Genesis 4:8-10 Part Two: The Avenger of Blood and The Cities of Refuge.

Last time, I ended with a pretty bold statement, that your salvation depends on knowing the difference between manslaughter and premeditated murder and how the law looks at it. Lets first look at what the bible says about the punishment of those who kill another.

“Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he the man”

Genesis 9:6

Here we have G-d decreeing that murderers were to forfeit their own lives: However, and more definitively, in Exodus 21:12-14,22-23; Leviticus 24:17; Numbers 35:16-21, the law requires the death penalty in cases of premeditated murder. In either case, a close relative could avenge his death whether it was manslaughter or premeditated murder. It was his right. As a matter of fact, the victim's nearest relative was expected to avenge his death. The nearest relative is called the Go'el ha dam", the Avenger of Blood.

His duties included avenging the death of the near relative and redeeming the property or the person of a relative that had fallen into debt. We’ll go further into detail about the Go’el when we get to the book of Ruth. However, in the case of unintentional homicide, which we call manslaughter, the Cities of Refuge were set up. Six Cities of Refuge were provided for those who killed without any forethought or on accident. They could live there without fear, without any retaliation, until the reigning High Priest died, provided that they could prove their case of manslaughter to the judges or elders who sat at the gate (Num. 35: 9-34; Deut. 19: 1-13 and Joshua 20). After the High Priest died, he was free of all punishment.

Before we go any further, I need to remind everyone of John 5:39 and Matthew 5:17.

” Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.”

” Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. ”

When Adam and Eve disobeyed G-d, they introduced a death curse for all their descendants. The death curse of sin required the blood sacrifice of an innocent for the redemption of Adam and Eve and all their descendants, including you and me. That innocent sacrifice was Yeshua, who died on the altar of G-d. However, Yeshua was a human being and the Son of G-d requiring the next of kin to avenge his death. Our sins made us responsible for the murder of Yeshua on the cross. Therefore, G-d has every right to be the Avenger of Blood and avenge his death upon us.

The beautiful thing is what Yeshua said upon that altar.

” Then said Jesus, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”

Luke 12:34

We didn’t know that our sins were responsible for Yeshuas death. Therefore, that made his murder, manslaughter, and qualified us for refuge within the City of Refuge. We are due to be avenged for his death unless we take refuge in Yeshua, our City of Refuge. How long? Until the High Priest dies. Yeshua is our High Priest and he died upon the cross making us free from retribution. Praise G-d!! Yeshua is the Word, the Word is Yeshua.

You see. It is important to understand the difference between manslaughter and premeditated murder because the difference saves your mortal soul. Also, understanding the Word of G-d requires knowing how it models the Son of G-d, Yeshua. The more you read and realized this is true, the more you realized that Yeshua is who he said he was. The Messiah and Savior of all mankind.

Genesis 4:8-10 Part One. The First Murder???

And Cain talked with his brother Abel. And it happened when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. And Jehovah said unto Cain, Where is your brother Abel? And he said, I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper? And He said, What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries to Me from the ground.

Two interesting concepts are found within these verses. One, the concept of murder and two, there's more than meets the eye than our myopic view of G-ds creation.

There are a lot of teachers that teach that this was the first murder. There are an equal amount that teach that Adam and Eve entering into the curse was the first murder. My question...which one is it? Are they both murder? Before I answer that, let me ask another question.

Situation #1. You inadvertently poison person number one. It takes person number one ten years to die. However, by poisoning person number one, you inadvertently cause person number ones offspring to die prematurely. Are you guilty of murder?

Situation #2. You deliberately shoot person number two and person number two dies instantly. Are you guilty of murder?

This is important. We need to know how G-d looks at these two type of situations. Believe it or not, your salvation depends on it. Were they both murder? In G-ds eyes, no. In situation number one, it is involuntary manslaughter. You didn't know the full ramifications of your actions. However, in situation number two, it is premeditated murder.

Was this the first murder? Yes. What difference does it make? Well...that requires a look into the law concerning the cities of refuge and the avenger of blood which will be in the next blog entry. Again...Believe it or not, your salavation depends on it.

Genesis 4:1-7 The Good Offering

"And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bore Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. And she again bore his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him."


As we read this section, we wonder why Abels offering was better than Cains. First of all, in the text we find that both gave the fruits of his work. However, Abel gave the firstborn while it appears that Cain gave what was leftover. This is backed up with G-ds comment of:

"If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?"

The Hebrew word yatab translated here as "doest well" is better translated as "do as expected".

If Cain would have done what was expected, then his offering would have been accepted. However, Cain gave his tithe. Who cares if it wasn't the first of what he had? Because G-d expects to be first and foremost in our lives. Anything else shows that you have put something else ahead of G-d. This story is all about idol worship.

If you put anything ahead of G-d then you are an idol worshipper.

You are of the lineage of Cain.

G-d wants you to be of the lineage of Abel, one who gives to G-d as an initial thought not a second thought. Who are you?

So what does G-d mean by, "...and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him."

It means that if you are of the lineage of Cain, sin will reign over you.

However, if you are of the lineage of Abel, then you will rule over sin.

Thank You For Your Prayers

I apoligize for not posting for the last few weeks. My wife has been in the hospital with double fungal pneumonia. Sounds gross. However, my wife is home but still on oxygen. I praise G-d for her improvement and all your prayers. G-d Bless you all in the name of the most high. I ask for your continued prayer.

Shalom,
Keith

Genesis 3:16-24 Cursed and Kicked Out

”To the woman He said, I will greatly increase your sorrow and your conception. In pain you shall bear sons, and your desire shall be toward your husband, and he shall rule over you. “

A lot of people cling to the fact that Adam holds the responsibility for being the first to sin. However, it was Eve that sinned first and it was Eve that received the first punishment, or was it to or through Eve?

Notice in the first part of the curse. In most Bibles, the Hebrew word, האשׁה , nawsheem, is translated as “the woman”. In reality it should be translated as women. As an example, notice the difference between the two Hebrew words, האשׁה , nawsheem, women used here in genesis 3:16 and לאשׁה, ish-shaw, woman as used in Genesis 3:13. In Genesis 3:13, G-d was talking directly to Eve, while in Genesis 3:16, he was talking about women in general.

What does this mean? It means that because of Eves sin, all women will suffer the ramifications. This illumination of G-ds Word also gives us insight as to the age old question, “Why was Cain so afraid of the other people on Earth when G-d kicked him out of the protected environment of his mother and father?” Cain knew what had happened to mankind as a result of his mother and fathers sin. He was afraid of what the others would do to him as a result. We’ll go further into it when we get to the story of Cain and Abel.

What were the ramifications of Eves sin and resulting curse? All future childbirth would be physical, not spiritual as it had been up to that moment in time. In physical childbirth, there will be great pain. This is a great difference from the “no pain” spiritual childbirth they had been experiencing. In addition, to the painful childbirth, womens desire would be toward their husband. The word, desire, is the Hebrew word, teshookaw, which means to yearn for ones affection or protection.

In the spiritual realm, man and woman were of equal stature. However, from this moment on, women would be physically inferior to men. Now does that mean that men would be superior overall to woman? No. However, as a result of Eves sin, women would suffer the punishment of being physically inferior, that’s all. Therefore, women would physically require mans physical protection in this world.

Are there exceptions? Yes. As sin continues to degrade our physical DNA, you will see mutations where women take on the characteristics of a man and visa-versa. However, as a rule, women will be physically inferior to men and be ruled or dominated by them. Will it be that way in the Kingdom of G-d? No. The effects of sin on our post resurrection bodies will be no more. Requiring mans protection would be a constant reminder of what had happen and what would be required for the salvation of their souls.

