Doc Notes Gleanings from Genesis Lesson 2 part 1

Gleanings from Genesis Lesson 2 part 1

Dear Gentle Reader,

Last time we saw that the dominant idea of the Book of Genesis is the sovereignty of God. We noted that the Book falls in two main parts the first part we have four outstanding events: The creation, The Fall, The flood, the Babel dispersion. The second part we have four outstanding persons Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph. Now let us briefly review the four super events of part one.

The Creation

First we go back to Chapters 1 & 2 to that transcendent initial event The Creation. In the opening verse of the book we read In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Gen 1:1) Heaven and earth have not existed from all eternity, but had a beginning; nor did they arise by emanation from an absolute substance, but were created by God. This sentence, which stands at the head of the records of revelation, is not a mere heading, nor a summary of the history of the creation, but a declaration of the primeval act of God, by which the universe was called into being.

This is not a human theory it is a Divine “testimony” In Psalm 93:5 we read “Thy testimonies are very sure: holiness becometh thine house, O LORD, for ever”. (Psa 93:5) the Word of God testifies concerning truths which are above the unaided intelligence of man, and beyond the farthest reach of human investigation. Genesis 1:1 is the first such “testimony” There is a difference between a theory and a “testimony” or “witness” A theory deals the interpretation of facts. A witness deals with the facts themselves. It is vital to realize that this opening verse of Scripture is not merely the first postulate of a human philosophy, but the first testimony of a Divine revelation. It is the first great truth which god would man to know. [hence while not the oldest book written, Job is much older, Genesis because of what God wants known comes first] Man could not know this great truth apart from Divine revelation. We accept it as such, believing with the psalmist that “ . . . the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. (Psa 19:7).

We should also notice that this testimony from our Creator stands sublime in its simplicy. There is no definition of God, no description of creation, and no declaration of date. Positive and complete in itself, it leaves room for all subsequent development in Scripture and all discovery by Science. It is axiomatic. As geometry is built upon certain axiomatic truths, so the one foundation axiom of the Bible is laid down in its first sentence.

Many today profess disbelief in miracles, accept this first sentence of Scripture and there will be little difficulty in accepting all the miracles that follow; for the less are included in the greater. Note also in this first basal pronouncement of Scripture there is a denial of all the principal false philosophies which men have propounded.

“ In the beginning God” - that denies Atheism with its doctrine of no God.

“In the beginning God” - that denies Polytheism * with its doctrine of many gods.

“In the beginning God created” - that denies Fatalism with its doctrine of chance.

“In the beginning God created” - that denies Evolution with its doctrine of infinite becoming.

“God created the heaven and the earth” - that denies Pantheism which makes God and the universe identical.

“God created the heaven and the earth” - that denies Materialism which asserts the eternity of matter.

This first “testimony” of Jehovah is not only a declaration of Divine truth , but a repudiation of human error. In closing this first verse we might point out several other things which will put you one up on most ministers. Verse one in Aramaic reads this way “God created the heavens and the earth in the very beginning” Aramaic is considered the “authentic” Scripture language by the Eastern Orthodox Church.

In the Hebrew Genesis is called Bereshith “in (the) beginning” . Genesis is Greek = generation, creation.

The Law on the number 7 which appears throughout the entire Bible first occurs in Genesis 1:1 and in Hebrew this first verse has 7 letters. The 7 words contain 28 letters (4x7). The first object “the heavens” has 7 letters and the second object “the earth has seven letters. The only other verse in the Pentateuch which has 7 words of 28 letters is Exodus 20: 5:1, which begins the ten Commandments. The Law of seven may also be recognized in Physics, Astronomy, Geology, Colour, Music, Botany and Medicine. It links heaven and earth, and testifies to the Divine inspiration of the Scriptures.

Could any one of the greatest scientists either ancient or modern, make in 7 words a statement of corresponding grandeur with that of the first verse of the Bible and exhibit in its structure the same mysterious force and beauty of this mystic number?

* Note: I am aware that some more advanced students will point out that The word God in our English translation is Singular while in the Hebrew the word with that we translate as God Elohim is in the plural. Our brother Rabbi Del and his lovely partner have covered this issue in a previous post. So I will not cover that issue here. Elohim occurs 2.700 times. Its first occurrence connects it with creation, and give it its essential meaning as the Creator. It indicates His relation to mankind as His creatures (see 2 Chron. 18:31, where it stands in contrast with Jehovah as indicating covenant relationship). 'Elohim is God the Son, the living "WORD" with creature form to create (John 1:1. Col. 1:15-17. Rev. 3:14); and later, with human form to redeem (John 1:14). "Begotten of His Father before all worlds; born of His mother, in the world." In this creature form He appeared to the Patriarchs, a form not temporarily assumed. 'Elohim is indicated "God".

