Truth Taught in Genesis

[Micaiah]

Genesis 1

The Beginning

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.



2 Now the earth was [a] formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.

6 And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water." 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse "sky." And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day.

9 And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear." And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good.

11 Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.

14 And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so. 16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. 17 God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, 18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day.

20 And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky." 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth." 23 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day.

24 And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind." And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, [b] and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

28 God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."

29 Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food." And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

What are the important truths you learn from the early chapters of Genesis.

Start with the first two verses:

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2 Now the earth was [a] formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

 

[gluadys]

What are the important truths you learn from the early chapters of Genesis.

Start with the first two verses:

Ok, I'll bite.

God created all things from nothing. ('bara')
God is a she. (Check the exact meaning of the Hebrew here translated as "hovering".)

 

[On the Narrow Road]

Ok, I'll bite.

God created all things from nothing. ('bara')
God is a she. (Check the exact meaning of the Hebrew here translated as "hovering".)

I think basing this belief on one word may be a little bit of a stretch. Care to address the whole man created first and in God's image issue?

 

[On the Narrow Road]

What are the important truths you learn from the early chapters of Genesis.

Start with the first two verses:

It appears to me you are looking for answers related to the gap theory. Looking only at these two verses we do see that God created the heavens and the earth in the beginning, then God is hovering over an earth void and without form covered in water.... So are you asking us to recognized this along with the fact that there has been no mention of this occurring on the first day? Maybe you are pointing out that there is no reference to how long God was hovering and no reference to time until God created light and separated if from the darkness?

 

[QuantaCura]

Ok, I'll bite.

God created all things from nothing. ('bara')
God is a she. (Check the exact meaning of the Hebrew here translated as "hovering".)

God has no sex or gender--He's pure spirit (except when the Son became incarnate and walked the Earth.) That being said, Jesus and all the prophets have used masculine imagery to describe God the Father and the inspired Scriptures also use this so there's got to be something to it. I have read some people apply a feminine imagery for the Holy Spirit (not sure if this is theologically correct or not). However, usually the neutral pronoun "it" is used. This is the first Scriptural mention I've seen pointed out concerning the demininity. What is the better translation for hovering? My translation just uses "moved."

 

[QuantaCura]

I think basing this belief on one word may be a little bit of a stretch. Care to address the whole man created first and in God's image issue?

God's image has nothing to do with gender, but rather our rational souls.

 

[stumpjumper]

What are the important truths you learn from the early chapters of Genesis.

Start with the first two verses:

That God created ex-nihilo and that God views His creation as good. Also, that we were created in God's image in that we have free will are capable of authentic love and can enjoy the beauty of the world the same way that God does.

Also, that the writers of Genesis did not know much about biology and natural science.

 

[mixin machine]

Also, that the writers of Genesis did not know much about biology and natural science.

Or we don't know as much about biology and natural science as we think we know.

 

[gluadys]

I think basing this belief on one word may be a little bit of a stretch. Care to address the whole man created first and in God's image issue?

Micaiah asked that we begin with the first two verses.

 

[gluadys]

God has no sex or gender--He's pure spirit (except when the Son became incarnate and walked the Earth.) That being said, Jesus and all the prophets have used masculine imagery to describe God the Father and the inspired Scriptures also use this so there's got to be something to it. I have read some people apply a feminine imagery for the Holy Spirit (not sure if this is theologically correct or not). However, usually the neutral pronoun "it" is used. This is the first Scriptural mention I've seen pointed out concerning the demininity. What is the better translation for hovering? My translation just uses "moved."

I would say God is beyond gender rather than having no gender. God is beyond such distinctions as male and female, yet, as both male and female are made in God's image, I would say both genders apply to God rather than neither.

I believe Hebrew, like English, has only male and female pronouns to apply to living beings, so, of course, in a patriarchal society, the male pronoun is commonly applied to God. The only real problem with this is a theology which presumes that this limits God to masculine gender. That is why it always tickles my fancy that the first image of God the bible gives us is a feminine one. (There are of course many others through scripture.)

Some languages have gender neutral pronouns like "it" which can be applied to living things of unknown gender as well as to inanimate things. Some languages, such as Yoruba have a third person pronoun that is used in all cases regardless of gender. That would be an ideal expression of the gender of God.

