God asks, “Have you guys eaten from the tree I commanded you not to eat from (Gen. 3:11)?” And just like kids, they came up with excuses and started to blame each other, and even God.

Here come the excuses. I’ll paraphrase what Adam says, in Gen. 3:12, “Well, it is your fault, God. This woman that you gave me; she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it. It’s not my fault, I am a victim.”

Then, to paraphrase what Eve said, “That rascal serpent deceived me. Yeah, and who created that serpent, you did.”

The "fall" of man results in several consequences. In Gen. 3:15 God says to the serpent, "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between her offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel." In other words, Satan will hurt a descendent of Eve, but he, this descendent of Eve, will in turn destroy Satan. This of course refers to the coming of a Messiah. When Cain is born, they may have thought that he was the person who would crush the head of the serpent. In other words, he might be the Messiah. But that wasn’t to be.

Another consequence of the “fall” is found in Gen. 3:16. It says, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing." I have read several explanations of this difficult passage. One scholar suggests that it refers to the emotional pain that will result when her first son, Cain, murders her second son, Abel. Another explanation teaches that since death has entered the world because of sin, Eve is going to have to have more children, more frequently than before so now she will have monthly periods rather than less frequent cycles. Both are interesting ideas.

Their sin didn’t just mess their life plans, it impacted the whole planet. Gen. 3:17, “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you . . .” Yes, that means when you are pulling weeds from your flower beds and trying to kill the weeds in your lawn, you can blame Adam. The whole world needs to be fixed. The Apostle Paul wrote in Rom. 8:19-21, “The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.” This explains why we have terrible weather, diseases, and death in the world. The world as we know it is not the way God originally created it. He really did a terrific job of planning and executing the creation of the world.

Take heart, in time, that curse that came upon the world will be lifted. Rev. 22:3, “No longer will there be any curse.” God is in the process of repairing the world that mans’ sin broke.

You might find my comments on why bad things happen to us in the question-and-answer section of this website of interest.

As the story continues in the Garden of Eden, God changed the dress code and from then on Adam and Eve had to wear clothes. In Gen 3:21, God made them garments of animal skins to replace the fig leaves they made for themselves in verse 7. Why animal skins instead of vegetation? Was it because animal skins would wear longer versus “disposable” plant matter? Was it because the cursed land would require more intense physical labor? Were these leather garments their work clothes? Perhaps but some scholars think that the animal skins were the results of the first blood sacrifices for sin in the Bible.

And that’s not all that changed. Adam and Eve had to relocate, not to another part of the Garden of Eden, but out of it altogether. To be sure that they stayed out, God placed security guards (angels) to keep them out (Gen 3:24). Why the tight security? What would be the harm if Adam climbed over the wall of this gated community? God wanted to keep them from the second special tree in the Garden, the one called the Tree of Life. It they had gotten ahold of this tree, they would have gained eternal life in a sinful state, and that wouldn’t be a good thing.

This first sin of Adam is what is referred to as the original sin and it is what taints all mankind. The Jews don’t believe in the idea that Adam’s sin taints the rest of us. They lean towards the idea that we might be more inclined to sin, but we are stained by our own sins, not the sin of Adam.

Genesis Chapter 4: It not all bad news. Adam and Eve have children.

Here is a trivia question for you. What was the name of the first child born to Adam and Eve? Did you answer Cain? You might be correct. Biblically speaking though, the term “firstborn” can mean chronologically first, but it can also mean first in the sense of status or importance. A couple could have daughters, but the first son to be born is oftentimes referred to as the “firstborn.” I know, that doesn’t seem fair.

Tragedy strikes the “First Family.”

News Flash: Mr. Abel, son of Mr. and Mrs. Adam and Eve, was found dead on his farm yesterday. His brother, Cain has been identified as a “person of interest.” The investigation continues.”

Gen. 4:8, Cain kills his brother Abel. He was jealous of him because his offering to God was acceptable while Cain’s was not. It wasn’t the offering that was wrong, but the attitude in which it was given. Worship that pleases God must come from a pure heart, not a resentful one out of obligation. Cain had a bad attitude towards honoring God and he resented his brothers’ devotion to Him. God comes along and asks Cain, “Where’s your brother?” Cain says, “I don’t know. It’s not my turn to babysit him.” Or something like that. God sentences Cain to be a “restless wanderer on the earth,” (4:13). When sentence is passed Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is more than I can bear.” It might be read, “My sin is more than I can bear.” Literally is reads, “my iniquity.” This could mean that he felt that his sin was too great to forgive, an expression of remorse.

Gen. 4:12, “You will be a restless wanderer on the earth. . . verse 15, “If anyone kills Cain, he will suffer vengeance seven times over.” Cain is being banished from the community much as Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden of Eden. The Lord’s response was one of mercy and protection suggests that Cain’s words, “my iniquity is more than I can bear” was an expression of repentance.

All five books of Moses, Genesis to Deuteronomy, you will find that murder is a capital offense. So why wasn’t Cain killed? Up to now, had anyone died? Might Cain been unaware that what he did would lead to the death of Abel? Was the charge reduced from first degree murder to manslaughter? It’s interesting when a story is told without the details, we tend to fill in the blanks with speculation. I guess we know as much as we need to know.

