Page 10 - ADAM IN GENESIS

to a place of torment. Our first parents were shut out from the privileges of their
state of innocency, yet they were not left to despair. The way to the tree of life was
shut. It was henceforward in vain for him and his to expect righteousness, life, and
happiness, by the covenant of works; for the command of that covenant being broken,
the curse of it is in full force: we are all undone, if we are judged by that covenant.
God revealed this to Adam, not to drive him to despair, but to quicken him to look
for life and happiness in the promised Seed, by whom a new and living way into
the holiest is laid open for us.

The Beginning:
Many people interpret these first five verses as the first Creation Day. They interpret this
first Day as seeing the creation of earth, space, time and light all in a 24 hour timeframe.
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This interpretation is inarguably the simplest one a 21 century English-speaking reader
can make based on the text above. It is my opinion that the simplest explanation is
usually the best one, but lets explore the passage using the guidelines mentioned above.
In the Hebrew text, the first wayyiqtol verb we see is in verse 3 (wayyomer - and [God]
said). In the first two verses we find verbs in the perfect tense (created, and was), as well
as the participle was hovering. If you remember, in a typical Hebrew narrative, perfect
tense verbs at the beginning of a series of sequential events are used to describe the
conditions at the time the first event occurred. Stated more simply, at some time prior to
God saying Let there be light, the events in verses 1-2 took place. Looked at
linguistically, the first Creation Day may in fact start in verse 3.
There is another piece of evidence that backs this up. If we look further into the passage
we find that each of the other Creation Days begin with the same wayyiqtol verb
wayyomer (and [God] said) (cf. vv. 6, 9, 14, 20 and 24). If we wish to keep the literary
framework of the account intact, we should consider the first Creation Day as beginning
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in verse 3. I believe that a Hebrew living in the 15 century BC would have most likely
understood the passage in this way.
What does that mean for our interpretation? It means that whether or not the Days in
Genesis 1 are 24 hours or longer, the creation of the heavens and the earth and darkness
and the deep occurred before Creation Day 1. This is not a new interpretation. It has been
around a while. In fact, people have tried to fit the geologic ages into a gap between
Genesis 1:1 and 2 or verses 2 and 3. This gap theory also involves the earth turning into a
planet without form and void due to the fall of Satan and subsequent battle with good
angels. This is a weak attempt at a harmonization of Scripture and geology as there is no
reason to translate the verb hayah as became over was (as in most English versions) in
verse 2. Also there is no geologic evidence indicating the abrupt end of all life, the earth
existing as a wasteland and the reappearing of new life.
Simple unscaled timeline of the Genesis Creation account with time increasing to the
right. Whether or not one considers the Creation Days as lasting 24 hour does not change
the fact that the events of the first two verses occurred before the first Creation Day
according to the Hebrew. This period of time is here called 'The Beginning'.
If verses 1 and 2 take place before the Creation Week, when do the events occur? The
Bible simply says in the beginning. And it clearly says that when God said Let there be