”And to Adam He said, Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree, of which I commanded you, saying, You shall not eat of it! The ground is cursed for your sake. In pain shall you eat of it all the days of your life. It shall also bring forth thorns and thistles to you, and you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For dust you are, and to dust you shall return. “

The same thing here. As a result of Adam listening to his companion, all mankind would now suffer the consequences of his actions. Instead of G-d supplying all their needs, all mankind would have to work for it. It wouldn’t be easy, for G-d will now allow obstacles to be in the way. Thus begins the human physical cycle of birth, life and death and eventual return to the ground from which we came. However, keep in mind that physical death from sin is the only thing we will experience as human beings. Spiritual life or death is nothing like what we experience in our physical bodies and depends solely on our relationship with the one who created us in the first place.

”And Adam called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. “

Simply put, all physical life as we know it began with Adams companion. Therefore, he named her Eve which means mother of all living.

”And for Adam and his wife God made coats of skins, and clothed them. “

An interesting point missed by most commentators. Why did G-d give them clothing when they already had fig leaves. I heard some commentators say that this was G-d caring for them. He knew that the fig leaves would not last very long therefore he made them coats of skin. That sounds very practical and most likely is true. However, it’s pretty naïve and shows their lack of understanding of G-ds Word. It also reveals the reason why most believers are in the condition they’re in. Most commentators are teachers and/or preachers and their shallow understanding comes through thier teaching. Simply put, if they are saying this is the only reason, then they are not digging deep into G-ds Word and thereby leading those who “follow” them along a shallow path that will not lead them to a close relationship with the G-d of the universe.

The main reason G-d gave them coats of skins was to show them that they cannot cover themselves. Also, coats of skins required G-d to shed the blood of an innocent animal in order to cover them. Even though the Bible doesn’t tell us what animal G-d sacrificed for their skins, I would not be surprised if it was a lamb. The sacrifice of an innocent in order to cover them models the exact same thing that G-d will do for all mankind approximately 4000 years later on a cross.

”And God said, Behold, the man has become as one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever, therefore Jehovah God sent him out from the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he had been taken. And He drove out the man. And He placed cherubs at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life. “

”… has become as one of Us… “ has led a lot of people down an erroneous path of understanding. The word, us, is not in this verse or even implied. With it in there, it implies that as soon as we know the difference between good and evil, or obedience and disobedience, we become like G-d. No. Emphatically…No. This verse should simply read ”And God said, Behold, the man has become as one to know good and evil.” or “one that knows the difference between obedience and disobedience. ” This verse simply says that man, knowing the difference between obedience and disobedience, doesn’t have a right to the tree of life and should be kicked out. Therefore G-d kicked him out.

” And He placed cherubs at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life. “

This has always been interesting to me. Obviously, G-d didn’t want man to enter back into the garden. So much, that G-d put super angels at the east entrance in order to prevent re-entry. This begs the questions: If the cherubs weren’t guarding the entrance, could we re-enter the garden? I think so. I believe that we will enter G-ds Kingdom through Edens eastern gate.

Genesis 3:14-15. The First Curse and The First Prophesy

"And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."

There is a point when G-d will turn completely away from you and refuse any reconciliation. Satan, the serpent, has now reached that point. First, Pride and disobedience rose up in Satan and then he lead a rebellion against G-d. I firmly believe that up to this point in time, that G-d would have forgiven his prodigal son. However, Satan had shown a propensity to continue to sin and drag as many others as he can with him, basically a total disregard of G-d and his ways. As a side note, the same can be said about our relationship with G-d.

Can we sin so much that it is beyond G-d to forgive us? No. Is there a point where we can show a total disregard of G-d and his ways and be shunned by G-d? Yes. The Scriptures clearly point this out. This is why I started this ministry, to break down the walls of ungodly traditional teaching and get back to the basic truth of G-d. Let me finish this thought by saying that you and I have no clear idea where G-d will draw that line. Therefore, it would benefit us greatly to continually and truthfully evaluate ourselves according to the Scriptures and turn our back on traditional paganistic thought.

Here in this verse, G-d has had enough and cursed Satan. From that point on, there was no redemption for Satan. He was cursed and G-d turned his back on him. At the risk of repeating myself, we cannot let ourselves get to that point. Turn away from Satan and his ways and turn to G-d and Salvation through his perfect sacrifice, Yeshua.

Amongst this curse, we find the first prophecy of G-ds Word. A prophesy of a battle between the seed of those who seek redemption and those who follow Satan. Even here we find a oddity. In Judaism, all seed is through the father of the family. However, here we find that the seed of our redemption will be through the woman. This is a dual prophesy. First the battle between the followers of Satan and of G-d second that our salvation will come through the woman. The only way the seed can be passed through the woman is by a virgin birth. This was reiterated in Isaiah 7:12.

"Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."

This is a prophesy of the virgin birth of our Messiah, Yeshua.

Also, through the years, Adam has been the fall-guy, no pun intended. But as we have seen, it was through Eve and Satan that sin entered into this world. Adam, who represented what the future Messiah would do, entered freely into sin on the behalf of his bride. This can be seen in the following verses. The only verses within the Bible that references Adam and the first sin. I challenge you to prove otherwise.

"And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression."

1 Timothy 2:14

"Nevertheless death reigned from the time of Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.

Romans 5:14

Notice, "over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression". This is a reference to those seek salvation through the likeness of Adams (The Messiahs)transgression (entering freely into sin for the salvation of others). This verse says that death will reign over all people, even those who seek Adams (The Messiahs) method of salvation. This is physical death not spiritual death. We are appointed once to die a physical death. However, through the similitude of Adam, the Messiahs death on the altar of G-d, we have spiritual immortality. Hallelujah.

This is what the scriptures teach. However, and unfortunately, most traditional christian thought has taught otherwise. I wonder why.

Genesis 3:10-13 I Was Afraid And Hid Myself

"And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself."

Did G-d know where Adam and Eve were? Yes. Once again, G-d was giving Adam an opportunity to come clean on his own free will. That alone shows that G-d has mercy. If not, G-d would have slammed Adam and Eve right then and there.

Was Adam and Eve naked before they disobeyed G-d? Yes. All pre-fall creatures had something we don’t and that is special covering of the Holy Spirit. All pre-fall creatures were clothed in light. In fact, when Satan was created, he was called the shining one. Adam and Eve enjoyed a dimensionality that they lost when they disobeyed. That dimensionality included a clothing of light or righteousness. With the covering of light of righteous gone, they could see their shame. We will once again have that permanent clothing of light when we get our new bodies in the Messiah. Presently, the blood of the Messiah, the perfect sacrifice, now acts as a temporary / permanent covering. When the Father looks at us, the Remnant, he doesn’t see our shame or sin, but only the blood of the true light and his righteousness.

And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

It appears that Adam was going to blame it all on Eve. However, this is proof that Satan did not tempt Adam directly. Satan tempted Eve and Eve gave the fruit to Adam. Adam freely took of the fruit. As we discuss in an earlier blog, he did it out of love for Eve. He entered into the sinful nature for his, can we say, bride. This was a vision of what Y’shua would do for his bride. He became sin for his bride. As a side note, all the questions were to see if Adam and Eve would come clean or continue disobedience. Thank the Lord that they laid it all out or confess their sins. This reminds me of I John 1:9.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Also, notice that it was Adam interceding for Eve. Again, that is what Y'shua does and will do for us before the throne of G-d. Y'shua was the second Adam and he became sin for us, his bride. Therefore, feel free to continually go before the throne of G-d and confess your sins. He has already forgiven us. We are covered by the blood sacrifice of Y'shua on the alter we call the cross.

Aren’t you glad that we don't have to hide ourselves from G-d?

What a merciful G-d we have!

Genesis 3:7-9 Adam.... Where Art Thou?

"And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where [art] thou?

This verse has sparked controversy throughout the years. Non-believers point to this and say that there are errors in the bible. They say that the bible indicates that G-d knows all things and this verse shows he had no idea where Adam and Eve were.

First of all let’s set the record straight aboutG-d. I John 3:18-20 states:

“My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.”