"Hovering" is an excellent translation. "Moved" is much too common and general. The other evocative translation I have seen is "brooded". Ask anyone who raises chickens what it means to say a hen is "broody" and you get the picture.

 

[QuantaCura]

I believe Hebrew, like English, has only male and female pronouns to apply to living beings, so, of course, in a patriarchal society, the male pronoun is commonly applied to God.

I'm no Hebrew expert all, but in my study of the proper translation of Genesis 3:15, there is an ambiguous pronoun used. This is why we see it translated as "she shall crush," "he shall crush" and "they shall crush" depending on what translation of the Bible or Torah you are using. I forget the Hebrew word off the top of my head, but I had a friend look it up on some Hebrew translating software, and it can be translated as he, she, or it. In, Gen. 3:15, most translate it as "he" on reference to Christ, the version I have translates as "she" in reference to Mary, and the Jews translate it as "they."

Take that for what it's worth.

 

[gluadys]

I'm no Hebrew expert all, but in my study of the proper translation of Genesis 3:15, there is an ambiguous pronoun used. This is why we see it translated as "she shall crush," "he shall crush" and "they shall crush" depending on what translation of the Bible or Torah you are using. I forget the Hebrew word off the top of my head, but I had a friend look it up on some Hebrew translating software, and it can be translated as he, she, or it. In, Gen. 3:15, most translate it as "he" on reference to Christ, the version I have translates as "she" in reference to Mary, and the Jews translate it as "they."

Take that for what it's worth.

That's interesting. I'm no Hebrew expert either. So I guess we leave it there for now.

 

[Crusadar]

God is a she.

Since God is referred throughout scripture as "father" I am compelled to ask why in the world would you say such an absurd thing?

 

[gluadys]

God is a she.

Since God is referred throughout scripture as "father" I am compelled to ask why in the world would you say such an absurd thing?

Did you check out the Hebrew meaning of the verb as I suggested? And God is not referred to throughout scripture as "father". In fact that image is common only in the NT through the teachings of Jesus. But Jesus also used feminine imagery for God as well.

Both OT and NT have many ways of referring to God. Some are male, some female and some gender-neutral. I was noting that the image suggested by the verb in Gen. 1:2 is one of those feminine images of God.

 

[Crusadar]

But Jesus also used feminine imagery for God as well.

There is a difference between saying God is a she than saying that He can care for His children like a mother, Just as a man can be motherly towards his children without changing his gender - much like a woman can take on a fatherly role without being called a man.

 

[gluadys]

But Jesus also used feminine imagery for God as well.

There is a difference between saying God is a she than saying that He can care for His children like a mother, Just as a man can be motherly towards his children without changing his gender - much like a woman can take on a fatherly role without being called a man.

So you actually think that God is a gendered being? Why would you wish to limit God in this way?

 

[Critias]

Gluady's it was you who said God is a female. With that statement you limited God to a gender.

 

[Crusadar]

So you actually think that God is a gendered being? Why would you wish to limit God in this way?

Now was it not you who said "God is a she" - so who is really the one who has placed God in a mold of their own making I wonder? All I am saying is that He can play any role He well pleases. If you take offense at Scripture telling us that God is a father figure than maybe it is not me that you disagree with - after all if Jesus refers to God as His father, who do you think we should be more inclined to believe, your assertion or the exact words of Christ?

 

[gluadys]

Gluady's it was you who said God is a female. With that statement you limited God to a gender.

If you had read further through the thread, you would have seen I said that God is beyond gender. I do believe God is a she; I also believe God is a he. God is inclusive of both genders and more---beyond gender altogether.

Unfortunately, since most religious writing has been done by men, some of whom were outright misogynists (e.g. St. Jerome) God's maleness has been emphasized to the exclusion of God's femaleness.

I do not in any way deny God's maleness or Fatherhood. But I welcome efforts to redress the imbalance that hides God's femaleness.

 

[depthdeception]

Now was it not you who said "God is a she" - so who is really the one who has placed God in a mold of their own making I wonder? All I am saying is that He can play any role He well pleases. [/QUOTE]

Your criticism wouldn't happen to be applicable to you, would it? One of the first rules of criticizing someone's argument is to not do the exact same thing of which you accuse them! LoL!!

You are allowed to use the word "God" instead of "he", you know. No one will object.