Do you think Adam and Eve told the kids about their early years in the Garden and their actions that got them kicked out? Can you imagine the kids saying, “Our stupid parents! If it weren’t for them, we would be living on easy street instead of doing all this work on the bad side of town.” Don’t you feel bad for the parents? Not only did they lose their luxurious accommodations in the Garden of Eden, one son is murdered by the other and the guilty one is sent away. It’s as if they lost both sons.

Gen. 4:19 introduces us to the first polygamist. His name was Lamech. He was a very violent a vengeful person; not the kind of guy you want as your neighbor. He says, “I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for injuring me. If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.” Hold on there Lamech, do you think you overreacted a bit here?  Isn’t an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth a more just idea?

Jesus referred to Lamech attitude in Matt 18:21-22. Peter asked Jesus how many times he must forgive someone. Jesus said, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” The point that he was making is that Peter should be as willing to forgive someone as Lamech was willing to destroy someone.

Genesis 6: Sons of God and Daughters of Men and Noah builds a Boat

This chapter contains a story that, as one commentator wrote, “. . . has had many diverse interpretations.” That is an understatement. Genesis 6:2-7 it says that the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with man forever, for he is mortal, his days will be a hundred and twenty years. The Nephilim were on the earth in those days-and also afterward-when the sons of God went to the daughters of men and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.” Verse 7, so the Lord said, “I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth.”

Who were the “sons of God” and the “daughters of men?” Who were the Nephilim and why was God so angry with them that he decided to destroy all mankind? For years I thought that the sons of God were the godly descendants of Seth, and the daughters of men were the ungodly descendants of Cain. But would this bring down the wrath of God upon all mankind? It had to be something more serious than that.

Perhaps there is another explanation, one that better explains God’s anger and the reason why some demons are already in hell, waiting for their roommates to show up in (Rev 20:10).

The sons of God can be angels. In the Old Testament the phrase “sons of God” always refers to angels (Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7). What do we know about angels? We know that they are always referred to as males, not females or sexless creatures. It appears that angels can manifest themselves as human beings. In Hebrews it says that we should be kind to strangers because in this way we might entertain angels without knowing it (Heb. 13:2). An angel appeared in human form at the tomb of Jesus (Mark 16:5). Another piece to this puzzle is found in II Peter 2:4-5 where it says, “For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, (Gen 6?) but sent them to hell (tartarus), putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people . . .”

Another clue comes from Jude 6,7, “And the angels who did not keep their position of authority but abandoned their own home-these he has kept in darkness (tartarus), bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day. In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion.”

Putting these passages together, as pieces of a puzzle, we find that the sin that these angels committed was similar to those in Sodom and Gomorrah; they went after “strange flesh.” It appears that some fallen angels (demons) sinned in such a way, before the flood, that God had to send them to hell ahead of time.

This may have been Satan’s attempt to corrupt the Seed of woman by having some of his fallen angels (demons) take on human form and intermarry with humankind. When God said that he “would not contend with man forever, for he is mortal,” it means that he would not continue to tolerate this evil, and the flood would come to destroy the product of these unions (called Nephilim). The term Nephilim means “fallen ones.” The term is sometimes translated “giants,” but more accurately it should be fallen ones, some type of superhuman, but not necessarily giant in size.

Critics of this view might say that Jesus said that in the kingdom, humans will be like angels in that they will not marry in the resurrection (Matt 22:30; Luke 20:36). Yes, but this does not prevent them from having married humans in this life. Jesus is speaking of the afterlife in these passages, not in the physical world.

Scholars can find problems with both explanations as to what was going on here. But the idea that fallen angels, who took on human form and impregnated women, strange as it sounds, has fewer problems than the idea that descendants of Cain intermarried with the descendants of Abel. The first hypothesis better explains the binding of some of the demons in hell and the coming destruction of humans by way of the flood.

Chapter 6 continues with the story of Noah’s Ark and the worldwide flood. Scholars are not in agreement as to whether this flood was a local one or worldwide. I tend to believe that it was a worldwide flood. If it was only a local flood, Noah would have been told, “Head for higher ground!” rather than “Build a huge boat.” Also, a local flood would not have killed most of human life, only those in the area of the flood.

We don’t know the topography of the earth back then. Or the weather patterns. It might be more difficult for us to imagine what happened.

How long was Noah and his family in the Ark? They were in it for a total of 377-378 days. Would you need to stay that long if it was a local flood? After the flood God promised to never again bring about such an event (Gen 9:8). Haven’t we seen many local floods over the years? How do we explain fossils of sea life high in the mountains if this was a local flood? Perhaps they could be explained by huge plate of the earth rise up over time which pushed the remains of sea life to what would become mountain tops.

Another question asked of critics is, “How could Noah get all the animals on the ark?” Well, some were baby animals, some were even just eggs, and he didn’t have to get every species, only a pair of each kind. Even a pair of dinosaurs might be only the size of a couple of chickens.

If you look at the dimensions of the ark, it was huge with many levels. And if God could lead the animals to the Ark, He could also put them into a state of hibernation. This would mean that Noah would have less work to do (feeding and cleaning up after them) and more space for animals. Or room for a basketball court, game room and other amenities (wine cellar?). After all, they were going to be on this vessel for a long time.