G-d knows all things. However, does G-d allow things to occur on a daily basis without taking notice of them? ….Or…. Does G-d choose to not to remember things? The answer to both is yes. A good example is the fact that because we live in him, he chooses not to remember our sins no more. Hallelujah!!!! Beruch Y’Shua!!!! That’s G-d way of forgiveness. Also, he doesn’t intervene in our daily lives until he is asked.

With that said, here in this verse there were two possible going on.

1. G-d chose not to perceive what was going on in order to allow Adam his free will.

Or

2. G-d perceived what had happened and was giving Adam and Eve a choice. They had to choose whether to continue to disobey and come running at the sound of his voice.

We have that same choice today. Will you come running at the sound of G-ds voice or continue to hide from him and wallow in your sin?

If G-d chooses not to perceive what is going on in our lives, it doesn't mean he doesn’t love us. No. G-d chooses not to perceive in order to allow us our free will. However, G-d can and will remember at a moments notice what has happened if you call on his name.

Will he intervene? Yes. He always does. He just doesn’t always respond in our time and the way we want all the time. Don’t get angry as the world does and claim he doesn’t exist. Remember and rest in the fact the Father knows best.

Genesis 3:7 The Covering. Part One.

"And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons."

The phrase “the eyes of them both were opened” is “paw-kakh ah'-yin shet-tah'-yim” which means that their conscience was laid bare. Traditional thought has taught that it was their literal eyes were open. No. It was that their minds were opened to the concept of disobedience. The phrase “…and they know that they were naked” means that they were aware of and ashamed of their disobedience.

We should keep in mind that it wasn't the fruit that made them fall. It was the fact that they disobeyed a direct commandment from G-d. It could have easily been, "Don't pick the flowers".

Now come the interesting part. They made themselves a covering to hide their shame. There have been many sermons indicating that the fruit, which they ate, was an apple. Unfortunately, that comes from an erroneous Latin interpretation of the scriptures. If we back up and look at the whole counsel of G-d. There is one tree that is constantly withering, cursed or brought back to reconciliation, and that is the fig tree. This makes sense when you see that Adam and Eve attempted to hide their shame with the source of the disobedience.

I challenge you to perform a study of fig trees throughout the scriptures. I’m sure that it will be fruitful. ;-) Sorry for the pun, couldn’t resist the temptation. ;-) Better stop while I’m ahead.

Genesis 3:2-6 : The Three Stages of Temptation and An Incredible Act of Love

And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which [is] in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the woman saw that the tree [was] good for food, and that it [was] pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make [one] wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

As we ended last time, we see that Satans tactics have been the same since the beginning. In one form or another, he will tempt you with the following atatements:

1. Did G-d really say that?
2. G-d didn't really say that
3. Actually G-d doesn't want you to do that because he doesn't want you to enjoy things. This is especially true when he taps into one of your desires.

We see this exact modus operandi during his encounter with Eve.

1. Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2. We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which [is] in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.Ye shall not surely die: And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
3. For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

One of Eves hidden desires or lust was the need for knowledge beyond the here and now or Satan would not have so easily and successfully tempted her. The proof is in the meaning of the Hebrew word, ta'avah, translated here as pleasant. Its root meaning is the longings of one's heart, ones lust, appetite and covetousness.

Eve fell due to her ungodly lust for whatever the fruit of the tree would give her. However, that is not the most incredible part of this story. Notice that Eve was tempted but Adam was not. All Adam had to do was to step back and say, "Girl...you're in trouble." and start pointing the finger, but he did not.

Adam freely took of the fruit and entered into Eves predicament. The penalty for disobedience, death. Was he stupid or was it an incredible act of love? If we step back and look at it, we see that it emulates the exact thing that G-d would do for us approximately 4000 years later.

G-d saw our predicament and took upon himself our death penalty of our sin. G-d gave himself as the only legitimate sacrifice. What an incredible act of love. In the same way Eve was given a new lease on life, we too have that same option. All we have to do is accept the gift.

Genesis 3:1: The Serpent.

"Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made."

The Hebrew word here translated as serpent is "naw-khawsh" which does mean serpent. However, its root gives us a better understanding who our advisary is and how he works. Its root meaning is to whisper a spell. This is interesting because this is how he operates. He is constantly whispering into our inner conscience and attempting to persuade us into disobedience.

As a side note, in Samarian, "naw-khawsh" is "cachash" which means a liar or deceiver".

How does he know what to say? A further look, at what his name means, tells us that he learns by experience by diligently observing. He doesn't miss a lick. He and his cohorts know you better than the people around you. Therefore, when you see serpent here in chapter three, it means that Satan is very slick in how he does his job.

A great example of this is a snake charmer. He gets you so mesmerized on something that you don't see what his next step is until it's too late. That's why your best defense is not taking your eyes off of G-d.

He is "more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made." The word "awroom" translated here as subtle means cunning. And the phrase, "khahee min-nay kole saw-deh" translated here as "beast of the field" means "all of the living on earth". The first part of this verse means that Satan is more cunning than any of G-ds creation. Unfortunately, as we are about to see, he is very successful when he first tempts Eve.

"And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?"

One thing you can take to the bank is the fact that, above all things, Satan is consistent. His methods haven't changed for thousands of years. He certainly has fine tuned his skills but he hasn't changed his tactics. He tempts us with the same garbage he first tempted Eve. I guarantee the first thing that Satan and his cohorts says to us is the same thing he said to Eve. Did G-d really mean it that way? Couldn't he have meant it this or that way? The sad thing is that it works.

The front line defense for us is to follow the example of those in the U.S. Treasury Department. They tell their employees not to study the different counterfeiters and their methods but to study the real thing. Get to know it inside and out. That what G-ds Word says. We are to study and know G-ds Word as our own. That way, when Satan comes along and asks, "Did G-d really mean it that way?", we can say without a doubt, Yes he did. And tell Satan the same thing that Y'shua said to him when confronted him through Peter.

Get behind me Satan.

Pre-Genesis: A Prelude to Creation. Part Two

G-d looked up from the three archangels and spoke,

"Shamayim! Erets! Begin your journey."

Outward from the fingertip of G-d, sprung forth the entire universe. In its wake, it left what appeared to be rolls of a scroll.

It was time.

After what appeared to be billions of years but only a moment in time, Erets, Earth formed from amongst the debris.

G-d turned to the three archangels who was watching the beginning of creation and said,

"B'nai Elohim, do my will."

And so the three archangels, with the help of thousands upon thousands of angels, reigned over all creation doing the will of G-d. They served faithfully until iniquity was found in Ba'el.

Ba'el was full of wisdom and beauty, but pride swelled up inside of him. He was able to persuade a third of the angels to rebel with him against G-d.

As they prepared themselves for war, Ba'el stood in their midst and assured them of victory. Using the power given to him by G-d, he rose up and hovered just above them. He held his arms in front of him as he emulated the stance of the Most High G-d and spoke,

"I will ascend into heaven."

A roar of cheers cried out from the angels in support.

"I will exalt my throne above the stars of God"

Again, the exaltation of Ba'el rose up, louder than before.

"I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north"

"I will ascend above the heights of the clouds"

Ba'el basked in the glory of this moment which seem to go on forever. And as the cheers died down to simmering excitement. Then Ba'el cried out at the top of his voice,

"I will be like the most High."

Which sent the crowd into a frenzy. At this, Ba'el lept upward toward the heavens with his cohorts following, leaving the earth behind.

They were met by the faithful Angels led by Mich'el. Each wave of the rebellion was turned back by the righteous fighters until G-d cried out with a loud thunderous voice,

"Enough"

All stopped and bowed before the Almighty Elohim. All except Ba'el.

"O How art thou fallen from heaven, O Heyl'el, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground"

With G-ds final word, light engulfed the rebellion and Lucifer and his followers were thrown down to the earth. When they hit, the earth became a brilliant ball of fire. The earth, which was the crown of G-ds creation, was judged because of the rebellion and became formless and void and the darkness of the rebellion was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

And G-d said, "Light.....come forth."


