Outline
The first sabbath. (Verse 1-3.)
Particulars about the creation. (Verse 4-7.)
The planting of the garden of Eden. (Verse 8-14.)
Man is placed in it. (Verse 15.)
God’s command. (Verse 16,17.)
The animals named, The making of woman, The Divine institution of marriage. (Verse 18-25.)
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2 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.
[Ex 20:8-11, Ex 31:17 Heb 4:4]
“rested” – being all-powerful, God never tires and therefore never needs to rest; the word rest here is used in the sense of “stop working” – note how this is stated in verse 3.
3 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.
[Ex 16:29, Is 58:13]
[sanctify–to bless or to set apart]
Here we have the first example of something Physical (6 Days of Creation) being followed by something Spiritual (1 Day of Rest). This is a theme you will see over and over again throughout the pages of the bible. We as Christians must work for the night is coming when no work is done. It is only after we labor in this life that we get to enter into His rest.
You may have noticed in the Genesis chapter 1 that six times God says, and the evening and the morning were the … day. The thing that should stick out to the person who studies instead of just reads the bible is that as we read about the seventh day in chapter two, the familiar statement is not made concerning the seventh day, that is because the seventh day has no end prophetically speaking.
The seventh day is a picture of the Millennial Kingdom. During the Millennial Kingdom the Messiah will be reigning on earth as King of kings and Lord of Lords. And because the seventh day doesn’t include that statement it is also a sign that his reign will be eternal, for after the Millennial Kingdom reaches the end of it’s first thousand years, then time as we know it shall be done away with.
God mentions the Kingdom as initially lasting 1,000 years in Revelation 20:2-7 because mankind must go through the dispensation of the Kingdom and allow for all of the saved and lost including the Devil to be judged at the Great White Throne before we all move into eternity future (or the dispensation of the fullness of times) Ephesians 1:10.
there are some today who insist that we must keep the sabbath and that worshiping on Sunday is of the devil. These folks talk about how the keeping of the sabbath is one of the ten commandments and then point to the verses in the New Testament that urge us to keep God’s commandments. They insist that we should refrain from work just as the OT Jews had to. Several things should be noted. One of the most fundamental points to remember in understanding your Bible is to keep in mind who is being spoken to. The ten commandments were given to the Jews – see Exodus 20:1-17. Nine of these commandments are repeated in the New Testament on several occasions to the church (eg. Rom. 13:9) with the commandment about the sabbath NEVER repeated in the New Testament to the church. According to Ezekiel 20:12 & 20 & Ex 30:13, the sabbath was a SIGN between God and the Jews – not between God and the church or the Gentiles. Remember, who in the Bible requires signs according to I Corinthians 1:22? According to Nehemiah 9:14, no one knew about this matter of the sabbath before it was revealed by God to the nation of Israel through Moses. No mention is ever made of Adam, Noah, Abraham, or anyone else that lived before Moses keeping the sabbath. The sabbath command did not concern worship, but resting – it was a special sign between Israel and God that finds its origin (but not its institution) in the verses before us. God’s command to the NT believer with regard to the sabbath is found in Colossians 2:16-17.
Creation Of Man
4 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,
[Gen 1:1, Ps 90:1-2]
Notice that the generations of the Heavens and of the Earth are recorded here. Nowhere is there any mention of millions or billions of years. The only reference to a time period is the word Day, a 24 hour period.
5 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.
[Gen 1:12]
6 But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.
[Ps 65:9]
Most people have read over these verses many times without actually studying them and are surprised when someone mentions that just prior to the Flood it had never rained anywhere on the whole Planet. Sadly that is the problem today with most Christians who read their Bibles, they read them, but they don’t study them.
Proverbs 25:2 Says, It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.
God wants us to search the Scriptures as the Bereans did in Acts 17:10-11.
7 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.
[Gen 7:22, 1st Cor 15:45]
Much ado has been made by the Liberals in reference to this verse. They doubt the literalness of Hell and teach the Annihilation Doctrine that is so popular with the Seventh Day Adventist and the Jehovah’s Witnesses.
The soul is something that lives on forever. We are just a bunch of flesh and bones until life is place into us by God and then we become a living soul. Sadly, many are inching closer to this trendy doctrine by denying that Hell has any literal flames (Billy Graham switched to this position later in his life). Many today say that Hell is only the absence of God and His light.
The pro-abortion supporters in the church cling on this verse to say that life begins at the first breath, but they are comparing apples and oranges here. While Adam was the first living creation, a child receives life at conception.
Study Question
what are the three parts of man according to I Thessalonians 5:23?
8 And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.
[Gen 3:10 Gen 3:24, Gen 4:16, Is 51:3]
9 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.
[Ezek 31:8 Gen 3:22, Rev 2:7 Rev 22:2, Rev 22:14]
In the midst of the garden were two trees, not one! One of them we know a lot about, but the tree of life we hear very little about. The tree of life is a very important tree, for if a person were to eat of this tree they would have lived forever in the state they were in at the time that they ate of it.
