Genesis 2

• These verses introduce the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible). They teach Israel that one true God created, ordered, and populated the world, not the gods of nearby nations.

• God blessed three specific things:

  • animal life (1:22–25),

  • human life (1:27), and

  • the Sabbath day (2:3).

  These three blessings emphasize the Creator's plan. God made humans in his image to rule in his place over earth's creatures and to join in God's Sabbath rest.

Humans are the most important of God's creation (1:26–31), and day 7 is the most important of the creation week. When God rested, he approved all creation. There was nothing more needed! This seven-day framework structured Israel's week.

The seventh day was the model for their weekly Sabbath. God intended for the Sabbath to celebrate his completed work. God set apart the seventh day as holy. The people dedicated it to the Creator, who also rested on this day (see Exodus 20:8–11; 31:12–17; compare Matthew 12:1–8; Romans 14:5–6; Colossians 2:16–17; Hebrews 4:1–11).

• During the first six days of creation, God separated light from darkness, day from night, and water from dry land. The final act of creation separated the ordinary from the holy. This was the basis for Israel’s worship. It also anticipated a future time of rest (Hebrews 4:1–11; 12:2; 13:14).

• The lack of the usual "evening … morning" phrase shows the creator's desire for endless fellowship with humans.

• This is the account (literally These are the generations; Hebrew toledoth): This phrase appears often in Genesis. It helps outline the book. It usually introduces the family line or story of an important person (5:1; 6:9; 10:1; 11:10, 27; 25:12, 19; 36:1; 37:2).

  Some people think the first part of 2:4 belongs with 1:1–2:3, but it probably introduces the next story.

• LORD God (Hebrew Yahweh Elohim): This is the second name for God in Genesis. Elohim (1:1–2:3) refers to the all-powerful creator God. Yahweh Elohim refers to the eternal God who made a lasting covenant with Israel (Exodus 3:6, 13–15). So, Genesis 2:4–25 focuses on God as a provider more than as a creator.

  The three themes of sexuality, dominion, and food in chapter 1 are now in reverse order (food, 2:8–17; dominion, 2:18–20; sexuality, 2:21–25).

This story (see study note on 2:4) of the heavens and the earth is not a second creation story. Instead, it expands on 1:1–2:3 with more theological and historical details. The focus shifts to what the universe (kosmos) produced rather than on its creation.

Special attention is given to the first man and woman. As the story continues, it is shaped by contrasts such as good and evil, knowledge and ignorance, life and death, and harmony and conflict.

Work does not result from sin. It was part of creation's original design. It has a close link to human identity and purpose (1:28; 2:15).

springs: The word refers to underground water that rises up to the surface of the ground.

• In 1:1–2:3, creation happens by God's command ("Let there be ... And it was so"). This story describes a more personal process of creation (see also 2:8–9, 21–22).

• from the dust of the ground: In Hebrew, 'adamah means "ground." This forms a wordplay on 'adam, which means "man." The earth is a key reference point for humans, who become dust again at death (3:17–19; 4:11; Job 4:19; 10:8–9; Isaiah 29:16).

• breathed the breath of life into his nostrils: God gives his breath only to humans, not to other animals. God made humans in his image (Genesis 1:27) and only they can communicate with their Creator (2:16–17; 3:8–13). They are the only ones with spiritual awareness and a moral conscience (see Job 32:8).

• Eden was the general location in which the garden was placed, not the garden itself. The term could mean "plain," "delight," or "fertility." The description that follows suggests the idea of fertility.

• in the east: The exact location of Eden is unknown. But it was east of Canaan, which later became Israel's home.

• God placed the man in the garden to have a relationship with him and to receive his physical blessings (see also 2:15 and study note there).

Similar to the holy time set on the seventh day of creation (2:2–3), the garden in Eden was a holy place separate from the rest of the world. It was like a garden-temple or sanctuary because the Lord showed his presence there in a special way.

• Beauty and abundance characterized humanity's original environment (see 13:10).

• the tree of life: This represented God's presence and care. Eating from it would give everlasting life (3:22), making it a powerful image for later Israelite and Christian thought (Proverbs 3:18; 11:30; 13:12; Revelation 2:7; 22:2, 14, 19).

  The candlestick in Israel’s tabernacle may have been a stylized representation of the tree of life (Exodus 25:31–35).

• Eating the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil gave humans the ability to be wise (Genesis 3:6) and have moral understanding (3:5, 22; compare Deuteronomy 1:39, “not know good from evil”).

  Eating from it showed a human desire to be independent and have wisdom that belonged to God alone (see Proverbs 30:1–4). Humans ignored God's instruction for moral understanding, showing independence instead of following God's will (compare Proverbs 1:7). Choosing human wisdom over God's instruction brings death and destruction (see Psalm 19:7–9; Ezekiel 28:6, 15–17).