Genesis Chapter 8 The flood abates

In chapter 8 Noah sent out several types of birds. How many times have we read these verses without giving them much thought? In verse 6 he sent out a raven, which didn't return. What happened? Did they get lost? Ravens eat dead animals, so the raven didn't have to return to the ark. There were plenty of dead, bloated, partially decayed animals all over the place. Then he sent out a dove (verse 8). It returned because the dove will land only on dry and clean land, it prefers valleys. Fussy little birds, these doves. Then Noah sent out a third bird, another dove, and it returned with an olive leaf in its beak. Olive trees thrive on higher parts of mountains. But that wasn’t good enough for the doves. Finally, the last dove was sent out and it didn't return, which indicated to Noah that not only was there life on the mountains, but that the valleys were now dry. The fussy doves were finally pleased to stay and not return.

Here's another version of Noah’s Flood, taught in song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiGaRgUajBo

Let me digress a moment and comment on how these early chapters of Genesis are viewed. I have heard skeptics say that the Bible can be trusted in its theology, but not its geology, science, or history. With this view they ignore these early chapters of Genesis. But Jesus said, “I have spoken to you of earthly things, and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly thing?” (John 3:12). I would argue that if you can’t believe the geology, science, and history of the Bible, how can you believe the theology? Let me draw an analogy. Imagine your physician receives a lab report on your blood sample that his technician drew from your arm. The lab calls the physician and says that there was a problem with their testing equipment and that about twenty percent of the lab results are wrong. How would your physician respond? His first question would be, “Which part is the twenty percent?” The lab personnel might say, “We don’t know.” Can your physician use the results of the lab tests to diagnose your condition? No! Either ALL of the lab results are accurate or ALL of it is useless. If the Bible is not entirely correct, what part of it can you trust? Who decides? You lose confidence in the entire Bible, and it must be discarded, just as the lab results would have to be. You see, if the Bible is only 80% accurate, you can't rely on it at all.

Do you find it strange when people in church speak of the resurrection from the dead and heaven, etc. but they have a problem in believing that the same God can be responsible for the early chapters of Genesis?

Genesis Chapter 9

 In Genesis 9:2-3 God lifts the dietary restrictions and now everyone can eat whatever they want. Vegetarianism is no longer required. He also placed fear of man in the animals so that they would have at least a fighting chance now that we can eat meat. You can just imagine when the animals learned that they can be food for man, they scattered. Of course, this probably meant that the kids had to give up some of their favorite pets. No longer could they have a Black Mumba or a lion for a cuddly pet. “Sorry kids, but you have to give up your pets. The good news is that you can now eat them instead.”

Gen 9:6 speaks on the subject of capital punishment. The penalty for premeditated murder was death. This law is repeated in each of the first five books of Moses (Ex. 21:12; Lev. 24:17; Num. 3:3; Deut. 19:11-13, and 19:19). I have seen protestors outside a prison protesting the execution of a prisoner. Some of them claim that the execution by the state is just as wrong as prisoner’s murder that led to it. I would suggest that the execution of someone who took an innocent life is not the moral equivalent of the murdering of an innocent person. Moses explains why it is necessary to execute a murdered. It is because man is created in the image of God that murder is so different from killing a guilty person or an animal. Now, I do have a concern about the justice system that is imperfect and can lead to the execution of an innocent person. But in principle, capital punishment is a legitimate form of punishment.

Noah gets off the boat, he plants a vineyard, and in verse 21 it says, “he drank some of its wine and he became drunk.” Well, who can blame him. Being stuck on a boat with family members for a year would drive many of us to drink. This is the first use of the word “wine” in the Bible, but not the first use of it. Matt 24:38 tells us, “For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark.” Noah knew that it was an intoxicant.

When Noah wakes up, he learned that his youngest son Ham had done something to him. For punishment, Noah places a curse on Ham’s son, Canaan. What is this all about? One scholar says, “This passage is maddeningly obscure.” Don’t you love it when the smartest kid in the class, the scholar, doesn’t have the answers either? Well, apparently, he “uncovered Noah’s nakedness.” Is this a euphemism for a sexual act? The curse was placed on Ham’s son, not Ham. The descendants were known as Canaanites were known for practicing perverted sexual acts Lev 18:3, “You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices.” The passage goes on to urge the Isrealites to not have sex with a close relative, your mother, your father’s wife, your sister, your grandchildren, the daughter of your father’s wife, your aunt, your daughter-in-law, your sister-in-law, a woman and her daughter or your son’s daughter or her daughter. What kind of people have to have all of these warnings? And why put the curse on Canaan when it was the old man, Ham who was the guilty one? The commentator says that it was common to anticipate the deeds of later generations in the acts of their father. You might know someone who has a terrible drinking habit. Alcoholism might run in the family. You can anticipate that the descendants of an alcoholic might have to deal with the same problem who inherit the predisposition for such behavior. Ham’s descendants inherited a similar predisposition towards sexual sins.

Because of this action Ham’s descendants were cursed to serve their brothers. Now, there are some groups who say that the blacks are descendants of Ham. Some even claim that at this time Ham and his descendants were actually turned black. This passage has been used to justify the slavery of blacks.