Rather than make you wait any longer (for me to finish on verse two quite interesting) here is verse one for your study pleasure or head scratching which ever come first. Enjoy while I work on putting verse two in some semblance of order for you to begin to understand. If I have not pointed it out before this will not be a verse by verse examination of the Bible (I won’t live that long) but an over view with stops along the way (we’ll call them “rest stops” ) to examine particular points of reference with which you may at a later time want to refer. Also you might want to download these studies for future reference.

Cheers,

Denis

Doc Notes - Part 3 Gleanings from Genesis

Part 3 Gleanings from Genesis

Structure

Gentle reader,

We pointed out previously that all that goes before the third chapter of Exodus was already past when the writing of the Bible began (In fact in of chronology the book of Job would be first written in terms of historicity).

But let us stand, then at that third chapter of Exodus and look back over what has been recorded for us in Genesis, getting the main lines of perspective. It will be readily seen that Genesis is divided into two main parts. All Bible students will agree that the call and response of Abram constitute a quite new departure in the narrative, and mark off the two main divisions of this first book- the first part covering chapters one through eleven, and the second part chapters twelve to fifty.

As this is the case , we can see at once how each part is arranged according to a four fold plan. In the first part we have four outstanding events -the Creation, the Fall, The Flood, the Bable crisis. the second part we have four outstanding persons- Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph . The entire contents of Genesis are arranged around and in relation to these four pivotal events in the one part, and these four pivotal figures in the other.

Seeing the pivotal events and figures of Genesis thrown into bold relief, at once we can quickly perceive also the unifying idea runing through what has been recorded for us. A first prinicipal if you will, begining right at the start of these 66 books. Genesis would have us on our knees in reverent obeisance before God as it exhibits to our eyes, and thunders in our ears, that first truth which is to be learned before all others, in our dealings with god, in our interpretation of history, and in our study of Divine revelation, namely- THE DIVINE SOVEREIGNTY.
Looking back over the four great events of part one, and the four great figures of part two, we see that they constitute an impressive demonstration of Divine Sovereignty. The first of the four events, we have the Divine Soverignty in the physical creation. In the second we have Divine Sovereignty in human probation. In the Third we have Divine Sovereignty in historical retribution. In the forth we have Divine Sovereignty in racial distribution. In these great events we see the Sovereignty of the Creator God first in His eternal Priority, seconed in His Moral authority, third in His judical severity and forth in His Governmental supremacy.

Turning to the second part of Genesis, we see the Sovereignty of God in regeneration. The process of regeneration here outlined stands in sharp contrast to the process of degeneration in the first part of the Book. From Adam to Abraham we see the course of degeneration: first in the individual -Adam-; then in the family -Cain and his descendants; then in the nations-the antediluvian civilization; and then persisting through the race, as such, at Babel.

Then there comes a new departure. We see the process of regeneration operating: first in the individual- Abraham, Isaac, Jacob; then in the family- the sons of Jacob; then in the nation-Israel; all with a view to the ultimate regeneration of the race. In Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob we see Divine Sovereignty in election. Abraham, although the youngest son is chosen in preference to his two elder brothers. Isaac is chosen in preference to Ishmael, the elder son of Abraham. Jacob although second to Esau, is chosen in preference to his brother. Running through it we see the principle of Divine Election. God chooses who He will, in sovereign grace. Then, in the wonderful biography of Joseph, we see the Sovereignty of God in direction, - in the overruling and infallible directing of all happenings, however seemingly contrary, to the predetermined end.

In the case of Abraham we see this sovereign election expressed by a supernatural call for it is clear that God had directly intervened ( Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. Gen 12:1-3)

In the case of Isaac, we see it expressed by a supernatural birth. “And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!”(Gen 17:18) But No! When Abraham is 100 and Sarah 90, the miracle-babe Isaac comes to them.

In the case of Jacob it is shown in supernatural care. First God saves him from Esau’s knife; then meets him at Bethel; prospers him despite Laban’s guile; saves him from the revengeful ire of his brother who comes to meet him with 400 men; and so it goes on, until at last when Jacob is dying, he blesses young Manasseh and Ephraim, “ The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth. (Gen 48:16).

Finally in Joseph, we see the Divine Sovereignty in direction, exhibited in supernatural control, making all happenings to contribute to the predestined issue.
Thus in these four men, we can see a fourfold development- 1) a supernatural call, 2) supernatural birth, 3) supernatural care, 4) supernatural control.
The dominant ideal and the first principle in the book of Genesis is Divine Sovereignty.
Until next time Gentle readers,

Todays question: When Adam and Eve discovered that they were naked before God and clothed themselves with fig leaves. What were they clothed with before?