• The river that watered the garden was a physical blessing, bringing fertile land for farming. It also represented God's presence (compare Psalm 46:4; Ezekiel 47:1–12; Zechariah 14:8; Revelation 22:1–2).

• branched into four headwaters: The common understanding is that one river had its source in Eden, flowed down through the garden, and then split into the four rivers named.

This description portrays the eastern region around Eden as a mountain with rivers flowing out to the world. Eden's beauty and fertility enriched the entire earth.

The Pishon and the Gihon (2:13) cannot be identified with certainty. If the land of Havilah was in southeast Arabia or on the African coast, as some biblical data suggest (see 10:7; 25:18; 1 Samuel 15:7), then the Pishon was possibly the Nile River. The Jewish historian Josephus thought that Havilah and the Pishon were in India (Antiquities 1.1.3).

Two other ideas suggest the Pishon and Gihon might be:

1. rivers in the mountains of eastern Turkey, where the Tigris and Euphrates (Genesis 2:14) also flow, and

2. the marshy delta near the Persian Gulf.

Current geographical conditions make it impossible to prove any theory with certainty.

• The garden's beauty and richness spread to nearby areas through its rivers. The four rivers might suggest the garden's bounty reached all parts of the world.

• The Israelites later used gold and onyx to decorate the tabernacle, the temple (Exodus 25:3–9; 1 Chronicles 29:2), and the priests' clothing (Exodus 28:9–14, 20).

• The people used bdellium (a fragrant resin) in sacred incense (Exodus 30:34).

• Gihon: The exact location is unknown, but some think it could be the Nile River or the Jordan River (as in the Greek version of Jeremiah 2:18; Josephus, Antiquities 1.1.3). Or according to Jewish tradition, it could be a river that once flowed through the Kidron Valley (1 Kings 1:33; 2 Chronicles 33:14).

• Although Cush often refers to ancient Ethiopia, the immediate setting here seems to be a region in Mesopotamia connected with Babylon (see 10:8). Cush may refer to the land of the Kassites, a people who ruled in Babylonia.

Tigris … Euphrates: These well-known rivers flow from the mountains of eastern Turkey.

to cultivate and keep it: The garden needed care and management. Caring for the garden was humanity's honorable work. The Scriptures later apply these roles in God's garden-sanctuary to his tabernacle (see Leviticus 8:35; Numbers 3:5–10; 4:46–49).

• but you must not eat: This rule is given in the same way as Israel’s Ten Commandments (see Exodus 20:1–17; Deuteronomy 5:6–21). The Lord included law and obedience in his covenant with humanity.

• the knowledge of good and evil: See study note on 2:9.

• you will surely die: Disobedience would bring immediate spiritual death (loss of relationship with God) and eventual physical death (see 3:22–23; Ecclesiastes 12:6–7).

• It is not good: This is God's first negative comment about an otherwise good creation (1:31). The Lord God is like a father finding a bride for his son (compare chapter 24).

• The solution for the man's need is a helper who is perfect for him. She is his ideal partner. God made her in the same image of God (1:26–27), gave her the same mission (1:28; 2:15), and gave her the same rule (2:17). The man cannot achieve his purpose alone.

Human creation was the most important part of chapter 1, and human intimacy is the highlight of chapter 2. God's focus on mutual support and companionship among humans is unique in ancient Near Eastern writings.

to see what he would name each one: Following God's example (1:5, 8, 10), the man named each creature. By doing this, he showed his authority over creation (1:26, 28).

• Adam recognized the woman as his "suitable helper" (2:20). He celebrated their unity through poetry and song, focusing on their connection, not their differences (compare 29:14).

• "she shall be called ‘woman,’ for out of man she was taken": Adam understood their connection (see Ephesians 5:28–29). Earlier, Adam looked at the animals but did not find a suitable partner. This evaluation is very different!

• Marriage between a man and a woman is not only a human idea. It comes from the natural order.

• a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife: Marriage involves shifting loyalty from parents to a spouse.

• they will become one flesh: Marriage and its commitments make it the most basic covenant among people. Marriage is a powerful image of Israel’s covenant with God (Hosea 2:14–23) and of Christ’s relationship to the Church (Ephesians 5:22–32). God designed marriage to be a permanent, exclusive relationship between a man and a woman. The family it creates is the foundation of human society.

both naked: Before the first humans disobeyed God (chapter 3), being naked showed innocence and trust. After this, it came to show vulnerability and shame (see 9:22–23; Leviticus 18:1–23; Isaiah 47:3). Shame is more than embarrassment. It can include being exposed, mistreated, or humiliated (see Deuteronomy 28:48; Isaiah 58:7; James 2:15–16).