And God saw light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.


And the new creation began.


I hope you enjoy this. Of course this is not biblical. However, it is biblically based. I would have loved to have embellish a lot more but that would have gone outside the parameters of the bible.

I hope you will continue to study the rest of Genesis with me as we pick up where we left off a few weeks ago, at the beginning of chapter three.

Please feel free to express what your vision of what might have happen just prior to Genesis 1:1.

Thanks again and may G-d Bless You.

Note: Heyl'el, Lucifer, are the biblical names of Satan.

Pre-Genesis: A Prelude to Creation. Part One

Before time began, before the here and now, there was G-d.

Without a word spoken, showing the awesome power of the creator, the universe, including the earth, sprung into existence. This was a pre-man universe. If the legends are true, G-d created the angels during this time. This included the three main archangels, Lucifer, the most beautiful and wise, Mich-el, the military leader of the angelic armies of G-d and Gabri-el, the messenger of G-ds Word. Their creation could have been something like this.

A Prelude to the Beginning.

Before this begins, we know that some of you will rebel against us and eventually we will have to banish you from our presence. However, whether you are Ang-el or Adam, you must play out your destiny in order for us to reach the goal. For we desire not to have mindless servants but dedicated and loving companions who desire to be with us and serve all through a committed and brotherly love.

We could create beings that would do our beck and call but they would not be what we desire because they would not have reached the goal through your own free will. Such companionship can only be obtained by taking a journey along the path of your own choosing. On this journey, you will always be in our presence or have the evidence of our existence. However, you have to choose your way based on faith, not by sight. We will now embark on that journey.

Are we committed?

We are committed.

Let it happen.

The Word of Elohim spoke out, “Hey-El, come forth.”

There before God, a light appeared. The light began to shimmer due to the presence of the power of the one who created it, Ruach-Elohim, God’s Spirit. The light, for the first time in its existence, bowed before his creator and spoke.

“Abba, my God”

“Hey-El. You are our son and we love you. You are our model of perfection, perfect in beauty and full of wisdom. You will be known as the cherub that covers. All of our creation, except Adam, will be at your beck and call, to do our will. Are you willing to perform the duties of your position?”

“Yes, my Father”

“To perform your duties, you will have others to help you.”

Upon saying this, The Word of Elohim spoke out again.

“Mich-El, Gabri-El, come forth.”

Once again, two lights came into existence, fluttering as the Spirit of God swirled around them.

“Adonai” they uttered as they fell on their faces.

Elohim responded, “Arise, you are B’nai Elohim, sons of God.”

Genesis 2:21-25 Eve, A Model of the Body of Christ.

“And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This [is] now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.”

Pretty straight forward. However, the observant reader must ask, “If G-d created everything else from scratch, then why did he create Eve from the side of Adam?” There must be something else here. We see that from the very beginning, G-d instituted the relationship between the man and the woman as “echad”. Echad is the Hebrew word for one. It is used in the “sh'ma”.

Sh'ma Yis'ra'eil Adonai Eloheinu Adonai echad.

Hear, Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.

This same oneness is modeled by a husband and wife relationship. Haven’t you ever wondered why a monogamous relationship is so important to G-d after Y’shua, when in the Tanakh, it appears that he kind of turned a blind eye to polygamy? Because, it’s not so much about a man and his mate but more about how it represents G-d’s relationship with his people, the Messiah with his bride, the church. Our marriage should represent Agape, a dedicated and totally committed love. No matter what happens within the marriage, you are to be committed to one another. This is the same way that G-d feels about us.

The reason why G-d hates divorce so much is the fact that it makes a mockery of the model.

"Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh"

One of the greatest bonds you have going into the marriage is the one between the man or woman and their parents. G-d tells us here in these verses that we are to make the bond between ourselves and to G-d greater than the one between you and your parents. So great, that we must break our parental bonds if it gets in the way between you and your spouse and G-d. Yeshua drives this point home in Luke 14:26.

“ If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.”

“And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed”

They were innocent as children. That’s all this verse means. It models what Y’shua said in Matthew 18:4.

“Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

Genesis 2:18-20 Help for Adam?

"And the LORD God said, [It is] not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought [them] unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that [was] the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him. "

Most of us were taught that G-d made Adam and then he created Eve. However, here we find that the animal on land and the animals of the air were created before Eve. Also, we have a timeline to help us determine when this happened. Chapter one tells us that these animals were created on the sixth day.

I have heard from friends that they’re not sure if they agree with my assertion that Adam and mankind were two different creations as I have stated in previous entries of this blog. However, here we have another entry that just doesn’t jive if we believe that the account of the creation of Adam and mankind as one in the same.

Here in chapter two, we have G-d creating Adam then the animals. However, in chapter one, we read that the animals were created then mankind. If you believe in the inerrancy of the Word of G-d and that Adam and mankind were one in the same, then this should bother you. The only way out of this would be that Adam was created, then the animals and then mankind, male and female. What are you thoughts?

Also, we find that Adam gave the names to all the animals of the field and the air. How about the sea animals. Were they included in with these animals or did G-d name them himself? That will be one of the questions I'll ask when I get there. Is there a reason that the naming of the sea animals were left out of this creation account? I think it's super important....just curious.

G-d knew that the animals were not enough to keep Adam from getting lonely, so he create another. G-d, in his foreknowledge, knew there had to be another person, like Adam, in order to be representative of a model for us. We explore that in the next entry. Thanks again for joining me in studying the precious Word of G-d.

Genesis 2:16-17 One Simple Commandment

"And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die."

One simple commandment, don’t eat of the tree in the middle of the garden. As you read this, please keep in mind that G-d directly commands Adam, not Eve. Eve has not been created. Is this important? Never know. Just keep it in mind. Also, notice that the tree of life was not included in this commandment. Adam and Eve enjoyed a life free of death. They would have lived forever.

Back to the tree of good and evil. Was it a tree that would automatically give the eater knowledge of good and evil? I don’t believe so. It was simply an object lesson. Pure and simple, once someone was commited to eat of the tree, they would have, with fore thought and contemplation, disobeyed G-d and that is what evil is, disobeying G-d.

Genesis 2:10-2:15: And a river went out of Eden

“And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.”

The river came from Eden, going eastward, and flowed into the garden. After it left the garden, it split into four separate rivers. As a side note, it must be mentioned that the Word of God never says that Eden was a land. It could be a body of water, even though I believe it to be land. But I could be wrong.

“The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates.”

Ancient records show the rivers are Tigris, The Nile and Red Sea, Ganges and Indus in India and the Euphrates. Unfortunately, we live in a post flood world. The flood dramatically changed the landscape but we are looking for a river that fed all four. I hate to say the obvious, but we are still looking.

“And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.”

It is interesting to note that most everyone would say that they envision Adam being created from the dust of the garden. That’s not what the bible says. G-d took Adam and put him into the garden. If Adam was created from the garden, it would have been phrased differently. Adam was created out of the dust of the primordial earth and place in the garden, in order to take care of it.

At this moment, it was either the end of the second day or part way through the third.

Genesis 2:9-10: Where is the garden?

“And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. “

Keep in mind that this was before herbs and the trees…most likely on the third day. At this time, G-d made to grow every tree that is pleasant to look upon and that was good for food. These were only fruit trees, ones that would be able to sustain life. And in the center of the garden was the infamous tree of life and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. The garden was a paradise in the midst of primordial earth. Outside there was nothing, no trees, no life as we know it.

“And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.”

There is a distinction that needs to be made here. A river from Eden went out of Eden to water the garden. Think about it. The water that fed the garden came from a land called Eden, but the garden was not in Eden. So why do we call it the Garden of Eden.? G-d continues to call it the Garden of Eden through his word. Before we go any further, we must revisit verse 2:8.

