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Genesis 1-2 – Why We Need Eden
Caution: What the below article is, is an exercise in thinking; not a declaration of what definitely is. I am inviting you to think with me, with some application and conclusion; but also openness to it be wrong. That’s our warning!
The Holy Spirit has Moses record, “God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.”” (CSB’17 Genesis 1:28)
. Subdue – to subject, subdue, force, keep under, bring into bondage (BDB)
. Rule – to rule, have dominion, dominate, tread down (BDB); to rule, to have dominion, to subjugate (CWS)
This sounds absolutely nothing like Genesis 2, where the animals are brought by God to Adam and he names them (v.19). That picture is serene, much like the picture Isaiah paints of the lion laying next to a lamb (Isaiah 11:6), or a baby by a snake’s pit (Isaiah 11:8).
Thought # 1 – What Genesis 1:28 does sound like is all of Genesis 1 where God takes that which is formless and void, separates things into functional halves, and forms a working earth. If I am correct, then Genesis 1:28 has mankind reenacting God’s work as His image. That is a very biblical concept.
Thought #2 – Some suggest Genesis 1 and 2 are disparate stories. That doesn’t need to be the explanation. They are complementary, not contradictory.
Thought #3 – I’ve wondered if Genesis 1 is foreshadowing the exile out of Eden. If that is a possibility, the foreshadowing is not part of God’s declaration that His creation is “very good.” However, as I work through my thinking process, I decided this is probably not an accurate description. Discovering and discarding is a major part of studying God’s word.
Thought #4 – There is another thought, one that can harmoniously work with the idea that mankind is replicating God’s forming for function His creation. Genesis 1 is outside of Eden, and Genesis 2 is inside Eden which also contains a garden. Three areas, like the three areas of the tabernacle, temple, and even the three heavens. There will be a major difference though which I will discuss momentarily. Genesis 1 focusing on outside of Eden fits a theme throughout the Bible wherein peace is found within God’s presence and God walks in Eden (3:8). The church today is God’s dwelling place as we are His temple and Christ’s body (Ephesians 1). That’s the real meaning of John 14 and the dwelling places. It not heaven, it’s fellowship with God in the here and now. But like Eden, evil creeps into the church. Instead of turning down the Serpent’s song, too many sing it. Eden is lost.
This brings us back to the differences between Genesis 1 and 2. I wonder if Adam and Eve were originally to live both in Eden, to take care of God’s temple garden (Genesis 2); and outside where it is rough and dangerous (Genesis 1). They lost their escape from their peaceful reality of ease due to sin.
The application is we believers must also dwell in God’s temple, while simultaneously living in the wilds of this fallen world. Mentally, emotionally, and spiritually we need the calm and comfort of fellowship with God. Sin can cause us to lose that soothing presence.
Life is challenging. Don’t give up our spiritual Eden, because that’s where we find calm. Who wants to fight and struggle continually where we constantly need to survive by subjugating our world of sin? We live in both areas. The world is our battle ground. The church is our refuge unless the Serpent interrupts the peace. Our constant battles within the world are wearing. That is one reason we need Christ’s church! It is our Eden.
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