The Mormons, prevented blacks from entering their priesthood until the late 1970’s. They claim that the word Ham means “burnt” or “black,” which it doesn’t. It means “hot” or “warm.” These terms refer to temperature; not color. There is absolutely no justification for thinking that one race is superior or inferior to another. In fact, did you know that people of all races are 99% alike, genetically? If we are so much alike, how can one race be superior to another?

Gen. 10:9 Introducing Nimrod

Here we are introduced to a person named Nimrod, which means “mighty hunter”. This expression means “a hunter of men,” a warrior. And, being a fierce warrior, he became the very first empire builder, and world tyrant. And, that first empire was Babel…… the most ancient Babylon, not the Babylon of Nebuchadnezzar which came many centuries later.

The spelling of Bav-el ends in “EL” indicates the word “God,” the highest god, actually. Originally, Bav-el meant the city of God. Eventually, its meaning changed to reflect what happened there; and the word Bavel came to mean confusion.

Genesis Chapter 11: The Tower of Babel

Are you all familiar with Stonehenge, that prehistoric structure in England? It consists of a ring of standing stones, each around 13 feet high, seven feet wide, and weighing around 25 tons. Stonehenge was produced by a culture that left no written records, so we must try to figure out how they built it and why. And no, it wasn’t built by ancient astronauts from another planet. Stonehenge sounds mysterious, like the Tower of Babel. What exactly was this tower? Why was it built? What happened to it?

After the Flood, God commanded humanity to "increase in number and fill the earth" (Gen. 9:1). Humanity decided to increase in number, but to stay pretty much where they were. Gen. 11:4, “Then they said, ‘Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth’”. They didn’t want to relocate, and they wanted something to glorify themselves.

Perhaps it’s human nature to want to remain where you are comfortable and to build something to impress others. In Matt. 28:19, Jesus told the disciples, “GO into all the world . . . preach the Gospel . . . make disciples (students) baptize and teach.” Rather than going, some churches focus on staying and building.

Before Jesus ascended into heaven, he said in Acts 1:8 “But you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” I imagine there were some in the group who thought to themselves, “I hope I don’t have to go far away. I don’t like strange people or the foods they eat. I want to stay here where I am comfortable.” So, to help some in the early church to “go” God didn’t confuse their languages, but he did allow for persecution to assist them in moving out of their comfort zone to spread the Gospel. 

Let’s get back to the Tower of Babel. Why did the people of old build the tower? There are several theories. One is that they built it to protect themselves from another flood. That makes some sense. But how many people could fit in or on this structure? Perhaps it was FOR MEMBERS ONLY, like an exclusive country club. Other scholars believe that it was a temple for worshipping on or in. Whatever it was, it wasn’t what God wanted them to occupy themselves with.

Who led the people to build this tower? His name was Nimrod, great grandson of Noah. How can we go from Noah, who found favor in the eyes of the LORD (Gen. 6:8), to Nimrod in just a few generations? Well, it was Noah who found favor in the eyes of the Lord, not necessarily his family members. Perhaps his family members were saved only because of the righteousness of Noah. Later in our study we will find a righteous king whose son and successor was one of the most wicked kings.

We have theories as to who built it and why. But why did God scatter the people? Why didn’t he just knock the structure down?

Perhaps, as one scholar suggested, the confusing of the languages may have been the means to protect the people from falling under the control of one tyrant ruling the entire world. We think this might happen someday during the Great Tribulation where a one world government is ruled by on tyrant, and everyone had to learn one language. 

Can there be another reason why God wanted to scatter the people? Have you ever watched a mob during a riot? You might see rioters breaking the front windows of businesses downtown, turning over cars, setting fires, etc. People tend to do some things in a crowd that they would never do alone. It is easier to be anonymous in a crowd. A crowd can encourage you to act against your better nature. Perhaps in a densely populated area there might be more sin, more crime. Are we more inclined to sin if we are in a city where there are more people who are strangers to us than if we are in a more rural area where everyone knows everyone else? Are any of you sociologists? Can you tell me if crime increases with population density?

So, what happened to the tower? Is it a tourist sight like Stonehenge? Can we go there on buses like tourists do to visit the Pyramids? Sorry, it’s gone. There is no mention in the Bible of its destruction. One source suggests that God overturned the tower with a great wind. If so, I guess they didn’t have very strict building codes back them. Or, the general contractor was as corrupt as some of the leaders.

Abraham, the Father of the Faithful (revised and expanded)

Let’s look into the life of the person who is mentioned many times throughout Scripture, second only to Jesus. His name is Abraham. He even makes a cameo appearance in the Gospels. Do you remember? Read Luke 16, the story of Lazarus and the rich man. Lazarus dies and is taken to where Abraham was. The rich man died and was in torment. He looks up and sees Abraham far away (how did he know it was Abraham? Was he wearing a name tag?) and cries out to him. Abraham responded, in verse 28 “They have Moses and the prophets, let them listen to them.” Dave Glock, my mentor at Emmaus Bible College (you can watch his lectures on YOUTUBE), pointed out something I had never seen before and he only recently discovered himself. How did Abraham know anything about Moses and the prophets? Abraham lived many years before them. He suggests that in heaven we will continue to learn. I hope we have very good teachers and very easy examinations . . . and no book reports or papers.

