Virtual Devotions

Dear Friends,

As we have been witnessing the creation of the world through the Genesis account, we can see that there is a pattern developing.  The technique is like that used in a musical piece that builds to a crescendo or a drama building suspense to the climatic scene.  We are seeing the hierarchy of the created order emerge and there is anticipation for the reader that we are coming to the apex. 

From the perspective of living things, God first created plants, then fish and birds, and now on the sixth day God creates creatures of the land.  Using generalized categories, we are told of livestock, basically anything domesticated; creatures that move along the ground, this I suppose could be anything from insects to reptiles to rodents; and wild animals, basically any large beast that is not domesticated. 

I believe these categories are deliberate to the created order.  Domesticated animals tend to be viewed as the most docile.  Those things that creep on the ground would be considered more of a law unto themselves, and none would match up to the wild animals in strength and dominance.  After all, who is the king of the jungle?  The lion.  So if this is a correct understanding of the literary progression, the natural question is what’s next, who is the top of the created order?

As we read the end of verse 25, we know that the answer is upon us.  Each time we have read, “And God saw that it was good”, it marked the conclusion of that particular act of creation.  Now, with the earth established, covered in lush vegetation and inhabited in all three environments – sea, air and land – the crowning jewel in God’s creation is about to be revealed.  The one for whom God has done all this work is about to be introduced.  But for that one, we will have to wait until the next verse.

In Christ,

“And God said, ‘Let the waters swarm with swarms of living souls, and let fowl fly above the earth in the expanse of the heavens.’ And God created the great sea monsters, and every living soul that moves with which the waters swarm, after their kind, and every winged fowl after its kind. And God saw that it was good.  And God blessed them, saying, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply on the earth.’ And there was evening, and there was morning -- a fifth day.” – Genesis 1:20-23 (DBY)

Dear Friends,

For today’s discussion, I have chosen the Darby Translation.  In1890, John Nelson Darby published the English version of his translation from the original Hebrew and Greek.  His desire was to remain as true as possible to the original wording so that those who did not have access to ancient manuscripts or did not know Hebrew or Greek would have a reliable reference source.

Darby is the only version that I am aware of that translates the Hebrew “nepes” as “souls.”  Every other Bible I have found translates “nepes” as “creature” or something to that effect.  And while I am I cautious about using a translation that is not in the majority, given the context, I think it better reflects the unique nature of living creatures.

The “nepes” distinguishes the birds and fish (and later all animals including man) from the trees and plants. The true meaning of this concept is hard to pin down.  It is possibly an awareness of being alive and the ability to understand and obey a command, but I will suggest that it indicates the capacity to be in a relationship.

This relational soul provides a distinction from the rest of creation in that God can extend His blessing on those in creation who have a soul.  In the first four days, God created light, separated the waters, brought forth the land, seas and vegetation, and created the sun, moon and stars.  While God pronounced these things to be good, He did not bless them.

Not only does He bless the fish and birds, but God also speaks to them and gives them a simple command, to be fruitful and multiply.  Here is where we see the true relational nature of God and His creation.  Never before has God spoken to any part of His creation.  The fact that God speaks to them directly indicates that there is a relationship between God and these animals.

Now, if you know me personally, you know that I am not an “animal person.”  I don’t like dogs and cats in a house and I feel like some people go over the top with their pets.  But with that said, I do realize that God created all creatures with the capacity for relationship and all are recipients of God’s blessing.  If we are to be stewards of creation, we must keep this truth in mind.

In Christ,

David

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, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so. 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. God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day.” – Genesis 1:14-19

Dear Friends,

As we continue in our Bible study, I will try to point out important considerations in understanding the text.  One of the greatest challenges we have is the translation itself.  When we read the Bible in English, we are not reading it in the original language.  The Old Testament was originally written in Hebrew and the New Testament was written in Greek.  So we are dependent upon the work of the modern day translators.

Take the word light for example.  On the first day of creation, God said, “Let there be light.”  On the fourth day of creation, God said, “Let there be lights…”   While the English translation “light” may lead us to think that these two concepts of light are the same, they are very distinct in the Hebrew.  In the Hebrew text, on the first day we have “or”, meaning light energy, and on the fourth day “maor”, meaning a light source or light bearer.