Adam and Eve would have become eternal sinners, unable to receive salvation. However, God in His omniscience protected Adam and Eve from partaking of this tree by His actions in chapter three.
10 And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.
[Ps 46:4]
[river-flowed]
11 The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold;
[Gen 25:18]
12 And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
[onyx-beryl]
13 And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia.
[is 18:1]
[whole land of Ethiopia = “cush”]
14 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.
[Gen 15:18, Dan 10:4]
[Hiddekel-Tigris, Assyria-Asshur]
People have been trying to find this Garden of Eden for six thousand years. Many have tried to find it so that they might partake of the Tree of Life and live forever. Try as they will, they will never find it, because it now resides in heaven.
Revelation 2:7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.
The Garden of Eden along with all of these rivers mentioned were washed away in the universal flood a few short chapters later.
While we still have a river called the Euphrates. It could not possibly be in the exact same location throughout its length so as to help anyone figure out the exact spot of the Garden of Eden.
15 And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
[is 51:3]
[the man-Adam,dress-Cultivate]
16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
[Gen 3:2-3]
note that “God commanded the man” – it is the man’s responsibility to teach his wife – I Corinthians 14:35
17 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.
[Deut 8:2]
note that the penalty for disobedience to God’s one command was certain death
Adam and Eve began life in the state of innocence they were not perfect! They were not born in sin as each one of us are today, they were not born, they were created. They are the only two people that didn’t have bellybuttons, and sin had not yet corrupted them. God had created Adam (mankind) to live forever.
We will look at these two trees in the following chapter. Notice the penalty for disobedience to the only rule God had placed upon Man, sudden death, on the very day the commandment was broken. No plea bargaining, or lengthy trials here.
18 And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
[Deut 3:18, Matt 3:8]
[meet-proper, fitting, suitable, becoming, qualified or convenient, fit]
The words help meet literally means a helper fit just for that person. Everyone has a perfect help meet meant for them by God. We often do not try to be a help to our spouse and help them to achieve everything God has intended for them.
19 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.
[Adam-the man]
20 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.
[Gen 15:12]
[gave-called, meet-proper, fitting, suitable, becoming, qualified or convenient, fit]
21 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;
[Gen 15:12, 1 San 26:12]
[ribs-sides]
22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
[Gen 3:20, Prov 18:22, Heb 13:4]
[made-builded]
23 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.
[Gen 29:14, Judges 9:2, 2nd Sam 5:1, 2nd Sam 19:12, Eph 5:30]
[now-at last this one]
24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
[Mark 10:6-8]
Verse 24 quoted 4 times in the NT – Matthew 19:5; Mark 10:7; I Corinthians 6:16; and in Ephesians 5:31
25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
Many people wonder why the Bible says that a man shall leave his father and mother and cleave unto his wife if Adam did not have a father or mother. Moses was writing to the nation of Israel teaching them that the woman was taken out of the man and that they (Man and Woman) reunite as one in the institution of marriage.
It is vitally important that believers (and non-believers as well) realize why during a marriage ceremony the Bride wears white (It is a symbol of her virginity). If they want a biblical marriage, then they should both have saved themselves for one another. The Bible declares that two become one flesh (married) when they consummate.
If everyone had to marry the first person they slept with there would be a lot less sleeping around. Why does the Father give away the Bride at a wedding? Because, contrary to the rebellious culture we live in today, the Bride belongs to the Father until he gives her away as a chaste virgin unto her groom at the altar.
There is no spiritual significance in giving the Bride away if she has already given herself away to others or even to her potential groom. We have come so far from the real meaning of marriage today that what I have just written will sound foreign to many of my readers.
2 Corinthians 11:2 For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710
Verse 1-3 – After six days, God ceased from all works of creation. In miracles, he has overruled nature, but never changed its settled course, or added to it. God did not rest as one weary, but as one well pleased. Notice the beginning of the kingdom of grace, in the sanctification, or keeping holy, of the sabbath day. The solemn observing of one day in seven as a day of holy rest and holy work, to God’s honour, is the duty of all to whom God has made known his holy sabbaths. At this time none of the human race were in being but our first parents. For them the sabbath was appointed; and clearly for all succeeding generations also. The Christian sabbath, which we observe, is a seventh day, and in it we celebrate the rest of God the Son, and the finishing the work of our redemption.