Abraham is called “the father of the faithful” (Romans 4:12) and “the friend of God.” Isn’t that a great title? Abraham, originally named Abram, was born (c 2000 BCE) and lived in the city of Ur, (doesn’t that sound like what pirate grunt?) in what is now modern-day Iraq. Back then it was called Mesopotamia meaning, “land between rivers.” Abraham was the son of Terah, (not to be confused with Tara, the name of the plantation in Gone with the Wind). Terah was an idolater who worshipped the moon god names Sin. How appropriate. Just as we sometimes name our kids after people of the Bible, or at least the nice ones, not Judas or Pontius, names of family members were influenced by the pagan gods. According to one source, Sarai comes from the word Sharrate, which means queen, the title of the wife of the moon god. It all gets quite complicated as words are translated from one language to another.

So, how did Abraham break away from the religious system that he grew up in? This is where legends are told to fill in the blanks of history. The story is told that Abraham knew that these gods were powerless and not worthy of worship. His father, Terah, was a manufacturer and seller of pagan idols. One day Abraham was asked to “watch the store” while his dad went off to do some errands. While Terah is at Wal-Mart (I just made that up) Abraham looked around the shop and was disgusted by these man-made idols and the people’s devotion to them so he started to smash some of them on the floor. When his Dad returns and asks him, “What happened?” Abraham blamed the destruction on the big idol standing against the wall with a sledgehammer in his hand. His dad says, “He couldn’t have done this, he is just an idol.” “Then,” replied Abraham, “why do you worship them?” With that, Abraham walked out of the store. As you can imagine, there are many variations of this legend. The point is, apparently God saw something in this young man and chose him to become the Father of the Faithful, the ancestor to the Messiah, Jesus.

So, let’s turn to Genesis 12 and read about the call of Abraham. Genesis 12:1, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and whoever curses you I will curse; and all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

There is a lot here to unpack. Imagine being told to leave everything that you are familiar with and many of your loved ones? To go where? He didn’t know where he was going. Heb 11:8 says, “Abram did not know he was heading for Canaan.” Can you imagine the conversation when he broke the news to his family. “Hey kids, guess what? We’re going on a trip, a very long trip, now go upstairs and pack your things.” While the kids are packing Sarai asks, “What are you talking about? Where are we going? I don’t know, yet. Where did you get the idea to just up and leave everyone and everything we love? God! “Have you been drinking again?”

So, God tells Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household.” Where are we going?” I can’t tell you, yet. TRUST ME! 

What was the journey like when they joined the convoy south? Did people ask Abram, “Where are you guys headed to?” Don’t know. “Why did you leave?” God told me to go. Mothers on the convoy would tell their children, “Don’t go near that man over there. He’s crazy and he might be dangerous.”

Did God communicate with Abram along the way, other than to give him directions like a GPS system? “Turn left at the next intersection.” Did God visit with him in the evening by the campfire? “We made good time today, Abram, in spite of the rain.” Did he have any doubts, any at all? He wouldn’t have left it he hadn’t believed, but were there times when he had just a bit of doubt about what was going on? Did he have a “I believe, but help my unbelief” moment?

God promised Abram that he would make of him, he who had no children, a nation. Well, if God was going to do that, He had better get moving on it, Abram was getting old. In Genesis 10 there are seventy nations listed. Soon there would be seventy-one. And nobody is more surprised than Abram

.

God also promised to make his name GREAT! Did He do it? Three of the world’s religions honor him to this day, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Can you think of any other person who is so honored? The builders of the Tower of Babel wanted to make a great name for themselves and failed. Now Abram is getting it without even asking.

Not only was he to be blessed BY God, he will become a blessing to others. Who was the first person to be blessed by Abram? It was Melchizedek, who received a tenth of the spoils of war from Abram. Another promise is to bless those who bless Abram and curse those who curse Abram. This blessing/curse promise is repeated in Num 24:9 to extend to all of Israel. And in you shall all the families of the earth be blessed. This part of the promise goes beyond Abram, beyond Israel and extends to the whole world. This promise refers to what is accomplished by one of his descendants, the Messiah! Do you think that Abram understood what these promises meant?

Gen. 12:4 “So Abram left . . . and Lot went with him.” V 7 “the Lord appeared to Abram and said, ‘To your offspring I will give this land.” That must have been reassuring to Abram. Their journey first took them Ur to Haran, which is about 600 miles. That’s the distance between Jasper and Washington, D.C. And no, they didn’t drive on an interstate highway with air conditioning and a radio. Then, they moved onto Canaan, another 400 miles, about the distance between Jasper and  Cleveland, Ohio. And when he started this journey, he was seventy-five years old and could have come up with a long list of reasons why he shouldn’t uproot his family at this stage of his life, but off he went.

Abraham and his family arrive and settle in Negev. Perhaps it wasn’t all that the travel brochures promised, it was described as a “dry wasteland.” The Jewish Virtual Library describes it as “oppressively hot . . . filled with dirt, rocks and canyons. I can imagine the sign on the side of the road, “Welcome to the Promised Land.” He lives along the border or near the inhabited area in Canaan, but he does not move in or live among them. Could things get any worse? Of course, this is the Bible. A famine hits the land. Earlier, God promised, “Unto your seed I will give this land.” “Thanks for nothing, God. Is this the best you could do?” The former Prime Minister of Israel Golda Meir once said, “Let me tell you something that we Israelis have against Moses. He took us 40 years through the desert in order to bring us to the one spot in the Middle East that has no oil!” I wonder if Abram has similar feelings at this point.

