The Lost World of Adam and Eve Read Online Free PDF Page A

the earth, the sea, and all that is in them.” This verse figures prominently in discussions of the six days of Genesis 1 and what happened in them.
    When we look carefully at the context in Exodus 20:8-11, we learn that for six days people are to “do” ( ʿ āśâ ) all their work, and on the seventh day they are not supposed to “do” ( ʿ āśâ ) any of their work. We could therefore plausibly conclude that the reason given in the text is that God “did” his work in the six days of Genesis 1. The heavens, earth and sea are his work. In fact, Exodus 20 is alluding to Genesis 2:2-3, where it is indicated that on the seventh day God completed the work (same Hebrew word translated “work” in Ex 20) that he had been “doing” ( ʿ āśâ ). Then, most significantly, we are told what that work was in Genesis 2:3: the work of creating ( bārā ʾ ) that he had “done” ( ʿ āśâ ). In Exodus 20:11, God is doing his work, and that work is the creating described in Genesis 2:3. Bārā ʾ is what God “does.” Bārā ʾ is associated with order and functions, and this is what God did.
    If we substitute the verb “do” into all the verses in Genesis 1 that appear in translations as “make,” the result is not a good English idiom (“God did two great lights”). However, other options are readily available. There are numerous places where NIV chooses to translate ʿ āśâ as “provide” (18x) or “prepare” (46x). Genesis 1 might be read quite differently if we read “God prepared two great lights” or “God provided two great lights.” Such renderings would be no less “literal.” Perhaps a way to grasp the general sense of ʿ āśâ is to understand that it reflects some level of causation. (Note, for example, verses like Gen 50:20 and Amos 3:6.) 8 To say it another way, causation at any level can be expressed by this verb. 9
    Other interesting usages of the verb include the following:
The phrase ʿ āśâ nepeš can mean “to take people under your care” (Gen 12:5; cf. Eccles 2:8).
For the midwives who defied pharaoh, God provided families ( ʿ āśâ bāttîm , Ex 1:21).
The Israelites are to celebrate the Sabbath from generation to generation (Ex 31:16; cf. Ex 34:22; Num 9:4-14; etc.).
Responsibilities are assigned to the Levites (Num 8:26).
Priests are appointed (1 Kings 12:31).
The phrase ʿ āśâ šālôm means “to establish order” (Job 25:2; cf. Is 45:7).
    In Genesis 1:26, God determines to “make” ( ʿ āśâ ) humankind in his own image. This is an important statement, but we should realize that it does not pertain to what he does uniquely for just the first human(s). The Bible is clear in numerous places that God “makes” ( ʿ āśâ ) each one of us (Job 10:8-9; 31:15; Ps 119:73; 139:15; Prov 22:2; Is 27:11; 43:7).
    Finally, when we examine the direct objects used with the verb ʿ āś â , we find many examples where they are not material:
God makes the Israelites (Deut 32:6, 15; Ps 149:2; Hos 8:14) and the nations (Ps 86:9).
God made ( ʿ āśâ ) the moon to mark seasons (Ps 104:19); 10 cf. lights to govern (Ps 136:7-9).
God made ( ʿ āśâ ) constellations (Job 9:9; Amos 5:8).
The wind was established ( ʿ āśâ ) (Job 28:25).
God makes ( ʿ āśâ ) each day (Ps 118:24).
God makes ( ʿ āśâ ) lightning to accompany the rain (Ps 135:7; Jer 10:13).
    These instances show us that the Hebrew communicators did not have to have a material-manufacturing activity in mind when they used the verb ʿ āśâ .
    We have looked at only two of the main verbs for the activities of creation. As we look at the wide range of creation statements throughout the Bible, we will discover that the biblical communicators often used words that we tend to think of as referring to material manufacturing for addressing that which is not material, specifically, for cosmic ordering:
Formed summer and winter (Ps 74:17)
Created the north and south (Ps 89:12)
Mountains born; world brought forth (Ps