Denis

Next time we will look at the first 2 verses of Genesis Chapter one and the implications of the principle of “First usage”.

Doc Notes on Genesis Part 2

Gleanings from Genesis (Doc Notes)
This study may be found here http://scripturalstudies.ning.com (A study and social network an outreach of Scripture Institute) Christianity 101 Look for "Doc Notes"



Gentle readers,

We recognize that many wish to suppress the Book of Genesis for many reasons. The very first being if it can be discredited than the whole of the Bible will crumble. I remember a time when the theologian-in-residence from Notre Dame University wished to teach a class that I was in by debunking the veracity of the Bible telling the class that the Bible was full of myths and legends. I remember there was a Baptist pastor and several Roman Catholic Nuns who were in virtual tears over his presentation. When we were ask to make an appointment to come see Him in his office I was the last to go. Upon entering his office I was confronted by a W.C. ( toilet) converted into a planter for flowers. I thought to myself this was appropriate. “Well, Rev. What are you getting out of my class?” To which I replied “me!” “Why would you want to do that?” “Because in this so-called higher Biblical study class, within a short time you will destroy the faith of those who live by faith, you have a Baptist pastor whose whole life is the Bible, and you have 2 Roman Catholic Nuns who have given up their lives in dedication of Christ. And your going to destroy that” “ I am just going to set the record straight” “Yes, I know, your going to take disproved 18th century theories and say that the Old Testament was written and along came JPD and redacted the whole thing. Or you will say that Moses didn’t cross the Red Sea, it was the Reed sea. And I am going to praise God that the Egyptians drowned in six inches of water!” “Wait, stay in class and I give you an A and we’ll have a dialogue, and the rest of the class can listen in.” “I’ll stay if you allow me to stand up the last day of class in the last 30 seconds and hold my Bible over my head and say “I believe this book.” “I can’t do that.” “Why not?” “I’ll lose my tenure"! [status granted to an employee, usually after a probationary period, indicating that the position or employment is permanent.]So much for academic honesty. Although now in retrospection I wish I would have stayed. He had a great deal of knowledge and perhaps I could have put as they say the proper spin on his understanding.

For you see Gentle reader, the book of Genesis contains much more than this theologian understood. It’s values may be technically tabulated. The book contains the foundational truths of theology [natural and revealed], cosmogony, anthropology, sociology, hamartiolgy,[Hamartiology ( Greek: hamartia, "missing the mark," "sin," +, logia, "sayings" or "discourse") is the branch of Christian theology, more specifically, systematic theology, which is the study of sin with a view to articulating a doctrine of it.]
ethnology, ethnology (from the Greek ethnos meaning "people, nation, race") is the branch of anthropology that compares and analyzes the origins, distribution, technology, religion, language, and social structure of the ethnic, racial, and/or national divisions of humanity]
soteriology [Soteriology is the study of the doctrine of salvation. Soteriology discusses how Christ's death secures the salvation of those who believe. It helps us to understand the doctrines of redemption, justification, sanctification, propitiation.]

I use these words with the express purpose of indicating the profound conviction that not only is the first book of our Bible a spiritual book but it is preeminently a scientific book. None of these subjects are dealt with finality, but all are presented fundamentally. Genesis supplies men with the rudiments of the science of God. It offers a theory of the origin of the universe. It says the first things about the science of man. It lays the foundations of the science of society. It reveals the simplest matters of the science of sin. It introduces the study of the science of races, Finally, it presents the initial truths concerning the science of salvation. The living message we discover is that God and man are intimately related. God created man in His own image.

So lets review on the human side we find:
In Genesis Ruin-through the sin of man.

In Exodus Redemption- by “blood” and “power.”

In Leviticus Communion-on the ground of atonement.

In Numbers Direction by the will of God.

In Deuteronomy Destination-through the faithfulness of God.

And on the Divine or Spiritual side

In Genesis we see Divine sovereignty- in creation and election.

In Exodus we see Divine power- in redemption and emancipation.

In Leviticus we see Divine holiness-in separation and sanctification.

In Numbers we see Divine goodness and severity-judging and caring.

In Deuteronomy we see Divine faithfulness-in discipline and destination.

We have in miniature The absolute Creator of the universe who love His creation so much that as we will find unfolding His willingness to sacrifice Himself for the love of His creation.
The Key to Genesis is found in (Gen 3:15) “ 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.”

Next time Gentle reader we will look at the structure of Genesis.