Paul, when commenting at length on the life of Abraham (Romans 4), says, “Abraham believed God and that faith was credited to him as righteousness.” He as told to something and he did it. We know what happened next, but he didn’t. In Gen. 12:10 we are going to see the very human side of Abraham. Yes, he was faithful, the Father of the faithful, but he was like the rest of us, flawed. We see this as he headed off to Egypt to sit out the famine. 

Have you heard what has been going on in east Africa recently? Kenya and other nearby countries are enduring the second wave of locust. Perhaps this famine was caused by locust, or maybe it was a drought. Perhaps a few doubts entered his mind, again. Can you be faithful but still have some doubts? You might recall the comment made by the father of a boy with an evil spirit in Mark 9:24, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief.”? We have our beliefs, but sometimes a bit of doubt enters our minds.

So, as they enter Egypt, he says to his wife Sarai, “I know what a beautiful woman you are. When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife. Then they will kill me but will let you live. Say you are my sister.’” Ladies? How would you feel about that if you were Sarai? Now Sarai was sixty-five years old and the Egyptians had a reputation for wife abduction. They abducted her and meanwhile, Abram got rich (v 16) and acquired sheep, cattle, menservants and maidservants. Among the maidservants was Hagar. This sets the stage for conflict between the two women, Sarai and Hagar in Chapter 16 which continues to this day.

Then disaster struck in the form of diseases in the Pharaohs’ household. This could be the first outworking of the cursing aspect of the Abrahamic Covenant, “I will curse those who curse you.” What type of disease hit Pharaoh and his household (v 17)? Jewish tradition, it was some sort of skin disease that made sexual intercourse impossible, protecting Sarai from sexual intercourse. Pharaoh got the message and confronted Abraham about his deception and sent him away. Abraham left with more wealth than when he arrived. Let’s see, going to Egypt in a famine, leaving with great wealth. Abram was blessed despite his wrong actions. This shows us that the covenant was unconditional.

What was the conversation like between Abraham and Sarai on the way out of Egypt?  Might Abram have said, “So, what did you think of Egypt? Wasn’t it great? Look at all the stuff we got. Should we buy a time share there?” Can you imagine the cold, frosty look on Sarai’s face? I guess they scratched Egypt off their list of possible retirement communities.

Abraham and his entire extended family and all their animals headed back home and settled in the area of Bethel.  Ah, the good life. The grass is green, cattle is putting on weight (probably Abram, too). The herds and flocks of Abraham and Lot both grew to the point that it was getting a bit crowded and some harsh words were said between their herdsmen. To avoid conflict, Abraham suggested that they spread out and in a very generous gesture he gave Lot first choice as to where he was to move. Lot headed eastward near the cities of Sodom because it was “well- watered and as beautiful as the Garden of the Lord (Gen. 13;10). At least that’s what the Chamber of Commerce brochure said. I wonder if there were a few other motives that led him to choose this spot, so close to Sodom. Do you remember the television show, Green Acres? It was about a couple from New York city who moved to the country. The husband loved the simple country life, the wife hated it. I wonder if Lots’ wife was a city girl and that’s one reason Lot chose to head east. Perhaps her love of the city is why she looked back as Sodom was being destroyed. So, he pitched his tent near Sodom. Sodom was a wicked city, but there isn’t any indication in the text that Lot was aware of this. God then reiterates his promise to Abram that the land was to be his and his descendants FOREVER. He even invited him to take a tour of the land, the land that God is giving to him. This is obviously speaking of real land and can’t be spiritualized as some have done to refer to heaven.

In Chapter fourteen we find a war breaking out and as Sodom and Gomorrah was overtaken, among those taken prisoner was Abraham’s nephew, Lot. In Gen. 14:12 it says, “The four kings seized all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food; then they carried off Lot’s nephew Lot and his possessions, since he was living in Sodom. So, it appears that he relocated from one of the suburbs, outside of Sodom to the city itself. One of the prisoners escaped and reported to Abraham was had happened. In verse thirteen of chapter 14 Abraham is referred to as “the Hebrew”. This is the first time this term is used in Scripture. Abraham gathered 318 trained men to rescue Lot. This sounds to me like Abraham had a group of young men who were trained as soldiers, much like the Army Reserves. Performing their regular duties but ready for active military duty at a moments’ notice. 

In verse 16 it says that the military action recovered all the goods as well as the women and other people. Now here is something I never noticed before. These “other people” experienced the grace of God and knowledge of God through Abram and Melchizedek, yet all of them returned to these wicked cities and died in Gen 19 when they were destroyed.