Personally, I prefer the translation of “light bearer”.   It fits the context best.   It applies the literary technique of personification, attributing human characteristics to inanimate objects. The sun and moon are made to serve.  They are to mark the passage of time, to give light to the earth and to govern the separation of day and night, light from darkness.

Which leads us to another challenge of translation, punctuation.  The original Hebrew and the Greek did not have punctuation marks, so you will find that some Bibles, such as the NIV above, begin a new sentence, “He also made the stars”, while other Bibles, such as the ESV, continue from the prior sentence so that the stars are included in the discussion of the moon governing the night sky.  I prefer this later translation because by tying it to the work of the light bearers it explains why God made the stars.  The stars aid the moon in marking the seasons.  As the earth rotates and tilts on its axis, the position of the stars change in the night sky.  The position of the stars is a more reliable indicator of the season than the sun or moon, thus a better marker.

Now you may be saying to yourself that this is all very interesting, but I don’t know Hebrew nor do I have a Hebrew Bible or a Hebrew dictionary.  My first response is if you want to be a serious Bible student, purchase a Hebrew Old Testament and Greek New Testament, a Strong’s concordance and the accompanying Hebrew and Greek dictionaries.  This was how I started.  I had not taken a single language class, but I was able to work my way through it.  You can too.  And imagine the funny look you’ll get from your spouse when asked what do you want for Christmas?  “Gee honey, I was really hoping for an interlinear Bible in Hebrew, Greek and English and a Strong’s concordance with the accompanying Hebrew to English and Greek to English dictionaries.”   Talk about the gift for someone who has everything!

But if you do not choose to go that route, I will offer a simpler one.  There are many good Bible study websites.  The one I use most often is biblegateway.com.  With it you can simultaneously look up multiple English translations of the same verse or passage.  By doing this, you can look for the differences between translations and then study to decide which you believe is the most correct.

One final comment.   While you will find many different translations, please remember that it is the Holy Spirit who opens your heart and mind for the understanding of the scripture.  While I believe that some translations are truer to the original text than others, regardless of the translation it will be the Holy Spirit doing a work in you that will bring you to a greater understanding of His revelation in God’s Word.

In Christ,

David

And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear." And it was so. God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good.   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. 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. And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.

Dear Friends,

On the third day we see a shift in God’s creative work.  On the first two days, God spoke into existence light and the sky by proclaiming, “Let there be…” But now, God begins to fashion what has already been created into a world in which mankind can live.

However, there is still a common thread in God’s work on the first half of the third day – separation. On the first day, God separated light from dark.  On the second day, God separated the water above from the water below.  On the third day, God separated the water below from the dry ground naming them “seas” and “land,” respectively.  This continuing process of separation or “setting apart” is an indication that God is creating a special, holy place for His final creation – mankind.  Not only are we to be holy, but where we live is to be acknowledged as being holy as well.  This is further evidenced by God’s acknowledgement that it was good.

God then calls forth from the ground all plant-life.  Again, note that God does not say, “Let there be vegetation,” thus creating something out of nothing, but instead says, “Let the land produce vegetation,” thus creating something from something else.  This is a key distinction.  Within the land itself is the capacity to produce life.  It needs only the command of God.  This makes John the Baptist’s statement that God could bring forth sons of Abraham from the rocks all the more literal and gives greater understanding of Paul’s analogy that man can plant a seed and water it, but God makes it grow.

My final observation is that the author is very specific to say that each form of plant-life produces seed according to its own kind.  A daisy produces seeds that grow daisies.  An apple tree produces fruit with apple seeds to produce new apple trees.  This is an important point to note.  No where does the Bible give any indication that one species produced a new species.  As creation continues to be brought forth by God’s command, we will see that every king of flora and fauna is expressly created to produce only their own kind.

I have said before that it is wrong to try to impress into any writing an outside view.  Unfortunately, well-meaning individuals so often do this with the Genesis account.  In an effort to reconcile creation and evolution, they will suggest that evolution occurred, but God guided its progression.  This idea is absolutely not Biblical.

I encourage you to keep this is mind as you continue in your Biblical studies.  Read the Bible for what it says.  Do not impress outside ideas into it, but rather, understand that the Bible is an unfolding of God’s revelation of who He is and why you are here.

In Christ,

David