“And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden…”

If you look at the Hebrew, you’ll find that the word “in” isn’t there. Instead we find the words “min-nee”, which means “out of”. The verse should read,

“And the LORD God planted a garden eastward out of Eden…”

With that said, God planted a garden, a paradise east of Eden, which was watered by one river from the Land of Eden. It may have been attached to Eden, or adjacent to Eden, but G-d wanted us to know it was not part of Eden. The question that I ponder and ask anyone who reads this is, "Why would G-d want us to associate the garden with the land of Eden.?" Nothing is in the Bible that does not have a reason. Our mission is to explore his word to find out and gain a more intimate knowledge of our creator.

As the river leaves this garden just to the east of Eden, it splits into four separate rivers, which we will discuss next time.

Genesis 2:6-8: But there went up a mist from the earth

But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.

Let’s look at what this chapter is saying so far. In verses 1-3, G-d has finished the creation process and he rested on the seventh day. In verses 4 and 5, we see the births of man. As we discussed previously, man was created on the sixth day. They were told to be fruitful and to multiply. That….we will call birth #2. For here in Genesis 2, we have a birth of a man that was before day six. I believe it was day three because it fits the model of the second Adam, Y’shua. This is birth #1.

This is not what most people are taught within the church today. This misquided notion causes many people to falter in their belief that there is no discrepancies within the Word of G-d. A belief that rises out of a simple question, “Where did the people come from that Cain was afraid of?” An honest and close look at the Word of G-d gives that answer and more. Quit perpetuating the traditions you have been taught. Speak G-ds truth.

Now, on this earth, there was no rain. There was a mist that rose up from the earth to water the land. This is amazing, here we have G-d watering the infant plants with the best irrigation delivery system, a mist. How did G-d know? ;-)

In addition, we have G-d planting a “gaw-nan”, a hedged garden, called Eden, in the midst of this barren earth. G-d did create trees, herbs and grass, but this is 1-3 days before that. Here we have an oasis, called Eden.

Interesting, we have a word that still puzzles me slightly, “eastward”. It this direction referenced by G-d from the point of creation or is it being used by Moses to orientate his readers? Or am I looking too deep?

Genesis 2:4-5 The Beginnings???? of Man

These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,
There are two schools of thought concerning this verse. One says that this is concluding the creation story. Period. End of thought. Carriage change.

The second is the one that makes the most sense. Verses 1-3 is the conclusion of the generalized creation story. This verse is introducing a specific occurrence that played out from sometime in chapter one and carries onward beyond the seven days of creation.

Please notice also the Hebrew word, to-led-aw, which is translated as generations. It also can mean histories or births. I honestly prefer histories or births. By the way, it is plural. If your bible has a singular noun, correct it, it is wrong. More interesting is what it implies, two possibly separate histories or births. Also, the word implies births or histories of human families. As we discuss the rest of the chapter, it will become more evident of the implications of this word.

“… in the day” simply means it has its origin within the first six days of creation.

And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.

Wow!!!! Please notice the time. G-d gives us a time window that these births or histories began. They have their beginnings during the time BEFORE the plants and herbs began to grow. That means these histories have their beginning on or before day three, possiblly on day two. I honestly think it was day three. This is very important to remember as we go along. This is before man.

Until next time, enjoy the implications of this and how it compares to what you have been taught.

Genesis 2:1-3 The Seventh Day

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

It is interesting to note that the heavens and the earth were completed. There was nothing else to be or can be created. That is what the laws of Physics tells us. The law of conservation of energy states that the total amount of energy in an isolated system remains constant. A consequence of this law is that energy cannot be created nor destroyed and we are all a form of energy. Once again, the bible teaches us a concept that took man till recently to recognized or accept.

The Hebrew word, “tsaw-baw” translated here as host means an army of soldiers or servants. As beloved as we are, we should never forget that we were created as servants or soldiers in G-ds army. Furthermore, whether you were born at the time of Adam or in recent years, the real you were created during or possibly before the first six days of creation. The fact is that you have been alive and have been known by G-d from before the beginning of time.

God, who hath saved us, and , not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the time began…

II Timothy 1:9

You are now being called to active duty in the army of G-d. Stand up and be counted.

The seventh day, the Shabbat, the Sabbath, the day of rest. This is historically the last day of the week. On the Jewish calendar, it is from dusk on Friday to sunset on Saturday. This is derived from the chapter we just studied. Since G-ds Word says, “And the evening and the morning were the first day.”, the Jews understand that G-d intended the day to begin at dusk and end the following sunset. It has been standardized as approximately 6PM to 6PM. This day is to honor G-d and the work he had done in creating his people and their environment.

Are we supposed to honor G-d in keeping his day holy? Yes. Do we as Christians honor G-d by honoring his day? Most of the time, no. Most will defend themselves by quoting the book of Hebrews.

“Jesus fulfilled the Sabbath.”

“Do not hold any day above another.”

“Today is the Sabbath.”

On the cross, Y’shua fulfilled the Sabbath thereby eliminating the ramifications arising from disobeying the law. However, Y’shua did not eliminate the law and your obligation to follow it. In other words, is the body of Christ going to be judged according to the law? No. Should the body of Christ have a desire to follow the law? Yes!!!!! What it comes down to this:

If you are a b’nai Elohim, a child of G-d, then you should have a desire to follow G-ds law. Honor the Sabbath, keep it holy. Honor the fulfillment of the Sabbath, observe today as the Sabbath. If you do not, then you might want to re-evaluate your position within the body of Christ.

Genesis 1:27-31 The Sixth Day Part Three

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

Now comes the controversy. It says here that G-d created man, man and female and he told them to multiply and replenish the earth. This was on the sixth day of creation. My question to you: Is this Adam and Eve or Mankind in general? Some believe this is Adam and Eve. They rationalize thier position by declaring that chapter one is a generalized verson of creation and chapter two is a more specific version. Let's follow this line of thinking to it's end and determine it's ramifications.

First G-d tells Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply. Did they obey? No they didn't. It wasn't until after the fall and their banishment from the garden did they begin to have children. Therefore, their disobedience would have been thier first sin, not giving in to Satan in the garden as the bible teaches. This is strike one against this verse being just Adam and Eve.

Then, of course is the "generations" comment in Genesis 2:4, which appears to support this position.

These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,

This appears to be saying that which follows, the Adam and Eve account, is happening on the third day, just before the herbs and the plants of the field sprung forth out of the ground. This would mean that G-d created Adam on or before the third day.

It is a fact that the Adam and Eve account in chapter two includes the fall and their banishment from the garden. If chapter two fits neatly into the sixth day, then verse 31 should be a problem for you.

And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

I doubt it very much if G-d would have created Adam and Eve, watched Satan successfully tempt them and watched them fall from his grace and call it very good. I'm sorry that's not going to happen. That's strike two and three and you're out of here.

So what's the alternative? Well... Let's try this on for size. G-d created mankind, man and female, and told them to be fruitful and replenish the earth. Either on that day or back on the third day, G-d planted the garden of Eden, created Adam and Eve and put them in it. The fall did not occur until after the sixth day, possibly on the seventh day when G-d was resting or later. Sounds confusing, eh? I'll elaborate further on this in chapter two, but first we need to also address the the Hebrew word, "maw-lay", translated here as replenish.

Replenish? Replenish means to fill up AGAIN. If you believe that Adam and Eve were the first ones, then you have to have a problem with this. Why would G-d tell mankind or even just Adam and Eve to fill the earth AGAIN if there weren't anyone on the earth before them? Did G-d misspeak? We all know the answer to that one. This begs the question, "Who was on the earth prior to Adam and Eve or mankind? Is it possible that there was a pre-adamic civilization as we have discussed before?

If I can keep you a little longer, I would like to address the rest of day six. I promise it won't take long.