After their successful rescue mission, Melchizedek, king of Salem came to visit Abraham (Gen. 14:18). We probably should pause to explain who this Melchizedek is. He is identified as a king and priest of God. So, Abraham wasn’t the only person who believed and served the one true God. In fact, he says in Gen. 14:19-20, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth. And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand.” What did it mean to be a king in that day, in that culture? When I was teaching at the Minsk Bible College in Belarus, I had a student who was from an African country. His name was Prince Henry. If he was a Prince, what was his father? Yes, a king. Not like the King of England or some other European monarchy. To be a king meant a tribal chief.  The African king may have been more like the head of a neighborhood watch group than the leader of a modern nation. Being a king must not have required a lot of his Melchizedeks’ time because he was also the local priest. Do you think he had two sets of uniforms? He must have had at least two different hats, switching hats during the day depending on what his scheduled required. If you watch the pilot episode of the Andy Griffith Show on YouTube, with Danny Thomas as a guest, you will see Sheriff Andy, who arrested Danny Thomas for speeding, take him to the courthouse to stand before the justice of the peace. Guess who the justice of the peace is? Right. You guys are smart. Sheriff Taylor removes the name board on his desk reading “Sheriff” and replaces it with the one reading “Justice of the Peace.” Andy Taylor wore two hats. He may have even been the editor of the local newspaper and who knows what else. While you are self-isolating because of the pandemic, wouldn’t this be a good time to watch that episode? Consider that part of your homework.

Back to Melchizedek. In Heb. 5:5, the author compares the ministry of Jesus with that of Melchizedek. In Hebrews the author is showing that what is in the New Covenant is superior to the old and the Jews should not go back to the old covenant. Jesus, like Melchizedek, is both King of King and our High Priest. In this sense, his priesthood was better than the Aaronic priesthood, since those priests were only priest, not kings. And, their priesthood was limited to the years of service, whereas the ministry of Jesus is forever.

Genesis 14:20  says that Abraham gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything. This passage has been used by the Worldwide Church of God (Herbert Armstrong’s group) to justify tithing. But tithing wasn’t instituted until the time of Moses and was only imposed on the Israelites. He gave a tenth, Melchizedek didn’t take a tenth. Why did Abram give him ten percent of the spoils of war, not his income? Verse 21 says that the King of Sodom showed up and said, “Give me the people and keep the good for yourself.” This king wanted those who Abram had rescued released. Now, legally, these people belonged to Abram by right of conquest. Imagine if those who were rescued by allied armies from the Nazi concentration camps in Germany, we wouldn’t want to hold them prisoners, we would want to free them so they could return home. This is all the King of Sodom wanted. But the king did say that Abram could keep all the property. Again, by right of conquest he had the right to keep this stuff. He refused to do so. His goal was to simply liberate the people, not get richer than he already was.

Some commentaries suggest that Melchizedek might have been a theophany. But he wasn’t. He was a man with two jobs. Maybe his priestly duty was a volunteer position. A theophany is a manifestation of God in the Bible that is tangible to the human senses, usually in human form. In Heb 5:1, a passage oftentimes used to claim that he was a theophany, said that Melchizedek was like the Son of God, not that he WAS the Son of God. He was a type of the Messiah. It mentions that he had no mother or father, or no record of genealogy, which would be required to be a Levitical priest. Like Jesus, Melchizedek was a priest by divine appointment, not genealogy. And, his priesthood was like that of Jesus that it had no beginning or end, no minimum or maximum age as the Levitical priests did. Melchizedek was not a theophany. In the next chapter, we will see a theophany.

Genesis Chapter 15

In chapter 15 we see God reassuring Abram of the promise that he made earlier, the promise of descendants, land and a special blessing to the world. In verse one it says, “Do not be afraid, I am your SHIELD, your very great reward.” The word translated into shield is the word Magen. God was the shield, the one who protected Abram in that battle where he rescued his nephew Lot. The word Magen, is sometimes mistranslated as “Star: rather than shield, as in the Star of David, but the Bible itself never speaks of a Shield or Star of David, but it does speak of a Shield Avram, or Shield of Abram.

God then speaks of a very great reward. Materially speaking Abram was already very wealthy. He didn’t need more wealth or things. What he lacked was not prosperity, but posterity. Descendants was what he lacked. What value is there to have such wealth if you don’t have family to pass it onto? So, God took Abram outdoors and told him to look up into the sky. He reassured him that his descendants would be as many as the stars in the sky. Some promises, such as this one that God gave to Abram, are just too good to be true. Abram needed reassurances. You’ll see God repeat the promise and elaborate on it throughout the Scriptures.

What was Abram’s response to God’s reassurances? He didn’t roll his eyes. He didn’t say, “Yeah, right.” Abram’s response was, verse 6, “Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” If this sentence sounds a bit familiar, it is repeated in Romans 4:3, 4:9 and 4:22. Now some people say that Abram was saved by grace through faith in the coming Messiah. There is no indication that the content of Abram’s faith was a belief in the Messiah to come. He may have known more about the details and of the Messiah than what is in this passage, but there doesn’t seem to be any indication of this. There has always been one and only one means of salvation: grace through faith. What changes is the content of faith. Go back to Adam or Noah. How much had been revealed to them? At Emmaus Bible College, incoming Freshmen are given a test to determine their level of understanding of the Bible. If you took this test, how would you do, compared to Adam, Eve, Noah, Abraham, David, etc.? Did any of these Old Testament figures know the town where Jesus was born? What was his mother’s name? What was his first miracle? Could they name four of his twelve disciples. You would get the highest test score in the class. Don’t you feel smart now? Revelation from God is progressive, revealed over many centuries. What is it that one has to believe to be saved? These changes are based upon what God has revealed up to any given point in time. The contents of Abram’s faith were his promises; the object of Abram’s faith was God. The passage goes on to say in verse 6, Abram believed the Lord and it was credited to him as righteousness.” Thus, Abram was saved by grace through faith, and the content of his faith was the promises of God. The object of his faith was God. Here is the first mention of three key salvation terms: believed, credited and righteousness. There has always been only one way of salvation: by grace through faith. There weren’t two ways: law keeping in the Old Covenant and faith in the New Covenant. Abram was saved by grace through faith, NOT OF WORKS (Eph 2:8).