Question for discussion: What did Adam and Eve understand by God saying the “seed of the woman”?

Doc Notes - Genesis and the Pentateuch (part 1)

a study through the entire Bible

Gentle readers,

It is difficult to know where to start this is such a broad topic (imagine the temerity) wanting to teach through the Bible! And under such difficulties (I spend only 20 minutes a day on the computer-because of taking care of Marti-I am not complaining at all but just so you know) God has called me to teach and to preach and to do that I have to study and pray. There is so much I have been taught by our wonderful Lord and Saviour. His word is so deep that the most erudite scholar can not get a total understanding of this momentous work and yet the most simple young believer can understand the wondrous message contained in its pages. Too deep and you’ll drown in grammar, vocabulary, syntax (the way in which words are put together) too easy and you’ll soon turn away with boredom. I write for two groups those who believe and those who have not taken a step forward to commit to following the carpenter from Galilee. Why should one follow such a man? Or for that matter read such a book?

Within the pages of this book we find the absolute Word of God. And on each page His hand is found and His face seen- as the Rev. Joseph Hart once explained

The Scriptures and the Word
Bear one tremendous name,
The Living and the Written Word
In all things are the same

What we find is a KEY that unlocks each book of Scripture and containing within for each of us a living message from the Father in Heaven to you and to me. The peculiar value of these ancient writings for the present time is that they inspire hope in those who read them. The sacred writings of the Hebrew people contain stories of men in the midst of conflict and peril. All of these men and women are seen as passing through circumstances of difficulty and danger, with their eyes set upon an ultimate purpose, which they supremely desired to be accomplished. None of them reached the ultimate goal, but they saw from afar and having endured, in their movement towards it, “as seeing HIM Who is invisible. ” The whole message of the Bible for today is endurance and encouragement.

So beginning at the beginning with Genesis. The book is called Bereshit, meaning "in the beginning", from the first word of the Hebrew text, in line with the other four books of the Torah. When the Hebrew Bible was translated into Greek in the 3rd century B.C.E. to produce the Septuagint, the name given was Genesis, meaning "birth" or "origin". This was in line with the Septuagint use of subject themes as book names. The Greek title has continued to be used in all subsequent Latin and English versions of the book, and most other languages.

The Bible opens with the Pentateuch, or the five books of Moses, the name “Pentateuch” (Greek pente, five; and teuchos, book) came to us from the aforementioned Septuagint Version of the Old Hebrew Scriptures (the translation of the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek) which is said to have been made by seventy Alexandrian Jews about as we said before the 3rd century B.C., and is called the Septuagint version from Septuagint, the Latin for seventy. There is good reason however, for believing that before ever the Septuagint Version was made the writings of Moses were recognized as fivefold. The Hebrews called them “the Law” or the “five fifths of the Law” or simply “the fifths.” It is probable that originally the who was one, divided into five sections, each having as its title its first word or words.

There is a spiritual completeness about the Pentateuch. Its five parts not only give us a consecutive history covering the first two thousand five hundred years of written human history; they constitute a progressive spiritual unity, setting forth, in their main features what has been described as “the order of the experience of the people of God in all ages.”

In Genesis we have the ruin through the sin of man. In Exodus we have the redemption through the blood of the lamb and the spirit of power. In Leviticus we have communion on the ground of atonement. In Numbers we have direction during pilgrimage, by the overruling will of God. In Deuteronomy we have the double truth of renewed and completed instruction, and the pilgrim people brought to the pre-determined destination. Is not this truly “the order of the experience of the people of God in all ages”?

But besides this, these first five books of the Old Testament give us unmistakably a progressive fivefold revelation of God in His relationship with His people. In Genesis we see the sovereignty of God in creation and in election (in the choosing of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and their descendants: and in covenanting the land of Canaan to them as their predestined inheritance).
In Exodus we see the redeeming power of God in His deliverance of Israel from Egypt, “with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm.”

In Leviticus we see the holiness of God in His insistence on the separation and sanctification of His redeemed people.

In Numbers we see the “goodness and severity” of God, -severity toward the unbelieving generation which came up from Egypt but never entered the covenanted inheritance, and goodness toward their children, in providing, protecting, and preserving, till Canaan was occupied.

In Deuteronomy we see the faithfulness of God, -faithful to His purpose, His promise, His people, in bringing the redeemed to the promised possession.
So gentle reader, we can see that these five parts of the Pentateuch are full of purpose and progress. They are the Bible in miniature.
Next time we ‘ll look at the human side and the divine side as well as the key and the living message of the Bible.

Till next time you might want to read through the book of Genesis once or twice.

Love,
Denis






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