And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

Here G-d gave mankind the fruit of the land to eat, not the meat of animals. Yes, initially, G-d set up mankind to be vegetarians. However, this was changed in Genesis chapter 8. At that time, mankind was allowed to eat either meat of the vine or meat of the animal with kosher restrictions. This was modified in the book of Acts to what is is today. Mankind is allowed to eat anything that is beneficial to him. Go out and have a good steak.

Genesis 1:26 Sixth Day Part Two

... and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

After creating man, G-d gave dominion over all the earth to man. Dominion is the Hebrew word, "raw-daw" which means to rule over, subjugate, reign. This is a great example of G-ds daily intervention into our lives. Think about it. If it was just man and the animals, the lion or bear would be the rulers over all. However, somehow, the wild animals are afraid of us. That makes absolutely no sense. Honestly, what have they to be afraid of? There has to be something that keeps them away for the most part and that is G-ds commandment to stay away and be subject unto man.

Except for the minor instances where a wild animal attacks a human, they stay away and in fact, they are afraid of us. G-d has given us authority over all creation, but with authority comes responsibility and we have not done very well in that category. I'm not advocating being an extreme environmentalist but remember Y'shua's golden rule, do unto others as you would have them do unto you. That tells us where we should land in our responsibility when dealing with nature. My thoughts are that we should land somewhere between not shooting animals for sport and a good steak on the table.

Genesis 1:24-26 The Sixth Day Part One

And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:

As with the fifth day, the animals were created to live on dry land. Why the sea animals first, then the land animals? I don't know. That will be one of those questions we'll ask him face to face. However, don't be surprise if the answer is that somebody had to be first. Nothing more than that.

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:

And so the controversy continues.... This verse is another one that points to the multi-dimensionality of Elohim. Does this mean the Father, son and the Holy Spirit? Yes and most likely more. As mentioned before, the concept of the Trinity is not in the Bible and limits a limitless G-d. However, as far as our reality is concerned, Elohim wishes that we see him at least as a triune God. With that said, here we have the Father, Yeshua and his Holy Spirit creating man in his own image. Yes...his own image. Even though he is at least a triune God, he is one as the Sh'ma says.

What is his image? We are created as body, mind, spirit and soul. Is this what G-d looks like? Because of our sin, we are limited to a four dimensional existance, three spacial and one time. Therefore, G-d reveals himself to us as a three spatial dimensional God. The time dimension is his eternal existence exactly as ours. However, we will enjoy a multi-dimensional spatial existence just like G-d in our post resurrection body. Being returned to a mult-dimensional existence, is all part of being redeemed. Thank you Adonai.

Genesis 1:20-23 The Fifth Day

And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl [that] may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his 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 in the earth. And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

Out of the waters came life, the first life upon this earth. The first life were the minute creatures of the sea. Now most believers will object to this because they believe that the whale was the first creature G-d created. However, the truth is in the details. It's important to take notice of the small details within G-ds Word. This verse is a good example of why.

Please notice that the bible tells us that, "....God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life." Then afterwards in the same verse, it says, "God created great whales...". The Hebrew word for moving creature is "Shehrets" which means, a swarm of minute animals. The bible tells us here that G-d created an enormous amount of small creatures. This cannot be whales. No matter how you look at it, whales are not minute animals of the sea. Therefore, G-d made an enormous amount of small creatures first to feed the whale which came afterwards. If you think about it, this interpretation makes perfectly good sense, because whales require between 8,000 and 340,000 lbs of food during their feeding season. That's an abundant amount of minute creatures.

G-d also created the birds that fly in the sky. Please notice that the bible says that it is the open firmament of the shamayim, the heavens, in which the birds fly. This is the part of the heaven in which everyone can survive, not outer space or the upper levels of heaven. Once again, this shows the Word of G-d is not naive or erroneous about what the actual make up or what occurred during the formation or creation of the earth. Of course, G-d told his creation to go and multiply and become self sufficient.

One last note: All creatures were multiplied after its own kind. It says it right here. G-d used the same material to create all living creatures, therefore all of G-ds creation will have similar genetic make up. This doesn't mean we all came from the same cell. My recommendation to the evolutionists would be quit wasting your time on finding the "missing link". The missing link that connects all things is G-d. I wouldn't mind the evolutionists wasting their own time. However, it's our money they're wasting trying to prove nothing more than their belief that G-d doesn't exist.

Genesis 1:14-19 The Fourth Day

And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

The Hebrew word, meh-o-raw, translated as lights, is better translated as a luminous body or luminary. This is not to be confused with the Hebrew word, ore, translated as light in verses 3-5. Websters defines luminous as radiating or reflecting light; shining; bright,lighted up or illuminated; well-lighted. This is not a source of light, but one that reflects light from a light source. This is very interesting considering the recent "Bill Nye, the Science Guy" incident in Waco, Texas.

Mr. Nye ridiculed the bible and those who believe in a literal translation of the bible. He indicated that the bible was wrong because it says that the moon is a source of light. Wrong......The bible says that the moon and sun reflects the light from another source. Mr. Nye said that the bible indicates that the sun is the source of light. In reality and as the bible truly says, the sun reflects or gives off the light from another source, a nuclear reaction. Once again, interpreters of science, not science itself, are wrong and the bible proves out as the more correct source of truth.

Any way these luminaries are not only the sun and moon but the stars also. The sun is to rule over the day while the moon and stars rule over the night. Guess what...that's exactly what science and nature proves out. Who would've thought?

Simply put, on day four, G-d created and set the sun, moon and stars in the firmament. This firmament is not the sky as some try to erroneously state. This is the firmament of the heavens. After day two, G-d refers to the sky as the open firmament as seen in verse 20. Next time, we'll dig a little deeper into that. Also, this is not the light mentioned during day one. The sun, moon and stars reflect or gives off the light created on day one.

I like this because we can looked at this verse as a parable or similitude. The light that shines out from us is not our light. We reflect the light that shines within us. The light from the one and only son. Pun intended.

Genesis 1:11-13 The Third Day, Part Two

And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the third day.

In this verse, we see the first vegetation appear on the planet. There are some that say this shows that the bible is in error because vegetation cannot grow without the sun and the sun wasn't created until the following day, the 4th day. First of all, if we believe in an all powerful G-d, then it is not beyond his capability to cause anything to grow under any circumstance. However, the non believers do have a point. G-d does not frivolously violate his laws of physics.

Vegetation will not grow under normal circumstances without light. This does not necessarily require the sun, which is one source of light, and light was created on the first day. All kinds of vegetation is grown daily without the sun. In the basements of thousands of people, with the help of artificial light, many plants are grown. To set the record straight, there was light for vegetation to grow, two days before these verses.

The next thing that should be noticed is the fact that the vegetation was the first of its kind. This brings to the mind, the age old question, "What came first the chicken or the egg?". The biblical answer is quite simple, the chicken. The answer is right here. The vegetation came first then it produced its seed to propagate. The same with the chicken. The chicken came first, then it laid an egg. Its impossible, under normal circumstances, for the egg to have the chicken. As silly as it sounds, these types of questions are bantered about everyday. This shows that the answers to everyday questions can be found in the Word of G-d. But you knew that.

It doesn't say it, specifically, here, but Adam and the garden was most likely created on the third day. How do I know that? Look ahead to chapter two, verses 4&5, as to when the Garden of Eden was planted and when Adam was put into it.

Genesis 1:9-10 The Third Day, Part One

And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.

The third day of creation begins with G-d causing the earth to rise up out of the waters. Notice how the waters were gathered in one place. This tells us that the original earth, had no separate oceans, seas, lakes etc. There was one piece of land and one sea or ocean. Scientists tell us the same thing. Our science books tell us that the all of the land on earth was one continent. They call it Pangea. Here is a map, courtesy of Wikipedia


If the animation doesn't work, go to http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Pangea_animation_03.gif
Notice that G-d said that the third day was good in verse 10 implying that he blessed it. If you read ahead, you will see that he does it a gain in verse 12, therefore blessing the third day twice. I leave you with a question. Why did he bless the third day twice and didn't bless the second day at all?