In verse 7, it says, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.” Abram said, “O Sovereign Lord, HOW can I KNOW that I will gain possession of it?”

Today, if someone makes a fantastic, unbelievable promise to you, then repeats it, what would we demand to hold that person accountable? We might have an attorney draw up a contact, both parties would sign it, maybe even have it notarized. Neat and tidy. But not in the day of Abram.

Verse 9, “So the Lord said to him, “Bring me a heifer (not call your lawyer), a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.” Somehow, Abram got all these animals. Verse 10, “Abram brought all of these to him (what? Four days later?) cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other; (did Sarai help, like setting a table for guests?) the birds, however, he did not cut in half (of course, everybody knows that). Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away. What did the neighbors think? “Look at that crazy old man, running around chasing birds. Must be something big going on at his place tonight.” Perhaps this was done in an isolated location, just God and Abram.

Why all the animals and blood? This is what they called a blood covenant. We see this in Jer. 34:8-11where the life of the individual is pledged to the covenant. If one failed to keep the covenant, his blood was to be poured out just as the blood of the animal had been poured out.  Usually, both parties walked between the pieces, but since this was an unconditional covenant, Abram didn’t walk between them.

What if God asked you to do this today? Where does Abram get these animals? Is there a pet store at the mall? Does he send some kids out to ask people, “Hey, do any of you guys have any pigeons? Doves? What is this, a scavenger hunt?

V 12 As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him.”

What puzzles me is this, if the reason for doing this is to reassure Abram, why did Abram fall into a deep sleep? What did God do, hypnotize him? If you were God, wouldn’t it make more sense to say, “Abram, make yourself a stiff cup of coffee, I need your full attention for the rest of my presentation.”? Or maybe, as the sun was setting, Abram, an old man, fell into a deep sleep, he just needed a nap after chasing away birds of prey all afternoon. Then he woke up had a cup of coffee and then the Lord spoke to him, the ceremony began and then they barbequed the animals.

Sleep scientists say that we go through four states of sleep. Stage one is light sleep where your heartbeat and breathing slows down. During this stage some people experience hypnagogic hallucinations, dreams that appear real. This is the time when some people claim to have been abducted by aliens.

Stage two sleep is when your heartbeat and breathing slow even further. 

Stage three is deep sleep and it might be difficult to wake someone from this stage.

Then there is Rapid Eye Movement (REM) or the dream stage of sleep. Breathing becomes faster, heart rate and blood pressure increases to near waking levels.

But now we have a fifth stage, one that scientists have not studied and do not recognize. This one is very rare and only God induces it in his subject.  One commentary says that this was a visionary sleep, where he was in a deep sleep, but fully conscious of what was going on. It was the same sort of deep sleep that fell upon Adam in Gen. 2:2, “So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.” We see this same type of sleep in , “So David took the spear and water jug near Saul’s head, and they left. No one saw or knew about it, not did anyone wake up. They were all sleeping because the Lord had put them into a deep sleep.”  

If you ever experience sleep paralysis or have a hypnogogic hallucination, it can be frightening. This visionary sleep was a new experience for Abram and was frightful, described as a thick and dreadful darkness.

V 13 “Then the Lord said to him, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves (remember the promise, “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you”?), and afterwards they will come out with great possessions. You, however, will go to your fathers (euphemism for dying) in peace and be buried at a good old age. In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.” This last phrase shows God’s patience with the bad guys living in the promised land.

V 17 When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces. On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates-the land of the Kenites and all the other “ites’.” Notice here that the covenant extends to his descendants. This is not a one generational promise. Notice also, it doesn’t say, “they made a covenant with each other.” This was a one-sided deal, an unconditional covenant. Abram didn’t have to do anything to “earn” what was promised. Nor could it be taken away from him or his descendants.

To us, the gathering of animals, cutting them up, placing them just right, like setting the table for Thanksgiving, all seems very strange. Abram didn’t appear to question any of this because that was just the way things were done back then.

And what is this “smoking fire pot and blazing torch” that appeared and passed between the pieces? This is another example of the Shechinah Glory, the visible manifestation of God’s presence, usually appearing as a light, as a fire, as a cloud or some combination of the three. The smoking fire pot was a pillar of smoke (does this sound familiar?). The torch means a rising flame.  So, it appears to be a fire, heating up a fire pot which gives off smoke. 

I wonder, was he out by himself when this happened? Were there others around who witnessed these events? If he was alone, did he tell others about his experience? If it happened to you, would you tell others? If you did, what would they think? If this ever happens to you, you might want to keep this to yourself, share with others only on a need to know basis. Don’t be like Joseph who bragged about his visions. 

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 In the next book, Exodus, we find that this family has grown in number to the point that the Egyptians become concerned for their safety. So they enslave them. God then calls Moses to lead them out of Egypt.