Verse 4-7 – Here is a name given to the Creator, “Jehovah.” Where the word “LORD” is printed in capital letters in our English Bibles, in the original it is “Jehovah.” Jehovah is that name of God, which denotes that he alone has his being of himself, and that he gives being to all creatures and things. Further notice is taken of plants and herbs, because they were made and appointed to be food for man. The earth did not bring forth its fruits of itself: this was done by Almighty power. Thus grace in the soul grows not of itself in nature’s soil, but is the work of God. Rain also is the gift of God; it came not till the Lord God caused it. Though God works by means, yet when he pleases he can do his own work without them; and though we must not tempt God in the neglect of means, we must trust God, both in the use and in the want of means. Some way or other, God will water the plants of his own planting. Divine grace comes down like the dew, and waters the church without noise. Man was made of the small dust, such as is on the surface of the earth. The soul was not made of the earth, as the body: pity then that it should cleave to the earth, and mind earthly things. To God we must shortly give an account, how we have employed these souls; and if it be found that we have lost them, though it were to gain the world, we are undone for ever! Fools despise their own souls, by caring for their bodies before their souls.
Verse 8-14 – The place fixed upon for Adam to dwell in, was not a palace, but a garden. The better we take up with plain things, and the less we seek things to gratify pride and luxury, the nearer we approach to innocency. Nature is content with a little, and that which is most natural; grace with less; but lust craves every thing, and is content with nothing. No delights can be satisfying to the soul, but those which God himself has provided and appointed for it. Eden signifies delight and pleasure. Wherever it was, it had all desirable conveniences, without any inconvenience, though no other house or garden on earth ever was so. It was adorned with every tree pleasant to the sight, and enriched with every tree that yielded fruit grateful to the taste and good for food. God, as a tender Father, desired not only Adam’s profit, but his pleasure; for there is pleasure with innocency, nay there is true pleasure only in innocency. When Providence puts us in a place of plenty and pleasure, we ought to serve God with gladness of heart in the good things he gives us. Eden had two trees peculiar to itself.
1. There was the tree of life in the midst of the garden. Of this man might eat and live. Christ is now to us the Tree of life, Revelation 2:7. 22:2. and the Bread of life, John 6:48,51.
2. There was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, so called because there was a positive revelation of the will of God about this tree, so that by it man might know moral good and evil. What is good? It is good not to eat of this tree. What is evil? It is evil to eat of this tree. In these two trees God set before Adam good and evil, the blessing and the curse.
Verse 15 – After God had formed Adam, he put him in the garden. All boasting was thereby shut out. Only he that made us can make us happy; he that is the Former of our bodies, and the Father of our spirits, and none but he, can fully provide for the happiness of both. Even in paradise itself man had to work. None of us were sent into the world to be idle. He that made our souls and bodies, has given us something to work with; and he that gave us this earth for our habitation, has made us something to work upon. The sons and heirs of heaven, while in this world, have something to do about this earth, which must have its share of their time and thoughts; and if they do it with an eye to God, they as truly serve him in it, as when they are upon their knees. Observe that the husbandman’s calling is an ancient and honourable calling; it was needful even in paradise. Also, there is true pleasure in the business God calls us to, and employs us in. Adam could not have been happy if he had been idle: it is still God’s law, He that will not work has no right to eat, 2nd Thessalonians 3:10.
Verse 16,17 – Let us never set up our own will against the holy will of God. There was not only liberty allowed to man, in taking the fruits of paradise, but everlasting life made sure to him upon his obedience. There was a trial appointed of his obedience. By transgression he would forfeit his Maker’s favour, and deserve his displeasure, with all its awful effects; so that he would become liable to pain, disease, and death. Worse than that, he would lose the holy image of God, and all the comfort of his favour; and feel the torment of sinful passions, and the terror of his Maker’s vengeance, which must endure for ever with his never dying soul. The forbidding to eat of the fruit of a particular tree was wisely suited to the state of our first parents. In their state of innocence, and separated from any others, what opportunity or what temptation had they to break any of the ten commandments? The event proves that the whole human race were concerned in the trial and fall of our first parents. To argue against these things is to strive against stubborn facts, as well as Divine revelation; for man is sinful, and shows by his first actions, and his conduct ever afterwards, that he is ready to do evil. He is under the Divine displeasure, exposed to sufferings and death. The Scriptures always speak of man as of this sinful character, and in this miserable state; and these things are true of men in all ages, and of all nations.
Verse 18-25 – Power over the creatures was given to man, and as a proof of this he named them all. It also shows his insight into the works of God. But though he was lord of the creatures, yet nothing in this world was a help meet for man. From God are all our helpers. If we rest in God, he will work all for good. God caused deep sleep to fall on Adam; while he knows no sin, God will take care that he shall feel no pain. God, as her Father, brought the woman to the man, as his second self, and a help meet for him. That wife, who is of God’s making by special grace, and of God’s bringing by special providence, is likely to prove a help meet for a man. See what need there is, both of prudence and prayer in the choice of this relation, which is so near and so lasting. That had need to be well done, which is to be done for life. Our first parents needed no clothes for covering against cold or heat, for neither could hurt them: they needed none for ornament. Thus easy, thus happy, was man in his state of innocency. How good was God to him! How many favours did he load him with! How easy were the laws given to him! Yet man, being in honour, understood not his own interest, but soon became as the beasts that perish.