Genesis 1:6-8 Let There Be A Firmament, Part Three

We have determined that this verse says exactly what most science books say. The primordial earth had an expanse (firmament), water above the firmament and below the firmament. We find out within the next verse that the land was below the waters under the firmament.

As discussed earlier, the firmament can be translated poetically as a solid dome. I don't want to make fun of those who ridicule those of us that believe in the literal interpretation of G-ds Word. However, the fact that they make fun of this "solid dome" idea reveals either their ignorance, inability to perform a simple research or desire to refute anything that supports the idea of a creator. Otherwise, it shows how deeply devoted they are to their god, the god of this world, Satan.

All they have to do is simply look at a Hebrew dictionary and find the word, raw-kee'-ah and it's definition. Yes, again it could be poetically translated as a solid dome. However, poetically is a great way of saying that the firmament is like something, let's say a solid dome. For the naysayers that don't understand or refuse to understand, this means it's like a solid dome, but not a real solid dome.

Wow.....once again, (dripping with sarcasm) that's what the science books say. Look what happens when anything attempts to enter our atmosphere, firmament. It burns up.

"For billions of years, our atmosphere has been:

A shield against bombarding meteorites
A shade against destructive ultraviolet radiation
A blanket against the cold"

http://forces.si.edu/atmosphere/02_04_00.html

It protects us like a shield from dangerous rays.

"The atmosphere protects life on Earth by absorbing (taking) ultraviolet radiation from the sun, and balancing the temperature on earth between day and night.The atmosphere protects life on Earth by absorbing (taking) ultraviolet radiation from the sun, and balancing the temperature on earth between day and night. "

http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere

Last but not least, the firmament, translated as expanse goes from our land and water up through the waters and extends or expands through all of creation, making up the universe. I'm not kidding, look it up. That's exactly what the word means. Once again, and what a good note to end on, that's what the science books say. The universe expands and continues to expand today. As a matter of fact, science tells us that the universe consists of three spatial dimensions and an additional seven dimensions rolled up like a garden hose. That's what the bible says in Isaiah 34:4.

"...the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll"

Thanks science, you are proving the Word of G-d on a daily basis. By the way, look what G-d decided to name this expansion, HEAVENS. It you didn't notice that's heavens with an "s" meaning multiple levels. That's important to remember the further we get into the creation account.

Genesis 1:6-8 Let There Be A Firmament, Part Two

And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.

Many of the naysayers insult those who believe in the literal interpretation of the Word of G-d, especially in this verse. They say we are too naive and stupid because we take it literally. They also try to add to our interpretation and again say it's stupid and uneducated. They say that there's no way there could be a solid dome of water above the firmament, known as the sky.

First of all, the bible never says there's a literal solid dome. Secondly, the solid dome interpretation is use in the poetic or figurative sense. The sad thing is that all these "educated scholars" had to do is look at a Hebrew dictionary. As for the firmament and the waters above and below, let's take it from their textbooks.

"If we assume that volcanoes five billion years ago emitted the same gasses as they do today, the earth's second atmosphere probably consisted of water vapor, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen. These gasses were expelled from the earth's interior by a process known as outgassing. "

"The vast amounts of water vapor expelled by the volcanic earth resulted in the formation of clouds which, in turn, produced rain. Over a period of thousands of years, the rain accumulated as rivers and lake and ocean basins."

Check it for yourselves. http://ess.geology.ufl.edu/HTMLpages/ESS/GLY1033_notes/lecture1.html

Wow....That's as simple as it gets...and that's exactly what the bible says... no more ...no less. There was water below and above the firmament. Why do the naysayers continually misstate our interpretation? Because it's not the truth they want, it's the glorification of their god that they desire.

NOTE TO THE NAYSAYERS: Quit adding to and taking away from G-ds Word in a vain attempt to advance your agenda. Do you hate G-d that much? One thing we all can take to the bank is the fact that whether or not you believe in G-d, we all will stand one day before the throne of G-d and give an accounting. Are you comfortable enough with your postion that you can argue it before the creator?

As for the firmament being a dome "of protection", why not? Think about it. Think about what you know about our atmosphere. We'll discuss this tomorrow.

Genesis 1:6-8 Let There Be A Firmament, Part One

And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

There are many naysayers that condemn the Word of G-d based on this verse. Over the next couple of days, we will dig into this verse and dispel its controversy.

To start out, the Hebrew word, rawkeeah, translated as firmament can be interpreted as an expanse or a solid dome. Which one is correct? Can both be correct? After we are through, you are going to ask, "What was the big deal about this verse? Why all the controversy? I'm going to tip my hand and tell you that both interpretations are correct and shows that there has to be a G-d and he is in control.

Genesis 1:5 G-d called the light day.

And G-d called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.

Pretty self explanatory, G-d decided to call light by the name, Day. In Hebrew, it is yom. He also decided to call the darkness, night. Most will say that this proves that G-d was simply talking about a period of light and one period of night and both equals one day. No argument here. G-d intends us to look at this as one yom and that is good enough for me. G-d said it....I believe it.

As a side note, is it a 24 hour day? We can say with an utmost certainty that is was not. It is a fact that the earths daily rotation has been slowing down since sin entered into this world. Estimates within the scientific community inform us the days in the distant past range from 14 to 22 hours long.

The problem arises when you try to stretch that one day all the way back to verse one. Is it possible? Yes. Can we say with absolute assurance? N0. Others will say it proves all happened in one day because the same words are used. Again, possible but not absolute. What is the problem with exploring all possibilities as long as it doesn't go against the Word of G-d? Doesn't that say something about the PRIDE and arrogance of man, who thinks he has it all figured out and has all the answers?

Whether you believe it all happened in one day or over many years, doesn't it all come down to the fact that G-d did it all, and do you believe it?

In closing, one thing does keep me wondering and praying about it. Have you ever wondered why darkness or night is associated with evil, destruction, bleakness, etc., while light is associated with G-d, goodness, truth, etc. Could it be that these relationships have their origins to what could have possibly happened between verse one and two? Could it be that G-d wants it memorialized? Would that be just like our G-d?

As we keep our minds open to and discuss all possibilities supported by scripture, there is one thing we can rely on. G-d will explain it to us on the way up.

Genesis 1:4 God divided the light from the darkness.

... and G-d divided the light from the darkness.

What an interesting statement. A statement that has confused many scholars. Please don't take this as arrogance, but it's not that hard. Once again, the confusion comes from looking at it from our point of view.

First the confusing part. What is this light that is being discussed here. Many scholars have decreed that it is the sun, totally ignoring the fact that the sun was placed in the heavens to rule over the day on the fourth day. This teaching has caused many to doubt the unerring word of G-d and has set us up for ridicule within the scientific world. It's not that I care about being in conflict with the scientific community. No....its when we deliberately misinterpret the information and stubbornly announce it to the world as godly truth while disregarding the scriptures to the contrary.

Remember, G-d created the atoms. He then assembled them in specific arrangements that make up everything around us. This is the same with light. G-d created the atom arrangement to allow light to shine. A very simple concept. God created simply light. We as humans have a problem separating light from the sources of light. What happens to the light that shines out from our sun after it leaves. It continues on it's merry way throughout the universe. What happens to the light if somehow our sun goes dark. It continues on it's merry way throughout the universe. Light is a separate entity from sources of light, such as the sun. Once again, we have difficulties separating the parts that make up the whole. G-d doesn't. He sees his creation as individual parts and as mention in the last blog, he knows them intimately.

Now the dividing part. We know that, within this universe, there are very strong forces, some that are strong enough to prevent light from shining. They are called black holes. We have observed that anything, including light, cannot escape the effects of a black hole. Some scientists have speculated that it was from a black hole, a singularity, the universe sprang to life.

G-d called light out from the basic building blocks and then separated it from the rest to allow it to shine. It is from this light formula, it I can say it that way, that G-d created the sun, stars and everything that gives off light, but that's not until the fourth day.

