Genesis 2 is the proverbial elephant in the room. If you’ve been reading our Creation series from the beginning, I imagine one burning question remains for you. So, ask away.
Steve, that’s all fascinating, but doesn’t Genesis 2 undo all your work and affirm the Israelites were telling a material creation story all along?
Sorry, no.
No? How can you say no when Genesis 2 tells us God uses materials to create the man and woman? Scripture says, God “formed the man out of the dust from the ground,” (Gen. 2:7 CSB) and he “made the rib he had taken from the man into a woman.” (Gen. 2:22 CSB) Surely, these actions affirm a material creation?
Still, no. This is why I've not broached Genesis 2 with you earlier. Until now, I've been giving you the hard-sell on a functional reading of Genesis 1. Once you've seen how much sense that makes, it becomes much easier to accept Genesis 2 as a sequel. Without that groundwork, accepting Genesis 2 as a functional story is a tough ask when, as you say, materials were used.
But, at the very least, doesn't it make Genesis 1 and 2 both a material and a functional story?
Again, the answer is no. Ancient people simply didn’t tell material creation myths. They only knew one way to tell the story (much like we did, until now), and that’s as a functional account. The ancient Israelites mention how God made the physical world elsewhere in Scripture, but it’s only in passing. Just saying God did it seems to be sufficient for them.
When we read Genesis 1 and 2, we need to be careful not to elevate our material view to a level the Bible never gives it just to ease our discomfort or to fulfil our modern assumptions.
We’ve already seen how our modern commitment to a material origin causes us to ignore seven reasons Genesis 1 is not a material story, as well as leaving day seven, the pinnacle of creation, as little more than a footnote. Because the Bible gives primacy to how God ordered the world to see life flourish—over and above material creation—we should, too.
As we explore five reasons Genesis 2 is a sequel, allow how wrong we’ve been about Genesis 1 to open your mind to the possibility that maybe we’ve also misread Genesis 2.