Genesis 1:4 And G-d saw the light, that it was good.

And G-d saw the light, that it was good:

In the traditional rendering of this verse, we see that G-d saw the light, which he just created and declared that it was good. However, by looking at the Hebrew, we can dig a little more detail out of what’s happening at the moment in time.

Raw-aw Elohim ayth ore kee tobe

Looking at the root meaning of the Hebrew word Raw-aw, which was translated as “saw”, we see that it could as easily be translated as gazed. This word usually means that whoever or whatever the one was gazing at, triggered an inward or outward, emotional response of joy or respect. Therefore raw-aw should be translated as “gazed joyfully or gazed upon with respect." Since reacting with joy towards someone normally implies respecting the other person, then the correct translation could be, “gazed joyfully”.

Elohim ayth is very controversial. Within the Jewish community, ayth is simply injected into the sentence in order to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition. While within the Messianic community, it has additional meaning when combined with the name of G-d or any pronoun referencing G-d. As mentioned in an earlier blog, ayth is comprised of the letters Alef and Tav, A and Z, the Alpha and the Omega, a name which points to Y’shua, the Son of G-d.

To back up the Messianic position, we pose this question. If ayth was simply injected into the sentence in order to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, then why isn’t used every time? The answer is the fact that G-d’s multi-dimensional existence expresses itself at times and he wants the reader to be aware.

Because G-d was overjoyed at seeing light, the word of G-d, Y’shua, was expressed. The same happens when a mother gazes at her newborn child and expresses her joy in seeing the beauty of new life she was given and says “Isn’t she so beautiful?”. Does that make her joyous expression a separate person? No. It is simply a verbal manifestation of her joy. The fact that G-d can either express himself verbally, or as a physical manifestation totally impresses me and leaves me in awe. Should we not expect this type of thing from our G-d who is all powerful and whose presence touches all things at all times? Why do we love to limit G-d and try to put him into a box?

After beckoning light to come forth, G-d was assured that it was good or alright. That can be seen in the alternate translation of the Hebrew words, kee tobe, which is traditionally written as, “That it was good”. Kee can alternately mean “assured of”, while Tobe can mean, “well being, welfare, happiness, good, etc.

We see that looking at the scriptures, under a different light, can give us a deeper insight into
G-d, his personality and how he relates to his creation, especially us. Finally, this verse can be expressed as:

Elohim, especially Y’shua, gazed joyfully upon light, assured as to it’s well being.

You can easily insert your name in the place of light in this verse.

G-d wants you to know that he gazes joyfully upon you every moment of the day, assured of your well being in Y’shua.

Genesis 1:3 Let there be Light?

And G-d said, Let there be light: and there was light.

In Hebrew,

Awmar Elohim, "hawyaw ore", hawyaw ore .

More specifically, Elohim called out, "Illumination.....come into this existence", and light came.

This verse, like so many others are read over lightly, ignoring some really interesting things about G-d. Things that allow us to gain a more intimate relationship with G-d.

Notice the word "Awmar" which is translated as said. Awmar is word used to call out to someone or something that has an ability to respond. It's like a master calling out to his pet dog and it responds instantly, not so much out of obedience but out of a desire to be next to the one whom he loves more than anything or anyone. This word tells us that illumination or light is something that G-d is very familiar with and calls by name.

We are taught that everything in the creation story are new things created by G-d. Even though there are new things created, there are obviously some are old friends, such as "light".

What a fantastic relationship.... and this is the same kind of relationship you and I have with the creator. He has known you for a long time.

Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee.
Jeremiah 1:5

The biggest problem is we can't hear his voice and respond through our sin influenced ears. However, as we grow closer to him, our ears begin to hear his voice.

One parting comment for this blog: Everyone thinks that this light is our sun. How can this be since the sun wasn't made until the fourth day?

Genesis 1:2 And the Spirit of G-d moved upon the face of the waters.

Whether or not, Genesis 1:2 is translated

And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.

Or

But the earth had become a place of ruin, and destruction was upon the face of the abyss

The earth required further molding or reconstruction. At the end of this verse, we find G-ds Spirit enveloping the earth like a hen sits on her egg.

And the Spirit of G-d moved upon the face of the waters.

The word translated here as “moved” is the Hebrew word, rawkhaf, which means to brood, flutter, move or shake.

If you can imagine the Spirit of G-d fluttering like a field of extreme energy around the earth, then you have a pretty good picture of G-ds power at work forming the earth into what it is today.

I have always enjoyed envisioning G-d at this moment in time. It gives me an assurance of the almighty power of the creator. The neat thing here is the fact that it required a small amount of his power and time to do what he had done so far, a representation of an awesome and mighty G-d, the G-d that has claimed us as his own.

Genesis 1:2 ...and darkness was upon the face of the deep.

... and darkness was upon the face of the deep.

In the traditional rendering of this verse, we are looking at an unformed earth covered with water just before the forming process. However, in the alternate translation, it could be read as,

"... and misery, destruction and death was upon the face of the abyss, a roaring, surging mass of water."

which is obtained by the root meanings of the words, "khoshek" translated simply as darkness in the traditional interpretation and "teh-home" which is translated as deep. However, these words can be translated as "destruction and death" and "abyss, a roaring, surging mass of water."

This just happens to compliment the alternate version of the beginning of the Genesis 1:2. Once again, this verse has been a source of controversy for a long time and supports the idea of a pre adamic civilization. The problem with this version is the fact that it conflicts with man being first to fall and bringing sin into this world.

Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: Roman 5:12

Rebuttal to this argument is the alternate rendering of Romans 5:12.

Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into this kosmos (orderly arrangement), and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Those in this camp argue that kosmos may imply the world but only within this existence. It means an orderly arrangement. The fact that the verse says, "this kosmos" shows that there could be another kosmos which was destroyed by God, a world that could have seen Satan and his followers judged after being kicked out of heaven.

Let me finished by saying that regardless of the version you believe, both are viable renderings of this verse based on the Hebrew. There will be some who will insult those who hold the opposite belief. My recommendation is to ignore the insults but always be open to other side. This is how G-d will teaches you by causing you to dig deep into his Word.

Closed minds and hanging onto traditional thought leads to no growth.

Genesis 1:2 And the earth was without form and void? Part Four

Shalom, I hope everyone had a peaceful Sabbath.

In continuing our discussion concerning Genesis :2, the other translation for this verse is the traditional rendering of "And the earth was without form and void. It this is what the verse intended to say, then it is a simple continuation of Genesis 1:1.

In Genesis 1:1, God creates the earth and the universe. And in Genesis 1:2 he then takes this unformed planet and began to mold it into the earth we know today, or something similar.

As mentioned in our last four blogs, there are problems with this translation.

1. It does not allow for the geological ages.
2. Its does not give a timeline for when Satan and the fallen angels.

and that's just a couple.

However, just because it doesn't explain these things, doesn't mean that it is incorrect. There is no solid irrefutable proof that the geological ages span the millions of years that the scientists want to accept as truth. Time estimates come from methods like carbon dating, which is inconsistent at best and the fact that certain artifacts and skeletal remains were found in layers of earth dated by unreliable methods. They determine the age a layer of earth by methods such carbon dating and then say that the skeletal remains are that old because they were found within that layer. This is not good science. Especially when everyone is told that the earth is ever changing with plate tectonics, earthquakes, other natural disasters such as flooding and volcanic eruptions.

Also, scientist wishes us to except the fact that the universe is approximately 15 billion years old based on the speed of light. They say that because the speed of light is constant, they can reliably ascertain the time in which the light from the farthest star took to reach the earth and wah-lah, that's the age of the universe. However, they ignore the fact that the speed of light could be slowing down. If true, then that throws all kinds of time estimates into the realm of doubt, such as carbon dating.

Later in the discussion of 6 days versus 15 billion years, we will discuss the fact of the speed of light possibly slowing down and its ramifications.